I have a '05 F250 Crew Cab and want to add a camper shell. Which one is the best and best looking?

 

I have a leer 100xl. It has a headliner and the flip down sliding front window. I think I paid about 1400. I like it. The only problem i had is the fiberglass is a little wavy where it goes over the bed rails. But it is hard to notice unless you are looking for it.

 

I have a 100LE on a '98 F150. It looks great and have had great luck with it. Though I have read posts stating that Leer's overall quality has slipped in the last couple years. Also, a lot of people on the forums seem to be running the ARE toppers. A lot of them running the Z-series iirc. I'll be looking for one to put on my F350, though haven't decided which one yet. If you do a search on the site, youre bound to find more threads concerning them.

 

I had a Jeraco on my 84 F350 for 15 years and I had no problems whatsoever with the cap in that time. I just bought a new Jeraco for my 2005 F250 and this cap is every bit as good as my last one. The one thing that I really like about the Jeracos is their mounting rails. They are the only cap I have seen that has a fiberglass encased wood rails. These rails are indestructible. My F350 road like a rock and that truck literally beat itself to death. But, the cap never showed any signs of fatigue.

All other caps I have seen use an extruded aluminum mounting rail. I have had 2 caps with the aluminum rails and both were on F250 trucks. Both rails cracked at the mounting points when they were about 6 years old.

Also, I don't know about Leer and ARE caps but Jeraco caps are guaranteed for life.

 

I have done a search in this forum. Is there a Camper Shell Fitment Guide, across body styles?

I can't seem to start new threads (probably because I am too new to this particular forum).

I have a 95 F250 with a fiberglass Vista shell, and want to sell it locally, but I need to know what years/body styles it will fit.

 

I have a Leer 100 XL on my 2004. Been very happy with it so far. I love the looks of it as well. There are pictures of it in my gallery.

 

Personally, I'm not a big fan of the fiberglass toppers. For my use (volunteer FF, etc.), I run a Knapheide Knap Kap steel topper, painted and cleared (black) to match the truck. It works extremely well, although it's a bit more expensive than the fiberglass options ($3K painted and installed).

 

have century hi-c cap this is my 2nd cap on my 2nd truck their paint matches perfectly to the rest of the truck and the windows come already tinted many styles 2 choose from

 

I am considering an ARE Z series, make the truck look like a EX
it has the frameless side windows and back window
they sell for like $1700
www.4are.com

 

I looked at LEER, JERACO,,ARE and the aluminum work caps(Big Bucks) I ended up buying the Jeraco 6" above cab model, comes with 3rd brake light, interior light, the roof(whole cieling) is insulated with honeycomb like material from factory for strength, nice finish inside, many options, I got sliding front window, and driver side windoor( glass that opens) pd $1,500 total painted to match. The place I bought the cap from (KILLAM,,,, in East Windsor CT) told me they use to sell Leer, but had some problems,,so now the sell Jeraco and ARE.

Have not found any leaks,,,, Jeraco's are nice caps !

 

ARE is the best in my opinion.

 

I have a Guidon, I think it is called Trooper? Anyway, it is a very good looking shell, but the gel coat is prone to cracking and the rooftop Windows, are leaky and need to be reglued every few years. they are also made of plastic and have gotten a bit opaque over the years.

I have had mine since 1996. It is a fiberglass top with a full size rear hatch with a glass door in the middle. Very handy. You can open the glass door for just people or small stuff, or open the hatch for floor to roof opening. The bad point to this is that the hatch can be forced open or as I discovered, if you have something heavy hit it from the inside, like when accelerating quickly, it can pop the hatch open.

Back in 96 it cost something like $1600 and is custom painted at the factory to match your truck color. The shell almost looks like it is part of the truck. The paint is guaranteed for life, but the trick is you got to get the shell back to the factory to get it serviced.

I like the shell for looks and utility, but the quality of the paint and the locking mechanisms are below what I expected.

Just my opinion,

Jim Henderson

 

which Are topper do you have on your truck?

 

I have an ARE truck cap best cap out there IMO Ihave owned four trucks and all have had ARE's. When you remove them they don't flex like the others so you don't have to push them in and realign them to fasten them back on.

 

I had a Leer 100XL, bought it '99. It looked good but the window didn't seal very well and the latching mechanism was crummy. Not sure if they've changed since then. Have an ARE now. The latch is better but the seal around the window still isn't as good I think it should be.