A few TC questions about host trucks and factory add-ons

A 5500 cab and chassis with a bed of your choice allow more than enough room for payload plus reserve for towing. There are a lot of 3500 trucks pushed to their limits like my older GMC while the newer generations do offer more carrying capacity. I intend to tow and wanted the additional security plus I look forward to my wife driving on our trips and want the handling and braking to be something expected (second nature) to her exposure of driving a heavy load which isn't a lot.
Bedlam made choices with his new camper and is better to speak about it. It did involve more solar and a major delete of the skylight (prone to problems) in lieu of a fan. I believe the solar components are sourced locally to Host (Zamp power I think?) and they have a pretty good system in place.
Good luck and I'm sure Bedlam will chime in soon-

For the largest campers I would go with a 5500 Ram and add a flatbed, or, for more money, a custom truck camper bed. The largest campers are too much for a typical 3500. The F-450 does come as a pick-up but the capacity is still close if you have a loaded model and a family. GM is due out next year with a 4 series pick-up.

If you are spending that much money, you might as well have factory installed solar panels and solar charge controller.

Looking at the tow ratings, you can supposrt a payload of up to 7,000 lbs on the gas Hemi engine.

https://www.ramtrucks.com/assets/towing_guide/pdf/2017_ram_3500_towing_charts.pdf

Get an insurance quote before you purchase a 5500, my insurance company wouldnt touch it and I was told you would have to get a commercial policy.

I was fooling around on the Ford and Dodge pages, building trucks. I don't see how you'd stick a "normal" TC on one of those chassis cab trucks. Seems like that'd have to be something custom. My 'theoretical budget' is probably around $130K for truck and TC combined.

Wouldn't the diesels be preferable to the gas engines?

You buy a bed from a truck outfitter, install the bed on the chassis, then put the camper on the bed.

Lots of flatbed installations here on this forum. It's pretty common.

AllenTC2 wrote:
I was fooling around on the Ford and Dodge pages, building trucks. I don't see how you'd stick a "normal" TC on one of those chassis cab trucks. Seems like that'd have to be something custom. My 'theoretical budget' is probably around $130K for truck and TC combined.

Wouldn't the diesels be preferable to the gas engines?

For your budget you can have/build just about whatever you want. And yes a gasser will get the job done but imo a diesel is preferable.
If you go with the bigger class 4/5 truck, it's not really a good daily driver in my mind, unless you like commuting to work in construction equipment.
However if you're a strictly by the numbers person and aren't willing to understand or accept anything but what's printed in black and white, most of the big TCs will have you in a stripped down gasser 1 ton dually or a med duty truck to be within the factory payload rating.

For a fairly dedicated big camper hauler, you can't go wrong with a setup similar to one like Bedlams on here. And presuming you'd be using it ALOT if you're going in 6 figures on a truck and camper, flat beds are much more versatile. You can have gobs of exterior storage by way of add on tool boxes under the overhangs and you can get wheelbase and bed length to support the longest campers without having to employ even more hardware for hitch extensions/heavy towing in combination with the camper.

I was reading an article, fella had what looked like a utility truck with a TC on it.....this is what you all are referring to? That would be super handy. I had assumed that such a 'bed' would be a lot more expensive than just a regular ol' pickup bed. Oh well, more to research! LOL

And yeah, I'm contemplating full-timing in it, as it'll just be me (upon retirement....something I should have mentioned, sorry!).

Classy Chassis and Douglas both offer custom TC beds for cab and chassis trucks. With that budget and full time I would absolutely get a 5500. Yes, a 3500 with a gas ebgine, regular cab, 2wd, and no options will have a large payload. Most people don't want a truck like that. I love having an aluminum flatbed with tool boxes to carry my TC. But, I'm 1600 pounds over the GVWR on a 3500 dually.
As for solar, more is better. Aftermarket is usually cheaper. I'd get a couple hundred watts on there aftermarket, not from the factory.