Truck Cap Buyers Guide

[Mosby]

Whatever brand you get, make sure you get it from a business that installs them and can repair them for a living. Some places only sell a few tops a month and employees aren't really trained to install them properly and they can't repair them. I looked at a few places that sold more tire rims and stereos than tops and had kids working that didn't know anything about them. Eventually, I found a family owned business that sold, installed and repaired tops for over 20 years and 90% of their business was selling ARE tops.

Tops leak and break when they aren't installed properly. The install is as important as the brand IMO.

 

[Top147]

Hands down this canopy. I don’t own one but just saw one on the road last week and it looked slick. I’m sure they are $$$

HOME | SmartCap (ROW)

www.rsismartcanopy.com

 

[WCB]

Get some knee pads. That's my biggest complaint. When things roll to the back of the bed, its time to crawl in.

I see you live in Alabama....we have solved that problem here in the upper midwest....always have a hockey stick in your truck bed.

 

[WCB]

Hands down this canopy. I don’t own one but just saw one on the road last week and it looked slick. I’m sure they are $$$

HOME | SmartCap (ROW)

www.rsismartcanopy.com

I think they start at like $3600

 

[Top147]

I think they start at like $3600

Unsure of availability also. A blonde in a decked out taco had one but I couldn’t stop staring at the canopy!

 

[NEhunter]

Resurrecting an old thread.

I am looking for a new truck cap for my 2020 F350. I have narrowed my choices down to either Leer XR or Snugtop Rebel. I am considering Windoors on both sides but on my F350, it seems like they will sit quite high for me to easily reach in to grab things out of the truck bed though I am 6'2".

@NEhunter or anyone who has windoors on their full size truck caps, how are you liking your windoor option? Are you actually using them? Any regrets for getting them?

Regards,

I use the windoors quite a bit. It is a little high to reach in and get the bottom of the bed in my 2500 but I can stand on the wheel and reach in if needed. The thing that I use them the most for is to reach in and open or shut my dog box’s that are strapped in the bed all the way to the front and for that I can reach in and grab just fine. No regrets here and wouldnt buy another one without them.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[fmyth]

Hands down this canopy. I don’t own one but just saw one on the road last week and it looked slick. I’m sure they are $$$

HOME | SmartCap (ROW)

www.rsismartcanopy.com

I really wanted a RSI but with shipping tax etc it was going to be $4,800. I bought an ARE for $2150 installed and have been happy with it so far. I suppose if a guy really needed to put 800lbs up top the RSI would be worth it.

 

[yhc]

Thank you all for your input.

I use the windoors quite a bit. It is a little high to reach in and get the bottom of the bed in my 2500 but I can stand on the wheel and reach in if needed. The thing that I use them the most for is to reach in and open or shut my dog box’s that are strapped in the bed all the way to the front and for that I can reach in and grab just fine. No regrets here and wouldnt buy another one without them.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks NEhunter. That helps quite a bit in making my decision on windoors.

Hands down this canopy. I don’t own one but just saw one on the road last week and it looked slick. I’m sure they are $$$

HOME | SmartCap (ROW)

www.rsismartcanopy.com

Yup that was my front runner BUT found out from a local RSI dealer that they do NOT make caps for a long bed so no luck there. I even contacted the company earlier this week to see whether it can be special ordered but no reply in 5 days....

Regards,

 

[stealthgoat]

Different brand, model, or features to improve security?

Disclaimer - I grew up with 3/4 ton farm trucks & various caps/toppers. Those older topper designs were not secure, but it was farm country and we didn't lock anything...

I am looking at cap / tonneau options for my Frontier short-bed. I park it at some trail-heads where there have been occasional break-ins. Right now I have a tool box in bed and so far no issues, but that has limited storage space.

I think a Diamondback hard tonneau would be pretty secure, and provide a lot more space (though not sure if I can sleep under it). An ARE or Leer cap would be a huge improvement even if I only need that space a few trips a year.
How secure are the current caps?

 

[Eldoradotim]

Resurrecting an old thread.

I am looking for a new truck cap for my 2020 F350. I have narrowed my choices down to either Leer XR or Snugtop Rebel. I am considering Windoors on both sides but on my F350, it seems like they will sit quite high for me to easily reach in to grab things out of the truck bed though I am 6'2".

@NEhunter or anyone who has windoors on their full size truck caps, how are you liking your windoor option? Are you actually using them? Any regrets for getting them?

Regards,

I got a Snugtop for my Ram, definitely looked the best with the Ram. I think the Leer looks like it was designed for the Ford trucks, if appearance matters to you.

I shopped everything local to me: Leer, Century, ARE, and Snugtop. Depending on what installer/dealer you were talking to each one was the “best” so I figured that was a wash. One even had them all side by side to compare and it was so close, each had small pros/cons.

Sorry, no input on the windoors (I got sliding) but I’d agree that it’d likely be too high to be convenient, and I’m 6’2”.

If I had a F-Series truck I’d pick the Leer/Century.

 

[Eldoradotim]

P.s. in case you were debating the power lock....its a must have. Especially if you have keyless entry.

 

[yhc]

P.s. in case you were debating the power lock....its a must have. Especially if you have keyless entry.

Definitely the power lock option is on my option list. I am planning to stop by Leer and SnugTop dealers once more on Monday then pull the trigger. As it stands now, I am leaning more towards SnugTop Rebel.

Thank you all for your input.


BTW I spoke with the RSI Smart Cap US rep on the phone yesterday. Really a nice guy to talk to. They are taking pre-orders for F250/350 short beds (to be launched in Feb 2021) but not for long beds. According to him there just aren't enough demands for the long beds.