In on this...not sure about your area of the country but when I was looking for a truck to put a TC on (3500 series to haul large hard side TC) the used trucks were just barely south the price of a new one. People around here want an awful lot for used trucks with high mileage. That was what led me to just buy new. I didn't look at anything smaller than a 2500 series truck so maybe you can pick up something in a 1500 series but you also said reliability was paramount so not sure how reliable a truck you can find in your price range (probably have to be diesel???) and still leave something for a camper. I guess it could be done....curious to see the outcome....good luck! :)
