Tradesman Truck Tops commercial style topper/shell

A few weeks ago I was planning on stopping off at the Tradesman Topper factory on my way to a camping trip. I searched craigslist a few nights before and came across this Swiss aluminum contractor shell for $550. It was off a second gen Tacoma, but looked like it would fit with some modifications. I decided to get it, and the guy even delivered it to me in Oakland! I trimmed about 1.25" off the bottom of the back door, originally the door sat flush with the tailgate, but since the third gen tailgate is thicker it didn't close fully. I got lucky and was able to trim a strip off the bottom. It also came with a tool box which I removed. I used the shell two weeks ago on that camping trip and it is awesome! It's a 23" and I originally wanted to get the 26" like @Toynado and @tacomarin have, but for the price I couldn't beat it! Also I'm going to insulate it with EPS foam and cover the interior with auto carpet upholstery, like the rest of the shells have. After sleeping in it for a few nights the condensation is very noticeable in the morning, and will need to be addressed with insulation.

 

Also been playing around with my 4" abs solar shower / Air dam. Here is my set up so far. Big influence from @Toynado on his solar shower location! He used a 6" abs pipe, but his shell is taller than mine so he has the room. I calculated this set up to be right at 3 gallons, which should be fine for my needs. I ordered stainless-steel 4.5" conduit mounts, I had to weld another tap onto them to allow for extra support and alignment. I figured having just one bolt per mount wasn't going to be strong enough. I also used 1/4-20 Riv-Nuts to install the hangers. The Riv-Nuts are awesome for inserting a machine thread into tubing, or anything with a thin wall. I'll make sure to get a few photos of the riv-nut gun and the riv-nuts them self.

 

Great find on the topper! And I'm really liking your sleeping platform setup. Reading your build thread now. I may need to get some measurements from you.

 

Very good find and cool build. I didn't know about those pipe clamps. Looks like it might work for the Yakima tracks to hold a longer tube such as the one I made. Wonder how they hold up to off-road travels. Were the clamps found near the pipe materials area of the hardware store?

 

I'll post more photos of the pipe hangers, I modified them to have two attachment points, photos will show more detail. I got them from the greatest online hardware store of all time! https://www.mcmaster.com/

 

Thanks! Yeah I have all the part files for the camper platform, I can send them to you anytime. You can download a reader, or even fusion360 to view them. I can also give you simple measurements as well.

 

I would also be very interested in those files! I'm in the midst of planning my sleeping platform (my tradesman shell is being installed in two weeks!) and am looking around for inspiration (my email is my username @gmail.com) I'd appreciate it! Thanks

leo

 

Awesome score Ben! Looks great and like the solar shower brackets. I’m going a different route for mine. Found this rooftop tank and got the US distributor to import it for me. http://www.ironman4x4.com/products/water-tanks/50l-roof-rack-water-tank
Unfortunately it’s a couple months out, but I’m planning on that plus an onbord water pump for my shower.

I did recently learn that mounting a roof top Plano case really cut down on the wind noise in case anyone is wondering.

 

I'll look on their site. I can drive there and pick them up if a closer place doesn't have them. I'm not sure they would be able to hold my shower tank with the weight and velocities of water shifting from driving.

 

Cool looking water tank, and 50L should be plenty. Are you planning on having this for all your water needs? Shower and potable water? Space is always a premium, so nice to have a contractor shell that can support some extra weight up top!

 

So far the the ABS pipe feels very secure, but with the added weight of the 3 gallons of water about 25lbs we'll see how it does.

 

My tube/tank is over 6' long and about 4.5gal. That is a lot of mass. The way I had it mounted to my FWC was in a foam cradle strapped to the bars on my Yakima tracks. The tube runs parallel to the tracks. This is my plan for the Tradesman too but didn't try it out on my last trip. If that mount is stable enough I could attach it to my Yakima track instead of the bars.

 

If you mount vertically instead of horizontal I don't think you'll have a problem. You could also go with four clamp/hangers instead of 3?

 

Here's how it was mounted on my FWC and how I plan to mount it to the Tradesman, either with the cross bars or without. I'd like to keep the bars on as they do provide for other uses in addition to the shower tube mount.But yes using more than two of the mounts seems like it might be the solution.

 

Ok so here are the mounts/hangers that I modified, you can see the two anchor points on the hangers, similar to a shelf bracket on a wall.

Here are also some photos of the riv-nut gun, and the riv-nuts themselves to clear up any misconceptions. These things are great for putting a thread inside thin wall tubing. They work perfectly for the aluminum contractor shells, it essentially gives you a threaded hole that has more strength than a sheet metal screw, and more versatility when it comes to mounting and dismounting whatever you want.

 

Here is the link to the 4.5" pipe hangers. Make sure you get the 4.5" hangers and not the 4" if you order them. The 4.5" work fine because the outside diameter of the 4" abs is close to 4.5". You can also get them in stainless but galvanized should be fine if you don't plan on welding to them.

https://www.mcmaster.com/3006t77

 

Primary need is potable water and shower is secondary. But yeah, plan is to use it for both. I don’t mind bird baths and we are usually camping near other water sources. I’m also planning on carrying two 5 gallon jerry cans on top of the cab for longer trips where water is harder to come by.

 

Did I see you heading WB on 80 yesterday? If not there is another cement taco with a tradesman in town.

 

Rivnuts are awesome. Are you going to seal around them with RTV? Did you reinforce the backside where that mounts to? I would just be concerned about the weight of that bouncing around off road and messing up the front of your shell or ripping a rivnut out.

 

It was, we were up exploring dirt and rocks behind Donner.
Where on 80 did you spot me, were you in your truck?