This is purely subjective but eventually I want to upgrade from an F250 with a pop up camper to a hard sided camper. Something similar to an Arctic Fox 1150. For you guy's with campers that size and duallies, how much body sway do you feel when driving down the road? Do any of you haul that size camper with a gas engine?Do any of you tow?

I've got a 4,000 pound 11' camper. I hauled it on a SRW 3500 for a couple years and switched to a dually. I only had to drive out of my garage, down the driveway, and onto the street to notice a huge reduction in sway and roll.I tow a 4,500 pound boat behind the rig, total weight about 17,000 pounds. It drives really nice but you do notice the camper on there in the corners. It's not bad. My wife's driven it a couple times and said it wasn't bad, a lot better than she expected.

I have an 08 dodge with a 5.7 hemi dually with an artic fox 990 and the ride is nice and sway I really don't notice and get 8 mpg going 70 mph. I have added air bags and rear sway bar.

KD4UPL wrote:I've got a 4,000 pound 11' camper. I hauled it on a SRW 3500 for a couple years and switched to a dually. I only had to drive out of my garage, down the driveway, and onto the street to notice a huge reduction in sway and roll.I read this and said to myself "When did I write this?".I hauled heavy campers for 8 years with an SRW. Last August I bought a dually. Wife even knows the difference now. She thinks my dually is ugly but ..............By the way - no sway - less roll. Only thing I added to truck for control was 1/2 set of StableLoads.I traded a 2008 3500 SRW for a 2013 3500 DRW.

husky390 wrote:This is purely subjective but eventually I want to upgrade from an F250 with a pop up camper to a hard sided camper. Something similar to an Arctic Fox 1150. For you guy's with campers that size and duallies, how much body sway do you feel when driving down the road? Do any of you haul that size camper with a gas engine?Do any of you tow?F350 CC DRW 6.2 with an AF 1150.Very stable. Only suspension modification needed was stable loads to make it level. And yes I chose a gas engine. The truth is the gas engines are better for hauling, diesels are better for towing. With the gas engine I am 300 pounds under the GVWR, with a diesel I would be 600 pounds over. Given that my gas engine is rated to tow over 15,000 pounds it easily has enough power to handle a 5,000 pound camper.

Our camper weighs about 4,000 lbs loaded. We tow a 3,500 lb boat but used to tow a 6,500 lb boat. I have a 454 engine. I have no complaints about the power of the 454. I go slower up steep hills and get 9 mpg at 65 mph, but it was $10,000 less than a comparable diesel when I bought it so I was willing to make those sacrifices. The only time I wish I had a diesel is when I get stuck behind a slow driver. I simply do not have the power to pass.I have a dually with air bags. I have no sway and very little lean. I would also add that I have load range 'E' tires which made a big difference in sway. My previous truck had overload springs and I preferred those as they seemed stiffer and less prone to bouncing on bumpy roads at highway speeds.P.S. I've never hauled a big camper on a single-rear wheeled truck so I can't compare. I had a dually already when I got my first camper. It's a big part of why I got a camper.

Question for the guy's with duallies and big campers

rickeoni
Explorer
Jun 30, 2014
jimh425 wrote:
I think it might flip over. ;) See how high it is.

Just have to avoid Tennessee :B
jimh406
Explorer III
Jun 30, 2014
I think it might flip over. ;) See how high it is.
husky390
Explorer
Jun 30, 2014
rickeoni wrote:
Big Bad Dually, Stable as all get out & never get stuck in the after holiday traffic jam!

Now that's thinking outside of the box.
rickeoni
Explorer
Jun 30, 2014
Big Bad Dually, Stable as all get out & never get stuck in the after holiday traffic jam!
RobertRyan
Explorer
Jun 30, 2014
sleepy wrote:
This section of I-40 has a tractor trailer turned over about every week. This one during last night.

Getting maintaince and parts for an obscure vehicle is hard... think about when the truck pushed so hard in the 3 pages.... whos going to repair it, with what, and at what expense when you are traveling?

Find a wide track dually truck that has skilled mechanics and repair parts in abundance...

Don't be the sucker that gets stuck along side the road or in a wrecker storage road because it can't be repaired for weeks in most areas or only at great expense after being towed to a far away area for servicing.

There is nothing that takes smug off you face like making a BIG MISTAKE and giving up your vacation with a bum vehicle.... fgrom a break down, or from an accident...

Flame away... but at least think about what I wrote...

and while you are at it... ask yourself what would motivate anyone to press so hard trying to make a narrow, short wheel based uncomfortable riding obscure vehicle into the image of a viable, trouble free, answer to vacation dreams instead of the source of nightmares.

I'll never intentionally lie to you about anything and I try to think things throughHave a wonderful Canada day, and later this week a wonderful 4th of July.

Be safe traveling

Sleepy

Source of nightmares here would a Dually US Pickup on a narrow gibber strewn road. the tractor trailer that flipped means overloading on the various trailer/trailers involved
jimh406
Explorer III
Jun 30, 2014
Since the hijack is full speed, I'd like to point out again that the reason most of us don't buy a truck just for a truck camper. We buy a truck that will work for us that can also haul a truck camper. Such is the case on the disputed truck. He bought his truck for other uses and uses it for truck campers, too. Seems perfectly reasonable.

What is not perfectly reasonable is assuming there is only one answer to the question of what truck we should buy or what truck camper we should buy. To be clear, most of us can point out shortcomings on anyone's choice. It is too easy to point out shortcomings!

Sure, a few people always think they have "the" answer. Guess what, until they volunteer to buy our trucks and campers and drive and camp in them, their opinions really don't matter to most of us!
Bedlam
Moderator
Jun 30, 2014
husky390 wrote:
As the OP, let's get back on topic. I appreciate all of the info provided and a dually will be the way for me to go when I'm ready to purchase a big boy camper. I had a pretty bad case of sticker shock when I looked at some used Lance and Arctic Fox campers. I could buy a very well equipped 5th wheel for what they wanted for the campers. Is it a supply/demand issue that makes them so expensive?

First, you have to realize that a TC has all the same elements as a FW. This means that cost will be close to the same even if square footage is greatly different.

Second, TC's are made in much less scale than than other RV's. Even if the manufacturer makes trailers and other RV's and gets quantity discounts for components and material, the production line will not see the same efficiencies as high volume line. I have little doubt that TC production costs are as high or more than other RV's.

Third, with compactness comes more engineering to fit all the amenities in all small space at minimum weight. It is no different than PC's: A desktop computer is usually more powerful and and less expensive than laptop. Yes, I look at the TC the laptop of the RV world.
Bedlam
Moderator
Jun 30, 2014
Although I cannot fully agree with all of Sleepy's statements, he does bring up a valid point I would like emphasize: Which ever vehicle you purchase, make sure parts and service are available for it in the areas you plan travel. If you know you are traveling south of the US border, ULSD (Ultra Low Sulfer Diesel) is not common so you will not want later model US diesel with emissions that will result in expensive failures. There is no one universal vehicle for all areas or types of travel, so your choice needs to be based on where and how you like camp.
sleepy
Explorer
Jun 30, 2014
This section of I-40 has a tractor trailer turned over about every week. This one during last night.

Getting maintaince and parts for an obscure vehicle is hard... think about when the truck pushed so hard in the 3 pages.... whos going to repair it, with what, and at what expense when you are traveling?

Find a wide track dually truck that has skilled mechanics and repair parts in abundance...

Don't be the sucker that gets stuck along side the road or in a wrecker storage road because it can't be repaired for weeks in most areas or only at great expense after being towed to a far away area for servicing.

There is nothing that takes smug off you face like making a BIG MISTAKE and giving up your vacation with a bum vehicle.... fgrom a break down, or from an accident...

Flame away... but at least think about what I wrote...

and while you are at it... ask yourself what would motivate anyone to press so hard trying to make a narrow, short wheel based uncomfortable riding obscure vehicle into the image of a viable, trouble free, answer to vacation dreams instead of the source of nightmares.

I'll never intentionally lie to you about anything and I try to think things throughHave a wonderful Canada day, and later this week a wonderful 4th of July.

Be safe traveling

Sleepy
husky390
Explorer
Jun 30, 2014
rickeoni wrote:
How did a thread about duallies and big campers morph into flaming one guys idea of a camper/adventure rig. Like our mothers taught us. If you don't have something nice to say .......
I think it looks like it would be awesome in the west coast where roads are tight and those of you with your big campers and F450's would struggle to fit...

Agreed. I think the cab over is a pretty cool idea and it's not everyday I see a cab over box van overturned on the side of the highway. The turning radius would be awesome to have in the woods.

As the OP, let's get back on topic. I appreciate all of the info provided and a dually will be the way for me to go when I'm ready to purchase a big boy camper. I had a pretty bad case of sticker shock when I looked at some used Lance and Arctic Fox campers. I could buy a very well equipped 5th wheel for what they wanted for the campers. Is it a supply/demand issue that makes them so expensive?