my 07 sr hilux

[gold member]

Next it was home to finish the frame for the tent


Trial fit of the frame


After re wiring the fridge as i had the cable running through the canopy so it got the snip when the canopy was removed, and also had to install the bungee loop knobs also for the canvas work which the wifey kindly helped me with

Then on with the tent

[gold member]

Off for a test camp trip sat, canvas work gets done next week, then I will get around to making the mesh lockable doors

[TOYZX]

Sweet rig mate!

[gold member]

So we had a test run on sat night and the rooftop tent worked a treat




Before we left for our camping trip I booked in for the canvas work, which is tomorrow! So the last 2 dayshas been spent building doors, setting up the gas struts and locks, all inbetween landscaping and retic installations.







Doors complete and tent back on ready for the canvas tomorrow.

[gold member]

So picked up the lux from the canvas guy today, absolutely stoked with it, anyone needs canvas work done in WA i can point you in the right direction David from 2 oceans is the man!

[gold member]

[gold member]

[DeadlyBeast]

Awesome build GM. Anything you would do differently or advise to give anyone else wanting to build a similar cage?

[gold member]

Awesome build GM. Anything you would do differently or advise to give anyone else wanting to build a similar cage?

Thanks DBeast

I liked to have tried to source and use lighter gauge steel pipe and RHS as it all ended up fairly heavy although I managed to lift it on the ute myself just I estimate it to be 45-50kg.

I recommend the lockable stainless t bar handles, they were a solid invest and keep everything secure.

The height of it overall is good, any lower and I would be constantly hitting my head on the RTT when it is open, ideally another inch higher would be good but you start adding more wind resistance as the RTT sits higher above the roof line, i have a body lift kit I am going to be fitting in the coming weeks when I am home again so this will help

I am concerned about how long my gas struts will last tho, not keen on them as the ends are plastic but so far they are holding up well.

The only other thing I will add one day will be some canvas pockets on the inside of the front wall for storage.

Overall I am stoked with it and it come out just as I pictured it, functional and looks good too. I have thought about making it removable so I can "jack" it on and off but I do not want to have to lug around 4 x leg jack setups with me and the tent only take a few minutes to pack up anyways if I need to move.

Cheers

[gold member]

My biggest tip after all this is to shop around for your canvas work, get at least 3 quotes so you know what your up against, my quotes varied from $1900 to $700 but always check the material that is going to be used also as you do get what you paid for, and always ensure they "pre shrink" the canvas. was recommended to me to get this heavy canvas rather than the typical black tornuae type stuff as the canvas will breath to some degree and allow moisture to escape. I have hosed my canopy down many times and drivin in the rain, have not yet had any water inside of it.

[DeadlyBeast]

Thanks mate. Good tips there. It looks very tidy.
50kg is just a little hefty but not bad really.
Was thinking of making one close to full height as I have a solar panel wind fairing for the RTT.
Would really like to make one out of aluminium for weight reduction but $$ ...

[gold member]

Cheers Mate, yeah I thought about alloy but yes $$ indeed, all up mine cost me about $60 in steel ( used a internal hilux roll bar for main frame, free of gumtree)
$120 for the stainless locks and rods, $60 for gas struts and then just the canvas costs.
If you have a wind fairing then yeah definitely go full height, I did initially feel the RTT weight up top but I soon got used to it and no longer notice it. I also used to run a kayak so it would fit nicely with the RTT at the height it is.
Do you currently have a solar panel set up? I would like to see it as I am wanting to go down that line also ....

[DeadlyBeast]

$60 - bargain! Good work
I have a couple pics in my shed of a couple fairings I've used.
First one was just a quick means to and end. Neither were long term solutions.
Next one will be 3mm alloy sheet with 2 x 100W slim line flat panels mounted, hinged and slide positional along the pioneer rack

[gold member]

Ok so finally got around to installing my 1" body lift

installed it by myself and it took about 5 hrs. Hard to tell but I have not done the tray yet, and I am still considering if I will do it as it has levelled it out nicely the also the two very rear bolts in the tray were stuck solid, will need to go borrow my mates rattle gun for them ones if or when I do it.

I managed to close most of the gap from my body to the bullbar by relocating some holes in the bull bar, winch cradle didn't require any changes hence why I only went 1 inch lift. Need to fine tune how the bar sits but I am a it over swinging spanners for this week.




Initial test drive was good you can notice that lift straight up, gear lever lengths are a lot better being that bit shorter, less like a truck.

[TOYZX]

Good work mate!

[gold member]

So I have been a little busy lately but have had to change out my stereo as my old one ha given up. gone back to the previous single DIN unit I had in it , also seems my Amp is playing up coming through really crackly so I pulled the fuse out and have bypassed it, which suxs as it made the tunes so much clearer, will have to do some fault finding when I get the time. I have also started to build my drawer set up:

Have gone with one big drawer as I want to leave my fridge where it is and still have my compressor and tool section on the fridge side of the tray. The drawer will have a 2 Bruner cooker built in among other things to make it an instant kitchen for quick camp set up and pack up. Still a lot of work to do and since being back at work I have changed my mind on a few things so will be re making a lot of it when I get back home next week.

Complete unit will be carpeted, and I will be adding a twin ciggy lighter and usb outputs, volt gauge for my Aux battery and some more LED lighting in the tray.

Managed to score a brand new 45l aux diesel tank for next to nothing so I have made mounts for this and sourced a fuel solenoid valve so I will wire this into a rocker switch in the cab so the tank will gravity feed into the main tank at the flick of a switch.

Anyone have the best method on where to plumb in the gravity feed? I'm guessing into the tank filler overflow line?

Cheers
GM


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[gold member]

So over the weekend this happened

Still a lot of work to be done as some more additional lift out panels are required around the front, more carpeting to be done inside the drawer, water tank install and some more electrics ( Dual ciggy outlet and volt gauges) but it has come up well really.
Also awaiting the arrival of my fuel line solenoid switch so I can plumb in the aux tank.




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[TOYZX]

Nice work mate.

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[snakesoup]

looks good mate! is that your aux tank in front of fridge? how many litres and what brand mate?


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[gold member]

looks good mate! is that your aux tank in front of fridge? how many litres and what brand mate?


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Cheers snakes, yeah that is my Aux tank sitting in front of the fridge ,Im not sure of the brand but im sure it is actually of a light truck, I scored it for a song of a guy a few months ago a he had about 6 of them. From what I calculated its around 50l but I am yet to fill it, they were all Clean as a whistle inside and not a scratch on them, looks like they have never actually had fuel in them. I was going to buy a slim line tank mounted at the front of the tray etc but these tanks popped up online.
Fits sweet there with my fridge, still leaves me room for my compressor to be mounted on that side , my tool bag etc to sit in the side there and it even has a sight glass. I had to make the mounts for it though. But yeah will work well.