Let's See Some Softoppers

Plopped my tent on the new rack today, got a hair over 7" of clearance to the top of my garage door. Not complaining at all but dude made this rack close enough to the softopper that the tent wont clear the stupid sharkfin antenna.

 

It’s pricey, but MESO

https://www.uptopoverland.com/products/uptop™-thinfin

 

Dang that is expensive! I saw a thread somewhere where a guy just shaved the tip off his fin and sealed it with epoxy. It'd probably be easiest to make some spacers to raise the tent 1/2" to clear it if I find I just have to move it further forward.

 

Dunno about you, but I never listen to the actual radio these days. Spotify runs my music. Don’t even need the antenna haha

 

Scientific fact... Softopper improves your off-road capabilities!

 

Got a topper last month and am loving it. Couple of tweaks I need to make. The canopy feels loose so I'm going to try moving the pivot pins to the lower holes of the pivot brackets. And the bedrails aren't sitting flush on the truck rails (they're tilting significantly inward towards the truck bed), so I'll try moving them in a bit towards the truck bed as I think I've seen suggested here.

 

For the Canadians out there who have ordered directly from softopper, what kind of duty charges have you been hit with on delivery?

 

I'm close to buying one. I was going to get a dark-tinted rear panel and extra clamps as well. Anything else recommended by the masses? Buckles, snaps, etc?

What's the sight picture like in the rear view mirror?

 

Snaps for the front panel. I've had to buy several new panels thanks to damage from them flopping around*.



*

 

what it comes with is fine, I have had no issues thus far with mine. Extra clamps are insurance for it there are a few members who opted for extras for peace of mind. Rear window is plastic so expect it to get dirty and get scratched over time. Mine has slowly made visibility a bit harder over time. At first it was super clear but as dust clings to it and general wear and tear happens it starts to get "Plastic foggy" not anything bad so far but dont expect it to stay as clear as day 1 for the remainder of its life. I can still see very well out the rear (with tinted cab windows) but I have noticed the clearness has gone down.

 

I figured as much. Science hasn't caught up I guess. I think I read elsewhere that you don't want to clean it with just anything as it can cause scratching and fogging. I think 202 was recommended but don't remember the cleaner name for sure.

What keeps passerbys from helping themselves to a five-finger discount in the Walmart parking lot if the canvas is secured via snaps and straps? Obviously I don't expect this to keep out determined thieves since it's just canvas but it'll be nice to keep some stuff in the bed without as much fear of theft.

 

You can breath life back into the windows with some effort. We always used the novus cleaner/polish on the sailboat and it worked great on a used bestop I just picked up.

$23 NOVUS-PK1-8 | Plastic Clean & Shine #1, Fine Scratch Remover #2, Heavy Scratch Remover #3 and Polish Mates Pack | 8 Ounce Bottles

https://www.amazon.com/Novus-7100-Plastic-Polish-Kit/dp/B002UCYRZU

 

If you want to leave stuff in the bed and not worry much about theft then you probably shouldn’t be considering a Softopper. There is nothing stopping someone from opening it.

 

Dat roll tho




Thanks @mcharfauros

 

I'm not planning on leaving a lot of things back there, and them being out of sight ought to deter a little bit. I could get a crate or something and lock that down. Plus knowing the bed will be relatively sheltered from the elements is good.

I'd rather have the security of a topper but I make use of the bed a lot and I'm worried it would interfere with some loads since it's a pain to uninstall vs the soft topper that can folded or removed quickly.

 

You sold me on the Novus. I picked up the mild scratch (#2) one, I don't think I'll need all 3 products

 

Yeah I clean mine with plastics cleaner, it helps keep it pretty nice but still scratches some. Absolutely nothing keeps anyone from taking stuff from the back of your truck. Best advice I can give there is adding one of those handgun locks to anything in the bed and locking it to a D-ring or the accessory mount. I also practice pretty heavy "out of sight out of mind" Take everything out of the truck when I can. If I cant the back of the truck gets parked up against buildings and other objects to keep people from walking around back and peaking in.

 

Yeah I think I'll get a nice container or two and lock it up.

 

I used the 3 step this time around but most times 2 is fine as it’s not severely scratched you should be good

 

regular truck mode: