Jeff,
I recently made my decisions. I had a Palomino 8801 which was too small for us but I really like the construction (frame)as I had done some major water damage repairs. During the repairs, I found a few issues that bothered me a small bit, one of which was with the roof opened up there were two places where the block foam insulation had a 2" gap with no insulation. The unit was built by the previous company management, so I could let that attention to detail slide a little.
Looking at the 2013 Palomino 2902 and a couple of others, I visited the factory in Michigan. I witnessed less attention to detail there so I kept driving.
Looking at the Lance and Arctic Fox, chose the AF because the interior felt larger and my wife didn't like the step down inside at the door. I think it feels larger because the frig is on the slide and the AF has the extra step outside giving just a little more floor space. I picked up a 2005 AF990 very reasonable. I always try to go with a use unit before making the decision to spend the big buck.
With the 2500 truck you will need to update your rear tires (LT287/75-16's with 126 load range) and possibly add extra load support. I'm adding AirLift 5000# air bags for extra stabilization. I picked mine up and hauled it 250 miles with GM stock suspension and it felt very stable, and although it leveled the truck, it wasn't on the bump stops. The sticker on the camper said it weighs 3200# with water and gas. New AF brochure said 3560# empty. With the Gen and AC the actual weight was close to 4000#. The 990 is similar to the AF 811. The lance 855S and AF 811 are slightly less weight than the 990.
There is a good article on TCM on the 855S and Gordon White's new 3500 SRW.
Good luck with your camper search.
