pop top camper lift mechanism

[rideglobally]

i am looking for mechanism to lift all four corners of my pop top, my top is heavier than normal. any idea on where i could purchase one? currently it open clam shell but i may want to change it for one that open in four corners, i need one that will give me stability....thanks

 

[ntsqd]

Best bet may be to find an old Alaskan Camper and use it's lift system.

 

[M.Bas]

I think your best chance is some kind of scissor system like this:

 

[West Coast Mags]

I'm modernizing a chalet blazer camper and am doing away with the scissor style lift and am going to use either gas struts or 12v linear actuators to lift the top, one at each corner. Now everyone don't go emailing me for details yet, haven't got passed just the idea. Reason being is the scissor brackets bent fatally suprising easy, rendering the top completely inoperable. My thinking is that with a strut or actuator, if one has a problem, pull it off and swap it for a spare I carry. Do some searches on the inner net and you'll find lots of examples of people making lift off tonneaus, hoods, and now automatic opening trunks, using actuators and struts. Just my $.02

 

[slosurfer]

i am looking for mechanism to lift all four corners of my pop top, my top is heavier than normal. any idea on where i could purchase one? currently it open clam shell but i may want to change it for one that open in four corners, i need one that will give me stability....thanks

Not sure if he sold it already:
http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=13358

 

[Mike S]

If you could find a wrecked Maggiolina, that would probably work well.

M

 

[TeriAnn]

I once saw a long wheelbase Series Land Rover that was converted to be a mobile dentist office for patients in Central America. It had the metal roof plus a roof rack. The person who did the conversion placed four hydraulic rams vertically, one in each corner. The vehicle had one of the rare factory optional hydraulic fluid pumps. When the dentist set up office he hit the valve and the roof rose horizontally with an inside vertical clearance of almost 7 feet.

There are lots of Rams to choose from.

 

[M.Bas]

I'm modernizing a chalet blazer camper and am doing away with the scissor style lift and am going to use either gas struts or 12v linear actuators to lift the top, one at each corner. Now everyone don't go emailing me for details yet, haven't got passed just the idea. Reason being is the scissor brackets bent fatally suprising easy, rendering the top completely inoperable. My thinking is that with a strut or actuator, if one has a problem, pull it off and swap it for a spare I carry. Do some searches on the inner net and you'll find lots of examples of people making lift off tonneaus, hoods, and now automatic opening trunks, using actuators and struts. Just my $.02

If you look closely you see that the scissor mechanism also uses gas struts
But I think gas struts alone are not strong enough to lift the roof.

Well they should be able to lift the roof easily but what about strong winds?
Some rear hatch gas struts for example are actualy quite weak since they only need to keep the hatch open, the hinges provide the strength in the mechanism of a rear hatch. But when you lift your roof vertically on all four corners there are no hinges to provide any strength.

 

[paul100]

All hydraulic, pneumatic systems is too heavy non serviseable and has more "-" than "+" at all.
I think (my experience)that non-electronic and only pure mechanical systems are trouble-proof in crosscountry conditons.

Paul (PickupClub of Russia)

right now I'm solving the same taskhttp://expeditionportal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=16347

 

[big sky trapper]

Got one you can have for free if ya wanna come an get it......

 

[63tlf8]

If you could find a wrecked Maggiolina, that would probably work well. M

I have the same issue, deciding what system to use. I am building an expedition camper for the back of the MOG and it will have a sliding upper section something like an Alaskan but based on a German product I saw elsewhere on this forum.

I also have a maggiolina that I have been toying with dismantling to get the lift mechanism. From my search so far it would cost much the same to buy either a screw lift or hydraulic system as it will do to scrap the RTT.

What I don't know is what weight the Maggiolina system will reliably lift. I expect that the upper section will weigh at least 100 Kg but haven't yet done the math. Anyone have any idea on that? Hydraulics have been remarkably hard to find in the size I need. The only ones I have seen so far are the hydraulic camper jacks but they have individual pumps which need to be removed and replaced with a single high capacity pump.

I tend to agree that the mechanical system is the least risk with my design as the sliding section provides the sideways support you won't get with canvas until it is fully extended.

Any comments from those who have tried either / both options.

Tony