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burningman's avatar
burningman
Explorer II
Mar 02, 2022

The only real SRW “One Ton” that isn’t really a 3/4 ton

Just for the heck of it, here is the only real one-ton single rear wheel pickup ever made that is NOT just a 3/4 ton with a different sticker on it.
The 1973 to 1979 Ford F-350 Super Camper Special. Not just the common “Camper Special” but the Super Camper Special.

These things had a 5355 pound payload. Way more than any new SRW pickup.
Notice the set-back rear axle. They had a special bed to fit. They were made to haul big campers, and that set-back rear axle also let the front end take more of the weight.
No camper center of gravity issues at all.
They came with 12.00 x 16.5 rear tires.
They came with frame tie down points, camper power connectors, trans coolers, and a spare tire under a big door on the passenger side of the bed.
No crawling under.

These were the best single rear wheel camper haulers ever, and the only single rear wheel one-ton pickup that wasn’t just an up-rated 3/4 ton.
  • burningman wrote:
    Just for the heck of it, here is the only real one-ton single rear wheel pickup ever made that is NOT just a 3/4 ton with a different sticker on it.
    The 1973 to 1979 Ford F-350 Super Camper Special. Not just the common “Camper Special” but the Super Camper Special.

    These things had a 5355 pound payload. Way more than any new SRW pickup.
    Notice the set-back rear axle. They had a special bed to fit. They were made to haul big campers, and that set-back rear axle also let the front end take more of the weight.
    No camper center of gravity issues at all.
    They came with 12.00 x 16.5 rear tires.
    They came with frame tie down points, camper power connectors, trans coolers, and a spare tire under a big door on the passenger side of the bed.
    No crawling under.

    These were the best single rear wheel camper haulers ever, and the only single rear wheel one-ton pickup that wasn’t just an up-rated 3/4 ton.


    but man were they ugly compared to the normal truck of that year, and they sucked on fuel like a pig at the slop trough. as much as I am a ford guy, I would just keep walking by that.
  • rhagfo's avatar
    rhagfo
    Explorer III
    I remember those, and it was another VHS vs Beta challenge. The other manufacturers should have come out with the same design for choice. Instead they started pushing short beds!
  • Very nice automobile. But I doubt many modern campers will fit between those far aft wheel wells. The ones I had all were designed for the more common, forward position of the axle and got considerably wider in the back.