Our honest review of the Flated 6' 4" inflatable pickup topper for Overlanding
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- Опубликовано: 27 авг 2024
- Honest review of the Flated 6' 4" air topper for pickup trucks. Our thoughts and feelings about the quality and performance of the Flated Air Topper we bought after over 2,000 miles with it and big changes in elevation and temperature.
Also on this week’s StressLess Camping RV and travel podcast has us talking the founder of Flated, a company that makes air toppers for pickups. These unique air toppers take the place of a traditional fiberglass pickup cap and utilize the same technology as a stand-up paddle board to make an easy-to-install and very affordable solid pickup cap.
We also share our plans for this new gadget and how we’re going to use it for some new and exciting adventures.
You can find this week’s podcast at our home on the web or wherever you enjoy getting podcasts: www.stressless...
The StressLess Camping podcast is a weekly RV podcast with information, tips and tricks to help every RVer and camper enjoy some StressLess Camping
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Peggy and Tony Barthel are veterans of the RV industry and use that experience to create StressLess Camping, a podcast, website and resource for new and experienced RVers and campers alike to learn more, spend less and turn every adventure into a StressLess Camping experience.
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Just met you at the hot springs hot tubs at the Palm Springs KOA! So cool to meet you and have a great time in Quartzite!
Great meeting you and wish you an excellent adventure. We meet the neatest people there!
This is the first time I’ve seen these. Thanks for the information!
Thanks for watching!
I was surprised at how ridged our inflatable standup paddle board was when we got it this past year, what a great idea using proven technology. It will be interesting to find out how the sun/ heat affects the lifespan of the truck bed topper. great review guys!
So far so good and it won't be on the truck full-time which should help.
I am over a year in with the HOT Arizona sun beating on mine. Its held up amazing and only been removed a few times for the rooftop tent when going out with the entire family. However that will change next week as I have a new rack that will fit the flated and the rooftop tent at the same time. I cant wait to see this setup.
I just bought a Kodiak Canvas truck tent which is a premium product and I'm now getting ready to upgrade.
Flated would be a great upgrade!
Really enjoyed your review. Thank you!
My pleasure!
This thing is super cool, I've been searching for a video of one of these in the wind. In Kansas it NEVER stops blowing. Everyone says it does fine, but I can't find a single video that isn't filmed on a nice day in ideal circumstances.
We live in New Mexico where there's not much to stop the wind - it's always around. So I can tell you that wind does not affect this thing at all. At least nothing I'm willing to drive in.
@@StressLessCamping Nice! They do certainly look sturdy! I've seen people standing on them etc. Thanks for the reply!
I just ordered my topper and bed for this Get away camper Idea, but I have been working on this idea for while and just found your supporting video today. more to come... maybe some videos
Hope you like it as much as we do. I continue to be impressed by how well made this topper is.
This is a great product! Especially for those who want both worlds who wants a camper top and a open bed that is easy removed and set-up…
The best part ? “ Affordable compare to hard shells! Under $1800..
Those were what sold us.
I need to get me one. Just for a quick night or two get aways
We continue to be pleased with it. The build is pretty exceptional and well thought out.
I got one of these with the idea to do some truck camping out of it. I asked the site admins 3 times about the interior height of 6' flated topper. Based off that info, I picked one up. They were 6" off! Anyone sleeping in their truck knows how precious that headroom is. They accepted full responsibility and accepted the return. I also just did not like how fragile this thing was. I was scared to drive near any tree limb and felt like I was a target for criminals. Just do yourself a favor and get a real topper that has added height and security that this thing will never be able to offer.
I'm glad that they made it right. I wonder if the bed rails on different trucks accounted for the height variation? I believe Ford has a different bed rail height than GM and Ram brands, for example.
As for fragility I have been very impressed with it after putting several thousand miles on our truck with this in place. We changed elevation from over 5,000 feet (Albuquerque) to sea level camping on the coast. No issues with inflation or build quality at all.
I do like that this is simple to remove by the owner as we take it off and on as needed.
As for breaking in, I don't think camper shells are all that secure anyway. But, as with so many things, there's something for everyone. This fits what we want very, very well and I like this product as is probably pretty obvious.
Thanks for the comment and happy camping!
You never had a hard shell broke into ???
It’s the same material white water rafts are made of and they take a beating .
I have one on my Nissan frontier. We also found the velcro piece that goes on the tailgate to be a little wonky. If i don't use it the topper comes unzipped at highway speeds and starts flapping around a lot. I wish there was a better method than the velcro strap on the tailgate because I feel like that isn't going to be good for the paint on my truck. Overall though I'm impressed with it. I use it only during my RV travel and I like keeping my truck bed open otherwise. I found that it does a superb job at keeping most of the rain out as well minus a few little drips here and there if I'm on the highway and it's pouring. Great review!
I'm with ya' - the one challenge is just what you wrote. That back "tailgate" can flop around and I, too, am a bit concerned about the paint.
What I've been meaning to do is put in some high-performance magnets and then a plastic protective strip on the tailgate of the truck. I think this would solve the problem.
Do like I'm gonna do for on the highway. Just use 3 or 4 ratchet straps and go all the way over the top and just strap it down to the bed of your truck. My Nissan Frontier pro4X has built in strap hooks on a rail system. It is what it is. Not gonna be 100 percent dry. But good enough for you need.
I'm actually think of a way to connect a front sleeper.
With optional rail supports and a piece of 3/4 inch marine grad plywood and use that for the base. Use another topper that is smaller to fit across the roof of a 4 door truck and velcro the toppers together. You can buy commercial grade velcro.
Another tip....... you can use aluminum L stock or boxed.
Then use self tapping screws to screw it to the bed rails.
BINGO
So we found a solution to the back flap - we just use a small NiteIze Gear Tie through the zipper pull and that has completely solved the issue.
Incidentally the flapping was much worse when we tow the trailer so I suspect some funky air movement is going on between the truck and trailer.
...nice review...can it withstand a rooftop tent on it?
I don't think it would. It's pretty tough but that may be more than this was designed to accommodate and it is a bit flexible so I don't think it would be very stable.
My only concern is it does not lock. But a really great idea!
I was wondering when that would be brought up and it's certainly a legitimate concern. I would hope that the tinted windows, which can be removed if you'd like, might make the contents less visible but that is certainly a consideration.
@@StressLessCamping Honestly, I can't see it being the biggest concern. It's just as easy to get into that to steal something as it would be to get into a soft top jeep or bronco...just cut it and take what you want.
The whistling music in the background, I had to leave. I'm so sorry. This looks fascinating, but what you say is good enough without the music.
Thanks for the feedback. We use this across our content but the feedback does get our mind wondering. I try to fade it very early in the video so it just sets the tone and then gets faded out.
You might skip forward about half a minute and then the whistling goes away.
guess there is no way to use with a t-track retractable tonneau cover? wouds not want to have to take off on the times I would want to install this topper. Thanks!
This sits on top of the bed walls. If you can reach the tie-downs in each corner of the bed it might work.
Why not get a regular fiberglass cap
Easier to take on/off and far, far less expensive plus more readily available.
This is the ultimate in flexible toppers. Finally a topper that is there if and when you need it, without having to be on the truck all the time. I think ALL toppers are hideous, but there's a use for them. This is beautiful in that when you're done with it - it's GONE. And when your truck needs replaced, this will probably fit the next one.
Two questions: how well does it insulate the bed? I have a powerboost f150 with an on board generator, so I'd love to hook up a small heater for cold weather. This looks like it would probably hold heat better than most shells.
Second: how soundproof is it? Not that it's important, but curious.
@@atlas283 We honestly have no idea on insulation and soundproofing. I would imagine it would do a better job of insulating than a single-layer fiberglass shell but that's purely a guess. We could say the same about soundproofing.
How does it tye down inside u didnt show
Shoot. You're right - it's straps that go from hooks on the actual topper inside to the tie-downs in the pickup bed.
He’s sitting right next to one of the tie downs. Right to his left. The straps just connect to the hook points inside of the bed
Softopper 1/2 the price and still overpriced too but different strokes4differentfolks