Yes, you can lay a mattress on your pickup’s bed and sleep on it when camping. If you want proper protection from the elements, though, such a barebones setup is not likely to be enough. While there’s plenty of conversation kits for turning a pickup truck onto a proper camper, the GFC Platform Camper offers a seemingly simpler alternative.
No, it doesn’t quite turn your truck into a traditional camper. Instead, it outfits the bed with a functional topper to keep your cargo covered at all times, along with a rooftop tent that you can use to get proper rest, while being sufficiently protected from the elements.
The GFC Platform Camper consists of a bed topper that’s made up of a space-frame chassis, with a roof just slightly higher than that of your truck, so you can stash taller items (and stack shorter ones) on there if you need to bring any along. It comes with side panels, so you can close the whole thing up to keep your gear secure, with all three panels (sides and rear) able to flip up if you’d rather keep the interior open (maybe you want to set up chairs on there, where you can chill out in the middle of a sunny afternoon). Optional windows in the fixed front and rear panels can be added, in case you want to retain the use of the truck’s rearview mirror.
Situated on the platform’s roof is a pop-up tent that you can use for sleeping, allowing you to sleep in an elevated spot, with proper cover from the elements. It uses large, billet aluminum hinges, by the way, so this tent should not close on your accidentally for whatever reason, with both the roof and floor of the tent cut in a honeycomb-structured material, allowing the whole thing to support up to 500 pounds. Extrusions along the perimeter of the tent allow you to bolt on accessories, such as awnings and mounts, allowing you to customize the setup based on what you require on the road. Do note, the tent measures just half a foot on the narrowest section, so it’s probably not going to be the most comfortable.
The GFC Platform Camper comes with a memory foam sleeping pad right inside the tent, so you can sleep on it without the need for extra gear. Given how thin the darn thing is at just 2 inches thick, though, you might want to add a sleeping bag for a more comfortable sleep setup. Construction is welded steel tubes for the frame, aluminum for the side panels, composite material for the honeycomb structures, and vinyl for the tent. It comes in two sizes, one for mid-size trucks and one for full-sized trucks. According to the outfit, it’s compatible with plenty of pickup trucks that have been manufactured over the years, from the 1980s to the present. They have a full list of compatible trucks on their website.
Pricing for the GFC Platform Camper starts at $6,450.