Wedge Campers & Assorted Oddities

One other benefits of the GFC is it’s base price is $1500 dollars less. That gives you a bit more flexibility in your build. I could be wrong but i believe the GFC is going to be much stronger due to the drawn over mandrel (DOM) steel tubing. Wiley and company literally built the GFC with strength and light weight in mind (prototype was tested in Baja for almost a month).

I believe the figures i saw the GFC is ABOUT 140lbs lighter in weight, and yes it has much beefier hinges than the Drifter. Not to say the Drifter isn’t up to the task, just saying he GFC was actually designed with that in mind.

The system were referring to is the “Decked” drawer system. Basically a plastic drawer system that has two large drawers and creates a large flat floor just over the wheel wells. I currently have one on order for my build. They weigh 200lbs as well so keep that in mind.

I guess while we’re talking weight if your planning on a build like this consider your suspension. I did OME 886 front springs with their “heavy duty” rear leaf pack. Worked with Marie @HeadStrong Off-Road she was great to deal with.

Lot to look at, if i were you at this point I’d wait the weeks to start seeing actual production models roll out. Quite a few of us took the gamble and pre-ordered the GFC on good faith.

Oh and here’s the link to the drawer system you mentioned.

https://decked.com/pages/midsize

 

The Drifter weighs 340 lbs. That’s with a 52” x 80” mattress and the additional weight of the standard windows. It was built for camping. Whether the campsite is at a National Park Campground, or on the Rubicon, it was created to be as spacious as possible and highly weather resistant, without a significant effect on drivability. We’re excited to see the great response the Drifter has received and to share more details of our current production unit in the coming days.

I think it’s fair to say that emerging camper offerings raise the bar when it comes to strength and lower weight.

 

Agreed, any ideas on when will see the new Drifter available for purchase, or when pre-ordering will start??? It sure looks Bad Ass from what i can tell. Both Vagabond and GFC and the various others are literally reinventing the expedition vehicle right now and I’m certainly happy to be here for the show.

 

Great thread. thanks @DoorDing and everyone!
I think this is the route I'm going to take.
I'm looking for something that can removed so I can use the truck bed for other things.
so I have some home work to do. thanks for putting all the information in one place.

 

Nice! That's less than my previous bed rack + RTT. I still think I need a heavier leaf pack because of the additional weight I'll be adding to the interior of the camper.

Just a heads up (for everyone), I ran the AP expos for 4+ years with my BAMF bed rack and RTT and it held up fine. I switched over to a custom Deaver pack 6 months ago (after I upgraded to the heavier, ruggedized Tepui) - and that pack can handle more payload. For anyone running any leaf pack with less weight rating than either of those (and building out the interior), it's not gonna be able to hold up after time - especially offroad. Aftermarket bumpstops are also going to be a good idea.

 

Thanks @YOTA 4X4 , good point on price difference and appreciate the link/explanation on decked. - Viva el Taco!

 

One of the deciding factors for me is going to be which one best handles a canoe or sea kayak mounted on the roof. My canoe is 17' long, and double touring sea kayaks can be 21 or 22 feet long. The photos of both campers makes it look dicey that they could hinge open without the boat hitting the cab roof (especially on a double cab).

If one of these campers is able to handle not removing the boat from the roof while the roof is up, that's going to be huge. I suppose using taller rack towers could provide enough clearance to allow the roof to hinge open. I'm looking forward to seeing both campers in the wild so people can put them through real-world paces and compare their relative merits.

 

Sub’d for later

 

Thank you so much for the shout out @YOTA 4X4

 

@Tacovore Thank you for the comparison! I wanted to take a sec to address some things so they don't seem like we just threw parts/ added features for no reason. We really thought out everything on the camper.

• Weighs more, but we don't know how much?

The Drifter weighs 340lb right now, and we saw that there are a few parts that can be changed to save weight. These will be changed shortly and an updated weight will be released.

• Doesn't seem to be as strong - see question below.

We designed the camper to be very strong. It may look simple on the outside, but that was after a lot of refinement. The lower portion has key bends and welds to have the whole structure be very strong. The equipment required to cut and form these panels is over $1M. @Overlanerd is pretty crazy when he offroads and is known to take his house with him, so it's built to take his abuse weather it's rocks or going way too fast in Death Valley.

Don't mind the horrible line the Jeep guys picked.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3vrRn3_cGM





Front Hinges

These are strong marine grade stainless hinges that I will admit are not the most attractive. We chose these for straight utility. They are strong, and if you ever find yourself in a situation where one of these failed from an accident or impact, you can have a fix from parts at any hardware store (ie. you can use a door hinge drilled out to match the mounting holes). Why is this important? If you are in the middle of nowhere or another country having us ship or send a replacement can be difficult or impossible, the last thing we want is to have you stranded. Lastly they are slip joint hinges that aid in removing the roof if you have to as well.

We named our company Vagabond because in essence we are all wanderers at heart looking for adventure. The Drifter is just the home on wheels that takes us there.

 

@spartanhockey6 you seen this thread? I’m digging the vagabond outdoors setup.

 

Cool find on CL: https://sandiego.craigslist.org/nsd/cto/d/wildernest-pop-up-camper/6541974835.html

 

Our conservative number is 100 lbs.

I had the same issue with my Flippac; had to unload the canoe and everything from the roof rack on my Prinsu.

I will be mounting a roof rack in the coming days and will throw the canoe up there.

 

Btw, our first production unit rolled out of the shop last night.

Thanks to @tacomgee

Customer # 1!

 

So sick. I’m jealous

 

Hey @Iggy, first of all the production unit looks really great. Congratulations! This is really helpful to see as I'm trying to figure out what to get (definitely getting one of these).

Just wanted to follow-up on the question of weight - you said "The Drifter weighs 340lb right now, and we saw that there are a few parts that can be changed to save weight. These will be changed shortly and an updated weight will be released."
- I'm wondering if this is for a short bed or long bed model tacoma? I believe the base model of the GFC is 199 lbs. and that's based on a long bed set-up.
- Also wondering if this first production unit incorporated the changes to save weight and if so, if you have that new amount?

Do you have a long bed model in the works? Would love to see the overhang, etc on a LB.

The GFC comes standard with one of three colors or you can pay extra for color matched paint. I understand from another post that the Drifter's price is without paint, what would the cost be to paint the Drifter? When do you expect to have pricing for other options?

Thanks

 

If the overhang is the same on the LB and the SB, then is there a longer bed or more open space at the back of the bed on the LB? How is the extra space of the LB being used?

 

Good questions and great to hear that you want one of our campers!

The longbed version is coming up next and we will have something to show everyone next month!

The weight difference will be minimal, between the LB & SB, but we will post it when we actually weigh it. I took my truck to the CAT scale empty and loaded to get our numbers. We will do that again for the SB and LB once we incorporate the weight saving modifications.

We're working on paint options and pricing. Just want to get it completely dialed so we can offer it at a fair price.

@inv3ctiv3 said it best. The distance, from the back of the windshield to the front of the cab, will be roughly the same for the SB & LB.

The roof portion and extended bed dimensions are the same. The difference is the overhang is shorter on the LB, and the extension platform is longer. When that platform is retracted, you can walk around the full 6' bed - all the way to the cab wall. It really changes the way you organize things since you can just walk to the back of the bed to pickup heavier items. With the 6'-8" sleeping platform extended, there is still a 30" wide area of standing/ sitting room at the back of the bed.

 

It appears to be a full time job just answering all the questions here on TW. I don’t envy that aspect of starting something new and exciting. However, this shell is totally righteous and I can’t wait to adorn my backside with one.