grasshopper104
Adventurer
Gotta agree w/ Timmy on this one - especially since most of the nights spent camping involve beer.
Roof Rack dilemna
- Thread starter jrose609
- Start date
Scott Brady
Founder
Nothing on the roof if at all possible. If you have stuff on the roof, you either have the wrong car, too much stuff, or are not solving the space problems correctly. Get the fuel and water down low - really low, like at the frame level in extra tanks.
I can see the argument for a lightweight rack used only for a photography platform or reserve capacity (for firewood or contents of a disabled vehicle).
I loved my Eezi-Awn, but only mounted it at bed level on a truck, or on a trailer. Trust me, I would love a RTT on my disco or JK for comfort and convenience, but I use a ground tent. It is all a compromise, and in my case, a compromise in-favor of performance and safety.
Stuff on the rack is a compromise to performance and safety - that is a fact. If you still must put things on the roof, keep the weight forward and light as possible. Anything over 120 lbs with the rack should be treated with extreme caution. Talk with any dynamics engineer if you doubt. . .
I can see the argument for a lightweight rack used only for a photography platform or reserve capacity (for firewood or contents of a disabled vehicle).
I loved my Eezi-Awn, but only mounted it at bed level on a truck, or on a trailer. Trust me, I would love a RTT on my disco or JK for comfort and convenience, but I use a ground tent. It is all a compromise, and in my case, a compromise in-favor of performance and safety.
Stuff on the rack is a compromise to performance and safety - that is a fact. If you still must put things on the roof, keep the weight forward and light as possible. Anything over 120 lbs with the rack should be treated with extreme caution. Talk with any dynamics engineer if you doubt. . .
R_Lefebvre
Expedition Leader
Scott, I can respect that stance because at least it's grounded in rational thought. Not some silly notion that "all this weight high up that I deem important is ok, but all the weight that YOU deem important is not."
Yes, my buddy has given me guff just for putting on 31" tires and a 2" lift, and even cautions against loading gear too high in the back of the truck... :Wow1:
Yes, my buddy has given me guff just for putting on 31" tires and a 2" lift, and even cautions against loading gear too high in the back of the truck... :Wow1:
stevenmd
Expedition Leader
Agreed 100%. RTT's are cool but I am guilty of overloading my roof rack - pretty easy to do with a large family. I also paid the consequences of too much weight on the roof rack. I tipped over. Lessen learned? You bet. There is no way in heck I should have tipped over. But the little extra weight up top was just enough.
I think a RTT is fine if you are mainly doing tarmac sight seeing or semi-smooth fire roads but there is no way I would put a RTT on my roof if I planned on venturing off or doing a mild to moderate + trail.
But back to the original question, sell the SD and buy one of the two mentioned.
Stan the Man
Adventurer
I used to be all into the RTT, but over the past couple months I've phased out of it. I have had no problems putting a 4 person tent in my truck along with the Thermarest pad and sleeping bag. I have had no problems sleeping on the ground and actually enjoy it. There's not much luxury to it and it takes a bit longer to set up.
My argument has nothing to do with weight or safety, but rather simplicity and cost. I can spend $800+ on a RTT or spend <$300 on a tent (mine was $50!). I would much rather put the funding elsewhere like gas money or an ARB fridge.
With that said, I still want a roof rack, but its more for throwing passengers clothes bags up there when I have 5 people on a trip. And I was an awning for shade.
My argument has nothing to do with weight or safety, but rather simplicity and cost. I can spend $800+ on a RTT or spend <$300 on a tent (mine was $50!). I would much rather put the funding elsewhere like gas money or an ARB fridge.
With that said, I still want a roof rack, but its more for throwing passengers clothes bags up there when I have 5 people on a trip. And I was an awning for shade.
jrose609
Explorer
Ok. So I picked up a RTT last month. Didn't tell my wife till it arrived. she absolutely loved it.
Its pretty nice. Its not new, but it also wasn't $2700.
So today I set it up in the garage on a couple of furniture/moving dollies so I could move it around. I thought it was pretty nice. Needs a mattress cover and needs waxed. Other than that pretty nice. Quilting inside is nice.
My wife crawls in there with me. I close the curtains and it is absolutely pitch black. I thought it was nice. I figured that would be good for the kids and me when trying to do any sleeping during the day.
My wife hated it.
she says it reminds her of when she went to her grandmas funeral as a kid, and it reminds her of a coffin. ':;_)*#*!,!!?@ she doesn't want to sleep in it. She asks why I don't just use the cheap $50 tent from Cabelas Bargain cave?
Are you kidding me?
After all this?
Everyone here has brought up excellent points. I agree with people on both sides of the issue. I figure if I keep the tent (unlikely) I will mount it to a trailer so my D1 isn't too top heavy.
This is just my luck.
Scott Brady
Founder
Trust me, I am not anti-RTT, having slept hundreds of nights in them. The challenge for me is that I use my trucks in technical terrain, and more concerning, unpredictable and unknown terrain, so I avoid any heavy roof loads. RTTs in Africa are common, because they have an advantage, and are typically on stock, or near stock trucks used in game parks. Variables are mostly known.
If your goals are to travel on moderate/easy terrain and have a vehicle with low CG, than it is probably inconsequential. Stuff like in the images above, with snow, unknown routes, nasty weather, etc., I am much more conservative. When the Overland JK was delivered, it had a RTT on it, with a pretty heavy ARB steel rack. It handled fine on the highway and all moderate trails due to the width of the truck and good suspension. However, when tested on 3.5+ obstacles, or heavy dynamics scenarios, it just felt wrong to me. I took the tent off. But, I will use it in the future, for mellow trips with Stephanie.
On my Disco, I would never run a RTT or even a fraction of the stuff I see on some LRs. These vehicles are tall, with a narrow track and flexy coils. They get sketchy on the tough stuff with all that load. I see it all the time with people I travel with. My Disco with minimal lift and no roof load handles great and is completely stable. I would be comfortable to 35 degrees with it on the trail. I use it for short trips, and am happy with a ground tent for that.
I am going to experiment with sleeping IN the JK soon. I am working on a sleeping platform with Adventure Trailers (on their drawer system). That might be the killer app. when I travel solo. Details and thoughts on that when it is finished.
If your goals are to travel on moderate/easy terrain and have a vehicle with low CG, than it is probably inconsequential. Stuff like in the images above, with snow, unknown routes, nasty weather, etc., I am much more conservative. When the Overland JK was delivered, it had a RTT on it, with a pretty heavy ARB steel rack. It handled fine on the highway and all moderate trails due to the width of the truck and good suspension. However, when tested on 3.5+ obstacles, or heavy dynamics scenarios, it just felt wrong to me. I took the tent off. But, I will use it in the future, for mellow trips with Stephanie.
On my Disco, I would never run a RTT or even a fraction of the stuff I see on some LRs. These vehicles are tall, with a narrow track and flexy coils. They get sketchy on the tough stuff with all that load. I see it all the time with people I travel with. My Disco with minimal lift and no roof load handles great and is completely stable. I would be comfortable to 35 degrees with it on the trail. I use it for short trips, and am happy with a ground tent for that.
I am going to experiment with sleeping IN the JK soon. I am working on a sleeping platform with Adventure Trailers (on their drawer system). That might be the killer app. when I travel solo. Details and thoughts on that when it is finished.
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michaels
Explorer
once while camping in Georgia, peter had his tent cot up on his roof and had to go to the bathroom late at night. Warm and lazy, he just unzipped the tent and pissed on his hood.
Made for a good story over beakfast, although i don't recommend this. :coffeedrink:
i say screw the RTT if you're doing anything less than a week. i used to camp inside the truck. i used to have a platform the same height as the folded rear seats. i threw an air mattress over that and even had curtains. it was nice.
now, if i ever decide to go cross country or anywhere else and live out of my vehicle, yes i'll get a RTT. comfort would be my main priority. and if a RTT makes you and the family more comfortable, then go for it. keep all other weight low and don't lift your truck sky high and you should still have a rather decent stability if off-camber situations.
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Redline
Likes to Drive and Ride
jrose609
Explorer
LOL! Pee on the hood? I guess if you gotta go.......
I have been building the truck up a little. I have 3" OME lift. Just did front and rear arms to correct the castor. It is a little top heavy already. As far as comfort goes, I have a wife and four kids. If we go cross-country we would probably stay in a hotel
There are things I need worse than a RTT. Especially when my wife says it feels like a coffin to her. I don't think so, but she's a little claustrophobic.
Michael, you decided if you're moving to Jackson Hole for the summer yet?
lwg
Member
It actually quite simple, empty Gatorade bottle. Most of the guys I know do this.
And regarding the massive weight on top of the truck, keep in mind my truck has ACE and handles wonderfully on and off-road. I also only have 2" of OME HD lift and 265's so it sits pretty low and is very stable off-road. I could see how a flexy 3"+ lifted truck could get a little squirrely, but that's a problem with the build IMHO.
Von Petrol
Observer
On a nice night I enjoy just sleeping on top of my rack.
upcruiser
Perpetual Transient
My wife and I just got a RTT that we have yet to try out. I am curious to see how it works after doing the ground camping deal with the Rover and sleeping inside the cruiser. If I could, I would prefer sleeping in the truck but it isn't optimal with two people with my setup. For one though it is great as there is zero setup time, the ability to fire up the truck for heat if needed, music, movie entertainment in foul weather (has come in very handy before), and leaves the roof clear to haul bikes, boats and various other gear. My issue is that I have a bunch of varied things that I like to do on my outings and keeping the setup flexible enough to do them
all means compromising all of the time. Luckily now with two rigs we can likely keep the RTT mounted on one and an open basket on the other. I am super curious to see how it affects the handling of the relatively narrow and tall Disco.
all means compromising all of the time. Luckily now with two rigs we can likely keep the RTT mounted on one and an open basket on the other. I am super curious to see how it affects the handling of the relatively narrow and tall Disco.
ersatzknarf
lost, but making time
Sleeping Inside
We are going the sleep-inside route. For safety, aside from CoG concerns, the idea of a sleeping platform inside makes more sense for us, rather than so far up in the air.
I posted a link to a German site called, "Carmaeleon" a while back. There are a lot of photos of set-ups for sleeping inside Rovers. I can post it again and also post in links to specific parts of their website.
With the Hannibal roof rack, we had the intention of using it to hold things removed from inside the car when stopped, to make more room, and then putting them back inside again before moving off. That way, things are off the ground, but the roof is not loaded while underway.
Frank
We are going the sleep-inside route. For safety, aside from CoG concerns, the idea of a sleeping platform inside makes more sense for us, rather than so far up in the air.
I posted a link to a German site called, "Carmaeleon" a while back. There are a lot of photos of set-ups for sleeping inside Rovers. I can post it again and also post in links to specific parts of their website.
With the Hannibal roof rack, we had the intention of using it to hold things removed from inside the car when stopped, to make more room, and then putting them back inside again before moving off. That way, things are off the ground, but the roof is not loaded while underway.
Frank
michaels
Explorer
please do.