RTT strange thought...

J

jeepdreamer

Expedition Leader
So I have been dreaming about RTTs for a while and had a strange thought. All of the ones I see that are essentually a Tent based unit have a soft cover. With the exceptions of the obvious AH and its vertical lift and the flip-pacs...
So why doesn't anyone make a hard "turtle shell" type cover instead of the canvas ones? Seems that it could be made to last longer and resist branches and sun etc...far longer? If it were made a little stronger instead of lighter it could have its own rack on it as well?
Just thinking out loud...as it were. Please feel free to comment or just laugh at my idiocy!:sombrero:
 
A

AxeAngel

Expedition Leader
Think of the hight restriction with a turtle shell that didn't collapse down. The AH are flat shell with vertical walls. Transposing the top half of a tent shell that is rigid and didn't collapse would make my truck over 10ft high.

I am sure many of the guys on here have roofs that are already high enough.

-Sam
 
Cody1771

Cody1771

Explorer
Technitop RTT has a hard shell, it can take a beating (i know i smacked it a few times on low overhangs) but the mounts.... not so much.
 
Corey

Corey

OverCamping Specialist
Sam, I think he is just talking about the cover you put on the flip over style of roof top tents when you are ready to hit the road.

I could see where a hard shell type one would work, as the sift ones are venerable to UV damage and often tear if hitting a branch on a trail.
 
J

jeepdreamer

Expedition Leader
Yes....and, sorta?

Yeah,
Sorry, didn't do a very good job of explaining that randumb thought. haha.
I was meaning a form fitting shell that only covers it while stowed. Kinda like those...Thule(?) boxey things that go on top of cars for travel. a little more aero dynamic than the square face of the soft cover and enough to fend off mild branches etc...
And what to do with it after taking it off to deploy the tent...good point. Hmm...didn't get that far into the idea. Maybe use it as a portable, huge kiddy pool? Make a bracket to afix it to the side of the vehicle for a stiffy awning instead of a fabric one?? If it was flat enough I suppose it could be used as a make shift table???
I don't know...just tossing out some off the while thoughts.
 
Cody1771

Cody1771

Explorer
like i said, the technitop is completly incased in a hard FRP case, that is actually built into the platform, so the only thing you "take off" is the end part of the case, its strong, somewhat aerodynamic and is pretty good at fending off branches ect.

DSC04134.jpg


http://www.technitop.co.za/
 
B

bunduguy

Supporting Sponsor
The biggest issue has been cost, due to the molding of the cases, addiitonal hardware etc. They are super expensive, but I believe even Eezi-Awn gave up on the hard shell due to cost.
Paul, feel free to correct me if I'm wrong...
 
J

jeepdreamer

Expedition Leader
Whoop...there it almost is?

Cody1771 said:
like i said, the technitop is completly incased in a hard FRP case, that is actually built into the platform, so the only thing you "take off" is the end part of the case, its strong, somewhat aerodynamic and is pretty good at fending off branches ect.

DSC04134.jpg


http://www.technitop.co.za/
Click to expand...

Yeah, That's kinda what I am talking about...sorta? That may be a little more involved than I was thinking but it does the job. I was just thinking of a molded shell that could slip over the RTT (in stowed mode) and then latch or strap into place..? To bad I know nothing about laying fiberglass...
 
cruiseroutfit

cruiseroutfit

Well-known member
qwerty said:
Wild Boar Products is planning on making two different sized RTTs, both of which are enclosed in a hard shell case with roof racks.

www.wildboarproducts.com/campertops.html
Click to expand...


We'll see if they come to fruition, as of SEMA last year they said they would have one within a few months, website still says January 2010 too. Between the failure to produce and their rep's (owner?) that had zero knowledge about competitor products. Several of us were there checking out their booth and the tent prototype and he started telling us how the Eezi-Awn is made of particle board and the ARB is made of wood too. I don't expect him to know the engineering specs of competitors but if you are going to up sell your untested and worse yet undeveloped product over existing and reputable competitors, you better know your stuff particularly when talking to a group that knows them rather well. There was a bit more on the subject here.


As for the OP's idea. I'm sorta inclined to ask if this is an solution in search of a problem. Maybe the terrain around me is a bit different but soft covers last for as long as the material lets them, ie they are most likely going to wear out due to sun and the elements before they rip or are ruined by trees, etc. While a 'cover' of some sort may prolong this, covers are cheap and easily replaced every 3-4 years, some longer, some shorter. If you were to store your RTT indoors except when in use, I see no reason it couldn't last 10 years. I've had mine in a fair amount of trees, no issues yet but it is fairly protected by the cab. Just last week I watched a tent be literally removed from the roof-rack by a tree branch strike (think 60 mph into a 4" tree limb), the cover survived better than the tent itself however both are easily repaired :D
 
A

AxeAngel

Expedition Leader
60mph around low hanging objects... A recipe for disaster.

A good bodyshop should be able to make you a fibreglass mold that conforms to your RTT. They could even body match to the color of your car. Not to mention a lot of those guys are hurting with the economy so you could likely get a good deal

-Sam
 
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