I wish someone made....

[007]

A lightweight bed replacement camper or utility body that was really compact. One that didn't extend above the roof or sides, and had a good departure angle. If it were a utility body it would have to be short so that an RTT would not be taller than the cab. It would be great to mount the RTT on a lift so that you could utilize a T-top and have a standing enclosure. But a pop up camper would work also.

Everything I've seen so far is tooo big and wide. The only way to get the best cargo storage and living quarters seems to be a utility body that can be accessed from the sides and back.

I built a rack for my tent, but its hard to make the best use of bed space without good side access.

If anyone knows of something that has no profile from the front of the truck let me know please!

 

[RHINO]

there are literally dozens of manufacturures in OZ and africa alone. many but not all of them extend a bit past the body, but thats because they are square. google my man.

 

[truck mechanic]

how about a flat bed, with tool boxs on the sides, then some sort of mounting between the boxs for the rtt.
just my .02
Paul

 

[007]

there are literally dozens of manufacturures in OZ and africa alone. many but not all of them extend a bit past the body, but thats because they are square. google my man.

Please throw me a bone if you know of one because I can't find it.

how about a flat bed, with tool boxs on the sides, then some sort of mounting between the boxs for the rtt.
just my .02
Paul

I think that is the route I'm headed, I'll basically be building my own utility bed. As the flat bed would be really narrow with boxes infront, above, and behind the tire. The flat bed portion might just be a large drawer with the other boxes mounted on frames and to the sides off it.

I'm checking out the feasibility of mounting the tent to four lift cylinders that run on compressed air. If I can do that, then I could build a frame for a tonneu cover and get rid of the fabric cover hassle.

 

[constructeur]

Maybe I don't understand the dilema, as it's easy (ofcourse money not being an issue) to have someone fab you up anything you can dream of. You could more than likey find a local welder that is slow and work with him on a project paying nothing more than materials and his hourly fee.

Anyhow,
Here's are links to 2 companies I've worked with when outfitting full sized trucks for heavy civil construction work:

http://www.heiserbody.com/indexframes.html

http://www.protech.net/

toolboxes we use(jobox) :

http://www.deltastorage.com/

be sure to price shop a specific box, I've found that stockists such as Fastenal, Grainger, etc. often run sales or have a deal going.

Lastly the link to Ute ltd. a Seattle based Aussie style 'tray back' manufacturer :
http://www.uteltd.com/

One of our subcontractors uses the Ute Ltd trays for their traffic control rigs, and they seem to be of great quality and usefulness, jsut like the ones I've seen when in Au.

 

[RHINO]

sure, heres a few.

http://www.trayon.com/

http://www.turtlebackcampers.com.au/

http://www.piggybackcampers.com.au/index.html

http://www.ahaweb.co.za/index.html

 

[adrenaline503]

sure, heres a few.

http://www.trayon.com/

http://www.turtlebackcampers.com.au/

http://www.piggybackcampers.com.au/index.html

http://www.ahaweb.co.za/index.html

None of those import to the US. As far as I can tell no one makes a rugged, compact Aus style camper in the states.

 

[007]

sure, heres a few.

http://www.trayon.com/

http://www.turtlebackcampers.com.au/

http://www.piggybackcampers.com.au/index.html

http://www.ahaweb.co.za/index.html

Thanks a bunch, Your google skills are unmatched!

I think I can get some great ideas from all those even though they aren't exactly what I'm looking for.

So far I'm looking to remove the bed, and weld/fab a frame to mount boxes together so that I can build a custom utility box/camper.

On the driver side I will have my fridge on a slide right behind the cab. Above the tire will be my stove, and behind the tire my two drawer pantry. Passenger side will be set up for water, tools and a closet with similar boxes. This should leave a cargo space in the middle for whatever. On top of the boxes I will mount the RTT to four air cylinders that lift the tent.

I'll box in the tent with side panels and a frame for a sliding rollup tonneau cover. This way I don't have to tuck everything up and mess with the PVC cover.

It should work out sweet. Slide open the tonneau, hit the air switch to raise the tent, grab the ladder and open up the tent to the drivers side. Underneath I'll have my fridge stove and pantry accessible from the side.

I've already modified the T-top so that the walls stay attached but rolled up and ready to drop when needed depending on the weather.

I'm no stranger to welding and Fab, but this setup will be tricky to build as the flex and vibrations are likely to cause all sorts of problems.

I also need to figure out were to hide 2 11lb propane bottles, 15 gallons of water and 2 aux. batts.....

Stay tuned for a build thread.....

 

[Heifer Boy]

I wanted the same thing and although I am in Oz, no one makes one for a tub ute. Just trays (flatbeds). The ones listed are great and there are a few more too but I ended up making my own http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=55247 . It was OK but I've started Ver 2.0 already. I'll post soon so check it out.

I look forward to seeing yours too.

 

[4WD School]

You could contact Chris Cole, owner of Campa USA. http://www.campausa.com/campa_evs.htm