Truck Camper Shell That Fits Dirt Bike

TexasStevo

New member
I thought this thread might help someone else that has been in a similar quandary. I’ve had all kinds of campers over the years, pop up trailers, various truck campers, bumper pull toybox, 5th wheel toy box and a couple home made trailers, big and small. I have a family of 5 and that makes it tougher to camp comfortably and play with motorized toys. And we are typically driving long distances from Texas to the “cool states”. The last several years we kind of gave up and just hauled the bikes and quads or crawlers on an open 22’ car hauler style trailer and got a cabin or used a giant tent. I also have a small 14’ cargo trailer setup for moto hauling a few bikes and my gear/tools for guy type trips. But I still want a good hybrid solution for the bed of my truck when running solo on a motorcycle trip or when camping/overlanding with no trailer. I picked up a used ARE fiberglass shell on CL several years ago and have used that for basic traveling. Wasn’t good for much else, it was just a cheap solution. I put a used rack on top, sprung for a batwing awning and built out the inside to make it easy to haul our gear and have trail side access quickly. The truck had turned into our Jeep when we could no longer pull that off with a JK. Couple pics below, camping around Pikes Peak somewhere and then a shot coming down Hancock Pass.

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My kids are getting older (aka not trying to fit all of us and all 5 our stuff in my truck/trailer) and I’ve been coming back round to the truck camper thoughts. And as usual, I want one solution to be able to do too many things, I’m bad about this. Camp, haul stuff, sleep in it, not too tall, not too short, not too heavy, still able to get offroad to a degree. And….I still have one big hang up, I am determined to fit a dirt bike inside the truck camper. I know I can use a rcvr rack, I own one, but want what I want. I’ve been drooling over pop up truck campers for years but with my family of 5 it just wasn’t practical and too much money just to indulge me. And I always have the dirt bike thing in the back of my head and pop ups aren’t really conducive to that. I have talked with the folks at Hiatus as I love the pop up with the hard walls, it just isn’t quite tall enough for a bike. As seen below you can fit a bike inside, but it isn’t the easiest. They are willing to make your side walls taller…..but it also jacks up the loft bed with it and that would get funky looking and defeat the purpose of a low profile camper going down the road. I’m not willing to spend this level of money and not have ease of use for my intentions.

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The Harker EDC is newer on the market and interesting. I really like the open rear design for the dirt bike….and…..I really hate the open rear design for everything else, sun, rain, wind, floppy etc. It’s not quite what I am looking for. I really want barn doors. But it makes me happy that folks/new companies are doing innovative stuff like this unit that is really different from everyone else.

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The Aterra Topper is new to the market and pretty cool. But it is taller than I need at 81” inside and more money than I was willing to spend at this time. And no barn doors :-(

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I think when I decide to spend more time “living” in the back of a unit, then I will spring the extra money for a unit like this or a Tuffport or SpaceKap. But I should probably do this with a long bed truck to make it worth my while? I looked at new trucks and even tried to talk my wife into letting me get a single cab ARE Prospector setup. She wasn’t a fan of me cutting all my kids out just yet. And the new trucks setup like mine in Prospector trim are over $100K. And you can’t get a manual 6 speed anymore. Right now I have a truck that is paid for and can transform into different roles as needed……able to go offroad, pull a trailer, haul stuff in the bed, camp, and seat 6 bodies in the cab.

So…that is a long way round I know. And I’m not done blabbing, ha ha. You’ve hung in there this long. Once you make the decision to go with a smaller style/size commercial topper, the Caravan Campers also came in the running. Caravan is steel, heavier, cost a little more than other budget solutions, and was not local to me (Reno)…but I like them. I also liked the Callen Campers and the baby section over the cab….but wood construction, heavier, not local (west coast)….meh. Now that I finally made a dadgum decision to go with the ARE DCU…..now what flavor? Oh boy, start the torture. How tall, 32” or 36”? To wedge or not to wedge? Slanted side walls or 90 degree side walls? Radius front? White or black? Side windows? Lot of options. I won’t got into the details unless someone asks how I came to this decision but I went with a 36” tall, non-wedge, non-radius front, 90 degree side walls, barn doors with windows, big side doors with no bins, carpet lined, 4x4 reinforcement, one 12V light wired to truck for the here and now, sliding front window, back up camera and heavy duty security lock on the barn doors. Picked it up yesterday. With those features this puts you right at $5k. The fit and finish isn’t the best but at this price point, it is what it is. I’m not trying to win trophies at car shows.

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Slight snag, it doesn’t have 90 degree side walls. When my order went to the factory, it went to the R&D folks first. They reported back to the factory rep they couldn’t do the 90s at that 36” height. Factory rep said ok, build it with normal walls. They should have stopped right there and called the customer, me, to see if I still wanted it. Obviously they didn’t. At this point the factory rep apologized and said they were willing to knock off several hundred if I would take it as is. I could have walked away at no cost, but I would still be in the same pickle….wanting a reasonably priced tall camper shell with barn doors. I had anguished over the 90 walls anyhow, maybe this was meant to be.....and I was getting a discount? I took delivery today, despite the hiccup I’m pretty excited. Probably drop off my application at Amazon on the way home. Be on the look out for me delivering packages to your house. I accept tips, silver bullets preferred. More to come.

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chet6.7

Explorer
I like it , I am thinking of a 90* DCU. I have a call in to ORU to see if the will make a full barn door version in addition to the half barn door version they currently make.
Keep posting your build.(y)

The quote below is from the DCU options list I don't know what Mesas are in this context, does getting 90* require a radius front?

Radius Front / 90° Side Walls Requires Mesas on Sides
on 29" and 36" units only
https://www.4are.com/pdfs/aredcuseries.pdf
 

TexasStevo

New member
Radius stuff and 90 degree walls…..I don’t really know. The local dealership knew less than I did. The factory rep was like an elusive double agent that wouldn’t speak with me. When I asked for a construction drawing prior to going to the shop floor, I was told there is no way. I think they just aren’t used to guys caring what it looks like or doing something out of the ordinary. They typically punch out the normal contractor caps. It was a weird experience. Seems a shame, they could really step up in this niche with just a little more effort.
 

chet6.7

Explorer
I am running a DCU now, though a lower one with an angled front.
From their site,
"RADIUS FRONT option gives you a high volume capacity with 90* sides and front with a radius curve top front for better fuel efficiency."

Yeah, ARE and their dealers haven't impressed me, my impression is, they don't care because they don't have to. I would like to see someone move into their space.
 

TexasStevo

New member
Ok, the payoff….a dirt bike loaded back there. I got home last night and had to make sure I didn’t make a big mistake. Here is a shot with the bike part way in case some folks want to see the transition through the door way.

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I have plenty of practice loading bikes in tall trucks but was still worried this was going to be really awkward with having to duck and maneuver the handle bars etc. It wasn’t bad. I think mostly due to the security of the side walls vs. when you load a bike in an empty bed of a lifted truck from the tailgate. Also was nice having the extra step in the recess of the bumper where the license plate is. I purposely loaded it with a Stanley tool box in the bed as I want to have a half platform/drawer setup, with a hinged lid so I can still step on the left side when loading the bike.

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Here is a couple more pics of the bike in there. The side window openings are huge and made it easy to tie the bike down without having to crawl over or under the bike.

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Here is an open shot of the bed if someone wasn’t going to build a sleep platform/drawer on one side.

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Tonight I’m brainstorming stuff and drinking some beer, that always helps! I mounted L track down the center of the truck years ago so I have the ability to use M8 bolts and just scrounged a couple brackets in my stash to secure some plywood down the middle. The left side, I had a couple pieces of angle iron I secured for now. The front bed wall, I had a dirt bike bracket prefab deal I bought that has been up there for years. I worked to get all those pieces at the same level and ready for the platform piece. Nothing is square back there. I wish I was working with a square body Chevy bed! That’s all for now.

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Lee

Member
I can relate to the back and forth trying to figure out what shell to go with.
I really thought I would be getting a DCU also but when I saw the Radica Moonlander late last year it ticked a few more boxes for what I wanted to do with it.
Probably keep an eye out to see how you fit it out, always looking for an idea or two I can steal.
Keep bouncing between basic storage + bed and full interior paneling with cabinets.
Probably should just throw my gear in the back and head out.

My write up:
(just look at the pictures...)
 

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