jas67
Platinum Member
I thought others here might find this useful.
I wanted a way to easily get my truck cap on and off by myself, which also a way to store it without taking up more floor space. Here was my solution:
Click on the pictures to see larger:
I already had the winch from a previous project. My cap has side windows that open upwards, and no screens, so putting some 2x4's through the window opening was the easiest way to lift it. This particular cap has fiberglass extending down beyond the rails which rest on the bed (which covers the cap, giving it a more finished look), so storing this on the floor, or on a pallet rack would require clamping some boards to the rails to keep from putting any load on this fiberglass. It is a simple design with four cables to four pulleys to the four corners of the cap. This cables gather together to one, the coupling of which go across the ceiling to another pulley, and down the wall to the winch. I made the coupling go across the ceiling, as there wasn't enough distance from the pulley above the winch to the winch to be able to give it enough range to lower the cap to the floor if needed.
Once the cap is raised to storage height, I connect four safety straps to it to prevent accidentally lowering, or falling due to a winch failure, or curiosity of my 5 year old daughter.
The cap is actually over the cab of the truck where I normally park, as I had to have it far enough from the overhead door to keep it out of the way when the door is up. I just have to move whatever is parked in front of the truck so I can pull in a little further to get the cap on or off. I suppose I could back in to mount/unmount as well.
I wanted a way to easily get my truck cap on and off by myself, which also a way to store it without taking up more floor space. Here was my solution:
Click on the pictures to see larger:
I already had the winch from a previous project. My cap has side windows that open upwards, and no screens, so putting some 2x4's through the window opening was the easiest way to lift it. This particular cap has fiberglass extending down beyond the rails which rest on the bed (which covers the cap, giving it a more finished look), so storing this on the floor, or on a pallet rack would require clamping some boards to the rails to keep from putting any load on this fiberglass. It is a simple design with four cables to four pulleys to the four corners of the cap. This cables gather together to one, the coupling of which go across the ceiling to another pulley, and down the wall to the winch. I made the coupling go across the ceiling, as there wasn't enough distance from the pulley above the winch to the winch to be able to give it enough range to lower the cap to the floor if needed.
Once the cap is raised to storage height, I connect four safety straps to it to prevent accidentally lowering, or falling due to a winch failure, or curiosity of my 5 year old daughter.
The cap is actually over the cab of the truck where I normally park, as I had to have it far enough from the overhead door to keep it out of the way when the door is up. I just have to move whatever is parked in front of the truck so I can pull in a little further to get the cap on or off. I suppose I could back in to mount/unmount as well.