Do I really need a Dually?

[MarkP]

I'm seriously considering an Artic Fox 990 (has 1 slide) and I will be towing with 400-500 lbs of tongue weight.

The high volume dealer I'm talking to says 80%+ of the 990's they sell go on SRW trucks. He is recommending air bags and sway control.

I want to be safe. SRW would be nice, but I've read other threads here that say DRW is a must for any camper with a slide.

I do not currently own a truck, so I have options.

Thoughts?

[MarkP]

Thank you all for the help! As I suspected, I will go with the DRW.

It sound like I will still want air bags, sway bars and and the overload? Shocks?

I will be hauling an open race car trailer and dry camping at tracks around the West.

BTW, rare for me to give kudos to the RV sales guys, but the one I've been dealing with is very professional. He was only stating the delivery experience of putting the 990 on SRW. He said DRW would be better handling.

Thanks,

Mark

[msiminoff]

It is an unfortunate fact that many RV dealers will say nearly anything to make a sale :M

It's my opinion that the AF990 is too heavy to be carried on a 3/4 ton truck or even a 1-ton SRW with load range E tires... even if you're not towing.

I'm one of those people who hauls heavy camper with a slide on a SRW 1-ton truck... but doing this safely has meant spending a small fortune upgrading tires, wheels, and suspension components.

Since you're still shopping for a truck I would suggest that you consider a dually or budget $4-5K for upgrades.

Cheers
-Mark

[jmtandem]

Northwood's Arctic Fox brochure strongly suggests a one ton dually as minimum equipment for their truck campers. And that does not factor in the tongue weights. And in my experience carrying a 4000 pound camper for several years on a one ton dually you will still need more suspension help-- overload spring bumpers, air bags, etc. I would not carry one on a SRW truck.

[Boatycall]

kerry4951 wrote:
There are quite a few AF 990 owners that use SRW trucks.... My AF 1140 is only several hundred pounds heavier than your 990 and I cannot imagine hauling it on anything but a dually truck. I personally would not want to do it but than thats my sole opinion.

Ditto..
Not trying to play the weight police on you, it CAN be done. AF builds HEAVY campers. As mentioned above, my 1150 isn't much less than a 990. You'll want to spend some money on upgrades. But if you go with a DRW, you won't regret it.
I have a 1150 on an F350 DRW, and in addition to being a dually, here's what I've got--
F550 rear suspension/Spring pack (no bags)
Roadmaster rear ANTI sway bar
Rancho 9000 shocks
Torklift tie downs
Large amount of whiskey

I almost TBone'd an idiot TODAY taking my TC in for routine service on my lunch break. This guy decided he wanted to make a UTurn RIGHT in front of me. How could he not see a rig this big?? :h
Anyway, I had to dynamite the brakes. It only got a little out of kilter on me. I'm not sure how comfortable that would have been on a stock or lightly modified SRW.

On the upside - the County Sheriff behind me didn't like the guy's UTurn.

[1stgenfarmboy]

I guess it's according to how much and what type of camping you are going to do, if your going to use it 3-5 times a year and only in campgrounds then it's a toss up, but if your planning on keeping it for some extended trips and maybe some off the beaten path trips on curvy hilly roads and such for me there would be no problem making up my mind....the DRW will be much more stable.

I have an 03 lance 1071/slide the tag says 3,600 dry, I first had it on a SRW but quickly realized I really did need a DRW with some suspension mods.

I'm not one of the guys that says, " heck I don't even know it's back there.

[BigGrey]

I currently own a 2009 F-350 DRW and carried an Arctic fox 990. I added Air Bags, Roadmaster Sway Bars and Torklift Stableloads and it handled very nicely I can not comment on a SRW and while yes it will haul the 990 you have much better control with the DRW rig. Your talking about 5000 + pounds there so the more stability you have the better.

[kerry4951]

There are quite a few AF 990 owners that use SRW trucks. Alot of them upgrade to 19.5 wheels and tires, plus add on suspension mods. It certainly is being done and Im sure many have good results. No doubt about it though that a dually would be more suitable and stable. My AF 1140 is only several hundred pounds heavier than your 990 and I cannot imagine hauling it on anything but a dually truck. I personally would not want to do it but than thats my sole opinion.

[campn4walleye]

We were considering the AF 990, and had a Dodge 3500 LB, SRW. By checking all the #s, and having the dealer weigh the unit because of a huge difference in the weight he was quoting, we would have been 1100 lbs over GVWR. That's including the tongue wt of a 3000 lbs boat.

That is too much wt for our comfort level. All he would have done was to add airbags. Learning so much on this forum, we would have to add about $7K in mods to the truck to make it work safely (for us). Some folks are braver and will say differently. You have to go with what will make you happy.

We love our new DRW and most importantly, we feel safe. BTW, we didn't go with the 990 because we found another TC with a nicer floor plan and more space, not because it's not a nice unit.