Rhino backbone and pioneer platform - Sealant question

[tkhiem Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close tkhiem]

Hi everyone,
I'm installing a Pioneer platform and backbone system to my 150 tomorrow and have been told that I may also need to apply sealant when installing the backbone.
I'm just wondering if anyone has any experience with this?
Are the butyl patches supplied by Rhino sufficient at sealing all the contact points?
How would one apply sealant? Would anyone recommend any brand?



Edit: I have finished installing the rack and opinions below

[Madfern Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close Madfern]

I installed a Pioneer platform and backbone on my Prado 150 a few weeks ago.

The supplied butyl patches were all stuck together a bit and it was fiddly to separate them. However, they are quite soft and it was not too hard to push them back into shape. I have no concerns about water ingress and driving during some recent downpours has not resulted in any leaks.

The parts of the backbone which bolt to the roof are smaller than the equivalent sections of the original roof rails. Therefore the existing rubber strips which fill the "gutters" are too short. I am a little concerned about loosing them but so far even freeway driving has not moved them. Nevertheless, I might get some black, neutral-cure silicon and fill the gaps around the backbone so it looks a bit more uniform and also keeps the existing rubber strips in place.

[tkhiem Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close tkhiem]

Cheers Madfern for your input.

I finished installing yesterday and found answers to most of my questions and thought I just leave it here for other members to refer to later on.

Installation

I find this is the most frustrating part of having the Backbone system and Pioneer platform.

The instruction isn't hard to understand, but the most difficult part is reaching for those nuts and screws to tighten them up.
Ball-shape Allen key with long shaft and a T handle is a must have tool.
I feel the design of the whole system could still be improved a lot to make installation a bit easier and less margin for errors
The platform is very rigid once done, but to get there, it's a good few hours of trying to reach and fiddling with screws.



Sealing

I asked the guy where I purchased the rack from for his opinions about sealing contact points and he said even he doesn't use the provided butyl patches when he installed these backbones for customers. He said using his own sealant (apparently some sort of silicone) is far better than the patches.

I read somewhere on the forum that Sikaflex automotive sealant is very good for these kinds of job so I went ahead and purchased 1 tube from Bunnings.

After doing the usual stuff i.e making sure no debris in the slot, clean with a rag etc., I applied quite a bit of Sikaflex around the white tube to seal the gap between the white tube and the car's body:




I then applied the butyl patches on top of the dried Sikaflex sealant:



Leave it there for a good 20 minutes before your next step.

[tkhiem Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close tkhiem]

Wind Noise

Wind noise is definitely noticeable at speed 100km/h+. This also depends on wind condition at the time, but I'd say 8/10 of the times, the noise is there. It sounds like one of the windows hasn't been rolled up completely. It's not whistling sound like some has reported, not annoying but the noise is there.

After about 8-10 hours of fiddling with the channel bolts, the installation was finally done. The end result is quite rewarding:

[Pradosaur Member Find all posts View Profile Close Pradosaur]

Thsnks

[axio Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close axio]

Has anyone installed the Rhino wind fairing and did it make a difference?
http://www.rhinorack.com.au/products...30mm-44-_43249

Not keen on dropping 180 clams on something that has little effect on noise

[Pradosaur Member Find all posts View Profile Close Pradosaur]

Don’t have one but not real excited with the prospect of 5 rub marks on the roof where the fairing meets the roof