ARB Awings - Anyone Have Experience with them?

[GroovyDad]

I don't use an awning very often, so I'm not going to buy an expensive one, but they're nice to have on certain occasions. ARB makes a 48" awning in the $150 - $200 range that looks pretty doable. Does anyone out there have one they can tell me about?





Here's a video of it being deployed and stowed:

 

[100acrehuphalump]

I have a Tepui Tent awning on my expedition trailer. http://tepuitents.com/collections/amenities/products/tepui-6x6-awning for $250 . They also have an additional screen room $125 which I also have.You should look at the Shady Boy Awnings. They're made in America/Canada, cost around $400 and can not only be free standing(no legs) or you can get the legs too. It offers way more shade and is attachable to the FWC campers and has an Aluminum cover. http://www.shadyboy.com/gallery/

 

[Basin Deranged]

I had an ARB awning on my last camper. It worked great! A little more time-consuming to set up than a Fiamma but quite sturdy and serviceable. It's much easier to set up with two people, especially in a wind. Speaking of wind, as long as the outside corners were properly anchored with the included guy lines it held up very nicely in winds that I would estimate were up to about 20 mph. It also did a fine job of keeping the rain off.

 

[GroovyDad]

I have a Tepui Tent awning on my expedition trailer. http://tepuitents.com/collections/amenities/products/tepui-6x6-awning for $250 . They also have an additional screen room $125 which I also have.You should look at the Shady Boy Awnings. They're made in America/Canada, cost around $400 and can not only be free standing(no legs) or you can get the legs too. It offers way more shade and is attachable to the FWC campers and has an Aluminum cover. http://www.shadyboy.com/gallery/

Thanks for the info. The Tepui awning looks to be virtually the same as the ARB. Now the Shady Boy is very cool and lightweight, but at $400, it's a little out of my price range, especially since I'll only use it occasionally. The Tepui site had a lot of neat stuff on it, thanks for introducing me.

 

[GroovyDad]

I had an ARB awning on my last camper. It worked great! A little more time-consuming to set up than a Fiamma but quite sturdy and serviceable. It's much easier to set up with two people, especially in a wind. Speaking of wind, as long as the outside corners were properly anchored with the included guy lines it held up very nicely in winds that I would estimate were up to about 20 mph. It also did a fine job of keeping the rain off.

Thanks Basin... How did you mount your ARB to your FWC? Did you go all the way through the walls with bolts or just use screws into the frame?

 

[brianjwilson]

I don't own one but have used the ARB awnings. They are pretty sturdy and self explantory. Reasonably priced. CVT in Bend makes a very comparable awning as well, and they also sell add a rooms.

 

[takesiteasy]

In my experience, a 4' awning is not wide enough to be worth the trouble, unless it is mounted off the back over the door. The photos and video posted appear to show awnings much wider than that.

 

[100acrehuphalump]

Thanks for the info. The Tepui awning looks to be virtually the same as the ARB. Now the Shady Boy is very cool and lightweight, but at $400, it's a little out of my price range, especially since I'll only use it occasionally. The Tepui site had a lot of neat stuff on it, thanks for introducing me.

You're welcome sir, the sad part is many of the awnings are made in China. I do like my 6' Tepui awning with screen room, although 8' would be ideal. If I don't order the Shady Boy (yes ^^ $$$), I'm considering somehow attaching my Tepui to my Hawk. It does have the screen room which is nice in buggy areas. I was thinking about mounting it to some upright aluminum square tubes mounted with bolts to the jack brackets on the Hawk.

 

[TravelAmateurs]

Just received our ARB 2000 (6.5 ft.) and it appears to be well made. Similar to 100acrehumpalump I'm considering jack bracket mounting options for our Hawk and I like the square tube idea. I was originally thinking of mounting a piece of slotted steel angle to each jack bracket which would stick up from each bracket to the desired height. Then I could temp mount the awning to either side of the camper or across the back since the steel angle would provide both a side and rear mounting surface, and the ARB awning channel alows for adjustable mounting point width. Possibly attach a heavy rubber bungee from the center of the awning channel to the roof rack for additional support.

steel angle:
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Crown-Bolt-1-1-2-in-x-14-Gauge-x-36-in-Zinc-Plated-Slotted-Angle-18220/202183471?N=5yc1vZc2gt

 

[TravelAmateurs]

Well looks like kmacafee was 10 steps ahead of me. The post below has some great pictures for those looking to mount using the jack brackets.

http://www.wanderthewest.com/forum/topic/9609-awning-installation-on-an-eagle/

 

[GroovyDad]

I never thought of using the jack brackets to make an awning happen. It's just another reason this site is so helpful. I knew if I threw it out there, I'd get a lot of helpful advice.

Thanks to all!

 

[Basin Deranged]

Thanks Basin... How did you mount your ARB to your FWC? Did you go all the way through the walls with bolts or just use screws into the frame?

I'm afraid I can't help you there. My last camper was a VW. (the red one in this picture)