What happened was…

My wife, Cindy, and I were bitten by the hunting bug several years back, and much of our lives revolve around that infection. Various tent camps have been the norm, although motels weren’t uncommon, and there was always a decision weighing cost/comfort/convenience to be made. Especially when we might be leaving the house in the evening after work, hunting by sunrise, and back home again after another sleep or two. Up until last year, our two vehicle “rigs” consisted of a typical ½-ton pickup truck with a topper and the amazingly awesome station wagon. I’d spent several nights in the back of both without much comfort…

Old camping setupsOverland Expo was well worth it

Mid-summer last year, my mom made us an offer we couldn’t refuse to purchase my late step-dad’s ¾ ton duramax; he passed a handful of months prior, and Cindy said we should put a camper topper on it. Lucky for us, Overland Expo Mountain West was nearby and coming up, so we headed off to look at everything we could. I wanted a topper-style pop-up camper so that we could still use the truck bed for hauling things, weight savings, and simplicity. While there were several viable options, we enjoyed our conversation with Thomas at Topo Toppers and kept coming back to look at the Rincon model he had on display.

Topo Topper Rincon

Topo Topper Rincon

Choosing the Topo Topper Rincon

A few things stood out: I could sit on the bed without my head hitting the ceiling (36” bed to ceiling height), the Rincon offers extra width past the bed rails but not enough to cause clearance issues (72”w full-size, 64” wide mid-size), the construction of welded ⅛” aluminium was flawless, deploying the pop top was easy for both Cindy and myself. Very important as well, the cost of the Topo Topper Rincon was among the least expensive; as of May 2026, a Rincon starts at $10,600 for a mid-size and $11,100 for a full-size.

We ordered one shortly after the expo, with the “Cove” package that includes side sliding windows, upper and lower level lighting, ceiling insulation, exterior roof and sidewall L-track, a Maxxair deluxe fan, interior molle paneling, and we added some exterior panels from the extra options list.

Throughout this process, communication was awesome from Topo’s point person, Lizzie, who sent us lots of pictures to see what different options were, and also sent out powder coat samples. We ended up ordering black for the black truck, but one of us was lobbying for the dark gray…

USA Made to the Nth degree

Cindy and I are in the Denver area, and at the time of purchasing the Rincon, Topo Toppers were only installed at the facility in Ventura, California. Install day came pretty quickly, and I was looking forward to spending the day seeing how Topo Toppers operates. One thing that stood out to me in talking with Thomas was that literally 95%+ of their completed products are made in-house, and a lot of that from raw materials. To me, what sets a company apart in a competitive field is knowing what goes into their creations, and when someone is manufacturing their own nuts and bolts, that speaks volumes. Yes, Topo Toppers is doing just that. Even cooler, the Top Gun 9 fabric used in the pop up walls is fully woven and sourced in the USA. The install took the full day, as promised, and I enjoyed poking around the manufacturing facility to see every step that goes into creating a Top Topper.

Initial impressions

The trip out to Ventura from Denver with a bare bed, and then immediately back with the new Rincon, was a pleasant surprise. I didn’t get any before and after weights, but I am told the full-size Rincon weighs about 500lbs. Fuel efficiency was identical both ways, pulling over at a random place to pop the top and sleep was way too easy, the supplied mattress was comfortable enough, the truck handled in some gusts no differently than any other truck with a topper I have driven, and the black-on-black looked really good. I am dead serious when I write that on our very first day of ownership, some random guy came up to Cindy while she was fueling the truck up, complimented the Rincon, and asked her all about it. I was glowing.

Indispensable add-ons

Topo Toppers wires up the Rincon’s fan and interior lights to a standard 12V DC cigarette-style plug. There are endless ways to supply electricity, and we chose to install a substantial “house” battery system from Renogy. Renogy’s Off-Road Kit was the foundation for our Rincon’s electrical system and has been trouble-free.

Powering the lighting, the below diesel heater, charging electronic devices, and powering a portable cooler, I have not run the battery down past 87% in one 24-hour period. The DC/DC battery charger Renogy includes with the kit replenishes the battery from that 87% back to full in about 45 minutes of driving, and the included portable solar panels take most of the day. For someone looking for a more budget-friendly electrical solution, numerous portable power stations would suffice, such as this self-heating Pecron, which I own and have been pleased with.

The other piece of absolutely indispensable kit to run on a rig like this is a diesel heater like this LF Bros unit that we purchased. There are some invaluable threads on Rokslide regarding all things diesel heaters that are well worth the read. Topo Toppers provided us with a window insert with a hole in the middle to route the heater duct into the Rincon and it has worked seamlessly.

How’s the Rincon handle the season?

The Rincon has exceeded my best hopes and dreams; whatever term exists that is a few steps above the overused “gamechanger” should be inserted here. I spent well over 30 nights in it during the 2026 hunting season, and Cindy worked in a handful as well. The topper has remained watertight in everyday use, which I cannot say about any topper I have had in the past, and the pop-up portion has had zero issues in rain or snow.

I was concerned about the wind on the side of the pop-up Top Gun fabric since it isn’t stretched tight, but that has left my mind. One of the early trips I had in the Rincon was an elk hunt with sustained 20mph winds and gusts hitting a measured 50mph. I was certain that the fabric was going to pop in on me, but it never did.

The one and only complaint I have about the Rincon and weather is how much rocking and swaying happens in 20+mph winds. It never crossed my mind, and it’s just the nature of a truck suspension being the foundation, but the roar of the wind combined with the rocking makes sleeping hard.

Honorable mention add-ons
Other neat things we added that I have found very beneficial:

It’s a whole new world

Freedom has been the biggest thing that the Rincon has brought to our hunting, and I really didn’t anticipate that effect to the degree that it played out in reality. In the past, we would either need to make plans to be back at camp, or make plans to pull it, pack it, and move it, or accept staying at a motel, usually an hour or more from hunting. Now we just have to find a relatively flat place to park the truck.

Cindy or I can put up or take down the Rincon in about two minutes, getting the heater set up takes a few more, and from there, you are ready to fall asleep with warmth and standing room. Wildly simple.

While the Rincon is well-suited for big-game hunting, I found huge benefits in using it for upland hunting because campable public land doesn’t exist on the plains of Colorado, Wyoming, Nebraska, and Kansas. However, I learned that nearly all the small towns in this part of the country, and presumably most small towns, have fairgrounds and city parks that allow free RV and truck camping. A little research beforehand allowed me to hunt birds wherever my soul took me, pop into town for dinner, then park and sleep without any bother or cost. 10/10 would recommend, and the freedom this type of setup provides has brought far more value than I anticipated.

Ask Kyle and Cindy questions about the Topo Topper Rincon here.

Read other Rokslide gear reviews here.

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