Camper shell

[2012RAM1500RT]

I'm hoping someone has pictures of a camper shell on a 4th gen regular cab so I can get an idea what I'm looking for. Wife and I are going to go on vacation and where we are going we may have to camp in truck a few nights. I still want my ride to look as good as possible and just need to look at some. Thanks

 

[Treburkulosis]

Google has nothing. I did see a 3rd gen with a leer and it looked pretty good.

 

[2012RAM1500RT]

Google has nothing. I did see a 3rd gen with a leer and it looked pretty good.

Yep, I'm having a hard time finding anything myself! Guess I'll be the only one with a camper shell and still trying to look good! Lol

 

[Treburkulosis]

Lol its all good! I always liked the look of the Leer ones. Let me look at my local dealer and see what he has. He has a 4th gen ram too.

 

[Treburkulosis]

Mikes off-road has nothing and neither does N fab.

 

[crash68]

It's not a regular cab, but my Leer 100XL cap is the same 6.4' bed size:

Another idea if using the truck as a camper is just temporary would be a Softopper. It's easily removed when not needed and they even offer a tent camper attachment.

https://softopper.com/products/

 

[Rav3ncroft]

A.R.E. Truck Caps & Accessories | Manufactured by RealTruck

A.R.E. truck caps and accessories are made by RealTruck, which carries the full lineup of accessories for your truck with free shipping in the lower 48 United States.

www.4are.com

I found the following using Google.

 

[2012RAM1500RT]

It's not a regular cab, but my Leer 100XL cap is the same 6.4' bed size:
View attachment 468575
Another idea if using the truck as a camper is just temporary would be a Softopper. It's easily removed when not needed and they even offer a tent camper attachment.

https://softopper.com/products/

Thanks, your's looks nice!

 

[2012RAM1500RT]

A.R.E. Truck Caps & Accessories | Manufactured by RealTruck

A.R.E. truck caps and accessories are made by RealTruck, which carries the full lineup of accessories for your truck with free shipping in the lower 48 United States.

www.4are.com

I found the following using Google.

Those both look better than I expected!

 

[CalDad14]

Sorry, just my 4th gen CC! Do it, you'll love it. Keep in mind. If you do any towing, the weight of the Canopy will take away from your payload. Food for thought.

 

[2012RAM1500RT]

Sorry, just my 4th gen CC! Do it, you'll love it. Keep in mind. If you do any towing, the weight of the Canopy will take away from your payload. Food for thought.
View attachment 468579

Thanks, not towing just emergency camping if hotels are to expensive or can't be found.

 

[Treburkulosis]

Leer makes the best looking ones IMO. If I were going to add one, it would be a leer for sure.

 

[Quick_Shifter]

Mine will be in the for sale section on this forum shortly. Carpeted interior and power lock on the back glass. I’ll be listing the cap and bed rug. It’s makes a killer combo for any truck with a cap

 

[kurek]

Some kinda old photos, I sold this shell a couple years ago

 

[kurek]

Same truck, different cap.


The softopper doesn't look nearly as good but I don't own it for looks. Really the softopper is a pretty crappy shell in every way but one: it's easy to remove and install as one man.
The fiberglass ARE topper is something like 250 lbs which was not easy for me to put on and take off when I needed to use the truck for hauling larger articles, dump runs, etc.

 

[2012RAM1500RT]

Some kinda old photos, I sold this shell a couple years ago

View attachment 468586

View attachment 468587

That looks good to me!

 

[kurek]

Yeah the ARE shell looked great, follows the lines of the Ram including the tapering bed sides really well.

I ordered a black pool noodle from some internet site (only had colorful ones at Target & the local pool store) and stuffed it between the shell and the cab along the top which had a dramatic positive effect on sound (much quieter on the highway) and kept rain from coming in the cab or shell's inner window so I could leave those open for ventilation plus could run wires through for charging a phone or running a fan. After a couple years with that in place when I removed it all I learned two things: first it stayed put really well and there was zero paint damage even after thousands of miles on dirt roads. I had worried about that but there really was none - still if I was doing this again I might put down some clear bra material just to be extra extra safe. Second thing I learned is I probably should have switched out the 3rd brake lamp for a LED because the heat of the incandescent bulb slightly warped the 3rd brake light lens, smashed up against the black pool noodle.

 

[ram1500rsm]

I love my Softopper. I don't need to bother anybody to help me install it or remove it. First time it may take you 30 min or so to assemble and install it. After that it can be removed/installed in a couple of minutes. Doesn't take any space at all in your garage if you need it off, and it only weights about 40lbs. It my case it's on permanently as the truck is our family DD/overlander so unless i need put a dirt bike or something else big back there i don't take it off. It keeps my outdoor gear dry and away from the sun and i can sleep back there as well if it was needed. Not everybody likes caps hard or soft, as it changes the look of your truck by a lot. I happen to like the way my truck looks with it as it fits our lifestyle.

20210822_141214 by RAM RSM, on Flickr

20210822_144824 by RAM RSM, on Flickr

2021-06-15_07-38-40 by RAM RSM, on Flickr

2021-05-16_04-56-13 by RAM RSM, on Flickr

2021-05-16_04-58-32 by RAM RSM, on Flickr

2021-04-24_08-31-06 by RAM RSM, on Flickr

20210502_135534 by RAM RSM, on Flickr

 

[Valkyrie0002]

I have the LEER XQ on my CrewCab short bed. Bought it March 2020. Automotive style tip out side windows, frameless rear window. Makes the truck look more like an SUV. I had the Thule roof rails installed so I can use my HD Whisbar racks. They have promos for upgrades. I got the carpeted interior and removable split front window. Only issue I had was with the installers. They did not use the correct wire for the brake light and had no clue how the adjust the rear window for proper fit. I installed a tailgate gasket to keep all the road dirt from getting inside.

 

[Coastal WA Gal]

Not a standard cab, but I think the ARE TW cap looks pretty good, it doesn't hamper cargo capacity at all (I still haul brush to the transfer station with no problems) and allows more head room for camping. I've used mine as a beach cabana.