Retractable tonneau + bed rack for RTT - ideas / feedback?

I'm going to be selling my Leer shell. Need a hard shell RTT for quick camp setup, and it needs to fit into my underground parkade. I'd like some feedback on the current idea/plans:

1. A Truck Covers USA retractable tonneau with Yakima rails on both sides.

2. Custom-fabricated bed rack that will rest on the truck's actual bed sides, and will have tabs (w/ gussets) to mount/attach to the Yakima rails. The actual weight of the rack's contents will be on the truck's bed sides.

RTT will sit on top of this rack, at cab-level height. With my 6' bed, I expect that whatever RTT I end up with will extend past the tailgate, and probably the bed sides, too.

3. Plano 42" cases (already have two) permanently mounted on the sides of the bed rack. Have not figured out exact mounting design, but think this can be done to allow the cases to fully open without being removed.

4. Some way of mounting a water tank (I want at least 100L capacity) on the rack, above the tonneau, but below the RTT. I suspect I'll need to get a custom water tank made. A small case will be mounted next to the water tank, holding a water pump and output hose.

5. Under the tonneau I'll make a slide for my 63QT ARB fridge and (new, yet to be made) chuck box). Need to check fridge dimensions to ensure it'll fit, but I think it should be fine.

Thoughts?

 

I thought about the same setup and looked into it quite a bit. With the Truck Cover USA, you can look into KB Voodoo bed rack that has bedrail attachment for tonneau cover. I would not trust the Yakima rails for bed rack attachment that will carry everything else you listed.

Another thing, your 63Qt fridge wont fit under the truck cover, unless you're planning to move it above the cover.

I scrapped this plan because I have a 5ft bed, and the KB Voodoo mounting points would clash with my Truck Cover mounting locations.

I'm now going with a shell and possibly drawers.

 

Thanks.

I saw the KB Voodoo bed racks that work with tonneaus, but don't like them. They mount under the tonneau and will interfere with the seal. Further, they won't work with the other requirements I have (which I didn't mention as they're not really relevant). What I'm imagining is a rack that will rest on the bed sides itself, and will only use the Yakima rails to stay in place. The weight will actually rest on the bed sides. Of course, the force of the weight wanting to move from side to side will be exerted on the Yakima rails (horizontally, perpendicular to the rails themselves). I've sent this idea to my fabrication shop and will see what they say.

Are you sure about the ARB not fitting? That could be a deal breaker, as I'd rather not switch fridges. I'll have to measure it.

 

That sounds like a good amount of weight to have on our bed sides... probably to much over time unless you do some of the stiffeners

 

The bed-stiffeners are something I'm considering too, yeah.

Realistically, the weight should be similar to what a canopy + RTT setup runs. Best case, that's ~300lbs.

My RTT + plano cases + rack would be about the same. The water tank could (potentially) be heavy, but if that's the biggest issue, I can look into storing a water tank inside the bed itself (at the far end).

 

Do you have the Truck Cover already? Seems like you can do a custom size water tank to go under the roller drum for the cover. That's one thing I dislike about the cover, it wastes about a foot of bed space.

I slso looked into having the legs of the bed rack welded to the Truck Cover side plates as well, but it seems expensive since they're Aluminum.

 

So a roll tonneau would work for what you want, you may be able to employ the same premise I used with the retractable depending on how it is built and assembled, as well as the retracting mechanism. IF you can narrow it. Supporting the a bedrack to do what you want and hold what you want is questionable on those Yakima rails.

Another strong possibility is buy one of their covers made for another truck that might already be slightly narrower, then have bed rack made specifically so that it's base rails that rest on the truck run full length.

Perhaps creating a rack from 80/20 similar to the Prinsu bed rack one offs that he made would give you the strength and flexibility of design.

 

Right, under the roller drum is what I had in mind as the other option. Don't have the cover yet - still have my shell on.

Welding is an interesting idea. I'll pass that on to my fabricator and see what he says.

All good points. I'm not sure I want to narrow/cut the rack, though. I do want to keep things as waterproof as possible, and I'm sure waterproofness will go out the window if the rack is narrower than the "ideal" for the truck.

locster's idea of welding the rack right to the cover's side plates seems like it would be the best of both worlds.

I'm familiar with 80/20 (used it to build an interior rack inside the canopy), but I don't think that's a good match for my needs in this case. I want the rack to be very beefy, and nut/bolt connectors through corner brackets (as is usually done with 80/20) won't instill much confidence.

 

What would you keep in the Plano case?

 

Tools in one case, recovery gear in the other.

 

I gotcha. I have one not being used right now so was wondering if I could make it useful in the truck.

 

Hey @locster, I measured the fridge and it comes in at just under 17" tall. Measuring the bed, it looks like there's a bit more than 17" (maybe almost 18") of room. Will the tonneau sit lower than the top of the bed sides? Cause if not, it looks like the fridge should fit.

 

I measured 17 3/4" to the underside of the cover, a little less (17 1/2") at the seal where it meets the tailgate. I have a 2014, so not sure if it's different on yours. Also, if you're gonna add a slider to your fridge, it will raise it higher.

 

Thanks for confirming. Yes, I do believe the 2016+ beds are a bit taller. (Folks that use 2nd gen shells/canopies end up having the shells stick out above the cab.) But even at 17 3/4", I think I can work with that. 1/4" for an aluminum angle that'll go underneath the fridge, 1/4" for hardware protrusion (will recess if possible), and another 1/4" for empty room around it. Should just fit, although it's going to be a bit tighter than I would like. Slides themselves will sit on the sides of the fridge, mounted to that same aluminum angle.

 

What did you end up going with, I'd like the same thing! That truck covers USA is so close to what I want. If only the cover side rails were wider and the weight bearing portion was right over the bedside....

 

Probably doing this.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/kb-voodoo-bed-rack-and-tonneau-brackets.467394/#post-15464330