Hi. I don’t own the file, but I can check with the engineer. What Facebook group do you belong to?
RE #1: seam sealer along the bottom seam should keep most water from penetrating.We purchased the Ursa Minor J30 for our 2018 JLUR at the end of Feb 2025 and it was installed three months later in Portland, Oregon. John, the owner, worked tirelessly through the evening and into the next morning to get it installed before we caught a ferry to Alaska for three months of overlanding in the far north. In all fairness to John, we were incredibly thankful to him for making it happen but felt like we put him in a bind. He was over-optimistic with the time it took and we had to leave his shop without the mattress covers, some missing hardware for the gull-wing windows, and no wiring bundle. In short, don’t put John in a bind. He’s a great guy who tries his best but can overpromise.
We had the chance to test the camper over the next three months in Alaska and western Canada to include reaching the Arctic Ocean via the Demster and Dalton Highways. We slept in the J30 camper every night except for three nights. Problems: It initially had a leak that was pretty severe at the drivers A-pillar but this was fixed by removing one of the adjustment washers and tightening the installation bolt. We also experienced a bit of squeaking after this and it was easily fixed by adding a sheet of felt between the B-pillar roll-bar and the Ursa Minor camper.
Overall we are very happy with the camper. It really does feel like a refuge where we can relax and sleep in comfort while still maintaining the excellent off-roadability and maneuverability of the Jeep. Setting up camp is really as easy as finding a flat spot, opening a couple of hatches, removing one of the access covers, pulling the cable to release the rear holding latches, and pushing the top up.
Having said that, I also feel there are some improvements that could be made:
1) The fiberglass top does a great job of keeping the camper clear of rain, but it can collect near the bottom of the tent. Once the water seeps through the canvas, it then seeps into the mattress and bedding. On three moderate rainy and windy days, we had to spend the next day letting things dry in the afternoon sun. Not a big deal, but a rainfly that keeps the rain from reaching the bottom portion of the tent would be a nice option.
2) We opted for the upgrade 3” mattress and covers. It’s comfortable enough but we do find that we have to turn from side to side at night. However, this doesn’t keep us from having a good night of sleep. The mattress is about 2 inches too short lengthwise causing the mattress portions to slide around and gap. We fix this by putting clothing or a small blanket at the head of the mattress to push the padding together.
3) The netting is great for keeping mosquitoes out of the tent, but it doesn’t work very well for biting midges. On a few occasions we had to keep the canvas sides up which made it a bit hot in 75-degree weather. It would be nice to have a smaller mesh on the bug screens.
4) The chrome latches on the front of the camper are a bit unsightly and don’t match the looks of the Jeep Wrangler. We worked with a designer to create a 3-D printed cover that looks similar to the latches that are used for the hood.
Overall, a great camper that converts the Jeep into a wonderfully compact and agile overland vehicle. There were so many nights in Alaska where the mosquitos were so bad that having a pop-up camper that we could deploy in less than a minute was a godsend. Definitely worth it - especially if you planning to live out of your Jeep full-time for extended periods.
Feel free to ask us any questions. Cheers, Travis & Chantil
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Absolutely not. It’s coming through the fabric, not the “seam”. The go to means of solving this is to treat the fabric with 303 fabric waterproofing yearly. This works, especially if you burn a whole bottle every year and doesn’t alter the appearance. This is through years of experience with the top, not conjecture.
Absolutely, 303 is great for maintenance.
I don’t mean to be a dick, but are you familiar with this specific application? When water gets in, it’s not in the seams, it’s through the fabric. The 303, applied all over is the go to solution recommended by people that have spent THOUSANDS of nights in these campers.
Yes, I'm familiar; I'm a J30 owner.
ok… I searched the group just not to make sure I haven’t somehow missed anything… but there are zero mentions of any water leakage in the fabric area that is not along the base of the fabric where it connects to the bottom.
