Got rid of the 23 foot travel trailer, as we didn't like being a 40' long entity. Now I am ready to start looking for a truck and TC. My question is I am not sure what to get. Maybe you can help with the decision. I know for a fact that I need to sell my GMC 1500 extra cab 4x4, as just about any full sized TC won't work. And reading a bunch of posts on this forum for that last couple of days, I get it that probably a one ton is probably a start, as apparently with a 3/4t you are somewhat limited to the TC that will fit within the weight constraints. I haven't seen any discussions about which bed/cab configurations work best. The thought of driving a longbed, quad cab around without the TC on seems a bit daunting, as I am sure there are only a couple of places you could easily park with something that long. I like the idea of the quad cab, but I could get away with the extra cab. If you get a shorter bed, is there any disadvantage to have a TC that is designed to hang off the back of the truck? I considered looking for a flatbed as an option and then looking for truck boxes that would magically be tall enough that the TC would actually sit right on top of them (any suggestions?). I like the idea of the added storage offered by lockable boxes on the sides. I won't be purchasing new. My mechanic tells me not to buy a used diesel as if it wasn't taken good care of, it could be a can of worms. So I guess I am looking for a gas truck from 1990- 2001. The trailer would also have to be used too. I'd be curious to hear any feedback. Between the truck and camper I am looking to spend up to $20k. My plan is to mainly park the truck and use it as our 4th vehicle. I will use it to take to my mining claim (on narrow windy dirt roads), and for using as a travel vehicle. Any recommendations on how many miles is too many for a used gas engine truck, for these circumstances?

While you can get TC's that fit on a SRW platform, it's much nicer to use a dually. I would never use a SRW truck again. Sometimes it was down right scary - like when a car pulled in front of me and I had to swerve. Or the time my wheel studs broke..If your buying a truck for this purpose anyway then why not just step up to a dually. It will give you more choices in a TC too.

I too have always wanted to have a TC but it just isn't possible for all the stuff I carry with me on my trips. I support to many other things to cut back on bringing everything. I would need to pull a utility trailer haha...Also to get the TC I really like with the side door entrance and large floorplan I would need a rather big truck with dually s to carry it.Then you also run into what to do when you are the camp ground. Do you set the camper on the ground and use your truck to run the roads for supplies or sight seeing. You certainly don't want to break camp everytime you need to go somewhere.I really like the idea of everything on the same frame and can go almost anywhere your 4WD truck will go... That part is great. Having hardly any extra storage area would be my problem.This would be my desired TC camperChalet TS116 Floorplan or similarMy OFF-ROAD Starcraft 14RT POPUP trailer with the front deck and my F150 truck bed gives me all the extra room I need to haul my very needed extra supplies including my 2KW Honda portable generator.All of this support my emergency two radio radio operations (another hobby) just fine for me...just something to think about...Roy Ken

I'd go to TC dealers and see about what length and frills level you'd want in your TC (even if you plan to buy used) and see if you can get what you'd like in a short bed. Maybe it'll turn out you need the longbed dually, but maybe you'll like some of the smaller options. They can be pretty nice as well!We have a shortbed (6.75') truck with a TC that has an 8' floor so there's some overhang. There are bigger overhangs out there and they don't seem to cause problems unless you're doing some really rough roads. It seems that only the real serious backcountry off-roading types have issues with overhangs and when you have trouble with that you should be heading in a totally different direction with your TC.We didn't want a longbed (or a dually) because we'd have trouble with it as a naked truck around town. We needed a crew cab for kids which makes it pretty darn long already. If no rear passengers, a regular (or even extended) cab with a long bed would be better. But there are many levels of weight/features among TCs so it's nice to get an idea what you want there so you get the right sized truck.

Like many Senior members, I've had several campers, as well as 3 TT's and a 5'er. I can tell you the one thing you will DEARLY miss if you don't get it is a sofa. Plan on getting a dually and at least a double-slide model with a sofa. The dinette in virtually any rig is just not a "kick back and relax" place to sit. Your only other choice is the bunk, or a campchair outside.Not to start a SRW vs. DRW war again, but dually's handle the side-to-side sway motion much better, and of course, the obvious, you have a much higher payload.As far as Crew-Cab vs. standard - I use my CC for storage when needed, and it is very handy when I do. Some folks have even taken out the back seat for more storage space. It's not that big of a handful to get anywhere, and in fact, having downsized from a TT, I think you will find it quite easy.Here's mine--

You are right in the age zone to find a good used Ford 1T Supercab 7.3 diesel like so many of us have and love. I strongly suggest you look around the T/C section of this forum and check out the rigs that people own and put under their campers. Many of us carry heavier rigs and use 19.5 inch wheels and tires to assist safe carrying capacity and stability when using a SRW rig.

Sold TT Wife wants to get TC | Good Sam Community

40 Replies

jimh406
Explorer III
Mar 10, 2014
I suppose it is possible to buy a Lance 16 ft trailer for 20K, but MSRP appears to be closer to 30K. :) I'd probably look at some other brands.
Bluebeard
Explorer
Mar 10, 2014
Thanks for all you're ideas. After going to the RV show in Sac with my wife, the only sort of TC my wife would settle for (space-wise for our 2 lab puppies) was the YA MOMMA triple slide out 11.5 foot land-yacht, that I would have to buy a F550 to carry. So, it looks like plan B, whatever that is. She liked the Lance 16' travel trailer. I was hoping to get away from trailers- I hoped maybe she might settle for something like this: http://uev.com.au/ - not that I could afford it, but mannnnnnn is that cool.

Anyway, the TC seem to be out of the picture for now.

A special thanks goes out to Jefe- thanks for all the great ideas.

Thanks for your help.
Redsky
Explorer
Mar 10, 2014
I use Searchtempest.com to quickly scan all the Craigslist postings within a given radius of my house. I can specify a dollar range to avoid junk at the bottom end and I get back listings by area so you would see Truckee and then Reno and Sacramento and Yuba City and outward.

At this time there is a 1990 Ford F-350 diesel pickup with a 1991 cabover camper selling for $4900 in Corona, CA.

The more out in the boonies the seller is the lower the price as they have fewer possible buyers in their immediate area. The campers I saw for sale in the SF Bay area would go in days but those in remote areas like Bishop would sit for months.
Redsky
Explorer
Mar 10, 2014
If you have time to do the searching you can find 10-year old trucks with a full size hard sided camper attached and less than 100k on the odometer for as little as $16,000. You may have to drive to Nevada or Oregon or some other location that is 400 miles from your house but these deals exist.

The 10-year old truck has depreciated but is still a good RV vehicle and it comes with all the wiring and tie-downs and suspension and tire upgrades already in place. You have a fully functional rig.

Usually the owners have gotten too old or one has become an invalid or died and they seller wants to keep it simple and sell the truck and the camper together and is asking less than if they sold them separately. In addition 10 or more years old campers sell for less than $5,000 regardless of what they sold for new and odds are that new they sold for half what the same model sells for today.

The ones I saw outside of California and in Oregon and Washington usually had been stored in a barn and out of the weather which is a big plus over ones that sit out in the sun in California or Nevada or Arizona.
Area13
Explorer
Mar 09, 2014
Bluebeard wrote:
Well, let me re-phrase my price point- I would like to keep it around $20k, but if it costs more, I can go there. But my ideal would be around $20k. My point is I am not looking for a new truck, especially since it will be most likely an "occasional use" truck.

Do any of you guys know what are good years for trucks? I am thinking 2001 and older have less smog. And as I remember the 1980's weren't very good for either the Chevy's or the Fords. I am assuming I want to keep the truck vintage somewhere between 1994-2001, is that a fair year range? I don't know much about the Dodges and any years were better than others- gassers of course.

I have a 2002 Ford Superduty with the last full year they made the 7.3, no smog at all. I believe this is one of the best pre-smog diesels ever made, just my opinion. If you can get a 7.3 Powerstroke from 94.5-2003 I believe you will have a good truck as long as it was cared for.

I paid $15k about 3 years ago and was a 1 owner truck with 100k, mint.

I wouldn't care too much about it being an F250 or F350 those years around mine. Pretty much the only real difference is a 4" block in a F350 compared to a 2" block in a F250.

I would think you could find a clean one for $10-14K that will suit you needs. It might have 150k plus miles but don't let that scare you if it's a runner and clean. The one weak point of these trucks is the 4R100 automatic tranny, sometimes. It has a small tranny cooler and a lot of guys add a newer one from a 6.0 or do like me and add in series a Tru-cool max, $150.

Take your time and find a good clean used camper. I got lucky and found one at a local dealer 2 months ago and they were very good to me in the selling process not being a TC guy. They showed me everything working at P/U and helped me load her up. The price was crazy good, IMO. $11k and it booked out for almost $20k, i'm feeling really good.

Anywho, you sound a bit like my situation selling our 26' TT a few months ago and buying a TC. It can be done for around $20kish.

Good luck, hope this helps.

http://i1112.photobucket.com/albums/k483/clint9920/photo2_zps8629072e.jpg
sky_free
Explorer
Mar 09, 2014
jefe 4x4 wrote:
Sky,
Since you are towing, not TC-ing, it seems to me you made the right decision with the 10K max. It would be interesting to know what the differences to the truck are between the 10K package and the 14K package. My guess is the 14K package has:
larger rear AAM axle spline count and larger ring gear and pinion.
more springs in the main pack and thicker overload spring
more springs in the upper secondary pack
bigger brakes
one more or larger cross member over the rear axle
the biggest automatic transmission with a larger cooler.
jefe

Sorry if I wasn't clear -- the truck is unchanged at 13,300 GVWR. On the registration form you can check different boxes for different loaded GVW you intend to use. If you check the 10K box, the price is cheaper. I never heard of this on the TC forum, so I was surprised when that was presented to me. Didn't know which box to check, so I just checked the one that cost me less money.

This is the form I am referring to: DMV Form 4008. The instruction page says that you can change it at any time once you decide that your maximum operating weight is higher. Problem is, jumping from 10K to 15K is going to cost me $332 more. Yikes!

OK, one last edit. I just found out that "Pickups" are excluded if they are under 8,001 lbs unladen weight. Mine is at about 7,300 lbs so should not be subject to this at all. I have to assume that the dealer made a mistake and I just hope this doesn't cause me problems down the road.
jefe_4x4
Explorer
Mar 08, 2014
Sky,
Since you are towing, not TC-ing, it seems to me you made the right decision with the 10K max. It would be interesting to know what the differences to the truck are between the 10K package and the 14K package. My guess is the 14K package has:
larger rear AAM axle spline count and larger ring gear and pinion.
more springs in the main pack and thicker overload spring
more springs in the upper secondary pack
bigger brakes
one more or larger cross member over the rear axle
the biggest automatic transmission with a larger cooler.
jefe
sky_free
Explorer
Mar 08, 2014
When I bought my 2012 F350 DRW CC I had the option of choosing different GVW's on the registration form. The lowest is 10K lbs. and is cheapest. The highest was 14K lbs. The paperwork guy could not explain what this meant to me so I just chose the 10K amount which was quite a bit less. I assume that if I am pulled over and the officer cares, I could get a fine for being over the registration weight. Once I get the camper I'll look into changing this but for now I'm not going to be over that weight anyway. My truck had the registration paid through October 2014 so I don't know what the amount will be, but it is registered commercial.
TOOBOLD
Explorer
Mar 08, 2014
A lot of the registration fees on trucks in California are for unladen weight. This fee does not go down my '05 F350 is still $360. Would a F250/350 V10 be a good match as the cost may be lower than any diesels?
kohldad
Explorer III
Mar 08, 2014
An old F350 long bed won't need any suspension upgrades to carry a small TC with ease. My 92 F350 Crew Cab long bed had seen as much as 6,000# of dirt (nothing like paying $10 for a truck load and hauling out 3 tons, overloaded but short runs home) and easily carry a 3,000# truck camper. Truck weighed 6,800# with a 9,900# GVWR leaving 3,100#, going on GAWR adds up to around 11,000#.

Tie downs can be fabricated for under $100 combined with chains and turnbuckles. Not the norm for today, but worked for years on older campers without problems and still would work today. Though adding some cheap spring loaded happijacks bought used for $100 also works. So still have close to $20k for the camper.

Should be able to get a nice camper for $8k leaving a nice $12k for the truck. Five years ago I only paid $6k for my 2004 815. So I think he is on the right track for a good reliable setup.

And yes, take jefe up to your claim. He would love the trip and you can see how his rig handles the roads. There had better be a trip report if y'all do.