Tough Touring Solar Mounting Rail Kit (Bolt on)

Tough Touring Solar Mounting Kit (Bolt on)
THIS KIT IS UNIVERSAL
Tested on Tuff Trek MK3 Roof tents, The Bush company roof top tents and others - the slotted Bolt pattern accepts bolt-down points for the majority of roof tents that have parallel M8 bolt tracks on the roof.  

This Solar Kit is optioned to come complete with or without a pair of upgraded 890Nm / 1050mm reach Gas struts, two slotted / 2 x Double Folded C Channel Solar Panel mounting rails, a Red Anderson and Cable, 4 Eye bolts, and associated fixing hardware.

The Gas struts are replacements for the standard 550NM ones on your tent, as the solar panel adds weight to the roof, so the struts must also be stronger.

THE BUSH COMPANY TENTS INSTALLATION

The Upgraded Gas struts are not required on the Bush company RTT, as the existing ones on the new tents are over-gassed anyway and already expect the load. You may not need the struts initially, but it's handy to have them when the factory ones start to sag. If you're installing a Bush company tent, you can  opt for the "NO GAS STRUTS " Option 

CANOPY INSTALLATION

You can opt for the Kit without the Gas struts if you are installing this kit to a canopy via the Canopy's existing Unistrut fixing points. The Kit has been used successfully for this application, and, of course, gas struts are not required. 

TUFF TREK Mk3 INSTALLATION 

The Upgraded Gas struts are required on Tuff Trek MK3 tents to increase opening power and accommodate an extra 20 kg on the roof.  Simply adding the panel is not OK, as the tent's struts barely lift the extra load, resulting in floppy canvas.

During experimentation with Upgrades to this tent for Victorian (Windy) conditions, Tough Touring has chosen to extend the gas struts by another 50mm, adding additional tension to the tent's canvas walls for a tighter set. This improves tautness all around and does not affect the awesome soft shut for packing up. 

ABOUT THE KIT 

The Aluminium rail brackets are cut and then folded here in Melbourne... 

Brackets are pre-drilled to accept sealed head rivets. (You can use Tec Screws if you prefer, as the Bolting method of installation does not allow the panel to separate from the fixings. Load is all in Shear... The kit includes rivets, a Red Anderson connection, and an extended 6mm Twin Core cable.

HOW TO FIT IT - THE BASICS OF  INSTALLATION

 To fit the brackets: Open the Tent, and entirely un-velcro the top section of the tent's walls; remove the existing Tuff Trek Factory gas struts; then, using a lifting device (or a length of timber), prop the tent open wide enough to fit the two new gas struts. 

If you don't know how to fit Gas struts, there are plenty of YouTube videos of them in action. It's simple and does not require any special tools, just a 12,13 and 14mm spanner. 

ON a separate bench, fit the Solar mounting rails to each end of your solar panel using the included TEC screws or rivets, if you prefer. 

Chop off the existing solar cable plugs, and solder on the Cable set with the RED Anderson provided. 

Your Solar panel is now fitted with the Kit. Lift it into the tent's roof and bolt it up using the bolts and eye-bolt nuts provided...

Partially close the tent approximately 6 inches to enable easy re-velcroing of the upper walls. I've found it easiest to do this kneeling up inside the tent. 

Total turnaround time should be under 2 hours. 

I recommend the largest solar panel your electrical system can handle. :) You can never have enough power. Even the largest household panel (Jinko 415W) fits using this kit, providing a shade barrier over the tent's roof line, helping to keep the tent cooler in daytime heat.