Anyone using an Alu-cab ladder?

I am not sure what they mean by wider and sloped. That looks like they took one of the telescoping ladders off Amazon and painted it black.

I’d be very curious to see a side by side comparison



Here are some pictures of the Alu-Cab ladder mounted on the GFC. It’s a super nice & comfortable ladder. But… The width of the rungs presents a bit of a problem as the truck gets taller.

As you can see, the Gladiator fenders are very close to the ladder at stock Rubicon height. When the 2.5 lift & 35’s are mounted, that’s going to be a problem.

Sooo… I’m contemplating a spacer that will push the ladder mount an additional 2 inches away from the GFC. If the Mantis Claws could be mounted to the top of this ladder, it would solve the problem, and instantly become a superior solution for those who want a barefoot friendly ladder option.

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can you use the Alu cab ladder with the the mantis claws…

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Yes, you can use the manis claw with the alucab ladder. That’s the setup I’m using.

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Would you mind taking pics? I want to pull the trigger on this setup for the wider specs but the top of the Alu-cab telescoping seems different as I try and find pics to see if Mantis Claws will work. The GFC supplied have small rungs. Thanks in advance! :fist_right:

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Here you go. There’s no issue. I just removed the alu-cab mounts.

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Dude, thank you! That looks awesome! Stoked to start using this. :pray:

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Another option to the Mantis Claws is using either a short or a medium RAM arm and two 1.5" RAM balls mounts. The advantage of the RAM mount is that the ladder can have both feet on the ground, even when the ground is uneven. Plus, it will only set you back $50! Add 2 more ball mounts and you can move your ladder to any side.

RAM balls come with different shaped bases, 1/4"-20 studs, or T-bolts. The latter would be a really clean looking mount on the V1/V2 side channels. The plate on the stainless steel T-bolt is slightly smaller than 1/2" x 1". If necessary, file down the sides of the plate to fit the RTT channels.

I posted some pictures of mine (w/med. arm) that I mounted on my Front Runner rack in the SuperLite section.

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That looks pretty clean and easy.

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That’s great. The Alu-cab looks so superior.

So can you take the mantis claw out of the GFC ladder? Looked at buying just the mantis claws and it says $200…

I’m afraid that is the price for just the mantis claws… Machined parts don’t come cheap apparently.



If your ladder is between steps I did this hack.

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Also added grip tape to all steps. Buy the alu cab ladder much better

I’m using the Alucab ladder, happy with it. The wide rungs are very comfy and safe to use. A couple hacks:

  1. I installed the Alucab mounting hardware, which is nice and solid. For the extra spacing required for attaching this to the GFC T-nuts, Instead of adding extra washers I added a single extra piece of 1/8" aluminum and drilled oversize holes; it all seated and tightened properly.
  2. If the angle of the ladder is steep the wider rungs of the Alucab ladder press against the truck/topper. I trimmed about 3/4" from the top 3 rungs and this issue has gone away. (I used a carbide wood blade mounted on a Makita mini-grinder. This cuts aluminum easily but be wary of flying bits, sharp, tiny, fast and hot: some kind of full-face protection is recommended).
  3. I’m surprised at how much the ladder angle changes between one rung and the next. I like karenkreisel’s wooden mid-rung hack ^^^ and may build something similar for fine-tuning the angle.

Honestly blows my mind that all the RTT companies haven’t gone to the Alu-Cab ladder design. The angled rungs are a superior design and a no brainer. You’d think whatever Chinese factory is knocking out everyone else’s ladders would have caught on to the angled rungs by now?

I’m using the Alu Cab ladder with the GFC Mantis Claws. They popped right in and work perfectly - and eliminate the issue of ladder rungs contacting the vehicle. I also applied a foam traction pad to each rung (made for stand up paddleboards, with a VHB self adhesive backing). Ultra comfortable on the feet, even in cold weather.

I agree, this is the only ladder anyone should use with a RTT. The rung design is so much better, it makes the others completely inferior (even though I think they are all made in the same factory).

What length of alu cab ladder are you using?
I see they have two models. 6.5 ft and 8.5 ft
I would be using it on a Tacoma with no lift.
Thanks for the info.
Cheers.

I think I’ve answered my own question.
Looks like the 6.5 ft (2m) version has flat rungs.
The 8.5 ft version (2.6m) version has the wide and angled rungs.

Love mine. I added foam nonslip to the wide rungs and climbing in and out barefoot is completely comfortable.

IMG_1023



Love that the mantis claw is a direct fit.

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