Truck topper advantages

[vagari]

It doesn't look very hard to setup. Just pull the crank one turn. It's pretty minimalistic

 

[Woody Creature]

vagari, thank you. You are right. I have watched all of their videos and am liking this set up more and more. Thank you loads for bringing it to my attention.

 

[Patrick46]

It doesn't look very hard to setup. Just pull the crank one turn. It's pretty minimalistic

Oooooo.....that's slick!!!!

Me likey!!

 

[vagari]

I think the pricing I saw was like $5,000. There isn't much to it to be $5,000.

 

[Woody Creature]

I have written the flip-pac company for a price quote, general specs and weight. It certainly is not stealthy at all, but several people seemed to have used them and like them. I am somewhat concerned with wind in the desert. I would love to touch one to see the quality of the fabric and the joinery in the flipping part. $5,000 does seem to be a strong price. Maybe the workmanship warrants the price.

 

[vagari]

Here is a link with some info. They must be reseller. Says 325lbs for large and 295lbs for small. Pricing is $6,000
http://adventuretrailers.com/campers/at-flippac/

Huh. even a Flippac owners forum - I think I'll check it out
http://flippac-owners.com/forum/index.php

 

[akrvbob]

I have a friend who retired to a pop-top camper and within a year replaced it with a hard top camper for these reasons:

1) Setting them up constantly is a giant hassle.
2) Setting them up can be hard on your back, especially if you are older.
3) They are cold!!!! And even the desert can be very cold at night in the winter.
4) Tears, mold and mildew are inevitable. It will happen eventually.
5) The flapping in the wind gets old VERY fast!!!! And wind is constant in the desert.

If you are going to be full-time, I think pop-tops are a bad idea. If you are just taking trips then their advantages may offset these disadvantages.
Bob

 

[AimlessWanderLust]

I have a friend who retired to a pop-top camper and within a year replaced it with a hard top camper for these reasons:

1) Setting them up constantly is a giant hassle.
2) Setting them up can be hard on your back, especially if you are older.
3) They are cold!!!! And even the desert can be very cold at night in the winter.
4) Tears, mold and mildew are inevitable. It will happen eventually.
5) The flapping in the wind gets old VERY fast!!!! And wind is constant in the desert.

If you are going to be full-time, I think pop-tops are a bad idea. If you are just taking trips then their advantages may offset these disadvantages.
Bob

Having started in a pop-up and now have a hard-side, let me just second and third everything Bob says!

 

[Woody Creature]

I had strange a dream last night about battling the pop-up in driving rain/sand/hail. Also trying to be somewhat stealthy in the Walmart/truck stop/ rest area. I was unsuccessful at both tries in the dream. I think akrvbob, AimlessWanderLust and my dream fairy are right.
I have lived in a shell before. I can sit up in the truck's passenger seat.
I am headed to the nearest topper dealer Feb 21. to touch and feel.
Thanks for the input.

 

[vagari]

After further research I've found that the Flippac is not waterproof. Yep that's right. You have to buy the additional rain fly or have your own tarp. When it look slike rain you have to set it up.

 

[Woody Creature]

Crazy. I would not like trying to loop a tarp or rain fly over that tall thing as the rain starts coming down. I can just see me running around with a ladder.
This Flip Pac almost seems like a good idea in many ways. With new fabrics and adhesives I think the mold and wind and cold and tears and flapping could be addressed. I can imagine the rainfly integrated in the pop up. As it is currently manufactured and designed this is not a good choice.
Thank you vagari for you research.
I really am going with a shell.

 

[Kisatchieman]

Here's my Leer camper shell. It's about a foot taller than the cab of the truck and gives me plenty of headroom when sitting on my bed. I'm 6' so I have to hunch over to walk around in it. Only had it for about a year and found out last summer that it get's extremely hot inside with the black exterior. I lined the inside with 1" styrofoam insulation and attached a 4x8 sheet of treated plywood, painted white, to the roof rack to help shade the roof. May have helped a little but still too hot inside with doors and windows shut. I can open the side "windoors" for ventilation when I'm out in the boonies. I installed a 5000 btu portable air conditioner, but on those high 90 days it would only bring the inside temp down to the lower 80's. The ac is cooling it's heart out, but can't overcome the heat. Need at least a 9000 btu to get the job done.

 

[Woody Creature]

Thank you for the pictures and the info, Kisatchieman. Do you think it would have made any difference if you had gotten a non-matching color, like white? The Tacoma I am thinking of buying is black, but I have no fashion sense and would put a white one on if it worked better in the heat. I do love the thought of sitting up.

 

[Kisatchieman]

You're welcome. White would definitely be cooler. If my truck were white I would have gone white on the shell, but being dark green I didn't like the idea of a white shell. Having a shell that matched the color of my truck would have been my first choice, but that costs a lot more so I went with the black, which was no additional cost. In hot weather I'm paying the price for that decision. Of course, in winter the black color may help keep the interior a little warmer. Here in Louisiana keeping the shell cooler in summer is much harder than heating it in the winter. Yeah, being able to sit upright in bed is nice. Before the Leer I had a cab high ATC fiberglass shell that drove me nuts. Only way I could sit upright was when sitting on the floor. Too claustrophobic for me. BTW, I would never get another shell without back doors. Much more convenient than crawling over a tailgate with the standard shells.

 

[Woody Creature]

Thanks for the follow up, Kisatchieman. I have a friend with the same commercial shell as yours, with the back doors. She has had to replace the back doors twice, and cautioned me never to get that. I use the tailgate as a table, so I do not mind clambering over.
I thought that I had made up my mind, but you have swayed me with the words "sit upright".
Did you notice a big drop in mpg between the smaller fiberglass and your current one?

 

[akblack10]

I have had both types of door configurations with 2 different Tacoma Trucks and ARE Caps. One had the double doors and my current set-up has the standard tailgate, lift-up window. I prefer the current set-up because I can use the tailgate to sit on, to cook on…etc…. I also like being able to leave the tailgate up (closed) and the upper half window open with a mosquito net in place for more ventilation while I am sleeping in the bed.
-AK

 

[Kisatchieman]

Thanks for the follow up, Kisatchieman. I have a friend with the same commercial shell as yours, with the back doors. She has had to replace the back doors twice, and cautioned me never to get that. I use the tailgate as a table, so I do not mind clambering over.
I thought that I had made up my mind, but you have swayed me with the words "sit upright".
Did you notice a big drop in mpg between the smaller fiberglass and your current one?

I may have lost a couple of mpg's after going to the taller shell. I'm thinking about installing a luggage rack on the cab of my truck with an airfoil attached to smooth the airflow over the extra height of the shell to try and recoup my mpg's.

What was the problem with your friend's back doors? So far I haven't had any problems with mine. One thing I like about the doors is you can scoot inside the shell without bringing a lot of attention to yourself, as opposed to having to raise the window, lower the tailgate, crawl in and close both on a standard shell.

 

[Woody Creature]

Kisatchieman I am not sure what her problem was, she just said she had to replace it twice.
I am not trying to go stealth, just boondocking, so bringing attention to myself isn't a concern. If it was, you make a good case for the doors. I am like akblack10 and use the tailgate as a table.
Interesting thought about the rack/airfoil on the cab. Would be great if it worked.
akblack10 how do you close the tailgate when you are inside? In the past I just left it down and had a screen over the whole opening. I would like to do halfway. I thought of a rope ... Or did you close it, then get into the bed?
Thank you akblack10 and Kisatchieman for your input.

 

[akblack10]

I can just reach the tailgate with my hand and raise it to shut. It's not heavy.
-AK

 

[Kisatchieman]

When I had the standard fiberglass shell I made a rope loop and fastened it underneath the head of one of the bolts near the inside top of the tailgate. Once inside I pulled it to close the tailgate.