Lance 480 9' 6" on a short bed truck

mkirsch wrote:

VintageRacer wrote:
That means it will be very dangerous to drive, will violate the factory Ford load guidelines and all of that boring safety stuff. So no, the camper won`t fit safely on that truck.

Actually, it is not that cut and dried.

To further complicate things, we have no qualms about hanging a 1000lb trailer tongue off the receiver at the rear of an F350, with NO WEIGHT DISTRIBUTION HITCH.

1000lbs at the receiver has the same effect on the front wheels as around 5000lbs at 12" behind the rear axle. So why is it okay for a trailer and not okay for a camper?

I still say NO, but only because of the fact that the camper's floor may not be able to take the stress. However, being educated as to WHY will help you understand.

I would not so quickly say no. Only because, I have a 10 ft TC on my 2002 F350 CCSB 4x4. As mkirsch states so eloquently, we do not hesitate to add significant weight behind out Trucks and TC's with tongue-weights nearing 1500lbs, and some on hitch extensions up to 48" long. You need to definitely support the floor. You can also relocate weight shifting much of your weight forward. If the TC is well within your gross weight numbers, then build a platform and see if the buddy will let you load it long enough for a test drive, and a session at the local scales. The scales will tell you alot. I know if I drive my TC without water in the front tank, it handles very differently than when I have the full 40 gallons in the tank. Neither situation has the truck felt unsafe. But also realizing the characteristics of a particular truck and TC, will help you not only select a truck and camper combo, but will help with upgrade selections such as air-bags, sway-bars, 19.9 rims and tires etc.

Just food for thought. Especially with older TC's. My 10 ft TC had an entirely new floor installed by the PO that is 3/4" plywood over a framework of 2x4 brown-treat lumber on edge. This makes for a very solid floor and also gained the clearance necessary for the Ford's roof.

Good Luck!

Garry

VintageRacer wrote:
My word the internet is an amazing place. Found this in three minutes:

Here are the specifications for your Lance 480. I found this in my "Lance library" going back as far as 1984.

Lance Model 480
Floor Length: 9’6”
Width Overall: 93”
Height (Interior): 6’ 6½”
Fresh Water Tank (Gal.): 33
Gray Water Tank (Gal.): 11
Black Water Tank (Gal.): 12
LPG Tanks (no./Gal.): 2/5
Standard Cabover
Dry Weight: 2,195
Length Overall: 15’ 5”
Center of Gravity: 64”
Extended Cabover
Dry Weight: 2,275
Length Overall: 16’ 9”
Center of Gravity: 68”

The center of gravity of your unloaded camper is 68 inches from the rear of the camper. That means it`s 46 inches from front of the bed. The axle on that truck is 34 inches from the lip of the bed, so the center of gravity of the camper will be a full foot behind the axle. That means it will be very dangerous to drive, will violate the factory Ford load guidelines and all of that boring safety stuff. So no, the camper won`t fit safely on that truck.

Brian

Brian... you have made a very good post... and a very good point. The data you found definatly eliminates the possible use of this camper on this truck.

Anyone that says it is OK! enjoys seeing / posting photos and video's of misfit rigs that people cobble together.

It would be dangerous to the general public as well as the owner, his family, or guests.

Often on the internet you find annomous people giving bad advice and not asumming responsibility when things go wrong.

I saw a guy and his children trying to syphion gasoline out of a automobile tank with a wet/dry vacuum.... he said that he read it on the internet.

VintageRacer wrote:
That means it will be very dangerous to drive, will violate the factory Ford load guidelines and all of that boring safety stuff. So no, the camper won`t fit safely on that truck.

Actually, it is not that cut and dried.

At least on GMs, the CG range for a slide in camper is ANYWHERE in the bed.

They show a picture with a narrow shaded area over the rear axle, and mark it with an A (front) and a B (rear). Then they give figures for A and B in a chart.

On a 78" bed, the value of A is 0" and B is 78", meaning the camper CG can be ANYWHERE in the bed, provided the weight is at or below the maximum camper weight specified in the glove compartment.

To further complicate things, we have no qualms about hanging a 1000lb trailer tongue off the receiver at the rear of an F350, with NO WEIGHT DISTRIBUTION HITCH.

1000lbs at the receiver has the same effect on the front wheels as around 5000lbs at 12" behind the rear axle. So why is it okay for a trailer and not okay for a camper?

I still say NO, but only because of the fact that the camper's floor may not be able to take the stress. However, being educated as to WHY will help you understand.

Thanks for the information, really sorry to hear the short bed won't work for my Lance, the truck is in Mint condition F350 Crew Cab with only 12,000 miles w/tow and camper package $30,000........

No.

My word the internet is an amazing place. Found this in three minutes:

Here are the specifications for your Lance 480. I found this in my "Lance library" going back as far as 1984.

Lance Model 480
Floor Length: 9’6”
Width Overall: 93”
Height (Interior): 6’ 6½”
Fresh Water Tank (Gal.): 33
Gray Water Tank (Gal.): 11
Black Water Tank (Gal.): 12
LPG Tanks (no./Gal.): 2/5
Standard Cabover
Dry Weight: 2,195
Length Overall: 15’ 5”
Center of Gravity: 64”
Extended Cabover
Dry Weight: 2,275
Length Overall: 16’ 9”
Center of Gravity: 68”

The center of gravity of your unloaded camper is 68 inches from the rear of the camper. That means it`s 46 inches from front of the bed. The axle on that truck is 34 inches from the lip of the bed, so the center of gravity of the camper will be a full foot behind the axle. That means it will be very dangerous to drive, will violate the factory Ford load guidelines and all of that boring safety stuff. So no, the camper won`t fit safely on that truck.

Brian

Can you determine if the camper was designed by the manufacturer to fit in a short (aka standard) bed truck? Unfortunately, I sincerely doubt a 1993 model of that size is designed for a short bed. Short bed 3/4 ton and 1 ton pickups were generally not available in 1993.

Long bed campers are typically designed to be supported along the first 8' of floor. In a short bed truck, you will have 18" of that floor hanging off the back of the truck, bouncing down the road. This may or may not be a problem, depending on the camper. Nothing bad may happen, or you may break the camper's back.

No, you cannot use the tailgate to make up the difference. The tailgate is not designed to have thousands of pounds bouncing up and down on it for thousands of miles. The hold-up cables will also likely interfere with the camper body.

Less of an issue is that the Center of Gravity (CG) of the camper will be about 12" behind the axle. This may or may not be a problem depending on how heavy the camper is. When you put weight behind the rear axle it acts like a see-saw and lifts weight off the front axle, causing mushy handling and braking issues.

Also, the 1993 camper's cabover will definitely not be high enough to clear the Ford's cab. You will need to raise the camper up on a platform to clear the cab. This may be a blessing in disguise because you can build the platform to support the camper along the full 8' it was designed to be supported by.