Newbie Here! - Would Love Some General Info/Help!

[ORExpore]

Hey Everyone,

I'm very new to the camper/RV world and am a little overwhelmed on where to start. I've been interested for some time but have never had the means to pull it off. I'm hoping to start looking for a camper that I can take on a few ski trips this winter but also use in the summer. So, if anyone is willing, I would appreciate some help in what to look for in a camper. Here is my truck situation and a few questions.

1) I drive a 2015 Silverado 2500 HD short bed but I also want to be able to tow a boat. it seems that some campers hang down pretty low in the back. What should I look for if I want to keep my towing capability. Also, my brother drives a long bed truck, are we able to share a camper and both tow a boat or would I need to upgrade to a long bed truck?

2) Since I want to use the camper in freezing temperatures are there certain campers or features I should look for? (i.e. how much do i need to worry about pipes freezing? Or is there a way to winter-proof a camper after I purchase is?

3) Any general info/ thoughts you guys have is greatly appreciated! If there are preferred feathers that are better than other or things to watch out or lookout for. I'm a budget so I will be purchasing a little but older of a camper so i wanted to start the looking process early.

Also, I know many will recommend the search function. I have an am using that but if you know of older post that talk about these topics and are willing to provide the link that would be great!

Thanks for all the help!

Best,

ORExplore

[ORExpore]

Thanks for all the responses! I really appreciate all the help. I will definitely look for a short bed camper but now I feel like I really need to consider holding off a little longer and upgrading to a long bed truck.

[work2much]

ORExpore wrote:
Hey Everyone,

or would I need to upgrade to a long bed truck?


ORExplore

If a new truck is in the conversation it would definitely help you find hard sided camper.

[NEOK]

I have a 2500HD short bed (6.5') GMC with a Bigfoot camper made for 1500 trucks. I use it part of the time to pull and 18' bass boat and have had no problems. I did add an additional spring and use Torklift Quick Disconnect Stable Loads. I also use a Torklift SuperHitch and SuperTruss.

[burningman]

There are short bed campers, but not a lot of older and cheaper ones. Most are newer (and therefore pricey) because it's been more recent that so many people have been buying short beds.
They will look funny on a long bed but I guess that's your brother's problem 🙂

[jimh406]

Best place to start ... go visit lots that have TCs. Come back here with questions.

I believe limiting your search based on your existing truck is a mistake.

[realter]

By short bed I assume you mean 6.5' bed. Most manufacturers have models for this size bed, contrary to what the above posters are writing. For winter camping, consider a cassette toilet-- just use windshield anti fleece in the tank. Check out he Northstar Laredo and some of the other NS models.

[narcodog]

A Lance 845 built after 07 should fit the bill. I say after 07 because they went to a metal frame and lost some weight over previous models. I have an 06 and it works great on my short bed 2500HD. I coldest I camped in in it was about 10 degrees and it did fine. I have two batteries,group 31's, mattress warmers and a portable generator if I need to charge the battery's.

If you want to pull a boat you should upgrade the hitch because the OEM hitches are not the best.

You should upgrade the suspension with shocks, Super Springs or something else you might come across. You need to upgrade to "E" rated tires.

For heat in cold weather I have a Wave 3 heater that is direct connected to my LP system. Some of the older Lances came with window inserts for winter camping. If you find one without, you can improvise . With Reflectix or something else. You will have to watch you tong weight for sure.

As was stated your brother will have to build a frame to keep the TC from sliding forward.

There are other short bed rigs out there you just have to look on RV Trader.

[SidecarFlip]

+ 1 on that. I do / did the same thing. Lengthened my tongue and kept my drop hitch ball short.

[burningman]

You don't have to use a hitch extension, it always drives me nuts when everyone says you do. Those things have terrible physics.
You can either use a trailer that has a long enough tongue to reach past the camper overhang to the hitch, or lengthen your existing trailer tongue.
That's what I've done for the past 20 years, handling is superior when you don't have your trailer hitch hanging eight feet behind your rear axle. The further behind the axle you push the hitch the worse it is, that's why 5th wheels and goosenecks tow so much better than anything else.
It's also an extra pain in the butt every time you load and unload your camper when you have to mount and unmount that big heavy thing too.
If it's a really light trailer then it matters less.

[Powerdude]

A short bed truck is fine, it will just limit your options a bit.

Depending on how many people will go on your trips, it may be a tight squeeze, but if you only use the camper for sleeping in and keeping warm, you should be fine.

If you want to winter camp, you want enclosed and heated tanks in the camper, not exposed tanks that hang off the back end (like mine in my sig).

A four season camper for a short bed truck might be a little harder to find, depending on your budget and location. Location is important. I had to drive 1000 miles to pick up my camper, because it was a short bed camper and the time of the year impacted availability of used units.

Hardside campers for winter, look for Northern Lite and Bigfoot, mainly. Some Lance meet the criteria, older S&S campers, Arctic Fox or Eagle camp.

The problem with short bed trucks is that you have a center of gravity issue, so the camper has to be designed right for short bed trucks, and you will have limited payload capability.

Pay close attention to your tire weight limits, and you will be fine.

[SidecarFlip]

Too light of truck with a too short bed.... For a hardside. You could go with a Hallmark or FWC or even an Alaskan but not a hardside.

[Artum_Snowbird]

Seriously though, there are always truck campers up at the ski hill. How do they do it? Well, it's not magic, but many of them have really upgraded their rigs with extra insulation, windows, batteries, heated valves and ducted tanks, outside showers insulated, under bed insulated with air ducts, vents and just good stuff. We camped down to 8F and just got slushy water in the morning after a bit of work on my part to get it going. Man, that bed was so cold.

But, you won't be able to do it with your short box 3/4 ton. Nope, just impossible for what you want it to do.

[KD4UPL]

There are very few campers that will properly fit both a long bed and a short bed truck. If you use a long bed camper on the short bed it will hand way off the back and the tie down brackets will likely be in the wrong position. Center of gravity also will probably be farther back than you'd like. If you use a short bed camper on a long bed you have to build some kind of frame in the front to keep it back from the front of the bed. This is to prevent the "wings" from contacting the tail lights. This does give you storage in the front of the bed but it looks funny.
You will run out of payload on that truck very fast. You would need a very small light weight TC to be able to haul it, tow the boat, plus haul all your family and stuff. I would seriously consider upgrading to a long bed dually.
I don't know of any camper that would hang down so far you couldn't use the hitch. I've never seen one and it would be rather foolish of the manufacturer to make one that way. It would defeat one of the big reasons to own a TC.
You will need a hitch extension of some kind. I used a 48" Curt to tow my 20' boat on a tandem axle trailer, total weight about 4,500 pounds. It worked okay. When I started using my dually I installed a Super Hitch with a 48" Super Truss. It is much stiffer and rated for a bit more weight.

[burningman]

That short bed truck is your biggest problem right now unless you're looking at really tiny campers.

[2oldman]

Best TC for winter

As a suggestion, post Subject lines should give a hint as to what you're asking. Everyone here is looking for help.