Build Thread: Sixstringsteve's 2002 Tacoma double cab: Carlos

[smartass_kid]

noticed from the "should I...?" thread you don't have a base for the RTT? what are you plans for it; below top of cab or above? have you looked at contruction truck type rack? cheap and could be cut down.

 

[sixstringsteve]

I'm going to be working with Chocflip to build my own. It'll be very similar to Greg's rack on his Chevy project dualsport rig, only it'll sit lower. It'll stick up maybe 4-6" above the roofline. The height will be similar to Kurt's rack, only built with tube. The bottom of the tent will sit about a foot above the bedrails. I just need to figure out the dimensions before we design it.

 

[smartass_kid]

saw last page with tube bend request

i assume you plan to store stuff below during trips, will you have enought room to get in and grab stuff? tonneu (SP) cover?
maybe a slideout bed insert?
http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=218&ad=19407845&cat=&lpid=2&search=slide


trying to help you spend money is fun!

 

[sixstringsteve]

It is, isn't it?

I just need it working in a week for FYTO. No plans for a tonneau or a sliding insert. I'm small and the 1' between the bedrails and the bottom of the tent is plenty to reach in and grab stuff. With all my bedding in the tent, I should have plenty of room for all my gear back there. I shouldn't need a sliding drawer or anything.

 

[sixstringsteve]

A miracle happened last night. My wife told me "I know the Rooftop Tent was expensive, but I'm really glad you got it." What?!?!

She's excited that we don't have to unload anything from the truck to sleep. With the sleeping platform in my past trucks we'd have to unload the cooler and the water jugs (which I never thoguht was a pain), but now we can keep it all in the truck. She's pretty excited, which is a surprise to me because she doesn't get excited about gear.

I still think unzipping the cover to the tent will be more work than pulling the cooler and water jugs out, but I'm not going to tell her that.

 

[sixstringsteve]

To-do list before FYTO:

- trim outer fenders
- trim rear fenders
- re-tap driver's knuckle
- isntall fenders
- install rear frame reinforcements
- install front and rear diffs and break in the gears
- install rear Dakar add-a-leaf
- istall front struts
- build a rack for the RTT
- install RTT
- install grill, lights
- put the interior back together
- fill and top off all fluids

 

[dutchman]

A miracle happened last night. My wife told me "I know the Rooftop Tent was expensive, but I'm really glad you got it." What?!?!

Winning!

 

[TRD270]

A miracle happened last night. My wife told me "I know the Rooftop Tent was expensive, but I'm really glad you got it." What?!?!

I still think unzipping the cover to the tent will be more work than pulling the cooler and water jugs out, but I'm not going to tell her that.

Haha that is a win, luckily for me my lady gets excited for gear, but I've had a hard time talking her into one of these. As far as easier, maybe easier to pull all that stuff in an out, but I think you guys will be way more comfortable in the RTT. You will have so much more room to move around, especially as much as you get out.

 

[sixstringsteve]

I'm excited to try it out and see what it's like. I like the ability to sit up in it. One thing I didn't like about sleeping in a truck is in windy conditions I get kinda seasick in there. I don't imagine this will be much better. I'm excited though, I didn't think a RTT would be so exciting.

 

[zukijames]

steve i have 1 question about your truck builds.. to me one of the biggest pros of a truck vs suv ( 4 runner, cruiser ect) is having a bed for my dirtbikes but with your builds you never are able to load bikes in the back.

does that bother you or are you just so used to trailering and only being able to take 1 bike that it doesnt matter?

ps 18 pages already? man your popular ! i love reading your builds


ps i know this is kinda chit chatty feel free to delete it and text me your response.

 

[sixstringsteve]

ps i know this is kinda chit chatty feel free to delete it and text me your response.

Relevant chit chat is fine, that totally applies.

steve i have 1 question about your truck builds.. to me one of the biggest pros of a truck vs suv ( 4 runner, cruiser ect) is having a bed for my dirtbikes but with your builds you never are able to load bikes in the back. Does that bother you or are you just so used to trailering and only being able to take 1 bike that it doesnt matter?

Nope, it doesn't bother me one bit. Currently I don't own any dirt bikes. I've actually only loaded a dirt bike in the back of a truck once. I doubt my bed is even long enough to fit a bike in it anyway.

I had a single-bike hitch carrier and it was awesome. I don't have any dirt bikes right now, but if I do get another one sometime I'll go back to the hitch mount. A trailer wouldn't bother me either. I don't think a RTT in the back of a pickup is the solution for everyone for the exact reasons you mention. Loading big stuff (couches, washer and dryer, etc) isn't going to be possible with the RTT where it is, but then again, my bed is tiny and you can't fit much in it anyway.

There are 3 main reasons I love pickups:

1) The ability to reach all of your gear from the outside of the truck. No having to unpack or fold down seats, or pull stuff out to reach stuff behind.

2) The tailgate is a huge necessity for me. I use my tailgate a ton, whether it's for cooking, pouring water, preparing food, sitting around, etc. It's like a super sturdy metal table that's always there

3) The ability to move nasty dirty stuff around (diffs, metal, garbage, stinky stuff, etc). Keeping my camp garbage in the 4runner was nasty and I felt like it was hard to keep my rig in clean, nice condition.

ps 18 pages already? man your popular ! i love reading your builds .

It's gotta be something other than popularity. Nothing better to read? People bored at work? People wondering what the flavor of the week is? People placing bets on which rig I'll get next? Lots of work in a little time? Lots of people who showed up to wrench on it wondering how it's going? It's probably got more to do with the fact that this build goes fast. Something new happens nearly every day.

Probably a combination of all of them.

 

[sixstringsteve]

Regarding the RTT rack, I can go with a 24' stick of 1.75 0.090 wall ($37) or 0.420 wall ($51). I'm thinking 0.90 wall is PLENTY for a 150 lb tent. I'm not building a roll cage, so I'm not too worried.

 

[notajeep]

Steve, I've mounted RTTs both ways, below the cab...

and above..

The first mount I built was to keep it low and out of the wind etc. What I didn't find out until I used it this way for a season, was that it was a giant PITA to have to duck around the tent while in camp all the time. Also, the lower the tent, the greater the angle of the ladder, and the more stress it will put on the tent frame/hinge when you climb in and out, and just being in the tent in general. Think of trying to climb a ladder at a 45 deg angle. It moves the stress from the bottom of the ladder and the ground, up to whatever the ladder is leaning on.
Moving the tent up, not only solved the ladder situation, but it now compliments my awning being at the same height. It's like I have 2 awnings now. (And, I have yet to hit my head on it.)

And in my case, having the tent up higher has made NO difference in any noticeable wind noise/resistance. Plus it had freed up lots of usable bed space.

 

[sixstringsteve]

Hm... interesting. Good feedback Dan, thanks. Did your MPG change whether it was above or flush with the roof? With a small v6 I think it'll make a bit of a difference for me.

Regarding the ladder height, can't I just drill new stop holes for a shorter roof height to get the right ladder angle?

 

[jentzschman]

I personally like the tent a little higher. Gives you access to the bed, as yo mentioned, but also looks better imo. As you mentioned also, having to tuck and walk around the tent when it was lower would have just mad me go mad. I would love to get one of these in the future.

 

[sixstringsteve]

I'm pretty short, I shouldn't have to duck too much.

I'm going to try and moutn it low and see how that works for me. Worst case scenario I can lift it up a bit later on.

 

[jentzschman]

I would try to find a nice sweet stop between being high enough to use the bed, but not too high either. I would personally would hate to loose bed space for packing and storage of gear.

 

[sixstringsteve]

Exactly. I will be mounting it about halfway between Dan's before and after. I'm not gunna lie, I'm going to copy Kurt. The bottom of the tent isIt's a foot above the bed:

Image taken from his article: "Is a Roof Top Tent For Me?"

It's just tall enough to be able to access all your stuff under there, but it's not so high that it's a total windblock. Even if I put it entirely above the roofline, in a Tacoma, that's not enough room to really get inside there and climb around under the tent. In a fullsize, that's totally different. As long as I can reach in and grab stuff in the bed from the outside, I'm good. I hope my truck doesn't end up so tall that I can't reach in the sides. I'm guessing I'll be OK.

 

[jentzschman]

Exactly the picture I had in mind.

 

[sixstringsteve]

I got my diffs back from sixstates last night. Ready to go! I'm a big fan of Kevin's work at the Sixstates in Orem. He knows his stuff.

It's nice to be at a point where you're putting parts back on rather than taking them off. I went ahead and installed the rear diff and got the rear end off of jackstands. Ah, what a good feeling.

Tonight I'll be heading to chocflip's place to build the tent platform.