How dumb would it be to put a long shell on a short bed?

That's a fair point I hadn't fully considered. I'm not too worried about backing it into stuff (Living in a major northeastern city for 4 years has made me quite aware aware of the exact dimensions of my truck), but the rear ending thing is definitely a concern. In that scenario I would want the fiberglass shell to crumple and the clamps to the bed to stay stationary so it doesn't hit the cab. I'll have to think more on this point.

I'd like to keep the seats in the cab, because I'm planning on meeting up with friends as I go and I want them to be able to tag along for short legs of the trip. TBD on whether they get to sleep in the shell with me though!

Yeah this is kinda what I'm thinking about when I'm going for this camper build vs just bringing a tent along.

I'm kinda hoping to do the opposite actually! Which may suggest I'd be better suited with an RV instead of a tacoma, but here I am on TacomaWorld. With the quitting the job for 4-6 months and my goal of ending in California, I'm really hoping I get some solid time living out of different parts of the country as I go. Once I'm done I might end up selling the truck (hopefully I can say that sort of thing around here!).

More thoughts:

I'm not too worried about looking dumb, I'm more interested in being comfortable and not getting drenched/frozen/eaten and giving up on the journey. I'm definitely not worried about getting the wrong color shell (although silver does seem to be pretty common)

I'm definitely prepared to go hard on the waterproofing side of things. I have a guy who makes wood + fiberglass stand up paddle boards who is going to help me with the build, and I've also done a thing or two with shower pan liner, which is kinda a hacky way to make things waterproof.

 

Would be easier to just buy a new full size truck. The interiors are massive these days.

 

Not a bad idea! my parents live close by and have a garage so I'll try it next time I'm there. I'd probably want to build a makeshift platform so I can at least be on top of the wheel wells though, that looks like it would net me ~5 inches.