Vagabond Drifter Camper Buildout and Mods

ARB if you don't want a room off the back.

CVT 55" if you want the option of putting a room back there:

 

I installed the Smart Touring brackets on all three sides. That way I can move the 2.5m awning to the back if I need it. I have found that in the PNW rain, a 4” awning wouldn’t help very much. The rain just blows in.

 

I also recommend this. I have a 4' ARB unmounted that I just set on the roof with it extended to gauge the usefulness of it and it just happened to start pouring rain. Unless you have side walls or drop the far end way down, the rain blows onto the tailgate. Great for shade, not great for rain.

 

SILLY LOAD CARRYING QUIZ

So, I've got a 2nd gen short bed. I need to carry one sheet of 4x8' ply in good weather about 10 miles, including one section of 60mph.

What strapping/binding ideas do you have to carry this on a completely bare Drifter roof (no L-Track, no cross bars, no fan)? I'm thinking fold a tarp or blanket over the front overhang like a taco to keep wind from picking up the front of the plywood and then… Not sure how to secure the sides near the rear or keep it from shifting front to rear without just ratcheting down around the overhang really tight.

My backup option is to just unzip the tent and remove it and put the plywood inside where the mattress normally lives, but what's the fun in that?

 

If it was me, I'd probably just go overkill with the straps... One around the forward part of the overhang, one at the very rear of the overhang which you could then use that strap as a forward attachment point to go straight back and down to the hitch, and then you could also do a couple straps wrapped diagonally - like around the front center of the overhang and then back diagonally in opposite directions, then probably under the upper latching points in the rear so that they're captured with the roof latched.

You could also lay down something like shelf liner underneath the ply to help keep it from shifting.

 

My suggestion is... borrow a friend's truck

 

That's not a fun thought exercise.

I could also empty out the bed and put the ply in angled and have it stick out, but what's the fun in that?

 

Rent a trailer for $19.99

Strap it to the roof

All good ideas haha. Not worth taking out the tent material

 

Ok, this thought exercise is over. I was hoping for some interesting solutions or maybe some crazy ones like "how to carry 12' lumber under the truck by ratcheting to the sliders".

I'm just going to stick it in the bed with the tailgate closed on top of my fridge/bins. It's a short enough distance and smooth roads that this will work fine and I don't have to empty out the truck bed.

 

How much are those STS brackets, and are they easy to install or should I have Vagabond? I like the idea of having some on 2 sides. I dont think I want a room, but will try to rig a removeable wall to one of the sides for windy days but not super worried about that

 

If they are the same as what's used for the OVS 270 awning, I paid $250 for the brackets + install on the camper

 

yeah, i just have it sticking out the back of my truck sitting on top of the tire on the swing out.

sure my brake light is obscured, but it's only for a few miles.

 

Do you have a metal sheet instead of a cab window?

 

Yes, I requested a solid wall without a window.

 

I did this just this past weekend. Gotta leave the rear window up but the sheet hardly moves. It's easy to throw a strap around the sheet as well and tie to something inside the bed, just in case.

 

Has anybody mounted their maxtrax to their gullwing door?

 

What have people done to make the Vagabond better suited for rain?

Specifically, has anyone done anything to address the huge amount of water that dumps onto the front seats and carpet from the corners of the camper when it’s pouring outside?

Any other cool rain mods?

sincerely,

The entire PNW.

 

I mentioned before that my idea was a custom roof rack on the truck cab that is wider than traditional… front has an air dam and the wider body catches and redirects the rain.

https://youtube.com/shorts/Q6D_5nIqUoQ

 

the air dam would thus need to terminate under the camper, which would greatly reduce its function as an air dam? Also, consider the considerable up-down movement of the camper when the frame flexes offroad. You’d probably want at least an inch of space (or a really flexible fairing).

I just bought some aluminum plate to cut and mount “canards” to the underside of the front corners, extending the leading edge to each side by three inches, using the existing torx screws for a mount.

I also bought a suction-cup-mounted roof bar and a Thule air dam. Finding a fairing that is as wide as the Drifter for under $400 seems pretty difficult.

 

This might be obvious to just me, but do you guys just leave your doors and windows open when it's raining outside?