Experienced opinions and concerns on pop ups and canopy campers

[Hodor]

Been looking at these and following closely the market for 4+years now. I want opinions from experienced users on what they appreciate and hate about the setups they've used. Things they wish companies would do\not do and also how often they use their setups so I can mitigate my own mistakes.

I have built a fuso, an ambulance, had a sprinter class C for a short time and now am building on a Silverado 1500 6.5' bed platforms. I work on the road as a lineman and live in a travel trailer, so this build will represent my weekend base camp and provide adventures for my wife, dog and I. We live outside 8 months of the year in central Oregon.

I'm currently looking to purchase the Hardsider and I believe their prototypes look amazing and the owner looks to be a similar build from me so I'm hoping their bed system is dialed.
I will be building out my truck bed myself with a minimalist cooking setup (diesel stove plumbed into fuel tank | foot pump for water hose) and some simple storage as I haul paddleboard, fishing gear, dirt bikes and do general truck ******** on the whole. Eventually I will get an aluminum flatbed with boxes and the canopy will live on that.

 

[Hodor]

Link to a YouTube vid on the Hardsider

 

[FAW3]

One man's opinion: I "truck cap" camped for years out of various trucks and a few years ago went deep into researching pop-up wedge type campers for my Tacoma DCLB. My lifestyle changed and I foresaw with full retirement I would have much more time so I jumped into a larger rig. That said I think these general thoughts from my Tacoma wedge mindset era might be helpful.

The beauty of a small footprint 4x4 truck camper is the ability to go easily about anywhere with a simple practical rig. A stock 4x4 truck can with good all terrain tires can travel 95% of US public access lands. Avoid the draw of overbuilding a "super rig" that has needless expensive mods. If something breaks...you want to be able to get the replacement part at a NAPA a few miles away...not across the state, the country or across the world.

Watch your weight. These pop-up campers are a fantastic development in the past decade but consider carefully weight of everything as you move forward.

The bane of small vehicle camping is storage. I did not want to hang "overlanding eye candy" on the outside of the vehicle. I wanted my personal gear, cooking box and campsite stuff to be in primarily in plastic weatherproof/insect proof containers that provided good organization and easy movement between my garage and the truck and simplified the transition from "on the road to in camp". Your interior "build" is another area to be mindful of "overbuilding".

Make your cab area comfortable for you, wife and the dog. My trucks were either extended or crew cabs and often I used the split rear platform seat for some modular storage and a dedicated dog area. Consider phone mounts & chargers, drink holders and the like. Get good floor mats and seat covers for the dirt/grime of overlanding.

Good sound workmanship and component selection in electrical, cooking, environmental and plumbing systems is a blessing that pays consistent dividends over the entire span of ownership and use. The absolute best foundation for all of this is SIMPLICITY.

A decent awning really expands your "area of shelter & enjoyment". Simple or fancy...an awning should be able to be set up easily, withstand reasonable weather conditions, and provide a decent working/relaxing area for you.

Oh, and get a hammock!

 

[simple]

A design consideration on the buildout is whether you will be leaving your vehicle at trail heads. People would be less likely to steal a $30 cooler vs a $1000 fridge etc.

 

[trabs00]

Echo many of others comments.
One more thought, maybe look for used, here, CL etc. Many folks bought one during the pandemic when there were LONG wait times and have had life changes, changed mind on what they want etc. and are looking to sell one that has had very little use.
Many of these topper campers can be adapted to "similar" trucks
Just something to consider

 

[Hodor]

Echo many of others comments.
One more thought, maybe look for used, here, CL etc. Many folks bought one during the pandemic when there were LONG wait times and have had life changes, changed mind on what they want etc. and are looking to sell one that has had very little use.
Many of these topper campers can be adapted to "similar" trucks
Just something to consider

That's fair but I'm not looking not just looking to purchase, I'm explaining that I've been very meticulous in how and what these toppers are made with and I believe Hardsider has everything I want in the manufacturing for me to continue my build. Thank you for your insight though

 

[craig333]

Our wants and needs are so different from another this is a difficult ask. For instance I consider a heater a must have. For others its not. Only you know for sure.

 

[Hodor]

One man's opinion: I "truck cap" camped for years out of various trucks and a few years ago went deep into researching pop-up wedge type campers for my Tacoma DCLB. My lifestyle changed and I foresaw with full retirement I would have much more time so I jumped into a larger rig. That said I think these general thoughts from my Tacoma wedge mindset era might be helpful.

The beauty of a small footprint 4x4 truck camper is the ability to go easily about anywhere with a simple practical rig. A stock 4x4 truck can with good all terrain tires can travel 95% of US public access lands. Avoid the draw of overbuilding a "super rig" that has needless expensive mods. If something breaks...you want to be able to get the replacement part at a NAPA a few miles away...not across the state, the country or across the world.

Watch your weight. These pop-up campers are a fantastic development in the past decade but consider carefully weight of everything as you move forward.

The bane of small vehicle camping is storage. I did not want to hang "overlanding eye candy" on the outside of the vehicle. I wanted my personal gear, cooking box and campsite stuff to be in primarily in plastic weatherproof/insect proof containers that provided good organization and easy movement between my garage and the truck and simplified the transition from "on the road to in camp". Your interior "build" is another area to be mindful of "overbuilding".

Make your cab area comfortable for you, wife and the dog. My trucks were either extended or crew cabs and often I used the split rear platform seat for some modular storage and a dedicated dog area. Consider phone mounts & chargers, drink holders and the like. Get good floor mats and seat covers for the dirt/grime of overlanding.

Good sound workmanship and component selection in electrical, cooking, environmental and plumbing systems is a blessing that pays consistent dividends over the entire span of ownership and use. The absolute best foundation for all of this is SIMPLICITY.

A decent awning really expands your "area of shelter & enjoyment". Simple or fancy...an awning should be able to be set up easily, withstand reasonable weather conditions, and provide a decent working/relaxing area for you.

Oh, and get a hammock!

Yes! Exactly what I was hoping to find here. I am planning to lift the truck and put bigger tires on it but that's only because I'm still a little boy on the inside.

I'm definitely taking the minimal\simplistic design philosophy and I've learned many things over the years of camping, such as the dual use rule. Thank you for your insight

 

[trabs00]

While not a hardsider, it seems like a lot of people who have bought Minimalist OVRLND brand pop ups post build threads.
Google OVRLND build threads, there are many here on expo forum for example.

I think Facebook has a project M build thread too. Again, not the same as the hardsider but maybe good for ideas.
I have a Hiatus bare shell that I am going to start building out, I plan to scan these threads for some ideas.

best luck, maybe start a build thread as you go 😁

 

[86scotty]

I've been watching the pop up truck market with interest ever since I preordered a Super Pacific and came away very unimpressed with it. Everyone who comes along with a new one improves some things.

This one has improved SEVERAL things IMO that are have been showstoppers for me on other toppers.

First, the (sleeping) bed extension way over the cab so you have some usable stand up room in a truck bed, a vast majority of which are 5 or 5.5' these days.

Second, a real door. A fold up hatch with a regular truck tailgate is so awkward in a truck camper it's amazing any have ever been sold. There are few things I truly hate. This was one. Best of both worlds with this one where you can keep your tailgate and have a door. Alucab has the only other decent looking solution with a tailgate delete.

Third, I really like the removable top idea if that comes to fruition. Seems like something a lot of people would take advantage of when using the truck as a truck and wanting a regular cap for security, etc.

And of course hard sides. I won't buy another truck pop up that isn't a straight up pop up, personally, but this is the next best thing.

 

[dstefan]

It’s a really compelling presentation and design IF you want a wedge camper. Really like a lot of the features and approach, especially the folding hardsides. I can see the appeal for sure. A few thoughts:

— Still in prototype. Worth learning about the company. Lot of folks got screwed by Vagabond when they flamed out. I’ve heard some problems with Bison as well. Not to say these guys are any kind of risk or problem, but worth verifying what and when you’ll get a delivery and what your protections are on the deposit and payment. There’s a LOT of competition these days and I’d suspect we see some more new, small companies that are poorly managed or funded flame out, regardless of the excellence of design or build.
— Be sure you want the wedge sleeping experience. Wouldn’t work for me personally, but many find it’s fine. You do lose some standing height as well, but depending your height may not be an issue.
— Think hard about how much space you, wife, and dog need on the floor. All the built ins look nice, and even DIY, it’s easy to over do that stuff and lose the move around room. Depends on your travel and camping style. It’s good you have the 6.5’ truck bed. Also, think how you want to access the inside frequently. Side hatches, back door etc. All can make a difference in longer term useability.

Good luck with whatever you do. Like others I’d be curious to see how this turns out!

 

[Hodor]

Im definitely on the full pop bandwagon because of the additional space, but with Hiatus being the only player in the hard sided pop up game I can't get on board with their lack of design when it comes to the bed. Arguably the primary design focus of these canopy\wedge campers is the fact that they come with a sleep system, and I can't sleep on cushions.
I'm hoping that the company would eventually create a full pop sleeping platform that I would be able to purchase without having to ditch my bottom piece

 

[86scotty]

and I can't sleep on cushions.

Super Pacific comes with, or did, a very nice self inflating mattress, an Exped Megamat. I had one of these in a RTT before the Super Pacific and I still have it somewhere but don't use it anymore. It's impressive. Much better than your average cushions. Are you familiar?

 

[MR E30]

That's fair but I'm not looking not just looking to purchase, I'm explaining that I've been very meticulous in how and what these toppers are made with and I believe Hardsider has everything I want in the manufacturing for me to continue my build. Thank you for your insight though

You said you wanted experience opinions, so here is what I have to offer:

First, I see very few things in the Hardsider camper that lend it any serious credibility, and I see a lot of things that are either 'meh' or 'not desirable'. I would be incredibly wary of campers made by people who have created campers after they went camping a few times themselves and then thought that making their own camper would be a cool thing to do and then market.

Be wary of promises of running a portable AC unit in a wedge camper. The power demands associated with an AC unit are just astronomical, relative to what the typical truck camper power system is capable of producing and storing.

Also beware of portable power stations, like the Ecoflow. They have relatively weak capabilities (charging rate, discharging rate, capacity, etc.), compared to a piece meal system from Victron or Redarc. I charge a piece meal Renogy system with 1.6x the capacity of my SIL's Ecoflow setup in her shed, on half of the solar wattage, faster, due to my systems ability to effectively put the sunlight hitting the panels into my batteries.

I am also not convinced that their honeycomb sided walls for the tent are that revolutionary. They will have a certain effect, but I have no problems sufficiently warming up the inside of my wedge camper, with its normal dual layered canvas walls. Everyone wants to enter this space with something unique, but just because it is unique does not mean it is useful or worthwhile.

No mention of how the thing is built, but from the video it isn't anything special. I doubt its design process meets any sort of credible standard (not that there is one for wedge campers, but it likely lacks a lot of 'first principle' ideas). Also, all they have are prototypes. These are a far cry from tried and tested setups that have been around for years.

I could go on, but I don't have the time.

Qualifications: Practicing Structural Engineer and wedge camper on a DCLB Tacoma full-time living in a truck guy.

 

[SimplyAnAdventure]

I feel relatively qualified to talk on the wedge camper front.

I was one of the very first GFC orders (back in the TacomaWorld/ Hondo Garage days when that was basically the first mass market wedge camper. VAGABOND was popping off at the same but I think GFC was first to market.

The GFC took us to Utah, Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, and across the entire country from NY. It was lightweight simple and fairly easy to use. What it wasn’t was convenient.. juggling the bed panels around, waking up my wife if I had to get up to pee at night, no real ability to keep warm or cool. It was a great introduction but left a lot to be desired for us.

Used that camper until July of 2019 when I bought an AluCab Khaya. This camper was honestly great. Bed platform was on struts so inside living was easy! Diesel heater kept us toast warm, tons of storage and it took us a LOT of places.

Between the GFC and Khaya we have easy over 100 nights sleeping in a wedge camper.

So what am I using now? A Supertramp. Basically just the bigger and more comfortable version of the Khaya that pops us straight rather than a wedge. They all have merits and the wedge design is very strong and if you have a bed platform that tilts up they are very liveable as well. The Supertramp is a different class of campers all together. No comparison.

As mentioned previously be sure about the company. A lot of people have gotten burned by companies trying to cash in and not delivering or making a subpar product. Do your research and find what fits your needs.

FWIW I have experience in the Canopy Camper, Project M, as well as OEV campers. They all have merit. Choose wisely, though if you’re like me you’ll probably end up swapping it out for the next thing anyway. Good luck!