Things I WISH I KNEW Before Buying a Roof Top Tent
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 20 พ.ค. 2024
- Will covers the things you should know BEFORE spending your money buying a Roof Top Tent in this buying guide. He covers the things you should know about the different types of roof top tents and shares a critical list of things he learned to guide you through your Roof Top Tent buying decision. Learn from his experiences and mistakes in this honest and through video.
Special thanks to @Revere Overland , @All Things Overlanding , @Overland Pioneers , and @Casey 250 letting me use footage of their tents.
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00:00 Intro
00:33 Types of Roof Tops Tents
00:45 Soft Shell Pros and Cons
01:19 Hybrid Hard Shell Pros and Cons
01:51 Pop Up Hard Shell Pros and Cons
02:30 Wedge Hard Shell Pros and Cons
03:28 Critical List #1 Mattress Size
04:23 Critical List #2 Mattress Thickness
05:33 Critical List #3 Will it Fit on My Rack
06:03 Critical List #4 Will Bedding Fit?
07:01 Critical List #5 Is it Too Heavy?
08:44 Critical List #6 Customer Service
11:20 Current in-Depth RTT Reviews on V2R Channel
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#rooftoptentguide #beforeyoubuyrooftoptent #rooftoptent
These are things I wish I knew before buying a Roof Top Tent. I hope this guide gives you information that makes your purchase more transparent and ultimately gets you the tent you really want. For more V2R videos, please visit our channel and consider subscribing! th-cam.com/users/venture2roam
For anyone who isn’t an experienced camper or overlander. Please skip out on roof top tents. They are incredibly overpriced and heavy and alter driving characteristics. Just get a 100 dollar tent and an air matress, use it for a while. Then if and only IF you decide a roof top tent would really enhance your camping then go for it. I’ve seen too many noobs drop 3 grand on a roof tent they’ve used once.
This is good advice!
Agree. I used to go rock crawling and do hard tracks. Totally avoid rtts. However, I’m 40 now and my back is shot. So I do lots of easy-medium tracks and touring, the hardshell wedge rtt has been amazing. Cant throw pillows in it (4) but easy to throw them up once parked.
Thanks for the advice
I’m thinking of getting one for chilling at the beach 😅
Main thing I learned is it appears these offroad companies like to lie about their equipment and then apologize when you call them on it. If not lie, then at least mislead the customer. Good advice in the video and thanks for sharing.
I think a lot of them, just don’t actually check the specs from the manufacturer..which are clearly incorrect sometimes.
One topic I wish you would have mentioned. Roof rack weight limit is different from your actual vehicle roof weight limit rating. Most vehicle has this in the owners manual.
I have an Ikamper BDV. The mattress is garbage. I just threw my Thermarest in there. Blow it up at setup and realease the valve at shut down. It holds the matress and sleeping bag....just. i had to add two side latches to fully compress it. With those changes, I love it. 140 Lbs, no wind noise and doesn't decrease the gas mileage. I left the ladder on once and busted it😂. They have distributors all over the USA and I got a ladder within 3 weeks from Korea. I would recommend.
Great to hear. I have a few friends who like their BDVs as well. Looks like an interesting tent!
Really well edited video, well done mate, well done. So enjoyable to watch with knowledgeable tips / tricks.
Thank you so much!!!
Good info for the overland masses there. Good job laying the mattress concerns to rest!
The mattress stuff was so surprising to me…that those spec sheets could be wrong!
Man there is some great advice here. Things I would have never thought about! Great job!
Thanks Matt! Some were hard-earned lessons from myself or one of my friends.
Great topic for a video. Great points as well. The big ones for me is the ability to leave bedding in the tent and the quality of the mattress.
Awesome comment. Agree with you on bedding and mattress. Those are both big factors
I've owned a TuffStuff alpha and the tent is tough as nails and customer service was amazing. A small crack led to a warranty claim in which they weren't hesitant to replace the entire tent with an upgraded model. Their customer service alone will keep me a customer moving forward.
Great comment. Customer service is so huge. The companies that "get it" invest heavily there because they understand customers will continue to buy and refer others if they have a great experience.
Thx so much Bro! Love your advice!
Hope it was helpful!
Brother, your videos are amazing and I know your numbers are going to keep on climbing.
Thank you so much…means a lot!! And really grateful that you took the time to leave a comment!!
As a 20 year CS leader at Tech companies, I absolutely love how you pointed out customer service as the top priority. I 100% agree and always weight customer service high when I look at new products. I enjoyed the video and it gave me food for thought for looking at a roof top tent.
Thank you. I'm so glad that resonated with you...it makes all the difference.
Thank you for a really well thought out guide on rtt's. We did the same exhaustive research to find the right fit for our vehicle and tent. We settled for a hybrid style Arb tent as it was the lightest for the price in our budget range. 3 grand for a 55kg RTT. We love it. Boy, there are some sharks in this arena when buying these things. Some brands even go to lengths to hide the weight of them.
Our dynamic roof weight is 100kg.Roof rack, 270 degree awning and RTT all combined leaves us with about 6kg under weight.
So glad you found it helpful! Sounds like you found the right tent!
Fantastic video and great info!
Thank you so much for watching and taking the time to comment!!!
Nice follow up, on the "Tent Cluster"! Will do you use radios, and if so maybe you could do a video on maybe CB vs GMRS? Thanks. Keep up the good work.
Hi Ken - we do use radios. CB and GMRS. Thanks for the video idea, I just might do that one!
Thank you for the honest video.
Hope it was helpful!!
What an amazing camp spot at 3:03.
I so agree. I saw that shot and just had to find a way to use it! That shot was courtesy of Jeremiah over at Overland Pioneers and Rugged Bound Supply. I believe it's from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.
Got my Roofnest Falcon 2 last week. Hella expensive! I'll be uncrating it and putting it on the land cruiser today :) So excited!!
It's always so exciting/nerve wracking when you open up the box for the first time...I'm like "was I dumb for spending the $$$ or is this going to be worth it?"
This is some good information Will. It is interesting this industry is booming so much that there are new vendors, products all the time. I know it is important to you (and me) to support home team companies and newer companies but that is also a risk, particularly in more complex manufacturing. It is probably easy (relatively) to find a manufacturer in China and get the product imported but have they really set up a company that will excel in all the matters you discussed such as design/promotional material consistency, customer service (a huge one), warranty capability etc. I tend to go with proven companies that are not just jumping into the latest trend or do a lot of research before hand. Out in the boonies is no time to find out that quality control or design missed something.
I am sure I speak for all of us when I say thank you for admitting the new tent was not all you expected and using that experience to help other folks.
What a great comment man. I know there is risk working with startups, and to a certain extent, I'm willing to accept that risk in order to support local businesses. I confess to using my mattress fiasco as a hook for this video, but the truth is, there are issues even with bigger, more well known companies. I think your assessment of the industry is correct in that some companies are very invested in R&D and customer service, while others are invested in just trying to put finishing touches on existing designs from China and don't have the margin or volume to have much infrastructure in Q&A and customer service. As consumers we want the best of everything, want it delivered tomorrow, want it to be perfect, and want to be able to send it back for any reason (thank you Amazon). However, when this doesn't happen for us consumers, the companies (big or small) can still win if they err on the side of transparency, empathy, and service..this is what I'd like to see more of across the board in the RTT industry.
@@Venture2Roam That makes perfect sense and to some extent one has to step out and take some risk on gear or you will end up with the TH-cam "standard" gear kit (hahah)! I have found some great stuff that is not normal overland set up but is pretty common in other outdoors activities such as canoe travel, for my Jeep trips I cross up gear with my canoe trips very often for weight reasons.
Great advice Will!
Thanks Gari!!
Great tips Will!! Cheers!! J & C
Thanks Johnny and Colleen!!
Great video! Wish it was published before I purchased my first RTT from Freespirit Rec. Talk about poor customer service. What a disaster. Three months of back and forth with a credit card dispute to get my money back. Think I made a better choice on my second RTT. Just ordered the Eezi-Awn Stealth yesterday and its ready to ship!
You’re definitely not alone. This is stuff you can only learn by actually going through it..hoping to help others ask the right questions before buying since, as you found out, returns can be really hard with RTTs.
Yup!!!
mmmhmmm.
These are all great tips.
Thank you!!
I enjoyed this video. Just curious if you considered the Freedom Spirit Recreation (FSR) RTTs.
I really liked FSR tents, but they didn't have any 4 person hardshell hybrid options when I was looking for a new tent. There is footage in this vid from the FSR Evolution (from Casey 250).
Mattress density should also be taken into account, it is given as an index (at least in Europe) corresponding to the deformation of the foam under mechanical force. For a high density you want an index value of at least 20-25, even better 30. A 3" mattress with 20 index density may well be much less comfy than a 2" one with a density index of 30.
Additionally, the ideal combination is a thin higher density mattress allowing for either more storage for your pillows etc and/or for a thinner tent thickness altogether.
I’d love that. We have no rating system like that for RTT mattresses here. I wish we did.
what awing are you using on your Jeep? Does the rhino rack hold it well? I am looking for a 270 awning for my Jeep.
I'm working a large awning comparison video...still probably a month out from posting it though. That awning is the Bid Country 4X4 Ostrch Jr from Rugged Bound Supply Co. It's a fantastic awning. You have to get a special bracket to attach it to the Rhino Rack..but it's solid. Love mine.
amazing review
Thank you!
We love our Roofnest Falcon pro and have not had 1 problem with it. So far so good! Our bedding also fits inside the tent with pillows. Plenty of head room and space. Way better compared to our soft shell roam we had.
How many ppl can sleep in it??
@@Venture2Roam 2 comfortably maybe 3 if it’s a kid
Think it would fit two people and an 80lb dog?
@@billwilliams4281 sure it would
Hi Will. Thanks for the video. One question. Does the tent have to sit (when closed) within the foot print of the racks? I’m in Australia and want to put a tent on top of the tray/tub of my Ford Ranger. Thanks in advance!
It does not (unless there’s an Aussie law about it). The tent can overhang and be just fine, as long as it’s not too much. There are lots of examples of midsize trucks with short beds that have tents overhanging the back. Thanks for the great question.
@@Venture2Roam thanks so much! I really appreciate it 😀
I've been on the fence for quite a while now about the whole RTT vs tent thing. My 2 biggest things swaying me with staying with a tent (but getting a better, easy up tent) is a) I like the room to stand up and change clothes b) I like to drink beer while camping, causing me to get up several times at night to pee (id imagine that would suck climbing out of a RTT) and c) I like to be more mobile and leave my camp site at the camp site
The climbing down the ladder in the middle of the night thing is real...there are other solutions..but none that I've cared to try.
Excellent
Thank you so much 😀 And thanks for taking the time to comment!
There's nothing worse than bad customer service. Thanks for the buying advice!
I think that’s probably the most important thing when it’s all said and done. I can forgive a lot when a company stands by their products!
Will this was a great video. Are you going to be at the expo this year?
Thank you! We'll be at Expo PNW this year. Looking forward to it!
I have a tuff Stuff Ranger and i like it a lot. It came as a package with a 4'x6' awning, the annex, the shoe bag and a condensation mat for $800. That was only 4 years ago. Now that same setup is far more than double. the cost of entry has become too high.
They have become incredibly expensive!
Speaking as somebody who bought, and then sold, a RTT I'd urge anybody to think very carefully before buying one.
You're building your overland rig, you sort out a storage system, water tank, cooking facilities, fridge, electrical system, spotlights, rock-sliders and... it just seems like a RTT is something else that should be on the shopping list.
In practice, however, I found that the usefulness of a RTT was very limited.
Basically, for single nights (and in bad weather) it's preferable for two people to sleep inside a vehicle.
For longer stops, it's better to tow a trailer, which you can set up and leave so you can make use of the vehicle during the day.
About the only time you really NEED a RTT is if you're travelling as a family and you need space to sleep 3 or more people.
Great perspective thanks for sharing. It’s subjective though. I prefer an RTT to a trailer, and it’s more comfortable than sleeping inside my rig, but everyone is different. I think you’re perspective good though…you don’t NEED to buy one, there are other good options to consider.
I’m looking to buy one, I have a 1948 Jeep willy overland truck. I’m going to mount the bed directly to the bed walls. They are very thick. I might have to build a rack that fits the top of my bed so under it I can store all of my materials. I’m curious about your thoughts on my plan.
It's hard to say unless I see it..but in general putting a tent on a rack in your the bed of your truck should be great. I'd double check the length of the bed vs the length of the tent just to make sure the tent isn't too long. What an awesome truck to have...congrats on that - a collector's item for sure!
Great video. I was very interested in a Desert Armor Ninga. They were quick to answer my questions but absolutely refused to call me. I was looking at several different models and was busy driving to see a client and could not text. I guess I am old school but if a potential customer cannot get some one on the phone what happens if you buy one and have issues. I was concerned about exact dementions as that was crucial to fit in my garage. I am sure these tents are drop shipped from Asia so it's not like Desert Armor ever actually sees one to confirm. I went with Terrapod
It’s a tough business to break into, so I can empathize with them…but customer service is sooooo important. I really hope they invest in it. There are mistakes made by other manufacturers as well..something I’d like to see corrected in the industry…I think you are correct that they trust the tent makers a little too much on the spec sheets.
I shared this to my Group, Alaska Roof Top Tent…🤔🔥⛺️⛺️⛺️😊
That’s so great, Thank You! I hope they find it helpful!!
Great advice Will! Thanks for helping me with my rtt purchase!
OVS was pretty great sending you that package ahead of time, and getting it shipped to you so fast!
@@Venture2Roam I’ve been very happy with them!
Dude I was very mislead when I first got into finding the right RTT. That company that you’re talking about that sent you the wrong bed size I don’t want to mention their name, sent me the same tent you have that I spent 4k on as well and the paint wasn’t even finished, there were spots that were still bare. This wouldn’t have been such an issue if they would’ve just picked up their phone and gotten back to me. The customer service was only good in the process of when I was buying the tent.
This is the one industry in the overland community that I’ll say is so difficult when making a purchase due to all the options and misleading information. Alot of these companies that promote themselves as small business are trying to make a quick flip. Anyway not to get in the weeds on that topic but the customer service part is the most important in my opinion. When you’re buying these tents the majority of them are coming from the same distributor in China with different specs that they pick (names, sizes, and models). I personally love Freespirit recreation, GFC, 23zero and ROAM from personal experiences they were so awesome when it came to answering questions. I ended up with the the Freespirit Odyssey RTT based on my needs, quality, pricing, and customer service interaction. Thanks for making this video I wish I would’ve seen this when I first made my $4000 mistake. Lastly to all the people who may read this do your research there are only a few RTT companies that are actually completely made in the US.
This comment highlights the reason I wanted to make this video. Thank you for sharing your experience, I really appreciate it!
Are Freespirit recreation, GFC, 23zero and ROAM completely made in the US? Thanks in advance
@@kk-pz8gn no I believe only go fast camper is and there’s a few more solid companies coming out now, like Harker outdoors. The other ones I mentioned like ROAM, FSR, and 23zero just have very good customer service and I’ve had good experiences with them just figuring out what’s right for what I was looking for.
Do you think the Tank XL is actually 156 lbs?
I have wondered. But don’t have the ability to weigh it myself. After the mattress, it’s the first thing I questioned though.
@@Venture2Roam I'd be interested to know! I am surprised that it's so much lighter than the Stealth and even the iKamper.
I’m waiting on an official reply from DA..but would love to find someone with a hanging scale to see for myself!
The mattress in the Lance Camper was allegedly high density. It wasn't. A $250 memory foam topper stiffened it somewhat. A miserable nights sleep will torpedo a whole trip!
I totally agree. This is a common theme with tent/camping manufacturers. I wish they would Q/A it a bit more..or at least not try to tell us it's a great mattress when it's clearly not lol.
A mistake is forgetting a zipper pull or being short a bolt/nut. Being off on not one but 2 dimensions and by a fair amount is not a mistake. Companies who do the kind of R&D to design something like these RTT’s (which has a major safety component to them) don’t make “mistakes” like these. If they do, might want to reconsider as what else did they mess up on?
You are not wrong. I do think some companies do less R&D than others..and rely on the spec sheets from the manufacturer to be correct. It wold be nice if they were easier to see in person so we could gauge some of these things for ourselves. I really appreciate this comment - thanks for sharing!
It's blatant lies when someone orders a 3" thick mattress and gets 1.5"
I see a roof tent as a cheaper alternative to a small camper van ie suitable for overnights where there is no campground.
That’s a great way to think about it!
Hi, my name is Richard. I notice you. I notice you're in venmyra who's that, right? I'm also a resident of this Ventura area looking at rooftop tents to see what I can find out there and I'll fit my 2023. Ford maverick just wanted to let you know
Not sure I understand everything in this comment. But I appreciate you taking the time to do it.
I've yet to see one RTT Co. that matches their # of people able to sleep or dimensions as you have experienced with size measurements. it's one thing if 4 people are 165 & 5'7", but many aren't and kids = 6' & 220 lbs when sleeping ha !...
I think sometimes there is a disconnect between the manufacturer’s specs, and the companies..that there needs to be additional validation of the specs by the company. As long as the dimensions are correct we can make a good decision about what “4 person” really means.
BTW- Thanks for leaving this comment!
Can’t expect specs to meet every possibility out there. Can only go by averages.
You should have chosen ikamper skycamp 3.0
Maybe..but There are some drawbacks to that tent as well.
Great video! I'd still rather just buy a Gazelle T3 and save 3500$ Up, down, and in the Jeep in 60 seconds
That’s a great point. Seems like Gazelles are great options if you prefer ground tents! Thanks for watching and taking the time comment!
Thanks for the great video. The imperfections in the metal work for the case is a red flag of poor craftsmanship. The fact the company misrepresented the size of the sleeping area and mattress is shady. There is no way they were unaware of that. If they actually weren’t aware they are completely incompetent. I wouldn’t go near that product of $4000.
I agree with you.
@5:30 That is absolutely the worst customer service
When you learn new word as kid and you use it all the time. You can play drinking game with him saying "generally"
Generally speaking I’m happy to give you a new drinking game!
for the algo
This vid, and every other vid that you see creators post, are probably for the algo. However, it has to be valuable to viewers in order for the algorithm to pick it up. So if that value isn’t there, nothing else matters because the algorithm takes viewer watch time into account. I worked hard to add a ton a value to this vid, and really hope it delivers. But if it doesn’t, the algorithm won’t pick it up, because people will stop watching and I’ll have to try again with another vid.
@@Venture2Roam Yeah absolutely, I love your content and the effort you put in, so happy to watch it 100% through
@@Venture2Roam ah what I meant was with, for the algo, is leaving that comment for the algo. Since YT likes videos that get comments
Hahahaha...whoops. well then..thank you sir! Sorry for the diatribe then! Appreciate it.
I thought your video was quite negative and it dissapointed me. If you had taken your time and reviewed a few products in person so to speak it would have been more helpful. There will of cause be small things which annoy the buyer, but this ought to be expected to some extent, unless you expect everything always to be perfect. I recently watched a few Ikamper reviews and it was done slowly looking at the negstives and positives and suggesting things to overcome any minor irritants. I'm sorry to be a little negative, but I'm sure you will appreciate the feedback.
Thanks for taking the time to watch and comment! This isn't a product review video, or product comparison video, it's a buying advice video with personal stories and examples to back up my advice. So if you were looking for specific product comparisons, or in-depth reviews of any of the tents we mentioned, I can understand your disappointment. The issues I covered are not small variances that out to be expected, they are major buying decision criteria that anyone spending thousands of dollars on a tent should pay attention to. We have two much more in-depth RTT reviews if that's what you're looking for, you can find those reviews here: th-cam.com/play/PLv4WOiu-rUDDc4eI4D3CVHr9Y22lr6_g-.html
Wow I think your being little over the top with your criticism my man. I thought the video was frank and very well done. Wondering if you have ties to the company that was mentioned to have mis information. IMHO there is no excuse for not knowing the dementions of your product
Here is another tip... never do business with a manufacturer that does not provide a customer service phone number. If you spend thousands of dollars on a rooftop tent, then I want to speak with someone in person, not through an instant messenger or an email.
Great tip!
Rooftop tents are a joke. Get a Super Pacific or AluCab, where the roof top adds legit utility, or just keep it ground tent.
Why give an ultimatum??? 😂 To each their own.
What legit utility does an alucab or superpacific add?
Can you be more specific?
@@farzana6676 for starters, multiple people can actually stand/shelter inside of them as needed while cooking or doing other tasks.
The thing to know before buying a roof-top tent: Do not buy a roof-top tent.
😂