*THE RTT Owners Thread (With BS)*

Trailer!?! Got a build thread for it?

Thanks for burning about as much fuel as I do. Sometimes I feel bad about my MPG, but knowing I'm not alone helps.

 

I do!
It should be under my thread history.
I’ll pull up a link when I’m back on WiFi.

 

Never carried extra gas until I was driving across Montana and went over 350 miles without a gas station. Now If I'm ever traveling somewhere I'm not familular with I carry 2, 2 gal rotopax, But I don't fill them until I know I'm going to be out where I could need it, which sometimes I never fill them. Going to be spending 14 days in the Colorado Rockies in 2 weeks I'm planning on bringing them but I'm sure I wont fill them.

 

its crazy how close things are in colorado. pretty much everywhere is a 2 hour drive to some kind of gas station. and chances are you can coast down a hill to get to most of them

 

Caught a couple nice shots on the Guadelupe Rim in New Mexico. On the edge of the storm (evening), and red sun rising (morning).

​

 

What bracket is it that you're using to hold up the awning?

 

An adjustable one I had fabricated locally to support the rear of the fly rod holder... the awning mounts to the top of fly rod holder via T slots.

 

That’s amazing… they interested in making another???

 

I actually just removed it after purchasing an RSI Cap… PM me if interested.

 

I dig that low rack and bed cover set up- Can you mount a RTT to the low rack and still operate the tonneu? What brank tonneu cover?

 

take a look at my gallery photos in signature link- tent mounted just fine and could still slide open and close the tonneau.

tonneau is by gatortrax, I believe its their MX metal line.

 

Anybody with a OVS Nomadic 3 know the max distance between supports? I can’t seem to find the information in their website. will two supports be adequate for a tent of this size? Thanks in advance

 

Monjeau Lookout, NM, a short side trip from the NMBDR.

​

 

I'm in the middle of a cross country road trip and the zipper on the travel cover of my CVT Mt Rainier, which has been a major source of annoyance for years, has finally crapped right out.

Is there a DIY solution you guys are doing or just getting a new cover with zipper from CVT?

Anyone know if CVT has improved their zippers since the ~2015 models?

I don't mind buying one from CVT if it actually solves the problem, but it's been kind of a pain in my butt for a while. That zipper jamming up when it gets dusty is 95% of the reason I keep looking at other options. Of course, after it got forced open dirty a few times it steadily got worse. Maybe a bunch of little snaps would drive me less nuts?

 

My tent is from 2014 approx and I ended up replacing the cover last year and the new cover seemed slightly bigger. It was alot easier placing it over the tent, zipper seemed to be the same quality. I would just order a new cover IMO.

 

CVT zippers are still about the same. I've been having trouble with mine for a while, and like you, it's the thing that has me looking at other options (mostly, pining after a GFC). Here's what I've got working for now, and though it's a bit of a PITA, it does seem to work. And really, it's not that bad unless it's freezing (or colder) in the morning when the tent gets put away.

The key is to keep the zipper clean (from the get-go, as much as possible). For me, unzipping isn't an issue, but re-zipping has been the place where the zipper halves seperated. I've solved that by using a saturated (with water) wash cloth as I zip up the tent, in the following fashion:

1. Toss the cover over the tent and get it correctly positioned for zip-up.
2. Get up close and personal to the zipper clasp and forcefully blow it out to get as much dust out as I can.
3. Thoroughly saturate a washcloth with water. Press said washcloth into the clasp so that it gets "washed out."
4. Resaturate washcloth and run it along the upper and lower zipper segments along the back of the truck. Make sure to get both sides of the upper and lower zipper. The more water you can get to remain in the zipper due to surface tension, the better. The water is both cleaning and acting as a lubricant for the clasp.
5. Zip the clasp along the rear side of the tent. Pause when you get to the part of the zipper you haven't saturated.
6. Resaturate washcloth and run it along the upper and lower zipper segments along the side of the truck opposite the tent hinge, just like you did along the first side.
7. Zip the clasp along the second side of the tent.
8. Repeat the water/clasp dance for the final side of the cover.

Since starting this about 2 years ago (and that's a lot for me, since I sleep in the tent ~90-100 nights/year), things have gone smoothly. Takes and extra 5 minutes or so when putting things away, but I'd have to do it with a new cover anyway, so... The only thing that really sucks is winter camping, when my fingers freeze. In that situation, if you can use warm water to saturate the washcloth, you'll be a lot happier.

There are also zipper lubricants, and "recommendations" to use things like beeswax, etc. I think the water thing is better b/c it doesn't leave a residue to attract dust and dirt, and doing it every time helps to keep the zipper clean anyway.

Hope that helps.

 

Thanks. This is actually what I was doing for the last couple years and it certainly helped. I didn't have a cloth handy the last time I tried to close it up and... Well, that was the last time. It doesn't take much time to do, but having a water bottle and cloth handy is sometimes overlooked.

I tried the wax thing a few years ago and it didn't seem to change anything. By that time the zipper was already a bit worn though.

A hardshell or ultralight camper is what I've had on my mind too... My wife won't sacrifice the annex to make a switch though. It's nice for the dogs and she likes it for getting dressed in the morning. I've seen some hardshells with annex things, but they look like more of a PITA with poles and crap.

 

Hey everyone, I've got the OVS Nomadic 2. Everything is great so far, except the canopy over the ladder likes to collect water when it rains. Has anyone else had this happen? I'm trying to brainstorm a solution that doesn't require me getting up every hour to drain it.

 

Pool noodles, work for the easy ups and keeping rain from gathering.

 

1st time using my new RTT