Essential Truck Topper Mods for Camping and Overlanding

[@jmarley3839]

I needed more information on the deck sliders. Now I’m going to have to go thru you videos to find that one… Well played Sam, well played!!!

[@druidsflame]

SAFETY 3RD! I see you are a man of culture as well.

[@edjonatchick]

Nice build with a lot of good ideas. I've never seen the inner tube trick before, that's brilliant!

[@edwardmcdermott9948]

I've used a pool noodle,or even armaflex pipe insulation

[@androidr.8470]

I like the lights on the back door.

[@skcapture]

the party mode is often missed in all other YT build outs. Good touch! Great ideas through out. Thanks for sharing

[@huggmeister]

Start a camp fire, crack open the brews, and put her in party mode!!! Very nice sir...

[@blakehansen5515]

I like the strip lighting on the window being able to be turned out to the camp area. I hadn't thought of that while figuring out lighting solutions.

[@JS-vl3qi]

This video delivery is the mix of goofy and badass

[@arlcrane]

Really Nice Job. Love your kitchen setup especially, of course! $300 for the topper???? You stole it man!

[@LoneRonin77]

Got mine for free lol. Only thing wrong was it was a quarter inch to long so i put a spacer on it

[@CMF_1]

The LED on the win-door is a great idea

[@stevegabbert9626]

I like your setup, but I went with simplicity, I do that with most things. All I have is some cardboard on the bed, covered with OSB board, moving blanket, camping air mattress, sleeping bag with several blankets, a little wooden box turned sideways for shelving, and cammo curtains with shock cord to hook them to brackets on the window frames. I love riding my motorcycle so I try to put any savings into the bike's fuel tank. I do remove my curtains from the cap's side windows while I drive to open up any blind spots. A head lamp is all I need, mainly because when I get around to stopping it's to go to sleep. My truck is a 2003 Ford Ranger, 400ci V6, in excellent shape.

[@robinpauw3709]

shiny bubble wrap good idea, was going to use Velcro tape and some tint but this is much better

[@mcoutis]

clean organized setup! lots of good ideas

[@jimburson2226]

We took a slightly different approach to ours: reg. cab with 8' bed, pillow top mattress in back witch leaves about 2' for Dometic fridge (12v outlet in back),firewood and a 8 gal water container, the one big game changer was getting a professional crawl-thru (Breezer Windows), i'm old and i remember crawl-thru's. This one doesn't leak. The stock sliding window on 07 Dodge is very small. Our truck is for camping & traveling only so i need room for firewood & camping equipment, but even with all our stuff we can stealth camp.

[@dawsondunn8846]

Sounds like some one who watches Steve Wallis.

[@josh9399]

genius with the innertube!

[@garthaegerter2704]

Subtle flex with closing the drawer… 2 levels. 😮

[@dondonner1095]

best lighting setup ever.

[@denisfontaine5980]

I would love top see you Awning setup please! Good content here !

[@austinbreneman307]

I take full credit for all the youtube monetization revenue you receive from any of these truck topper videos.

[@SamChou]

Check is in the mail.

[@Seth-pj1po]

Very cool. I have a similar style build. I was wondering how you control moisture in your camper? I find it can get quite damp in the winter months, especially when it’s raining. Cheers!

[@dropanchor]

Great mods, love to see what other people have done!

[@TruckBedliving]

Love the inner tube idea

[@ButchElrod]

When we tried those in the 1980s they rubbed the paint off of the trucks.

[@edwardmcdermott9948]

Have you considered solar shower ? What about a gasoline type heater for a heat source? Also jakery solar power set up?

[@robbarber7253]

I love those side opening windows on your canopy. Problem is I'm from Canada so options like that cost 5000$

[@rongehlken8725]

Thank you Sam, great video.

[@ZORRO4652]

wonderful build plus explanations tutorial, thank you

[@niiicetoyotaandfummins5956]

That tube idea was cool thanks for that

[@harpjason208]

An innertube for the boot? Epic.

[@PaulMeixnerFilms]

Great video! Short and too the point, very informative, definitely picked up a couple good ideas!

[@jimn4607]

Nice setup. Hope to see some interesting things in the future. Thx for sharing.

[@mikeg4421]

Are you able to show a quick video on how you wired in your Xsprite lights?

[@factionfx]

Tons of good ideas in here. Thank you.

[@chadritchie8402]

Nice Job on your Build!! I have a similar build on my used Truck Cap for my 2008 Toyota Tundra!!

[@keithadennis]

Great video with some great ideas!

[@stopdusty420]

I have been meaning to try a kids size bike tube for a boot between cab and box. Nice to see someone eles with the idea. Any issues with it? Minor scratching? Does it stay in place well?

[@MarioMartinez-is1cg]

Great idea, cool lights 😎

[@tolandmike]

Cool tips, man. Thanks for the ideas

[@Chute0738]

How did you hardwire the charging station to the battery and where did you run the wires? Great vid!

[@epluribusunum5405]

Full incognito mode like mr BEAN. 😅

[@spurgecochran2738]

So Awesome Sam!

[@nardo4227]

We gotta see you camp and cook!

[@RodriguezFamilypage]

Very informative, thank you for sharing. What gauge wire did you run from the battery to the connector by the break light? Also, what does the connector look like?

[@davidcraig5378]

Nice job man!!!

[@ianjmcdonnell]

Rad setup dude!

[@Rooki3_]

What is the 2000 lumen lighting you are using? I do not see a link for it. Thanks.

[@PNWTruckCamper]

Great video. Why can't you drill into the fiberglass?

[@SamChou]

You definitely can, but the hole will go through the other side, unless you're drilling through the honeycomb on the ceiling.

[@PNWTruckCamper]

@@SamChou oh yea for sure. I'm good with that. I'd just bolt it up and seal it up well. Just making sure there isn't something else about a fiberglass topper that makes drilling a bad idea, something like micro splintering that causes leaks and is unrepairable

[@campgoerOne]

That looks great! I would love to create that for my Dodge Dakota. Good ideas! 👍

[@michaelortiz5226]

What kinda battery are you using for the truck?

[@mikebeatty1111]

What’s your thoughts on a lithium battery and solar panels for accessory power? If you have already added can you share video link? Thx

[@SamChou]

Personally, for my adventures, I don't feel the need for an auxiliary power setup. I'm a weekend warrior primarily, so I rarely get to camp longer than 2 nights in a row, and my truck battery is more than enough to keep my devices charged and the lights on at night for that long. If I do stay longer, I just start the truck and let it idle for a few minutes. I calculate that 1 hr of idle time is enough to recharge the battery from full dead on my truck. The battery I have is a combo deep cycle starting battery, pretty much the highest end AGM that can be purchased, so it's okay with being drained. I always keep an eye on the battery voltage, but I also keep a small jump pack charged in case I drain it too far.

[@tcard2008]

Very nice set up! Can u do a video on the awning that was set up in the one clip at night time. Any info would be very helpful. Thanks nice set up again.

[@SamChou]

Check out the Slumberjack Tarp. I might do a review later.

[@tcard2008]

@@SamChou Thank you and a review would be great.

[@Merritt3246]

Can the two 60" light strips be hard wired together, by cutting the connectors off a soldering the wires together? If then going to wire them into my existing dome light, because it has a plunger that turns the light on when you open the rear door on my shell. Great work on all of your add-ons.

[@SamChou]

Yeah they can be shortened or connected together any way you want. Solder points are throughout the strips.

[@johnnytruckingoutdoors]

Love the info

[@Jlmiii_]

How do you keep your cap ventilated when the windoors are closed?

[@jojocrowley3933]

PARTY mode! So cool!

[@JayRH13]

Do you have any problems with the lights sticking to the glass? And do the lights you have at the very top, when open, of the lift gate get in the way or get hit when the lift gate is closed? Very nice work and very clever.

[@SamChou]

No problems with lights coming loose whatsoever. The velcro tends to come off in freezing temps, though. The light strip clears the tailgate no problem.

[@roneykaithpalmaria]

Great ideas!!

[@bobthebuiler3245]

What type of inner tube did you use/ where’d you get it? Thanks!

[@bethsmith1003]

Wondering same?!! Please!

[@seymourwrasse3321]

what size inner tube do you have between the truck cab and the topper?

[@MrDextermorganmiami]

love it

[@timothyhutchins6765]

what is the power block/ fuse block you have on top of the battery?

[@DamnAJ]

Maybe it’s a bad question because I don’t understand lol but what do you use the tire tube for? You said sealed together but what’s the purpose? Awesome setup definitely taking some ideas from you.

[@SamChou]

I can leave the windows open from the cab to the shell, and not expose the gap to the outside air. Otherwise there's a big gap between the windows that rain or cold air can get through.

[@bkanegson]

Can you please share the size of the inner tube you used to seal front cab to cap opening? Thank you.

[@SamChou]

This was a 29" inner tube. I'd recommend 26x2.5", or something in that neighborhood.

[@amim4701]

So pretty much everything that's mounted has to use window frames... thanks!

[@craiga.brooksmba1002]

Do you have a template for the extinguisher brackets? I’d like to build a couple of those for our cap.

[@midwestdiy3874]

Question: how did you mount your light strips? Just adhesive directly to the carpet interior of the camper shell?

[@SamChou]

Adhesive backed velcro to the back of the strip, velcro attaches to the carpet.

[@gz140]

Did you add a PWM module or something similar to make the Serious Lights (Nilight) dimmable, or were you only referring to the RGB strips? If you went that route, I'd be curious how.

[@SamChou]

I added a simple dimmer module in-line. www.superbrightleds.com/moreinfo/single-color-dimmer-switches/single-color-led-controller-with-dynamic-modes/1082/2573/?Child+-+Organic+Shopping&More+LED+Lighting+%3E+Single+Color+LED+Dimmer+Switches&MLD-5A&gclid=Cj0KCQiAzfuNBhCGARIsAD1nu-9lKmdZ2fR0vfbugzhKWbSEQW1cNcenxaeq7DM8o9VIBCCsBRMWmgcaAmU2EALw_wcB Plus it has a bunch of neat seizure inducing flashy modes!

[@gz140]

@@SamChou I can never pass up a free seizure. Thanks for letting us all copy your homework.

[@inyourdreams3739]

hey Sam , do you have a link for the reflecktix insulation u used on your windows

[@SamChou]

www.lowes.com/pd/Reflectix-R-21-50-sq-ft-Unfaced-Reflective-Roll-Insulation-24-in-W-x-25-ft-L/3011904

[@ForTheGreys]

what sort of lights are they? are the battery powered or how do you power them?

[@ForTheGreys]

lol oh no you explained it.

[@josephang8407]

Velcro fail

[@jfarill834]

Lose the dry-chem. It’s worthless. Get a CO2.