Sponsored

Your take on the RTT vs. Ground tent debate

guarnibl

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 3, 2017
Threads
4
Messages
2,515
Reaction score
2,284
Location
Scottsdale / Sarasota
Vehicle(s)
'21 JLUR 392 XR, '21 JTR, '21 JLR, '09 JK
Can we expand this conversation a bit? And thank you to those that have responded thus far.

As I continue rolling this around, and as I look at various RTT's....a lot of them look, frankly, to be the same. Just rebranded.

Does anyone have any insights here? are there major differences in manufacturers or are we just seeing different wrappers on the same packages?
It seems to be differences in material used from best I can tell. If you list some examples, we might be able to compare some of them better.
Sponsored

 
OP
OP
xaugievike

xaugievike

Well-Known Member
First Name
Brian
Joined
Jul 9, 2020
Threads
41
Messages
272
Reaction score
430
Location
Chicagoland
Vehicle(s)
2020 Rubicon
Clubs
 
It seems to be differences in material used from best I can tell. If you list some examples, we might be able to compare some of them better.
I didnt want to throw any particular company under the bus. But an example would be Roam vs. 23Zero.
 

Levin_tom

Well-Known Member
First Name
Tomas
Joined
Nov 8, 2020
Threads
40
Messages
359
Reaction score
376
Location
Florida
Vehicle(s)
Jeep Wrangler JLUR
I didnt want to throw any particular company under the bus. But an example would be Roam vs. 23Zero.
My brother has a 23Zero on his 4runner and I can attest to the quality of it. I think Roam, 23Zero, ARB and Tepui are all top tier tents. I ran ARB for a while and the quality very good. IMO there is no major differences on the top brands, each of them offer different features: 23Zero offers light suppression technology for example, but mattress is a bit firm. ARB was one of the first to pioneer the RTTs. I have friends running 20 year old ARB tents and they still look new once the cover is replaced. Same with Tepui, even though now that Thule acquired them I am not sure the quality is the same. I think it’s important to identify what kind of tent you want (soft shell, hard shell) and if possible see them in person so you can get a feel for the material, mattress, etc.
 
Last edited:

psucanary

Well-Known Member
First Name
Christian
Joined
Jul 16, 2020
Threads
6
Messages
62
Reaction score
59
Location
Pennsylvania
Vehicle(s)
2020 JLUR
Can we expand this conversation a bit? And thank you to those that have responded thus far.

As I continue rolling this around, and as I look at various RTT's....a lot of them look, frankly, to be the same. Just rebranded.

Does anyone have any insights here? are there major differences in manufacturers or are we just seeing different wrappers on the same packages?

Went through this same thing last winter, made some crazy spreadsheets comparing all. They are all very similar if you go traditional RTT (non-wedge), but ended up with CVT due to good customer support and getting parts like its nothing. I had one small issue (self-induced) and they sent replacement parts for free in a matter of days. Plus they have a Headquarters / distributors in Vegas, TN and soon Pittsburgh. The material (tent) and cover is amazing quality and once it all broke-in, it's a breeze to use. The wife and I can have it deployed within mins and zipped back up in 5 mins flat. Went with Pioneer Shasta. They have some decent sales throughout the year. Looked very hard at wedge, but happy with our decision on traditional due to the room inside when you get stuck in it for hours due to rain and lower weight for manhandling it/wt. on the roof. Its very enjoyable and comfortable, the wife absolutely loves it. We feel we've already got our money out of it in year one with five trips, one being a two-week trip out west..and we could sell it today for half of what we paid easily. Plan to use it on another cross-country trip this summer (to Moab), then maybe time for a 4x4 sprinter... gotta have dreams, I guess.. O, and def get a telescoping ladder, condensation mat (important) and shoe bags no matter which manufacturer you choose. You'll love it!

And one last thing; some complain/question the price; but it kinda forced our hand to get out and make these trips cuz we bout a RTT, and that alone has lead to memories/experience far exceeding the cost.
 
Last edited:

Jeep’n Jay

Well-Known Member
First Name
Jay
Joined
Aug 17, 2019
Threads
24
Messages
239
Reaction score
289
Location
Salt Lake City
Vehicle(s)
2018 JLU Sport
I had a roof top tent on my JLU, 3.5" lift and 37's. Hated it. Too high, wife refused to climb up there, and honestly I wasn't real fond of climbing up there either. Went back to my Springbar tent and much easier and happier. In all reality I can clear camp in less than 30 minutes so not a big deal having a ground tent. The roof top tent saved me maybe 15 mintues, not much in the grand scheme of things.

As far as quality goes to answer your other question, I bought a knock off Tepui and put it up next to my buddys real Tepui, We could not tell the differnce, other than his said Tepui on it. I am convinced they were made in the same factory.
 

Sponsored

Av8Chuck

Well-Known Member
First Name
Chuck
Joined
Sep 10, 2021
Threads
10
Messages
217
Reaction score
432
Location
Thousand Oaks, California
Vehicle(s)
2020 Rubicon
Living in CA with a 55mph trailer speed limit and trails as far as 500mi away, it's a hard no on the trailer for me. A 6 hour drive becomes 9 hours.
I have a 25' ROO that I tow with an F150 @ 75mph in California. Never been a problem. Gas milage leaves a lot to be desired...

Jeep Wrangler JL Your take on the RTT vs. Ground tent debate ROO-14
 

Av8Chuck

Well-Known Member
First Name
Chuck
Joined
Sep 10, 2021
Threads
10
Messages
217
Reaction score
432
Location
Thousand Oaks, California
Vehicle(s)
2020 Rubicon
A lot of debate regarding on the ground or RTT. Curious what people think about safety and privacy? As several have mentioned why not do both? My Jeep is my daily driver so I would like to put my RTT on a trailer for better fuel economy, leave the batwing on the Jeep and for short trips use a tent and a cot, longer trips or on trips where I want to basecamp use the RTT on the trailer (that I don't have yet).

Jeep Wrangler JL Your take on the RTT vs. Ground tent debate JEEP-14
 

PillowFightr

Well-Known Member
First Name
Sam
Joined
Jun 26, 2020
Threads
2
Messages
233
Reaction score
391
Location
Arizona
Vehicle(s)
2021 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon Diesel
Occupation
Data Center Engineer
For me there were several reasons. And i was like you, cost didn't really matter..

I take 5 days off at a time from work and when i do, i want to finish exploring/hiking a national park. I need to be able to go hike, then drive out of the national park and into the national forrest and quickly camp, basically nap, then get up cook food, eat chill and then go to sleep, then pack at 5am and leave for the next set of hikes. I didn't want to deal with setting up and taking down a ground tent everyday. My Roofnest sets up in under 2 minutes or so! Its insane fast!

Also when needed, it gets really dark inside the tent.
If you need complete darkness to be able to stay sleeping, i wake up if i sense any sort of light. (The Roofnest is basically a black hole!)

The other reason is, RTT is the only way to camp in the cold.. Some may tell you that they have slept naked in a 0 degree weather.. Until you test it out, dont believe what you read/hear. Out in the elements, its gets rough! Specially for Arizonians haha we aren't used to the cold at all!

So i figured, my diesel jeep is getting 26MPG... why not mess it up a little and install a front runner and Roofnest tent.. Post install It still gets 23MPG so not a huge loss.. didn't change the way it drives off-road.. but then i have not done real rock crawling with it.. The diesel doesn't care, it has the torque, so consider your engine before making an upgrade like the RTT!

For comparisons sake, a roof rack and RTT is basically the same MPG, top speed, acceleration hit as if you took a stock jeep and lifted 4.5" with 40" tires.. in my opinion its the same "hit". Others are welcome to correct me on that.

Jeep Wrangler JL Your take on the RTT vs. Ground tent debate 1636443903857

Jeep Wrangler JL Your take on the RTT vs. Ground tent debate 1636446365712
 
Last edited:

Zandcwhite

Well-Known Member
First Name
Zach
Joined
Sep 4, 2019
Threads
10
Messages
4,249
Reaction score
7,579
Location
Patterson, ca
Vehicle(s)
2019 jlur
For comparisons sake, a roof rack and RTT is basically the same MPG, top speed, acceleration hit as if you took a stock jeep and lifted 4.5" with 40" tires.. in my opinion its the same "hit". Others are welcome to correct me on that.

Jeep Wrangler JL Your take on the RTT vs. Ground tent debate 1636446365712

Jeep Wrangler JL Your take on the RTT vs. Ground tent debate 1636446365712
It's the same hit to mpg and acceleration as...8" of additional ground clearance, massively improved approach/departure/breakover angles? All to save 10 minutes of camp set up/breakdown time? That could be the worst sales pitch for a roof top tent I've ever read. The "black hole" is the last thing I want in a tent, we prefer the open mesh without the rain fly whenever possible. I'm out here to be in nature as much as possible, see the stars, wake up with the sun etc. To each his own, but most of your pluses aren't pluses to a lot of us.
 

Zandcwhite

Well-Known Member
First Name
Zach
Joined
Sep 4, 2019
Threads
10
Messages
4,249
Reaction score
7,579
Location
Patterson, ca
Vehicle(s)
2019 jlur
I have a 25' ROO that I tow with an F150 @ 75mph in California. Never been a problem. Gas milage leaves a lot to be desired...

Jeep Wrangler JL Your take on the RTT vs. Ground tent debate 1636446365712
If I'm going to run 20mph over the speed limit, I'll just drive the jeep at 90. Still get 14-15 mpg doing that, don't have to deal with a trailer, and still have more time for wheeling every trip. We towed the Jeep out to CO, and quickly realized it is more trouble than it's worth. From fuel economy, crowded gas station maneuverability, finding parking, and finding a place to camp, the trailer doesn't have enough upside to be used on a regular basis.
Jeep Wrangler JL Your take on the RTT vs. Ground tent debate 20210612_200200
 

Sponsored

psucanary

Well-Known Member
First Name
Christian
Joined
Jul 16, 2020
Threads
6
Messages
62
Reaction score
59
Location
Pennsylvania
Vehicle(s)
2020 JLUR
I got into my head about mpg with a RTT vs. w/out; but once you do some quick math; on a long distance trip out west (PA>CO: 4400 miles roundtrip), and avg. of 16.5 mpg for the trip with a RTT up there, vs. say 19-20 mpg w/out RTT is very negligible (3.6). Say at $3.00 per gallon (back then) thats like a total loss of $132 dollars of a fuel total. Its kinda a head game, but pencil to paper calmed me down. haha Now, if I commuted daily 100+ miles, well, then it would be a big deal, but on a once/yr epic trip...where we never once longed for a hotel room vs. camping, totally worth it. (35s, 2" lift, stock Rubi gears)

We do want a van (sprinter 4x4), but we know it will forever change the trip..not 100% sold on that. I love the "jeep adventure" running jeep trails and getting my wife into vehicular exploration of trails. Every day it was a mission to get somewhere amazing via the jeep and then set off on foot to see even more. We loved the mobility of being 100% self-contained and could literally camp wherever we wanted or needed. A van will change that, and could make it a lot more RV-ish. For now, I'm just enjoying my Rubicon/RTT set-up and am already planning a return trip to CO and this time venturing into UT, hopefully via the Rim Rocker Trail out of Montrose. Any way you choose to get out there will be what you make of it!
 
Last edited:

zaneiz

Well-Known Member
First Name
Jon
Joined
Nov 27, 2021
Threads
7
Messages
72
Reaction score
165
Location
Lexington, KY
Vehicle(s)
Wrangler
Appreciate reading through everyone's thoughts on this. Quick question about rooftop weight capacity. Everything I am reading shows the hard top capacity at 150lbs. Is the only wrangler hard top option for a rooftop tent one of the metal frames that attach at the windshield and rear bumpers?
 

Jeep’n Jay

Well-Known Member
First Name
Jay
Joined
Aug 17, 2019
Threads
24
Messages
239
Reaction score
289
Location
Salt Lake City
Vehicle(s)
2018 JLU Sport
Appreciate reading through everyone's thoughts on this. Quick question about rooftop weight capacity. Everything I am reading shows the hard top capacity at 150lbs. Is the only wrangler hard top option for a rooftop tent one of the metal frames that attach at the windshield and rear bumpers?
there are backbone systems that can support 900 lbs available. You have to drill through the roof however. The supports attach to the roll bar and allow much higher capacity.
 

DwnSth

Well-Known Member
Joined
May 18, 2020
Threads
31
Messages
267
Reaction score
324
Location
SE Louisiana
Vehicle(s)
2002 TJ : 2021 JLURD
Love the idea of a RTT but with two big dogs it's not a practical solution for us. We've been using a Gazel T8. It's huge but set up and tear down is pretty quick. Only drawback is it's weight. Very heavy and a bit tricky to get back on roof rack.
20211109_171849.jpg
 

zaneiz

Well-Known Member
First Name
Jon
Joined
Nov 27, 2021
Threads
7
Messages
72
Reaction score
165
Location
Lexington, KY
Vehicle(s)
Wrangler
there are backbone systems that can support 900 lbs available. You have to drill through the roof however. The supports attach to the roll bar and allow much higher capacity.
Thanks. Drilling through the roof feels like it would be a big problem sometime down the road.
Sponsored

 
 



Top