devinsixtyseven
Explorer
Since the welder is on the way, and I'm finally looking at rooftop tents and refridgerators, I thought I'd start a thread...not for what's already on the truck, but what I'm gonna do to it in the very near future.
A couple of comparisons between Canbacks and Technitops:
Canback-- ~80# (a bit more if it's stainless, which mine is), with the CG about 12" above the lip of the bed. It's the same height as the cab, it's impossible to see out the sides when it's rolled down, difficult to see out the back with the small window. Weatherproof, more or less. Easy to get stuff through the sides. Durable, more or less. Windows are poor in extreme cold, like any other plastic.
Technitop-- ~130#, CG roughly 5"(?) above the lip of the bed. 11" high closed, so I can see out the top half of the rear window in any direction. Durable plastic case is more or less "everything proof". If it's mounted over the bed, I can't get to stuff in the bed except through the tailgate. About 1.5' of open space remains at the end of the bed for easy access.
So here's my thoughts at the moment. I want a rooftop tent...and I have a big truck that I drive like it's a lot smaller. The bedsides and fenders are already fiberglass. The only reason I still have a bed (other than hauling stuff around town) is because the Canback sits on it, and two people can comfortably sleep under the Canback. However, that means the bed must be empty, which means unloading and reloading every time we make or break camp. Either that, or sleep on the ground, which is something I'd like to avoid if possible (wind, rain, snow, drainage, etc...been there, done all that, recently even).
The tailgate has been rendered useless except as a camp shelf due to the recovery ladders that sit just inside the tailgate. Otherwise, its use is around town, keeping stuff in the bed when I'm hauling things.
Properly equipped, I don't need a large box to hold everything, I need reliable access to various box-like items that are almost exclusively shorter than the bed height and can be mounted wherever expedient. A "bed-top" tent would make this difficult, and I don't want a tall truck since I like being able to fit in garages and low CG means the truck is more stable.
The rear of the truck is wide, and it's width I don't need since I don't use the tailgate, and the ladders are shorter than the gate is wide.
In other words, I don't need the bed, and a tent mounted solid to a frame over the bed would get in the way. The tailgate is unnecessary since there's something there already that acts as a gate. So, a dovetailed bed cage with a rooftop tent on a forward hinge and the recovery ladders on a hinged dropout at the tail would make for easy access to all the gear under the tent, the spare tire, the recovery ladders, and shave a significant amount of weight off the back which can go toward water, aux fuel and toys. 55# is a lot to try and lift, but a couple of those gas assist tubes would help a lot and a brace would keep it safe in the upright position. A slightly offset front pivot would allow the tent to back up right against the cab--the front of the tent drops down instead of moving forward.
The rear can be dovetailed almost 10" on each side and still maintain enough forward space for a rooftop tent, enough cargo space for a large spare tire, fuel, water and other things--almost all the cargo is carried at the front, not the rear of the bed--and still leave more than six square feet of space open between the back of the tent and the recovery ladders.
If it's bolted on using the existing holes for the bed, I can even swap the two if I want the bed back...may as well, since the bed is already trimmed to hang the glass, and a bed is handy.
The part I'm having trouble with at the moment is how to carry the bikes. I think they could ride on top of the tent, since the Technitop uses that hard plastic shell. They'd end up about 1' over the top of the cab, where most people let them ride anyway.
With this setup (sans bikes), I could do hard 4WD work in style with a rooftop tent, maintain visibility and a low COG, carry necessary items in designed space rather than splitting a box (the glass bedsides could even be hinged, so shovels and such could be accessed from the side and hidden otherwise), and essentially keep it low profile but extremely capable and comfortable.
I'll get some CAD drawings of this up later.
The truck is already "built", but not for expedition travel yet...just 4WD stuff. The new rear axle is ready in the next week or two, sez the FROR crew...pics when I pick it up
.
-Sean
A couple of comparisons between Canbacks and Technitops:
Canback-- ~80# (a bit more if it's stainless, which mine is), with the CG about 12" above the lip of the bed. It's the same height as the cab, it's impossible to see out the sides when it's rolled down, difficult to see out the back with the small window. Weatherproof, more or less. Easy to get stuff through the sides. Durable, more or less. Windows are poor in extreme cold, like any other plastic.
Technitop-- ~130#, CG roughly 5"(?) above the lip of the bed. 11" high closed, so I can see out the top half of the rear window in any direction. Durable plastic case is more or less "everything proof". If it's mounted over the bed, I can't get to stuff in the bed except through the tailgate. About 1.5' of open space remains at the end of the bed for easy access.
So here's my thoughts at the moment. I want a rooftop tent...and I have a big truck that I drive like it's a lot smaller. The bedsides and fenders are already fiberglass. The only reason I still have a bed (other than hauling stuff around town) is because the Canback sits on it, and two people can comfortably sleep under the Canback. However, that means the bed must be empty, which means unloading and reloading every time we make or break camp. Either that, or sleep on the ground, which is something I'd like to avoid if possible (wind, rain, snow, drainage, etc...been there, done all that, recently even).
The tailgate has been rendered useless except as a camp shelf due to the recovery ladders that sit just inside the tailgate. Otherwise, its use is around town, keeping stuff in the bed when I'm hauling things.
Properly equipped, I don't need a large box to hold everything, I need reliable access to various box-like items that are almost exclusively shorter than the bed height and can be mounted wherever expedient. A "bed-top" tent would make this difficult, and I don't want a tall truck since I like being able to fit in garages and low CG means the truck is more stable.
The rear of the truck is wide, and it's width I don't need since I don't use the tailgate, and the ladders are shorter than the gate is wide.
In other words, I don't need the bed, and a tent mounted solid to a frame over the bed would get in the way. The tailgate is unnecessary since there's something there already that acts as a gate. So, a dovetailed bed cage with a rooftop tent on a forward hinge and the recovery ladders on a hinged dropout at the tail would make for easy access to all the gear under the tent, the spare tire, the recovery ladders, and shave a significant amount of weight off the back which can go toward water, aux fuel and toys. 55# is a lot to try and lift, but a couple of those gas assist tubes would help a lot and a brace would keep it safe in the upright position. A slightly offset front pivot would allow the tent to back up right against the cab--the front of the tent drops down instead of moving forward.
The rear can be dovetailed almost 10" on each side and still maintain enough forward space for a rooftop tent, enough cargo space for a large spare tire, fuel, water and other things--almost all the cargo is carried at the front, not the rear of the bed--and still leave more than six square feet of space open between the back of the tent and the recovery ladders.
If it's bolted on using the existing holes for the bed, I can even swap the two if I want the bed back...may as well, since the bed is already trimmed to hang the glass, and a bed is handy.
The part I'm having trouble with at the moment is how to carry the bikes. I think they could ride on top of the tent, since the Technitop uses that hard plastic shell. They'd end up about 1' over the top of the cab, where most people let them ride anyway.
With this setup (sans bikes), I could do hard 4WD work in style with a rooftop tent, maintain visibility and a low COG, carry necessary items in designed space rather than splitting a box (the glass bedsides could even be hinged, so shovels and such could be accessed from the side and hidden otherwise), and essentially keep it low profile but extremely capable and comfortable.
I'll get some CAD drawings of this up later.
The truck is already "built", but not for expedition travel yet...just 4WD stuff. The new rear axle is ready in the next week or two, sez the FROR crew...pics when I pick it up
.-Sean
