My 5 cents worth:
Roof top tent - great for easy setup/pack up; uses space that you wouldn't normally use. Off the ground which is good. Similar comfort to your bed at home (pillows/doona etc). Downers: can reduce your fuel economy due to wind drag, if 4wd'n in an unknown area low branches can be an issue for damage to the camper up top. Centre of Gravity is raised a little.
Other than that my wife and I love our roof top camper, it needs some work but it does the job VERY well. Touring will probably be it's main use with the odd over nighter here and there. When it's just me I leave it at home, when it's the two of us it's one of the features of the offroad setup.
Swag - I've not got any experience with these but it seems to work out well for Venom, usually it's on the ground though.
^ He was moving it at the time, it's never been used on the roof!
Tent and sleeping bag. Personally when you're in the 4wd I don't like putting the tent up and pulling it back down the next day. I don't know why, but it seems un-necessary or something that I can't put a finger on.
Or you can go with what I usually use when I'm the only occupant in my subi on overnighter trips: Banana lounge, inflatable mat, sleeping bag + inner sheet with a tarp wrapped over the top if it's going to be a moist night. It'd be the same as a stretcher like what Subaruby uses:
^ If it looks like it's going to be wet or damp, a tarp can be used as a lean to from the roof racks with the use of two tent pegs.
As for stoves:
I've now got two of those little stoves that come in the case that uses the gas cartridges that are about the same size as a spray paint can; coleman and gasmate seem to be the two big makes of these stoves:
Good little stove when used in conjunction with a hot plate (that fits in it's case for storage). The cases can also be used as wash buckets for dinner clean up and also come in handy as a wind break while cooking.
Downer: the gas cartridges, mainly due to the waste of the cartridge that can't be refilled. And if you're heating water with them you will chew through many of these cartridges, which means that you need to carry more full ones and the used empty ones!
Trangia, goes well if you know how to use them. Pretty compact, pretty much comes with all the utensils you need to cook with and it's light as well. There are different sizes for your use - you just need to decide which one will fit your task.
I also dug up this image:
^ This is what I reckon I'd be looking for if I was in the market for another stove.
What I've also got that I use when hiking is a Coleman Apex Peak II:
This little sucker goes VERY well! With proper care and maintenance it's a little ripper. I prefer to run it on premium unleaded as the regular stuff leaves the black carbon deposits on the bottom of your pots etc. The 800mL fuel bottle goes a very long way with cooking etc before you need to re-fill. The pump is simple to use. Lighting them can be a flame throwing exercise if not done properly.
Downer for me: the fumes from the burner reminds me of a freeway - something you're usually trying to get away from when out bush... The other one would be that you really need a wind protector to help in windy conditions, a breeze isn't an issue but when windy it'll get in there and you'll loose out on heat.
But for me there's more pro's than cons on this stove, it can also be run on kero if needed - all you need is to change the "generator" pipe, this is the piece of pipe that heats the liquid fuel to turn it into a gas.
I've also got a neat little set of pots that this stove sits in. The fuel bottle and pump arrangement are stored separately. It's light and clean to use. Hiking it's great for the weight of the fuel and the "distance" that bottle will go before you run out. Relatively quiet too. When 4wd'n I've kept this as a back up for the gasmate "case" stove (I actually forgot I had the apex with me). Best bit is that it runs on the same fuel as my subi, so refills are not an issue, even if it means getting some out of the fuel tank!
Others are out there that do the job such as the whisper light, dunno who makes it though. Do a search. Also check out
Classic Camp Stoves - yep, there's a forum for camp stoves too. Here's the link to some details about the
Apex series.
All in all, you need to do your research to find what's going to work best for your given situation(s) that you'll find yourself wanting to use your stove in. Likewise with the tent/swag situation. The biggest factor is how much money to want to throw at all this. I've built on it over time and have only recently made the decision to get a roof top camper, big layout, but worth it in the end if you do your research!
Hope this essay hasn't made you fall asleep on your computer and that it's been of some use!
Cheers
Bennie
