Vagabond Drifter Camper Buildout and Mods

Goodbye plastic caps.





I just realized I didnt take any photos of how I sealed them! But I sealed all around the holes and edges with silicone and set heavy lead weights on them overnight to really seal it down. Hopefully not taping over the holes isnt going to be an issue (my mistake). But that sucker is pretty sealed down.

Also, does anyone have any tips on fixing a cracked bed?

 

What bed rail caps are those? Did you choose not to put the tie down tracks back on or are they not able to be used with those? I have kbvoodoo caps and reused my tie down tracks.

 

Mine are KB voodoo as well . I didnt put the track back on because I had no idea you could!! I can always put it back on today but I've debated doing it. I was curious what everyone's opinion was. Do they get in the way or are they actually useful once the interior is built out??

 

You use them to clamp the camper on. Definitely gonna want them on

 

Oh!! Duh.

Yeah they'll go back on today.

 

What is the proper way of sealing the bed caps? Is there a thread or tutorial on how to properly seal it?

Not sure if Vodoo got the powder coating straightened out but when searching them they had major powercoating issues. I heard Relentless has caps too for the tacoma bed. I eventually need to do this before my Drifter install as well.

 

I taped up the holes with foil tape and used silicone around them for my voodoo caps.

I have a set from last year that they “fixed” the powder coating on..... “fixed”...... imho they haven’t fixed their issues.

 

^this was my experience. I like the Voodoo caps, but the some of the edges of the rail pealed instantly. The powder coating was hardly bonded and just flakes off. I’ve got rust to contend with around the edge of the rail - no big deal, some light sanding and paint is in my future. I’d imagine an 1/8” surface is hard for powder coating to bond to. I believe I bought them in November and installed in January. Maybe they’ve solved the issue by now...

 

The current iteration of the KB Voodoo bed rail caps for the 2nd gen are aluminum....shouldn't have any rust issues. http://www.kbvoodoo.com/shop/powder-coated-bed-side-rail-cap-system-fits-years-2005-2015

 

Did you address the spots welds on the inside of the bed...I'm getting dirt through them..even after sealing around the top holes..I'll try to take pictures latr.

 

That’s what mine are, and the powder coat is holding up well, even after having a soft topper mounted on it for a winter

 

Not sure where you're referring to.

 

I really think we need a better look at that C10 in the background.

 

It's a work in progress at the moment but I'll snag ya a photo or two.

 

On the topic of bedrail caps...I think this was brought up previously but I can't find an answer. Is there a reason mounting the drifter directly on to the bed rails would be a problem? You'd certainly wanna tape them up to seal the holes of course, but other than that...?

 

The bed rail caps are what tie the metal bedsides and composite bed together.

 

Another member already tackled that question. It was listed here by one of the members asking was $8500 we worked on the price a bit I have to drive to Arizona for pick up and will have it installed by AT folks.

 

Gotcha. I'd probably have done it myself given the opportunity originally. The process is relatively straightforward.

 

I wouldn’t be opposed to it but might be hard with just me and the seller also it’s second gen to 3gen so probably will need different l track or clamps. At said l track is much better. But at a whooping $500 it’s hard to not wonder if I should just forklift the damn thing lol.

 

yeah, I was originally quoted a lot higher for the install. But it's pretty straightforward. Since I got one of the original builds with the heavier duty fabric, it was bolted into my bed. I've since received the updated mounting hardware, but it's pretty straightforward since it's basically just a sheet of metal bent in an L to hold the sides down using the stock track.

But yeah, I'm lucky to have a couple friends with fork lifts. The Habitat is an aluminum structure glued and riveted together in several places, it's not like a camper shell where it's a rigid shell made of molded fiberglass, so it must be lifted from inside.

--- Also some notes on the habitat even though this is a drifter thread. lol

@Overlanerd

Not sure if you ever saw how thick the Habitat was on the side walls. Aluminum honeycomb sandwich.