2018 Ram Power Wagon

[GreggNY]

How are you liking the 37’s with the stock gearing? Is your suspension still stock?

Stock gears and suspension. I had to do some minor plastic trimming for clearance, and I still get a really slight sidewall rub on the sway bar only at full lock of the steering. It’s easy to avoid and a non issue. That said, I‘m not rock crawling or flexing the crap out of the suspension too much where I might find more interference.

The stock gearing for me is totally fine here in the Northeast. The 6.4 has a ton of power and I’ve never felt like it was a dog to drive. Also no issues with the areas of Montana or Wyoming where I was. I could see maybe wanting to re-gear if the owner lived in Colorado running those 10k’+ passes on the regular. Those things are brutal.

 

[High Country Nomad]

Does that Leer cap fit perfect? I'm shopping for one and being remote doesn't allow me to see many in person. I'm worried about the lines not matching up.

 

[GreggNY]

Does that Leer cap fit perfect? I'm shopping for one and being remote doesn't allow me to see many in person. I'm worried about the lines not matching up.

I guess that depends how perfect you need it. I looked at a bunch of Leer and ARE caps on different trucks and I always found something that I didn’t like. I got this one adjusted twice at the shop that installed it but there is still a very slight misalignment on the driver’s side rear tailgate window. The window just doesn’t lay right on the seal so there is a 1-2 mm or so gap. None of the tailgate is really sealed to begin with so I left it as good enough.

From my research, people seem to agree that Snugtop caps have the best quality and fit. For some reason, they don’t want to include any dealers on the East coast in their network though so it’s impossible to get one out here.

 

[GreggNY]

Foggy morning exploring the Catskills, NY...

 

[UglyViking]

Love the photos, can't wait to see more. I do have a question for you, what do you do for a spare and any sort of "rescue" items you keep with yourself for this trip?

 

[GreggNY]

Love the photos, can't wait to see more. I do have a question for you, what do you do for a spare and any sort of "rescue" items you keep with yourself for this trip?

Thanks! I have a full size identical spare that I keep in the bed. I rotate it in every 5k-ish miles at oil changes. As for recovery/rescue , I brought with me-

-extra bottle jack and a Pro Eagle jack, jackstand
-Maxtrax (2 sets)
-tree saver/assorted winch accessories
-extra fuel
-headlamps/flashlights
-fire extinguisher
-road flares
-full med kit/trauma kit
-garmin inReach for text/SOS
-always had extra clothing/food/water as well

There are probably some other things but I think those are most of the main items for a big trip like the cross country one. If I’m just staying local, I don’t always have all of that. Let me know if you have questions!

 

[UglyViking]

You carry that full size spare with you all the time? How do you have it mounted? I'd love to see the inside of the shell if you wouldn't mind. I can't find too many photos of the interior of the leer but it looks like the one you have doesn't have any additional internal frame?

 

[GreggNY]

You carry that full size spare with you all the time? How do you have it mounted? I'd love to see the inside of the shell if you wouldn't mind. I can't find too many photos of the interior of the leer but it looks like the one you have doesn't have any additional internal frame?

Yup, I have the spare in there all the time. I built a simple wooden platform with the tire and other stuff going underneath it. I just keep the tire laying flat on a sheet of plexiglass to slide it out easily onto the tailgate when I need to get to. It was a pain in the ass to slide it out over the bed liner surface without the plexi sheet. Laying flat, it doesn’t move around at all so no need to really secure it. I’ll grab a pic of the setup soon, but it’s really nothing fancy.

The Leer doesn’t have any internal frame like the reinforced ARE caps do. It’s supposed to provide the extra strength using thicker material/layers. We’ll see how it holds up. I’ve got a Roofnest Falcon tent on the way due to arrive at the end of August.

 

[UglyViking]

Yup, I have the spare in there all the time. I built a simple wooden platform with the tire and other stuff going underneath it. I just keep the tire laying flat on a sheet of plexiglass to slide it out easily onto the tailgate when I need to get to. It was a pain in the ass to slide it out over the bed liner surface without the plexi sheet. Laying flat, it doesn’t move around at all so no need to really secure it. I’ll grab a pic of the setup soon, but it’s really nothing fancy.

The Leer doesn’t have any internal frame like the reinforced ARE caps do. It’s supposed to provide the extra strength using thicker material/layers. We’ll see how it holds up. I’ve got a Roofnest Falcon tent on the way due to arrive at the end of August.

That def makes me lean toward the leer. I liked the look of the ARE rear window and how it didn't have anything on it except the handle to open, but thats a pretty minor nit. I do like the idea of those windoors, curious to your experience of using the bed with the added height from 37s.

I was looking at the new go fast campers superlight to toss up there for trips where it's just me, or a buddy and I on a hunting trip. I'm bummed that they don't offer the extra strength shell with a keyless entry option. I feel that without it it's gonna be a pain for day to day use, as you'll either have to leave it always unlocked or rip out a key every time you want in the back of the bed.

Unrelated, do you have an instagram to follow? You've got some great photography so it would be cool to follow.

 

[GreggNY]

That def makes me lean toward the leer. I liked the look of the ARE rear window and how it didn't have anything on it except the handle to open, but thats a pretty minor nit. I do like the idea of those windoors, curious to your experience of using the bed with the added height from 37s.

I was looking at the new go fast campers superlight to toss up there for trips where it's just me, or a buddy and I on a hunting trip. I'm bummed that they don't offer the extra strength shell with a keyless entry option. I feel that without it it's gonna be a pain for day to day use, as you'll either have to leave it always unlocked or rip out a key every time you want in the back of the bed.

Unrelated, do you have an instagram to follow? You've got some great photography so it would be cool to follow.

The bed is high and it is a little climb to get in, but the windoors are awesome. I left my food/cooler just inside the passenger side windoor so I could pull over, pop it open away from traffic, and grab what I needed without opening the tailgate and climbing in. I‘m 6’2 and it is still a reach to get in the windoor though. So depending on height, it might work better or worse for you.

Keyless operation would definitely be nice, and I actually went to my dealer with intentions on ordering the ARE. Build times were crazy long compared to the Leer though and I did prefer the frameless interior of the Leer for more head room inside. So far, no real regrets on it.

The superlight does look pretty cool. I wasn’t crazy about some of the features of the regular GFC RTT, so looked elsewhere leading me to the Roofnest. It seemed to check most of the boxes of things I wanted. This will be my first RTT so I’m pretty excited to see how it goes.

My IG is @greggferraro. During this whole Covid fiasco I got carried away with local wildlife photograph since I wasn’t really going too far. If you go back on my page, there’s a lot of this truck, my old jeep, and trips though.

 

[UglyViking]

I'd be curious to your breakdown of the two RTT, why you went with roofnest and what you saw as pro/cons between the two.

Good to hear about the windoors. I'm 6'1" but I've got long arms so it sounds like it will be similar for me, accessible but a bit of a stretch.

 

[GreggNY]

I'd be curious to your breakdown of the two RTT, why you went with roofnest and what you saw as pro/cons between the two.

Little things that are personal preference. The GFC side doors zip from top to bottom, while the roofnest zips bottom to top. I much prefer this so you can be in the tent and zip the bottom half up for privacy while still getting air through the open part at the top. The GFC tent material is secured to the frame with buttons as opposed to zippered in. Some people have complained about this being drafty and letting too much cold in. The roofnest also has a rain fly for the rear door.

 

[GreggNY]

I was planning the next trip out West for mid September into mid October of this Fall. I'm definitely on the fence about it given the current state of the country with the pandemic still going on, travel restrictions, closings, etc. It's still a possibility but for now, I've been going back over some pics from this last trip. One more from the Teton Range...

 

[UglyViking]

I don't see any so I assume no but did you setup any radio for your trip? I'm looking at taking some solo trips and thinking a HAM would be useful in addition to an inreach or something.

 

[GreggNY]

I don't see any so I assume no but did you setup any radio for your trip? I'm looking at taking some solo trips and thinking a HAM would be useful in addition to an inreach or something.

Nope, no radio comms but they definitely couldn't hurt to have. I did carry an inreach and had it set to send frequent waypoints to their map that a few people had access to track my locations. For the most part, I played it very safe as far as the driving went and turned around or backed out a couple times to avoid situations that I thought were too risky.