I’ll post up before the WKEND, maybe more campers will get it?

[ZackR]

I'm in the process of ordering a Chinese roof top tent (same model as @ga89hoss - queen size bed model) which may be a good option for your travels. The main selling point of the hard shell style other than better aerodynamics is a fast up and down. I ordered two and they were $1,200 each including shipping and customs to Portland, OR. Ordering one was more like $1,500.

As others have said skip the lockers, armor, etc... and focus on the essentials.

I can't recall the username but a forum member from the NW made a huge overland trek in his 80 with his family - I'd reach out to him.

 

[cody c]

So, my 80 may be built in sort of an expo format in some ways, but I don't really use it as such, or hardly at all these days as I commute via bike during the week, and with kids use the 4runner more on the weekend.


I have a RTT, I've camped in it for a week at a time, in sub zero celsius weather. What I do like about my setup is that with the cargo box in front of it, I can store all my bedding, clothes and pillows and crap up top, it's lighter stuff and takes up a fair bit of space, but better to have the lighter stuff up high, and heavier down low.

What I don't like about this setup, I notice it on the highway in mileage, and the RTT feels more top heavy, mind you I don't have a sway bar in the rear and the airbags make it softer than most coil spring 80's, well all the coil sprung ones I've been in.

As per my experience with it, I'd say there is probably a significant benefit to the pop up roofs, but depending on your travel plans maybe a large tent. It will take more to setup and takedown, but you'll have standing room, you can leave it in place at a camp site and head into town while your partner hangs out without packing everything up. There are some differences in the mobility vs a RTT.

If you do decide to camp in your cruiser, invest some time and money in storing fluids/tools/spares on the exterior or underneath your 80. You'll appreciate every extra inch you have in it if you sleep inside. A more aerodynamic cargo box for sleeping bags and pillows and anything inexpensive for risk of theft up top and a good tent may serve you better than an RTT if your trip involves plenty of highway travel and off camber trails.

And with any kind of build, utilitzing space in the rear quarters or in the engine compartment for spares and fluids will be much appreciated, as long as you can remember what you put where.


In the picture I'm headed off for hunting for a week in northern Alberta, I built a tray to handle the huge cooler and fuel. I have almost all of my interior space free and third row seats in, in the picture.

 

[Laisser aller]

ZackR ...Great rig and I am with your daughter; the BLUE license plate is where its at.

ChaseTruck I have already dug-out the rig three times since we got it more than two years ago. OBA is a manifold problem upon which I made a decision well before deciding not to focus on buying a speck of land.

While our truck has nearly 160K miles, we have been somewhat responsible in the miles we have put on so far, I am guessing but seems like we already put about $7K into it using only OEM. Now I am without a tech as I have moved. So this is one of the only places where I am sure to find solutions, suggestions or previous experiences.

Regardless the rig is a two-and-half decade old used car. Saw my dad restore a few cars when I was young, I have an idea about how consuming it can be to do it right the first time through.

The wife and I have slept in the rig on extended week long trips and whatnot--it completely sucks, usually by a third night we wind-up renting a room.

So the wife and I are united; we will build in Oregon, this is where we will remain but first we’re gonna take a trip.

I have effectively 2 years and can manage to secure enough cash and get it out on the road. Once this whole 'expo-thing' has to come to pass I will probably disappear into forums centered on building a home. Hopefully at that time, the only thoughts touching on the rig will be about maintenance and maybe annual TLCA events.

 

[greentruck]

This is what I did:
Camper Conversion & Drawer System

A pic for just a taste:

I thought about the RTT approach, but was just getting too old and creaky and since that seems to have gotten worse, really glad I don't have to crawl up there now. We use our M101 CDN as part of the system, so everything is low and easy to reach into. The nice thing about our approach is you have a variety of options for setting up camp, from a quick side-of-the road overnight with just a tailgate tent to a more luxurious arrangement where you want to settle in for a week or two. We can also carry additional fuel and water to suit by using mil-spec cans carried in the nose of the trailer.

 

[ZackR]

Reach out to @thelal for intel on overlanding....

 

[Dissent]

The biggest thing is baseline it and make sure it's dependable. We drove 4500 miles round trip from AZ to NC and back without a hitch and I never second-guessed my 80's reliability.

I've configured my truck to fulfill 4 roles essentially. Each requires specific kit but the goal is always to stay off the ground (avoiding rocks, critters, tall grass, uneven surfaces, etc.). The focus was that everything had to pull double duty while being affordable and flexible. I can't use a RTT for multiple reasons but mainly due to lack of fit in my garage and customer's parking garages. I also don't like all that weight up there all the time and it locks my truck in place while camping.

• Daily Driver - Minimal gear in the truck to minimize theft risk.
  
• Camping Solo - Quick setup and tear-down, inclement weather could be a deciding factor in complexity. Most space with all the seats folded and available.
  
• Camping with Kids - Modular and multiple sleeping options (they may bunk with friends on Scout trips), flexible load-out and sleeping. Some extra space with 1x seat folded up.
  
• Camping with Kids and Wife (longer trips) - Comfort for the wife!!! No extra space, start leveraging the roof rack and/or outboard hitch receiver rack.

Sleeping Options
I have 3 options for sleeping myself and others which give us the most flexibility. We have a few Hennessey Hammocks that have built in rain flys and bug nets. The kids love these. When we have trees, it's easy. When we don't, we can string between a loop in the 3rd row seat-belt location to another truck or what not. These each pack down to about the size of a football.
We have a 2x man REI Half Dome 2 tent. I use this on the ground or on top of the truck on a folding wooden platform that lives on the roof rack. Single occupant flexible sleeping platform inside the truck (usually solo in bad weather or when I'm tired or when there's no trees around for the hammocks).

Platforms
I have built a folding plywood platform that measures the exact footprint of my REI Half Dome 2 tent; 88x51. 1/2 is bolted to the rear of the roof rack (Prinsu Designs) the other half hinges and stores on top. When I park, I unpin the platform and flop it out then assemble my REI Half Dome 2 tent, toss it on top and fasten some 10" metal straps with thumb screws which receive the ends of the tent poles, locking securely. I've used this setup in 30+ MPH winds without issue. I carry a telescoping ladder full time in the truck to access the roof. This is my preferred way to camp as we can accommodate 1-2x people on the roof, 2x in hammocks and 1x inside...and stay off the ground! If we need the truck, it's easy to unclip the tent poles from the brackets and toss the tent on the ground. Very flexible, very fast and it packs down about the size of 2.5 footballs.

I also use the Rigid containers with a 44x24 sheet of carpeted plywood. The plywood lives under the totes while under way and then I remove all totes except for 3x which I lay the plywood on for a nice platform including the 2nd row seats folded down to rest my legs on. I carry Big Agnes air mattresses for sleeping in the tent (on the ground or car) and for this platform in the car. The fridge restricts me to a single sleeper but you could easily do 2x sleepers with no fridge.

The great thing with all my sleeping options is that it all packs into the Rigid totes. The hammocks, the tent, the mattresses, even the sleeping bags if I wanted to.

Containers
I have a plethora of Rigid storage boxes from Home Depot. They all stack and are rugged enough to sit on and have a large rubber seal inside making them waterproof so they can go outside when I need the space inside. I use these for cargo obviously, stacked 3x tall (2x mediums and 1x small) which are tied down in the cargo area using Stratchit straps. When it's just the 2x or 3x of us, I can also strap down in the 2nd row area with the seats folded.

I frequently use these containers as benches, tables and seats. I can stack them outside or slide them under the truck when I need the roof or inside space without fear of critters or rain getting into them. I've successfully transported them strapped on the roof, on top of the folded plywood platform panels secured by Stratchits. I think I had 8x of them up there. By far, outside my roof rack/REI setup, this is the most flexible thing I have for traveling.

Meals on Wheels
We borrowed and ARB 50 fridge for our NC trip and that was the trip that my wife blessed a future purchase! We have a burrito tray from Frank at @yodaTEQ which we used along with the ARB fridge to not spend one penny in 4500 miles of travels...with 2x kids! The wife prepared snacks/meals in advance and wrapped them in aluminum foil (hotdogs, meatballs, etc.) and we tossed those into the fridge. When we stopped for gas, we used the Jetboil to make coffee on the tailgate and tossed a few snacks under the hood in the burrito tray. By the next fuel stop, we would have very hot meals to enjoy. We scarfed the food while filling up or ate while driving and averaged about 10 minutes per fuel stop. We made incredible time and didn't spend a dime on the road. I've since used the tray for other foods but every outing now includes a ***-berto's burrito (purchased the night before and stuck in the fridge) placed in the tray when we leave the house. By the time we stop for lunch, or dinner, the burrito's are often almost too hot to hold. They stay soft and even when I left one on there for 9 hours, it was just good and didn't dry out as I had feared.

Kitted Out
I've loaded up the inside of the truck with the kids and wife along with the soft gear like pillows and sleeping bags, plus the ARB fridge and we were all very comfortable. All the gear rode on top in the Rigid boxes. If we needed additional space (we haven't yet), I still have a tailboard platform hitch receiver thing. I've used it before when I first bought the truck for family camping and found the Rigid boxes fit great on it and strap down nicely. The flexibility of my system accomplishes all 4 of my truck's roles and I can mix and match as I choose. I wouldn't do much of anything differently.

Additionally, I've mounted L-Track (Airline Track, Logistic Track L-Series) all around the rack and inside my cargo area. I have maximum flexibility outside for my ladder, tarps, ax, shovel, camping/offroad LED lighting, you name it!

Here's some pics:
This is the rear as it stands today. I have just enough room to fit 3x rows of Rigid totes, all secured by Stratchits. The right fender gets 7 gallons of water (2x 3.5 gal Waterbricks) securely bolted down.

Here's the original Poor Man's REI RTT setup. I've since added L-Track around the truck so I can mount the ladder anywhere.

Here's how the tent attaches. Cheap and super secure!

Ladder attached to L-Track

Here's early attempts and sorting and fitting the Rigid boxes while I still kept the spare inside, and before the ARB fridge. It is much more streamlined today...just don't have any pics loaded up.

 

[ZackR]

I'll have to give those Ridgid boxes a try. I've been looking for something similar that is tough enough to get the job done but not as expensive and heavy as something like a Pelican case. The fact that they can double as tables, chairs, etc.. is even better.

 

[80t0ylc]

........

Additionally, I've mounted L-Track (Airline Track, Logistic Track L-Series) all around the rack and inside my cargo area. I have maximum flexibility outside for my ladder, tarps, ax, shovel, camping/offroad LED lighting, you name it!......
Ladder attached to L-Track
View attachment 1773546.........

Looks like that L-track has some great possibilities. Is that what you secured your overhead rack with in your cargo area? Where did you get it? I see it on Amazon - any local sources?

 

[Heckraiser]

The thought of breaking down camp to go pick up ice or beer or gather firewood does not sit well with me AT ALL. This is why a RTT is just not for me.

The wife and I have slept inside the truck many times as well. Two big problems with that:
1) you have to take all the stuff out of the truck for two bodies to fit in there, so you have to put your stuff somewhere--put up a tent? Well why not just sleep in that sucker if you're going through the trouble. Leave it outside? Not great if it rains, and have to take precautions for bears.
2) This bothers the wife less, but I ABSOLUTELY HATE the mess of having the bed and all accompanying camping junk just loose in the truck. If you want to jump in and go wheeling, you're going to make a big mess or break some gear... so you still have to basically pack up camp to do anything.

For me, a medium/large ground tent would be the ideal solution. Leave it and go with little/no preparation. Vestibule/awning = added bonus for throwing in boots/camp chairs, etc without getting your sleeping area dirty.

Utlimately, my wife is a and wants hard sides so she can escape the weather/dirt/allergies/noisy neigbhors (read me drinking with my buddies), so we settled on a small teardrop style trailer. Yes, I feel like less of a man. But aside from that, it has actually been a pretty sweet setup. Leave all your gear/bedding in the trailer so when you want to go for the weekend, you just hook it up and fill the cooler. Also very easy and secure to leave parked at camp while you're out adventuring and does not require you bring the kitchen sink with you to the corner store or the trail. I need to upgrade the axle and put on some 32" truck tires, but even with these little 29's it's got plenty of clearance for basic overlandy type stuff. Drawbacks: it's not cheap, you need to store it somewhere, did I mention I feel like less of a man?

 

[ZackR]

Leave all your gear/bedding in the trailer so when you want to go for the weekend, you just hook it up and fill the cooler.

That's why I want a trailer setup someday.... the idea that you could roll out at a moments notice is awesome. A lot of times camping is such a hassle with all of the packing and unpacking that people just end up doing something else.

 

[80t0ylc]

.... Yes, I feel like less of a man. .......did I mention I feel like less of a man?.....

Buttttt.......it takes a real man to back up a trailer (expediently) with the stress of other rigs waiting while you block their progress....lol

Seriously, I'm with you 100% with your post. It's not taken too many trips with a RTT to come to that conclusion, BTW

 

[Heckraiser]

I still suck at backing it up (had it about a year), but I'm getting a little better. But it is light enough that you can pick it up by the tongue and move it around by hand, which helps

 

[80t0ylc]

I still suck at backing it up (had it about a year), but I'm getting a little better. But it is light enough that you can pick it up by the tongue and move it around by hand, which helps

LOL, is that a Hiker? Looks like one of their medium duty's. I've thought about doing it that way and upgrading the axle due to the 6mo+ wait to have a 4x4 Extreme built.

 

[Heckraiser]

Yes, it's a hiker. We got a mid-range 5x8 and added a few options (large rear door, two side doors, roof rack, "jeep fenders") and flipped the axle. The "offroad" version is twice as much and I have a welder, so I can tack on bits and bobs to make it a little more resilient for offroad use in due time. Ultimately, the plan was to leave it at camp before beating the truck down on the trail, so I don't need anything over the top.

Hiker is in my neighborhood (literallly), so we pestered them a lot to get what we needed and keep the cost down. Even the standard models are still like a 6 month wait though (or at least they were last year).

 

[Dissent]

Looks like that L-track has some great possibilities. Is that what you secured your overhead rack with in your cargo area? Where did you get it? I see it on Amazon - any local sources?

I have an unnatural love for L-Track. It's so versatile and I'm using it to secure my ladder, woofer and ARB fridge.

For the attic rack, I'm just using angle. It's actually a strip of perforated metal used to hang a garage door opener. I curved it on the top so it didn't bite into the headliner too badly. The angle relationship between the bracket and rack pinches the 1/4" bolts just right so they effectively screw into the bracket. I then pop nuts on to secure it but it's very solid without the nuts. That was totally unforeseen.

 

[80t0ylc]

Yes, it's a hiker. We got a mid-range 5x8 and added a few options (large rear door, two side doors, roof rack, "jeep fenders") and flipped the axle. The "offroad" version is twice as much and I have a welder, so I can tack on bits and bobs to make it a little more resilient for offroad use in due time. Ultimately, the plan is to leave it at camp before beating the truck down on the trail, so I don't need anything over the top.

Hiker is in my neighborhood (literallly), so we pestered them a lot to get what we needed and keep the cost down. Even the standard models are still like a 6 month wait though (or at least they were last year).

That's cool they're so close! I've actually been convinced to go with a hard side for a couple of years now, after 2 trips down the Baja peninsula in January. RTTs & light duty awnings can get pounded by the winds. The hard side is about the only off road camping setup that holds up in their "haboob" style surprise storms that you can get - they have a different name for them in Baja, but can't remember what they're called. They're short duration (20-30 min) & 60+ mph, but can be devastating to anything that is not sturdy or secured.

The wait time is what bothers me. I don't mind getting a basic, well built trailer, and doing the customization myself. But, I need to sell my Lance camper to finance a trailer and don't want to have to do with out while I wait. I've seen some barely used (seller claims), off road ready hard sides for sale, but they're selling them for like new prices. Kinda messes with my idea to pick up a used one at a bargain price.

 

[DancesWithMutts]

I have spent about 30 nights in my alu-cab, including a 5 week stretch where I was working out of town, and sleeping in the Alu-cab every night so I could pocket my hotel money. If you want fast setup, a hard shell RTT is the way to go. My alarm was going off at 5am, I was in the truck and driving by 5:15. However condensation was a constant problem, since I was packing it up at the coldest and wettest time of day.

With all of my bedding stored in the tent, I can very easily pack my fridge and the rest of my gear in the cruiser. Everything is very accessible and convenient. It takes me less than 10 minutes to put up the tent, set up my table and chairs and get dinner started on the stove.

Set-up/take down time are most important to me, so a hard shell is worth every penny. I can spend more time looking for the perfect spot, or just reading in my hammock, because set up is a breeze.

 

[Heckraiser]

That's cool they're so close! I've actually been convinced to go with a hard side for a couple of years now, after 2 trips down the Baja peninsula in January. RTTs & light duty awnings can get pounded by the winds. The hard side is about the only off road camping setup that holds up in their "haboob" style surprise storms that you can get - they have a different name for them in Baja, but can't remember what they're called. They're short duration (20-30 min) & 60+ mph, but can be devastating to anything that is not sturdy or secured.

The wait time is what bothers me. I don't mind getting a basic, well built trailer, and doing the customization myself. But, I need to sell my Lance camper to finance a trailer and don't want to have to do with out while I wait. I've seen some barely used (seller claims), off road ready hard sides for sale, but they're selling them for like new prices. Kinda messes with my idea to pick up a used one at a bargain price.

Lol, yes, you will pay the same price or even a little more for a lightly used one because you don't have to wait. (the wife and I even considered turning ours for a quick profit ) They take a deposit (half, I think) and take the rest on delivery, so you don't have to come up with the money all at once, if that helps.

 

[Technician1985]

All I can say here is that beyond a simple lift, it seems like you'd have to drive over some ESPECIALLY SKETCHY terrain, stuff that would make you say hmm, I don't think this is safe/I could make it over that, for it to be worth investing $$ into the offroad capability.

I would say

#1 reliability and good tires

#2 make it comfortable to sleep in/on whether it's the sleeping platform or RTT.

 

[TWILLY]

Yeah... My 80 was stock for nearly a quarter century before I made any touring mods to it. It took me all over North America capably, without ever leaving anyone stranded, and often to places one would not expect any vehicle to go. Crates for camping gear, sleeping in the back on a Paco Pad.

I agree on (1) baseline so that it's reliable, which includes good tires, and (2) make it comfy for sleeping. Then go, go, go.