Sorry for the ignorance. How does a truck camper 'work?' Say a TC's length is 6.5' and a truck bed is 5.5'. Obviously, the tailgate cannot be up. Do you remove the tailgate or just lay it down? If you do remove it, why? Will a 6.5' TC fit into a 5.5' bed?Secondly, how do you 'tie down' a TC? Whatever it takes, does that come with the TC or do you have to buy something?Is there any electrical wiring that needs to be hooked up to the truck? They don't have brake lights on them, just reflectors, right?Thanks!

Tailgates add minimal support for most brands of campers. I believe Alaskan is the only brand that designs to leave the tailgate down. So, we remove our tailgates. They come off fairly easily and protects from rocks/road debris by being off and remove a bit of weight. Some campers cover the truck tail lights. Those have a hookup similar to a fifth wheel and some have proprietary connectors in the bed. To hold campers down, campers have tiedown mounts that attach to frame, bumper, or bed and tiedowns. If you mention the model you are considering and your truck, we can give more specific information. You could also take a look at some youtube videos or brand videos.

while Im sure you will get a miriad of replies, here are mine1.) tailgate down or off depends on the TC, some need it off, some dont2.) tie down kits are available, pipes that hook to the frame under the box and cables or turnbuckels come up the side of the body to hook into the over hanging bit of the camper.3.) nearly all truck campers have lights of some sort, side markers etc etc, they simply plug into the trucks trailer socket.

livemusic wrote:Sorry for the ignorance. How does a truck camper 'work?' Say a TC's length is 6.5' and a truck bed is 5.5'. Obviously, the tailgate cannot be up. Do you remove the tailgate or just lay it down? If you do remove it, why? Will a 6.5' TC fit into a 5.5' bed?Secondly, how do you 'tie down' a TC? Whatever it takes, does that come with the TC or do you have to buy something?Is there any electrical wiring that needs to be hooked up to the truck? They don't have brake lights on them, just reflectors, right?Thanks!This is a pic of my 8 ft Palomino on a 6ft9in Ford F250Yes you need tie downsThe tailgate is offYou need the 7 pin plug in for running lights and to charge the battand the return ground

Sir, at the rear, you have it attached to the bumper? Where is it attached at the front?Do all TC's use 4 tie downs like that, and attached to the outside of the truck somewhere?My truck has four of these, one in each corner of the bed...Can I tie to these somehow?So, I guess a 6.5' TC would fit in a 5.5' truck bed.Do you remove the tailgate simply to save weight? Do you have to remove it?Thanks to all for replies.

I'm new at this but I didn't want to cut corners and or be drilling holes in the side of my truck. I went with these. Cost a few bucks but they are made real well. The ones for my truck were a pretty nice fit. There are fronts and backs. The first of each take an hour to put in, the second takes ten minutes. Its a learning curve thing.My curve is bigger then it may be for others. ;)TorkliftEd

How does a truck camper fit into a truck bed? | Good Sam Community

GeoBoy
Explorer
Aug 19, 2016
livemusic wrote:
I have Nissan Titan crew cab with 2,000 total payload capacity, it has a bed 5'7". Seems a pop up around 1,000 lb could work?

Look for a Four Wheeler truck camper, they are one of the lightest and very well built.
livemusic
Explorer
Aug 18, 2016
I have Nissan Titan crew cab with 2,000 total payload capacity, it has a bed 5'7". Seems a pop up around 1,000 lb could work?
Steve_in_29
Explorer
Aug 18, 2016
livemusic wrote:
Sir, at the rear, you have it attached to the bumper? Where is it attached at the front?

Do all TC's use 4 tie downs like that, and attached to the outside of the truck somewhere?

My truck has four of these, one in each corner of the bed...

Can I tie to these somehow?

So, I guess a 6.5' TC would fit in a 5.5' truck bed.

Do you remove the tailgate simply to save weight? Do you have to remove it?

Thanks to all for replies.

What truck do you have?

A 5.5' Nissan is NOT a good candidate to put a TC on.
time2roll
Nomad
Aug 18, 2016
Do one-ton trucks come with a 5.5' bed?
trail-explorer
Explorer
Aug 18, 2016
Those little brackets are not going to be heavy duty enough to hold a truck camper in place.

Go here for all your tiedown needs: www.torklift.com
trail-explorer
Explorer
Aug 18, 2016
Remove tailgate so it will not get damaged by flying debris, or from the truck camper. Tailgates are not very good "weight bearing" devioces like trucks from the 70s. Thinner sheetmetal, means lighter which, which translates to "flimsy".
RWDIII
Explorer
Aug 18, 2016
livemusic wrote:
Sir, at the rear, you have it attached to the bumper? Where is it attached at the front?

Do all TC's use 4 tie downs like that, and attached to the outside of the truck somewhere?

My truck has four of these, one in each corner of the bed...

Can I tie to these somehow?

So, I guess a 6.5' TC would fit in a 5.5' truck bed.

I like torklifts tie downs.
the fronts are bolted to the frame
The rear bumper on the F250 is heavy enough for the cheaper HJs
I replaced the front HJs because one broke
I would not tie down the camper to the bed

Do you remove the tailgate simply to save weight? Do you have to remove it?
No,it is just better I still4x4 and tailgate is not needed
Thanks to all for replies.
TxGearhead
Explorer II
Aug 18, 2016
livemusic wrote:
Sir, at the rear, you have it attached to the bumper? Where is it attached at the front?

Do all TC's use 4 tie downs like that, and attached to the outside of the truck somewhere?

My truck has four of these, one in each corner of the bed...

Can I tie to these somehow?

So, I guess a 6.5' TC would fit in a 5.5' truck bed.

Do you remove the tailgate simply to save weight? Do you have to remove it?

Thanks to all for replies.

Question #1: I can't tell in that picture. TORKLIFT tiedowns are popular and attach to the truck frame. http://www.torklift.com/
Question #2: Yes, all I have seen have 4 tiedowns.
Question #3: NO.
Question #4: Maybe, maybe not.
Question #5: No, it is required for most campers to fit in the truck.
Ed-N-Dani
Explorer
Aug 18, 2016
I'm new at this but I didn't want to cut corners and or be drilling holes in the side of my truck. I went with these. Cost a few bucks but they are made real well. The ones for my truck were a pretty nice fit. There are fronts and backs. The first of each take an hour to put in, the second takes ten minutes. Its a learning curve thing.My curve is bigger then it may be for others. ;)

Torklift

Ed
livemusic
Explorer
Aug 18, 2016
Sir, at the rear, you have it attached to the bumper? Where is it attached at the front?

Do all TC's use 4 tie downs like that, and attached to the outside of the truck somewhere?

My truck has four of these, one in each corner of the bed...

Can I tie to these somehow?

So, I guess a 6.5' TC would fit in a 5.5' truck bed.

Do you remove the tailgate simply to save weight? Do you have to remove it?

Thanks to all for replies.