Pop-Up Truck Camper

They are not as light as you think, look for a light weight hard sided camper and avoid the hassle of a tent camper and have better insulation for colder and hotter camping

Ouch! Such opinions.
As the owner of two pop-ups I have some experience. As a single camper I can tell you that a pop-up with no slides provides enough room for one or two, any more and it's crowded. A light weight pop-up with no bath can be handled by a properly equipped 1500. There are some with wet baths, but you need to go up a size or two in trucks to carry them. The best part of a pop-up is the window space around the soft sides. This allows for lots of light or great air flow. As far as heating, my first I insulated with bubble insulation, the second has an artic pack. Both have been warm and snug in temps below freezing. There are many used campers available at good prices, just make sure you inspect them well.

We have had both. Previously we had a Lance, now we have an Outfitter.

A big plus on the tent type is mobility in the back country. Ours is just low enough to keep on going whereas a full height TC is going to be bushwacking a lot of limbs causing damage to the camper, or just not able to proceed.

On side hills we generally have an advantage of a lower center of gravity.

As far as setup, for us its not an issue, maybe 3 minutes at the most, if a full height TC has a slide well its about the same.

From my experience its just easier to unload a popup and it fits in our garage. Part of it may be the electric jacks.

Some people talk about boondocking being more difficult because the popup is showing, well most people just don't know and don't care. Its never been an issue anywhere, including downtown Washington D.C.

Oh, how about those bears. Our roof fully loaded is probably about 700 lbs, drop that on a bear that is dumb enough to climb up 7 feet, and try to get in through the vinyl and he is going to have a sore neck. A bear is more likely to come in through a lower open window or a door, and guess what, a hardside has the same openings.

Winter, we are comfortable down to about -20 degrees.

We like ours, The hardside campers have their supporters, and that is fine with me, to each their own.

We have owned ours for 7 years and 60,000 to 70,000 miles. We plan to keep it for the foreseeable future.

Good Luck!

Rick

Gary,
I owned a popular pop-up brand for three years and currently have the hardside in my signature. What do you really want to know?? IMO, the main reason to get a pop-up is if you want a smaller exterior package to get into backcountry/offroad areas. I also liked the open airy feeling surrounded by windows at eye level.

I didn't notice/see what truck you have. Depending on what pop-up brand and model and ammenities you are interested in, you won't save much in weight compared to a hardside. If you want to save weight then a pop-up without a bathroom/shower/built-in toilet and the basics will work. Think Four Wheel Camper.

You really need to step inside as many truck campers as you can before you buy one. A Four Wheel Camper pop-up will feel completely different than an Outfitter or Hallmark pop-up. Same thing goes with hardside campers. I've stepped in several that i just hated the floorplan and others that I really like.

When I first got into truck campers I found a small Palomino pop top , was old but in pretty good condition. It had no bath but I had a Port a potty. Had a 2 burner stove ,working gas fridge,gas heater and 10 gallon water tank. I had a f 150 4x4 truck it fit the truck well . I did no suspension mods. Everything was great but my only problem was I'm 6'6" tall and the bed was to small for me. Getting in the back woods was no problem and it never seemed to effect the gas milage. I have something bigger now, queen bed and a bath with hot water. Wife likes it better also.

We have a 1991 jayco sportster 8, 3 burner stove, sink & faucet, electric frig, air conditioner, queen size bed, the dinette makes into a 6'1" bed that sleeps 2, no bathroom, 1460 lbs., sits on a 99 1/2 ton silverado, we like it alot.

Gary,
You signed up for this site in 2007. I've never seen a post. I guess a belated welcome is in store. Since you live in Anaheim, parking and storage space is at a premium. Try to get inside as many used campers as you can. Go thru all the motions of living in a TC. If you are always going to be alone, by all means get a used one with few amenities. It sounds like you have not bought a truck yet. My only admonition is to get more truck than you think you will need. Only after the fact will you see why. It's a paradigm thing.
L.A. is a mecca for truck campers. Look in the Recycler and Craigslist. Cast a wide net. That's where I bought mine 13 yrs ago, and I bought it in Anaheim! (picked it up at the seller's storage facility). No buyer's remorse here. And that's exactly where I hope you wind up.
good luck.
regards, jefe

Had a pop up, and now have a hard side. The only complaint about the pop up was the inside of the canvas and windows in the upper bed area sweated quite a bit. With 2 up there, someone had to sleep close to the sides. In my case it was the wife. Seeing how she didn't like sleeping next to the wet sides, we now have a hardside camper. LOL! If I camped by myself, I'd go back to a pop up.

We are on our second pop up. We had a hard side and a diesel pusher too.

Pop ups are great!!! I just got back from a week in ID and MT camping in remote wilderness dispersed sites as well as developed RV parks. I've camped in mine down to 19 degrees and was perfectly comfortable. I don't get the complaint some folks have that pop ups aren't warm in winter. Mine were/are.

Any camper is way better than tent camping. Driving and handling are a breeze with a pop up.

I 100% completely agree with the suggestion to buy too much truck, or, at least one bigger than you think you need. Good luck.

I really like ours. A 5 year old can pop the top (but not undo the exterior latches!). Get a model that doesn't require tucking in the tenting (like a Northstar) and you'll thanks yourself every time you pop up or down in a minute.

BUT...the bed can be harder to get into than a big ol' hardside with a basement. And it's a low bed so it might be difficult for a taller or older person. Try before you buy!