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climbhigh23
Oct 5, 2004, 12:06 AM
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looks badass.....great post.
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bsignorelli
Oct 5, 2004, 12:48 AM
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Great post!....thanks for posting good photos with your directions. One question...is your camper shell a "cab high" model or does it stick up higher than the truck cab? Could you post a photo similar to the last one except showing the entire rear of the truck? Oh and what kinda of truck is it? Thanks again! Bryan
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tim
Oct 5, 2004, 1:54 AM
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Registered: Apr 4, 2002
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looks like a Tacoma fullsize bed with a Raven shell. am I right? ps. this is one of the most useful posts ever (for me). I have wanted to loft my truck for a long time but couldn't figure out how to make it reversible. Your implementation was very clever; I wish I'd thought of it!
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mungeclimber
Oct 5, 2004, 2:58 AM
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solid post* * cab-high shells make this arrangement very constricting for big shouldered guys, especially if you add a deluxe 2.5" thermarest pad and want to get your love on with su chica.
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apolobamba
Oct 5, 2004, 3:11 AM
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Registered: Jan 22, 2003
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Better than the thermarest pads, get a cotton mattress pad from Ikea. They are more comfortable and easier to wash.
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holdplease2
Oct 5, 2004, 3:46 AM
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Wow, Crotch! Thats perfect! Just what I'm looking for with the removability and even (for a short person like me) the ability to just leave one panel in and sleep lengthwise! Thanks so much for going to the trouble of posting this. :) -Kate.
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rockit
Oct 5, 2004, 3:49 AM
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Registered: Jun 23, 2003
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Is the topper lined and if it is did you line it our did you buy one that was already lined? My topper is not lined and I hate the condensation drip in the morning - its worse than a leaking tent. I'm too cheap to buy a new topper and have been to lazy to experiment with making a liner. Anybody lined a topper before?
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crotch
Oct 5, 2004, 4:40 PM
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Bryan - The camper shell is taller than the truck cab. It's a Tacoma with one of these Leer caps http://www.leer.com/images/x22slide.gif. I don't think this system would work out too well with a "cab-high" shell unless you are fine with pulling 5.8 squeeze moves to get in and out of bed. Kate - Sleep sideways? I must have haulbags taller than you!! rockit - I bought a lined shell.
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petro
Oct 5, 2004, 5:18 PM
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I have a friend who did a very similar thing, used a futon mattress for a bed. He built full-length sliding drawers, and had a tripod at the end of each that he could attach to make kitchen cabinets. He even had a recess built in for a coleman stove, and a lantern stand. It was the road warrior's palace. He even went to such detail as to build the top deck out of aromatic cedar so it kept it smelling at least decent. Good work at keeping yours under 100 bucks. I'm very jealous. -Tom
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jay07
Oct 5, 2004, 5:26 PM
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Registered: Sep 14, 2004
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Thank you! This is brilliant. Probably the single most useful post I've yet seen. Great contribution.
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slobmonster
Oct 5, 2004, 5:59 PM
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Registered: Jul 28, 2003
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I agree with all the flattery; many dirtbags-to-be will thank you. Regarding being a larger person, with a "regular" height cap: it's possible to raise you cap higher using 2X8s (or 6s, or whatever) bolted onto the siderails of your bed. The cap can then be attached to this. One simple yet ingenious way to get your stuff out from under the bed is to attach some scrap cord to each box... this way you can just yank what you need instead of spelunking into your truck.
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tim
Oct 5, 2004, 6:05 PM
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In reply to: He built full-length sliding drawers, and had a tripod at the end of each that he could attach to make kitchen cabinets. He even had a recess built in for a coleman stove, and a lantern stand. It was the road warrior's palace. He even went to such detail as to build the top deck out of aromatic cedar so it kept it smelling at least decent. Dude, that's hot. This is the raddest thread ever. I'm getting a semi just thinking about them power tools and sawdust. ;-) In all seriousness this should be a full-on article with comments an' shit. The drawer comment reminds me of a video where Dean Potter was pulling a drawer out from under a loft in some sort of vehicle, with numerous ropes, and selecting one for Tombstone, whereupon he took a 60' whipper onto it. My ropes (twins + a 70m) always end up catching on things; it'd be nice to have a dedicated compartment for them, and a drawer would be the end of the line for that!
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wilcox510
Oct 5, 2004, 6:41 PM
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Registered: Mar 17, 2004
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very nice, in a rush i failed to figure out a removable system and mine is semi-permanent. mine happens to be just high enough to fit the 16" tall rubbermaid bins underneath. i have one for cooking stuff, gear, clothes etc. if you happen to be a ski mountaineer and have a whippet (the black diamond ski pole, not the chemical kind) it works great for pulling stuff out from underneath. just be careful you dont put holes in things with the sharp whippet, which by the way i have used several hundred times in my truck, and only once actually skiing
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jstp
Oct 5, 2004, 7:16 PM
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Registered: May 23, 2004
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Nice post. Realy i just wanted to add a small detail that i found useful for my, more permanent (as in permanet to the truck and permanent as my home) truck live-in modifications. The incandescnet light in my cap fell apart and was useless a month after i bought the cap. Incandescent (normal) lightbulbs have lots of problems that led me to switch that jingus setup to LEDs. Namely the problems are: they take quite a bit of power and can drain you battery and they are hot leading to melting or fires (think sleeping bags here). They also break alot leaving glass everywhere, burn out with allarming frequency and are poor light. LEDs (light emitting diodes) are those nifty miniature bulbs in the new super small headlamps that last forever on small bateries. You all know and love your trusty tika's for descents and emergencies, now you can have that same blueish glow in your truck! Best of all they are better than stock lights in many ways: -Extremely low power consmption (a small fraction of an incandescent bulb) -Low heat generaton: i.e. no burning your head when you sit up or catching stuff on fire. something i never really cared for in cramped spaces. -They last forever with no need of bulb replacement. -They work better in the cold, which combined with the lower power drain makes them even better for cold climates. -You can get red ones for stealth night mode 8^) So how can you install these in your rig? First find a premade fixture with WHITE LEDs that you like and will give enough light. This should be designed for a 12v stystem so it will need no modification to be wired to the vehicle's electric systm. They need to be white so you can actually see by them. 12v fixtures can be found at marine supply stores (or online, boats use 12v) at specialty stores like RealGoods (also online) or lots of them are on eBay for way cheaper. I cannot speak to the quality of all of the products avaible on eBay so be careful here, they may not be white or very bright, but they can be very cheap and wortha try. I have a small stainless steel dome light with 6 leds in it and it lights up my whole bed in the truck fine, but not too bright. To read by it you need to be close. I also have a set of strip LEDs that i got on eBay that are on the inside of the cap door to light my dinner preperations or early morning racking, it works great. Once you have got the fixture you need power to the bed of the truck, or back of the van. In my case it was easiest to run a wire straight off the positive terminal of the battery along the frame to the back. I held it onto the frame with nylon wire ties. It is important to put an in-line automotive fuse (1.50 at radioshack) on the positive wire. Lastly take another wire from where the fixture will be and attach it to the frame. No need to go all the way back to the battery, just need to ground the circuit to the frame of the vehicle. Make sure you sand the spot real well so that you have a solid connection. This will give you a constant supply of 12v power to the back (most caps have lights in them, but the power only flows through those wires when the brake is on for the brake light, or when the parking lights are on, go figure). Now just solder or crimp on your new light fixture and wait for dark. When it's dark out turn it on and see where it would best be mounted to light the areas you want and attach however seems best. Screws or epoxy are my suggestions. Remember LEDs are not very bright during the day, but work just fine in the dark, at dusk they seem kinda weak. Hopefully this was helpful. Edit/Added: how to reinforce LED lights i recently spent a lot of time putting in some custom LED fixtures in my truck and in the process noticed something about most easily available LED modules. The best LEDs you have to buy individually and solder into a light yourself, lots of work. Cheap, pretty good ones can be had in a variety of weak plastic fixtures not intended to take the abuse i, and i am sure others, dish out on their roat trip rigs. The third major category is pretty good LEDs in really expensive and nice fixtures. I vote for the pre-assembled ones that are cheaper. But you need to reinforce them. I recently finished this and it worked so slick, and this post has been rates so well by all of you i figured i would toss it in. To reinforce your pre-assembled, but weak LEDs (like most strip modules) you can use plexiglas and a heat gun. Tale a piece of plexiglass a bit bigger than your light and slowly heat it up with the heat gun until it bends with light pressure. Bend the Plexiglass into shape and let cool. Now cut away all excess plexiglass, use a rasp to smooth edges and generally make it work well. Now make a backing for the fixture, sheet metal works well. Attch the whole thing with epoxy, zip ties or screws. You can even encase a switch with the light for ease of use and durability. Now just screw through the sheet metal to attach the light. if you have any questions pm me. and there is a lot more to this, and making nice, durable and cheap lights. would anyone be interested in a short article or post? let me know
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bsignorelli
Oct 5, 2004, 10:35 PM
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Registered: Feb 1, 2003
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Places to buy 12v LED lights... http://westfleet.com/...ng/led-lighting.html http://www.grote.com Though these automotive lights seem to come in yellow or red only. I wonder if you could remove the colored lens and there might just be white LEDs underneath. But then again, I've heard good things about having yellow lights for general use...they may not attract bugs as much as white lights and I've read that the yellow LED keychain lights last a lot longer than white ones yet still give you quality light to read by. This would be handy if you were going to leave your lights on for a while at night and didn't have an "accessory" battery for your vehicle. More info on LED's in an automotive setting (and why you may want to be wary of the aftermarket "replacement" bulbs) can be found here... http://faq.auto.light.tripod.com/signal-leds.htm
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jstp
Oct 6, 2004, 7:37 PM
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Registered: May 23, 2004
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bsignorelli, thanks for the links on where to buy LEDs. i have not gotten any from these sites, so can't speak for their quality. As for removing the covers and finding while LEDs, this will not be the case. White LEDs are harder to make and more expensie than colored ones, like red and amber, and so if the light is red anyway the manufacturer will use cheaper red or amber leds. Also yellow (amber) LEDs may be OK to read by, but they will strain your eyes and really be a pain over time. The best method (and most advanced and complicated) to obtain a less bluish and more natural light with LEDs is to manufacture your own fixtures (or buy very expensive pre-made ones) that include primarily white LEDs, but also contains a few amber ones. The ratio is usually around 7 white to 3 amber or 8:2, but varries on the quality of the LEDs. In regard to power saving by using amber LEDs, don't worry. Leaving them on for up to a week you will have so little power drain that the vehicle will start as normal. Running them for a night is a non-issue, even in very cold climates. (If you hook up a 12v LED fixture to one of those large camping 12v batteries it will be plenty bright for a few months... so you see the power drain is pretty small, if you don't believe me compare the watts or amps on an LED fixture to a standard incandescent automotive dome light). If you do use the lights alot and do not start the vehicle for over a week i would recomend starting it up and running it for an hour or so once a week. One last thing. i don't recomend buying 'automotive accessory LEDs', these tend to be colored, cheap, and designed for making your pimped out '88 civic look cooler than your buddies lowered '79 Fox, not give off useful light. Get marine 12V lights or one of the other WHITE pre-assembled 12v units. just searching white LEDs, or LED Dome light on eBay brings up a decent selection.
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redtail
Oct 6, 2004, 8:56 PM
Post #18 of 24
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Registered: Jun 3, 2004
Posts: 48
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Might I suggest forgetting the cap altogether? I also use my truck for working, hauling firewood, rocks, dirt ect. ect, so a cap just wasn't a very good option. Here's my setup. (sorry but no pictures) I made a plywood deck with an underframe just tall enough to cover the wheel wells. The frame under the plywood is basically in the shape of the capital letter "I". All the way across the tail end of the bed, up the middle and across the cab-end of the bed. This "I" underframe can be lifted in and out by one person and doesn't need to be bolted in. For the deck top I used 4 boards laid lengthwise in the bed on top of the "I". The width of the boards will vary depending on how wide the bed of your pickup is. The boards are hinged together to slide up and out of the way (think about your typical bi-fold closet doors only layed flat) in 2 sets of 2 boards each. When they are both opened halfway it looks like an upside down letter "W". The deck is wide enough for 2 thermarest mats side by side. When I'm out I can lie on one side and slide the other side open to access the stuff stored underneath. It even hinges up and you can use it as a surface for cooking ect ect. For a cover I got a tent from Cabelos that is made to cover the back of your pickup. Check it out here: http://www.cabelas.com Go to their dome tents page and look for the truck tent. You'll know it when you see it. It only takes a few minutes to set up and although isn't as secure as a cap, it isn't as claustrophobic either. It even wraps around the open tailgate so you've got LOTS of room. Way more than a cap. At $199, it's cheaper that a cap too, at least a new one. Sorry if my above description of the deck sucks. I'll try to borrow a digital camera and get a couple of pics. It really is a pretty simple setup and I can take it in and out in just a few minutes. Oh yeah, I bolted a hasp on the outside of the underframe, underneath the deck at the tailgate end so I can lock it when the deck is closed to secure everything underneath.
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bsignorelli
Oct 7, 2004, 2:01 AM
Post #19 of 24
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Registered: Feb 1, 2003
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In reply to: Might I suggest forgetting the cap altogether? The benefit of the camper top isn't just sleeping in it. It's the benefit that allows me to not have to pack things so they are waterproof if rain is expected. It allows me to put things in the back of the truck that used to (in the old, non-camper top truck) ride in the front.
In reply to: although isn't as secure as a cap, it isn't as claustrophobic either. Claustrophobic? Shoot...you haven't a clue as to what claustrophobic is :) A small space is taking a nap in a 18" high passage. Or digging while in a 14" high place. Or passing through a 10" (or smaller) tall constriction. :twisted: Oh never wait...this isn't the caving message board. My bad 8^) Bryan
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holdplease2
Oct 9, 2004, 4:14 AM
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Registered: Dec 18, 2002
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Hey Crotch - My truck is a 3/4 ton chevy...and I'm 5'4" and can sleep in the back seat. I'm still impressed with your idea of trimming the corners on the panels so that they can rotate a bit. Additionally, the "lock in" bar is a great idea. I'm drafting (term used veeeerrrry loosely) my truck bed bed tonight. Thanks again for the post. -Kate.
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ctardi
Oct 9, 2004, 5:15 AM
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Registered: Oct 8, 2004
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If you are coming straight off the battery, but the fuse within 1-2 feet of the battery, because if that wire shorts, it will spot weld its self to the nearest peice of metal, blowing up your battery. That is not fun!
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clmbrdancer
Oct 9, 2004, 6:50 AM
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Registered: Dec 15, 2003
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Has anybody done a similar thing with a Subaru Outback or Legacy? I've been thinking of doing something along these lines, but given that the Subaru doesn't have the roof clearance, there would need to be some slighly different ways of outfitting the car. Thoughts? Cheers, Brad
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ctardi
Oct 10, 2004, 12:35 AM
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Registered: Oct 8, 2004
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It would be a bit harder in either one, but if you did it, i think you would h have to build a box that went like this: |----------------------| because there is no place in either of those to lay planks across. I also don't think you would have enough length in a outback, but might in a legacy. Best way to know is to try it....
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crotch
Oct 13, 2004, 12:44 AM
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Registered: Jan 16, 2003
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Tim, I've been trying to return your PM, but my outgoing messages just sit in my outbox. Short answer is yes, go for it if you are still interested. Cheers, Crotch
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