Anyone using an Alu-cab ladder?

GENERAL DISCUSSION Gear Reviews
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I’m looking forward to my V2 install in January. I’m contemplating this ladder from Alu-cab. Specifically, I like the fact that the ladder rungs are wider, and sloped (easier on bare feet).

Has anyone attempted to use this ladder/mount solution with their GFC?

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Why would you want that when GFC has the Mantis Claw? The Mantis Claw is awesome!

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I am not opposed to the Mantis Claw. But… It appears to be a really nice top on a pretty average ladder. I’m far from small. And my feet hurt even before climbing up & down a ladder on the corners of the rungs.

I wouldn’t mind using the claws on the top of the iKamper ladder. But, by the time you buy all of that, you might just use the Alu-cab.

I just hadn’t seen anyone comment on it. And it seems like the mount would be something you could secure to the side of the tent with those t-nuts. So, I’m curious…

4

I don’t have one but I agree that the Alu-Cab ladder looks like a good contender for mounting to the GFC t-tracks. The mounting bracket included has bolt holes all along a single line so it should be easy to put on the GFC.

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I would recommend the beefier 1/4-20 tnuts for mounting the bracket. However, it is likely that the backside of the bracket is flat and does not contain recesses for where the tnuts sit proud from the GFC extrusion. You can slip nylon washers around the tnuts to make up for that. Here’s an example:

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Hillman-6-Count-0-500-in-x-3-4-in-Nylon-Standard-SAE-Flat-Washer/4582511

I personally have the iKamper ladder, which doesn’t come with mounts so I made some using aluminum square tube, tnuts, and the nylon washers linked above.

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Got the Mantis claw system and the provided ladder from GFC a few weeks back and picking up my camper next week. I can give you a review of that system if you’d like. I know I’m not answering your question about Alu-cab but might help a bit in your decision making!

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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

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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.

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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.

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

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

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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

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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.