Pop Up Camper or lightweight to match 2500 6.4 ram

[Jfresh]

After researching hard sided campers and 3500 pickups I ended up with a 2500 6.4 ram 4x4. Amazing truck. Now I need to match the correct camper with the truck. Soft sided, short box, off road capable. Open to all suggestions. Home base is the Pacific North West. I would like to buy local if possible. I would prefer a used unit over a new one. Who manufactures the good, better or best pop ups? I could go with a toilet or without. I think ease of use would be my number one priority along with low maintenance. Please point me in the right direction.

[kylekai]

Here's a Hallmark that should work for you:

Hallmark Everest popup camper

[jefe_4x4]

JFresco,
One other thing. Will proposed camper be store out of the elements? If so, long-term weather proofing is less of a concern. If stored outdoors, choose one that has the best track record of non-leakage, and the least amount (or none) of wood framing. Wood cabinets are O.K. They're not holding the roof up.
I was looking online at craigslist yesterday for N. Calif. /W. Nevada and found quite a few nice used campers that would fit the bill and currently live in an area that gets a lot of sunny days, so would not be a dryrotted mess. Remember: wide search criteria.
jefe

[mkirsch]

Not anymore. Six-Pac used to, but they have long since gone out of business or sold out to another company that chose not to continue the line. Can't remember which.

The main market trend is toward bigger and fancier campers, which leaves the crowd who just want something basic with a place to sleep and clean up out in the cold.

[Jfresh]

Does anyone know who manufactures a short box hard sided camper that has no over hang and a wet bath? So far I have only found the campsite 6.8.

[wintersun]

A Wolf Creek camper which is made in your neck of the woods is one to consider. Lance also makes campers that are 2500 lbs. or less in weight. You will probably need to add to the truck's leaf springs and go to a local shop or buy a set of Supersprings. It took me an hour to install a set on my 2500 truck.

Verify that the tires you have on the truck will support the weight of the camper and the truck at the rear axle. 95% of the load will be on the two rear tires. There are tires that will add 1000 lbs. of load capacity at the rear that will mount on most factory rims. The other option is to buy a set of used rims from a 3500 truck and mount the new tires on them. Easier to find higher load rated tires for rims that are 7.5" or wider.

[campingken]

http://www.panthercampers.com/home.html

We toured the factory last year, in Vancouver WA, and were impressed with them. They have a used 2009 S/B camper for sale on their lot and claim that it weighs 1250 pounds.

[Jfresh]

So looks like a lightweight hard sided camper is going to better fit our needs. Opinions? Camplite? Looked at a Pastime. Don't know how I feel about wood construction. Any other brands? Any recommendations for a camper with no overhang for a short box?

[magic43]

This is an '04 model Outfitter Apex 8 that was built for a Toyota Tundra. It has adapted quite well to the F250. It has made at least one 3K mile each year and some years much more than that. It will be headed to Banff/Jasper next month.

[work2fish]

This year I purchased a used 2007 Northstar 850SC in excellent shape and couldn't be happier. I would have also purchased a Hallmark or Outfitter if one would have been available at a similar price point.

As mentioned previously, these campers do sell quickly and so be prepared to purchase on the spot. I live in Colorado but had to drive to Kansas to buy mine and I looked online for about 5 months but missed a few because I could not get off on a weekday. If you are planning to go into the backwoods, I would recommend the wet bath as this can come in handy when you need it. I have a cassette toilet which has been great. An 85 watt solar panel has kept my single battery charged during dry camping just fine. I would also look at torklift frame-mounted tiedowns as well and, of course, get these installed in advance so that you are ready to pick up that clean used camper on the spot. The other misnomer is that a hardside has more storage, I am probably using 75% of what is available in my popup. The clearance and stability due to the low center of gravity is great, and my camper is ~2,500 lbs wet with 30 gallons of water and all my gear.

Here is a photo of my truck and camper during a recent trip to BLM lands in northern Colorado:



I hope you have as fun of a time with your camper as I have had with mine!

[Geewizard]

jefe's got some very good points. Listen to him.

That said, I really really like my Outfitter.

Really.

[jefe_4x4]

Just don't be confused. A well made pop-up, like my bro's OUTFITTER! outweighs my Lance Lite 165-s by about 400 pounds. It just looks lighter. How can that be? It's a 9 foot, mine's an 8' 6". Tanks. He has 30 gals. of H2O, and I'm conserving like crazy with 18 gals. My 165-s, xcab weighs 1845 pounds, wet. Wet means full of potable water, the propane tank(s) filled, and he has two, 6V batteries to my one group 31. It's the wet part that you must compare when comparing campers, hard or soft if you are to gather a weight v. weight comparo. If you read my latest t.r., you will see bro's and our campers side by side, with the top up or down. His is about 16" lower with the top down and about the same height when the pop is up. There are some fundamental structural items to consider, for better or for worse. A hardside is like a shoebox with the lid glued on creating a lot of shear value. A pop-up is like a shoe box with a loose lid. Rack/twistable. Less shear value. Bro had a lot of issues with the bottom screws popping out of the frame due to the racking of the bottom of the shoebox. No such woe with the glued-on-lid shoe box. So, it's not so cut and dried as one might think.
My take is; if you live in the NW, a small hardside with a clamshell construction and few windows or other leak-able places would make a fine TC for the area. On the other hand, if you are tough enough, a pop-up will get you farther back into the NW forest than a hardside. Simply a clearance issue. Lots of issues to consider.
regards, as always, jefe

[805gregg]

Just get a lightweight hard side, much better, more convenient, and more 4 season capable, Lance lite and there are lots of others

[wintersun]

First review the current new popup campers and decide which ones should be on your list. Then add the tie-downs and wiring adapter to your truck so you can quickly go and buy a camper and take it home with you on a single trip.

Start looking for a used one on craigslist.com (and searchtempest) and the RV classifieds sites and have the cash ready. There are far fewer popups and if there is one available that is in very good condition it is not going to be around for very long.

Popups are a lot more popular in the southwest for trail running but you may be able to find something within 300 miles of where you live.

[campingken]

We have a TC-650 on our short bed and it is a well made camper. However it is over 1700 pounds when we add 30+ gals of water.

Check out Panther Campers. They are hard sided but extremely light weight and well made. Their factory is close to the Oregon border in Vancouver.