Jack of all trades truck setup

[oops]

You can't just slide the bar forward with the RTT installed, right? Since presumably the RTT is attached to that bar?

True.

You sure you’re not looking for a 4x4 Sprinter Van and a dump trailer? ?

 

[ccw]

True.

You sure you’re not looking for a 4x4 Sprinter Van and a dump trailer? ?

Nah I think what I really want is some land, a dump trailer and a tractor with some fork lift tines on it so I can remove add and remove heavy things from my truck with ease.

 

[oops]

Nah I think what I really want is some land, a dump trailer and a tractor with some fork lift tines on it so I can remove add and remove heavy things from my truck with ease.

Got a garage?

 

[ccw]

Got a garage?

View attachment 23971

I do, but bedroom is on top of it so it’s got a pretty short ceiling height. No way to do a lift system like that in it.

 

[stufarmer]

I share a little 5x8 trailer with a friend for the dirty work. I bought it years ago from Home Depot. He stores and maintains it. It's there when I need it. I don't care if the Loader pours Gravel over the sides, or if the Fence panels are rubbing against anything. As far as camping goes .. I'm strictly a Sleep Number guy. Even our Lance has a Sleep Number. So, if you can sleep in the heat or the cold, on a cot or on the floor, you're young. We're not, we glamp.

 

[Sccritterkiller]

I am in the same situation...I am going slide in camper and a bed cover if my truck ever gets delivered..I already have trailer I use to tow my Jeep and Bronco around...had stake pockets cut into the deck...if I need some material I just put plywood sides on my car trailer. Bed cover keeps stuff dry when no camper in the bed.
Only thing I haven't figured out is fresh water tank. I had one on F250 work truck years ago and it was handy as a pocket on shirt especially washing gear and tools off. It was 15 gallon tank mounted to the frame rail under the bed with a bilge pump in the tank worked great!

 

[Bill]

This is basically my dilemma with my build. I use the truck for a few main purposes ... farm work, hauling feed, hauling animals, hauling bikes, kayaks and gear for triathlons and swims, and pulling my other various trailers. Plus, I want to be able to get out and go camp/overland.

I just posted about my ongoing build this past weekend as I finally feel I’m far enough along and have enough of a direction to start talking about it.

 

[JMart]

Personal recommendation would be to check out the Palomino/Real Lite series of pop up truck campers. Well built and reasonably priced. They use electric motors to raise the roof and have full size queen mattresses. Dry weight around 1500lbs. If you get the electric jacks you can drop it off out of your truck in 10mins. Taking the tailgate on and off is the most annoying part. And not included on the 10mins. I ran the Real Lite 1603 until I needed a bigger camper.
The Bakflip MX4 4 fold tonneau cover is perfect for this too. It folds all the way up to protect your back window and give you access to almost all the truck bed for hauling bark etc... the rails are thin enough that you can leave them on when you put your camper in. You just have to unscrew 2 wing nuts and the cover lifts off. Leaving the rails installed.

 

[ccw]

I am in the same situation...I am going slide in camper and a bed cover if my truck ever gets delivered..I already have trailer I use to tow my Jeep and Bronco around...had stake pockets cut into the deck...if I need some material I just put plywood sides on my car trailer. Bed cover keeps stuff dry when no camper in the bed.
Only thing I haven't figured out is fresh water tank. I had one on F250 work truck years ago and it was handy as a pocket on shirt especially washing gear and tools off. It was 15 gallon tank mounted to the frame rail under the bed with a bilge pump in the tank worked great!

Ohh I like the idea of a water system that's always on-board, rather than tied to the camper. Would indeed be slick! Please make sure to create a thread about that when you figure it out!

And ya the slide-in camper + tonneau cover is really becoming appealing now as well. Super flexible.

 

[ccw]

Personal recommendation would be to check out the Palomino/Real Lite series of pop up truck campers. Well built and reasonably priced. They use electric motors to raise the roof and have full size queen mattresses. Dry weight around 1500lbs. If you get the electric jacks you can drop it off out of your truck in 10mins. Taking the tailgate on and off is the most annoying part. And not included on the 10mins. I ran the Real Lite 1603 until I needed a bigger camper.
The Bakflip MX4 4 fold tonneau cover is perfect for this too. It folds all the way up to protect your back window and give you access to almost all the truck bed for hauling bark etc... the rails are thin enough that you can leave them on when you put your camper in. You just have to unscrew 2 wing nuts and the cover lifts off. Leaving the rails installed. View attachment 24054View attachment 24055

I had been wondering about whether the rails of a tonneau cover would get in the way of a camper, but that's great to know they won't! I guess installing the camper while the BAKFlip is up against the window is a no-no, eh? Would prevent the camper from being tight against the front of the bed, which is bad from a sliding standpoint?

That's a really slick setup. I think that's top of my list right now.

As for Palomino, what kind of price are we talking? With those extra features I would assume somewhere around $30K?

Though the cool part about going with a slide-in camper is that there's a healthy used market, so I could save a bunch of money that way. Not really a used market for the wedge campers.

 

[Sccritterkiller]

Ohh I like the idea of a water system that's always on-board, rather than tied to the camper. Would indeed be slick! Please make sure to create a thread about that when you figure it out!

And ya the slide-in camper + tonneau cover is really becoming appealing now as well. Super flexible.

I want an alaskan camper...just don't know if I wanna wait again for something to be built, finding one used is difficult. I do a lot of camping when its cold and windy, spring and fall/winter see my handle, so hard side pop up that is insulated is very appealing.. Plus be great to take a slide-in camper to core banks in the summer instead of tenting it on the beach.

 

[JMart]

I had been wondering about whether the rails of a tonneau cover would get in the way of a camper, but that's great to know they won't! I guess installing the camper while the BAKFlip is up against the window is a no-no, eh? Would prevent the camper from being tight against the front of the bed, which is bad from a sliding standpoint?

That's a really slick setup. I think that's top of my list right now.

As for Palomino, what kind of price are we talking? With those extra features I would assume somewhere around $30K?

Though the cool part about going with a slide-in camper is that there's a healthy used market, so I could save a bunch of money that way. Not really a used market for the wedge campers.

I just sold that 2017 Palomino for $12k. I think you can buy a new one for about $16k if you can find one. The Palomino Backpacker and Real Lite series are basically the same thing with different color schemes. The wolf Creek we replaced it with was $30k. The tonneau cover rails can be left on with both truck campers.
Unfortunately It’s not possible to leave the cover flipped up with the campers on. Just not enough room in there. And its really easy to take it off, no tools needed.

 

[Tremor22_pnw]

+1 on Four Wheel Campers Project M! That will be my Future Canopy/Camper. Practical, light, and so much room for individual configuration.

 

[Rooster]

I had been wondering about whether the rails of a tonneau cover would get in the way of a camper, but that's great to know they won't! I guess installing the camper while the BAKFlip is up against the window is a no-no, eh? Would prevent the camper from being tight against the front of the bed, which is bad from a sliding standpoint?

That's a really slick setup. I think that's top of my list right now.

As for Palomino, what kind of price are we talking? With those extra features I would assume somewhere around $30K?

Though the cool part about going with a slide-in camper is that there's a healthy used market, so I could save a bunch of money that way. Not really a used market for the wedge campers.

What did you end up getting? I like my soft topper, take the whole thing off in ten minutes fold it up 5. Me and the dog camped in it for a couple weeks, rain snow, no problems, obviously not as nice as a project m but it is 1k compared to 14. Girlfriend and I and 3 dogs were in it for a few nights at a time. I'd consider the smart cap though now that its out. My friend has a project M and loves but never takes it off with that door you can run a 4 wheeler in it though

 

[SalukiRPS]

Saved this pic long ago as a technique/option with some fabbing.

In the past, I’ve done a soft sided folding RTT loading and unloading solo on to my PW.

 

[ccw]

What did you end up getting? I like my soft topper, take the whole thing off in ten minutes fold it up 5. Me and the dog camped in it for a couple weeks, rain snow, no problems, obviously not as nice as a project m but it is 1k compared to 14. Girlfriend and I and 3 dogs were in it for a few nights at a time. I'd consider the smart cap though now that its out. My friend has a project M and loves but never takes it off with that door you can run a 4 wheeler in it though

Ask me again in a few years lol. That's how long it's going to take for me to be settled at this rate.

What I've ended up with is a Diamondback cover for now. When I bought it I was thinking I would swap between that and a slide-in camper I would get in the future. But I've learned some things about my usage since getting the truck.

The main thing is that I really want more weather-proof storage. Particularly with Search and Rescue, I find I'm hauling a lot of gear in the bed of the truck at all times, and then need to be able to add a bunch of large backpacks when transporting other SAR members. Getting everything under the Diamondback is a pain, and strapping to the top is even more tedious and time consuming when you're loading and unloading many times in short order.

So I'm bouncing between two main options right now, though they are highly subject to change.

First option is a slide-in camper, but a shell model. I checked out Four Wheel Campers in person the other week and got to see essentially a Hawk shell model. Advantages:

• Surprisingly close space-wise to a regular canopy with the shell model.
• Can have a furnace and auxiliary battery already built-in and designed for it.
• Far better sealed from dust and weather since it's a sealed unit. Good for camping and just general protection of cargo.
• Relatively easy to remove and re-install if needed, again benefitting from the fact it's a sealed unit. Any canopy is more of a pain to reinstall since you have to line it up far more precisely and potentially replace seals if you want to have proper dust/weather sealing.

Second option is a wedge-camper. Truly a traditional truck canopy with a RTT integrated into it. Advantages:

• Great side access (if you choose a model that has windoors, and many of them do).
• Keep the bed open for customization. After seeing one of our SAR unit trucks with a canopy, Truck Vault drawers, and bed slide on top of the drawers, it's extremely tempting. Really slick setup, as it makes cargo access truly a breeze.
• Better durability of the loading surface, either with the truck bed or the bed slide. With the slide-in camper I would be concerned about long-term durability of the floor dragging things in and out of it.

Then there's the third option that keeps poking around my head, and I feel like it's becoming more prominent. Getting a bed replacement system, like Mits Alloy or RSI, that has a canopy. Then putting a RTT on top of it. This is appealing because I get a flat bed out of it and I remember seeing a video where one of them had attachable jacks to make removing the canopy more like a slide-in camper. I feel they're better designed to be weather-proof on re-install since the bed and top were engineered from the beginning to fit together.

I feel like that third option will also be the most expensive, but my goal is to build out my dream truck so I'm willing to do the right thing in the long-term.

 

[Rooster]

@ccw as usual it seems like you have thought it out and have a solid plan. Haven't seen the bed replacements I'll have to check them out. I like having the truck box though and soft topper is great for throwing stuff in and camping, falls short on dust prevention and security. I hear the Smart topper is good at keeping dust out. I'm sure it will be an awesome setup that I will want to copy, like all your other projects

 

[ccw]

@ccw as usual it seems like you have thought it out and have a solid plan. Haven't seen the bed replacements I'll have to check them out. I like having the truck box though and soft topper is great for throwing stuff in and camping, falls short on dust prevention and security. I hear the Smart topper is good at keeping dust out. I'm sure it will be an awesome setup that I will want to copy, like all your other projects

I don't know about "solid plan" lol. Thought out, yes, but very fuzzy on the actual decisions front.

Here's the links to the two I mentioned and know of:

• Mits Alloy: https://mitsalloy.com.au/usa/
• RSI: https://www.na.rsismartcap.com/products/bedreplacement

I'm sure there's more out there as well.

Edit: I should also note that, since Mits Alloy doesn't have pricing visible on the site, I reached out to a local dealer and it was about $15,000 installed for the flatbed alone. That included install, taxes, and $1000 credit for the used bed. So these bed replacement systems are sweet, but they aren't cheap.

 

[Wrathchild]

Check out some of the fifty ten setups. Bed replacement with spacious canopy. Goose Gear did one a couple years ago on a super duty.

 

[ccw]

Check out some of the fifty ten setups. Bed replacement with spacious canopy. Goose Gear did one a couple years ago on a super duty.

Thanks for the heads up! Will add them to the long-term list to consider.