Once we got the Gobi roof rack installed, the next step was to mount some storage containers to the rack. I wanted to find boxes that were waterproof, lockable, and sturdy enough to sit on. There are obviously a lot of options for boxes, but only a few that met those criteria.

With unlimited money, my first choice would have been Pelican cases. They’re completely waterproof, crushproof, and dustproof. They’re definitely the best quality you can get, but I just couldn’t rationalize the price. There are some knock-offs out there too, which are a little cheaper, but they’re still really expensive.

Then I discovered the Plano Sportsman 1919. They’re not quite as sturdy as the Pelicans, but they’re more than sturdy enough for my purpose, and they’re about 1/20 of the cost per volume. They’re not perfectly waterproof as-is, but after adding some weatherstripping, I have never had any moisture or dust get in. These boxes ended up being perfect, for a small fraction of what I would have spent on Pelican cases.

Waterproofing and Mounting

If I wasn’t using them on top of a moving car, they’d probably be waterproof enough without any modification– the lid overlaps the top of the box enough that normal rain wouldn’t get in. But since there’s not a perfect seal, dust and moisture would definitely get in eventually up on the rack with wind and heavy rain. So to fully waterproof the box, I bought some D-profile, 5/16″ wide, 1/4″ thick EDPM weatherstripping and applied it inside the channel of the lids of both boxes. I used some superglue as well, since the adhesive on the weatherstripping didn’t seem strong enough (though I didn’t test it).

Rather than using tie-down straps to hold the boxes down, I decided to bolt them down. That way they’re easier to open and harder to steal. The only downside is that you can’t take them down to get things out, but when they’re full they’re really too heavy for that anyway. To attach them, I used 3 U-bolts per box in a triangle, with 2 washers and 2 nuts per U-bolt, positioned with the ends up, so the nuts can’t be loosened from outside the box. To locate the holes in the box, I first positioned the bolts where I wanted them on the rack, and then used a cardboard template to drill the holes in both boxes to match.

Another nice thing about the Plano boxes is that they’re lockable in 4 places, 1 at each latch. To keep the boxes secure, I bought a couple of different sets of padlocks, but these Brinks padlocks are my favorite. On each box, I put 2 locks on the inside (towards the center of the car), and one lock on the outside. With 3 corners locked, it’s secure enough, but I only have to unlock one outside lock to access the box, and the inside locks act as hinges.

Using the main boxes

We use one of the Plano boxes for all of our cooking and food-related stuff, and the other for tools and camping gear. Check out the details of what we keep in each one here:

The cooking box

The tools and camping box

Front boxes

A while after I installed the Plano boxes, I decided I was not fully utilizing the front “sunroof” section of the rack, so I picked up 2 more boxes. This time, I went with Front Runner Wolf Packs, which are versatile, solid, stackable, and inexpensive.

They’re almost, but not entirely waterproof, since they have holes in the bottom (the holes on the sides do not go through to the inside), and they’re not lockable. Because of this, I don’t use these for anything expensive or sensitive to water or dust. Instead I primarily use them to store things like cleaning supplies and tools. I strap them to the rack (either next to or on top of our folding table) instead of bolting them down, so they can be removed easily. Because they’re so solid and they stack securely, they can double as a great small table (see my coffee kit post for an example), or a wash basin if you plug the holes in the bottom.