DIY Hard-Side Pop-Tops

[ReluctantTraveler]

I know some folks have built hard-side pop-top campers. Anyone here every done it?

Any time I've looked into it, I've written it off as "another thing to break or go wrong on the road," but there are some obvious benefits.

 

[Alpine_Potato]

I'm working on one. Here's my literature review of sorts on the different styles that exist and how they function.

For a general pop up camper build that is simple and functional, 97 heavyweight's thread seems to be the gold standard. They and others on the thread have shared tons of learnings on all the little things you wouldn't really think about, and what construction styles were strong yet lightweight.

Hard sided pop ups:

• The Alaskan Style: These use an upper camper layer that envelopes the lower half as a sort of cap and is raised up on jacks automatically. Fancy!
  • Home build: https://expeditionportal.com/forum/...skin-pop-up-camper-build-thread.58926/page-20
• Hiatus Style: These leverage walls that are partially detached from the frame in order to neatly fold and raise. - really cool, but it does limit you in terms of how much height you can get when it does pop up
  • Their 1.0 build before they were commercial, here
  • Their new and improved model, which they sell for about 20k
• Oru Designs: Uses fully attached walls that collapse along a center fold. Mesh panels cut out along the sides to allow room for the panels to move without overlapping one another.
  • https://www.orudesignsusa.com/product-page/camper-deposite
• These guys, who use a design similar to the hiatus but with open air options
• This guy is working on a wedge style build
• This dude https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/diy-aluminum-hardside-popup-camper.737499/#post-26254379

FWIW, I did a little ranking of the different designs and how they match up to my criteria of needs, which are: simple to build, able to support a tall roof for me and my very tall friends, low effort to get it bedtime ready after a long roadtrip, and easy to set up in intense weather without getting my bed wet.

Design Type	Complexity of Build	Steps to Rain Proof	Steps To Sleep	Score
Alaskan	Very High	None	Low	10
Hiatus 1.0	Low	High	Medium	11
Hiatus 2.0	High	Low	Low	10
Ross Monster	Medium	Medium	Medium	9
Oru Designs	Low	None	Low	13
Wedge/Coleman	Low	Medium	Medium	10

My design isn't perfectly any one of these, but the Hiatus 1.0 and the Oru designs camper came out on top in terms of simplicity and weather seal. Hiatus 2.0 is a neat idea, but I don't quite trust it in a sideways rain scenario and also it significantly limits the amount of roof rise you can get.

 

[PHeller]

Not enough views for this thread because it's a good one.

One thing I've been thinking about a lot more is just a hard-side RTT.

Once the mechanism is perfected, put it on top of a box. Then start on a DIY Slide-Out.

The advantage to a hard-sided RTT is that you can build something much wider than the bed. For instance, my truck bed is 6' long by 4' wide, but from tip to tip of my mirrors is closer to 6'. I could, in theory, have a 6" wide RTT that's also 8' long and sticks off the end of the truck, or overhangs the topper on all sides by a good margin. Each panel is 3', so when the top is up, its nearly 6' tall. Perhaps the end panels are just insulated vinyl material that zip into place.

 

[ReluctantTraveler]

Not enough views for this thread because it's a good one.

One thing I've been thinking about a lot more is just a hard-side RTT.

Once the mechanism is perfected, put it on top of a box. Then start on a DIY Slide-Out.

The advantage to a hard-sided RTT is that you can build something much wider than the bed. For instance, my truck bed is 6' long by 4' wide, but from tip to tip of my mirrors is closer to 6'. I could, in theory, have a 6" wide RTT that's also 8' long and sticks off the end of the truck, or overhangs the topper on all sides by a good margin. Each panel is 3', so when the top is up, its nearly 6' tall. Perhaps the end panels are just insulated vinyl material that zip into place.

Forgive me, but what's an RTT?

 

[PHeller]

Roof Top Tent.

Although, in this configuration, it'd be a roof top...sleeping...capsule.

 

[mobile007]

Not enough views for this thread because it's a good one.

One thing I've been thinking about a lot more is just a hard-side RTT.

Yes, I like the idea of a hard side RTT too.

Have you looked at the Redtail Overland RTT design? I think their price is way outside my budget but the concept of a hard side RTT intrigues me.

 

[PHeller]

There is another, slightly cheaper hard side RTT I discovered at OEW23.

Anti Shanty's alumnium RTT. It looks crude but weighs 300lbs. Cost is about $10k.

 

[mobile007]

There is another, slightly cheaper hard side RTT I discovered at OEW23.

Anti Shanty's alumnium RTT. It looks crude but weighs 300lbs. Cost is about $10k.

I've never heard of them. Just checked out their website. It's good to see alot of innovation. So, even though it looks crude, did you get a chance to check it out.......inside and out at OEW23? What do you think of it?

There is a clam-shell hard-sided pop up made in Germany and looks pretty sharp called the Lizardcab LC-140.

​

I have really been thinking about making a DIY full pop top that has more head room. Similar to Hiatus.

 

[woodslanding]

Here's another solution I'm thinking of borrowing from for my next build:

 

[woodslanding]

Not enough views for this thread because it's a good one.

One thing I've been thinking about a lot more is just a hard-side RTT.

Once the mechanism is perfected, put it on top of a box. Then start on a DIY Slide-Out.

The advantage to a hard-sided RTT is that you can build something much wider than the bed. For instance, my truck bed is 6' long by 4' wide, but from tip to tip of my mirrors is closer to 6'. I could, in theory, have a 6" wide RTT that's also 8' long and sticks off the end of the truck, or overhangs the topper on all sides by a good margin. Each panel is 3', so when the top is up, its nearly 6' tall. Perhaps the end panels are just insulated vinyl material that zip into place.

I got around this problem by investing in a digital rear-view mirror. Works pretty great, and covers the area of my side mirrors that is blocked by the camper.

 

[woodslanding]

Here's my thought about a solution based on the camper above. I'm folding the sides out first for one thing. The other thing I'm thinking of is putting the gas struts on the ceiling, rather than the walls. And I'm thinking of using a set of these between the roof and the long side panels:

EDIT: okay can't post a link here, I guess. The item is this, from amaz*n:

2PCS SBR16 Linear Rail Set Included 2Pcs Linear Motion Guides with Linear Bearings 2000mm(79’’) and 4Pcs SBR16UU Blocks for Automated Machines and Equipments​

The rails mount to the underside of the roof, and the glides attach to the top of the side walls. This should avoid some of the stability issues he has while raising the roof, as well as keeping the top attached to the camper. And the struts don't block the view! Here are some pictures of my design.

Overall look at side walls and roof, with strut placement:




A view with the side wall down, to see the mechanism better:


Finally, with the roof removed to show a possible pivot attachment design between railglide and side wall:


This does give me some flexibility in the length and angle of the struts, but it does make computing the actual load more complicated!


Just hoping the experts here might be able to point out any flaws in my reasoning.... Would it work????

Thanks!
eric

 

[ReluctantTraveler]

The other challenge with pop-up campers is that you lose a lot of potential cabinet space near the roof. Always tradeoffs. I've gone back and forth on designs countless times now ...

 

[hidn45]

Something else that has occurred to me in looking at these designs is the loss of interior width (or, conversely, excess exterior width). You have essentially a double thickness of wall, plus clearance space/ sweep seal space on each side. We're trying to fit an east-west bed & keep the exterior box width to a minimum, & the extra 6 inches or so is hard to justify....

 

[dstefan]

DIY Composite Camper T100 Expedition Vehicle Build

I have finally started my new build! This truck will be THE BEST... at nothing! My build platform is a 1995 Toyota T100, extended cab, 4x4, 3.4L V6, 5 speed manual trans. My wife, dog, and I have already lived out of this truck with a very basic DIY camper while traveling through Mexico and...

forum.expeditionportal.com

Best one on EP IMO.

 

[CoyoteThistle]

Good topic! Mine is hard-sided and soft-sided.





Link to the build is below.

Few thoughts from the above posts I'll echo having built a hard-side slide-up:

1) Slide-ups are complicated (i.e., a PITA to build for most of us)! Once it's working smoothly though, it is a very robust and weatherproof design.
2) Loss of storage is a real issue (applies to all pop-up types though)
3) You do get the full width sleeping if your bed is at the level of the slide-up - my mattress is 72" (inside width of lower part of the camper) but I get the 76" wall to wall width of the slide-up portion where I am when in the bed.

Few thoughts from my experience camping in a pop-up (in all types of weather):

1) Unless the hard sides on the pop-up are well insulated, I don't see a huge advantage vs. a soft-sided pop-up of some sort that uses waterproof fabric and has some insulation (either built in to the fabric or an add-on when needed). I now camp in all temps and weather conditions with the soft sides on mine up.
2) For me, any design that lets in moisture (or bugs!) when setting up or taking down is a step down from a good soft-side

There is an undeniable cool factor with many of these hard-sided pop-ups and some super clever designs - I see their appeal for sure. No regrets on my design but it does have trade-offs (like all rigs).

Pro-Rig V2.0 - Home Built Compact Composite Pop-up

Well, I'm about six months in to this build and progress has been slow but steady. Here's how it looks as of about a week ago: It's (obviously) a slide in. It will be a double pop-up - the structure on the foreground in the photos is the hard-sided part of the pop-up (upside down). It will...

forum.expeditionportal.com