Tie downs
I am new to truck campers. Looking at used ones. Can I safely mount a 1000 lb camper on my Ram 1500 short bed using heavy duty ratchet straps and the factory tie downs in the bed. Looking for opinion...
Forum Discussion
epcolumbus wrote:
... snipped ... I am looking at a 2005 Sun-lite Skyhawk SB ... this model is 1035 lbs with the dry weight being roughly 930 lbs. I have a 2019 Ram 1500 short bed. I just want to know if I can use ratchet strap tie downs and the factory tie downs in the bed of the truck to get it home. It's about 8 hours away. I don't want to buy anything not really knowing exactly what will work best.
Don't blame you for not wanting to buy anything before you know what's what. It would be useful to post a picture of your truck bed's tie down points Being a Ford guy, I really don't have a sense of where or what you're looking at for tie downs "in the bed" of your truck. Also might be useful to see if you can get the specs on your truck's tie down ring capacities etc. That is part of this equation too.
What kind of roads are involved in the 8 hour drive home?
In the end, common sense and ingenuity can prevail. You can jury-rig something that is safe and will do the job for the 8 hour drive. Driving carefully and at a safe speed (say 50-55 mph unless you are on an Interstate and have to keep pace at 70 mph+) will add to the safety factor as well.
