Aluminium canopy construction query

Hi John,

I am about to take delivery of a BT50 dual cab and intend to put a purpose-built canopy on the back. I have chosen a unit from CSM in Brisbane.

The units they make are first class and strong enough to fit a boat loader on top if you wish so a 28kg canoe will not be an issue.

On my vehicle the canopy is a total replacement for the tub so it has its own floor. You could contact them and enquire about fitting to an existing tray. Or if you are buying a new, perhaps you could get a cab-chassis (no tray)?

Having written this, I note from your name that you are likely a little too far from Brisbane for this to be of much help, but having got this far I'll click Submit anyway :-)

Cheers

John
I have a 2007 single cab V8 cruiser since new. I bought a cab chassis and had this firm http://www.roscos.com/ in WA fit a canopy . Waterproof and dust free and as good as the day it was fitted. Came with internal lights and central locking. Under tray tool boxes both sides and a 60lt water tank under the floor
I have wheels on the back and an internal frame.
A full size Rhino Platform covering the whole roof. Over 100kg carried on the roof ie boat firewood etc.
I fitted drawers and storage myself.
Well finished quality canopy.

I had an alloy canopy fabricated to suit our Colorado cab-chassis, same style as you are looking at. I decided to use the alloy tray rather than add another floor. The canopy is a very snug fit over the tray, I left the loading bar attached, great spot for UHF antenna. I had a window installed in the back and one in the swing up door on the LHS - so I can see van during reverse parking. 3mm Aluminium about 160Kg all up.
I would be inclined to have an internal 50mm RHS Aluminium stiffener front and back to carry any substantial weight on top.

Hi Albany Nomads,
Try Ray Smith Eng. Narrogin 98811349, they built what you require on our 79 series c/s.
no relation etc ,just very happy customer
Ken Hales.

I chose to have mine made with a aluminium skin floor included, it has no strengthening ribs on the floor as it relies on the tray deck to support it
I also did not get an internal frame but had some partition walls fitted to give extra bracing
My roof rack is three bars of Unistrut which is great for attaching anything on the roof but also acts as a roof support

Whichever way you go John be sure not to make the door openings the full size of the canopy.
My canopy opening is about 60mm from the front and about 450mm from the back. The wide part at the back braces the canopy.
My mate went for a full length door and with stuff up on the roof it collapsed like dominos when he hit the brakes.

I'd talk to the fabricator and see what they can do.

I built my own and included a metal internal frame. This was so I could cut down on the metal thickness a bit, as the frame will support the skin and carry a roof top tent/roof racks, and so I could make legs and have somewhere solid to attach them so it would be reasonably easy to remove the canopy when I needed a ute.

I also included a floor so a lot of bulky stuff can be left in it when it is off the vehicle.

Another thing to consider with the gull wing doors is that while they do stream line the canopy, but they also make you have to slide the fridge in a long way so the doors clear the fridge body and therefore loose cargo room.

It might not be an issue, but a mate that has a camper on the back of his ute pointed it out to me. He said if he was going to do it all again then he would have the angle on the doors start at about the top edge of his fridge.

If getting the vehicle without a tray is possible, then that would be the way to go. However, if you do get a tray, then think about the gap between the front of the canopy and the front of the tray, where water, dust, leaves etc will get in, a great place for corrosion. Best avoided if possible.
And if you have a tray, will you want to take the canopy off sometimes? Then jacking points at least on the canopy would be sensible.

Cheers, John

Hi John

I have had two vehicles with an alloy canopy. The first, a Landrover Defender 130, and on this vehicle the canopy was fitted directly to the cab chassis on a frame.

The more recent is a Toyota 79 Series dual cab, and this vehicle has the tray fitted to a genuine tray.

In both cases the alloy canopy was a complete sealed unit.

I have had these made by a fabricator in Sydney who specialises in this type of construction, and both have proved to be completely dust and water free.

Happy to provide further detasil…

Cheers, Baz – The Landy

Hey, John!
We have a Navara d/cab with Michel tray - have had it for a while and cannot do without the tray as we use it for the farm too!
So, we commissioned a local mate to build a "slip-on pod" for us. Because it is not built onto the chassis, and it is not intended to be there permanently, it will be fully sealed with its own floor. Advantage of this is that we will be able to transfer it to any new vehicle we buy - provided we get a cab chassis (or as we did with the Navara, ditch the tub and replace with a drop-side tray!)
Local builder Michel are the "duck's guts" for trays, ours has timber floor and in 10 years has needed no maintenance, other than a hose out after carting a load of horse poop!
Possibly a bit far from Albany (but certainly worth getting a Michel tray!)

I have a Gull Wing Canopy mounted on a tray made by MWtoolbox with central locking on the Gull Wing doors --mine does have the aluminium floor


Later on a mate of mine copied the same idea and ordered another canopy from MWtoolbox, but this time without the floor, and he use the tray as the floor.. I have to say, use the Tray as the floor, as the extra aluminium floor is not needed, and the tray as the floor actually makes a better floor.

Cheers

John,

Our slide-on canopy is aluminium, with internal framework, and an aluminium floor. Having an integral floor means you have a more positive seal, in heavy dust and moisture environments. I'd suggest that the frame should also reduce any chance of "drumming" from the canopy panels, on rough or corrugated roads too.

The canopy maker also made a pack rack that would handle the weight of your canoe, or something similar. I've mounted a 160w solar panel at the front of ours.



If you can view a number of canopies, it will help sort out just what you need, or pick up ideas from other owners, and makers. For example, where I've mounted my fridge, is too narrow to fit a drop slide, so the Cook would need a step up to access the fridge. Probably a few few other items I'd change too, in hindsight. :-(

Bob.

John
Recently constructed my own unit, and found a few small issues with "factory made" units that I wasn't impressed with, but personal ignorance on my behalf not the factory designs.
Have a few photos if you wish in various stages of construction, which may give you some ideas, happy to share if you wish.
Mine is constructed using tray of ute as the floor of canopy, with no water or dust ingress.
Thought water between ali floor & chequer plate tray, with a bit of dust is a recipe for rust, but same thing personal preference.
Regards
Flighty