Just a quick note -- we took the truck to town this morning and I drove around a bit to test out the Stableloads engaged on the city streets (they're the worst in the county). The ride into town on the interstate was a bit stiffer than usual but not too bad. It is a truck after all. There were no funky slapping sounds or squeaks from the springs as some have reported.
Railroad crossings were their usual annoying bumpy selves and the truck is a bit higher in the rear than normal. I did not have to readjust my mirrors or driving to accommodate. All in all a satisfying performance from the Torklift enhancements -- unloaded.
Tomorrow will be the test of how the rig handles the camper on the highway. The Central Idaho section of interstate 15 is known for its high winds and has some sections of pretty bumpy concrete. There are wind turbines along the way and lots of places we can pull off and spend the night if we choose. No worries there.
I will chronicle the dealer visit on this blog and will continue to assess my strategies and results. As a first time camper buyer/user it will highlight the stresses and joys of the entire process. I love new learning experiences and intend to find out everything I can about this new method of adventure.
See you soon!
Friday, April 15, 2016
Thursday, April 14, 2016
All Jacked Up with No Place to Go or Stableload Lovin"
I got home today to find Fed Ex had delivered the Torklift Stableloads but before I could even open the boxes the phone rang and I was told my truck was ready at the dealership. Away I went to pick her up -- I had some preventive maintenance work done so that she wouldn't resent the new camper on her back. She's a 2006 Ford F350 diesel with the 6.0 motor and I've been wanting to bullet proof the motor for years. Mission accomplished! No more blown EGR cooler worries. I expect to get another 150k miles out of her before she needs to retire. We'll just see what happens.
When I arrived home I set the shop up to do the Stableload install. I jacked the truck under the hitch with a floor jack, cinderblock, and short 2x6 board to allow the suspension to drop and open the spring packs. Take my advice, go ahead and raise the truck completely off the ground at least an inch or two, you'll need the space.
I needed to drill the lower overload leaf springs only at the forward end because the rear of the leaf already had a hole in it. After marking the hole locations I fussed with the drilling device Torklift sent me but gave up on it for a while. Marking the spring was easy. Getting a bite with a drill bit was harder. The directions call for you to use a 1/4 inch drill bit to make a slight pilot hole of 1/8 inch diameter. I gave that up and tried the supplied bit (one of four) and it worked much better.
Wedging my arm against the concrete I thought I had it licked. Shavings began to peel off the bit, stopping periodically to lube it with oil. Then the progress slowed and my arm began to tire. I returned to the drill device and took more time to get it set properly. It was problematic because the springs have a rounded end and my hole was a bit too close to permit the device to bear against it properly. Great, now I need to drill the other side to match, don't I?!!
After getting the device set and the drill running with one hand I began cranking up the pressure with a socket in the other. I didn't even bother lubing the hole. She was finished in about a minute! I did have to reverse the drill a few times at the end to get the hole cleaned out but it worked really well. Should have started with it. The second hole was done much quicker with less effort still using the same drill bit. I have three left for other projects.
This end of the leaf had about 7/16" space above it to mount the Stableload wedges and I knew it was going to be tight. The rear ends had plenty of room and I could just drop the bolt in easily. I had to wait for SWMBO to get home to assist me on the tight ends. It took a crow bar and bracing against the rear axle to get the overload spring away from the spring pack in order to drop the bolt in. I also cut the bolt by 3/8 of an inch to make it shorter. Finally achieved the install after fussing with it for an hour.
The wedge packs ended up being 3 deep on the rear ends and 2 deep on the fronts. I will probably have to adjust the fronts down to one wedge, but we're going to try it under load first. In all the install of the adjustable lower Stableloads took me about 3 hours, but I'm slow with my own stuff. I like to digest it fully and work relaxed.
Next up was the upper helper spring Stableloads. They are a breeze to install once the original rubber bumpers are removed. I fussed with getting them off for 30 minutes before I figured out an easy solution. Use two giant screwdrivers and grab them with one hand to keep them together while prying and the bumpers come right off.
I'm glad I didn't destroy them or cut them so that I can reinstall them during non-camper periods. I figure the ride is going to be way too stiff to leave them on with no weight. The lowers I can swing out of the spring pack if I jack the rear. I like that.
So, there you have it. Stableloads installed a full day before I need them. The trip to Boise to pick up the camper is going to be a rough ride but an adventure never the less. Lots more to come on actual performance so stay tuned.
The Drill Device as it arrived from Torklift
When I arrived home I set the shop up to do the Stableload install. I jacked the truck under the hitch with a floor jack, cinderblock, and short 2x6 board to allow the suspension to drop and open the spring packs. Take my advice, go ahead and raise the truck completely off the ground at least an inch or two, you'll need the space.
A floor jack is a lovesome thing
I needed to drill the lower overload leaf springs only at the forward end because the rear of the leaf already had a hole in it. After marking the hole locations I fussed with the drilling device Torklift sent me but gave up on it for a while. Marking the spring was easy. Getting a bite with a drill bit was harder. The directions call for you to use a 1/4 inch drill bit to make a slight pilot hole of 1/8 inch diameter. I gave that up and tried the supplied bit (one of four) and it worked much better.
Wedging my arm against the concrete I thought I had it licked. Shavings began to peel off the bit, stopping periodically to lube it with oil. Then the progress slowed and my arm began to tire. I returned to the drill device and took more time to get it set properly. It was problematic because the springs have a rounded end and my hole was a bit too close to permit the device to bear against it properly. Great, now I need to drill the other side to match, don't I?!!
Assembling the Wedges
After getting the device set and the drill running with one hand I began cranking up the pressure with a socket in the other. I didn't even bother lubing the hole. She was finished in about a minute! I did have to reverse the drill a few times at the end to get the hole cleaned out but it worked really well. Should have started with it. The second hole was done much quicker with less effort still using the same drill bit. I have three left for other projects.
This end of the leaf had about 7/16" space above it to mount the Stableload wedges and I knew it was going to be tight. The rear ends had plenty of room and I could just drop the bolt in easily. I had to wait for SWMBO to get home to assist me on the tight ends. It took a crow bar and bracing against the rear axle to get the overload spring away from the spring pack in order to drop the bolt in. I also cut the bolt by 3/8 of an inch to make it shorter. Finally achieved the install after fussing with it for an hour.
This was the easy end!
The wedge packs ended up being 3 deep on the rear ends and 2 deep on the fronts. I will probably have to adjust the fronts down to one wedge, but we're going to try it under load first. In all the install of the adjustable lower Stableloads took me about 3 hours, but I'm slow with my own stuff. I like to digest it fully and work relaxed.
Next up was the upper helper spring Stableloads. They are a breeze to install once the original rubber bumpers are removed. I fussed with getting them off for 30 minutes before I figured out an easy solution. Use two giant screwdrivers and grab them with one hand to keep them together while prying and the bumpers come right off.
Prying off the factory bumpers
I'm glad I didn't destroy them or cut them so that I can reinstall them during non-camper periods. I figure the ride is going to be way too stiff to leave them on with no weight. The lowers I can swing out of the spring pack if I jack the rear. I like that.
So, there you have it. Stableloads installed a full day before I need them. The trip to Boise to pick up the camper is going to be a rough ride but an adventure never the less. Lots more to come on actual performance so stay tuned.
Saturday, April 9, 2016
Which Came First, the Truck or the Camper? or Fishing for Bolts
My truck came first. A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away I bought a truck. I thought that truck was the most beautiful thing I had seen (except for SWMBO, that stands for She Who Must Be Obeyed of course). I also thought it could tow the Titanic and carry fifteen sumo wrestlers with room for more. Boy, was I mistaken!
Turns out that all these pick up trucks on the market, used and new vary considerably in their ability to carry sumo wrestlers or any other payloads of consequence. It all depends on a complex ratio of truck weights and factory capacities... and how much you want to play within the rules. So my advice to those who are seeking the holy grail of truck camper freedom should do due diligence and copious amounts of research until their eyes glaze over and they have an epiphany: My truck's probably not big enough!
So the question becomes, "What can I do to my truck so that I don't crash and burn at the first stoplight upon leaving the dealership loaded with a new camper?" Allow me to chronicle the events of my efforts to solve this truck camper (TC, remember?) conundrum.
Today -- Tie Downs
Tie downs are the things that keep the beast in the bed of the truck and restrain it from any untoward false moves that may cause damage or injury. These come in three distinct varieties. Happijac brand, Torklift brand, and DIY brand. The DIY is not a good solution for those of us who care a thing about liability and culpability while the entire rig is careening down the road, so that leaves us with the two commercially available brands -- there may be others but they were not available at my dealer and they had to written into the note, ergo my choices were limited.
I selected the Torklifts because they had such a loyal following online. not because they were the most expensive and I like to throw money away. They are made specific to truck model and bolt directly onto the truck frame resulting in a very, very strong attachment, virtually guaranteeing something else will break first when you have a problem. Sounds okay to me!
Tonight I got home and the Brown Truck had dropped off three boxes. Inside were the Torklift tie downs, so I immediately got to work installing them on my 2006 Ford F350.
The rear ones mated right into the factory hitch ends. I did need to use a file to clean the inside of the hitch tubes before they allowed the tie down mounting tube to seat properly. Time for rear: ten minutes.
The passenger front side mounting plate went on in less than ten minutes as well. Piece of cake.
The driver's side frame mount was evil incarnate. Of the three large bolts used, one must be fished between the fuel tank and the frame. It has a metal plate and large star washer on it to make things even more interesting. The fish wire provided by TorkLift is an ingenious device that I shall keep, but I cursed it tonight.
If there were no other truck parts in the way it would have been pretty easy. However behind the frame (or inside it really) runs a wiring harness and two aluminum (fuel?) lines. This took me about 3-4 hours to get the bolt to slide by. Many coarse words were uttered and my arms and neck are completely worn out. Eventually I was able to leverage the wires and lines out of the way to allow that fool-headed star washer to pass by and let the bolt seat properly. A telescoping magnet helped me recover all the hardware when it got lost in the frame periodically. It is VERY tight around the frame and fuel tank in that location.
Then I was able to finagle the mounting plate into position only to find that the bolt holes were slightly off, so I had to file some metal away for a tight fit. Getting that plate in there without pushing the fished bolt back into truck frame neverland was tricky. I ended up with several flat washers extra but I have no idea where they go. I now understand why TL keeps the driver's side front mount last in the assembly sequence. If most people ran into that much trouble first thing there would be a large amount of returns!
Anyway, it is now installed and I look forward to camper delivery next week. Next time I might just pay the exorbitant shop fee -- lesson learned. I do appreciate the heavy build and apparent strength of the system. It is no wonder they hold campers so securely. This stuff is really strong. Heavy too. I will not be worried after torquing down the bolts to 40 ft-lbs. If something tries to take the camper off the truck it will definitely be the camper that gives out first.
I will receive my StableLoads early next week. I ordered both upper and lower models. We'll see how easily they go on and I will follow-up with a review of the entire TorkLift system after we load the camper and drive back from Boise. It's a 4 hour trip so we will both get a chance to check it out. It will be a good test of interstate roads and windy areas. In a couple months I should have enough data to comment on how it handles the Idaho forest service roads.
Update: I found out why I ended up with a bunch of extra flat washers. They are now in their proper positions on the truck. Sometimes it doesn't pay to work really late when you're tired. Now the wait for the suspension mods to arrive.
Turns out that all these pick up trucks on the market, used and new vary considerably in their ability to carry sumo wrestlers or any other payloads of consequence. It all depends on a complex ratio of truck weights and factory capacities... and how much you want to play within the rules. So my advice to those who are seeking the holy grail of truck camper freedom should do due diligence and copious amounts of research until their eyes glaze over and they have an epiphany: My truck's probably not big enough!
So the question becomes, "What can I do to my truck so that I don't crash and burn at the first stoplight upon leaving the dealership loaded with a new camper?" Allow me to chronicle the events of my efforts to solve this truck camper (TC, remember?) conundrum.
Today -- Tie Downs
Tie downs are the things that keep the beast in the bed of the truck and restrain it from any untoward false moves that may cause damage or injury. These come in three distinct varieties. Happijac brand, Torklift brand, and DIY brand. The DIY is not a good solution for those of us who care a thing about liability and culpability while the entire rig is careening down the road, so that leaves us with the two commercially available brands -- there may be others but they were not available at my dealer and they had to written into the note, ergo my choices were limited.
I selected the Torklifts because they had such a loyal following online. not because they were the most expensive and I like to throw money away. They are made specific to truck model and bolt directly onto the truck frame resulting in a very, very strong attachment, virtually guaranteeing something else will break first when you have a problem. Sounds okay to me!
Tonight I got home and the Brown Truck had dropped off three boxes. Inside were the Torklift tie downs, so I immediately got to work installing them on my 2006 Ford F350.
The rear ones mated right into the factory hitch ends. I did need to use a file to clean the inside of the hitch tubes before they allowed the tie down mounting tube to seat properly. Time for rear: ten minutes.
The passenger front side mounting plate went on in less than ten minutes as well. Piece of cake.
The driver's side frame mount was evil incarnate. Of the three large bolts used, one must be fished between the fuel tank and the frame. It has a metal plate and large star washer on it to make things even more interesting. The fish wire provided by TorkLift is an ingenious device that I shall keep, but I cursed it tonight.
If there were no other truck parts in the way it would have been pretty easy. However behind the frame (or inside it really) runs a wiring harness and two aluminum (fuel?) lines. This took me about 3-4 hours to get the bolt to slide by. Many coarse words were uttered and my arms and neck are completely worn out. Eventually I was able to leverage the wires and lines out of the way to allow that fool-headed star washer to pass by and let the bolt seat properly. A telescoping magnet helped me recover all the hardware when it got lost in the frame periodically. It is VERY tight around the frame and fuel tank in that location.
Then I was able to finagle the mounting plate into position only to find that the bolt holes were slightly off, so I had to file some metal away for a tight fit. Getting that plate in there without pushing the fished bolt back into truck frame neverland was tricky. I ended up with several flat washers extra but I have no idea where they go. I now understand why TL keeps the driver's side front mount last in the assembly sequence. If most people ran into that much trouble first thing there would be a large amount of returns!
Anyway, it is now installed and I look forward to camper delivery next week. Next time I might just pay the exorbitant shop fee -- lesson learned. I do appreciate the heavy build and apparent strength of the system. It is no wonder they hold campers so securely. This stuff is really strong. Heavy too. I will not be worried after torquing down the bolts to 40 ft-lbs. If something tries to take the camper off the truck it will definitely be the camper that gives out first.
I will receive my StableLoads early next week. I ordered both upper and lower models. We'll see how easily they go on and I will follow-up with a review of the entire TorkLift system after we load the camper and drive back from Boise. It's a 4 hour trip so we will both get a chance to check it out. It will be a good test of interstate roads and windy areas. In a couple months I should have enough data to comment on how it handles the Idaho forest service roads.
Update: I found out why I ended up with a bunch of extra flat washers. They are now in their proper positions on the truck. Sometimes it doesn't pay to work really late when you're tired. Now the wait for the suspension mods to arrive.
Why a Truck Camper or The Swiss Army Camper Alternative
So the question becomes, "Why buy a slide-in instead of a much larger trailer that has more room?" That is a valid question. Let me attempt to explain the thought processes of a very feeble brain that has been damaged by years of loud music and poor diet.
First of all, almost all RV's are compromises between cost and construction -- this is similar to boats. There are really no important generic construction quality differences between the types of RV's. Instead, quality is a characteristic of a particular manufacturer or brand. The majority of RV's are built cheaply on assembly lines by people that appear to be recruited daily from urban street corners and put to work with a minimum of training. "Here, stick some staples into that until it doesn't come apart. Drive the screws in deep until the wood splits." An exaggeration, but not by much!
Quality
Good, reputable RV brands are typically family owned businesses that actually place a premium on quality workmanship and reliability. All one needs to do is look "under the hood" at wiring harnesses, cabinet construction and plumbing details to see the differences. I have seen brand new campers on dealer lots that have literally been coming apart at the seams. Most camper brands are pretty predictable concerning quality control, whether good or bad. Price is always a reliable predictor of how much attention has been paid to construction, so you generally get what you pay for. Truck campers have been built for decades and have been around since the truck was invented. The brands associated with them have often been around for many years too. In fact, some brand names have been bought and sold several times -- be sure the quality has stayed up to snuff if you are considering one of those.
Flexible
Second, we needed a solution for our camping wants that included flexibility. A trailer limits where you can travel by determining how far off paved roads you can go. We actually see ourselves "boon docking" on forest roads once in a while in order to get away from the herds of humans attempting to do the RV thing. A truck camper (TC) also has the ability to enable the truck to tow a trailer with other toys on it, whether it be an ATV, boat, or simply more camping stuff. After all, one can never have too much stuff.
The TC enables carefree traveling. Reservations become a thing of the past as you travel according to personal whims. To stop for the night the TC owner can simply find the nearest Wal-Mart, Flying J, rest area, or other public access to pull over and park. There is no set-up, nothing to do but exit the truck cab and disappear into the TC. Since ours will have no slide out section it will won't take up more than a typical parking lot space.
The TC can be unloaded anywhere that is relatively flat. That means the truck becomes serviceable as a tour vehicle while the camper remains at the camping spot. Electric jacks, one on each corner of the camper make this an easily accomplished five minute load or unload. The jacks even come with a wireless remote! No more having to tow a "toad" vehicle behind the motorhome or having to tow a chain of trailers down the road like a traveling circus.
Footprint
Most national parks and state parks have rather limited capacity for trucks with trailers, and fees are higher for those few spots. TC's are often not regulated like trailers and can slip in under the radar. TC's are also more compact and have virtually no footprint, which kind of helps with the wilderness ethic. They are self-contained, most having their own water, grey water, and black water tanks. Virtually all TC's have DC battery systems to power themselves for days, if not weeks away from electrical hookups. These systems are also charged by the truck when it is in operation.
TC's come in various sizes and configurations ranging from ultra light off road adventure models to giant, Old Woman Who Lives in a Shoe behemoths that weigh in at over 5000 lbs. In all of these TC's the owners have made the choice to live a more spartan camping lifestyle than those that require the weight, size and space required by a typical travel trailer. It is a decision that is not made lightly. Many try the TC and find it too cramped. It is not a good choice for a large family with pets. However, there are some who make the switch to trailers only to find they miss the simplicity and freedom of the TC, only to make the move back. This buying and selling of campers is something that we did not have the capacity to afford, so we hope we have made the right choice.
Groovy
Third, TC's are COOL! They have all the amenities of a trailer albeit compressed into an area the size of a postage stamp. The brochures for these campers often have captions under the photos that say "actual size." They are the true swiss army knives of campers. Ours has an impressive list of options including; microwave, air conditioning, hot water, flush toilet, power outlets, USB charging plugs, queen size bed, dinette with table, refrigerator with freezer compartment, screen door and windows, a wet bath with shower, and an outside shower for when you want to really experience the raw outdoors. The camper is ready to go to places that have no facilities or hook ups because it has; two propane bottles, two deep cycle batteries, and almost 40 gallons of fresh water storage.
Warm
Fourth, TC's are often cold weather compatible. They have less area inside to heat and can be built to withstand the cold. Ours is four season rated, which means not only does it have a good heater but it has insulated walls and compartments. The containment tanks are heated and are located in a basement that has heat ducts specifically located to prevent freezing.
So that is why we feel the truck camper is the best solution for us.
First of all, almost all RV's are compromises between cost and construction -- this is similar to boats. There are really no important generic construction quality differences between the types of RV's. Instead, quality is a characteristic of a particular manufacturer or brand. The majority of RV's are built cheaply on assembly lines by people that appear to be recruited daily from urban street corners and put to work with a minimum of training. "Here, stick some staples into that until it doesn't come apart. Drive the screws in deep until the wood splits." An exaggeration, but not by much!
This is a brand new camper on a dealer lot! NOT the one we bought...
Quality
Good, reputable RV brands are typically family owned businesses that actually place a premium on quality workmanship and reliability. All one needs to do is look "under the hood" at wiring harnesses, cabinet construction and plumbing details to see the differences. I have seen brand new campers on dealer lots that have literally been coming apart at the seams. Most camper brands are pretty predictable concerning quality control, whether good or bad. Price is always a reliable predictor of how much attention has been paid to construction, so you generally get what you pay for. Truck campers have been built for decades and have been around since the truck was invented. The brands associated with them have often been around for many years too. In fact, some brand names have been bought and sold several times -- be sure the quality has stayed up to snuff if you are considering one of those.
Flexible
Second, we needed a solution for our camping wants that included flexibility. A trailer limits where you can travel by determining how far off paved roads you can go. We actually see ourselves "boon docking" on forest roads once in a while in order to get away from the herds of humans attempting to do the RV thing. A truck camper (TC) also has the ability to enable the truck to tow a trailer with other toys on it, whether it be an ATV, boat, or simply more camping stuff. After all, one can never have too much stuff.
The TC enables carefree traveling. Reservations become a thing of the past as you travel according to personal whims. To stop for the night the TC owner can simply find the nearest Wal-Mart, Flying J, rest area, or other public access to pull over and park. There is no set-up, nothing to do but exit the truck cab and disappear into the TC. Since ours will have no slide out section it will won't take up more than a typical parking lot space.
The TC can be unloaded anywhere that is relatively flat. That means the truck becomes serviceable as a tour vehicle while the camper remains at the camping spot. Electric jacks, one on each corner of the camper make this an easily accomplished five minute load or unload. The jacks even come with a wireless remote! No more having to tow a "toad" vehicle behind the motorhome or having to tow a chain of trailers down the road like a traveling circus.
Footprint
Most national parks and state parks have rather limited capacity for trucks with trailers, and fees are higher for those few spots. TC's are often not regulated like trailers and can slip in under the radar. TC's are also more compact and have virtually no footprint, which kind of helps with the wilderness ethic. They are self-contained, most having their own water, grey water, and black water tanks. Virtually all TC's have DC battery systems to power themselves for days, if not weeks away from electrical hookups. These systems are also charged by the truck when it is in operation.
TC's come in various sizes and configurations ranging from ultra light off road adventure models to giant, Old Woman Who Lives in a Shoe behemoths that weigh in at over 5000 lbs. In all of these TC's the owners have made the choice to live a more spartan camping lifestyle than those that require the weight, size and space required by a typical travel trailer. It is a decision that is not made lightly. Many try the TC and find it too cramped. It is not a good choice for a large family with pets. However, there are some who make the switch to trailers only to find they miss the simplicity and freedom of the TC, only to make the move back. This buying and selling of campers is something that we did not have the capacity to afford, so we hope we have made the right choice.
Groovy
Third, TC's are COOL! They have all the amenities of a trailer albeit compressed into an area the size of a postage stamp. The brochures for these campers often have captions under the photos that say "actual size." They are the true swiss army knives of campers. Ours has an impressive list of options including; microwave, air conditioning, hot water, flush toilet, power outlets, USB charging plugs, queen size bed, dinette with table, refrigerator with freezer compartment, screen door and windows, a wet bath with shower, and an outside shower for when you want to really experience the raw outdoors. The camper is ready to go to places that have no facilities or hook ups because it has; two propane bottles, two deep cycle batteries, and almost 40 gallons of fresh water storage.
Warm
Fourth, TC's are often cold weather compatible. They have less area inside to heat and can be built to withstand the cold. Ours is four season rated, which means not only does it have a good heater but it has insulated walls and compartments. The containment tanks are heated and are located in a basement that has heat ducts specifically located to prevent freezing.
So that is why we feel the truck camper is the best solution for us.
Friday, April 8, 2016
Getting Started or How Much Wood Can A Woodtruck Truck...
Ever notice those ungainly looking campers that seem to have overtaken the backs of pickup trucks, swaying down the highway at breakneck speeds? Dr. Streagle and I did a few years ago and we decided to keep a sharp eye out for a chance to investigate and planned to obtain one at the earliest opportunity. Fortunately our years-long wait and endless internet search for the perfect slide-in camper is almost over.
K likes to call them "turtles" since we will be carrying it on the back of the truck. Just why we wanted a slide-in (hereafter known as "Turtle") can be a discussion for a subsequent post, so watch for one to come along soon. Since the choice of RV type had been made, the shopping and culling of countless used campers yielded a result we found somewhat disturbing for us. We just didn't want someone else's funky camper that was a total compromise in cost, convenience and clean condition. When I say clean I mean that to also include structural integrity and condition, as in a "clean bill of health."
The internet, which is the font of all human knowledge and experience, has countless tales of woe regarding used campers which have hidden catastrophic problems ranging from rot to pet funk. You can read about our experience moving into our Idaho home to see why pet funk is not high on our list of fun things to clean up.
Ranger Tim and Dr. Karren's Westward Ho! Blog
A new camper can be purchased easily by almost anyone with a social security number or driver's license. All you have to do is be willing to make payments for the rest of your natural life or until the debt can be transferred to your offspring upon your untimely demise. Piece of cake. Another way to justify this incredibly rash financial faux pas is to continue to say to yourself, "The interest is tax deductible! It's a mini-mortagage!" Somehow that makes it okay. The mere thought that you might be cheating Uncle Sam out of some revenue is a strong motivator.
So then the search for a brand spanking new turtle, er, ah, camper begins. Perhaps the best place to do research on turtles is on the truck camper forums at rv.net, a treasure trove of incessant babbling about everything under the truck camper sun. These people have absolutely NOTHING else to do except talk and play with these contraptions. Luckily for me there are mountains of dialogue there, enabling one to distill some fairly common threads about manufacture, dependability, quality, availability, history, etc. into useful advice. Once in a while you will even discover an actual truck camper guru that even makes complete sense!
"Oh TC Guru, what is the meaning of life?"
"Young Grasshopper, you must find this secret for yourself inside a turtle of your own..."
Another great place to find shopping help is at truckcampermagazine.com. That site is chock full of info on new campers, reviews and great advice on camper matching.
Okay, enough preamble. The next part of this post will read more like a Tom Clancy novel in that it will deal with the drudgery of truck-camper matching, circular thought patterns on weight capacities, and other mechanical junk. (Dr. Karren, you should probably stop reading now and rejoin 5 paragraphs below)
Our truck is a 2006 Ford F350 long bed, single rear wheel crew cab with the King Ranch option package and camper package. This makes it weigh (unloaded and empty of everything, even people) 7860 lbs. total. This is called the Gross Vehicle Weight, or GVW. I weighed it at the local CAT scale at the Flying J, with a full tank of fuel.
Our truck is listed on the Ford factory info pages as having the following specs:
Rear Wheel (each) 3525 lbs.
Our tires (each) 3650
Rear Axle 10,000
If you do the math our rear wheels together have a 7050 lb. capacity, so this becomes the limiting factor, not our tires or axle ratings.
Our truck's rear end weighed 3140 at the scale. Subtract that from 7050 and you get 3910, or the most payload that I can safely load onto the rear of the truck. Now this does not take into consideration that I might have been slightly forward on the scale or the curvature of the earth or some other nonsense, so I am happy using this number. However, there is a document that came with the truck that quotes a maximum camper weight of 2815. Huh? Buzzkill! I feel comfortable that I will be close to that weight (wink, wink, nudge, nudge).
The truck is rated to carry 11,500 pounds gross weight, so we will be somewhere close to that too. Our camper is predicted by the RV gurus to have a weight somewhere between that of a toaster and the space shuttle. My best guess is just over 3000 lbs. That is where I leave the weight discussions for now, the scales will tell the story in the end.
(Start reading here Dr.) So what have we done so far? We visited a dealer in Boise and found a camper. Both of us struggled with the choice between hard side or pop-up for months, and we found prime examples of both at Nelson's RV. Wolf Creek (a brand of Northwood, they make the Arctic Fox) has two models, a rear bath and a mid bath, both hard sides. Northstar makes some of the best quality pop-ups on the market, so we wanted to see them too. These were brands we liked, but the pop-up was a specific model we had not considered before.
The Wolf Creek 840 was the obvious choice for us between the two WC models. The mid bath has a 180 degree view around the rear of the camper and has a layout that suited us. There is something magical that happens just going and sitting in a camper for an hour that tells you whether or not it is the right one for you. Just sit there and talk, meditate, play cards, whatever. Yea or nay becomes apparent quickly. Either that or it was the one you wanted all along. Want, want, want!
When we looked at the Northstars I expected just a cursory glance, since I thought there were none on the lot to fit a long bed. WRONG! Turns out the web browser cuts off the description of the models and does not include "or long bed trucks." This threw a wrench into the decision making process. We really liked the openness of the pop-up, the workmanship, the features, and especially the lower center of gravity when closed. The Northstar 850 is a sweet camper! In the end it boiled down to accessibility issues for the Dr., bath privacy, and kitchen cabinet placements. I really believe we could have made this work and work well if we had been less than 35 years old, but we are no longer able to run or jump, so a more (ahem) comfortable camper was a better choice. Middle aged fat people need accommodations!
The Wolf Creek 840 was our choice. An hour later we were deeper in debt and rolling down the road toward home with a delivery date in two weeks. What! No camper on the truck? No silly, you can't just rush these things. They take time and planning if you want to drive away loaded. There are all kinds of things involved -- things like tie-downs, suspension modifications, dealer walk-throughs, gnashing of teeth, moments of indecision, and more.
So the search for the perfect truck camper suspension mod begins. On to the next posting!
K likes to call them "turtles" since we will be carrying it on the back of the truck. Just why we wanted a slide-in (hereafter known as "Turtle") can be a discussion for a subsequent post, so watch for one to come along soon. Since the choice of RV type had been made, the shopping and culling of countless used campers yielded a result we found somewhat disturbing for us. We just didn't want someone else's funky camper that was a total compromise in cost, convenience and clean condition. When I say clean I mean that to also include structural integrity and condition, as in a "clean bill of health."
The internet, which is the font of all human knowledge and experience, has countless tales of woe regarding used campers which have hidden catastrophic problems ranging from rot to pet funk. You can read about our experience moving into our Idaho home to see why pet funk is not high on our list of fun things to clean up.
Ranger Tim and Dr. Karren's Westward Ho! Blog
A new camper can be purchased easily by almost anyone with a social security number or driver's license. All you have to do is be willing to make payments for the rest of your natural life or until the debt can be transferred to your offspring upon your untimely demise. Piece of cake. Another way to justify this incredibly rash financial faux pas is to continue to say to yourself, "The interest is tax deductible! It's a mini-mortagage!" Somehow that makes it okay. The mere thought that you might be cheating Uncle Sam out of some revenue is a strong motivator.
So then the search for a brand spanking new turtle, er, ah, camper begins. Perhaps the best place to do research on turtles is on the truck camper forums at rv.net, a treasure trove of incessant babbling about everything under the truck camper sun. These people have absolutely NOTHING else to do except talk and play with these contraptions. Luckily for me there are mountains of dialogue there, enabling one to distill some fairly common threads about manufacture, dependability, quality, availability, history, etc. into useful advice. Once in a while you will even discover an actual truck camper guru that even makes complete sense!
"Oh TC Guru, what is the meaning of life?"
"Young Grasshopper, you must find this secret for yourself inside a turtle of your own..."
Another great place to find shopping help is at truckcampermagazine.com. That site is chock full of info on new campers, reviews and great advice on camper matching.
Okay, enough preamble. The next part of this post will read more like a Tom Clancy novel in that it will deal with the drudgery of truck-camper matching, circular thought patterns on weight capacities, and other mechanical junk. (Dr. Karren, you should probably stop reading now and rejoin 5 paragraphs below)
Our truck is a 2006 Ford F350 long bed, single rear wheel crew cab with the King Ranch option package and camper package. This makes it weigh (unloaded and empty of everything, even people) 7860 lbs. total. This is called the Gross Vehicle Weight, or GVW. I weighed it at the local CAT scale at the Flying J, with a full tank of fuel.
Our truck is listed on the Ford factory info pages as having the following specs:
Rear Wheel (each) 3525 lbs.
Our tires (each) 3650
Rear Axle 10,000
If you do the math our rear wheels together have a 7050 lb. capacity, so this becomes the limiting factor, not our tires or axle ratings.
Our truck's rear end weighed 3140 at the scale. Subtract that from 7050 and you get 3910, or the most payload that I can safely load onto the rear of the truck. Now this does not take into consideration that I might have been slightly forward on the scale or the curvature of the earth or some other nonsense, so I am happy using this number. However, there is a document that came with the truck that quotes a maximum camper weight of 2815. Huh? Buzzkill! I feel comfortable that I will be close to that weight (wink, wink, nudge, nudge).
The truck is rated to carry 11,500 pounds gross weight, so we will be somewhere close to that too. Our camper is predicted by the RV gurus to have a weight somewhere between that of a toaster and the space shuttle. My best guess is just over 3000 lbs. That is where I leave the weight discussions for now, the scales will tell the story in the end.
(Start reading here Dr.) So what have we done so far? We visited a dealer in Boise and found a camper. Both of us struggled with the choice between hard side or pop-up for months, and we found prime examples of both at Nelson's RV. Wolf Creek (a brand of Northwood, they make the Arctic Fox) has two models, a rear bath and a mid bath, both hard sides. Northstar makes some of the best quality pop-ups on the market, so we wanted to see them too. These were brands we liked, but the pop-up was a specific model we had not considered before.
Wolf Creek 840 looking out the rear
The Wolf Creek 840 was the obvious choice for us between the two WC models. The mid bath has a 180 degree view around the rear of the camper and has a layout that suited us. There is something magical that happens just going and sitting in a camper for an hour that tells you whether or not it is the right one for you. Just sit there and talk, meditate, play cards, whatever. Yea or nay becomes apparent quickly. Either that or it was the one you wanted all along. Want, want, want!
When we looked at the Northstars I expected just a cursory glance, since I thought there were none on the lot to fit a long bed. WRONG! Turns out the web browser cuts off the description of the models and does not include "or long bed trucks." This threw a wrench into the decision making process. We really liked the openness of the pop-up, the workmanship, the features, and especially the lower center of gravity when closed. The Northstar 850 is a sweet camper! In the end it boiled down to accessibility issues for the Dr., bath privacy, and kitchen cabinet placements. I really believe we could have made this work and work well if we had been less than 35 years old, but we are no longer able to run or jump, so a more (ahem) comfortable camper was a better choice. Middle aged fat people need accommodations!
The Wolf Creek 840 was our choice. An hour later we were deeper in debt and rolling down the road toward home with a delivery date in two weeks. What! No camper on the truck? No silly, you can't just rush these things. They take time and planning if you want to drive away loaded. There are all kinds of things involved -- things like tie-downs, suspension modifications, dealer walk-throughs, gnashing of teeth, moments of indecision, and more.
So the search for the perfect truck camper suspension mod begins. On to the next posting!
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