Hondo Garage's New Thing

Given that they've sold like 250 of these, I don't think it's having a huge affect on sales....


The design philosophy of these is not to be a full time live-in camper, and the GFC team has made that pretty clear. I'm glad them didn't make them even more expensive, complicated, and heavier than they already are, by including a bunch of security features.

 

Hey, @inv3ctiv3 .

Any long term (haha!) usage info to report?

 

I must be buying the camper for the wrong reasons. I need this camper to get me as far into the back country and as far from all people and parking lots as my Tacoma can take me. Will this product work in that way?

I've ridden a motorcycle across the country three times with just a tent and never had a problem. Prior to that, backpack camped in a tent all over the east coast.

Moved to CO from NYC and got a roof top tent because they allow you to offroad and camp just about everywhere out here. Made the switch just for ease of setup and comfort. But, you can't move your truck once the tent is up and everything in the bed is unsecured.

Built an offroad teardrop camper which gives you security with wood walls but dragging a trailer and having a dirtbike in the bed is a pain in the ass. Plus I always end up on trails I probably shouldn't be on.

With the GFC, you get security in the bed for your stuff and a comfortable place to sleep at night. I don't do parking lot camping so stealth isn't an issue for me. I need a camper that is light and fast and won't get in the way when I turn down a trail I probably shouldn't be on.

Pretty sure the GFC checks all the boxes for me to explore wherever the Tacoma can go, keep my items secure in the truck bed while I'm riding and hiking and provide a comfortable place to sleep every weekend. I do camp out just about every weekend. If I camped in parking lots or KOA's, etc, I may have went another direction. But, for what I do, I think this will be the perfect setup.

The last photo is what really convinced me to go with a roof top tent

 

Give me a prybar or even a long sturdy screwdriver and that lock won’t stop me at all.

 

Fuck no snake.

 

Agreed. I'm not a potential customer (already have a Drifter), but that kind of stance from the company would be off-putting if I was.
Hey, I even agree with the outlook that people are too concerned about those things and should relax more, but that doesn't mean I'll never end up in a situation where I'd want to exercise a little extra caution...

 

If you took the time to read those 5503 replies you would likely see that they do take customer feedback into consideration and have made changes overtime as a result. One of the founders even took the time to acknowledge your feedback - and politely explain why it's not a high priority for them.

It cheeses me off when "potential" customers get butt-hurt when the one feature they want isn't prioritized above all other considerations.

They can't build these things fast enough to meet current demand. The market is growing faster than it ever has, and there are more and more options from other companies you could choose from if you don't like their offering, but I think the level of real security while you're sleeping in them is going to be roughly equivalent.

 

Or a cordless angle grinder, you could break into damn near anything with that.

Which is why I said locks keep honest people honest. They're good at given you a false sense of security though.

I'd rather someone steal my stuff without breaking my locks/panels, versus breaking them and stealing my stuff.

 

I too am confused about all this security talk. 100% of the intruders i've encountered when camping had tails and weight measured in ounces.

I had a gold prospector walk into my campsite last month and catch me in my underwear doing dishes, ended up with some good tips on spots to find agates.

 

I think a lot of people are missing the point when they say "I don't care", "don't need that", "works great for me". For someone else, that may be the tipping point on whether they order one or not. Maybe you think that's a dumb perspective, but it's important to them, so that could be a lost sale. Maybe lots of others do care about it, but would still buy one anyway.
Obviously, there are lots of different perspectives, and no product is going to appeal to every single one, so the line has to be drawn somewhere. I get that GFC wants to stick to their core philosophies, etc, and also think that's great, it just may turn some potential buyers away. Nothing inherently wrong with that, just a fact...

I guess the main underlying thought process behind my comments is that I don't understand / often disagree with everyone constantly jumping to ANY company (not just GFC)'s defense. The reason being that, generally speaking, that tends to stifle the company's interest in improving the product. ...And yes, I know GFC has been pretty great about making improvements, but who's to say they wouldn't be making even more otherwise.

 

We have a 110V outlet in the bed. Go cheaper and get a corded reciprocating saw and angle grinder. Cheaper tools + thievery = More profit!

 

The only security I need is to keep water and dirt off my fridge in the bed and to keep random passerby's from seeing what I have stored in the back. Right now everything is under a soft tonneau cover until my GFC arrives. Having solid aluminum, locking panels is a bonus. Like previously stated, locks keep honest people honest.

 

Keep us posted on this! I'm in Vancouver BC - anyone notice that it rains a LOT here? I currently have a plywood drawer/platform - I'd hate to see it get too soggy. But, then again, maybe it would be a good excuse to buy a plastic waterproof one...

So, @wileydavis - get my GFC delivered and then get back to designing the drawer system that was hinted about back about 250 pages ago...

 

What I'm waiting for is a way to lock the tent closed. When it's parked unattended the side panel locks are pointless if you can just open the top and crawl in and steal my fridge, etc.

 

More profit in stealing for me!

 

I don't remember. I changed up my system anticipating easy access from the sides. I'm not crazy about all the lost space on the Decked System - but I'm sure I'm splitting hairs.

 

Well the Leaderboard update was a little disheartening. Dropped a couple of spots and the number of "in production" units ahead of me has increased . Is the 5 units a week still holding true? Sure doesn't seem like it, nevermind the 10. Anyone from GFC want to chime in.

 

I don't see this being a security problem but if you're concerned how about one of these (https://www.frontrunneroutfitters.c...nt-runner-stainless-steel-tie-down-rings.html) - as appropriate with a lock or a cable around the bar above?

I think anyone wanting to get into your truck is going to try to pry a panel open. Those folks don't tend to be the sharpest knives in the drawer.

I may put a cable thru an eye bolted to the extrusion and around the bar above - I'm not sure as I haven't seen one in person yet...

 

It’s a fine line between adding features a customer requests and not creating a bloated product. So far I think the balance is good.