Travel Light Air, good fit for Ram Ecodiesel?

GeoBoy wrote:
What about a Northstar Vista? They build a very nice camper.

Well there are some problems with the Vista. First base dry weight is 1,260 lbs Then add weight of the options that are standard on the Air back in and its not even close. Second, the floor plans of the Vista and Rayzr are decent but would prefer a bit more room. Third, the Vista just is not cost competitive to the Rayzr line. And lets not forget that it is ugly, but that's just me.

Some possible ways to reduce weight. Remove AC as other mentioned it's useless without power and this go anywhere setup would be wasted at a rv park IMO. Ditch the 12,000 btu heater. If it uses dc power for the blower it will quickly drain your battery. Replace it with a small indoor propane unit. We have a small propane heater that works great in our TC

https://www.amazon.com/Mr-Heater-F215100-3800-BTU-Propane/dp/B001CFRF7I/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1481575113&sr=8-5&keywords=indoor+propane+heater

You could also remove the jack legs and leave them at home. The truck could still be serviced or towed without them.

Your 100 pound gear number doesn't seem realistic. Cooking stuff, clothes, food, tools, etc would probably double your number. Just depends how minimalist you go I guess. Also add in the weight of your tie down equipment and full propane bottle.

Other thoughts. Although the truck as a whole is engineered with specific weight ratings in mind and t's normally not good advice to drastically exceed perhaps replacing the rear springs to a heavier duty might give you a small safe increase in payload. It might be worth doing even if you stay within/right at max payload for quality of ride.

What about a Northstar Vista? They build a very nice camper.

If the base weight is accurate, it's the best start for a true 1/2 ton camper that I've ever seen.

I still don't think staying under GVWR will be realistic, but you'll only be a few hundred pounds over instead of 1000lbs over like typical "1/2 ton" campers.

Will most likely have to wait till spring to find one locally. But picks I've seen so far look promising. And if needed there are a few area's I could cut weight on the truck and camper if need be.

I looked at them and they didn't look bad at all. I chose a different brand but hey you can't beat the weight. Guy at work has the same truck and he overloads his by a thousand pounds. It does it very good. He had to get airbags to level it out. The weak link is the truck not the engine. It does the job easy.

Be sure and do your due diligence. That brand has a lot of bad reviews.

No personal experience but there is a lot of reading in this forum.

Looks like a pretty nice camper. If your going to be overweight, it isn't going to be by much. You can either consider your payload sticker the code or in the words of infamous Captain Jack Sparrow "...the code is more what you'd call "guidelines" than actual rules." Yes, do your best to be within target but don't freak out if your just a bit over.

If your dead set on this camper then you got a few options still available...

1. As others already mentioned, if you plan on boon-docking a lot and your not in the South see if you can ditch the AC. You would need a generator or 120v anyway to run it. Maybe you could get a skylight put in it's place?

2. Don't drive with your water tanks full until you get close to your destination.

3. Consider purchasing a water filter system so you can use local sources when camping.

4. Planning on sticking close to civilization? Leave the spare tire, jack and tire tools at home. Yup, might be taking a risk but a good set of tires in good condition will treat you well.

5. Get a lighter dog... (okay, maybe not such a great suggestion)

6. Lose some weight... (okay, maybe not as easily said then done)

7. Look up "Ultralight Backpacking" and purchase that type of gear for your camping adventures. These backpackers can live out in the wilderness for 5 to 7 days on 20 to 30lbs of food and gear.

Some of these steps are more extreme than others and may or may not be advisable but they will help to keep the weight police off your back. That being said, all things being equal, I think if you exceeded your Gross Vehicle Weight by a 100lb to 200lb you will be just fine.

I don't take much in my camper, but 100 lbs for gear seems really low.
Agree about the standard air conditioner -- is that real. Must be assuming it will only be used when there's 110v power available,

Stang,
It looks like a good fit for the EcoD. There is a long discussion about putting a camper of any kind on the EcoD over on the hard side truck camper forum of Expedition Portal. As long as you don't need any kind of shower or toilet, and can live with R-7 insulation, I think you should get it and give us a report. I can't believe they come stock with an air conditioner included in the weight. That adds a lot of weight, even the smaller 5K version. With out holding tanks, with very little plumbing, the weight is much lower. What do you do with grey water? Be sure to get inside one and spend some time going through all the motions to be sure you can live with everything. This seems a solo, summertime only rig to me. The dog will have his/her dedicated 12" x 18" space for habitation.
jefe