Random Questions

[Cliff_Michele]

Hello all. We are about to pull the trigger on a 2022 Northern Lite 10-2LEDB and a 2022 DRW RAM 3500 4x4 with the bigger diesel and Aison transmission. One big question, however. I am considering a flatbed and setting the camper on top to have room around the sides for tool boxes for toys and extra propane bottles. And maybe a place for a couple ebikes. Can this be done in such a way that the camper can be removed to allow for exploring? Or am I just dreaming?

[zb39]

Because Douglass is building your bed I would go 84 inch. Mine is a 60 inch CA, but I went with a CM bed.
I do love my Kelderman air ride and I highly recommend it. I'm in PA and Douglass was just to far away. I had a buck stop bumper and a warn 16.5 winch on my last 5500 camper hauler.
Worked great. May do the same to the new one.

[Cliff_Michele]

We did it! Ordered a 2022 Northern Lite 10-2LEDB for delivery in July. We decided to go with a RAM 5500 and a camper body, probably from Douglass Truck Body in California, if the price is reasobable. The next question is a 60" or 84" CA. The 60", of course, is easier turning when on dirt roads or even reasobale two tracks iin BLM or NF land, but the 84" gives us a large 2" wide cabinet athwartships behind the cab for storage, even two ebikes. For several month long trips to Alaska, the storage would be handy. Is it worth the sacrifice off road exploring? I realize weighing 18 or 19K I must behave myself. Which reminds me. A winch....

Comments? Thanks!

[bighatnohorse]

5500 and flat tow. That will probably suit your needs in the long run.

[Cliff_Michele]

Grit dog wrote:
Secure it?
As long as you don’t unload it in Seattle, it will be there when you get back!

Oh, man, if that ain't the truth! Seattle has gone to hell.

[n0arp]

Cliff_Michele wrote:
Thanks everyone. I have several inquiries out to bed manufacturers. anybody have a brand they like? One of my desires is to be able to carry a larger propane tank or tanks becaue we love our propane fire pit when camping plus would run the generator to run the air conditioning. Need to know weights before I decide which one to get as well as which series truck to get. Next question. How do you secure the camper if you drop it off for a couple dys of exploring with the truck off road? In the forest I could chain to a tree but what if I am in the desert? Thanks all!

I've had Temco and Bedrock beds, and worked on modifying some CM beds for other people. After seeing CM, I passed them up for the Bedrock on my latest truck - I think they're the best of the three. Kind of a newer company, I think, but they're the sister company to Ranch Hand (I also run their bumpers, etc) and make a really good product.

You don't secure the camper, just drop it to the ground or as low as you can, and lock the door that has the jack control switch. If someone is knowledgable about truck campers and a bit dedicated, they could steal it, but I think the belongings inside would be far more likely to be taken than the camper itself. Regardless, we've never had issues with theft, a couple years of time (full-time) boondocking on public lands. Knock on wood...

Regarding the propane tank, our camper has 2x30# cylinders. We also have a large solar array and an Onan 2500LP generator in it - that generator is an absolute last resort. The newer campers are beginning to use a new Onan inverter model, which is a lot better, but still runs on propane which is part of the issue I have with it. I suggest carrying a small inverter generator - such as the Honda EU2200i - with extended runkit. We have a pair of Honda EU2200is that connect back to a 6gal marine fuel tank, and sip fuel compared to the the onboard Onan. Gasoline is much easier to come by as far more places carry it. You could most likely get by with one, as that's all carried with the TC for quite a while, and only added a second to be able to max out the chargers in our fifth wheel (we'll run our AC off battery, and top up the batteries with the generators if solar won't keep up).

For your propane fire pit, just tap the line on your rig with a quick connect and utilize what is already onboard.

[Reality_Check]

Cliff_Michele wrote:
Thanks everyone. I have several inquiries out to bed manufacturers. anybody have a brand they like? One of my desires is to be able to carry a larger propane tank or tanks becaue we love our propane fire pit when camping plus would run the generator to run the air conditioning. Need to know weights before I decide which one to get as well as which series truck to get. Next question. How do you secure the camper if you drop it off for a couple dys of exploring with the truck off road? In the forest I could chain to a tree but what if I am in the desert? Thanks all!

There isn't any 'securing' a camper. Just drop it and go.

We carry extra propane tanks in a support trailer. They take up a lot of room..and it you're set on a 350/3500, you'll max out the weight really really fast.

Last trip out where I weighed, we were 19,100 for the truck, 27,700 with the trailer. Gone for a little over two months.

[Grit_dog]

Secure it?
As long as you don’t unload it in Seattle, it will be there when you get back!

[Cliff_Michele]

Thanks everyone. I have several inquiries out to bed manufacturers. anybody have a brand they like? One of my desires is to be able to carry a larger propane tank or tanks becaue we love our propane fire pit when camping plus would run the generator to run the air conditioning. Need to know weights before I decide which one to get as well as which series truck to get. Next question. How do you secure the camper if you drop it off for a couple dys of exploring with the truck off road? In the forest I could chain to a tree but what if I am in the desert? Thanks all!

[n0arp]

markowwes wrote:
Your camper sits over top of the truck frame rails so you don’t need a heavy deck frame.

You would be surprised how much a 5500 frame flexes. If you do any off-roading, I suggest a heavy deck frame. I cracked a TC frame off-road (in a normal pickup box, with Torklift frame ties). Had to pull the bottom of the camper and build a steel subframe for that corner.

After that, I pulled off the truck bed and replaced it with a heavy steel deck, that had much less flex in it. When I got my 5500, I checked the flex on it and was amazed at how much I could get it to twist with bare frame rails. I run a heavy steel bed on it, and it still twists to the point of visible deflection when I lift a tire.

If you stick to paved roads and freshly graded dirt, it probably isn't an issue to rely only on the frame rails to provide a rigid surface... YMMV. I would be skeptical to, but it all depends on how you use them.

Also, not sure how the Ford F550 and Ram 5500 compare in this regard. I believe both use similar C-channel, so should be pretty close, but could be a non-issue on Ford for some reason.

[markowwes]

It all comes down to how much money do you want to spend. I went the “Service Body” route and would never look back. Had the body built to fit the camper so there are no big gaps anywhere. All kinds of storage for whatever you want to take with you and no problems with how to tie things down. The 550 is definitely a rough ride when the camper is not on, so I went to the full Kelderman 4 link air suspension with the kit for bags on the front axle. Maintains constant ride height all the time, they also include a monster torsion bar for the rear that works great. I went with an aluminum body with 3” cross beams on 12” centers to keep everything lower than usual. Your camper sits over top of the truck frame rails so you don’t need a heavy deck frame.

[mkirsch]

The camper comes on and off same as if it were in a regular truck box. Actually easier because you don't have the wheel wells to deal with. All you need are the dually extensions for the front jacks.

[KD4UPL]

I have an aluminum flatbed on my 2005 Chevy dually. It has tool boxes mounted above and below the bed. I use it as a work truck for my electrical contracting business. My 11' Fleetwood 11X TC would fit on the bed between the upper tool boxes. I had D rings installed in the floor of the bed that the Happi Jack turnbuckles were attached too. I could put the camper on in about 20 minutes or so. Taking it off took slightly longer because then I had to level it again.
With my family of 5 in the truck, all my tools, camper, and boat hitched to the back I was about 13,100 on the truck axles, about 8,800 on the rear axle. It rode and handled well. I took it from VA to CO, MI, and NY with no problems.
I think there's a picture of my rig on here somewhere. Maybe in my profile page or something.

[jimh406]

I think the aesthetics is a consideration especially if the TC is off. If you need a plain work truck/flatbed for another reason that is a different story. DW and I prefer the looks of the pickup bed as well. I also use it with a tonneau cover on it during Winter.

There are some very good looking flatbeds though, so you should be able to improve the looks over a more spartan body if you want. Either by having a fiberglass one with some curves, or painting a flatbed to match the truck paint.

As far as 19.5s go, other than not being able to air down which can't be overcome, some 19.5 tires do ride a lot better than other 19.5s. Of course, there is the added benefit of tougher sidewalls, a stronger suspension, tighter turning, better brakes of my F450 when I was choosing between a F450 and F350. Also, Sulastic hangers can also make the rear softer on a Ford. I don't know if they make similar rubber mounted spring mounted perches to make the unloaded ride better even on the stronger truck. You can also go with an air suspension.

[Cliff_Michele]

Wow, outstanding comments, thanks! We re in our 60's and retired. Have a Jeep Grand Cherokee for DD. We expect to be doing, say, a couple one month road trips from our home north of Seattle (Brier) and a single 5 month trip to Alaska or the East Coat (family and friends and service buddies from 45 years ago). The thought is to frequently drop the camper to play and explore locally for a few day then pick it up for a day or two then drop it again. Wife is concerned about aesthetics (smh) but I see some nice looking rigs in the signature files. And to be honest I am not concerned about looks but I am about safety having owned heavy dump trucks and trailers. Maxxing out the weight does not make for fun driviing. Considering 4500 or 5500 class trucks after reading these but DW is concerned about ride when the camper is off. I saw today on a Northern Lite that I could bolt a box to the patio on each side of the door. That might be enough. The idea of a Torklift hitch extension with a swing out hinge might work for the bikes. Rack would be easy to remove when dropping the camper. Please keep the comments coming. Thank you all!