1996 Ford F250 camper- Long post...
Good morning all. This post is to make a few observations and ask a few questions that I think a lot of folks could benefit from. I have read everything I can here and appreciate the thoughts and ex...
Forum Discussion
So I thought a follow up was in order.
After much research and thought I decided to stay with my current rims and do a better tire. I bought 265/75/16s that have a rating of 3400# each. I was going to get 285s with a 3700# rating but there was concern about fit and rubbing. These 265s have 3400# vs the 3042# of my old 235s for an increase of 358# each or 716# for the rear combined. I was 400# under with my Northstar so I figured this would give me 800# to play with and still be quite comfortable. So shopping I went.
A review:
The truck is a 1996 F250 crewcab powerstroke diesel with that weird 7 foot SB.
The old camper was a 2006 Northstar 850SC pop up. Loaded. 2760 dry which is how I typically travel. It is a 7 foot wide by 8ft 6 inch long floor plan designed for SB trucks.
I got lots of good advice for which I thank everyone. Some advocated that a 9+ footer would be fine and others advised against it. I kept an open mind while I searched. I looked at the same size campers, other Northstars and Lance 815s which I knew size wise would be fine. I really wanted something a little bigger. I looked at some nice slide outs. These are funny as some are only 150-200#s heavier than a non slide while others are 600-800#s more. While I would have preferred another Northstar with the cassette potty there aren't many in the northeast for sale used. My budget was $10-11,000 but less would be better as always.
I found a Lance 820 a little west of Scranton, PA in my price range. The seller seemed to be a good guy and took all the different angle pictures I wanted before making the 6+ hour drive to look at it. 2 weeks ago I made the trip. Seemed to be in very good shape. Loaded. Even has a solar panel and generator. Sweet.
Brochure:
8'11" box so 5" longer floor space
8 feet wide
2585# dry and base wgt
33gal fresh water
21gal gray
14 black
5CF frigde
2 propane tanks
So I knew that my Northstar squatted my truck 2 1/2". I lowered the lance on and it went another 1/4-3/8 inch. Seemed pretty good to me. It is a much bigger feel in it and outside when driving, backing, etc. The truck handled it very well.
I got home with it and spent some time cleaning it and tweaking things. The storage was actually an issue initially. It had some cabinets in the cabover that are useless to me in the kitchen area and there are no outside compartments in the wings due to the generator and the septic pipes and control. I got the inside where I want it cabinet wise, a new memory foam mattress, and switched all my light bulbs to LED.
Last week I stopped at the scale. I have to admit I was a bit nervous as someone on another post said their 820 weighed 4000#.
Sticker ratings:
Sticker:
8800 gvwr
4600 front axle rating
6084 rear axle rating (btw these are the numbers on the recommended tires, hmmm)
Truck, fuel, and me:
7084 gross
4240 front
2840 rear
Northstar and truck weight:
Weight with the camper:
9840 gross....1040 over
4220 front... pretty good COG if you think about the front being 20# lighter with the camper on.
5620 rear
Lance, truck, and me:
gross 10,460
front 4140 (lifted 100# off front end compared to 20# by the Northstar)
rear 6320 (new tires are rated to 6800# combined)
The Lance should weigh (give or take 50ish #s) 3376 loaded but dry and the Northstar was 2760 loaded and dry.
So overall I think it's pretty good. This camper loaded but dry is 616# heavier than the Northstar and 500# below the tire limits so a good trade and upgrade all around. I already had SuperSprings (I think the 2200# ones) on the rear but will probably do some airbags now for leveling.
Northstar after a bath for the sales listing:
Click For Full-Size Image.
The Lance leaving PA for it's new home:
Click For Full-Size Image.
I think the Lance needs a red stripe or something.
After much research and thought I decided to stay with my current rims and do a better tire. I bought 265/75/16s that have a rating of 3400# each. I was going to get 285s with a 3700# rating but there was concern about fit and rubbing. These 265s have 3400# vs the 3042# of my old 235s for an increase of 358# each or 716# for the rear combined. I was 400# under with my Northstar so I figured this would give me 800# to play with and still be quite comfortable. So shopping I went.
A review:
The truck is a 1996 F250 crewcab powerstroke diesel with that weird 7 foot SB.
The old camper was a 2006 Northstar 850SC pop up. Loaded. 2760 dry which is how I typically travel. It is a 7 foot wide by 8ft 6 inch long floor plan designed for SB trucks.
I got lots of good advice for which I thank everyone. Some advocated that a 9+ footer would be fine and others advised against it. I kept an open mind while I searched. I looked at the same size campers, other Northstars and Lance 815s which I knew size wise would be fine. I really wanted something a little bigger. I looked at some nice slide outs. These are funny as some are only 150-200#s heavier than a non slide while others are 600-800#s more. While I would have preferred another Northstar with the cassette potty there aren't many in the northeast for sale used. My budget was $10-11,000 but less would be better as always.
I found a Lance 820 a little west of Scranton, PA in my price range. The seller seemed to be a good guy and took all the different angle pictures I wanted before making the 6+ hour drive to look at it. 2 weeks ago I made the trip. Seemed to be in very good shape. Loaded. Even has a solar panel and generator. Sweet.
Brochure:
8'11" box so 5" longer floor space
8 feet wide
2585# dry and base wgt
33gal fresh water
21gal gray
14 black
5CF frigde
2 propane tanks
So I knew that my Northstar squatted my truck 2 1/2". I lowered the lance on and it went another 1/4-3/8 inch. Seemed pretty good to me. It is a much bigger feel in it and outside when driving, backing, etc. The truck handled it very well.
I got home with it and spent some time cleaning it and tweaking things. The storage was actually an issue initially. It had some cabinets in the cabover that are useless to me in the kitchen area and there are no outside compartments in the wings due to the generator and the septic pipes and control. I got the inside where I want it cabinet wise, a new memory foam mattress, and switched all my light bulbs to LED.
Last week I stopped at the scale. I have to admit I was a bit nervous as someone on another post said their 820 weighed 4000#.
Sticker ratings:
Sticker:
8800 gvwr
4600 front axle rating
6084 rear axle rating (btw these are the numbers on the recommended tires, hmmm)
Truck, fuel, and me:
7084 gross
4240 front
2840 rear
Northstar and truck weight:
Weight with the camper:
9840 gross....1040 over
4220 front... pretty good COG if you think about the front being 20# lighter with the camper on.
5620 rear
Lance, truck, and me:
gross 10,460
front 4140 (lifted 100# off front end compared to 20# by the Northstar)
rear 6320 (new tires are rated to 6800# combined)
The Lance should weigh (give or take 50ish #s) 3376 loaded but dry and the Northstar was 2760 loaded and dry.
So overall I think it's pretty good. This camper loaded but dry is 616# heavier than the Northstar and 500# below the tire limits so a good trade and upgrade all around. I already had SuperSprings (I think the 2200# ones) on the rear but will probably do some airbags now for leveling.
Northstar after a bath for the sales listing:
The Lance leaving PA for it's new home:
I think the Lance needs a red stripe or something.
