Today's project...
I Mounted my Nomadic 270 degree awning today. I ordered it from
Overland vehicle systems it was $750 shipped. I got the front side wall for extra protection too. I think I will have to get the back section in the future too.
While working on it I learned something new about my Tahoe rack mount... It is NOT level with the ground the rear is actually 3/4 inches higher. I custom made my cross overs months ago and when I measured the factory side rail I found the rear is much lower. So when I made up a third crossover for mounting the awning I made it 3/4 in. higher so the awning would be level with the ground.
You can see in this photo the rear section has a much larger gap. My crossovers are wing shaped and too wide for the U clamps supplied with the awning from Overland vehicle systems. If you have standard crossover tubes (I am guessing1 inch to 1.5 inches or around that size) the supplied U clamps should work fine and installation will be quick and easy.
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After the new crossover was welded up and painted it was time to drill them out and mount the supplied L brackets to the awning backing plate. The backing plate is extruded aluminum and a well designed structure very rigid and up to the task of holding things together.
I started by mounting the L brackets to the backing plate spacing them according to my crossbar spacing Then lifted it up and placed it on the crossbars. I used a forklift to hold things in place as I drilled out the crossbars and bolted them in place. With standard cross bars I would just loosely install one of the U clamps on two of the braces to hold things in place. Check my spacing and height and if it all looks good then put the remaining clamps on with red lock tight and mounting would be done...
I mounted the bottom of the awning about an inch above my roof so it would not interfere with opening and closing of the doors.
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With the front wall in place you can make the whole truck disappear from this side and you can see the heavy duty rafters they use too... If you are wondering my swing out tire carrier will clear the pole if I want to close it
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This is completely covering the side of my Tahoe... In the section to the right there is a very large door. Both of these panels can be staked out with poles to extend it giving almost 20 feet of awning coverage.
I can't wait to try this out now... I will be doing a 250 mile off road trip on labor day weekend and this should come in very handy.