Rhino-Rack Pioneer Platform, RCL & RLT600 Legs and Pioneer Accessories Install & Review

Hey rob here for Quadratec.com. Today we're taking a look at the Rhino-Rack Pioneer Platform that I have installed here on my Gladiator. You may remember last time we installed the Rhino-Rack Backbone system on the hard top of my Gladiator. If you want to get more information or watch the step-by-step installation instructions for the Backbone system you can click the info button to watch that video now. Today specifically I want to talk about Rhino-Rack's all-new second generation Pioneer Platform. Now while I am going to be focusing specifically on the size platform that I have installed on my Gladiator here if you're looking at one of the larger platforms for maybe your Wrangler or a different Jeep vehicle well the Pioneer Platforms are all going to share the same great features with of course just slightly different dimensions. The size of this platform is 48 inches from back to front and 56 inches from side to side. That size is very important and makes it a great fit for the Gladiator because it still allows us to remove and install the freedom panels without the need to unload or remove the platform. First the Pioneer Platform is constructed from durable and lightweight aluminum extrusions that feature a slightly textured black powder coat finish along with fiberglass reinforced nylon corners. While there is some assembly of your Pioneer Platform required just like we saw with the Backbone system Rhino-Rack really goes the extra mile at making that job as easy and painless as they possibly can even going as far as including a torque limiting tool to ensure that every fastener on this platform is torqued to the appropriate specification. One other thing I love is that they even print a ruler on the bottom of each of the side extrusions and with your specific vehicle fitting instructions from the Rhino-Rack website it makes setting up your crossbars to the exact location needed a painless procedure and they're going to be exactly spot on for the mounting system on your vehicle like the Backbone system I have here on my Gladiator. Now before we move up and talk more about the platform let's talk about the mounting legs. First you will install the mounting feet onto the platform before you install it on top of the Backbone system. I currently have the RCL low profile mounting feet installed on the platform here and they're great because as you can see they keep that platform nice and tight to the top of the vehicle with those RCL mounting legs installed we're gaining about three three and a quarter inches over the highest point of the Gladiator's top to the top surface of that Pioneer Platform, that is before we start installing additional accessories and cargo on top of the platform itself. Now those feet are designed to be permanently or semi-permanently mounted because you will simply bolt them to the Backbone castings using the hardware that came with the Backbone system and then cover those mounting points with these keyed cover plates to keep your platform secure. The other option you have is the RLT 600 quick release mounting legs. Now these legs will stand about an inch and a half taller than the low profile legs but what you'll gain is the ability to quickly squeeze those tabs and remove the platform from the base. This base will stay installed on top of the Backbone casting here on top of your hard top but as you can see removing the platform and then reinstalling it later is a very quick and easy procedure. So if you know that you're going to be removing and installing your platform often those RLT 600 mounting legs may be the right choice for you. If once you install the platform it's going to be a fairly permanent piece of equipment on your Gladiator those low profile RCL mounting legs may be the better fit for you. Moving back up to the platform itself as you can see the Pioneer Platform is really just a very versatile mounting point that gives you basically endless options for bolting different types of cargo accessories, recovery equipment, lighting or really whatever your imagination can come up with to both the top and the underside of that platform. It features these channels that are located in each of the extrusions that allow you to quickly slide in and mount different types of accessories on not only the top surface but on the under surface as well and this all new Pioneer Platform also features some additional extrusions that we didn't see on the previous model up here on the front and rear extrusions. One other thing I really like that they've done on these fiberglass reinforced nylon corners the bottom panels are actually removable. There’s three screws holding them in place once you've removed that cover plate well it's going to reveal some wiring channels that are built into these extrusions that's going to make it really easy to have a nice clean and professional looking wiring job if you're going to be running some lights either on top or below this Pioneer Platform you can quickly run those wires through the channels. There's some knockout points in here there's even some templates printed on the inside to allow you to drill out to mount an external switch right here on your platform so that you can activate your lights from outside of your vehicle. As you can see i've got quite a few different accessories already mounted to the Pioneer Platform here let's start with one of the first things I installed here and that's this grab handle it makes a great place to grab onto when you're climbing up to access any of the extra cargo or recovery equipment you have stored on top of the platform. It's also a great tie-down point where you can quickly run a ratchet strap through to secure different pieces of gear on top of the platform. Next up back in the corner speaking of ratchet straps as you can see i've got a set of their Rhino-Rack cargo corners installed and they're just going to help to locate maybe pieces of luggage or boxes that we want to install maybe a cooler on top of the rack it's going to help to keep that load from shifting around and you can simply tie it in place using one of Rhino-Rack's rapid straps that are really nice strap that make it quick and easy to pull that strap cinch it down tight and then they even include little pieces of velcro stitch right to the strap itself to make securing any extra strap a very simple job. You can see I've got some recovery boards secured here with their flat recovery board mounting system. It's two individual pieces which means it's going to be compatible with multiple different size and type recovery boards available on the market. I’ve currently got some ActionTrax installed here. As you can see it's a simple thumb screw that's going to allow you quick and easy access to those recovery boards when you need them and then you can simply reinstall them back and secure them down in place with those thumb screws. Now on the other side of that you'll see I also have some RotoPax installed on top of the Pioneer Platform using the RotoPax mounting kit. You will need to add on the RotoPax mount itself the mounting kit is going to give you an easy way to bolt that to the top surface of the Pioneer Platform. Finally closest to me I've got one of Rhino-Rack’s newest accessories for the Pioneer Platform, their brand new Stow It system. It's a quick release, quick closing, ratcheting and lockable storage system that allows you to bring along items ranging anywhere from 10 to 50 millimeters in diameter so you can see I've got the Rhino-Rack spade securely stored in the Stow It here. You can bring along your favorite axe or maybe even a fishing rod inside the jaws. We’ve got a great soft rubber gripping surface along with these flaps that help keep your items secure without marring or damaging your items it is compatible with Rhino-Rack’s universal locking system and features multiple different mounting points to give you some flexibility at how you mount it to your Pioneer Platform. If you guys want to get more information or to purchase a Pioneer Platform, Backbone System or any of the different accessories for the platform you can click the info button to head over to quadratec.com. Of course if you like these videos and you haven't already do me a huge favor go ahead and hit that thumbs up button don't forget to hit that subscribe button as well as the notification icon so be sure to catch all of our latest videos and as always if you ever have any comments or questions about any of the components that we went over today you can always leave those for me down in the comment section below or contact us directly at any of the options on the screen. ‘Till next time, I'm Rob, I'll see you out on the trail!