How minimal of clearance is okay between cab and cabover?

Too little clearance will get you a damaged truck roof.
I have tested this out bare minimum would be 1 '' And that can be risky in on bad roads , but have not had it hit truck roof yet
Want to be safe go with 1.5 inches and you will be fine.

You are welcome popeyemth, it should work out good for you. Ideally, running the 2x6 front to rear as you have them, you want one under the TC walk area. I also think you should use a screw or something to prevent the 2x6 from walking out from under the TC, to the outside. It takes very little to hold it. One screw in the front and rear should be plenty.

Wayne

Thanks to Reddog1 raised my camper 2 inches today
Looking for clearance to put my genny under it on a carryall
Felt like I had to run my spacer boards along the long axis to give support to the end of the 8 foot box in my 6.5 foot bed because part of gaining clearance was removing the tailgate

The spacer was 2X6 in 3 places ( to follow the existing rib system ) and a sheet of 1/2 inch plywood for a total of 2 inches

tooldad1041 wrote:
Done. Across the bottom of my camper, there are u-shaped pieces of metal. so what I did was remove them, applied a wood treatment to the bottom while it was flat. attached the 2x4's where the metal strips were, then reapplied the metal runners. This way they are always there and no storage issues.

Now as a safety note, I used 2 maple top with heavy metal leg work tables under each end of the camper while I was underneath. While still using the legs from the camper also.

I simply throw the 2x4s or 4x4s in the bed of the truck, then load the TC. I put two 5' to 5-1/2' long pieces (cut from 8' long pieces) in front of the wheel well and two behind the wheel well. I put the 2-1/2' to 3' pieces between the wheel wells, bumping one end against the wheel well to give support to the bottom edge of the TC, and the other end toward the bed center supports the floor. Leaving them loos makes them easy to stack and store with the TC off.

RichieC wrote:

Reddog1 wrote:
. . .I tried the dense foam, but did not like it. The normal rocking of the TC side to side beat down the foam at the edges of the TC. Not a major problem, but it also was an issue to store when I unloaded the TC. I tried several methods to raise the TC. I prefer to use 2x4's or 4x4's side to side in the bed of the truck. Kiln dried prefered simply because the pieces are lighter, easier to load.

Wayne

I haven't tried foam board yet but thought that I'd hot glue it (or double stick tape it) to the bottom of the camper.

I really do not see how the hot glue will prevent the foam from compressing at the edges of the TC. Push your fingernail into a styrofoam cup and you will see what I mean. When going around a turn, going down a driveway to the street, gusty side wind, anything that causes the TC to rock side to side will compress the foam board.

It does not compress in one day, but every time you use the TC, it compresses more. The concentrated weight of the TC is far more at the bottom edges than in the center of the floor.

Done. Across the bottom of my camper, there are u-shaped pieces of metal. so what I did was remove them, applied a wood treatment to the bottom while it was flat. attached the 2x4's where the metal strips were, then reapplied the metal runners. This way they are always there and no storage issues.

Now as a safety note, I used 2 maple top with heavy metal leg work tables under each end of the camper while I was underneath. While still using the legs from the camper also.

The rear doors on my crew cab were the limiting factor on mine. When parked on a slant and the door scraped the cabover, I lifted it more.

Thanks. I will pick up some 2x's on the way home. Need to take it off to take truck in for service before Saturday's trip.

Thanks again everyone.

Reddog1 wrote:
. . .I tried the dense foam, but did not like it. The normal rocking of the TC side to side beat down the foam at the edges of the TC. Not a major problem, but it also was an issue to store when I unloaded the TC. I tried several methods to raise the TC. I prefer to use 2x4's or 4x4's side to side in the bed of the truck. Kiln dried prefered simply because the pieces are lighter, easier to load.

Wayne

I haven't tried foam board yet but thought that I'd hot glue it (or double stick tape it) to the bottom of the camper.

popeyemth wrote:
Thanks Wayne for the info
I've been wanting to raise mine a couple of inches to store our Champion genny under the rear overhang on a carryall.

You are welcome.

You need to experience it yourself. It is so easy to raise the TC, just by putting 2x4's or 4x4's under it. Do make sure they extend past the sides on the TC bottom. A very inexpensive and simple change.

I am of the belief that there are so many influences on the way our trucks and TCs handle and our personal comfort level, that what may work well for one setup, may be awful in another. When we make a change, and make one trip how can we really tell if our fuel consumption is better or worse? I did one continuous trip one summer, and got from 10 MPG to 16 MPG. I can say, I have had my truck since 2001 (different TC), and my current TC in 2004. With all of my various changes, I have got 12.5 MPG more often than better or worse. I tend to get about 1 MPG less when towing my Samurai. I should add, my truck/TC road manors have not changed after suspension upgrades, with the major improvement of the 19.5s.