just thought i'd share some assembly pics now that i've downloaded a tonne of summer photos onto the computer.
so far so good, pretty straight forward assembly. but i've yet to sleep in it! might do a quick overnighter somewhere north not too far..
here's a quick description of assembly...
comes shipped in 3 boxes. the tent, awning, and annex room.
open main box and find instructions and orient yourself to which way the tent folds..
undo straps holding tent closed
open tent, simply unfold, inside you'll find more parts for it (hardware, etc.)
quick view on the inside, got real excited here, sooo cozy in there!
main cover, bowes for the windows, hardware, instructions, etc..
instructions pretty straight forward too. notice all SS hardware. comes with two wrenches.
all you really have to do is mount the aluminum rails onto the bottom of the tent, and decide which way you want to open it (left/right side of the vehicle, awning will go on the opposite side)
telescoping ladder. this is a huge improvement from the other models (some requiring extensions). this ladder is quite stout AND lightweight! it just accordions down and easily adjusts to the height you need to level the tent. mount ladder to tent. (the problem with other ladders is they're too short and don't make up for vehicle lifts).
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so i chose to have the tent fold over onto the left side of the vehicle, which means my awning will go on the right side (this awning has it's own room). figured we'd chill under the awning, and it'd be nice to be closer to the drivers side (right hand drive).
if you have the tent fold over to the rear of the vehicle, you'll be able to use the same aluminum base mounts that goes onto your thule load bars as an attachment point for the awning. otherwise, you'll have to use the end of the load bar (by drilling holes to mount L bracket for awning).
but if you go over the back, you will limit use of the back door of your rig, depending on how it opens. mine is a clamshell type of doors, so the top hatch would butt up against the extended floor of the tent..so i went sideways.
the stainless steel hardware simply slides through the aluminum base/rail, 2 on either side of the thule load bar. i just measured 30" appart from each bar to spread the weight evenly. you'll need an extra pair of hands to hoist the RTT over the load bars (very light with 2 guys lifting). make sure they are snug and square. tighten brackets.
then you gotta orient the top cover so that the one end that doesn't come off (side that drapes over one end) and feed the zipper base which mates with the cover..around 3 sides of the tent..
this end is fixed to the main cover, slide that through the remaining side of the tent...
mate the top cover with the corresponding zipper ends and zip her shut to test fit.
to set up tent, unzip the 3 sides (all one zipper) and fold over cover towards the hinge side.
hop up on the side of the truck to get at the ladder, pull it to extend, use it as leverage, and carefully open the tent and drop the ladder feet on the even ground. adjust ladder accordingly and voila!
ran out of time to zip in the annex/change room, next time! but you can see it in Mikes pics.
