seal the gap between truck sidewall and camper

[RockDoc]

Sorry if this is the wrong place to post this.
Just bought a camper for my 08 Nissan Frontier. To get a one inch clearance between the camper and cab, I'm left with a near 3" gap between the truck bed sidewall and the outside edge of the camper. Does anyone have a good-looking, solid remedy for filling this gap?

Thanks.

 

[Hittheroad]

Sorry if this is the wrong place to post this.
Just bought a camper for my 08 Nissan Frontier. To get a one inch clearance between the camper and cab, I'm left with a near 3" gap between the truck bed sidewall and the outside edge of the camper. Does anyone have a good-looking, solid remedy for filling this gap?

Thanks.


I have considered hanging 2 1/2 inch plastic pipe from camper running the full length of the truck bed. Might the right size for storing beer bottles/cans. Have not yet attempted this or decided on how to attach.

 

[RockDoc]

Might the right size for storing beer bottles/cans.

Thanks.
I was also thinking of pipe or rubber hose. Hadn't thought about beer storage. Might have to look into this further.

 

[Darryla]

Or you could store fishing poles? Actually, I store tire chains, radiator hoses and stuff like that along the sides outside the camper in the area of the turn buckles.

 

[Hittheroad]

Thanks.
I was also thinking of pipe or rubber hose. Hadn't thought about beer storage. Might have to look into this further.


You can buy soft foam insulation covers for the outside of the pipes. This might allow a tight barrier against rain and dirt getting into the turn buckle storage areas.

 

[DLN]

Whatever you do in that space it must be flexible, any rigid filler will damage the camper and truck.

 

[Hittheroad]

Whatever you do in that space it must be flexible, any rigid filler will damage the camper and truck.


Good point and one I have been worrying about. Any Idea how much motion one needs to allow for?

 

[David_h]

Just bought a camper for my 08 Nissan Frontier. To get a one inch clearance between the camper and cab, I'm left with a near 3" gap between the truck bed sidewall and the outside edge of the camper. Does anyone have a good-looking, solid remedy for filling this gap?

Thanks.


How about the rectangular plastic rain gutter downspout material. It has a thin wall and should be able to compress enough, especially if a rubber/foam gasket is added to the top and bottom. Could be painted too. Not sure how to treat the ends. I'll be trying this soon on my new rig, which is a 2008 F250, which has a gap of nearly 2.5 inches with the Hawk.
Dave H
Mill Valley, CA
06 Hawk with..
2005 F150 old
2008 F250 new

 

[DLN]

Not sure just how much movement you'd need, maybe Stan will jump in here and let you know. There was a discussion of this about two or three years ago that I think was titled "Closing the Gap", you might try a search for it.

 

[Desert Rancher]

This is what you want:
Flexible Polyethylene Foam Rubber Insulation for Pipe and Tube
http://www.mcmaster.com/#foam-pipe-insulation/=cn8boi (Go to page 3484)

You can get it at any wholesale plumbing or refrigeration supply. Run a nice wide bead of RTV on the bottom side of the camper and shove the foam in there. Without the RTV, it will work it's way out. Fill the open ends with RTV.

Provides a nice water/dust tight seal. I done this for years with great success.

Look here for details:
http://www.wanderthewest.com/forum/index.php?/topic/3304/page__fromsearch__1

Jeff

 

[Fish Chaser]

I have a FWC Hawk on my 02 Tundra, it should be the Kestral, but I planned to upgrade the truck, so the Hawk fit adequately until I got the new truck. I filled the gap on one side with this sealed pipe and some hose clamps, the end screws off to store my surf rods or a lot of cans, not sure how I'd get the cans out, maybe take off the cap and do a couple donuts.

I have the new truck now ( GMC Sierra 4x4 ) and will be moving the camper to the new truck and selling the Tundra in the next couple weeks.