October 14, 2022
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By Kyle Waters
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Upfitting Industry

U.S. Upfitters sells and installs a multitude of products in the commercial truck and van market.  When you buy a product from us, we are committed to working with you to extend the life of that product.  In partnership with our industry leading manufacturers, we will use this “How To” series to give you insight on how to do that with a range of our most popular products:

We at U.S. Upfitters take pride in our customer service, which is made easier when you sell quality products.  Prime Design, a Safe Fleet Brand, has been the market leader in drop down ladder racks since the concept entered the commercial vehicle space. Market leadership requires excellent engineering.  Along with their engineering, Prime Design excels in providing ergonomic solutions for their customers.  So much so, they named a ladder rack after it. Enter: The Ergo Rack.

A Double-Drop Down Prime Design ErgoRack on a Transit Connect recently installed at our Denver location.

 

If you own a commercial vehicle with a ladder rack, you know that drop-down ladder racks are only as good as their hydraulics.  This is where Prime Design’s excellent engineering comes in.

An ACL-125 Hydraulic Cylinder on a Prime Design Ergo Rack.

As we mentioned in our previous blog, winter is coming and now is the time to prepare your commercial vehicle.  As seasons and temperatures change, the cylinder on your Ergo Rack may need to be adjusted.  You may find your ladder rack is deploying too quickly, resulting in a “bang”, or in the winter months, you may find it is dropping too slow.  Prime design has provided a simple, effective video on how to adjust the hydraulics on your Ergo Rack:

Prime Design Hydraulic Cylinder Assembly w/Hardware Replacement Gas Spring ACL-125

Another consideration is the proper alignment and functioning of the Auto-Clamps, Z-posts, and L-posts.  Checking these components now compared to the middle of the brutal winter will save you a big hassle.  Proper maintenance of these components is essential to ensure your rack is performing in the most optimal manner, reducing potential damage to not only the rack but also the ladder, not to mention the operator.  Check out the video below on how to do it:

Be sure to give all of your hardware a once over to make sure all components are tight fitting and without damage.  Find something damaged?  Don’t worry, the U.S. Upfitters team can find the solution.  Give us a call at 1800-377-5652 and we’ll get you taken care of.

Interested in buying a Prime Design Rack?  You can find their product line here: https://www.inlad.com/brands/prime-design/