What are my TC options for towing?

[Blk88GT]

I have a 2015 F350 CC LB SRW. I am looking to purchase a TC that I can travel with my family (90%) and use a few times a year to stay in at the racetrack (10%).

I have a 24ft V-nose H+H enclosed trailer I tow my race car with. Loaded for the weekend, it comes in around ~8800lbs on the trailer axles.

I see that Lance offers the 850 specifically for this purpose. What else is out there? Up here (In Canada) the popular brand is Adventurer and most of them seem to have a large rear step that I *think* will interfere with my trailer.

Are there any qualifying measurements I can take of my truck when hooked to the trailer that will help me decide what camper models I should be looking at? I'm not interested in replacing the hitch or massive extensions.

I understand I will likely be over GVWR (11,500) but that's a topic for another day.

Thanks in advance for any help.

[Blk88GT]

My Hellwig BigWig showed up yesterday, it's quite the unit.

Unfortunately my wife and I have discovered a bunch of water damage in the camper and are trying to deal with THAT....

Who knew this would be such a rollercoaster ride? Buckle up!

[Blk88GT]

One more thing, my SiriusXM reception leaves something to be desired. I haven't figured out how I'm going to deal with that yet.

[Kayteg1]

Amazing how many pages this forum has on need for dually when you have TC and plan to tow (not too mention that few members highlighted need for 450 or even 550 class truck) and the message is still diluted in thin air.
Coming to access to fuel door, I- like Jim, need about 3 seconds to drop down the tie. But as I age, remembering all the stuff you do at stops gets more and more difficult, so I am working on system preventing leaving the ties at pump.
Congratulations on new camper and good trip.

[jimh406]

Congrats. I have fast guns, so it isn't a big deal to take the one tiedown loose to fill up.

[Blk88GT]

Thank you everyone for the tips, I picked up the camper and got home without any issues at all. I took a couple strips of XPS foam to go in the front of the bed, but the camper ended up having bumpers to locate it without damaging the bed. It also had rubber strips screwed to the bottom so it didn't move around in the bed.

A few things to note:

1) Look for the hidden decal on the inside cupboard with the ACTUAL camper weight, not the "standard equipment" one on the outside....

2) How the hell are you supposed to fill up without dropping the drivers side front tie down? I haven't heard anyone complain about this! Thank god I've got a Titan fuel tank!!!

3) There's no chance I'll be towing my race trailer behind this thing without moving up to a dually.

[toddb]

I'd just leave the tailgate, I wouldn't want that potentially flying around in there. Make sure the umbilical will reach your in bed 7 way, I picked mine up and his was at the front and mine at the rear and the cord was 3' long. I use a 3/4" ply board at the front of the bed. I use mine at the racetrack as well, you'll enjoy it for sure.

[Bedlam]

Your truck bed should have a rubber mat to prevent the camper from sliding.

[jimh406]

One note about the tailgate: I don’t know if you’ve removed yours, but some are very heavy. My F450 has the tailgate assist and step so it’s about 90 lbs. Getting it through the door and going up the steps might not be as easy as you think. Also putting it on the bed means you can’t take a nap on the bed if you change your mind.

[Blk88GT]

I've got a 7 pin connector in the bed, so I'm good there. I plan to remove the tailgate once I'm there and just toss it on the bed in the camper.

The camper is a 2012, so I should be good height wise.

Good call on the tire pressure, I hadn't thought of that!

[jimh406]

Congrats.

You need a way to plug in the lights.

Leave your tailgate at home.

Air up your tires or have a way to do it once you get there.

If you put something in the front of the bed, make it thick although I never have.

Make sure the cab isn’t too tall if it is an older Adventurer that was made before the cabs were taller.

Bring holding tank additive if you plan to use it. Bring freshwater additive to put in the fresh holding tank. Or, look up where to buy the stuff on your trip back.

Understand how to tighten the spring loaded tie downs and make sure they aren’t too tight to cause damage.

Bring sheets etc if you plan to sleep in it instead of immediately driving straight back.

[Blk88GT]

FINALLY I was able to purchase an Adventurer 86FB. Bad news is I have to drive 10 hours to get it.

I have the Torklift frame mounts for my truck and the seller is including the spring loaded tie downs.

What else do I need? I'm going to throw a sheet of plywood in the bed, but I've read of folks putting something up against the front of the bed as well. Styrofoam? Plywood?

I'm trying to be prepared as my resources will be limited due to the location of pickup.

I do plan on scaling the truck tomorrow morning once I'm fueled up and then again once I get home with the camper.

Thanks in advance!

[Supercharged111]

Grit dog wrote:

Supercharged111 wrote:
Someone mentioned that, without an overhang, a hitch extension won't be required. That isn't 100% accurate. I tried running a 42" hitch extension last year with my Lance 1131 and punch the jacks into the front of my trailer. The width of the camper is what got me, not so much how far back it sits on the truck.

If you mean me, I probably said a 9’ camper without a vertical overhang shouldn’t need a hitch extension.
If you smashed your trailer which was hooked to an 8’+ 3.5’ extension with an 11.5’ camper on the back, you just weren’t paying attention.
I mean you can jack knife any trailer into the back of any truck if you try hard enough.

I wasn't backing up when I did it. I never even considered the possibility of it. I'm a bit more cautious and use a 48" extension now. Trailer tongue length is the big variable here. A friend has a 12' camper and extended tongue on his enclosed and has room to spare.

[Grit_dog]

jaycocreek, yeah sorry, I forgot about the old 3rd Gen and 3rd Gen plus Dodges that had 10.1 and 10.5klb gvws. Those things couldn't haul nothin....lol!
Jeesus, my 07 2500 is probably overloaded just sitting in the garage with a tonneau cover on the back!

[Blk88GT]

I appreciate the feedback (without the GVWR banter) I had the same concerns regarding the rear step but figured I'll roll the dice and sort it out if it's a problem.

Unfortunately for me, my nearest dealer is 7-9 hours away. I'm currently trying to buy an 86FB out of Alberta, but I can't make it till Friday and I understand how it works if someone is standing there with a stack of cash.

My local RV show had ZERO truck campers at their shows the last few years. They just aren't popular here for whatever reason.

I'll keep the hitch extensions in mind. I've looked at the Superhitch as well.