I'm looking to also order one. Could you elaborate on a few things:lol..14 weeks?..mine took almost 6 months when the lead time quoted to me was 10 weeks so hope once you order it doesn't take that long.. I had a couple of leak hiccups but those are fixed and really like my shell- i think either glass works well. I preferred the looks of the aluminum frame personally..on edit..I went with the OTR option which i feel is a must if you off road on the woods as it doesn't scratch like the painted one and also tell your installer to put TWO strips of weatherstrips on the bottom of the shell to get it off the bed rails..if you use your jeep off road you WILL scratch/chip the bed at the corners without them ...ask me how I know
Well I had a painted cap on another truck I had and it got scratched up pretty good..that said if you want it uniform go for paint lolI'm looking to also order one. Could you elaborate on a few things:
1. Would the painted cap scratch off-road anymore than the Jeep paint would? I'd like my pinstriping uniform
2. What do you mean scratch/chip the bed at the corner? You mean the cap will damage the bed paint without two strips of weatherstrip? The paint a the top of the bed sides?
For the most part I think caps like the ARE and LEER are chosen for appearance. The RLD, RSi, and the Aluma Cab seem to be a little more utilitarian. They provide a little greater top load capacity, inside storage options and off-road durability. Fiberglass vs steel/aluminum.
Can you elaborate or take a pic of the area that the topper will scratch? Also, is yours trail rail mounted? Mine is supposed to arrive in a few weeks, so I'd like to be mindful of this area. Being someone that has installed 100's of these things in my life, I'll say there are a couple of different options for sealing material. The most commonly used is a sealed foam/mylar tape that compresses very easily, and will go virtually flat. I'm not a fan. We used to use a double bulb seal called "Rail Guard" that worked well, and had more memory. I couldn't find that online (we used it over 20 years ago) , but there is a triple bulb seal on Amazon that looks similar called ESI Super Cap Seal:lol..14 weeks?..mine took almost 6 months when the lead time quoted to me was 10 weeks so hope once you order it doesn't take that long.. I had a couple of leak hiccups but those are fixed and really like my shell- i think either glass works well. I preferred the looks of the aluminum frame personally..on edit..I went with the OTR option which i feel is a must if you off road on the woods as it doesn't scratch like the painted one and also tell your installer to put TWO strips of weatherstrips on the bottom of the shell to get it off the bed rails..if you use your jeep off road you WILL scratch/chip the bed at the corners without them ...ask me how I know
no trail rails on mine and yes I left the bed caps on.Just my two cents: I went ARE classic for 2,900 OTD. I did get the fancier windoors options. I ordered it in early January and am still waiting - supposed to be here this month.
I am a little worried about the corners scratching my paint and I have read elsewhere that the trailrails can make it sit funny from the factory. I'm prepared to make it work once I finally get it.
@ckgjt, regarding that comment - did yours have the trailrails and bedcaps?
So not gladiator but still ARE related. I've been running my ARE V series since 2016 on my Tacoma and I have hit a bunch of trails very hard over the years. I opted for a reinforced roof. I also had mine rhino lined on the exterior. But mine has held up super well. I ran a rooftop tent on the roof of it for most of those years. The only thing that started to happen is the metal trim has started to fade in color but to me that's expected. But yeah I think they definitely make a good product and will stand up over time. Mine is also carpeted and I put a light inside and also created my own rail system to have stuff that hangs from the ceiling.
