TC vs Pull Behind...????

[Rbertalotto]

I've had my pop-up truck camper a few months now. Only had the opportunity to use it three times.

So far, I'm not sure I made the right decision....I'm thinking I might be better off with a Toy Hauler or simple travel trailer

Pros:
Cheap...I paid $1500!(Palomino Bronco 1200)
No registration.
Truck drives like it isn't there.
I can tow a boat or a Motorcycle trailer

Cons:
I hate taking it on and off the truck. The truck is high and it freaks me out. My last TC, 1985, was on a much lower 2WD truck
Once on site, can't go anywhere unless you remove it, or take it with you. Everyone needs to go in the later.
Small
A real pain lowering and tucking in the top.

Travel Trailer / Toy Hauler

Pros:
Lots of room compared to TC
A Toy Hauler would allow taking a motorcycle and lots of room to work on stuff (Hunting, Competitive Target Shooting, Fishing)
Easy to pack up and take off
No unloading!

Cons:
Haven't found a reasonable TH or TT under $8K (used)
Need to register it.
Can't get into tight places (Hunting) like a Pop-Up TC

Has anyone else faced this delema........??

[Rbertalotto]

Upon the advice of this forum I did buy a fantastic fan. It will help in pulling in the main part of the tent but not the small storm flap down at the bottom.

The truck has a standard suspension not lifted. The tires are one size larger than what the truck came with. They added 1 inch in height. Its just a big tall manly man truck!

[_DJ_1]

I can erase one of the cons on your pop up list with a Fantastic Fan!!! Open the vent, turn on high exhaust. Close up the camper. Slowly crank down the top. The sides will be sucked in neat as you please!!! This worked very well on my old 88 Northstar and my present 07 SunLite.

That pop up is costing you zero!!! Find a place to park it. Even if it's 40 bucks a month storage. Then buy your TT. If you find you never use the pop up then you can always sell it.

[mkirsch]

Sounds like you've got a big lift kit and matching oversize tires on that truck...

Between that and picking the worst possible conditions to offload as a camper rookie, it's no wonder you're not enjoying the experience!

A lower truck will make the loading/unloading experience much more tolerable. You won't need to have the camper up on 12" of blocking, and it will seem much more stable.

[Mello_Mike]

Ah, the age old dilemma, which class of RV works best for me? This article and poll I wrote last year addresses many of the points you raised. It may help you out.

RV Debate

[wintersun]

As the OP stated it is the overall utility of the TC versus the camper for hunting. Most hunters who want to travel off the beaten path take one of two options, getting a popup camper or pulling a conventional trailer and using the bed of the pickup for one or two ATV's. The popup provides a lot less space but the truck can be used to pull an ATV or boat trailer.

[Rbertalotto]

Manual jacks with an electric drill. Most of the places I end up camping have un even ground. Because of the height of my truck the camper is 4 feet off the ground. Unless the approach to the camper is perfectly level I need to put all kinds of blocks and such under the jacks. Maybe I simply need to weld some extensions on my jacks.

[billtex]

SugarHillCTD wrote:
Had a TC and traded in for a TT for more room (kids were still with us and GROWING). The increased interior room was nice, but.....

Then we found out how limiting a 50+' combo can be. Much more difficult to stop at attractions or stores on the way to our destination.

Back to a much more maneuverable truck/TC.


Eric (kohldad) is right- a hardside with electric jacks makes loading/unloading SO much easier.

Agreed, early on we looked at popups but quickly ruled them out. The hard side is the way to go for us.

Why are you loading/unloading so much?

We leave ours on the truck for months at a time.

We still have a TT (sse sig) and will use it for a week at the lake and a couple of weeks at the beach later in summer...but if I had to pick one...it would be the TC.
So easy to use.

I unloaded last night (first time since March) because we will be heading up to the lake with the Airstream soon.
It takes me ~ 1/2 hr (I like to go slow/be careful)...but it really is not hard to do.

I suggest you don't load/unload so frequently.
Do you have electric jacks?

B

[SugarHillCTD]

Had a TC and traded in for a TT for more room (kids were still with us and GROWING). The increased interior room was nice, but.....

Then we found out how limiting a 50+' combo can be. Much more difficult to stop at attractions or stores on the way to our destination.

Back to a much more maneuverable truck/TC.


Eric (kohldad) is right- a hardside with electric jacks makes loading/unloading SO much easier.

[francheska]

We have toys and we like to take them almost every trip. We had a 36 ft TH 5th wheel. Thought it was to
big. Sold it and got a TC and pulled a 16 ft covered trailer. Hated it, to small, ect. for us. Was a pain getting in and out over 36 inches high. We are older and going up and down steps can be difficult, plus with the trailer attached you couldn't use the steps. We now have a 36ft bumper pull TH with a topper
on the back of the truck. We think we have found what works for us. Lots of room and we use the same truck for 3. So one size does not fit all. Bob

[portscanner]

We had a 28' Weekend Warrior (and was able to sell it before it fell apart - but that is a different story) and went to the TC - and have not looked back.

I understand your fears on jacking it up high to get it in the truck. I had the same fears. You will get over that in time.

I like how we can equip ourselves for our trip depending on what we are going to do. Going to play tourist? Hitch up the jeep and take it with us. Use it to drive around town (and not worry about unloading the TC and where to park the dually when we go out to dinner.) Going out and shooting sporting clays? Hitch up the trailer and load on the clays cart. Need extra stuff? Toss it in the jeep or the trailer. Want to get small and lightweight? Leave the jeep or trailer at home.

We have found the flexibility with the TC to be the greatest asset. The only thing I am going to adjust is to rip out the dinette and stick in a couch.

[sue_t]

Yup, that's why we kept the fifth wheel when we bought the camper. The fifth wheel was great for our long trips to Yukon, but now we live here and want to explore more goat trails. Yet, we also want to be able to stretch out on destination trips.

So, kept the fifth wheel and have used it twice this year for long weekend trips, in March and then in early May. And have been out with the camper twice this year too, both in June.

Best of both worlds.

[KD4UPL]

It sounds like you didn't get the right TC. I had a pop-up and agree that tucking in the top is a royal pain. I now have a hardside TC and don't have to worry about that. As for small, how big is it? They do make 11' TC with 3 slides. Comparing a toyhauler to an 8' pop-up TC is hardly a fair comparison.
I'm not sure what jack system you have. Do you have 3 or 4 jacks? My 11' TC weighs about 4,000 pounds. I can unload it in about 15 minutes. The 4 jacks are electric and controlled by a wireless remote. It's real easy to walk around the camper to watch things while lowering and leveling with 1 hand.
If I had still had my old pop-up TC with only 3 jacks and hand cranks I would go nuts for sure.

[dadwolf2]

I've had both. The toyhauler was right for us at a certain time in our life and now the truck camper is right for my wife and I.

Tucking in the top is only a problem because it's a Palomino... I don't have to tuck in anything on my pop-up.

Every RV class has it's own pros and cons. You just have to figure out what you want and what's most important to you.

[Grit_dog]

Just Jeff wrote:
Get a TC and mount it on a trailer, then enclose the part under the cabover as storage. You can use it as a TT with storage when you want to, and put it in the bed when you just want the TC and don't need the extra space.

I've only had my TC for a month and already thinking about doing that.
Have a 7klb 16' tandem utility trailer that would fit the camper perfectly.
Long road trips would be easier on the truck (and driver) with the camper sitting 2-3' lower on it's own wheels. Convienence of just hooking up or un-hooking a trailer. (Starting to sound like a poster child for "shoulda bought a TT!")
BUT, took off for a campin trip this past weekend. All the campgrounds were packed, figured they would be.
Ended up about 12mi up from the highway, camping on the beach of a beautiful mtn lake with very few others around and the kids fished for about 12hrs each day!
Couldn't have made it in there with a trailer bigger than a pop up tent trailer, so was glad I had the camper sitting right where it was designed to be..........on the back of the truck!