RSI Smartcap

[OffroadAlliance.com]

Our Gladiator in the RSI booth this weekend at the Big Show in Dallas, TX!

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[briscoelab]

Looks great!

 

[kaeo_15]

Just took our first long trip with the cap on and we are seeing warping at the clamp points. I know some may say that they are overtightened, but i don’t think that’s it. None of these spots were there pre-trip and I drove it around quite a bit before that.

 

[briandmiles]

46 3/4" center to center and 44 7/8" long

Perfect, Thanks!

 

[Walter-new jeeper]

Just took our first long trip with the cap on and we are seeing warping at the clamp points. I know some may say that they are overtightened, but i don’t think that’s it. None of these spots were there pre-trip and I drove it around quite a bit before that.

Just curious if you had a rack loaded up on top?

 

[Bulldog10]

Just curious if you had a rack loaded up on top?

Covered by Warranty??

 

[kaeo_15]

Nothing on top. Just the cap on the bed rails. Can’t be over-torqued as the gasket isn’t more compressed in that area. It just follows the shape of the rail. Also want to note that I do not have the trail rail. So, I used the standard clamps.

 

[kaeo_15]

Asked my buddy to check his as he just put an Evo Sport on his Ram 1500 Rebel. Check this out...his is rippled throughout.

 

[Walter-new jeeper]

Nothing on top. Just the cap on the bed rails. Can’t be over-torqued as the gasket isn’t more compressed in that area. It just follows the shape of the rail. Also want to note that I do not have the trail rail. So, I used the standard clamps.

Is it just the plastic rail cover or is the metal under the plastic bent as well?

 

[kaeo_15]

Can’t really tell with the cap secured and I am still traveling this weekend. I don’t think the plastic would deform without the metal also deforming. On mine anyway. Idk about the Ram.

 

[briscoelab]

So the cap has bent and pushed in the truck bed at the points of clamping? I think that is what your pics and the Ram show, correct? This is a concern I’ve had about the mounting design of the cap, where the majority of the loan is placed at each of those clamp points on the area of the square rubber pads. This includs clamping force, the weight of the cap and any load you have on top of it. Higher dynamic loads on rough roads could make this way worse.

Use of the trail rail system and corresponding clamps could actually make this worse than the direct clamps, if that is what is going on. The direct clamps sand which the surfaces involved more directly, where the trail rail clamp pulls the cap down onto the rubber pad with no support on the underside.

Designs that use a continuous rubber pad along the cap would help spread and distribute the load, even with some extra force at the clamp location.

Please keep us posted on what you find when the cap comes off for inspection. Something we should all keep an eye on.

 

[kaeo_15]

Yes, that is correct. The Ram 1500 I posted has the trail rail system and has much worse deformation. Although, it is a full size, so the cap is much heavier/bulkier in comparison. This past weeks adventure included a lot of medium speed twisty roads that probably put more pressure on these points. I researched a bit online and found other forums where people have also seen this issue. This is definitely disappointing as there is currently no load on the cap.

 

[EWP]

I can see the same on mine at the clamp points. To my eye it just looks like the plastic caps on top of the bed sides is deflecting under the clamp. The plastic caps are not solid and you can do the same thing with just finger pressure on the tailgate cap.

 

[kaeo_15]

Thanks for that. Yeah, I am unsure as I can’t lift and inspect. May be that, but none of these spots were present before this trip.

 

[relayer4u]

People found the same thing happening with the Diamondback bed covers. I think that vendor sent the customers shims to put under the bed rail caps for better support.

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