trabs00
Lifetime Social Distancer
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Hard-Sided Pop-Up Camper by Hiatus Campers
- Thread starter HiatusCampers
- Start date
landman
Well-known member
Yea, the sectional cushions are good, but not great for sleeping comfort. I travel with a tri-fold mattress and use it on top of the cushions to add extra comfort. My tri fold fits well along the top of my horizontal bench in the back of my camper when I pop it down. This way it doesn’t sit in the isle of my camper. Ill take a pic later to share how that looks.
I built my benches to the exact size of each cushion (expect the larger one that lives up in the loft at all time). So when I travel my cushions simply live on top of my bench’s as sitting cushions.
There are a few other pop up campers that offer taller sections to allow for extra bedding to be left up there when you close it. That being said, none of these allow for matters to stay up there. As usual with rigs like these, its a compromise.
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trabs00
Lifetime Social Distancer
Thanks for the feedback,
Yeah it's all about compromise with these types of setups. I'm just trying to plan where I might be all able to put mattress sections, all the bedding when not popped up, and still have room for tools, gear, etc. Not to mention my auxiliary battery...
Gotta get creative with storage I guess.
I still think the hard hell pop up is the coolest design by far
trabs00
Lifetime Social Distancer
@Hoooogan
I just heard back from hiatus that they can extend the slide out so the final overall sleeping platform would be 78" long so I'm thinking a megamat duo (prob 10) will be perfect for my full-size short box truck. I just need to make up my mind on configuration, stop overthinking it and place my order!
Awesome! And their lead times have dropped significantly since they moved into their new shop. I checked last week and it was October this year. Around this time last year, when I was looking at placing my order, it was two years!
So awesome to see them succeed and cut down lead times. I love their design and build. Honestly the lead times were the biggest deterrent as to why I didn't go with them and went in a different direction. If I had known this about 6 months ago I likely would have picked the Hiatus. Oh well, still rooting for them though and it looks like they are knocking it out of the park.
Forgot to mention, regarding the plastic handles that tuck inside the bed platform when closed... You don't even need those interior handles at all. While closing the roof from the inside is convenient, I found it MUCH easier to just close the roof from the outside. Same way you open it by lifting the rear of the roof via the external handles, you can pull it down from there as well. No awkward body movement around your interior build. So all you'd need to do is deflate the mattress and close her up!
I run a Propex HS2211 in mine. I've only been down to low 20's, but with 30+ mph wind. Insulation is good, but there is a fair amount of exposed metal (aluminum frame, steel panel frames), which thermal bridges the cold into the camper. You will get condensation on those surfaces if you don't have a heater. My challenge with the heater is moving the warm air into the cabover area, so I use a small fan to push that way. Overall, it works well for what I have experienced.
My mileage is marginally better than my old GFC, but still a tiny bit worse than a shell with an 80/20 roof rack. We are talking ~1 mpg differences here.
Thanks for that. Seriously thinking of one of these. I really like the idea of not dealing with canvas.
I have a 2011 Tundra double cab. Do you get the feeling the longevity of this thing will be good? Like the build quality? My truck will spend a lot of time outside, no garage right now.
Curious, did you go with barn doors -- I heard they keep dust and whatnot out better -- or the vertical walls?
Spencer for Hire
Active member
At least for barn doors keep in mind that they are truck, model year specific. So I would ask what trucks your camper would fit in resale. Ask them what difference the build makes for resale/new truck if it is not barn doors. I miss my tailgate but so much easier with barn doors and yes dust stays out of my F150. I have vertical walls but adds a price jump and but would buy verts again
So far, it feels like this thing will last. The plastic hinges and lift supports are the only wear items, both of which can be replaced. Build quality is excellent. Mine has spent (~4 months) and will spend its life outside, at least until I buy a new house in a few years.
I have the standard angled sides and liftgate/tailgate. It made more sense for me, since I like to run tight trails and use the tailgate as a work surface. Some dust gets in, but I took the steps to seal the tailgate as best as I could.
So with a 20k Truck topper the best solution for sleeping In this thing has been a blow up air mattress? And otherwise y'all have to compromise with moving around pillows bedding and cushions? Seems like a flunk out in the engineering dept to create such a worthwhile exterior and then flop the sleeping system with sliding platforms and cushions imo.
Oru designs has struts that lift the bed and they start @ a third of the price as the hiatus campers. Perhaps the time for compromise should come to an end here?
Oru designs has struts that lift the bed and they start @ a third of the price as the hiatus campers. Perhaps the time for compromise should come to an end here?
K9LTW
Active member
How is the Oru Designs not still a compromise? For one...they don't seem to offer full-size barn doors. For another...that fold-up bed completely negates the cabover space while you're in the camper. We got another kind of pop-up for both the full-size barn doors, and the ability to have a loft, of sorts, with the bed slid in. So both our dogs (or my wife and both dogs
) can be chilling on the loft while I/we have access to the entire truck bed. Comes in handy when it's just nasty outside. With the Oru...complete non-starter. You, effectively, have a wedge camper with the bed pushed up. I really like the windows and such in the Oru, but it's 100% still a compromise with the bed design.We were enamored with the AluCabin when we first saw one two years ago (reason that full-size entry door became a requirement), but quickly discounted it due to a lack of space during inclement weather. Same limitation with the Oru.
The oru designs is less than half the price and I WILL accept compromise at that price. My point was that for 20k we shouldn't have to compromise on the bed sleeping on cushions.How is the Oru Designs not still a compromise? For one...they don't seem to offer full-size barn doors. For another...that fold-up bed completely negates the cabover space while you're in the camper. We got another kind of pop-up for both the full-size barn doors, and the ability to have a loft, of sorts, with the bed slid in. So both our dogs (or my wife and both dogs
We were enamored with the AluCabin when we first saw one two years ago (reason that full-size entry door became a requirement), but quickly discounted it due to a lack of space during inclement weather. Same limitation with the Oru.
I see all of the hype on these canopy toppers and folks seem so desperate to jump into something with compromise that the manufacturers don't really reach the point of improvement because everyone wants something so bad they can't make changes without upsetting their users.
Hard shells should be the norm, not the acception.
Beds that maneuver completely out of the way should be the norm, not the compromise.
20k is more than 4x the cost of a truck canopy, and compromise shouldn't cost this much.