DIY truck cap slider?

02rangeredge

Adventurer
I have an aluminium truck cap/shell/camper/topper with a rectangular solid window, I've replaced 1 with 1/4 inch plexi, but I'd like a slider to go between the truck (which already has a slider) and the cap. Has anyone done anything like this or have any ideas how to make this work? the window is held in with an easy to remove Y channel I guess I'd call it (a C channel with a leg coming from the spine of the C) it's held in with a sheet metal screw every 6 or 8 inches so it takes maybe an hour with a wrench and putty knife to pull it

My only idea is to make some additional S shaped (straight sides not a curved S) track that screwed onto the frame of the window that would hold an additional piece of plexi that would act as a slider, my biggest concern here is the plexi binding in this track and developing a decent seal between the pieces of plexi. Any ideas to improve my idea or generally a design idea of your own would be appreciated
 

02rangeredge

Adventurer
Loose the plexi and Google rubber compression boot for campershells. One window with the slider on the truck.

No affiliation with the company but something like this... https://www.custompickup.com/shop/index.php?l=product_detail&p=3335

thanks- that'll definitely do the trick (and another one I was tossing around), everything I had found before that was the accordion seal that removed the cab rear window (no thanks) and essentially a bike tire inner tube
 

Hnoroian

Observer
I've seen those also but never bought one. I've had the accordion style on two trucks personally and one that lasted what seemed like forever (which it probably did) growing up and even after I took ownership of it.

I miss the caps but there have been other plans in the mix for a while now.
 

02rangeredge

Adventurer
I've seen those also but never bought one. I've had the accordion style on two trucks personally and one that lasted what seemed like forever (which it probably did) growing up and even after I took ownership of it.

I miss the caps but there have been other plans in the mix for a while now.

I've never seen the accordion gaskets in person, am I wrong about how they work or do or do you have to pull the rear window out of the truck too?
 

rayra

Expedition Leader
seconding the rubber compression boot, they seal great without altering the vehicle. But after years of using one in SoCal deserts on an old mini-truck I have to warn you that fine sand / dust / grit gets between the rubber seal and the cab due to the separate motions of cab, bed, shell, and that in turn sands your paint off. Dry desert fines and washboard roads are realyl a 1-2 punch for this sort of wear damage. 30yrs ago the answer was to grease it up and that trapped the grit closer to the outer edge, limiting the damage. That or frequently loosening the shell and cleaning the contact area. Nowadays, I'd suggest a layer of that thick clear plastic headlight / rock chip guard film on the back of the cab. Let it take the damage instead.

Same goes for hanging things like 'Trasharoos' on the rear of your vehicle.
 

02rangeredge

Adventurer
seconding the rubber compression boot, they seal great without altering the vehicle. But after years of using one in SoCal deserts on an old mini-truck I have to warn you that fine sand / dust / grit gets between the rubber seal and the cab due to the separate motions of cab, bed, shell, and that in turn sands your paint off. Dry desert fines and washboard roads are realyl a 1-2 punch for this sort of wear damage. 30yrs ago the answer was to grease it up and that trapped the grit closer to the outer edge, limiting the damage. That or frequently loosening the shell and cleaning the contact area. Nowadays, I'd suggest a layer of that thick clear plastic headlight / rock chip guard film on the back of the cab. Let it take the damage instead.

Same goes for hanging things like 'Trasharoos' on the rear of your vehicle.

so which style gasket do you have experience with, the blades gasket thats a single rubber fin, or the one that more of a rubber finger broken into channels?
 

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