?Short bed camper...Newbie

work2fish wrote:
Congrats on the retirement! I have 34 years at my employer and can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

I think you've chosen a good truck and now have to make a few decisions about the type of camping you want to do. I went through the same process a while back and you can read my post here.

I ended up choosing a popup which I hardly know is back there except for the occasional squeeking :). In my case I wanted to be able to hit four wheel drive trails, keep the camper light, pull a boat and make only minor mods to the truck. I bought the Torklift frame-mounted tiedowns which I would recommend and agree with most folks on CG not being too much of an issue if you get a SB camper. I also prefer the cassette toilet as I can dump most anywhere in a pinch and it helps me keep to my nomadic self.

Good luck and, again, congrats on your retirement.

Mike

Thanks

Congrats on the retirement! I have 34 years at my employer and can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

I think you've chosen a good truck and now have to make a few decisions about the type of camping you want to do. I went through the same process a while back and you can read my post here.

I ended up choosing a popup which I hardly know is back there except for the occasional squeeking :). In my case I wanted to be able to hit four wheel drive trails, keep the camper light, pull a boat and make only minor mods to the truck. I bought the Torklift frame-mounted tiedowns which I would recommend and agree with most folks on CG not being too much of an issue if you get a SB camper. I also prefer the cassette toilet as I can dump most anywhere in a pinch and it helps me keep to my nomadic self.

Good luck and, again, congrats on your retirement.

Mike

Bedlam wrote:
Or just go to the source of these products:

[url]http://www.torklift.com/

Thanks for that

Or just go to the source of these products:

http://www.torklift.com/

Just a suggestion, but throwing some of these terms into Google Images will give you visual aids to help in your understanding.

Search smartly, though. "Fastguns" by itself will probably result in pictures of firearms, or cowboy action shooting. With "truck camper fastguns" you will get what you're looking for. Same goes for "Supertruss." Try "truck camper supertruss" and you will get what you're looking for.

Ya, you can have a plug for the camper lights wired in towards the front of the bed or just build or buy an extension cord that plugs into the OE trailer plug on the truck.

nomadictxn wrote:
Congrats on the new truck Doc, and welcome to the forum. Airbags are not a requirement, just one of the ways you can deal with certain issues. As recommended earlier, try the camper out first and see how it handles and then start addressing any problems from there. You could bring them up on the forum and get steered in the right direction. I think most folks would recommend torklift products for your tie down system as well as a thick rubber bed mat. Also a way to plug into the trucks electric connector and you can go from there.
Happy camper hunting!

Will do, Thanks

WVbassmistress wrote:
The Super-Truss extension is a hitch extension in case you want to tow something. With a camper that is longer than the truck bed, you will need a hitch that sticks out beyond that point. ie - we have 8 1/2 foot camper on 6 1/2 foot bed, so we have a 2ft (24inch) hitch extension so we can tow. Less overhang - shorter extension. The Super-Truss is kind of a double hitch, one on top of the other and chains that fasten to each side to limit side to side movement.

I hope this made sense.

It sure does,Thanks

The Super-Truss extension is a hitch extension in case you want to tow something. With a camper that is longer than the truck bed, you will need a hitch that sticks out beyond that point. ie - we have 8 1/2 foot camper on 6 1/2 foot bed, so we have a 2ft (24inch) hitch extension so we can tow. Less overhang - shorter extension. The Super-Truss is kind of a double hitch, one on top of the other and chains that fasten to each side to limit side to side movement.

I hope this made sense.

8'2 Bigfoot on a 98 2500 GMC 6.5 diesel short box and the camper is heavy when fully loaded, almost 3000 lbs. Total weight is 9300 lbs, a little over weight but the truck handle's it good.