First time posting here!!! So I have an F150 and I love my truck! That is the vehicle I want to use to build my overland rig. So what is the general opinion here, should I use a soft topper underneath the bed rack in order to keep my items dry and as dust free as possible, or is having everything on tough boxes enough? Does anyone with just a bed rack for the RTT and no actual cover on the bed have any issues with rain and or dust on all the items on your bed? I’m torn on whether or not to get a rack big enough to fit a soft topper, or just get something smaller and use tough boxes for my items on my bed. Advise please!
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If you're talking about an open cargo bed with no cover and just a rack above, I can't imagine doing any adventuring of any length with my gear just in tough boxes and cases. Maybe just overnight or two if you know for certain the weather is going to be great and you're going somewhere there will be no issues with security or animals.
- Yes, rain and dust will be a problem, in my experience. Not all cases are weatherproof, much less waterproof, and traveling at speed is likely to suck dust and moisture into every nook and cranny possible. It's also no fun opening cases of food or clothing that are wet or dusty, or worse, have a slurried mix of both. You and your gear get wet and/or filthy. Keeping your stuff tight and dry is invaluable.
- You're inevitably going to end up with gear that doesn't fit in tough boxes, like fishing poles, shovel, ax, traction boards, firewood, etc that you'll want at times to conceal or out of the weather.
- You'll be far less worried about your gear if it's out of sight, even if just under a soft-topper, when away from your vehicle when camping or in town.
- Having a hard shell or soft-topper gives you a space to get out of the weather when retrieving or messing with gear. Even if you have a rooftop tent, being able to get in under cover and possibly stretch out, and even sleep when on the highway without deploying the tent is very handy. You won't be able to set up your tent everywhere you are for a nap or overnight on the road.
- If you have a hard shell or soft-topper you can leave gear, valuables, whatever else in there with far greater security even when home and not out adventuring.
At the least, a good tonneau cover over the bed and under the rack is advisable. I have a trailer with a cargo area the size of a long-bed pickup, with an elevated rack for my hardshell RTT. I absolutely love having a hard-rolling cover to conceal and protect my gear. It's rugged and durable and keeps everything dry and dust free. No one is going to just slash through it to get to my gear. It also provides another solid surface on which I can strap stuff down.
That's it rolled up at the front of the trailer in the images below. It secures down nicely when covering. When the tailgate is up and locked, it makes a great, safe, out-of-the-weather and away-from-prying-eyes place for my gear.
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You can secure a lot of gear on top of a good hard-rolling cover when needed.
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