Soft topper!!?? Best brands?!

I would have the rear screen. Asked some friends their thoughts. One has the hard tonneau, one has a shell.
Duane

 

May want to double check that. When I picked mine up a while back, I DID NOT attach the Velcro and I though the thing was going to rip off on the highway. Got so loud I stopped and folded the soft top up for the ride home. Velcro should prevent it from tearing (and moving) due to the wind.

 

Now I cant find that one, pulled up another, mentioned the Softopper used velcro on the tailgate.
Duane

 

Go with Softopper man. Zero disappointment. I have had mine for a couple years. Stored it in garage the first winter but kept it on last winter. I got the boot cover, the light tint and mesh door. I modded the aluminum frame with black Linex. They really care about their customers too. I emailed them a while back to get a spare part that wasn't listed on the website (for a little project, nothing broken). They shipped me a few of the small parts for free, no questions asked.
Not that its important to me, I get a lot of questions, comments and compliments on it in the wild.

Here are some recent pics.

 

Ill check when I get home but I don't remember Velcro back there. Only in the front.

But I will echo what Zenoxious said. I haven't used mine a lot but it has been fantastic when I had it on last summer. Fits great, material feels solid, kept the rain out and is really simple to install/use. Zero regrets, other than losing the nuts when I took it apart to repaint the frame....

 

Also, a review said the Bestopper leaked when rained on, evidently that one doesn't seal good at the bed top.
How does this attach at the back (tailgate), Velcro like I read about? They look very good. Just got a reply from a friend, will see what he thinks.
Duane

 

Bear with me guys. Finally watched a install video, Velcro only holds the rear corners together so the back doesn't flap, two pieces to the rear section looks like, one to the inside, one to the out per the video. Shows they needed 90 minutes.
Duane

 

There's only 2 pieces of velcro total on mine. 1 on each side of the bottom of the zippers on the rear. I did install the snap buttons up front and drilled 3 small holes into my bedside so the front flap doesn't flap around on the highway. You could use velcro there too I suppose, but I had no qualms drilling 3 tiny holes onto the front of the bedside.

 

I got my Softtopper about 2 weeks ago. I love it and the quality is amazing. Shipped out almost immediately and the installation wasn't too hard.

It looks great, so far very durable and has kept contents dry during the rain. Its also very easy to fold down or take off which was a huge factor for me.

I've taken it the distance on the highway and there is no wind noise with it on. Worth the money in my opinion

 

I have velcro strips on magnets with rubbery tape on the other side so they don't scratch the paint and keep the bottom of the back flap secure to the tailgate. are they really needed? I'm not sure, but I have never gotten water in the bed in some pretty nasty rainstorms. and when the top is off I don't have velcro strips stuck to my tailgate

 

I am about to replace my first soft topper. I bought it used 14 years ago off a Ford and put it on my long bed Dodge, some of the buttons pulled out and one of the strap buckles were broken. I called them and they sent out replacement parts and tools to fix it even though I was the second owner. Excellent customer service provided they were not sold etc. in the time since. It is finally showing its age and it has been on 24/7, 365 since I bought it. I am going to buy a replacement one that is actually for the truck and that is saying something.... I am one Cheap bastard! (just ask my wife!) haha

 

I think we were twins separated at birth.

 

Earlier iterations of the softopper used Velcro. They also had a weird strip panel on the rear corners that fastened the sides to the rear window. I wish I had a better picture of the one I put on my 2000 frontier. Frame was the same design, but the panels fastened in a different manner.

The newer version has a bar that supports the rear window so Velcro isn't needed. You can see it wrapped in the up position on
my taco pic. The option to use Velcro is still there both front and rear, I used Velcro on the front for extra security, but again, not necessary. Without Velcro on the rear, a small shirt tail of fabric will flap in the wind, but it won't hurt anything. It still keeps my crap dry.

 

Dogs were my main use for my topper. Rather than hassling with the mesh screen I just attached a cargo net where the rear flap should go (prob have to zoom in on the pic to see it). Way quicker to open /close and you don't have to worry about poor visibility through the vinyl window all the time. For the few times you need to be water tight, just throw the vinyl flap in... Keeps the window in much better condition and the doggos protected/cool.

 

Great idea with the cargo net!!

 

Softopper is like the Kleenex of soft toppers. No matter what kind of napkin boogers you use it's all called a Kleenex. No matter what kind/brand of canvas top you get it's always called a softopper.

OP - I would suggest changing the title to:

Best brand? Softopper!!!

 

Velcro up front by the rear window, Solid bar by the tailgate. Velcro looks aftermarket, like the previous owner slapped it on to keep the thing from flapping on the highway. Everything sits flush. As far as the leaking, I mean I had some get in on the corners where the water ran down and followed the fabric lines inside when i first installed it. But I think my boots tracked in more getting in and out. I would have no issue hauling electronics, pets, quickcrete bags or anything in the back in the rain.

 

Ease of use was my main reason for going with the Softopper. Hard to beat something that's so versatile and easy to take on and off. Waterproofing has been pretty good even during multiple days of heavy rain. I leave mine up all winter for snowboarding trips up to the mountain and then usually take it off in the summer for the extra gas mileage, unless I plan a time when I'll need it on (camping, covered storage, road trips, etc). I was originally torn between the Softopper and Sestop but after seeing some Bestops in person, I liked the canvas sides better than the vinyl side windows. And I got a killer deal off someone selling theirs on Craigslist.

 

How hard to attach the cargo net?
You guys are trying to spend my money, leave on a trip after the 4th.
Duane

 

Cargo net was pretty easy... I just attached some carabiners around the edges of the net and hooked them to the softopper frame at the top and sides and the truck bed d rings at the bottom.

The canvas is stretched super tight on the frame so to clip the net at the top I actually fed some zip ties between the canvas and frame to form little loops to attach the carabiners to.