Minitruck High Rack

I'm building this rack for Stevarino. It is aimed more at being used to move people more than to hunt out of, which is why we decided to put it down lower in the truck to get them out of the wind.

The Truck



Materials to mount the rack to the bed. It has to be removable because to get to the motor you have to take out a piece at the front of the bed.





I welded the washers and nuts onto the bottom flat bar to make it a little easier to get off and on:



Mounted up





Tacked up the main part of the seat and part of the footrests:



More to come tomorrow

Just finished mine still have to get seats upholstered and bolt it down. I put a grill guard on mine as well.

What is the measurement on yours between the front leg of the actual seat to the front leg of the front grab bar? I'm thinking that I need to back mine off the cab a few inches, the foot area looks a little narrow.

Its 12 "

looking good man

Everything is welded up and hit with the flapper wheel

Looking good

That looks good, I am putting a school bus seat on mine.

looking good

Looking good guys. I need a removable one for my gator.

nice

PM me if you're looking to get one built, I can do them for as cheap as $300 depending on how simple you want it.

Look'n good man.. Can't wait to see the final product.. Hopefully i can teach one of my buddies to drive from the right side so i can enjoy riding on the rack.

Where did you guys find these mini trucks? They look like they are stout and probably pretty quiet. I may have to get one if they are reasonable.

Do a serch on texas mini trucks.

There are dealers everywhere. Large one in El Campo at Lamco Feeders location on hwy 59. They come in 2wd, 4wd, single cab, extended cab, 4 dr, manual or auto tranny.

Look on Craigslist.. in the DFW and Houston area from time to time.. Several in east tx, LA, AR, and OK craigslist.. Pretty cheap compared to a UTV.. 3-5k on avg..

Things to look for:
- NO RUST! these were used in Japan, so salty air can cause major rust
-4x4 is a must.. back end is really light
- milege clock will roll and begin at 0, so check for normal wear and tear..

Most i have found are mid to late 80's, so somethign of that age will show sign of wear on the interior and exterior..

THis one has a heater, 4x4 22k miles and they say it will get 40-50 mpg..i think the motor is around a 600-700, but can't recall..

When looking at the side by sides, this just seemed like the way to go for me since it is enclosed, has a heater, and a little cheaper..

Nice ride, I want one bad they look legit!

Are they street legal? Also are they hard to get parts for?


Thanks Jace

Parts are all over the internet.. very easy to buy.. especially lift kits, wheels/tires, and all the fancy ad-ons.

Not street legal in TX.. From what i've read, they are in OK but under 55 mph, so no interstate... but thats Okie for you.

There is a place in Michigan that can get them new now. Automatics are the way to go also and he has them. He can also get parts. Another thing to look as where the front tire is positioned. If it is in front of the door it makes getting in and out much easier. If the tire is under the front door it makes it tougher to get in and out if you are taller. Also Suzuki makes a stronger built frame and body but their 4x4 lacks power. Diahtsu makes a stronger 4x4 but cheaper made body and not built as well. Also look at where you radiator is. A lot are under the passengers seat and it gets lots of off road dust and debris. If you do lots of off road driving be aware that you can have a stick or stalk flip up and knock off the serpentine belt. I reccomend a cheap skid plate.

I'm glad Steve didn't need his truck back for a while, it seemed like every time I started working on it the phone rang and something else popped up! Either way it's done now and ready for paint.

The ladder was a little tricky, had to be removable so that the side could fold down on the bed relatively easily. It didn't help that my bandsaw blade took a dump, had to finish it with the chopsaw which is a pain in the azz when trying to mitre cut.

I would have made the slanted braces on the ladder come out all the way to the corner, that sharp corner gives you something bad to fall on!

Are you talking about the 90 degree corner where the ladder starts going towards the ground?

yeah, if you would have made the angled piece come out all the way to the corner, then if you fall you would have slipped off the side and down, now your gonna leave your nadz hanging on that corner.

That ladder is removable I couldn't take it all the way out to the corner

Painted up and ready to be dropped off!





Anybody interested in one shoot me a PM, with my basically nonexistent overhead I can give you a hell of a deal on one.

looks really good

Man that looks good, I have a Mitsubishi mini truck and have thought about something like that on mine.

It looks good, but really the only time I see it being a hazard is when the ladar is in. Which its kinda useless without the lader.

I must be having a typical monday, I don't understand what you're talking about at all lol. You were referring to the 90 degree edge on the top of the ladder correct?

Looks great. Can't wait for you to get it to the lease. Your gonna need some cushion stevarino on out bumpy azz roads.

I couldnt be happier with the outcome.. I really appreciate the good work Ramball!

Yes the part that bolts in. If the diagonal brace would come all the way out to the point it would in my mind be much safer/fall friendly. Its not a big deal, just an observation.

Look good Stevarino.Good job Ramball

Gotcha. If it would have worked that way, I would have done it. But, that gussett could only go out to the end of the 1.5" saddle at the furthest, the corner of the ladder would still be like 3" out or something like that.

That does get me thinking though, and I think on the next one I might actually mitre cut the ladder and have two angles on it to cut down on the sharp edge. (If that even makes any sense, its so damn hard to discuss designs without standing in front of something!)

Here is a picture of the high rack on our mini