Soft Shell vs. Hard Shell RTT

For those of you who have spent the extra money on a hard shell RTT...was it worth it?

I currently have a tepui kukenam ruggedized 3 that I've camped in this entire summer since march. I'm now thinking about getting a hard shell that will fit on the short bed (ikamper skycamp mini, roofnest falcon?, etc.) one of those hard shells that pop up, fold out, and are ready to go.

I imagine I could sell my tent now for around 1500. A hard shell starts around 3k and 3500 for the ikamper. Those who have done it...was it worth the extra cash? Or am I better off putting that money elsewhere (lift)?

 

I just pre-ordered the GFC SuperLite. I think its a great price compared to other brands. And its very lightweight.

 

@H3llRid3r can tell you everything you need to know...

 

Yeah it is long. Its going to span the bed and then 2' onto the cab.

 

Ahh yes, that and Toro off-road seem to have better deals than the more well known brands.

 

I saw those too...I did some rough measurements and it's cutting it pretty close with a lift and 33's planned. Doubt it will clear my garage.

 

Looked at the pop up, but won't fit in the back of a short bed . I'm fairly certain my only options are the ones listed above that are kind of half hybrid hard shells

 

Yeah I realize that, but I've measured it out and after a lift there is very little chance it will fit into my garage

 

Honestly I would be completely there with you...but my garage is as short as it is shallow lol my bumper is nearly touching one end with barely enough room to shuffle by in the other side. Longest tent I can fit overhanging the tailgate and still get in depth wise is about 75 Inches

 

Yeah I'm trying to see if those who have switched thought it was worth the extra cash.

The condor and similar designs will work...but my concern is that the set up and tear down are relatively similar to a soft shell. With that said I'm not 100% sold on it yet if the only really difference I can see is you don't have to deal with a zipper cover and the 4 straps holding it down.

I'm debating the condor/sky camp mini types...with just redoing my entire set up. Running a reinforced shell, and something like the roofnest falcon. All aluminum, 6.5 inches thick and just pops up in one easy step.

 

I have both the soft and hard. Wanted the hard for what I hoped was ease of setup and take down. It would take me 10 - 15 minutes to set up and 20+ minutes to take down for the soft.

The hard takes about a minute to set up. Taking it down has proved to be challenging. It seems to fill with air and refuses to latch. It’s a bitch to close.

I have the CVT Summit (soft) and the CVT Mt. Hood (hard). The Summit is bigger and more comfortable and well built. The Mt. Hood is smaller, which is fine for me since I’m mostly solo. The build quality is not the same as the Summit. It’s not bad, just not as good. The Hood is longer and quite a bit lighter. It interferes with the shark fin and messes with my SAT signal. It’s annoying. I need to move it back a bit more to see if it helps.

 

Was it worth it in the end? That's actually the style RTT i prefer if money wasn't an issue lol. I wanted to swap out to a shell and that thin clamshell type for similar reasons. It looks stupid easy to set up and tear down, I can mount stuff on cross bars above for even more stuff, and all that plus a lift may very well fit under my garage.

 

I’m still in the evaluation phase. The setup is stupid easy. Take down is proving difficult. I’m not sure if the issue is isolated to me, or if it’s a common issue. I’ve not asked around.

I like the fact that the tent is quite a bit lighter in weight. It doesn’t give me the impression that it will be as warm as the soft in the colder months. I’ll try it out here soon.

I added about 3” to my overall height. No more parking structures. I probably could’ve saved an 1” but wanted to give my shark fin some space. Now I have it slid back almost past the fin and will likely go all the way to see if I can improve SAT reception.

 

I went with the iKamper Skycamp Mini route. In my mind, it has been worth every penny. Only "upgrade" I plan for it is a thicker mattress. It takes me about 2-3 minutes to put up and 5ish to break down. I have had no added noise from it. It comes with straps that you route through the rings to pull as you close it which sucks the fabric into the shell to make it super easy to break down. I've heard good things about the desert armor, as I guess you should, it looks like a pretty close reproduction of the iKamper.

 

Do you happen to know your overall height? With tire diameter, and lift size? lol I realize that's alot to ask for...but I'm trying to get some more info if I can fit it under the garage.

My math was...

7 ft garage door is 84 inches

84 - 71.6 (height from google, which I confirmed is floor to the top of the shark fin) - 7 (assuming I don't get the 6.5 inch tent right up against the shark fin) = 5.4 inches to lift and tires. I only plan to do a 2.5 lift and 33's which should leave me a bit over 2 inches before I hit 7 ft.

 

Is that the retrax with the t slot rails? Then the bed rack is mounted into said t slots?

 

I've owned the regular sized skycamp for a year now, and I have no regrets. Fast setup and takedown, if you're like me and enjoy exploring while out camping, being able to tuck away the tent in no time at all and drive to places is just fantastic. My trucks still sitting at the stock height, but with my tent mounted the way it is, I don't see any problems lifting it in the future and getting into my garage space.

 

Just ordered desert armor for 2600 on their sale, figured i would sell my mt shasta summit series and just pay the difference, the fast set up and tear down is worth it for me lol i hope!

 

It definitely looks faster...but the big question is how much faster over a soft shell? Did you find out if you can store your bedding inside that style tent?

 

Last Line of Defense has a youtube video comparing the iKamper hard shell to the iKamper soft shell. If I remember correctly, the soft shell deployed in 3-5min, but he had his hardshell up in 1:30ish.

I can't remember what his tear down numbers were.

I have a Smittybilt RTT and my setup is around 5 min including the window awnings. 3 min if I have help. Tear down is about twice that. Honestly, absolutely hate putting the cover back on because my awning interferes with it, and its freakin' velco all around to attach it. Had to put it away in a torrential downpour once. Was absolutely miserable. A quick tear down is clutch, and someday I will buy a hard shell style RTT>