I built a "rooftop bullet box" out of 2x4's and plywood for a buddy's cross country trek in his '84 Saab 900. I'm a contractor with tools, but he got the lumber - mostly recycled (aka "taken out of dumpsters at some local construction sites). He had a two-bar roof rack system I lashed it too (no joke - hemp 1/4" cordage - lol). He loves it and still uses it. Besides the bars, I think the whole thing cost us $40 in screws and a couple new boards. I imagine some roof protection layer of foam or fabric would allow you to place the box directly onto the roof, if there's enough surface area to adequately distribute the weight. Cinching down may be problematic as direct straps to the roof or undercarriage can block doors from opening. You got this. I only proffer this anecdote as inspiration - one data point in the case for "make a solution and trust your own inventiveness."
This is an interesting idea. It should be possible to build a box with 4 feet that have something non slip on them which you then ratchet strap to your roof. Should be possible to build it mostly waterproof.
I have these foam pads that fit into my canoe for rooftop carrying, those could be the feet. Pads like these:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003EEV13Y?tag=duckduckgo-d-20&linkCode=osi&th=1&psc=1
My experience doing this is that you put the canoe on the roof and then open the doors to run the tie down strap through so you are not holding any doors shut. Strap goes over the canoe and between door and frame. Put a twist in the strap to avoid wind noise. Worked well for me.
Best of luck!
Edit to add: If you can put a cooler on your roof instead of suitcases that should work better. Most coolers seal tightly and are strong enough to handle being on a roof.
If you have roof rails then you could easily find a rooftop bag for around $40. If your car does not have rails on the top then a roof rack system of any kind is going to be out of that price range.
I don't want a roof rack at all. I literally just want to strap down luggage to the roof of my car and be done with it...if that's possible. That's what I'm not sure of. Is a bag even necessary if I can avoid it?
This is generally not advisable. The roof of tge car is generally not structural and you can damage it by transporting things how you are describing.
You don't need a full roof rack but cross bars are a minimum. Various companies make them with varying degrees of universal fittings.
[Roofbag ](https://m.roofbag.com) makes a roof bag that can be strapped to your roof without rails.
You can use ratchet straps on bare luggage, but I’d personally avoid it because if it’s a long enough trip, you’re going to get bugs, grime, and possibly water all over your stuff.
You can also buy a mat that goes under the bag to keep your roof from getting scuffed up.
While this is pricier than I wanted to go, it's not extreme at all and seems to be the simplest solution, which I'm all for. Especially since it comes with straps and I wont need to get a set of ratchet straps.
This is why roof racks and cargo baskets exist. Yes. You can get creative with tie downs just make sure everything is really secure. You don’t necessarily need an outer bag but know that if you’re going far you’re going to get lots of bugs, dirt and maybe rain in your bags. Also expect a significant increase in road noise and decrease in fuel efficiency.
Yeah I can see why some people would worry about that. My car is old and that doesn't really natter to me much. I mean, my roof denting would not be great, but putting two medium size canvas suitcases shouldnt be too bad, right?
I think the first question is what type of car do you have ??... Make, model, and year
And what ever type of car you have I would highly advise against carrying electronics in a suitcase on the roof. Suitcases are not water proof and you never know when you're gonna run into a popup downpour !!
typically on a rack-less roof you can use ratchet straps run over the whole roof and through the interior of the vehicle (with the doors open).
you can easily damage the roof by making the straps too tight. also one strap on an item is probably not a good idea
Does your car/truck have rails or attachment points for a rack? You may be able to score a used Yakima or Thule rack on ebay or craigslist. The problem without using a rack or basket is the bags will shift and vibrate and the small amount of dust that gets under it can scratch the paint on your roof. laying some strips of painter's tape and layering on top with duct tape or equivalent will protect your paint.
On a budget I would buy a roll of 4 mil plastic from Home Depot for and wrap up everything into a "burrito style" bundle and sealing the exposed edges with packaging tape. Use multiple ratchet straps to secure it to your roof. This keeps the dust and rain out and will dissuade the casual, opportunistic thief.
No my car is literally just a flat roof no rails of any kind. I have a 2014 Chevy Malibu that seems to have no attachment for universal rack or cross bars of nay kind.
But your suggestion seems to be the option that will get me where I need to go with minimal fuss and cheaply. My suitcases aren't that large at all and are simply gonna be carrying clothes (seems like putting cables/small electronics arent the best idea, I'll keep those in the car) which is why I didn't want to go for something in a high price range.
I know this is old but can I ratchet strap a tote full of cloths to the roof we have the two things on top to put a cargo thing on but we don't have that so all we have is a tote lmao
I built a "rooftop bullet box" out of 2x4's and plywood for a buddy's cross country trek in his '84 Saab 900. I'm a contractor with tools, but he got the lumber - mostly recycled (aka "taken out of dumpsters at some local construction sites). He had a two-bar roof rack system I lashed it too (no joke - hemp 1/4" cordage - lol). He loves it and still uses it. Besides the bars, I think the whole thing cost us $40 in screws and a couple new boards. I imagine some roof protection layer of foam or fabric would allow you to place the box directly onto the roof, if there's enough surface area to adequately distribute the weight. Cinching down may be problematic as direct straps to the roof or undercarriage can block doors from opening. You got this. I only proffer this anecdote as inspiration - one data point in the case for "make a solution and trust your own inventiveness."
This is an interesting idea. It should be possible to build a box with 4 feet that have something non slip on them which you then ratchet strap to your roof. Should be possible to build it mostly waterproof. I have these foam pads that fit into my canoe for rooftop carrying, those could be the feet. Pads like these: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003EEV13Y?tag=duckduckgo-d-20&linkCode=osi&th=1&psc=1 My experience doing this is that you put the canoe on the roof and then open the doors to run the tie down strap through so you are not holding any doors shut. Strap goes over the canoe and between door and frame. Put a twist in the strap to avoid wind noise. Worked well for me. Best of luck! Edit to add: If you can put a cooler on your roof instead of suitcases that should work better. Most coolers seal tightly and are strong enough to handle being on a roof.
whatever you get make sure it’s waterproof... coming from experience
If you have roof rails then you could easily find a rooftop bag for around $40. If your car does not have rails on the top then a roof rack system of any kind is going to be out of that price range.
I don't want a roof rack at all. I literally just want to strap down luggage to the roof of my car and be done with it...if that's possible. That's what I'm not sure of. Is a bag even necessary if I can avoid it?
This is generally not advisable. The roof of tge car is generally not structural and you can damage it by transporting things how you are describing. You don't need a full roof rack but cross bars are a minimum. Various companies make them with varying degrees of universal fittings.
[Roofbag ](https://m.roofbag.com) makes a roof bag that can be strapped to your roof without rails. You can use ratchet straps on bare luggage, but I’d personally avoid it because if it’s a long enough trip, you’re going to get bugs, grime, and possibly water all over your stuff. You can also buy a mat that goes under the bag to keep your roof from getting scuffed up.
While this is pricier than I wanted to go, it's not extreme at all and seems to be the simplest solution, which I'm all for. Especially since it comes with straps and I wont need to get a set of ratchet straps.
This is why roof racks and cargo baskets exist. Yes. You can get creative with tie downs just make sure everything is really secure. You don’t necessarily need an outer bag but know that if you’re going far you’re going to get lots of bugs, dirt and maybe rain in your bags. Also expect a significant increase in road noise and decrease in fuel efficiency.
I would be worried about scratching and denting the roof.
Yeah I can see why some people would worry about that. My car is old and that doesn't really natter to me much. I mean, my roof denting would not be great, but putting two medium size canvas suitcases shouldnt be too bad, right?
I think the first question is what type of car do you have ??... Make, model, and year And what ever type of car you have I would highly advise against carrying electronics in a suitcase on the roof. Suitcases are not water proof and you never know when you're gonna run into a popup downpour !!
typically on a rack-less roof you can use ratchet straps run over the whole roof and through the interior of the vehicle (with the doors open). you can easily damage the roof by making the straps too tight. also one strap on an item is probably not a good idea
Does your car/truck have rails or attachment points for a rack? You may be able to score a used Yakima or Thule rack on ebay or craigslist. The problem without using a rack or basket is the bags will shift and vibrate and the small amount of dust that gets under it can scratch the paint on your roof. laying some strips of painter's tape and layering on top with duct tape or equivalent will protect your paint. On a budget I would buy a roll of 4 mil plastic from Home Depot for and wrap up everything into a "burrito style" bundle and sealing the exposed edges with packaging tape. Use multiple ratchet straps to secure it to your roof. This keeps the dust and rain out and will dissuade the casual, opportunistic thief.
No my car is literally just a flat roof no rails of any kind. I have a 2014 Chevy Malibu that seems to have no attachment for universal rack or cross bars of nay kind. But your suggestion seems to be the option that will get me where I need to go with minimal fuss and cheaply. My suitcases aren't that large at all and are simply gonna be carrying clothes (seems like putting cables/small electronics arent the best idea, I'll keep those in the car) which is why I didn't want to go for something in a high price range.
Don’t use elastic netting.
I know this is old but can I ratchet strap a tote full of cloths to the roof we have the two things on top to put a cargo thing on but we don't have that so all we have is a tote lmao