1875# wet wt camper on dodge ram 1500?

[ruthiebaby88]

Ok I found a little lance camper and I wanted to get a 3/4 ton truck for it, but the owner of the camper would like to sell his trick with it for 5000$. It only has 77k miles on it and it is a 1998.
He says it handles fine, the pickup does not have payload or cargo weight rating stickers. I'm guessing the payload to be around 1500 but would have to ask him to drive it to a scale to check for sure.
Its so tempting to get this truck cause it already has mounting points attached and the other pickups I'm finding are closer to 15000. Tires are rated to 3000#, GVWR is 6400#
What would you do? I wanna make sure the combo I get has safe handling for driving all over the USA at fast speeds - good stopping etc.

[jimh406]

Congrats, don't forget to air up the tires.

[ruthiebaby88]

Thank you to everyone who helped me in a speed course -all about campers so that I could get my gear quick and get on vacation!

In the end I opted for a
$4995 - 2002 Lance 815 (wet weight 1879#) &
$9500 - 2002 Chevy Silverado 2500 SRW (payload per sticker = 2842#)(101k miles)

They are both in great shape and I found them on craigslist. The sellers were both wonderful people and I enjoyed purchasing from them a million times more than at a dealer. I feel like the camper and truck have everything I need and nothing I don't. The camper is tiny, but certainly larger than our tent and has a bathroom and shower. No AC, but we can ad later as needed. The truck has an 8.1L Vortec engine (Allison transmission) which may be more than I need, but I'm sure we'll enjoy it on the hills.

We are cleaning things up and packing and should be out of here in a couple of days.

I was bowled over by the wonderful help I received on the forums - some people even searched the camper/trucks ads and sent me their great finds!

If I meet more truck campers like you when I'm out traveling, I'm sure we'll be loving this sport for years to come.

Happy Camping!

[jimh406]

My mirrors stick out farther than my tires, but my mirrors also don't make contact with the road or hit curbs. 🙂

[hedgehopper]

homefor2 wrote:

ruthiebaby88 wrote:
Also I was trying to avoid dually because I like to drive down narrow curvy mountain dirt roads.

Dually fenders don't stick out any further than mirrors.

Our mirrors stick out further than the dually fenders. We seldom notice the fenders other than when we pull into a gas station. Granted, the DRWs are wider at the tires than the SRWs.

[homefor2]

ruthiebaby88 wrote:
Also I was trying to avoid dually because I like to drive down narrow curvy mountain dirt roads.

Dually fenders don't stick out any further than mirrors.

[Wanderin_fool]

The advertised weights can be very deceiving. My Lance 835 says 2200 loaded. The scales said 3000. Just be aware of that in your shopping, and good luck!!!

[ruthiebaby88]

I went to see it - it smelled mildewy when I walked in the door and the salesman refused to let me open the slide to check for leaks. In his defense, I arrived about 10 min before closing (it's a 30-40 min drive from my house).
The camper weighed 3088 wet which I felt was a little big and heavy for my needs.
Also I was trying to avoid dually because I like to drive down narrow curvy mountain dirt roads.

[ruthiebaby88]

Ok hedgehopper - not that light - just light compared to regular - it's the smallest Lance made with a dry weight of 1667#

[mkirsch]

I really don't care what type of truck Lance says the camper is designed for. They are wrong. Very few 15-series (i.e. "1/2 ton") trucks are capable of sustaining even the listed dry weight of a Lance 815 without heavy modification and many compromises.

It's one thing to tap into the combined axle ratings like you would with a 25-series or 35-series truck to haul more payload, but on a 15-series, you're blowing the combined axle ratings right out of the water with a Lance 815 in the bed.

That's not to say it hasn't been done or couldn't be done. Some people are even perfectly happy with what they have, too.

At that point, though, you've got nobody to blame but yourself for any dissatisfaction you may have with the performance and handling. You will then be faced with the decision to try bolting on more parts, or to take a hit on the truck you just bought and buy one with more payload capacity, a bigger engine, etc..

[Dakota98]

Ruthiebaby88

Just curious, but why did you not buy that 1992 F350 DRW Crew Cab with 43,000 miles & 2003 Summerwind camper, dealer asking price of $18,995 ??? :h

[FreeLanceing]

The lance sticker for the 815 (at least the one in my driveway) lists the weight with full water tank, full propane tank. Mine says 1875 its real close to that. I scaled just under 2200 loaded for a 6 week trip to alaska. I know I carry a LOT less stuff than some folks that post on this forum. I ran mine for years on 1/2 chevy 3 different trucks. I ran 3 years with p tires that came with a new truck. I could not get the e's I wanted fast enough. Never have I felt unsafe or out of controll. Its just me and a dog. He has never complained. I bought a 3/4 for my alaska trip. It does handle the load much better. It does stop a little better not much really. The 3/4 broke down twice the 1/2 s never did. I am now looking for another new one. I am looking at both 1/2 and 3/4. I would not by a diesle. For my needs and having owned both either will do the job. If i lived near mountians I would go 3/4 all the way. I am a very good driver, 57 never had a ticket. Held a CLD for 38 years now and the govmt is trying very hard to take mine away. Anyhow either will do it the 3/4 will do it better. Depends on your experiance, use, travel, and how much #$^^& you feel you need bring along.

[JIMNLIN]

Our older trucks didn't have payload stickers. We didn't need them as the all trucks come with a certification placard with GVWR and FAWR/RAWR.
We simply weighed the front and rear axles separately with close attention to the rear axle weight as it carries most if not all the payload in the bed.

When searching for a used 1500 truck look close at the '00-'06 GM 1500HD. These trucks come with a 8600 GVWR and 6084 RAWR E tires and wheels 6.0 engine 4L80 tranny and a 3.73 or 4.10 gears with up to 3100 lbs payloads.

Also the '00s 1500 Mega cab Dodges came on a 2500 chassis with a 8510 GVWR 6000 RAWR Hemi 3.92 gears E tires and wheels.

The 1500HD GM and the 1500 Mega cab may have a 2600 lb rear axle weight before loading which can have a 3000+ lb payload.

And of course the Ford F150HD with a 8200 GVWR with a smaller 4800 RAWR 7 lug wheels with E tires. Doing some math on this truck shows it can have a rear unladin axle weight in the 2400-2600 lb range which leaves approx 2200-2400 lbs for a payload.

Of course actual payload numbers depends on a trucks actual scaled front and rear axle weights.

[hedgehopper]

ruthiebaby88 wrote:

I would prefer SRW for driving on narrow, windy forest roads which is why I decided to go ultralight.

When you say "ultralight," what specific camper are you referring to? (For me, ultralight would be a camper with a dry weight less than 1000 lbs.)

[ruthiebaby88]

I am not opposed to purchasing a 1 ton - just not finding as many for sale - and the ones I have found look like they have been worked Hard!

Also, I have noticed that the posted cargo weight rating in the 1 ton I did find is lower (2809#) than the 3/4 tons (2842-3300#) I have been considering.

So my thinking is to get the best looking truck that has adequate payload. Just strayed off course when tempted by the package deal for 10,000$.

I would prefer SRW for driving on narrow, windy forest roads which is why I decided to go ultralight.