Lance 855S or Eagle Cap 850

[PSUJIM85]

I am new to truck camping and I am in bit of a quandary. I just purchased a Chevy HD3500 Diesel with a payload of 4265 lbs. (Crew cab with a short bed)

I have been looking at these shortbed slide out models, but I feel that they put me very close to being overweight when loaded. Does anyone have advice on owning these - which is better built? Also how did you find the weights - is the web site reliable or do they vary widely from what they present?

I also wondered if a driver side awning is useful or not?

Thanks for any advise
Jim

[Bedlam]

We chose the Arctic Fox 811 over the Lance 855S and the Adventurer 86SBS was close behind our AF pick. The Eagle Cap 850 was not available in our area to compare to our choice, but it produced by the same company as Adventurer and I suspect quality will be similar.

I'm not sure if you will find a slide model that will not take you over GVWR once you are loaded up for camping. Depending on the OEM wheel package, you should be safe if you have the higher capacity OEM's as long as you do not tow a trailer with a heavy tongue weight. Expect to do some suspension modifications regardless of the TC you choose.

If you boondock, a driver side awning would be nice, but it is impractical when connected to utilities. A curb side awning would be more useful in varying situations. We like the rear awning since it rains often where we live and allows a covered area in front of the door.

I prefer the slide on the curb side so that you can pull off the road and extend the slide without it deploying into traffic, but that will depend on where and how you plan to travel.

[lincolnmatthews]

For me I picked a new Lance over the EC, mainly because of the huge price difference. Were more than happy with the new 1050S.
I did special order it with the drivers side awning (also have the rear) we used the side awning all the time in the rain with our old non-slide Lance. It was on the pass side (or dinette side) so made a little more sense. However it didn't cost to much to have it installed by Lance, I'm glad I have it as the rear one is basically useless in the pouring rain IMO, other than to keep things dryer going in & out or the camper.
For 015 I believe EC has quit using fiberglass caps, & now are just like all the rest, I did like the new Lance aerodynamic nose over the more "blunter" EC, again just a personal thing. Good Luck with which ever you choose!

[SugarHillCTD]

Super_Dave wrote:
Jim,
As an EC 850 owner, I can say that everything else being equal, I would pick the EC over the Lance for skin and end cap design. The driver side awning was a huge waste of my money.

Dave

As a Lance 855s owner, I agree with Super Dave- I would buy the EC 850.

Not because of any problems with our Lance but because the EC has a better bathroom layout and more interior storage.

Ask Billtex- he is on this forum and decided on the EC 850 vs. the 855s

[Artum_Snowbird]

The only real way to answer your question is for you to take your truck full of fuel, and what you would take with you in the crew cab, people, pets, stuff, and get it weighed front and back axle separately.

With a short box almost all the weight will drop directly onto the rear axle, so take the camper, add 1000 pounds of stuff to it's weight, and see if you have room to carry it with the tires you have.

Remember, adding a hitch and towing anything puts about 150% of the hitch weight on the rear axle, and takes weight off the front.

An awning over the door is nice, and might be all you really need. Campers are high and provide shade because of it. Tarps go where you need them.

Mike

[Super_Dave]

Jim,
As an EC 850 owner, I can say that everything else being equal, I would pick the EC over the Lance for skin and end cap design. The driver side awning was a huge waste of my money.

Dave