artic fox 811 on 2005 dodge ram 2500 diesel short bed??

[lizwood71]

Hi, we need some advice as we can not get a straight answer. We just bought an 811 Artic fox camper for our 2005 Dodge Ram 2500 quad cab diesel short bed truck. The artic fox dealer says it is a fine truck for this camper. But upon further research it seems to grossly exceed the GVWR weight capacity. Even if we upgraded to a 3500 Ram it seems to exceed this. How can this be possible? What part of the equation are we missing? What truck is capable of hauling this or do we listen to the dealer that our truck is fine? Just wanting to be safe. Thanks for the advice.

[lizwood71]

The drw diesel we are considering is a short bed megacab. So from what I am understanding from all the great contributions is the camper will fit great on this w swing bars and haul it smoothly. We are new to all this and just want it to be smooth ride. This is why we feel like up grading to drw. Thanks all.

[jimh406]

True COG relative to the back bumper is the same. However, COG relative to the front wheels is 18 inches off. From the perspective of putting the same weight on the rear tires, it's probably close. But wherever the COG is, it's 18 inches farther back from the front wheels which will be less stable if you consider the front and rear combined.

In effect, you are forcing all stability to come from 18 inches back. Before you say it works fine, remember that there are people here who have 2000lbs over GVWR and C rated tires, and it works just fine. 🙂

Seriously, given the choice of keeping the 2500 with 19.5s or buying a long bed DRW, I'd keep the SRW and do the upgrade to 19.5s.

[d3500ram]

Bedlam wrote:
The rear half of the truck bed is the same length whether short or long. The diference is the cab to axle measurement between SB and LB. The CG of the camper will be the same when sitting on either bed.

Bedlam is correct. COG relative to the rear bumper is the same regardless of a short bed or long bed camper- my COG is about 2" forward of the rear axle- same as on a short bed truck. I am doing the SB camper on a LB truck... that extra space is welcome for storage and for my generator:

Buzzcut1 wrote:
What Bedlam is implying is that on a long bed you will need a spacer to keep the tc from sliding foreward, most folks use a wooden frame.

I built a simple frame to place between the front of the camper and the truck bulkhead. It is custom fit to keep my generator in place.









To the OP... look at my first image- Because the Mega cab and my Q-cab have the same wheelbase, that gap space that I am utilizing for storage will be filled with your mega cab volume and the short bed will hold the camper. If you can visualize what I am describing then it is how your rig might appear (does that make sense?)

(edited by d3500ram for spelling correction)

[Bedlam]

lizwood71 wrote:
Thanks. I think we found one we really are interested in. 2012 3500 Dodge ram dual wheel rear diesel, automatic mega cab with only 28,000 miles Hope it works out

Get some feed back on this truck in the tow vehicle section. I believe that was the last year no exhaust fluid was being added in Ram's diesel. The system is slightly simpler, but can fill the particulate filter quicker and usually gets slightly less mileage.

[Buzzcut1]

What Bedlam is implying is that on a long bed you will need a spacer to keep the tc from sliding foreward, most folks use a wooden frame.

[Troutguy]

Lizwood71,

The manufacturer (Arctic Fox) did NOT give you incorrect information regarding the 811S (short box model). It will fully go into the pickup box of a short box truck as Bedlam's pic shows but not in an 8' box. The generator box will hit the rear tail light and so will the compartment on the left side on a long box truck.......Look at Bedlam's photo of it sitting in his Ford F-250 short box (this is the correct positioning). You can fit an 811 in an 8' box but you have to remove the above mentioned compartments, which in my opinion defeats the purpose of the 811......outside storage.


Either buy a long box truck equipped with an AF 990 or equivalent or modify your existing truck to accommodate your existing 811. This is not "rocket science".
I also own an 811 on a short box truck.
Bedlam is a very knowledgeable member and speaks from experience.

[Bedlam]

Wrong. The rear half of the truck bed is the same length whether short or long. The diference is the cab to axle measurement between SB and LB. The CG of the camper will be the same when sitting on either bed.

[mkirsch]

lizwood71 wrote:
Wow! Interesting !!!!! Really !? I wonder why that Artic fox manufacturer representative told me flat out it only fit in a short bed if it had a generator. Love the camper. So far hate the service. I'm definitely calling them again tomorrow !

Because if you look, the camper is sitting ON TOP of the flatbed.

With a conventional box, it will be sitting INSIDE between the bed rails. The generator compartment will hit the taillight of the truck before the camper is slid in all the way.

It will stop 18" or so short of the front, which puts a very heavy camper very far behind the rear axle of the truck. This is not an issue with a lighter camper but you're talking about a 4000+lb camper here.

[lizwood71]

Thanks. I think we found one we really are interested in. 2012 3500 Dodge ram dual wheel rear diesel, automatic mega cab with only 28,000 miles Hope it works out

[Bedlam]

Look at the first picture on previous post and you can see the red arrow on the camper center of gravity lines up nicely with the rear axle. Some people do not like the gap while others use it for outside storage.

Too bad you already bought your camper - Mine is going up for sale after this season is over. The only reason I went to DRW truck is our desire to get large triple slide, otherwise we would still be hauling it on our SRW. Like I posted previously, your current Dodge can handle this camper if you are willing to spend $5k in upgrades to it.

Here is usually how we travel:





The last shot is my previous truck "naked" so you can see it is nothing special. This was last year before I sold my 2005 F250 and had for sale signs in the windows:

[jimh406]

lizwood71 wrote:
Wow! Interesting !!!!! Really !? I wonder why that Artic fox manufacturer representative told me flat out it only fit in a short bed if it had a generator.

You can put anything on anything.

The question is whether you will be happy with that look and functionality or not. Personally, I find it a really odd idea to buy a new truck and leave that gap. I hate the look, and I'm not a believer in doing it that way on purpose. YMMV.

There are other discussions regarding putting a short bed camper on a long bed truck. Do a search here but also look in the archive.

[lizwood71]

Wow! Interesting !!!!! Really !? I wonder why that Artic fox manufacturer representative told me flat out it only fit in a short bed if it had a generator. Love the camper. So far hate the service. I'm definitely calling them again tomorrow !

[Bedlam]

A short bed camper will fit on a long bed truck, but you will have a gap between the camper and cab. My AF811 with generator fits on my 9' flat bed leaving enough room for the spare.





Here is the same camper on my short bed Ford:

[lizwood71]

I guess I better call the artic fox company and just triple check that the 811 camper will fit in a drw megacab (short bed). He had previously told me it would not fit a long bed if it had a generator. And it does. Sure don't want to make a second costly mistake

[jimh406]

lizwood71 wrote:
Yes that's going to be a problem. Once we get the camper off the truck , buy the new truck , I don't know how we will get it back to where someone can install the new things needed.

It's not that big of a problem. I installed my drw brackets after getting my DRW and trading in my SRW. There is usually enough clearance to put the first foot or so of the camper on the back of the pickup bed before the fenders flare out the most.

Then, lower the jacks. Only about half the weight will be on the truck bed. The rest will be on the rear jacks.