Opinion on Toppers

[98_4x4_Ranger]

I've been looking in to getting a topper for my 98' ranger. It's been hard to find even a used one and they're usually expensive. Pros & Cons? Any tips for getting one?

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

So… I’ve run one for years because of practicality. I bought a brand new aluminum cap with ladder racks back in 2001 that I still use. The aluminum ones are lighter but not as sleek looking as the fiberglass ones. The fiberglass ones have a tendency to crack if you take them on/off a lot and aren’t careful enough.

The fiberglass ones come in basically two flavors, reinforced (able to mount a ladder rack or have a ladder rack) and un-reinforced. The un-reinforced are not rated to have any weight put on top of them.

None of those that you can have a ladder rack on (aluminum included) are rated for more than a few hundred pounds on the rack. Not really a problem for me because if I’m hauling heavy stuff on a ladder rack I just use the F-150 or the dump truck (the rack on the dump truck has had over 2,000# on it before). I had thought of building a heavy duty ladder rack for a Ranger that a cap could also fit under but now that I have two heavy haulers, I don’t need to.

 

[pjtoledo]

bought mine new about the same time as my 2005. been great for 20 years.
standard fiberglass.

flare side or fleetside?
the blind spot from flare side toppers is HUGE

try to get one with a raised roof.
toppers even with the cab have only 30" of entry clearance. I occasionally haul 31" stuff and have to lift it for loading.
once inside it's 34".

 

[98_4x4_Ranger]

bought mine new about the same time as my 2005. been great for 20 years.
standard fiberglass.

flare side or fleetside?
the blind spot from flare side toppers is HUGE

try to get one with a raised roof.
toppers even with the cab have only 30" of entry clearance. I occasionally haul 31" stuff and have to lift it for loading.
once inside it's 34".

I got a fleetside. Preferably I'd like to get a topper that's only a little bit over the cab. Still trying to go for a nice clean look.

 

[sgtsandman]

The pros:

A bed cap is more storage space out of the elements and they help keeping the bed from rotting out.

The added weight of a fiberglass cap helps with rear wheel traction.

They will also enable you to do truck bed camping, if that is an interest of yours. Fiberglass is better than aluminum in that regard. Aluminum caps are very noisy when things hit them, whether is be sticks, acorns, or rain and hail.

Lastly, they give you a way to somewhat secure your cargo. A motivated enough theif will find a way to get in if they really want to but it will keep the "honest" theives at bay.

The cons:

What you can carry in the bed is limited by the height of the cap.

Fiberglass caps can be pretty darn heavy. So, you will want help removing them or putting them back on the truck.

When not needed, you need to find s place to store it and if it has a carpet interior, keep the carpet dry.

Bed caps are generally fuel usage neutral, depending on the style of cap. What aerodynamic benefits you get are neutralized by the weight of the cap. An aluminum cap with a rack might knock the mpg down by one. One or two mpg if you get a high boy fiberglass cap.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

There is no perfect solution, some have side windows that can open so you can actually reach stuff inside and some have side windows that slide open with screens. I don't know of any that do both. So if you want to control the temp while on the road you want the screened in ones, if you want to reach the circular saw that circled its way to the front of the bed without climbing in you want the ones that open and don't have screens. Also if you have a sliding rear window in your truck it could be nice to have a sliding front window in your topper.

Also you want one with a light.

I have a old fiberglass one on my truck, it was $40 on craigslist. Works great, I did have to replace the shocks and lock for the door. We got caught in a bad storm day before yesterday with my other truck and I was really missing having a topper.