Let's See Some Softoppers

I emailed them about this. They basically just sell you new ones. Can’t do anything about it.

 

I haven't had any issues simply NOT securing it. Doesn't really seem like it's necessary. Like you, I didn't want to modify anything or stick velcro on there. Now that I have an aftermarket inner tailgate panel I may put the velcro on because the shape of the new panel is a bit more conducive to that but I'm still undecided.

The only other thing I've seen people do is try to use magnets. But, IMO, that's a terrible idea as this is just going to cause big time scratching.

 

I just let my flap around when I had mine on for like three years. The pole that goes through the rear flap locks into the plastic clasps and then zip it all the way down. I actually had a CB antenna going through the zipper and rain rarely got in.

I’ve done over 100mph with the soft topper never had a problem without Velcro or magnets.

 

You can use 3m 2 inch wide clear vinyl tape across the tailgate. It's pretty thick.

 

If you end up using this make sure you keep it taut as you apply it. Helps at keeping the wrinkles out. PITA to get rid of them.

 

Good to know! I’ve been pretty apprehensive to adding magnets as I don’t want to ruin the paint either, but I think this would be a great way to do it.

Just to add my 2¢ I did the Velcro strips on the upper portion of the tailgate, and it didn’t work. I used an aftermarket Velcro strip I found at ACE hardware and it stopped clinging to the Softopper fabric after a while. Now the rear topper panel just hangs off the back end and isn’t attached to anything lower than the side zippers. Granted it isn’t hurting anything blowing in the breeze above 65mph, but it is distracting in the rear view mirror. Additionally there are times that the flap gets pushed to the inside of the truck bed and allows rain water down the inside of the tailgate. I don’t keep anything in the back that I don’t want to get wet, but just another consideration. I’m hoping to use my topper as a truck bed tent moving forward and it would be nice to keep it as dry as possible while in transit to a campsite, especially with living in the PNW.

 

Anybody else have issues with the rear panel window fogging up? I live in the PNW and with the rain/temps it fogs up easily. I’ve tried damprid buckets in the bed but they barely make a dent, and I have to keep refilling them.

 

Just curious... is your rear flap cross-bar the curved one or is it straight? Or do you even have one installed?
Mine is curved and I have absolutely no movement.
And the only way my rear flap, below the cross-bar, could get inside of the tailgate is if I held it there when I closed the tailgate. (It could be forced in after t/g closure with a stick, I guess, but no way is wind alone going to do it.)

My front panel had movement at highway speeds; especially with a cross-wind (from weather). I did have to install the wee snaps along the inside bed wall at the front. No cross-bar there., of course, so I inserted a 4' section of airhose with QDs on each end for weight (wanted something that had another use besides dead weight). I inserted it into the pocket that resulted from the construction of the topper front panel. That hose was not heavy enough and had to use the snaps. Still have the hose in there though.

 

Apologies for the delayed response, been working crazy hours with snow all week. I have the straight bar in the back, and believe the curved is typically reserved for the 3rd gens. I will find my flap tucked inside of the tailgate or wedged on top similar to the photo below. You can also see the Velcro strips I placed on top of the tail gate was well.





As for the inside panel, next to the cab, I learned the hard way that it needs to be secured. The first time I didn’t secure it, and hit highway speed, I thought the truck was coming apart with the panel beating against the rear window. I used the same Velcro strips to secure the inside panel as I did for the tailgate, but those have started to fail as well. I did buy the screw in buttons, but 2 of the 3 locations to screw them in are on the ridges of the bed box. I drilled one button in and figured it would at least help prevent the panel from getting loose.

 

Yours looks to sit quite a bit higher up than mine. First pic, the end of the side rail, where the bracket for the bar is... I'm seeing what looks like 1/2" of foam between the rail and plastic bedside. That foam should be squished down completely. I'd try refitting the side rails and make sure they're clamped down tight and parallel to the bedsides. You can order extra clamps if needed or move the clamps you have now. You may have them placed too far inboard - IIRC they are supposed to be within 10" of the end of the rails.

I'm also wondering if your entire frame assembly is up too high. How old is your topper? Has it seen lots of sun and weather? The frame is adjustable where it secures to the side rails. There are 3 settings and I'm wondering if yours is set so that the frame and canopy are at the highest possible position. You should be able to lower it by 1/4" or 1/2" depending on where it's currently set.

As for the front panel, that's a bummer. Mine worked great and all lined up well. That said, when I sold my first topper and replaced it with another one it didn't line up with the snaps for the first one. It's close but not quite close enough to snap in. For your situation, you can pretty easily just replace the snaps. Softopper sells replacement parts for just about everything and if you don't see it on their site you can call and ask.
https://softopper.com/products/snap-replacement-kit/

 

Trying to figure out how your velcro is on top of your tailgate. I'm pretty sure it should be at least two inches further down onto the actual skin of the tailgate to match up to where the velcro on the rear window panel would line up.

 

I will have to look up how to do the adjustments for the canopy frame, I was unaware of that. I am not sure how old the topper is, as I am the third owner of this particular unit. When I brought it home, I removed the old foam seal and, admittedly, I replaced it with a cheap adhesive foam strip from the local ACE hardware store. I settled for the cheapest foam seal I could find, which ended up being a 1”x1” strip. I think the original Softopper foam seal was either 1/8” or 1/4” thick, a that is why my rails sit a little higher than they should.

As for the front panel, I have it figured out now. It’s secure enough and hasn’t caused any major issues since I added the one screw snap. I did buy the snaps and the replacement buckles straight from Softopper. Despite some minor complications, I still really like my topper.

 

I was wrong about how far down, but it definitely should be further down. Here's what mine looks like. It's a 2008.

 

Being that high gives you one heck of a gap in the corners. Notice how mine are flush against the sides? Even like that I still get plenty of dust in the bed.

 

The Velcro placement worked, at least for a time. I really did not want to add the adhesive strip directly to the paint… Worst case I’ll add the clear protector and let the back panel flap. I know it’s superficial but I really wouldn’t like having a Velcro strip on the red paint.

 

I skipped the Velcro strip, but did put a 2 inch clear vinyl strip across my tailgate where the back panel rubs. No issues after doing that.

 

Good point with the corner gaps, at some point I’ll change out the foam. When I do that, I’ll look at adding the vinyl. Appreciate all the comments!

 

I’m not familiar with the 3rd Gen model, but pull your adjustment straps tighter in the corners and it should sink your height down and give you more coverage over the tailgate.

 

No shame in having to replace the foam, I've done it on mine too but I think I used maybe 1/4-1/2" thick or something. No issues except it didn't last as long as the stuff from Softopper.

The thick foam can't be helping but I'd wager a bet that it isn't the problem. That foam should squish down plenty. In your pic it's not the foam that's pushing the rail up and away from the bedside. It's the rail not being secured properly and then the foam just taking up the gap.

If your topper is that old then I'd imagine the fabric has shrunk a little - which is normal and I believe that's why the frame adjustments exist.

The pics jackn75 took look just like mine. The fabric should go well below the top black plastic part that sits on top of the tailgate. I think if you can make the adjustments to get it down where it should be then you can probably skip the velcro. Hasn't ever been a problem for me. Perhaps not as dust proof as it could be otherwise but should still be a lot better than what you're dealing with now.

 

Do you guys have get any MPG difference with the mesh cover?