RTT or TTT? Help!

[Willing&Able]

I currently have a Roofnext Condor 2 Overland on top of my Jeep. Love it so far but with my lift and tires makes the Jeep very tall - roughly 8' 3" to top of RTT. I live in the Midwest where most trails are fairly tight with trees on all sides and at times tighter corners.

I attempted to do some trails last weekend and realized my Jeep is too tall for some lower branches. Small stuff I'm fine pushing through but if it is thick I don't want to get out and chainsaw all the time.

This got me to exploring small offroad trailers to put the tent on - TTT, trailer top tent! I'm currently looking at the Taxa Woolly Bear as it is small, offroad capable (I'm not rock climbing), and will free up space in Jeep as I can store items on trailer. However, in some tight areas this could become a challenge to navigate but at 10' and 1300 pounds maybe not?

Anyone been down this path before???

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[Ratbert]

I stupidly built my rig with the intent of putting our RTT on it. I quickly realized that we'd need to build another garage. And, of course, all the issues you listed. Screw that.

Now the tent stays on our trailer. It makes it super easy to get everything ready. Packing took about 20 minutes last night for our trip to Dinosaur National Monument this morning.

Note that I'm a big fan of simply throwing a tent in the Jeep, but the wife prefers being up off the ground.

 

[Maverick909]

I only use my RTT in winter and if the trip is more nights than two for camping. if not i prefer to ground camp. It also depends on how hard of trails are planned to be done. currently havent used the RTT in over a year now. just chilling in the garage as i prefer the soft top to the hard top

 

[Willing&Able]

I stupidly built my rig with the intent of putting our RTT on it. I quickly realized that we'd need to build another garage. And, of course, all the issues you listed. Screw that.

Now the tent stays on our trailer. It makes it super easy to get everything ready. Packing took about 20 minutes last night for our trip to Dinosaur National Monument this morning.

Note that I'm a big fan of simply throwing a tent in the Jeep, but the wife prefers being up off the ground.

Very helpful! I already did the garage work too. My door / motor needed to be replaced anyway so I opened it up from a 7' to a 8.5' door so I can get in and out with tent on Jeep. I have a daily driver so Jeep is just for camping / getting out.

Trailer is seeming like an attractive option, despite the sunk cost in the garage...

 

[Av8Chuck]

I’m currently going through the same thing. Like most things it has taken longer and cost more than i’d hoped it would to build but so far happy with the results.

I’ve spoken to Brad (Trail Recon) and Marcos (Overland X) at several overland events. They have been very helpful helping me design a trailer that meets my overlanding aspirations. I’d recommend checking out their websites and YT channels.

It’s not just the trailer but how it’s kitted out to meet your needs. Building it yourself gives the the ultimate flexibility in getting what you want and is a big part of the adventure. Buying one provides instant gratification but depending on your goals can be very expensive.

 

[jpribe]

I’m currently going through the same thing. Like most things it has taken longer and cost more than i’d hoped it would to build but so far happy with the results.

I’ve spoken to Brad (Trail Recon) and Marcos (Overland X) at several overland events. They have been very helpful helping me design a trailer that meets my overlanding aspirations. I’d recommend checking out their websites and YT channels.

It’s not just the trailer but how it’s kitted out to meet your needs. Building it yourself gives the the ultimate flexibility in getting what you want and is a big part of the adventure. Buying one provides instant gratification but depending on your goals can be very expensive.

What trailer frame/axle did you start your build on?

 

[Opus]

With a soft top, the choice is made for me. But even if I had a hard-top, I think I'd go the trailer route or one of the ground tents that extend out of the back of the opened Jeep if I was into more serious overlanding. I'd always be worried about the weight issue with a RTT and forgetting to offload it before I drove into the garage.

 

[Av8Chuck]

What trailer frame/axle did you start your build on?

Not really sure. This is a bit of a hybrid. The M416 was rolled. Someone took the stock axle and mounted on the bottom of the leaf springs on 35’s the CG was too high.

I found a straight frame, got a 3500lb axle with a 6 inch drop. Extended the frame about 24 inches built new fenders.

 

[Only-In-A-Jeep]

Two door soft top Jeep here...didn't want to do an exo-rack so the trailer was the route for me. I like the Taxa Wooly Bear but wanted to stay as light as possible. So we went with the Tentrax Ascend. Integrated tent and nice amount of storage let's me leave the sleeping gear, tarps, rainfly, chairs, Devos Lightranger and other things always loaded. Front rack has the lithium battery and have a Road Shower on the rear. Lightweight and easy.

 

[Willing&Able]

Two door soft top Jeep here...didn't want to do an exo-rack so the trailer was the route for me. I like the Taxa Wooly Bear but wanted to stay as light as possible. So we went with the Tentrax Ascend. Integrated tent and nice amount of storage let's me leave the sleeping gear, tarps, rainfly, chairs, Devos Lightranger and other things always loaded. Front rack has the lithium battery and have a Road Shower on the rear. Lightweight and easy.

Just looked that up - crazy light at 600# dry!!! Super cool, thanks for sharing. Starting to lean towards the trailer direction vs RTT....

 

[Willing&Able]

With a soft top, the choice is made for me. But even if I had a hard-top, I think I'd go the trailer route or one of the ground tents that extend out of the back of the opened Jeep if I was into more serious overlanding. I'd always be worried about the weight issue with a RTT and forgetting to offload it before I drove into the garage.

True!! I raised my garage a foot and a half to make sure I didn't run into as I have with gear on top before!!!

 

[jpribe]

Not really sure. This is a bit of a hybrid. The M416 was rolled. Someone took the stock axle and mounted on the bottom of the leaf springs on 35’s the CG was too high.

I found a straight frame, got a 3500lb axle with a 6 inch drop. Extended the frame about 24 inches built new fenders.

Thanks for the info, I've been thinking about doing something like this but without ANY idea of how to start off. I appreciate you replying!

 

[jpribe]

True!! I raised my garage a foot and a half to make sure I didn't run into as I have with gear on top before!!!

I like the wrap(?) on your top! Do you have a side shot available?

 

[Willing&Able]

I like the wrap(?) on your top! Do you have a side shot available?

It's a wrap. Bottom half is a scratch resistant wrap and top half is more decorative (but subtle) and still protects the paint from the branches in trails we have in the Midwest.

A few pics!

 

[Ratbert]

We're starting to think that something like a teardrop might make more sense for us than our RTT on our trailer. It takes nearly an hour to get the sleeping pads, sleeping bags, RTT, and everything put away in the morning. In theory that would be a few minutes with a teardrop. That all became obvious this weekend when we were in three different camp sites on three different nights this past weekend (one in Dinosaur National Monument and two along the Colorado near Moab).

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