Airtop on Gen. 2 Tacoma Double Cab - Fitting questions.

[bcrez]

I have a 2010 tacoma with double cab. 60" bed.
I have an ARE CX series without top rails.

I would like to put a Maggiolina Airtop (carbon small) 51” x 83” x 13” on top of the truck cap. That would leave about 23" of hang over the cab. There is also a slight dip from the cab to the cap. Given the cab will flex separately from the bed this concerns me.

I have two questions:

1. Do you think mounting the Airtop to the cap with only 60" mounting room (20 inch per crossbar) with 23" of overhang would make for a safe mount? (Not ideal, but safe)

2. How much vertical gap do I need between top of cab and bottom of Airtop?

***If you know of anyone with a similar set up, please post a pic. I searched around and couldnt find one, but I am terrible with the search feature. I found some tacos with steel racks and airtops mounted to those, but not to a truck cap.***

Side view so you can see "the dip" I am talking about.

 

[dnorrell]

There are some pictures in a thread over on tacomaworld.com of a Maggiolina mounted to the shell on an AC. I've not seen any photos in my searches of one mounted to a DC shell.

Did you get the reinforced shell to support that kind of weight?

 

[bcrez]

I will check out the link.

I was unaware there was a reenforced option on the CX series. Or any of the fiberglass tops. The Airtop weighs 119 + me (145) + a S.O. (145 max, = 409ibs That is a lot of weight now that I think about it.

Anyone have any primary source experience with this?/ max load bearing weight of a fiberglass topper?

 

[yedi]

I will check out the link.

I was unaware there was a reenforced option on the CX series. Or any of the fiberglass tops. The Airtop weighs 119 + me (145) + a S.O. (145 max, = 409ibs That is a lot of weight now that I think about it.

Anyone have any primary source experience with this?/ max load bearing weight of a fiberglass topper?

There are several threads on here about whether a topper can take the weight of a RTT. I found this one to be the most helpful. At least a couple of people are using RTTs without a reinforced topper, and Mike, the guy that owns AutoHome, says (both in that thread and in my conversations with him prior to purchasing) that mounting his tents on standard toppers is very common. I believe he even runs a Maggiolina on an ARE topper. With the carbon tent and the 60" topper, I wouldn't think you would have any trouble.

Having said that, I personally run an AirTop on an A/C Tacoma with an ARE CX topper that I've had reinforced. I knew I was going to be living out of my tent for a few months when I got it, and I was worried about the constant stress of the tent, me, and my girlfriend every night on the topper, so I had an internal skeleton made to support my fat@ss. I have about 100 nights in it so far and haven't had any issues.

As far as your original questions, you'd probably be fine to cantilever the tent out like that. I'm assuming you're going to put the "foot" end of the tent towards the front of the truck, so there likely won't ever be much weight on that end. I've found that I almost always hang out in the middle of the tent or at the "head" end, particularly because of the cargo net hanging down on the "foot" end. However, while you'll probably be okay to do it that way, I personally wouldn't. These tents are a pretty big investment, and I would want to make sure that my mounting system was bomber.

As far as your second question, what are you planning on using to mount the tent? If you're just using Yakima or Thule towers, you shouldn't have any trouble with the flex. They keep the tent about 4" off the topper. I wanted my tent to be a little lower than that, so I had some custom bars fabbed up. I've attached some pictures of the bars and the tent. I'm not sure how far off the cab of the truck the tent is, but I can measure it and get back to you. I've never had any trouble with the cab hitting the tent, but I did have to trim about an inch off the front ratchet straps because they constantly tapped the roof. It sounded like dyslexic Morse code or something.






ETA: Check out post #6 of this thread for another idea for mounting RTTs on a DC. Also, if you went the Yakima or Thule route, you could put two sets of towers on tracks on the topper, and one set of the rain gutter towers at the back of the cab to hold up the "foot" end of the tent. Check out post #4 of this thread for something similar. You could just put foam weatherstripping or something on the bar on the cab of the truck and not attach it to the tent, so the tent would be free to flex with the bed and would be cushioned from smacking the cab bar, but then when you put weight on the tent, it would be supported.

 

[dnorrell]

^ That looks great ^

 

[ETAV8R]

Good thread. I went wheeling last weekend with a guy who had a cherokee with a maggiolina. I originally wanted one of the airtops before i got my flippac.

 

[Montana Cruiser]

There are several threads on here about whether a topper can take the weight of a RTT. I found this one to be the most helpful. At least a couple of people are using RTTs without a reinforced topper, and Mike, the guy that owns AutoHome, says (both in that thread and in my conversations with him prior to purchasing) that mounting his tents on standard toppers is very common. I believe he even runs a Maggiolina on an ARE topper. With the carbon tent and the 60" topper, I wouldn't think you would have any trouble.

Having said that, I personally run an AirTop on an A/C Tacoma with an ARE CX topper that I've had reinforced. I knew I was going to be living out of my tent for a few months when I got it, and I was worried about the constant stress of the tent, me, and my girlfriend every night on the topper, so I had an internal skeleton made to support my fat@ss. I have about 100 nights in it so far and haven't had any issues.

As far as your original questions, you'd probably be fine to cantilever the tent out like that. I'm assuming you're going to put the "foot" end of the tent towards the front of the truck, so there likely won't ever be much weight on that end. I've found that I almost always hang out in the middle of the tent or at the "head" end, particularly because of the cargo net hanging down on the "foot" end. However, while you'll probably be okay to do it that way, I personally wouldn't. These tents are a pretty big investment, and I would want to make sure that my mounting system was bomber.

As far as your second question, what are you planning on using to mount the tent? If you're just using Yakima or Thule towers, you shouldn't have any trouble with the flex. They keep the tent about 4" off the topper. I wanted my tent to be a little lower than that, so I had some custom bars fabbed up. I've attached some pictures of the bars and the tent. I'm not sure how far off the cab of the truck the tent is, but I can measure it and get back to you. I've never had any trouble with the cab hitting the tent, but I did have to trim about an inch off the front ratchet straps because they constantly tapped the roof. It sounded like dyslexic Morse code or something.

View attachment 142334
View attachment 142335
View attachment 142336
View attachment 142337

ETA: Check out post #6 of this thread for another idea for mounting RTTs on a DC. Also, if you went the Yakima or Thule route, you could put two sets of towers on tracks on the topper, and one set of the rain gutter towers at the back of the cab to hold up the "foot" end of the tent. Check out post #4 of this thread for something similar. You could just put foam weatherstripping or something on the bar on the cab of the truck and not attach it to the tent, so the tent would be free to flex with the bed and would be cushioned from smacking the cab bar, but then when you put weight on the tent, it would be supported.

Do you have some additional shots you can post of your set up with AC Tacoma?

Cheers!

 

[yedi]

Sure, no problem. I have a few more pictures of the bars, but they basically show the same thing that I already posted, so I've attached some pictures of the internal support and some pics of the truck with the tent open and the tent closed. Let me know if there is anything in particular you want to see that I haven't gotten, and I can get a shot of it.

Here's the internal support system. This (and the bars) were fabricated by Kevin McLamb of Armor Tech Offroad. I believe 4X Innovations acquired Armor Tech this fall, but I think Kevin is still available to do one-off work. He's fantastic to work with. Basically, I wanted an internal skeleton that would support the cap, would attach on the bed floor via the existing bed bolts and D-rings (patterned off of this rack), and would still allow full functionality of the windoors and the drop down front window. Kevin used rectangular tubing instead of DOM because the geometry worked better and he could pull the supports in really tight to the topper walls. The whole thing is modular, so I can take it out of the truck if I want.

You can tell from this picture how well Kevin was able to tuck the supports away. It's really low profile, and allows almost the entire bed for storage:



It consists of four arms that are each attached at factory holes in the bed. Those arms support a rectangle of tubing near the roof of the topper.



Factory D-ring connection:


Factory bed bolt connection:


Because the CX cap is really spherical (it curves significantly from side-to-side and front-to-back), it would have been almost impossible to have tubes follow the the lines of the topper exactly. To get around this, the rectangle near the roof supports four metal pads that sit under the track on the topper where the bars for the tent sit. The tension on each pad is independently adjustable via the bolts you can see, and each is topped with weatherstripping to keep it from getting jostled in offroad conditions. Nothing is actually attached to the cap, so it can flex independently of the bed (we were worried about lateral movement mostly), but when the tent is weighted some of the weight is transferred through the topper onto the skeleton.

Detail of back left arm, rectangle of tubing, and metal pad:


The arms are far enough back that I can drop the front window. The front arms only minimally impede the use of the windoors, and the rear arms are completely out of the way. I really couldn't be happier with the way it turned out.




Here's what the truck looks like with the tent closed:



Tent open:

 

[Saguache]

View attachment 142391

Yedi,

That is pretty much what I envision doing for my '03 Taco this spring. For a while there TacoDoc had me looking at the AT FlipPac which is arguably a nifty way to go. The issue is I already own a Medium Maggiolina GT and I'm pretty happy with it. Add to this that its only a year old and even though I tried to sell it, it appears that there's little to no chance I'll get anything close out of it to what's already invested. Finally, I'd lose a key advantage that prompted me to go with a truck in the first place if I then added the FlipPac; not having the the dogs in my living space is a huge win in my book.

Right now I'm looking at ARE tops and once I get get that seated I'll be interested in building out an internal support frame similar to what you've done. I think I'm going to take out the plastic bed liner too and either put down a bed liner or carpet it with the same felt that comes on the inside of the topper. Although my minds eye really hasn't figured out the details of what to do beyond removing the plastic from the bed.

 

[dnorrell]

I too had considered a flip pac, but think the Maggiolina is a better solution for my needs. I just bought my regular cab tacoma a couple of days ago and I have convinced myself to go with a Snugtop shell fitted with the sportsman's package. This adds reinforcement for roof loads of 500 lbs and a handy inside rod holder. Just another option for you to consider along with the ARE.

 

[yedi]

For a while there TacoDoc had me looking at the AT FlipPac which is arguably a nifty way to go. The issue is I already own a Medium Maggiolina GT and I'm pretty happy with it. Add to this that its only a year old and even though I tried to sell it, it appears that there's little to no chance I'll get anything close out of it to what's already invested. Finally, I'd lose a key advantage that prompted me to go with a truck in the first place if I then added the FlipPac; not having the the dogs in my living space is a huge win in my book.

Right now I'm looking at ARE tops and once I get get that seated I'll be interested in building out an internal support frame similar to what you've done. I think I'm going to take out the plastic bed liner too and either put down a bed liner or carpet it with the same felt that comes on the inside of the topper. Although my minds eye really hasn't figured out the details of what to do beyond removing the plastic from the bed.

Yeah, I looked long and hard at FlipPacs. TacoDoc and some others, including ETAV8R, make it look really appealing. The deal breaker for me was having to set up the separate rain fly. I typically roll in late to camp and I tend to camp in some pretty rainy places, so and I didn't want to have to worry about whether the fly was deployed or not after I rolled in. Plus, knowing me, I would have wanted to completely outfit the inside too, and that was money I didn't need to spend. I couldn't trust myself to stop at just the FlipPac without a bunch of other "minor improvements" jammed inside.

If you're planning on a topper with the AirTop, you might look at a reinforced topper like dnorrell mentions. If I had it to do over again, that's probably the way I would go. I got my topper without thinking I would put a tent on top, so I had to retrofit the support to make me comfortable with the weight on it. Getting the SnugTop Sportsman package or a Leer 100RCC would alleviate the need for an internal support (I don't know if ARE makes a reinforced shell with the standard windows instead of the tool bins - I can't figure it out on their website) and the cost is probably a wash once you figure the price of having an internal frame built (or at least it would be for me, since I can't weld). That would give you the most flexibility with your bed.

Either way, make sure you post some pics of what you do. I'd really like to see it.

 

[Montana Cruiser]

Sure, no problem. I have a few more pictures of the bars, but they basically show the same thing that I already posted, so I've attached some pictures of the internal support and some pics of the truck with the tent open and the tent closed. Let me know if there is anything in particular you want to see that I haven't gotten, and I can get a shot of it.

Here's the internal support system. This (and the bars) were fabricated by Kevin McLamb of Armor Tech Offroad. I believe 4X Innovations acquired Armor Tech this fall, but I think Kevin is still available to do one-off work. He's fantastic to work with. Basically, I wanted an internal skeleton that would support the cap, would attach on the bed floor via the existing bed bolts and D-rings (patterned off of this rack), and would still allow full functionality of the windoors and the drop down front window. Kevin used rectangular tubing instead of DOM because the geometry worked better and he could pull the supports in really tight to the topper walls. The whole thing is modular, so I can take it out of the truck if I want.

You can tell from this picture how well Kevin was able to tuck the supports away. It's really low profile, and allows almost the entire bed for storage:

View attachment 142383

It consists of four arms that are each attached at factory holes in the bed. Those arms support a rectangle of tubing near the roof of the topper.

View attachment 142384

Factory D-ring connection:
View attachment 142386

Factory bed bolt connection:
View attachment 142387

Because the CX cap is really spherical (it curves significantly from side-to-side and front-to-back), it would have been almost impossible to have tubes follow the the lines of the topper exactly. To get around this, the rectangle near the roof supports four metal pads that sit under the track on the topper where the bars for the tent sit. The tension on each pad is independently adjustable via the bolts you can see, and each is topped with weatherstripping to keep it from getting jostled in offroad conditions. Nothing is actually attached to the cap, so it can flex independently of the bed (we were worried about lateral movement mostly), but when the tent is weighted some of the weight is transferred through the topper onto the skeleton.

Detail of back left arm, rectangle of tubing, and metal pad:
View attachment 142388

The arms are far enough back that I can drop the front window. The front arms only minimally impede the use of the windoors, and the rear arms are completely out of the way. I really couldn't be happier with the way it turned out.

View attachment 142389


Here's what the truck looks like with the tent closed:
View attachment 142390
View attachment 142391

Tent open:
View attachment 142392
View attachment 142393

Yedi - Thanks for all the pics and descriptions. Everything is simple and well thought out, I really like it! I am still weighing my options as to which way I go when I get the Runner and the Cruiser sold. I was thinking crew cab Tundra, but just not sure I need THAT much room. Also thinking about Flippacs, but this set up seems much more versatile. I do want my little lab in the cab with me, so a DC Tacoma may be a better option for me ...... its just that short darn bed on there that kills me.

 

[bcrez]

Thanks Yedi. I made the same mistake too. I needed a topper quick, set up the ARE and bought it without thinking about the RTT. Realistically it will only be me up there. I will be living out of it for at least 6 months, so continued wear could become an issue, but at this point, with only 150ibs extra up there, it looks like my best/cheapest option. Given the already limited storage I would be hesitant to shave off even a couple of inches on either side for re-enforcements. I will check out the links and hopefully figure something out. I know I could lift the thing up as high as I want to clear the cab so the weight issue was my main concern.

Thanks a lot for the reply.

 

[ETAV8R]

Yedi that is a nice set up. Looks great.

I had to sleep in the cab last friday when it rained in the desert. The sky was looking gloomy when we got to camp in the late afternoon. About an hour after sleeping I began to hear the pitter patter of rain on the flippac tent. After hastily putting the stuff from my bunk in the flippac below I was out closing and putting the tent away and then took my sleeping bag into the cab. The rain was pretty heavy and would have easily saturated the tent. I plan on getting a fly in the future. It will come long before I have funds for a Four Wheel Camper (FWC). I can pack my flippac with tons of stuff for camping. When in use another benefit is having the bunk for gear storage that might be needed while in the flippac. I really like being able to stand up inside too.

 

[yedi]

I made the same mistake too. I needed a topper quick, set up the ARE and bought it without thinking about the RTT.

Yeah, I'm an idiot. I should have realized you already had the shell since you already posted pictures of it. Chalk one up for Captain Obvious over here.

I took a couple of measurements if it's helpful at all for you. On the outside of the Yakima track on the shell, it's right at 2.5 inches from the shell to the bottom of the tent. Unfortunately, I couldn't get my hands under the tent to try to measure from the center of the cap, where it is tallest, but it's a lot closer to the tent. You can tell from the last picture in my first post above that the shell really falls away from the center. I was able to measure at the center of the cab, where it's the tallest, to the bottom of the tent, and it's right at 1.25 inches. That's actually closer than I realized, and I wouldn't want to go any closer to the cab than that.

Thanks, ETAV8R. That means a lot coming from you. The Gini is fantastic.