My wife and I want to order a single rear wheel 1 ton truck for the primary purpose of truck camping with our 2 year old boy - and we hope we can have a second living child. We are looking to use it for both weekend and longer trips. We live in Northern Canada and the truck will be our second vehicle when the camper is not being used (we will probably leave the camper on over summer and off in the winter except if we drive south). Only one of us will commute which means it's not an everyday car to drive. We would like to stick to single rear wheel based on our conversations. We have never owned a truck before.Here is the build I have made to try to get max payload with 11,900 GVWR which I think will be above 4,400lbs:F-350 SuperCrew 4x4 8’ bed Lariat with the following options:-7.3L gas-4.30 gears-Lariat UItimate Package-Snow Plow / Camper Package-Skid Plates - Transfer Case and Fuel Tank-400 Amp dual alternator w/ dual batteries-LED Roof Clearance LightsWe'd like as much space as possible in a truck camper for a decent used price given the small child and desire to have another. I found a 2010 Lance 950S with a dry weight of 3120lbs. It seems pretty ideal, another option would be an Adventurer 901SB or a used Wolf Creek.What weight camper could I get with this build? Any advice? Thank you.

Those LED clearance lights really cut into your cargo capacity... LOL just kidding.You're on the right track. 4400lbs is a good comfortable max weight on an F350 SRW, though you may want to put airbags on to level the truck, and add a rear sway bar. Take a wait and see approach on that though. There's no reason you can't take a trip or two with the truck stock to see how it feels, and add what you think it needs later. It's either going to be passable or awful right out of the gate. Not like you're going to get 500 miles from home and suddenly discover that it's undriveable (if you do something is seriously wrong that add-ons would not have prevented).Low 3000's dry is where you want to be looking for a camper. Sounds like you've done the research and have a few models in mind.

Here is a little math for your consideration.Lance 950S dry weight is approximately 3100#. Wet weight will be 3500#. Does that include any accessories such as awnings, upgraded mattress, microwave/oven, solar panels, upgraded battery, etc? Let's hope so because those items can add a lot to the base spec weight. Anyway what weight is reasonable for your and the passengers? 400#? That will bring the weight to 3500#.The rule of thumb is to add 1000# for "personal" items. That sounds like a lot but in my experience it has been hard to keep under that amount. This category includes such items as chairs, bbq grill, generator and fuel, tools, clothing, sheets/bedding, towels, cameras/electronics/hobby gear, extension cords, leveling blocks, cleaning supplies, black tank chemicals, etc, etc, etc. Let's not forget kitchen gear, plates, pots and pans, flatware, etc. Another big item is food and drink. Lug in your weekly groceries and you will quickly realize food and drink can get really heavy.If you start with a camper in the 3000# range, you will very likely exceed your 4400# capacity. Some suspensions mods will be needed. Depending on the State/Provence being over the limit can be a legal issue. Another issue is weight distribution. Except for passengers, almost all of the cargo weight will be on the back axle and tires. Depending on wheels and tires, you will likely be at or exceed the maximum load specs. You want to be able to use the truck as a second vehicle so avoiding a dually makes sense. You might want to reconsider. That supercrew and 8' bed are already issues for daily use. The length alone will make it difficult and sometimes impossible to maneuver in and out of parking lots.

Your F350 srw has a 7230 rawr that will be carrying most if not all of a trucks campers weight. These trucks rigged out like you say rear axle may weigh in the 3500+ lb range leaving around 3700 lbs max for a truck camper. I sure wouldn't exceed a tire/wheel or rear suspension rating. Add 4400 lbs in the bed over loads Fords 7230 rawr. That 4400 lb number is a gvwr payload and based on using the truck front and rear axles. Truck campers sit in the bed and add little if any weight to the front axle. GVWR payloads are better suited for lets say a work truck for a business that requires a over head rack that sits in the rear of a pickups frame/in the bed.... and on the trucks front frame rails. That way all 4400 lbs can be distributed on fawr and rawr. A 3100 lb truck camper ? By the time you load the camper out like you want and road ready it may weigh over 4000 lbs. Your looking at a one ton drw for weight carried in the bed like a truck camper.....or a lighter weight camper. Or mod the F350 srw rear suspension with 19.5" tires/wheels and air bags/etc.

I went to look up the actual specs on that truck and the owners manual says there should be a separate piece of paper in the glovebox with more information about using a slide-in camper.Here is other things I found. (dated 2018)https://www.truckcamperadventure.com/top-8-long-bed-truck-campers-for-one-ton-srw-trucks/https://www.fordtechservice.dealerconnection.com/vdirs/quickref/default.asp?pageid=camper_loading&nomenu=yesThis second link shows you what each accessory weighs and than has charts to your carrying capacities. just a quick view looks like this truck starts at 3752 lbs and goes down from there.

You can also forget about the Adverturer 901sb. The wet weight is almost 4000# and is almost certainly going to be over 5000# equipped for camping.

Ordering F-350 7.3 CCLB SRW - how big of camper can I get?

towpro
Explorer
Dec 14, 2022
BeMurda wrote:
I made the bed length decision quickly. Maximum payload, fuel tank and flexibility.
Order date 12/12/2022
Job 1 / Priority code 10

F-350 Lariat Crew Cab Long Box
Carbonized Grey / Black Onyx
7.3L
4.30 gears
Lariat Ultimate
Camper/Snowplow
FX4
Clearance Lights
Dual Battery / Alternator
Max Recline Seats
???????

Good Luck. I hope you get it quickly. (hope you even get it by next camping season)
JRscooby
Explorer II
Dec 14, 2022
StirCrazy wrote:
3 tons wrote:
StirCrazy wrote:
mellow wrote:
If you want, I could have my wife call yours and have her relate the story of what happened when our rear tire blew out on our SRW with the camper on the back. Either A. she will want the DRW or B. she will not want a TC.

weird when I blew the rear tire, I had to keep driving a mile, slowly pull over to a safe area and change it.. were back on the road 30 min after I pulled over..

Be advised that this should bring up another important topic - How to jack up the truck and change a rear tire with a heavy loaded camper in the bed…I found that the jack was worthless…

3 tons

I still say no matter what jack you use, it is best to put the flat up on block so center of axle is at least as high as normal before putting jack underneath. Jack to clear block, remove flat and block, mount spare. Much less jacking needed, and you know will not do that dangerous "up just a little more" without a wheel mounted.
If using a bottle jack, where you need to be under to operate, this is even more important.

all I had was the one that came with the truck. if your not over your max load it works good. was a little bit of a pain lowering the spair with the camper overhang but not bad.
StirCrazy
Moderator
Dec 14, 2022
3 tons wrote:
StirCrazy wrote:
mellow wrote:
If you want, I could have my wife call yours and have her relate the story of what happened when our rear tire blew out on our SRW with the camper on the back. Either A. she will want the DRW or B. she will not want a TC.

weird when I blew the rear tire, I had to keep driving a mile, slowly pull over to a safe area and change it.. were back on the road 30 min after I pulled over..

Be advised that this should bring up another important topic - How to jack up the truck and change a rear tire with a heavy loaded camper in the bed…I found that the jack was worthless…

3 tons

all I had was the one that came with the truck. if your not over your max load it works good. was a little bit of a pain lowering the spair with the camper overhang but not bad.
Grit_dog
Navigator
Dec 14, 2022
BeMurda wrote:
I made the bed length decision quickly. Maximum payload, fuel tank and flexibility.
Order date 12/12/2022
Job 1 / Priority code 10

F-350 Lariat Crew Cab Long Box
Carbonized Grey / Black Onyx
7.3L
4.30 gears
Lariat Ultimate
Camper/Snowplow
FX4
Clearance Lights
Dual Battery / Alternator
Max Recline Seats
???????

Congrats!
Heck of a (belated) Christmas present!
jimh406
Explorer III
Dec 14, 2022
3 tons wrote:
Be advised that this should bring up another important topic - How to jack up the truck and change a rear tire with a heavy loaded camper in the bed…I found that the jack was worthless…

There are multiple solutions. 1. Use the TC jacks to jack up the TC after you undo the tie downs. 2. Buy a larger bottle jack. I carry a 12 ton. The large ones aren't that much more.

I haven't personally had a flat in decades. It seems keeping good quality tires on a vehicle helps. The last time I was driving a forest service road, and they thought it was a good idea to put slicing rocks down as a road base. It went right through the sidewall of my B rated tires. The rocks looked a lot like heads for tomahawks. ;)

It's one of the reasons why I wanted a F450. The tire sidewalls are much heavier duty. YMMV.
3_tons
Explorer III
Dec 14, 2022
StirCrazy wrote:
mellow wrote:
If you want, I could have my wife call yours and have her relate the story of what happened when our rear tire blew out on our SRW with the camper on the back. Either A. she will want the DRW or B. she will not want a TC.

weird when I blew the rear tire, I had to keep driving a mile, slowly pull over to a safe area and change it.. were back on the road 30 min after I pulled over..

Be advised that this should bring up another important topic - How to jack up the truck and change a rear tire with a heavy loaded camper in the bed…I found that the jack was worthless…

3 tons
wjlapier
Explorer
Dec 13, 2022
mellow wrote:
If you want, I could have my wife call yours and have her relate the story of what happened when our rear tire blew out on our SRW with the camper on the back. Either A. she will want the DRW or B. she will not want a TC.

We load 6 8ft railroad ties in the bed for winter. Recently I purchased KO2’s so now this Dually sticks to the road—knock on wood…;)

We’ve been using the railroad ties since we owned a ‘15 GMC 3500 SRW LB.
BeMurda
Explorer
Dec 13, 2022
I made the bed length decision quickly. Maximum payload, fuel tank and flexibility.
Order date 12/12/2022
Job 1 / Priority code 10

F-350 Lariat Crew Cab Long Box
Carbonized Grey / Black Onyx
7.3L
4.30 gears
Lariat Ultimate
Camper/Snowplow
FX4
Clearance Lights
Dual Battery / Alternator
Max Recline Seats
???????
StirCrazy
Moderator
Dec 13, 2022
mellow wrote:
If you want, I could have my wife call yours and have her relate the story of what happened when our rear tire blew out on our SRW with the camper on the back. Either A. she will want the DRW or B. she will not want a TC.

weird when I blew the rear tire, I had to keep driving a mile, slowly pull over to a safe area and change it.. were back on the road 30 min after I pulled over..
StirCrazy
Moderator
Dec 13, 2022
BeMurda wrote:
Update: after much discussion, my wife vetoed dually after I brought one home and parked it on our driveway. Now I am looking at SRW long vs short box. I know long box has bigger gas tank and more camper options, but some campers in the lower weight ranges are built specifically for short box. I lean long box but I need to think further and decide.

I would go long box. All I ever had was shortboxs and my newest truck is a long box, I would never go back. there are lots of light weight campers that fit in a long box, you may not get a generator, but thats not a bad thing to me. if you buying a newer truck you should have a gvrw thats higher than mine and I would have no problem hauling a 3600 lb dry camper in mine. the one I am looking at upgrading to is used by a rv rental company on a SRW truck and they have more regulations and such it is 3500lbs ish. I guess a lot depends on how much junk you put in the camper also.. I only put about 250lbs of junk and clothes, far from the 5-600lbs most people take. My 5th wheel is for the junk.