Older and Wiser minds please chime in!

Howdy!! I just returned from a trip out to high desert country in western Texas and had a great time with my Tacoma and my lady and our pup.

We packed out stuff (both clothes and food) in Tupperware's, and strapped them down in the bed of the truck. I have a RTT that sits on a rack above the bed.

Our stuff got covered in dust!! It also is a PIA to get the bins out from under the tent when it is set up.

So, here is the quandary. How do I solve the issue of wanting more dust free space. I have a cap for my truck, but it isn't strong enough to hold the RTT and us. I also worry that the tent would be rather high up and destroy our mileage.

So... Those of you with Tacoma's, how do you travel and keep your goods clean? Is this simply one of the speed bumps in the road with a truck?

Did any of you run into the same issue and then change vehicles? A drawer system in the Land Cruisers look pretty sweet right now...

I am ready to really start modifying the vehicle but don't want to put good money into the truck to simply turn around and sell it for a closed body vehicle.(FJ, 4runner, Land Cruiser)



Current setup.

Would the tent and rack that you have now fit under a Softopper? If not, could a custom canvas cover/top be built to cover the back and keep most of the dirt out?
I considered that route. In the end I went to an offroad trailer.

I had that issue a bit with my old Tacoma, but a fiberglass canopy solved that issue except for your RTT you could put some sort of lumber rack that rides on the side rails and goes up and over the canopy. The other option is a trailer, the bad is you have to tow it the good is all of your camping junk and RTT are ready to just hitch up and go.

Now having the 4Runner it is nice having most of my stuff under one roof with the weather we get up here, but I still have my trailer for camping just so I don't have to tote a tent around up top for mpg reasons.

There is a member on the site here with a Tacoma with a cap on it same height as the roof line, and he has a Maggiolina tent like mine on it.



You could also go with a CanBack topper with a frame that can support the tent like these two did.
I forget who owns the Red Tacoma, but the white one was Wil's of Sierra Expedition.





If I had a Tacoma, I would go with the CanBack top with the tent on it.

All your gear will stay dust free.

Double wrap the stuff. Using either large Rubbermaids, rooftop Cargo carrier (soft or hard), or a custom drawer system. I use Rubbermaid action packers, and try to double wrap things up inside. Everything stays dry, but dust does get in. The advantage to them, is they can be rearranged for different circumstances (firewood, fuel, garbage and for tailgate living. Having said this, if I had the bucks, I'd go with the canback style softopper. If you keep your sleeping bags in quality stuff sacks, they should keep clean.

Are Canbacks still being made for short bed tacomas?

+1 for Can-Back if you're satisfied with an RTT as your sleeping solution. The Can-Back is a really high-quality product although the company's business efficiency doesn't always inspire confidence. I had great service before and after the sale but others have not. Anyways, my Can-Back fared all weather conditions (dust, snow & rain) really well and was more than adequate with four cross bars to support a Technitop RTT, my wife, daughter and our dog. I had plans to add a roof rack to the two forward crossbars before we decided a truck camper was a better fit for us.

Here's a link to some photos of my set-up.

http://www.expeditionportal.com/for...op-RTT-w-Shower-Enclosure?highlight=technitop

Enzo said:

Are Canbacks still being made for short bed tacomas?

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I have a used Softopper for a double cab. Picked it up from a member here. I bought it as parts for mine and sold my truck. It is complete and in good shape. I'd let it go CHEAP.

if i was you ...i would get a flippack ?think thats it ...the tent in the camper shell ?would solve all your probs ...i have a fj and you would not be happy with the room ,coming from a truck ...i love my rig but i would prob get a taco next time ..

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought one of the main benefits of the RTT was that the tent itself remained dust-free when in the stowed position with the cover on? Is that not true? If your tent is indeed dust-free and the problem is the gear in the bed, there are number of easy solutions there, basically if you stow your gear in watertight bags, then air and dust won't be able to get in either.

I find it hard to believe that a soft topper will leave your gear "dust free." I've had 3 different kinds of fiberglass toppers and guess which one of them protected my gear from dust the best?

NONE of them. If you drive in the desert, your gear will get dusty, unless you seal the entire bed (because dust doesn't just get in from the top, it gets in from the side of the tailgate, and from the bottom of the bed, too.)

Given that the tailgate is the worst offender (take a look sometime and you'll see how much "daylight" you can see on the sides of your tailgate), the best way to go in terms of sealing would be to replace the tailgate. ARE makes a topper with a walk-in door on a panel that replaces the tailgate, I would imagine that if you seal up the drain holes in the bed, that would be pretty dust-proof. Be warned, though, it's hella expensive (circa $2500.)



And FWIW, the dust issue was one of the factors that drove me from a pickup (04 Taco) to a fully enclosed SUV ('99 4runner.) On my trip to Death Valley last March, I kept the windows tightly shut and the air recirculate on and while my interior wasn't completely dust free, it was way less dusty than those of my traveling companions, all of whom were driving pickups.

HenryJ said:

I have a used Softopper for a double cab. Picked it up from a member here. I bought it as parts for mine and sold my truck. It is complete and in good shape. I'd let it go CHEAP.

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I need something that will cover the bed and support my RTT and awning. Thanks anyway though.

Enzo said:

I need something that will cover the bed and support my RTT and awning. Thanks anyway though.

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No problem. Mounting the tent at bed level to reduce drag and having a top that folds open is what I considered doing. I too was worried about drag from the tent mounted above the truck. That would still leave you pulling boxes from under the RTT mounted low though. That might be a PITA.

I've been using a Thule Xsporter rack for a while now and love it but would like to have covered storage.

Enzo said:

I've been using a Thule Xsporter rack for a while now and love it but would like to have covered storage.

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Could a tonneau cover be fitted underneath your rack?

Unfortunately there is no way that would work, the Thule mounts to the factory tracks in the bedsides. I think a Canback would be awesome but for what they charge for them I could buy a campershell.