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Lets face it, we can't always get everything we need INSIDE our vans can we?

The long ladder or the lengths of wood, the Henchman hedge trimming platform that just doesn't quite squeeze inside, you get the idea - we have all been there!

When I needed a set of good roof bars for my Toyota Hi Ace van, some research led me to Saunders roof racks of Wimbledon.

I bought this: http://www.saundersdirect.co.uk/hi-ace-power-van-4-roof-bars-r84-p175.aspx

I also bought quite a few accessories at the same time such as extended ladder pegs, ladder clamps, beacon brackets and tie down rings.

When I phoned up, the extremely helpful man at Saunders had good product knowledge and knew what fittings were compatible with the bars I had chosen, without missing a beat. I even managed to obtain a small discount for dealing direct with the company and ordering all the parts at once.

Delivery was express, quick and FREE.

My first reaction was that the company certainly wasn't joking when they said it was a 'heavy weight' kit - I struggled to lift the box the main bars came in!

The instructions supplied were good and clear, the fixings were all present and correct, down to the last nut and washer - there was even a both sizes of allen key supplied for the socket screws that secure the parts of the kit together.

This kit bolts straight through the roof after removal of the original Toyota mounting brackets, so really is as strong as the van roof is.

The kit and all fittings supplied were free of sharp edges and had good quality nyloc nuts and socket screws to hold it all together. Assembly would have been easier with two people, but I had the whole lot fitted in just over and hour and 45 minutes.

Fitting my rear work lights to the beacon brackets was easy as the brackets can fit (and are supplied with fittings for) fitting either way up.

The rear bar is just close enough to the rear that the work lights I fitted nicely illuminate the area around the towball and inside the trailer, making hitching up and loading in the dark a little easier.

The ladder brackets are designed to work with the roof bars and the specially designed hooks underneath literally 'lock' onto the bolts holding the bars to the roof brackets and hold tightly in place without any risk of slipping - they come pre drilled for padlocks so no one can steal your ladders too (although I had to run a file through the pre drilled hole to get my big Squire padlocks to fit perfectly)

All in all, a very nice set up, which apparently in common with most of Saunders roof rack/roof bar range can carry 8x4 sheets of ply/OSB board etc.

The galv coating on the roof bars and brackets looks good and thick and has shown absolutely no signs of rusting in the two months it has been on the roof so far. It has also fitted everything that I have wished to put on it, which has been everything from a single piece of wood, to 5 lengths of guttering and a set of triple extension ladders.

I am very impressed with the product and would not hesitate to recommend Saunders to anyone looking for roof racks or bars. They also make a wide range of dog guards too.