Outdoor Adventure USA

Outdoor Residence Options

The net this week will focus on the many options that we have to shelter us from the elements when camping in the outdoors. While tents are by far the most common form of shelter, there are a huge variety of tent types as well as some other choices, and we intend to cover as much as time allows. As always, we know what works for us, and we have seen a great many types of shelter, but we have hardly seen it all. We will be posting the various types of shelter of which we are familiar, but we want to hear from you, if there are others.

Springbar Canvas Tents

If you've joined us on any of our camping trips or listened to our nets, it is no secret that I am a huge Springbar advocate. But, I'm sure that most already know this, and to an extent, we will rely on past nets to make our case for Springbar tents. At this point, only some brief information is necessary.

The company has been in the business making tents and outdoor equipment and gear for over 6 decades, and has survived good times, lean times and covid shutdown times. While there are many ways to gauge the economic health of a business, one good indicator is the wait time to order the product of your choice. For those who have ordered a Springbar tent, you know that it can take months for an order to be placed, and there are reasons, including:

Made in the USA
High quality long lasting
Extremely durable and strong
Requires no tent fly
Four season tents

The Springbar Warranty:

Satisfaction Guarantee

All Springbar® products are covered by our Satisfaction Guarantee.
We are in the business of making happy campers, and we do that by providing a quality product with quality service, and by listening to our customers.
Our Satisfaction Guarantee means that we will do everything possible—within reason and at our option—to ensure that you are a happy camper.
If a Springbar Tent or product is found to be defective, we will repair or replace it at no cost to you.

NEW SPRINGBAR TENTS

There is a new series of Springbar tents released recently, and that will be the subject of this post. Even though we have covered the qualities of Springbar tents in the past, there is one thing which was always missing, and that was the ability to cook in the tent and to heat it without the risks of gas fueled heaters or stoves. Wall tent campers have long enjoyed these features, and now Springbar is making them available as well in two new tents, the Skyliner and the Classic Jack 140 hot tents. Springbar tents now offer this option.

The Springbar Skyliner Wood Stove Tent. See https://springbar.com/products/skyliner ... 8968811597

Source:Tiny House Blog (https://tinyhouseblog.com/canvas-tent/s ... iny-house/)


Source: Winnerwell (https://winnerwell.us/pages/springbar%C2%AE-hot-tents)

Marmot Fortress 3P

Marmot Fortress 3P
This is rated as a 3 season tent but I view it as as 3 1/2 season. The only thing it lacks to make it 4 seasons are poles that push through tunnels to allow strength to hold up a snow load. I think it is perfect for the desert to keep out blowing sand. The only mesh is on the windows and each one has a cover up.

From the web site
"Roomy, lightweight, and with all the measures to ensure Mother Nature doesn’t get the best of your overnight adventure, the Fortress 3-Person Tent is true to its name. The vented full fabric canopy and two half-mesh zippered D doors lock out plunging temps, while additional guy outs secure your campsite when wind gusts pick up. Keep rain from sneaking in with its seam-taped, catenary-cut floor and full-coverage vented fly. Zone pre-bend construction creates vertical walls for plenty of sleeping space and headroom for stretching out. After a long day of backpacking, color-coded "easy pitch" clips and poles make for an easy set up, and the lampshade pocket stows your headlamp for ambient light at night.

• Full Fabric Canopy with Top Vent and Two Half Mesh Zippered D Doors to Lock Out the Cold and Elements
• Seam Taped Full Coverage Fly with Top Vent and Additional Guy Outs for Windy Conditions
• Zone Pre-Bend Construction Creates Vertical Walls, More Roomy Sleeping Area and Greater Head Room
• Lamp Shade Pocket Securely Holds Your Headlamp to Provide Ambient Light
• Strategic Clip Placement Provides Larger Interior Volume
• Seam Taped Full Coverage Fly with Vents
• Seam Taped Catenary Cut Floor
• Color Coded "Easy Pitch" Clips, Poles and Fly
• Interior Pockets for Small Gear Organization
• Jingle-Free Nylon Zipper Pulls

Floor Fabric:100% Polyester, Taffeta, 65g/
Fabric:100% Polyester, Taffeta, 63g/sqm
Footprint Included: NO
Packed Size:23.6 x 7.1 in, 60.0 x 18.0 cm Style Number:39490
Floor Area:41.4 sq ft, 3.8 sq m
90" x 66" x46"
Main Canopy Fabric:100% Polyester, Taffeta, 59g/sqm
Minimum Weight:6 lbs 5.9 oz
Number of Doors:2
Number of Poles:2
Number of Vestibules:2
Packed Weight:6lbs 7oz (2920g)
Pole Material: DAC Press fit / Velocity HD
Seasons:3-season
Vestibule Area:19.16 sq ft, 1.78 sqm"

90 inches by 66 inches (7.5' x5.5')



46 inches center height

Trailer (or Pickup Bed Rack) Mounted Rooftop Tent
Rooftop tents offer a clean easy and quick to deploy sleeping arrangement for extended expedition travel. The tent, being raised off the ground, helps mitigate water intrusion when camping in inclement weather such as rain or snow. Windy conditions can be worrisome, but I have never had anything other than a flexible spring pole for an awning come loose over a window, but no damage occurred.

The Rooftop Tent I used is the Eazi-Awn Series 3. Rooftop tents offer a clean easy and quick to deploy sleeping arrangement for extended expedition travel.

The tent, being raised off the ground, helps mitigate water intrusion when camping in inclement weather such as rain or snow. Windy conditions can be worrisome, but I have never had anything other than a spring pole for an awning come loose over a window, but no damage occurred.

Your ability to keep your tent clean and free of critters is also improved over a ground tent. While mounting on a vehicle rooftop may offer some detrimental effects, like a top-heavy center of gravity and increased wind drag. Trailer mounting allows for a nice base camp deployment that allows more options for local exploration. If you have a pickup, the bed rack mounts allow similar benefits to a trailer mount.

Mounting at a lower height makes deployment a snap with easy access for managing covers when unpacking or packing up. As well as setting up or breaking down camp.

A lower center of gravity improves vehicle handling, wind effects and fuel economy. Those who travel with pets will also have a better time when it is time to bed down for the evening.

• Ripstop Canvas (4 Season)
• PVC Rainfly and Travel Cover
• Built-in Ladder
• Both sides Zip for access

Shelter has always been an important part of the outdoor experience. From “pup” tents to elaborate trailers and motor homes proper shelter can make or break any outdoor experience. As 4 wheelers and overlanders our shelter has to be reasonably portable and hopefully provide a fair level of comfort and protection. One style that has gained significant popularity in the past few years is the roof top tent.

Technically a roof top tent (RTT) is any tent that you pitch on the top of your vehicle and not on the ground. But for this segment we’ll refer to RTT’s as tents specifically made to mount to some type of rack system on the roof of your vehicle or trailer. The appeal of RTT’s is that they get you off the ground and away from water, mud, bugs and wild animals. They are often sold as easy and quick to set up and take down and more comfortable than similar sized ground tents. These claims are not always true, or are exaggerated, and we will look at some of this now.

Types of RTT’s:

There are two basic types of RTT’s. The soft-shell tent and the hard shell. The difference is primarily the cover of the closed tent. As the name suggests soft shell tents have a dust/dirt/rain cover that is a soft material of some type. Being made of some type of cloth that tucks around the folded down tent like a fitted sheet on a bed. While hard-shell tents have a solid plastic/nylon/aluminum hard cover that fits over the folded tent and is held tight with clips, straps or brackets of some type. Each has its advantages and disadvantages.

Soft-shell RTT’s:
Probably the biggest advantage of a soft-shell RTT is price, although soft-shell tents can be found that are larger than the typical hard-shell tent.

The biggest disadvantage is what I call the hassle factor. Taking the cover off isn’t a big deal but it can be dirty or wet depending what you have been driving through. In any case you are left with a big, often heavy, bunch of material that you have to do something with. Somewhere that will keep it out of the mist, fog, rain, dust, sand, dirt or whatever. Also, once you fold your tent back up, usually a moderately easy task, you have to put the cover back over the tent. That is always the part they don’t show in the sales videos. Imagine putting a big, thick fitted sheet, that’s probably covered in dust and dirt and blowing around in the wind, on your queen-size bed with the bed six feet in the air and then having to tie the sheet down to keep it from flying away as your drive along. It is a lot of hassle and typically takes as much time, if not more, as packing a ground tent. Additionally, you’ll likely be crawling all over the roof, or around the sides of the vehicle, to tuck the tent under the cover and secure the cover to the vehicle. If you are putting your RTT on top of a low off-road type trailer this may not be as much of an issue but it’s still a time consuming and potentially dirty process.
 
Hard-shell RTT’s


Much more expensive, but also more convenient, is the hard-shell tent. In a hard-shell tent the cover remains on and becomes part of the roof or sidewall of the tent. Often hard-shell tents are built to allow accessories to be mounted on the roof of the tent (i.e. solar panels, traction boards, etc.). This type of tent typically has “hydraulic” pistons that help push the cover up and hold it out of the way. They also fold down and store more easily as you don’t have to deal with bulky floppy material, you just pull the roof down, tuck any lose material under the cover and clip it closed.

Some Advantages of RTT

The biggest advantage of this style of tent is that it gets you off the ground. You don’t have to worry about rocks, or having a muddy tent bottom, or animals crawling into your tent. Although, they are no real protection from lions, tigers or bears.

They are generally fairly easy to set up (although putting them away can be a lot of trouble)

Most will allow you to leave the mattress and all your bedding in place and not have to pack or store it someplace else.

The better RTT’s are generally made of heavier material and are more three- or four-season tents than many ground tents.

They lend themselves to the use of diesel, or other types of, heaters very well.

Disadvantages of RTT’s

While easy to put up the soft-shell tents can be awkward and time consuming to fold up and secure.

You are often working several feet off the ground and the risk of falling and being injured does exists.

You have to climb a ladder to get into or out of the tent. If you have to get up in the middle of the night, have bad knees, potential balance problems or just don’t feel comfortable crawling into and out of what amounts to a tree house a RTT may not be for you.

Keep in mind that a RTT is basically a 2 person tent, so there isn’t a lot of room. You can’t stand-up so what you have is basically a two person ground tent that is on top of your vehicle.

You need to level your vehicle, well get is reasonably level anyway. It can be much easier to find a level spot for a ground tent than for your truck.

In many established campgrounds where you are allowed park your vehicle, and “pitch” your RTT, isn’t the most scenic or attractive camp spot.

Most RTT’s are more limited in space than you can get in a ground tent. The Spring Bar tent, Gazelle 3 or 4 person tent, the OZ 3 or 4 person tent all provide a lot more room than any RTT your likely to get.

RTT’s can be fairly heavy 125-175 pounds is probably typical. All that weight is high up and will increase the height of your center of gravity.

You need to be sure your roof rack, and the vehicles roof, is rated for the weight, especially the dynamic load.

You also need to be certain that your roof rack and the racks roof mounting system is rated for the static load of the roof rack, the tent, you and possibly your partner (which could easily add up to 400 or 500 lbs.)

Cost. RTT’s can be expensive. Easily costing $1500-2000 for an inexpensive soft-top to well over $4,000-5,000 for a good hard top tent.

My Outdoor Shelter Evolution

Introduction

I’ve always enjoyed camping since I was a kid going around the country with my brother and parents in an 8’ Open Road slide in truck camper. My personal camping shelter has been an on going evolution driven by wants, needs, and available funds. I’ve developed a good feeling for the advantages and disadvantages of a number of different shelters over the years. Today I still have a number of different shelter options depending on what I feel is best suited for different kinds of trips away from home. These are presented in the order in which they were acquired.

3 Man Backpacking Tent

My first camping shelter once I was on my own was a 3 man dome style tent designed for backpacking. The idea with this tent is that one person carries the tent, another carries the fly and the third carries the fiberglass poles. I went with a dome tent after attending the Riverside Telescope Makers Conference one year where there is a big wind storm at night. I walked around the site the following morning to see what tents had survived the wind storm The only ones that were universally unscathed were the geodetic dome style tents.

The last time this tent was actually used was when I loaned it to some friends who were with me on a trip for some off roading fun around Mammoth Lakes. Our group was base camping at the Crowley Lake Campground which is pretty open. They pitched the tent and put their gear inside thinking that would be sufficient to hold the tent in place. While we were gone for dinner the wind came up and blew the tent with their gear into the next campsite. The tent remained completely intact and all of their gear stayed inside.

This tent served me well for many years when I could only afford occasional car camping trips. I still have it but mostly use it to store extra gear while base camping and to make campsites look occupied when I’m away with my vehicle.

Not my tent by a similar design




Advantages

• Relatively inexpensive
• Lightweight and packs very small
• Enough room for 1 person and stuff
• Self supporting so it can be moved as a unit after setting it up
• Common shelter solution with many options on the marke
• Can provide 3 or 4 season protection

Disadvantages

• Have to pitch and break down the tent when moving to a new spot
• Limited space
• Can’t stand up inside
• Generally not big enough to include a toilet
• Setup can be confusing if not practiced

Teardrop Trailer

In the late ‘90s I started looking at tear drop trailers as something that would get me off of the ground and be more substantial than a tent. Plus I liked the idea of having the permanent rear kitchen area for preparing meals. I never had a vehicle capable of towing a large trailer so a teardrop was a great solution as most any car is capable of towing one.

I had been looking for one on and off for a number of years. I couldn’t afford a new one and the availability of used trailers and disposable income never seemed to align until in 2004 I ran across a vintage 1947 Kit Sportsman teardrop trailer on eBay Motors that was for sale in Pasadena. At the time my primary vehicle was a 2002 PT Cruiser which was perfect for towing a vintage teardrop trailer.

I used the teardrop quite a bit over the next 5 years or so. I still have it and plan to start towing it with the 1947 Hudson Club Coupe I inherited from my father to teardrop trailer meets.

Teardrop trailers have been around since the 1930s and were popular in the 1950s when people became more interested in going places and camping but cars had less power and poor brakes compared to what they they generally do now.

Not My Trailer but Same Model



Vintage 1947 Kit Teardrop Kitchen (Once again not my trailer)



Modern Off Road Teardrop Trailer



Advantages

• More substantial hard sided shelter providing better weather and critter protection
• Some designs include heaters and air conditioners
• Most designs include an open kitchen area in the back which range from very simple to very elaborate
• Just park and level and its ready to go
• Many different designs are available on the market

Disadvantages

• Should monitor CO2 levels sleeping in a relatively small enclosed space
• The inside is completely filled by the bed
• Dirty shoes must be left outside
• You need to be a contortionist to get dressed in one
• The rear hatch may not open high enough for taller people to comfortable use the rear kitchen
• It’s a trailer which can be a real determent in some off road situations
• Some factory built designs are very expensive

Pinzgauer 710M (Sleeping in a van)

I was finally getting to the point in my working life where I started to have enough disposable income to consider getting a fun (toy) vehicle. For years my only big camping trip of the year was to attend the Riverside Telescope Makers Conference (RTMC) at Camp Oaks near Big Bear. One year while in town I saw a couple of Pinzgauers for sale at a local garage. I found them intriguing and the perfect balance of a fun old vehicle and something with off road capability The following year at RTMC I was sitting with my brother and friends over dinner and mentioned going into town to look at the Pinzgauers. No sooner than I said that than someone with a 6x6 Pinzgauer pulled into a spot next to our camp. Of course I was all over it asking a lots of questions.

I was invited to go along with the Southern California Pinzgauer group the following day. After being introduced to the local Pinzgauer community and experiencing them off road I was sold. I had to have one. It took me 3 years but I was finally able to get a Pinzgauer in 2006. Being an old exotic vehicle it’s been a long series of repairs, maintenance, and upgrades to get it to where it is today.

Using the Pinzgauer for shelter is very similar to what you would have in a full size van. The interior is what you make of it. Because my Pinzgauer is a 710M model with a tent like tarp over the cab and back area, albeit double layered with insulation, I chose not to including any cooking facility. It does have a 45 liter electric refrigerator, Zarges cargo boxes for camping gear, recovery gear / spare parts, food, and clothes, and a real bed. Having a bad back a good comfortable supportive bed is a big deal. Finding a good bed has been one of the drivers in my camping shelter evolution.

The Pinzgauer 710M was originally a troop transport capable of carrying 8 people in the back. The seats fold down to make a flat platform capable of holding 2 NATO standard pallets. I have removed the seats on one side where the refrigerator and Zarges boxes are stored. On the other side the seats are folded down providing an approximately 30” wide platform which is perfect for a split queen size mattress. I use a Froli mattress as a box spring and have a custom split queen mattress on top.

The advantages and disadvantages below are oriented around the using a van like vehicle as a shelter rather than being specific to the Pinzgauer as a platform. That could be the topic for another net.


1972 Pinzgauer 710M
Pinzgauer Rear Sleeping Area with Storage Boxes and Refrigerator

Advantages

• Larger interior space that can accommodate more storage, better bed, kitchen and rudimentary bathroom facilities
• Provides better weather and critter protection than a tent
• A relatively large space to layout as you choose

Disadvantages

• Unless it has a raised roof or pop top you can’t completely stand up inside
• Generally less off road capability (the Pinzgauer is an exception)
• Larger size may limit off road capability in some situations
• Weight and load distribution is important since the larger size makes it easier to overload them
• Factory built adventure vans are very expensive

Oz Tent RV-4

The Pinzgauer is fine as a shelter for one or two people but can’t accommodate any more than that. I was looking for something to support guests while camping and as a car camping upgrade for myself. I read about Oz Tents in Overland Journal and online. I got a chance to see them one year at the Overland Expo. The company showing them was offering good deals late on the last day of the show so I picked one up.

The model I bought is an RV-4 which is their next to the largest model. As the name implies, the Oz Tent is an Australian design. Australians and South Africans have been doing the remote vehicle assisted travel that we call overlanding far longer than we have here in North America. Over the years they have developed a lot of great camping gear.

Development of the Oz Tent came out of a camping trip where the guy who came up with the idea borrowed a tent from a friend and once in the Outback found that his friend forgot to include the tent poles. To prevent this from happening he came up with an idea where the tent fabric, framework, and guy lines are permanently attached to the tent. It’s also called the 30 second tent because once you take it out of it’s bag it only takes about 30 second to open it up. Of course this doesn't include time for site preparation, laying out a ground cloth, or staking out and guying the tent. Still it does eliminate having to figure out where the tent poles go and how they work the first time you try setting it up in the dark.

Basic OZ Tent RV4



OZ Tent RV4 with awning side panels



Advantages

• Tent frame and most important guy lines are permanently attached to the tent
• Many features optimized for Australian camping conditions
• Tub floor prevents water intrusion on wet ground or rainy conditions
• Tent seals tight to keep out crawling bugs and snakes
• Plenty of ventilation
• Large rear flap opens to provide ventilation even during rain storms
• Permanently attached front awning which may be turned into a second room with zip on side panels.

Disadvantages

• Relatively expensive
• Bulky when packed
• Relative heavy for its size
• While the tent deploys quickly it still needs to be staked down

FlipPac Camper

Many years ago passing through Marina del Ray while riding the South Bay Bicycle Path I saw a truck with a FlipPac camper on the back. It’s basically a bed cap, topper, shell, or what every you want to call it, that sits on top of the sides of a truck bed and is open inside that opens up into a tent. I thought it was a really cool idea and said to myself that if I ever got a pickup truck I’d like to get one.

The unique feature is the that top is hinged at the front and swings open 180 degrees unfurling a tent as it does. The underside of the lid has a mattress attached with Velcro that makes a full or double size bed for sleeping. The rest of the camper is open to the truck bed and the tent provides more than enough height to stand up inside.

To make a long story short, I ended up acquiring a 2004 Toyota Tacoma standard cab 4 wheel drive pickup in 2009 that was purchased new by my uncle in Bend, Oregon. One of the first things I got for the truck was a FlipPac camper. It’s nice to have something more modern, especially a Toyota, when your other off road vehicle is an old exotic maintenance intensive vehicle like a Pinzgauer. The Tacoma is ready to go almost all of the time where there always seems to be something I need to do to the Pinzgauer before taking it out.

At that time FlipPac campers were being sold by Adventure Trailers in Prescott, Arizona. The camper it’s self was being made by Fiberglass Reinforced Products (FRP) in San Bernardo, Califonia to Adventure Trailer’s specifications. The Adventure Trailer FlipPacs eliminated the side windows of the FRP FlipPacs and are supposed to have reinforced fiberglass in some areas.

Unfortunately FRP went out of business so currently no one is producing FlipPac campers. The closest thing on the market is the AT Overland (new name for Adventure Trailers) Habitat. It differs from the FlipPac in that it’s constructed from aluminum rather than fiberglass and the lid is hinged to the rear. This extends the parked footprint of the vehicle but does offer a shaded area under the camper top when opened.
FlipPac Camper Closed

[/list] FlipPac Camper Open

FlipPac Camper Interior
FlipPac Camper Bed



AT Overland Habitat


Advantages

• Provides lots of interior and sleeping space for the folded up size
• Standard size bed makes finding bedding easy
• More than adequate standing room inside
• Light weight compared to other camper options
• Truck bed remains completely open for stprage pr whatever build out you may want
• Large screened opening provide good ventilation for warm weather camping
• Front hinged top means that the open camper does not increase the vehicle footprint

Disadvantages

• FRP is out of business so only used FlipPacs are available
• The torsion bar which assists with opening the lid is prone to castrophic failure
• The top hinges have been prone to rusting
• The top material is full of micro pores requiring a rain fly
• The tent design channels water into the bed area rather than away requiring a rain fly
• Need to crawl over the tailgate getting in and out

DreamCase (Sleeping in Your Vehicle)

This style of camping is more popular in Europe than here but is catching on somewhat due to proliferation of hatchback sedans and cross over SUVs.

DreamCase is a company in Slovenia that started producing custom sleeping systems for Tesla cars. They now offer sleeping systems for other vehicles as well. Other companies offer similar generic or custom sleeping systems for many SUVs here in the US. Many of them use air mattresses rather than the bulky but comfortable foam mattress of the Dreamcase.

Sleeping in your vehicle is very similar to sleeping in a teardrop trailer. Your sleeping platform is completely filled by the bed. In this case it’s created by folding down the 2nd and 3rd seats if applicable and extending into the luggage area. Like a teardrop you need to remove anything your carring inside while it’s configured for sleeping. Where a teardrop may have some shelves or small cabinets the store things, the only available space inside the vehicle with this style of camping is the front seats and the second row foot well area.

The Dreamcase mattress is pretty comfortable but I find that I do tend to bottom out on it. Still I can sleep through the night with no disturbing comfort problems.


Dreamcase camping setup in a Model X



Tesla camping at last year's Borregofest
Dreamcase in it's storage box / platform



Advantages

• Provides better protection from weather and critters than a tent
• Many electric vehicles have a camping mode so you have full heating and air conditioning when parked
• Less expensive than a trailer or many tents

Disadvantages

• Same as a tear drop trailer except for expense
• Need something to cover vehicle windows for privacy and light control
• Dreamcase is heavy and bulky when stored in it's box (I leave the supplied pillows out and it's still hard to zipper closed)

Skinny Guy Camper (SGC)

I’ve had the Tacoma with the FlipPac camper in many remote areas and it’s worked great over the years. As much as I liked the FlipPac camper I recently sold it to upgrade to a Skinny Guy Camper. I had always intended to build out the back of the Tacoma and the FlipPac to make it into more of a self contained camper with hot and cold running water, a sink, a space heater, and a more sophisticated electrical system. Unfortunately, last year I needed to have a knee replacement making it difficult to crawl across the tailgate of the Tacoma to get in and out of the FlipPac. I’ve also had increasing back problems the last 6 months which made me have second thoughts about trying to build out the back of the truck myself.

I went to the Overland Expo in Flagstaff earlier this year to look at possibly getting a new off road rig. My dream off road camper would be an Earthcruiser but while they addressed the problems of their earlier units (the topic for another net) the prices have gone way beyond my reach. I was thinking of maybe an adventure van but they are very expensive and don’t have the off road capability to go to many of the places where I’ve taken the Pinzgauer and Tacoma.

What I’d like to see is a modern version of the old Land Rover based Dormobiles. They had a very clever and compact design with a side hinged pop up roof including kitchen, storage, and sleeping all within the footprint of a long wheelbase Landrover. They also retained all of the off road capability of the Landrover. The Hummer EV Earthcruiser comes really close but the price hasn’t been announced and I suspect it will be well north of $200,000. Plus, as much as I like electric vehicles, the Hummer EV is not my idea of the best platform for electric overlanding (possibly the subject of another net).


Landrover Dormobile Exterior




Landrover Dormobile Interior




Hummer EV Earthcruiser Camper



Just days prior to leaving for the Overland Expo I found out about Skinny Guy Campers. They are a very unique design that fits somewhere between a truck bed topper, slide in camper, and roof top tent. Since I appreciate clever designs I made it a point to check them out at the Expo.

I was very impressed with what I saw. They are constructed from 1/8” aluminum. No wood or fiberglass is used. You can get them completely self contained including an RV style flushing toilet, fresh and black water holding tanks, propane stove, combination water and space heater, and electrical system including solar charging, a 1000 Watt 120V inverter, and a shower. They are a very clever and unique design which allows me to continue to use the Tacoma with all of it’s off improvements, modifications, and off road capability.

Like a FlipPac, they are basically a tent on a truck but the tent is made from a more high tech material than what is used on the FlipPac and doesn't require a rain fly. It has an integrated system to manage and capture rain water preventing it from getting into the camper. There is even an optional filtration system that allows you to route rain water into the fresh water holding tank.

The floor of the camper is even with the top of the truck bed. In all but the lowest trim level there is a “basement” that hangs under the floor and houses the fresh and black water tanks along with some of the plumbing, fresh water pump and marine type sewage macerator if equipped. The basement hangs down about 6” leaving the rest of the truck bed underneath open for storage. Many builds include truck bed storage drawers under the SGC. I’m currently working on designing a storage drawer system that will incorporate 2 Dometic CD-30 refrigerators plus storage. I may go with a slide out kitchen in one of the drawers if there is enough height for me to comfortably stand under the open top (maybe the subject of yet another net in the future)

Like all of the other designs with 180 degree opening tops except for the FlipPac, the top is hinged to the back rather than the front and uses gas struts to assist with opening rather than a torsion bar. The enterance to the camper is a tent like zippered flap on the side. The interior is accessed using a roof top tent ladder but it only needs to extend as far as the top of the truck bed.

While SGC lists a wide variety of camper sizes on their website they currently only make 4 different models, the 5.0, 5.0 GLR for the Jeep Gladiator, 5.5, and 6.5 models. The number designates the length of truck bed they are designed to fit. They also plan to offer a native 7.0 model which isn’t currently in production. For other bed lengths such my Tacoma’s 6’ bed or full size 8’ beds their answer is to use the next smaller size unit with a matching storage unit ahead of the camper to fill in the space. I talked with them extensively about this and they feel that the market isn’t big enough to offer native 6’ and 8’ camper unless someone starts offer more trucks in these sizes.

To complicate things, I wanted to go with the 5.0 GLR model on my Tacoma. Even though this unit is specifically designed for a Jeep Gladiator I felt that it would actually be a better fit for my truck bed and offers the advantage of being slightly larger inside since the sides are taller don’t slope in as much as the standard 5.0 model. The holdup on getting the camper is that I need to have a one off storage unit made to match exterior the profile of the 5.0 GLR. Fortunately, SGC works with New Holland Overland to do much of their prototyping work so they are building the storage unit. It should be finished and on its way to SGC this week.

Since interior storage space is very limited I decided not to go with the flushing toilet. My plan is to use the toilet space for storage and utilize a folding Thunder Box with Clean Waste bags for my toilet. I already have the Thunder Box and used it on my last trip. It’s stupid expensive for what it is but it’s extremely well built, works very well, and folds up very thin when not in use. I like it better than the toilet seat on a Homer Bucket I have been using.

Skinny Guy Camper 5.0 GLR Closed



Skinny Guy Camper 5.0 GLR Open



Skinny Guy Camper Interior



Another image of the Skinny Guy Camper Interior



Rear of truck with Skinny Guy Camper showing storage in the truck bed below the camper. The solar panel is facing up when the camper is closed. It slides out and flips up so that it's facing up when the camper is open.





Advantages

• May be fully self contained depending on options
• Substantial aluminum construction
• Side entry with less height than a roof top tent
• Lower center of gravity than a roof top tent
• Standing room inside
• Improved tent fabric compared to a FlipPac
• Full length storage is available in the truck bed under the camper

Disadvantages

• Expensive
• Raises vehicle center of gravity
• Most of the weight is above or high up in the bed
• Heaver than a bed cap or FlipPac camper
• Very limited storage in the camper. Installation on a 6' bed requires an additional storage unit providing additional storage.
• Truck bed storage has limited height. Bed sidewall height minus 6" for the camper "basement"
• Heater and electrical controls are mounted just above floor level
• Interior shower is a work in progress. An extra long hose is provided to shower outside
• Need to lift refrigerator and kitchen unit into place in full size truck units
• 5.0 size truck units do not have enough floor space for the refrigerator when closed
• Rear hinged lid increases vehicle footprint when opened

The Gazelle T3 & T4 Tents

As noted above one of the big sales points for RTT’s is fairly quick and easy set-up. Take down may, or may not, be more of an issue but we’ve talked about all that. However, there are some pretty easy set up and take down ground tents.

Two I’m very familiar with are the fairly popular Gazelle tents and the less known OZ tent. Each style has several different sizes for 2 to 4 or even more people but my opinion is that the 3 or 4 person tent is an ideal size for 1 or 2 people, if you want some room to move about that is. Both types of tents fold down and “pop” up fairly quickly and easily but use very different techniques.

The Gazelle Tent

Gazelle Tents and Gazebos are made by Ardisam, Inc., a Wisconsin-based outdoor products supplier that has been around for many years. Gazelle refers to their tents as “pop-up” which is essentially correct. Using a “hub” design the tent, fabric, support poles, floor, guideline tags, everything is integrated into a series of triangular parts connected by hubs.



PROS A PRETTY GOOD TENT

The hubs that support the wall pannels are under tension and pop out to form the fully erect tent and push in to collapse the tent into a fairly compact package. Most people can easily erect, if that’s the right word, a Gazelle 3-person tent in 60 seconds (not counting stakes and guidelines). Additionally, I’ve found that the Gazelle is a fairly good free-standing tent in moderate conditions, but you will need stakes and guidelines in a stronger wind. However, my experience is that the weight of my cot, chair and all the other gear I put into the tent provides plenty of ballast even in light to moderate winds.

Another advantage of the T3 or larger tent is that having a dome shape gives a significant amount of head room and at 5’10” I can pretty much stand erect in the T3. In the smaller tents not so much. In the 4 person T4 standing is no problem even for taller folks and the T4 does provide a fair bit more floor space and is probably good for 2 people to camp in comfort.
The T3 and T4 do fold down to a reasonably sized package (10" x 10" x 57" and 28 lbs for the T3 and 8" x 8" x 67.5" weighing 30 lbs for the T4) and aren’t too much of a challenge to pack up and put away.

I think the wall material is on the thin side, but probably like most better 2 season tents. It is also supposed to be water resistant, and I’ve found it pretty good in that area.


CONS & CONSIDERATIONS

To allow good ventilation the top of the tent is open. In fact, the only rain fly is over the mesh peak of the dome. The fly screen, which covers this opening, is fine for moderate temperatures but makes it a challenge to heat, or retain heat, in colder weather. Also, the small rain fly works fine in the rain, if the rain is pretty much vertical but if driven by a strong side wind the water can blow in. Speaking of water there have been numerous comments, on the Internet, about water leaking around the hubs of the tent. I’ve never experienced this, even in some moderate rains, and found the tent pretty good at keeping water out.
While having many positive features there are some things you need to consider prior to heading off to buy one. Being a fat old man the biggest disadvantage for me are the doors. In the bigger tents there are 2 doors (that’s not the negative, although it’s not as useful as you might think). The issue is the shape of the doors. As you can see in the photo the door is triangular, more or less, to follow the shape of the wall panels. This means you have to bend way over and be careful to pick up your feet to clear the up-sloping tent material at the bottom and side of the doorway, or you will trip (guess how I know this).

Some other considerations are:

The Gazelle is basically a 2 season, at best, tent. While the material seems pretty strong and water resistant it does not hold heat a
nd the open, fly netted, peak of the tent is good for allowing heat to escape in summer but terrible at keeping the tent warm in colder temperatures.

The pop-out panels that make the tent easy to set up and take down can push in, collapse, in strong winds. To overcome this problem each pop-out panel has a guideline that can be staked or otherwise secured to keep the tent from folding itself up on top of you in windy conditions. This can make for a lot of guidelines and stakes and makes setting this tent up, and taking it down, much less convenient.


FOR MORE INFORMATION: Visit the website at: https://gazelletents.com/

Black Bean Trailer

Earlier this year I finally decided to invest in a Black Bean Trailer. I say invest because they are a bit spendy. Oh well buy once, cry once (alot).

In any case I could not be happier with the trailer. It has a 420 Amp Hr battery system (LifePO) with a 2,000 watt inverter. (1,500 watt continuous) and the Air Conditioner is DC powered so it will run on the batteries. It actually works so well that it only needs to run for a very short amount of time to get the inside of the trailer cool.

It has Timbren Axles so very good clearance and so far it has not had any trouble with the trails I have taken it on.

The advantages are that you can climb in and go to sleep.
The other advantage is that I am packed and ready to go without having to load up anything except food.
The Kitchen is the third advantage and it is really well laid out.

The disadvantages: You have to pull it. That is a bit tough on hard trails but it pulls very easily. I decided on the Diesel version of the Wrangler so it would not have any trouble with the extra load.

I have only used it 4 times since picking it up in February so I am still really enjoying the ease in which a remote location can be made easy.

I also Added an OZ Tent that I put up on the roof rack of the trailer. The OZ tent is a very nice tent but has one major draw back. When it is packed, it is LONG! It will really only fit on the roof rack for most vehicles. So in comparison to my Springbar it sets up faster and provides similar comfort. The Springbar packs down smaller and as many know... has amazing quality. However, the OZ Tent is fast becoming my go to as long as I can get it on the roof for transport. I cannot say much more about the OZ Tent because I have not actully used it yet. John (KM6FXI) has it set up in the picture below and I will ask him speak to the details he experienced.

Here are some pictures:

KK6CTT for the online check-in please: 09/21/23

Still a tent camper and have enjoyed a few years of Coleman dome tent use. Seems the 8x10 is a good size for 2-3 with a couple of dogs but as the tents get bigger, 10x10 and bigger, with heavy winds, it tends to push in the sides if the rainfly is not staked down well. With the 12x12 size, we added more guidelines to help but there is diminishing returns the bigger the tent. Now, that was with some serious winds but nonetheless, there is a limit to wind load and tent profile.

Good evening everyone!

Please check in Randy KF6KOC
and Becky KF6RGR.

thanks!