Solar Panel & Traction Boards Mounted on 80/20 Extrusions

[msiminoff]

I found some 167 Watt Sharp (ND-167U1T) solar panels for sale locally at a very good price. The panels measure 52.3" x 39.1"… a near perfect fit for my 53" wide GFC roof. Score! I’ll be using one of these panels to charge an EcoFlow River 2 Pro power station.

I was also looking for a convenient place to mount my Maxtrax and the roof seemed like the best spot; especially if I could place them right above the rear axle of my Gladiator so I can stand on the tires to easily access the boards.

I used extrusions and mounting brackets from 80/20 to create a mounting rack. The front and rear extrusions are 1" x 1" and the center rail is 1" x 2". The length is exactly 53". The solar panels are secured to the extrusions with 10-32 T-nuts from 80/20, and I tapped & drilled (M10x1.5) directly into the 80/20 extrusions so that the Maxtrax Mounting Pins can be screwed into them. I did have to mill counterbores in the back of the brackets to allow clearance for the 1/4" GFC T-nuts.

The total price for all of the 80/20 parts was $217 ( about ⅓ what three Beef Racks would have cost), plus about $60 for the GFC T-nuts.

-Mark

[antwon412]

Nice. I like the pins mounted directly to the bars. Might have to steal that. That is also a massive panel for only being 167 watts.

[msiminoff]

Thanks! I think that threading the extrusions turned out really clean.Will take/post pics of that.

I agree that this isn’t the most efficient panel, but it’s the perfect width and it cost me… $20!! (I even bought a couple extra to use for some other off-grid projects), and 167W is more than enough to keep my LED lights and fridge running.

[msiminoff]

This shows the mounting pin threaded directly into the 80/20 extrusion. I used the 40mm length and had to trim the threads so they didn’t protrude through the 1” extrusion. They’re secured with red Loctite since there’s no room for a locknut.