Freightliner & Truck Camper

petersene wrote:
Don't know if this is possible. Thinking of getting rid of my F350 and get one of these. Really like my rig but I feel like the newer trucks aren't built to last (Let's not get into the Ford Vs Chevy Vs Dodge debate) I know some will say go with a motorhome at that point but I like having the freedom a truck provides.

Has anyone seen this used with a truck camper? Looks like cab height would be the biggest problem.

Why not pull the box, and put a big sleeper cab back there?

Not the same hauler, but this article might give you an idea or two.

Big Rig TC

Getting the camper to clear the cab will likely make the top of the AC unit too tall for road use. It will also make the entrance to the camper really high and require some sort of fabricated and likely unwieldy stairs.
Otherwise, it sure would handle the weight well.
I've looked into something like this and the best I can come up with is a Dodge 4500 or 5500 cab and chassis with a flat bed. This eliminates the cab height issues.

Sharp looking ride but it's going to require a serious lift platform in the bed to get the cabover on the TC to clear the truck cab. The Kodiak needed added lift for cab clearance too I think. You'd be better off to stick with a truck from one of the main 3 truck manufacturers F, C, or D for compatibility. Buying that truck for hauling a truck camper would equate to more dollars than cents so to say. Unless that's your financial status and you don't care about cost, then you should be able to pay for any modifications needed to make the setup work. The new trucks have been looking pretty good to me. The new larger gas engine that replaced the v10 seems to be very good. If you are going to tow and need that diesel, the 6.7 seems to be a very good engine too. If you need the load capacity, the 450 4500 and 550 5500 sized trucks should accommodate you.
You'll figure out what you need before long and all will be well.

Get a longer wheelbase so you can tuck the cabover behind the cab and have a large storage area. I looked at those but extra height or length eliminated it before I even priced them.

We are over in SW CT and have been thinking about the same question although with an International TerraStar crew cab, 4x4. We currently have a Northern Lite 10-2 CD SE which we run on an F-350 crew cab, 4x4, diesel, DRW. For longer duration trips we want to carry some folding recumbent trikes and have no place to easily carry them with our current rig, hence the thinking. With that as background here are some thoughts:
1) Cab heights of the MD trucks are too high for the cab over portion of a truck camper to extend over the cab.
2) You can get lots of measurements from the Body Builder Handbook for whatever truck that you are looking at. These can generally be found on line.
3) A number of cab over TCs have been put on larger trucks including Fuso FG 4x4's, Kodiaks, etc. Generally they are mounted with a flat bed or service body so the cab over does not extend over the cab but rather leaves a space above bed and below the cab over portion that is used as a garage. This would work ideally for us. The rig is generally longer than the same TC on a conventional pick up by the length of the cab over portion.
4) Height is a big issue. I recently analyzed this carefully and find that my NL would be about 12ft 7in. high on a 4x4 TerraStar. It would be 12 ft. 2 in. on a flat bed on a F-550 4x4 chassis. These numbers compare to its current height of 11 ft. 9 in. on my F-350 pickup. In these calculations, I am assuming 7" for the flat bed.
6) You can bring the height down by using a pop top camper such as the XP Camper or a Four Wheel Camper.
5) Search the archives of Truck Camper Magazine and you will find some stories about truck campers on some larger trucks.
6) www.expeditionportal.com has some pretty good information on overland rigs that I have found to be a good source in exploring this topic. Rummage around all the forums in the Expedition Camper section. You will find some pictures and threads on this topic.
7) A very interesting solution is the Earth Cruiser which is built in Bend, OR on a Fuso FG 4x4 but is not available in a crew cab as Mitsubishi does not import the 4x4 crew cab to the US. Still worth looking at as it is very truck camper like but different in execution from most truck campers.

I will be very interested in seeing how this thread develops. While you and I are in a minority in thinking about this topic, we are certainly not the only ones!

Bunch of more photos on this site...

I bet you could rig something up to work... The only drawback is the overall height - what is that 13'6" ???



SPORTCHASSIS FREIGHTLINER

Roy Ken

That is a beautiful rig! I had a 99 International 4700 LP and loved it except for a fuel problem.
As to your issue:
How about a 450 or 550. They look like a PU, but are sturdier. I know you can get them in 4 doors also.

petersene wrote:
..........Looks like cab height would be the biggest problem.

That was my first thought as well. If you mount the TC in the traditional way that is going to be really tall. You would need to raise the TC quite a bit to get the overhang to clear the cab but you would have a really nice basement or almost a second story. :)