Ordering F-350 7.3 CCLB SRW - how big of camper can I get?

[BeMurda]

My wife and I want to order a single rear wheel 1 ton truck for the primary purpose of truck camping with our 2 year old boy - and we hope we can have a second living child. We are looking to use it for both weekend and longer trips. We live in Northern Canada and the truck will be our second vehicle when the camper is not being used (we will probably leave the camper on over summer and off in the winter except if we drive south). Only one of us will commute which means it's not an everyday car to drive. We would like to stick to single rear wheel based on our conversations. We have never owned a truck before.

Here is the build I have made to try to get max payload with 11,900 GVWR which I think will be above 4,400lbs:

F-350 SuperCrew 4x4 8’ bed Lariat with the following options:
-7.3L gas
-4.30 gears
-Lariat UItimate Package
-Snow Plow / Camper Package
-Skid Plates - Transfer Case and Fuel Tank
-400 Amp dual alternator w/ dual batteries
-LED Roof Clearance Lights


We'd like as much space as possible in a truck camper for a decent used price given the small child and desire to have another. I found a 2010 Lance 950S with a dry weight of 3120lbs. It seems pretty ideal, another option would be an Adventurer 901SB or a used Wolf Creek.

What weight camper could I get with this build? Any advice? Thank you.

[Grit_dog]

But mostly it boils down to if you’re comfortable or knowledgeable enough to trust what MaNY others do without issue. And if you’re one of those “don’t want to know it’s back there” folks or if you’re ok knowing that you’re driving a loaded truck.
A dually IS the ultra stable and comfy decision. Just depends how that feeling balances with the rest of your needs and preferences for the truck.

[Grit_dog]

BeMurda wrote:
Seems like I should order a DRW, I think I will go that direction and figure out how to live with it.

Hard to understand someone else’s thought process and frankly NOMB (none of my business). But I’d suggest if you can drive someone’s srw setup and get a feel for it first, that’s better than the potential buyers remorse of having a “hippy” truck that you otherwise don’t want or need.

[Grit_dog]

In the OPs case or anyone else for that matter, winter driving lightly loaded, just run the outer dual only to increase tire pressure. No it won’t ruin anything and won’t even look (too) weird like running the inner dual.
Used to do this all the time on light duty dually pickup plow trucks. Only downside is wearing down a pair of the rears more than the other, although N Canada, winter, tire wear should be almost non existent. Or a cheap set of rims with some winter stud tires would be even better.

At a minimum, lower the pressure in the duals to the absolute min you can. No more than 20 psi in the rears will help traction on an empty or lightly loaded dually.

[srschang]

BeMurda wrote:
Seems like I should order a DRW, I think I will go that direction and figure out how to live with it.

The only reason I ordered a SRW in 2020 instead of a DRW was driving in snow. I live near Buffalo, NY and take a couple snowmobile trips into Quebec every winter. I was really concerned how the dually would handle in the snow.

In two wheel drive with snow on the ground, it's basically worthless. In four wheel drive on snow, it handles comparable to my SRW. So it just spends more time in four wheel drive than the SRW did.

[cptqueeg]

BeMurda wrote:
Seems like I should order a DRW, I think I will go that direction and figure out how to live with it.

No question that is the correct decision. It'll be there when you buy the fifth wheel in a few years!

[BeMurda]

Seems like I should order a DRW, I think I will go that direction and figure out how to live with it.

[HGF_Iowa]

I have a 2022 F-350 Super Crew, SRW, 7.3 gas, XLT model, 4x4, long bed, Firestone Air bags, Torklift tiedowns, 11,500GVWR. Camper is a 9.5 North Star Igloo. Total weight with gas and water half full, two propane tanks full, plus gear and one person is 11,280 on CAT scale. It handles just fine alone or also pulling a 3,000 lb. boat. Handles much like my old 2014 King Ranch with the 6.2 gas, other than the 7.3 gets a little better gas mileage than the 6.2 did. I'm guessing I'm slightly over the GVWR with full tanks and when pulling the boat. I'm happy, going to take it to Alaska next year!

[Geo_Boy]

srschang wrote:
One more "1000#" stuff weight believer. I bought a 2020 Ram 3500 CC SRW to haul our new Northstar 12STC camper. The truck payload sticker was 4340#, so should be able to haul a good size camper, right? We bought the 12STC because we wanted the lightest true dry bath camper we could find. The 12 STC came in at 3330# dry (as weighed). Add water, propane, batteries, solar, the wife, and the camper was at 3945#. When I did the Cat scale camper and truck, then took the camper off and reweighed the truck, the final camper weight was 4780#, a full 1450# more than the dry weight!

So I did what many folks do, air bags, adjustable shocks, Torquelift Stableloads, 19.5" tires. It actually handled very well, even though it was 440# overweight.

I took my truck to the dealer for the annual safety inspection, and they asked me if I was interested in trading it in. They said they would give me a smokin' deal if I would order a new 2022 truck and trade in the 2020. They did, and I did, and now I have a the same truck with dual rear wheels, and haul the camper just fine with zero accessories.

That is the truth about about MFG. weight and the true weight of a TC.

[srschang]

One more "1000#" stuff weight believer. I bought a 2020 Ram 3500 CC SRW to haul our new Northstar 12STC camper. The truck payload sticker was 4340#, so should be able to haul a good size camper, right? We bought the 12STC because we wanted the lightest true dry bath camper we could find. The 12 STC came in at 3330# dry (as weighed). Add water, propane, batteries, solar, the wife, and the camper was at 3945#. When I did the Cat scale camper and truck, then took the camper off and reweighed the truck, the final camper weight was 4780#, a full 1450# more than the dry weight!

So I did what many folks do, air bags, adjustable shocks, Torquelift Stableloads, 19.5" tires. It actually handled very well, even though it was 440# overweight.

I took my truck to the dealer for the annual safety inspection, and they asked me if I was interested in trading it in. They said they would give me a smokin' deal if I would order a new 2022 truck and trade in the 2020. They did, and I did, and now I have a the same truck with dual rear wheels, and haul the camper just fine with zero accessories.

[stevenal]

Lots of weight related answers here that avoid the height question. I live where lots of TCs pass through, and continue to be amazed to see campers that double the overall height over the truck alone. Of course they have big ACs on the roof, and are on SRW trucks. They lean from normal road crowning, and sway like crazy.
I like my SRW, kept the camper low and light weight, and added suspension enhancements.

[3_tons]

Grit dog wrote:
Taking a significant financial hit on vehicle in any recent years back to the last recession shouldn’t be blamed on upsizing a camper since the vehicles for each are very similar in value.

You are somewhat correct, but this assumes that I ‘took the hit’ recently (e.g. before incurring a bunch of depreciation, though a repeat of wasteful acquisition fees are a consideration too)…

In my case we were initially very happy with our non-slide camper, but after only about 2 years of ownership we found that we loved the activity but desired more room, and more storage and bigger tanks for extended off-grid camping were also high on our re-do ‘wish list’ - this was in the mid 2000’s, and campers with single slides were relatively new to the camper marketplace…So my only point here was (because one’s needs often change…) that given a do-over, I’d only wished that I’d avoided need to do a costly repurchase…

3 tons

[Grit_dog]

Taking a significant financial hit on vehicle in any recent years back to the last recession shouldn’t be blamed on upsizing a camper since the vehicles for each are very similar in value.

[Grit_dog]

All the 9’ ish “short bed” capable campers I’ve seen have CoG right about over the axle of a short bed.
Move the camper forward a foot and a half ish in a longbed truck will relieve what was virtually 100% load on the rear axle by a fair amount. Nothing earth shattering but several hundred lbs will shift to the front axle.

[3_tons]

BeMurda wrote:

mkirsch wrote:
You will only discover "incurable weight limitations" if you intentionally buy a camper that's too heavy and are too stubborn to make the compromise, i.e. buy a smaller/lighter camper.

High 4000's are a bit much for an SRW, I agree, but we're not talking about high 4000's. We're talking low 4000's. Getting up there, but still manageable.

Heck even 5000 is possible with an SRW if you throw enough money at it.

A Lance 830 which is used in my neighbourhood seems like a good compromise. The issue with SRW short bed which is what this would fit well is that if I decide it's too small I don't have much of an upgrade path other than a short box single slide unit... or getting the truck. And I told my wife that I would not upgrade the truck, it would be buy once cry once - unlike my other habits with vehicles haha.

My hard learned council is that re-purchasing a new truck is a bitter pill…Finding that we’d soon outgrown our (what overtime became ‘seemingly cramped’…) 9’6” non-slide camper meant our now almost new SRW was suddenly obsolete - luckily, for me I was able to absorb the hit…

BTW, disregard mfg. advertised camper weights because they are designed to sell campers - consider batteries, LPG, water weight (incl. water heater capacity), non-standard options, incl. jack weight, solar, groceries, clothing, misc. housewares, baggage compartment items (all total in my case, say about an additional 800-850#) = ‘real world’ weights can be a sobering experience - now add tie-downs and frame attachments, passengers and rear seat cargo, a full tank of fuel and (if maybe a future option?) add a HD Curt hitch (or equivalent) and hitch extension for say UTV trailer towing, and now consider the CG lever effect…Trust that these are all Issues the camper salesman will be sure not to mention - lol :E

This is exactly why lots of trucks with campers are very close to or often exceed their GVWR which affects handling, braking and ‘real world’ towing ability - from experience it’s far better from the outset to be a ‘Happy Camper’ - JMHO

3 tons

[BeMurda]

mkirsch wrote:
You will only discover "incurable weight limitations" if you intentionally buy a camper that's too heavy and are too stubborn to make the compromise, i.e. buy a smaller/lighter camper.

High 4000's are a bit much for an SRW, I agree, but we're not talking about high 4000's. We're talking low 4000's. Getting up there, but still manageable.

Heck even 5000 is possible with an SRW if you throw enough money at it.

A Lance 830 which is used in my neighbourhood seems like a good compromise. The issue with SRW short bed which is what this would fit well is that if I decide it's too small I don't have much of an upgrade path other than a short box single slide unit... or getting a different truck. And I told my wife that I would not upgrade the truck, it would be buy once cry once - unlike my other habits with vehicles haha.