dirtclod Az.
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jan 24, 2018
- Messages
- 2,776
Check out leento.com Pretty cool setup.Maybe they will expand to fit all trucks in the future.
Truck bed camping
- Thread starter Ttannahill14
- Start date
Ttannahill14
Active member
Think I found a good deal on CL... 2 questions:
IT'S RED! My truck is BLACK! How expensive do you think these things are to paint/could I do it myself and get a 7/10 paint job. My truck currently probably has a 6/10 paint job on it from dings and nicks and 14 years of abuse.
Do these toppers fit multiple trucks... even just good enough? I searched the A.R.E. site and a lot of the trucks that fit a 2008 chevy also fit a 2005 titan. Both 6.5 ft beds. Hoping it'll work.
Dimensions according to the Internet for each trucks respective beds.
CHEVY: outside box length - 82.25" / outside box width - 71.5" / Inside box length - 77" / Inside box width - 63.5"
TITAN: outside box length - 81" / outside box width - 71.25 / inside box length - 77.25" / 61.25
Hoping this will work. $300 should be able to get it for $250 or so. In great shape.
TIA
IT'S RED! My truck is BLACK! How expensive do you think these things are to paint/could I do it myself and get a 7/10 paint job. My truck currently probably has a 6/10 paint job on it from dings and nicks and 14 years of abuse.
Do these toppers fit multiple trucks... even just good enough? I searched the A.R.E. site and a lot of the trucks that fit a 2008 chevy also fit a 2005 titan. Both 6.5 ft beds. Hoping it'll work.
Dimensions according to the Internet for each trucks respective beds.
CHEVY: outside box length - 82.25" / outside box width - 71.5" / Inside box length - 77" / Inside box width - 63.5"
TITAN: outside box length - 81" / outside box width - 71.25 / inside box length - 77.25" / 61.25
Hoping this will work. $300 should be able to get it for $250 or so. In great shape.
TIA
I just painted a fiberglass topper for my F 150. I'm not cheap but I could not bring myself to pay almost 2K for piece of fiberglass and some windows. I picked up a ARE made for my truck off Cl for $300.00. Shopping around auto body shops was a surprise. What I was expecting to be a 300 to 400 dollar job was never quoted to me less then 800 and usually more. Maybe you can do better. I used to paint machinery and still had a paint gun so I decided to do it myself.
Topper $300
Factory matched Paint, thinner, Clear and hardener $240
Paint gun from harbor freight when I discovered my gun was out of commission. $15
I had a place to do it with a big enough compressor to keep up. I'm very happy with how it turned out. It was a decent amount of work mostly because I was a little timid with the clear coat and got some orange peal that I decided to take the time to wet sand out.
Planning on sleeping in it multiple nights for turkey season.
Any more fiberglass toppers are pretty model specific. Those dimensions look pretty close but you would have to be the judge of what "good enough" is. If you don't plan on leaving it on all the time it could work. Keep an eye on cab clearance, seal to bed and tail gate clearance/seal.
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Ttannahill14
Active member
Thanks for that info. Your paint job looks great! I haven't called around to any shops but I was assuming 500-1000 for a paint job which seems ridiculous.
This isn't my daily driver and I will probably have the topper off more than on. It's a farm/hunting truck. If I can do as good of job as you did I'll be happy.
Thanks. If it's not you're not that worried about it I'd just find one that fits to your satisfaction and paint it yourself. Since your truck is black I don't even think I'd worry that much about factory matched paint. Prep the topper by scuffing it with scotch bright pad, tape off or remove windows (removing is better) and go. You could even rattle can it.
Ttannahill14
Active member
Well that one sold. But good news is I talked to my father-in-law. He's got an auto spray gun and has re-painted to few tractors/semi's in his farming days. Opens up the Craigslist options a lot.
I was worried over the same thing until the salesman sat in the back of an extended cab F150 with the seat all the way back. Big dude had room. My family is fine with just the extended cab instead of the double.
tarheel
Well-known member
If you or your wife are on Facebook you can go to "Marketplace" and find more than would be listed on CL, whether close around or a couple hours away or even further, depending on how far you want to drive.
I just bought a used LEER and the paint almost matches, two slightly different shades of silver, but my country butt isn't concerned enough to spend money painting it so it rides like it is. $400.00 and they loaded it onto the truck and helped me mount it. The rear perimeter seal was beginning to shrink and come out of the corners of the back opening so I ordered a new one for 25 bucks and that should make me golden. Now I can retire my old Minivan which has been my canoe hauler and camping, hunting and fishing vehicle for nigh onto 20 years now.
Kaitum
Well-known member
I decided to try something different this year. Built this platform last weekend from some scrap lumber I had. I ordered a 5" memory foam mattress to go on top. Hoping the upgrade in comfort outweighs the loss in headspace. Items in my truck box (jack, chains, tow straps, etc) will go in the front two storage hatches under the bed. Misc stuff in the slide out drawer. I'll then leave the truck box behind. Still room to slide in a large cooler and several Rubbermaid totes if needed. Light enough I can install it for trips and remove it the rest of the year.
Don K
Active member
Been looking at used toppers myself, and one thing you may want to look at is Raptor liner. Lots of people are spraying them with this, being black it would be real easy to do. Plenty of videos out there if you google.
trasko
Member
My 2 cents:
- it might "fit" on the bed but might not actually be a good fit. Plan to do a test fit and see if you're satisfied. Consider weather-proofness and how the rear glass seals to the bed (dust intrusion).
- It's all personal preference but I've run mis-matched shells for years. A neutral color like black will "go" with anything. I'd just leave it.
Good luck.
uncle sage
Member
This ^^^ With very few additions for comfort and ease of use, that setup would work very well!
mine.
I don't own a fancy phone or camera so have to rely on pic's sent to me. This is a 82 Chey 4x4 w/350, $800. popup, and Firestone airbags. i've probably averaged $5-600. a year keeping it up so i can depend on it. Downside is all loaded for a trip, i only get 10 MPG. The upside is that i have my own version of "Tiny House", in the bed of my truck and with the airbags, when driving i hardly know it's even there.
I took a good Friend out to a spot i knew local where we use to test our 4x4's for years n years. It's a long pull up not too steep at first but rocky toward the bottom then a dirt mogul run under shaded timber that gets much steeper at the top before cresting up onto another woods road. My buddy with his 4 door Jeep Rubicon, had desired to see what his new rig could do. We both parked at the bottom side by side windows rolled down, i said, "there it is??" He said, "looks a little rough don't you think??"
I reached down, pulled her back into 4 low, and busted on up that hill, camper and all. The point is, i can go near anywhere with this kind of rig, one like it can't be too expensive to own, and how nice they are to hunt, camp, fish, and visit folks with. Makes the 10 MPG almost a acceptable cost.
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Decided to do the canopy/truck bed thing. Was looking for an affordable topper, and found this on craigslist. Guy had it sanded and windows out, breaking one in the process. A piece of plexiglass and some rattle cans, and it's ready. Gonna build a system similar to what Kaitum has. mtmuley
uncle sage
Member
Nice Muley, i hope that works for you. I'd think that you'd want curtains, i used 1/2" copper for my rods and got blackout shorties at walmart.
Funny thinking about staying in my camper shell, some years back during a buck hunting trip up in a X zone in the Modoc country, i was parked overnight right where i figured they lived and was awakened after midnight from my rig being shaken badly along with a bunch of moaning and groaning outside. It wasn't that cold out yet and there was a window open to hear the ruckus as i grabbed up my .357 and big flashlight. About then was when the wild horses who were using my camper as a rubbing post, took off running probably from my hollering that i was soon going to be shooting something. For awhile there i didn't know what was going on and i'll admit that it shook me up some.
One month to go for me, seems forever. It always did. Good luck this year Muley!
Funny thinking about staying in my camper shell, some years back during a buck hunting trip up in a X zone in the Modoc country, i was parked overnight right where i figured they lived and was awakened after midnight from my rig being shaken badly along with a bunch of moaning and groaning outside. It wasn't that cold out yet and there was a window open to hear the ruckus as i grabbed up my .357 and big flashlight. About then was when the wild horses who were using my camper as a rubbing post, took off running probably from my hollering that i was soon going to be shooting something. For awhile there i didn't know what was going on and i'll admit that it shook me up some.
One month to go for me, seems forever. It always did. Good luck this year Muley!
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Ttannahill14
Active member
After months of searching finally found a topper on Craigslist. Got it for $50. Fits great, will paint it myself this winter after season. I’ll update as I figure out my setup for camping. Should be fun!
Patience paid off.
Patience paid off.
Truckcampking
New member
- Joined
- Feb 7, 2019
- Messages
- 1
Truck camping with Topper - for tall guys
I tend to sleep in my truck when hunting (or even road tripping with my wife)... the one problem I had was that I need to leave the tailgate down to fit (im 6'2")... I found some guys locally who made something called a 'footbox' designed for just this scenario and Ive loved it. I think they are about to start selling it on Amazon.
www.foot-box.com
I tend to sleep in my truck when hunting (or even road tripping with my wife)... the one problem I had was that I need to leave the tailgate down to fit (im 6'2")... I found some guys locally who made something called a 'footbox' designed for just this scenario and Ive loved it. I think they are about to start selling it on Amazon.
www.foot-box.com
elkduds
Well-known member
Ttan, thanks for posting this. I was thinking of cobbling one of these DIY, this one looks better.
tarheel
Well-known member
If you don't like the cable latching system (which I despised) you can get a pair of lockable "T" handle latches off the internet for about 40 bucks or so and they'll go in the existing holes. Adjusting them to get good purchase with the fixed part of the system might require a bit of fiddling but is doable.
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