Help me choose a slide out Truck Camper!

[Blanco1]

I went to Barber RV in Ventura today to look at a few slide out truck Campers & have more or less fallen in love with the HOST Mammoth rig.

My concerns are that the slide out are all above the bed walls & I'm sure theres no other way to do slides?

& yet will not commit to $55K for a camper without looking at many others 1st.

For me it does not have to be new!

But what sort of warranties come with new?

I wqas thinking about calling host & maybe building one with my specs for our 100lb dog.

I don't need the love seat & that could be his area & I also don't really see a need for 2 TV's.
We currently have never had a TV & see camping as part of that disconnect from tv & the net.

Sure we might still check out e-mails & such but for the most part ignore modern tech while camping.

So tell me about Lance slide outs or Eagle Cap or arctic or etc & what about prices & storage?

I do love the amounts of storage under the floor with the mammoth but also think about the higher C.O.G this brings.

I HATE driving in strong winds & I assume this would just make it ll the more scary?

[Blanco1]

Seems the Eagle Cap is pretty much the same camper from what I saw via youtube?

I suppose weight with what they use to build it comes into play next?

[Blanco1]

daily double wrote:
Before you get a camper, you will want to check what mods you can do to your truck to get it to carry 6k lbs. overloaded is one thing but you would be waaay over I'm thinking. P.S. I'm not the weight police.

To be honest I love doing up grades, but with this Campmper i'll have to pay attention to many things

.

[Bedlam]

Dana rates your axle at 11K lbs. Your biggest hurdle will be to stay safely under this maximum once you are loaded, filled and hitched. You'll need a 4' receiver extension to clear the Mammoth rear overhang on your pickup, so remember the leverage you will be putting behind the axle.

[Grit_dog]

^From what I just looked up, the old Lance 900 is somewhere around 3000lbs wet and loaded. If that is the case, you're looking at a whole different animal if you're talking triple slides, or even a large single slide unit. Anywhere from 4500lbs min to 6klbs on the big end.
I'm far from being the weight cops too, but I'd temper my expectations of a 20 year old pickup, even though it's a dually and try to stay on the lower end of that spectrum. Like sub 5klbs.
Plenty of roomy dry bath campers with a single slide that will fit your truck. I don't think the Mammoth or other double/triple slide campers are in your trucks wheelhouse.

[Blanco1]

daily double wrote:
Before you get a camper, you will want to check what mods you can do to your truck to get it to carry 6k lbs. overloaded is one thing but you would be waaay over I'm thinking. P.S. I'm not the weight police.

I already have a '85 Lance 900 truck camper on my '97 Dodge 3500 4x4 dually 5spd 4x4.

my main concern if if I can still pull a trailer.

I would for sure be able to justify an exhaust brake?

[daily_double]

Before you get a camper, you will want to check what mods you can do to your truck to get it to carry 6k lbs. overloaded is one thing but you would be waaay over I'm thinking. P.S. I'm not the weight police.

[Blanco1]

Freep wrote:

FrankShore wrote:
Lance is a best bet!

We love our 2014 Lance 992. Just got back from a three week trip.

I emailed Lance asking for some help with locating tanks for some mod work I'm thinking about doing and they sent me PDFs of the drawings within the hour. Very friendly and responsive people at Lance.

If you buy a TC, the first mod I recommend is replacing the mattress with a memory foam mattress. Our camper bed is more comfortable than our bed at home.

Our sale man mentioned the EC as well but said they no longer carry them so I'd like to look at them.

& yes, If need be I am willing do some mods to my suspension to make my current truck ready for this.

might you have a link to the EC triple slide you liked?

[Freep]

FrankShore wrote:
Lance is a best bet!

We love our 2014 Lance 992. Just got back from a three week trip.

I emailed Lance asking for some help with locating tanks for some mod work I'm thinking about doing and they sent me PDFs of the drawings within the hour. Very friendly and responsive people at Lance.

If you buy a TC, the first mod I recommend is replacing the mattress with a memory foam mattress. Our camper bed is more comfortable than our bed at home.

[FireGuard]

A buddy and I checked out both the Host and Eagle Cap at Barber and spent several minutes checking everything out. Personally , I like the EC much better over th Host.
The Lance 1165 was my least favorite. The couch recliners are uncomfortable and tue fridge is too far away from the kitchen.
If it were buying a triple slide the EC would be my choice.
Do you plan to upgrade your truck? You'll be looking at close to 6k lbs.

[Blanco1]

Ok I hear you guys say Lance & AF & etc.

How about pictures?

Or at least models so I can look them on the InterWeb?

I'm really liking the idea of a side entry & 3 slides.

But I suppose not a must.

I would love one that has a place our dog would call his own to stay out of the way!

Our 100 Lb dog is so huge in our current lance 900 with no slides!
Its like having another adult human crawling around on his hands & knees, always in the way!

[Paradox123]

FrankShore wrote:
Lance is a best bet!

No . . . Bigfoot.

[work2much]

Your truck may come into play a bit. I see from your profile you have a 97 3500 dually. That may not be enough truck for a Host Mammoth for the comfort level you describe concerned with being top heavy in the wind.

We just traded in an 04 Ram dually that had a GCWR of ~4500 pounds and our Arctic Fox 1150 was noticeable on the back overloading the truck by a bit.. I think a Mammoth would be heavier. Our new truck has about 1,100 pounds more cargo weight rating and it feels better, especially on twisty roads and in strong crossroads. We are now at about GVWR and GCWR with a single slide Arctic Fox.


The Arctic Fox floor sits over the wheel wells and below the bedrails. The slide obviously over the bedrail. AF also has pretty large holding tanks so storage under the camper is limited.

[FrankShore]

Lance is a best bet!

[Bedlam]

Running the floor above the bed rails allows for an 8-8.5' wide floor and little elevation difference between the floor and slide out. A side benefit is that the step up to the bed is reduced too. Chalet, Eagle Cap and Host have units with this floor height.

Running the camper floor above the wheel wells gives you about 6' wide floors and a basement for limited storage.

Having no basement gives you a 4' wide floor. The center of gravity is lower, but now holding tanks have to mounted higher and take away from cabinet space. This setup has the highest climb in and out of bed typically requiring two steps up or down.

The largest campers will weigh in close to 5000 lbs dry before you add water, supplies and occupants. I rough guess the actual weight by adding the amount of gallons of water and at least 500 lbs of gear to the dry weight. Some people are minimalists and take a backpack worth of gear while others have their anvil collection where they travel. My Host was over 4700 lbs dry.