GFC camper or Cap (snugtop, smart cap)

Really like the idea of a GFC and looks are very cool. A standard cap would cost less than half. Wondered if people have thoughts or have gone between one or the other and whether the GFC cost is justified. I have a DCSB with a diamondback SE currently.

 

Really depends on what things you want to do with your truck and how much money you have to accomplish those things. GFCs are trick but more complicated and, at least on some threads here, prone to weather/ing (leaks, rust, etc.) in ways that are trickier to mitigate than a fiberglass top.

Maybe share what your goals and interests are so people can be more helpful with their advice.

 

Thanks, it’s mainly to get off-grid and camp during all seasons. I was originally planning the diamondback/rtt set up but spending $5k Canadian on a rtt seemed crazy.

 

I went with the All-cab canopy and roof top tent. Main reasons:
- You can tie a lot of equipment to the ceiling of the canopy (Alu-cab has mounting rails inside the canopy). This allows me to have all equipment I need and nothing is stacked on top of each other (I have ARB drawers as first layer, then stuff on top of the drawers, and another layer on the ceiling). I keep my table, 2 chairs, privacy tent and recovery boards all tied to the ceiling, so I can remove them at anytime (e.g. lunch stop) without unpacking everything. With the canopy-campers seems to me you lose this ability.
- And, it seems very awkward to climb into the truck and then into the sleeping area, over the tailgate. I think a design that removes the tailgate, like the Alu-cab canopy camper will be more convenient.
- When I don't camp, I remove the roof tent and the truck is garageable as well as I don't lose as much MPG on the highway.

If I would camp in really cold weather, when cooking/lounging outside is not convenient, I may be more interested in an integrated canopy/tent option.

Look at Skinny Guy Campers - if I were to buy such a truck camper, I think their option is more attractive to me (removable, keeps the drawers functional).

 

My shell has proven effective for me, able to carry more stuff. My big ass tent (gazelle t8) usually sits on top of my rack.

 

If you have a short bed then I would go with a go fast. If you have a 6 foot bed then an ARE MX is great for camping. I pair mine with the decked system.

 

I have a GFC since Mar '22, on a DCSB. The bed was too short to sleep in without unloading everything, which I did not want to do on a daily basis. So far the GFC has been great. Small leaking issue in the cap that was easily fixed with materials shipped from GFC immediately upon letting them know, took about 10 minutes to fix. No leaking in the tent area, though I get condensation on occasion. I have about 20 nights in it and happy so far. I have added custom drawers, aux battery, fridge, etc. Installing solar right now.

For me the GFC was the best value for the money compared to the more expensive models out there. And the lead times were reasonable.

 

I can second for the GFC, I've been running my V1 for a little over a year and it's been great.

The versatility of the cap itself is underrated, I really like having huge aluminum doors to give access to the whole bed. It is also really nice not having to move stuff/deal with wet and smelly gear when it's camp time.

 

GFC was great but not worth their current inflated price.

If I was starting over again, I’m not sure I’d even consider the GFC, it’s not worth more than $6k

 

Ditto to the above replies. I have a V2 that I picked up in July of '21. We have about 60 nights in it so far and love it. As utfi mentioned, the versatility and convenience of the side panels opening to access stuff in the truck bed is beyond awesome. We did have a water leak one night in Colorado and I contacted GFC the next day. We were on our way to Bozeman anyway so they had us come by and ended up replacing the entire tent (apparently there was a bad batch with leaking seams), the roof panel as it developed a blister and did the water leak update. All at no charge. The GFC guys are awesome to deal with. The only thing I would LOVE to see changed is to do away with the access floor system and have an open area at the rear of the camper like the Vagabond, etc. I just bought a pee jug but my girlfriend has to get up in the middle of the night to go "downstairs" and use the potty. It's a small price to play for the places we've taken this thing though. Go for it!

 

im going through this thought process. i currently have an older kb voodoo rack and a tepui kukeman. heavily leaning towards getting a rsi cap and using my tent until i upgrade to something like an ikamper or roofnest condor.

gfc was something i thought was the coolest for the longest time. still up there with all the other cap tent combos available. but i dont really need the interior standing room. i think it would be a little more difficult to have to climb through the bed than use a ladder on the outside, but thats just my opinion. you can use a ladder with a gfc too, not many of the other companies (topo, super pacific, lonepeak).

a gfc weighs around 270 lbs for a shortbed.

an ikamper/condor weighs around 130 lbs. most rtt alone are like 110-150 lbs.

rsi weighs around 210 lbs. alucab contour is around 125 lbs. not sure about the gfc topper, its not listed on the website, but i would guess around 170-200 since its like a gfc just without the tent part?

weight wise its like a 50-70 lbs difference.

all the caps are relatively the same, just look different; doors on all sides, can support the weight of a tent, not fiberglass.

i think a cap and tent could be nice since ikamper/roofnest make those big awnings and rooms that attach to the tent. giving a bit of "interior" space if needed.

sleeping footprints between them all are surprisingly similar. maybe 4-5 inches of difference in either direction. height when opened is a little different too. ive been stuck in my tent in heavy rain and snow before. the tepui was nice as its a dome style shape, not wedge, but closing this thing in the wet/cold is a pain.

so idk. its really all up to you and what you want the most. lots of things to consider and figure out what will work best for you.

i have seen some pretty sick gfc builds, but trying to carry 2 bicycles, mountain or road, makes things a little tricky if i want to keep them in the bed for security

 

The V2 is lighter than the V1. I was originally quoted 270-285lbs for my DCLB. The V2 is 235lbs for a long bed.

 

I started out with a leer camper shell, then rsi smartcap, now i have a gfc camper.

Best thing about the leer was the auto lock feature. I miss it to this day.

I really liked the smartcap. Large windoors made it easy to get gear out the sides of the bed. The fact that i got it shipped to my house and was able to assemble it in.my garage was great. I would definitely buy one again. I ran a gfc superlite on top of the smartcap.

I then switched to a gfc camper v1. I wanted the steel welded frame and found a used one in great shape. I was a little concerned about the design of the frame and not being able to get gear out of the sides but it hasnt been a problem so far. Game chnager is you can stand up inside. The downside is i cant park in my garage anymore. I love the gfc but there is a very little part of me that wants a smartcap again so i can park in the garage.