--- title: "Custom Bumpers and Racks in West Covina" description: "Receiver bumpers, cargo carriers, swing outs, roof racks and ladder racks built to the vehicle and mounted into structure." canonical: https://ocrv.xyz/services/custom-fabrication/custom-bumpers-racks/ business: "OCRV Center" phone: "(949) 799-3387" address: "23281 La Palma Ave, Yorba Linda, CA 92887" market_served: "West Covina, California" --- # Custom Bumpers and Racks in West Covina OCRV Center designs and welds receiver bumpers, cargo carriers, spare tire swing outs, roof racks and ladder racks for West Covina RV, van and truck owners at our Yorba Linda shop. Every rack ties into chassis frame or roof rafters, gets coated, and is load checked before you drive it home. **Ballpark range.** $1,000 to $10,000 and up. Ranges are planning figures, not a quote. Final numbers come from a written estimate on your vehicle. ## Why factory RV bumpers give up under a rack Most factory rear bumpers on motorhomes and travel trailers are square tube with thin wall, welded to short brackets that tie into the rear body structure. They were designed to hold a sewer hose, a step and a license plate. They were not designed for a cantilevered load hanging 30 inches behind the bumper face and bouncing on every expansion joint on the 60. The failure sequence is predictable. First the welds at the mounting ears develop hairline cracks. Then the bumper starts to sag visibly at one end. Then the fiberglass rear cap begins cracking at the corner radius because the bumper is transferring load into the body instead of into the chassis. By the time an owner calls, there are usually two repairs: the bumper and the cap. Trailer tongues have their own version of this. Owners mount a generator box or a dual propane rack to the A frame, then wonder why the coupler area is fatiguing. Every pound out on the tongue multiplies against the axles and changes how the trailer tracks. A rack that carries weight forward of the coupler needs to be designed with that in mind, not just welded on where there is room. ## Receiver bumpers, cargo carriers and spare tire swing outs A fabricated receiver bumper starts at the chassis frame rails. We build extensions that tie directly to the rails, gusset them, and carry the bumper assembly off that structure so the rear body sees no load at all. The receiver tube is sized to the intended use, two inch for most carrier work, and positioned at a height that clears a driveway apron on the way out of a South Hills cul de sac. Cargo carriers get built as a deck with a perimeter rail and a tie down pattern, not as a flat tray. A perimeter rail stops gear from walking off, and integrated D rings mean the load gets strapped rather than bungeed. On carriers that block the rear camera or the license plate we relocate both and wire the plate light back in properly. Spare tire swing outs are the most engineering intensive of the three. The pivot has to be rated for the tire weight plus dynamic load, the latch has to hold under vibration without rattling, and the whole assembly has to swing clear of the entry door and the ladder. We use a greasable spindle pivot and a positive latch rather than a pin, because a pin gets lost on the first trip. - Receiver tube sized to the actual load, tied to chassis frame rails - Deck carriers with perimeter rail and integrated D ring tie downs - Camera and license plate relocation with correct lighting wired back in - Greasable spindle pivots and positive latches on swing out assemblies ## Roof racks, ladder racks and solar mounting frames Roof work is where aluminum earns its cost. A steel roof rack on a Class C adds meaningful weight above the center of gravity and makes the coach feel worse in crosswind on the 57. Aluminum extrusion and tube gets the same strength at a fraction of the mass, and it does not stain the membrane when a coating chips. Layout matters as much as construction. The rack has to clear AC shrouds, vents, the antenna, the plumbing vent stacks and any existing solar. It has to leave a walkable path if the roof is rated to walk on. And the crossbars need to land over rafters, which means finding the rafters first rather than spacing the mounts evenly and hoping. For solar specifically, the frame carries the panels and the wiring path is designed at the same time. Panels get standoffs that allow airflow underneath, because a panel laid flat against a hot roof loses output. Wiring runs to a sealed gland or a combiner box rather than through an open hole, and the run down to the charge controller is planned so it does not cross a slide roof or an awning rail. Ladder racks on cargo vans and work trucks are a different animal. Those carry dynamic load from someone pulling a 24 foot extension ladder off the side, so the uprights get gusseted at the base and the load rollers get positioned where a person can actually reach them. We build to the way the crew works, not to a catalog height. ## Load ratings, tongue weight and where the numbers come from Every part we build gets a stated capacity, and that number comes from the weakest element in the chain, not from the tubing. A two inch receiver welded to a heavy bumper is still limited by the frame extension, the gussets and the fasteners tying it all together. We size the whole assembly to a target and tell you what that target is. On the vehicle side there are two numbers that matter more than the rack rating. Gross vehicle weight rating tells you what the whole vehicle can weigh. Rear gross axle weight rating tells you what the rear axle can carry, and that is the one owners blow through first, because everything hanging behind the rear axle levers weight onto it and lifts weight off the front. A 200 pound carrier at the back of a long overhang can put well over 200 pounds on the rear axle. So before a heavy carrier gets built, we talk about what actually goes on it and what is already loaded in the vehicle. If the numbers do not work, we say so. Sometimes the answer is a lighter design in aluminum. Sometimes it is moving the load to a tow vehicle or a trailer instead. That conversation is cheaper before the build than after it. - Capacity rated on the full assembly, not on the tubing alone - Rear axle rating reviewed against the load and the overhang - Aluminum designs offered where weight is the limiting factor - Honest recommendation when the load belongs somewhere other than the bumper ## Finish options and what holds up in inland sun Textured black powder coat is the default for bumpers, carriers and racks. It goes on thicker than spray, it takes gravel impact without chipping to bare metal, and it resists the ultraviolet load that inland Los Angeles County delivers from April through October. Textured surfaces also hide the scuffs that come from loading and unloading gear, which a gloss finish will show immediately. Spray applied bedliner texture is the pick for anything that gets stepped on or dragged across: carrier decks, step assemblies, rock guards on the front of a toy hauler. It is thicker still, it can be reapplied in place if a section gets torn up, and it adds grip underfoot when wet. When a part is visible in a body line and needs to disappear, it goes through the paint department. Color is read off the vehicle rather than pulled from a code, sprayed over epoxy primer and sealer, and cleared. That is what we do on bay doors, valance panels and bumper covers that sit inside a painted surface. Aluminum roof hardware usually gets clear coat or is left mill finish, since nothing up there is visible from the ground anyway. ## Frequently asked questions ### What does a custom RV receiver bumper cost compared to a bolt on kit? A fabricated bumper costs more than a universal bolt on kit and less than the repair bill when a bolt on kit tears out of a rear cap. The range on this page reflects everything from a simple ladder rack up to a full receiver bumper with a swing out and powder coat. Design time and finish drive most of the spread. We write the number on your vehicle after measuring, not over the phone. ### Can you add a hitch receiver to a motorhome that never had one? Usually yes. The determining factor is whether the chassis frame rails extend far enough back to build off, and what is in the way once you get there. On many coaches the rails end well forward of the rear cap, so the job becomes frame extensions gusseted back to the rails. We check exhaust routing, spare tire location, the generator bay and the tank straps before quoting, because those are what turn a straightforward install into a complicated one. ### Will a roof rack void anything or cause problems at resale? A well built roof rack that is mounted to rafters and properly sealed is generally seen as an improvement, particularly if it carries solar. What hurts at resale is the opposite: mounting feet screwed into bare membrane, sealant smeared over holes, and stains running down the sidewall from a rusting steel frame. Buyers and inspectors look at the roof first. Build quality up there is visible. ### How much weight can I put on a custom cargo carrier behind my Class A? The rack itself can be built to carry a great deal. The limit is almost always the rear axle rating and the overhang, not the steel. A carrier mounted several feet behind the rear axle multiplies its load onto that axle while unloading the front, which affects steering feel and braking. We calculate that with you before the build and give you a stated capacity that reflects the vehicle, not just the part. ### Do you build racks for vans and pickups or only for RVs? Both. Cargo van ladder racks, interior shelving frames, roof platforms on camper van conversions, headache racks and bed racks on pickups and flatbeds, and equipment mounting on work trucks are all regular work here. The approach is the same: measure on the vehicle, find real structure to mount to, build it, coat it, and install it with hardware that will not back out. --- OCRV Center, 23281 La Palma Ave, Yorba Linda, CA 92887. Phone (949) 799-3387. All work is performed in shop at the Yorba Linda facility. We do not run mobile, roadside or fleet route service. Ranges are planning figures, not a quote. Final numbers come from a written estimate on your vehicle.