From TC to class B

Since we all have bigger trucks to carry our campers how come nobody is talking about a 5th wheel?? Ive been looking since the wife hates to make and climb in and out of the bed?? I know probably cant go were we usally go. cant tow the boat, but a 5ver under 33" Just thinking.... been looking at some since I already have a DRW with low miles and paid for.

~DJ~ wrote:
I have been thinking the same thing but have not said anything in fear of getting banned form the TC forum!! :B

DW is retiring in a few more years and wants to travel. She will not go with me in the little TC. Too small, too claustrophobic. We do have a nice 23' Nash TT for both of us or just me when I go to places it will fit. But it is a PITA to set up vs a MH. And my truck, being setup for off road doesn't make the best TV. I would love to pull into a spot, hit the auto levelers and be camping!! And with it sitting in the backyard I could just throw in some groceries and be gone in minutes.

I don't want a huge one. 22-24' on a Ford E 450 with V 10 and 7500# towing capacity so I could tow both a Jeep and a boat. I don't care much about the layout but do want the easy chair behind the passenger cockpit seat.

I actually went shopping last weekend and found a nice 2014 that had what I wanted. But it was a rental with 40K miles on it. That makes me nervous although it does come with a warranty.

Anyway, when the realization hit me that I am not camping in the back country anymore it immediately went to the back burner!! :E

LOL

Before we bought out TC, we talked about all types of RVs, including Class-B's. One reason we did not purchase any type of motorhome is that when your engine has mechanical problems, you lose your home as well as your vehicle while it is being worked on. With the TC, you can always have it dropped off at a campground to live in while the truck is being worked on.

This one factor is why we do not ever want a motorized RV. Also the cost of class-B's is too much as compared to the rig we put together 2014 Ram and 2013 TC = $45K, all new. No class-B can be found for anywhere near that price, when new. Of course some truck/TC combinations can cost as much or more than a class-B.

Naio wrote:
Butch50, where did you get that awesome seat?!

They are sold through Camping World.

Thomas Payne Collection

They are made by Lippert.

Because I was working with a small space in a smaller MH I had to use 2 seats that are meant for middle ones and not the ones on the end with arms. They come in sections and you buy what you need. Mine are a 3 piece set up, 2 center seats and one center console. They lock together to basically become one.

Gaetan wrote:
Because we are getting older and climing in the bed is harder
We are thinking about a small class B or C,
Has any one suggestions
Gaetan

One of the nice things about class B and C is you can find places to rent one to try them out. You can look and talk about them all you want you will never know until you spend some time in one.

Butch50, where did you get that awesome seat?!

Tiger4x4RV wrote:
I really like my 4x4 Tiger. Have spent over 500 nights in it so far, and that's with missing some seasons for medical issues and with working full-time for most of the years I've owned it.

I sleep downstairs on the couch bed due to climbing issues. That might not work for 2 people unless they were small and/or slept very cuddled up. I store stuff on the cabover bed and also in the truck cab at night. Cab windows have full removable Reflectix covers to provide insulation, privacy, and light control.

For PhotoMike, with the issue of bending over to get out the door: try going out backwards. Hold the assist handle. Add more assist handles if necessary. Easier to climb down and you don't whack your head on the door top.

I've started using a small lightweight stepstool as an additional outside stairstep.

Some B's have an option for a more regular motorhome door instead of the slider; that might make access easier.

I am leaning towards a Sprinter as the doors are higher, on a standard B I have hit my head on all the ones that I went to look at as the door only goes to the height of the van not the raised top (I don't learn the quickest :-)).

I have looked at Chinooks and Tigers (as well as Earthroamers) but nothing around here that is affordable and in good shape. I found a Bigfoot motor home locally last night that I inquired about but I think it is larger than I want to go with.

I would really like something that is smaller that I can use daily if I want so that I can leave a lot of my misc. photo gear in it. I also like the idea of having a bathroom in my daily driver so when I stop to shoot I have all the luxuries of home!

To the OP, we did that just 1 1/2 years ago. I had an 2013 Ram Dually with a NL 10-2 camper and it was just getting hard for my wife (who broke her ankle very badly with still 2 plates and 12 screws in it) to get into the camper and then into the bed.

We got a small class C with twin beds in the back and it had a sofa in it till I decided I wanted something more comfortable to sit in so out went the sofa an in went the following:










This is my rig and what I tow behind it. I sure don't have a 7500# towing capacity but I do have 4200# which tows my Subaru just fine.



The Subaru is a nice little SUV to explore with and gets me most places I want to go. If I want to go rougher I'll bring my Polaris UTV 900 Trail and use it.

Is your current TC a basement model? Are you aware that a basement model truck camper has much less difference in height from the floor to the bed?
Some of the bigger campers now days have the floor at the height of the truck bed rails. This makes the climb to the bed even less. Of course, it does mean more steps to get in and out of the camper.

Bedlam wrote:

You will have trouble finding these with a tow rating over 5000 lbs. 4wd and tow rating is biggest reason we have a TC.

In 2014 some Class C manufacturers went from the 5000# class hitch to 8000#. The 2014 and up Ford E 450 with V 10 and Sunseeker frame/coach is rated at 7500#.

E 450 Sunseeker

And yes, 4x4's are rare. But with the limited ground clearance I don't know if I would ever get to wherever I'd need it. An electric rear locker with all the weight on those duallys would probably do just as well. But I understand Host is building Class C's on an F 550 4x4. I can't imagine how expensive they would be. :E