Tradesman Truck Tops commercial style topper/shell

After surfin through this entire thread for inspiration...I got myself a Tradesman and finally got around to joining TW. Thanks to everyone who shared their campers and thoughts, much appreciated!

 

That's gotta be one of the nicest looking Tacos I've seen! They nailed the build, looks great

 

I've been working through a few design ideas over the years. I think your platform would be great as a hybrid drawer system. Can you pm that file to me? TIA!

 

perfection

 

If this is a manual then I will be fully aroused...

 

Consider yourself aroused...she's a manual!

 

First run with the wedge!

 

How was it? The wedge. I know the location is amazing!
Gonna post a trip report in the DV thread?

 

another fantastic trip, that's for sure. Couldn't have asked for better weather (mid 70s during the day) or better timing (a few weeks after a good rain, so everything was GREEN!). Climbing, wheeling, shooting, hiking, and all the fun activities kept us entertained and happy. I'll try to get some pics and lingo together on the DV thread while at work tomorrow!

The wedge was great; after spending a year in a 23" topper, the 26" to 32" wedge/rise is liberating. I still need to build a drawer and sofa set-up, lighting, and insulation, but first few nights were totally comfy. The camper didn't vibrate apart, so I'm happy with it. I do anticipate utilizing the 3 year warranty (maybe it's only one, I need to check)... my buddy's GFC is just so damn solid for the types of driving we do. More pics and trips to come!

 

After owning my Tradesman for less than a year I'm leaning towards the Vagabond when the time comes. No rush to get one. It will be a couple years at the soonest. The lightweight (compared to a Flippac and FWC Finch) is liberating.
Nice awning too. I just got one but put it on the drivers side so I can use it over the chuckbox. I got the attachable room too.

 

Did you attach the awning to crossbars? Do the windoors hit it when open?

 

Yeah let’s see more pics of the wedge. Looks great!

 

I did attach it to the crossbars. The chuckbox door is limited by paracord. I have the paracord on all the windoors except the forward one on the drivers side so I need to do that one too. 30" lengths with a fishermans knot does the trick.

 

The windoors hit our batwing awning too. I stole @ETAV8R 's idea and made some limiting straps out of hammock straps, carabiners, and key rings attached to the strut mounts too. The rear hatch I usually don't have to bother with because it doesn't seem to lift up with as much gusto as the side doors.



Question for those of you with trasharoos on your tailgate, can you still open your tailgate with it attached? The trash management is the one major aspect of my build that is still an issue that needs to be resolved.

 

I was wondering what you were using on your doors in that pic. Do you attach/remove the straps/carabiners or do they live on the doors full time?

My last trip was the first with my Tiregate and Trasharoo. It was nice having two spares and the Trasharoo. I picked up firewood in Palmdale at a friends place and hauled it in the Trasharoo. Pretty heavy for the bag but it worked.

 

I remove them when not in use because I prefer having the doors open all the way. The batwing has a bag inside the awning that has spare parts, stakes, etc, and there is room to stash the straps and biners in there. But while the awning is up we keep them attached and the doors close fine with them attached.

I have considered doing a tiregate but I often have bikes on the back which would either be a conflict or push the bikes into the next time zone by the time I extended everything enough to clear it! So for now the spare is staying under the bed.

 

I was able to open the tailgate with the trasharoo no problem but putting trash in it when the tailgate was down was kind of a pain because the way the bag would hang. Now I have the swingouts on my bumper and I’m really liking the ease of dropping trash in it.

 

LOL Yes I've considered getting an over the tire bike rack for one or two bikes and it would be in "the next time zone" for sure.

My in camp trash solution is a HD orange bucket with a bag inside. It stays under my food prep table. At the end of the trip it either goes in the back of the truck (most trips) or in the Trasharoo on the last trip.

 

That's a nice practical solution and buckets are always handy to have around. I also have concerns about leaving trash on the outside of the truck and attracting critters.

 

Good point. I'm weary about camping in bear country since I have the fridge inside the cab and usually have the bucket outside.