Truck Camper Input
 

Hello Dtr
I just bought a truck camper for $2500 a deal I could not turn away. It is Heavy around 3600lbs loaded with water, 60 gal of propane for the generator, quality truck camper I must say, cant wait to use it to go fishing... the truck( 98 12v single cab, 8ft bed 2wd with 130K) has air bags, and stock moog front springs. I put about 70 psi in all 6 tires and both firestone airbags to 70psi , the truck feels a little wobbly at high speed and over bumps in town, but I'm getting used to it, got 16 mpg hauling it home from PA in 40mph headwind, and it pulls like almost not loaded. ( < Buying a Superhitch with 48in extension to tow my 12ft trailer(Dreaming).>)

Should I buy a 12v club cab 4x4 ? Duramax club cab 4x4? shhh!! or any upgrades like heavy duty front springs, front air bags? Blistens? Rear end Mods besides airbags on my 2wd? Is it safe to tow a tow a camper this size with a 2wd? Always have a failed ball joint in the back of my mind..

I had a 39ft toy hauler 10K. I owned and towed with this same truck and it did fine... I have a good bit of $ in this truck, has banks twin intake and banks turbo kit, other than that stock and new front end parts, new standard gear and trans 5 speed upgraded , new rear.. List goes on..

Any input from other truck camper owners with 2nd gen rams would be great.
http://i751.photobucket.com/albums/x...171943_072.jpg

You will be fine hauling that around with your 2wd, I see it all the time. You will be wobbly at higher speeds, you have just raised your center of gravity, as well as made more wind resistance. Bilsteins are always a good investment. As for the failed ball joint in the back of your mind, if a ball joint is going to fail, it will fail whether it's 2 or 4 wheel drive. I wouldn't worry about it any personally.

My opinion is your truck will be fine to pack that camper around, as well as the boat. If you want a 4x4, and are using the camper as an excuse to get one, well that's a whole different story.

Hillbilly , Thanks for reply, I live in Maryland so not much snow here no need for 4wd these days I'm an urban redneck , I was just pondering the thought of a longer 4x4 club cab truck would not rock or sway as much. Good point on 2wd and 4wd ball joints. I have around 300 miles with the truck and I'm sure I will get more confident in driving it, I had sweaty palms first driving with my toy hauler, but 2 years later I found myself doing 90 late to an event and backing into tight parking without a problem. I also have A set of 2wd Blistens I got from SD springs, will install. Thanks for the input.

I don't see a Pacbrake in your signature. That would be an enormous help slowing down all that added mass.
The Bilsteins will help.

True a longer truck would not rock or sway as much, but you will need to keep in mind that even a stock 4x4 will sit taller than your 2wd. In turn that will raise your center of gravity even more, which may make it rock and sway just as much.

With as much as you have invested in your current truck, I would be real hesitant on getting rid of it to get a 4x4 unless I could put the camper in it and test drive it just to see if it rocks and sways any less.

Anyone with a 4x4 club cab with a 3500+ Truck Camper with any input on how the rig drives ?

Attachment 51185

Was the 2001 in my sig.

Drove fine, had some sway but you get that with a camper. No airbags, stock suspension. My camper wasn't nearly as heavy as yours though. Tires can make a big difference. I would air up the tires to the factory spec(80psi?) and lower the air pressure in the bags if possible. My other trucks with airbags I ran just enough pressure so the truck sat level.

I put the DSS sterring system on right when I got it so I cann't say how much difference that made but I think it helped a lot. I actually forgot I had it until I took it in for a wheel alignment and the tech commented that it was the tightest steering Dodge he had ever driven.

Sounds like you got a deal, and I wouldn't look for a different truck either unless you currently have an issue with not enough cab room or you desire 4wd.

To offset the sway, its not the center of gravity as much as its just a whole lot of weight working against the suspension and shocks doing their best to hold things stable. I know airbags are a great help too but there's something to be said for Timbrens as they really add stability to those kind of loads. And HD shocks which offer considerable dampening movement will do a lot as well. I know Bilsteins are very good shocks but I really like the fact that I can run my adjustable Rancho 9000's soft while unloaded and crank them up very stiff while towing my 5th wheel.

PU camper options
 

Why so heavy ? Lance 835 = 2100 lbs.
I use air bags and sway bar for a better safer ride.
happy day, lew

http://www.atvutah.com/public_html/y...ce_d2500-2.jpg

ATVUtah Forum - PU camper trailer options

wingit, I now see the pun in your user name. [coffee]

Probably closer to 3K wet.
My Northstar TC800 is 2K wet.

I was thinking empty weight of 2100 w/o AC
But if I had a use for a dually...A RED one...
I'd have a big camper maybe with a slide.
they look cool

Yeah,dually's and slide in campers rock. It's effortless for them to carry a big camper.

It probably doesn't sway as much as this one! Unless you're uncomfortable driving it, from my experience you have more than enough truck under that camper.
It's probably swaying more due to the high pressure in your airbags. My camper is 4000lb + loaded up and 70psi puts me back to normal ride height on 3/4ton springs. It also increases sway a bunch because I'm not engaging the lower (overload) leaf. I think a sway bar would help a bunch as well. I prefer to not have the back end sagging at all, but I do get noticeably less amplitude of sway if I air the bags down to about 50psi so the springs hit the overload leaf quickly when it sways.

I never could understand why you would want to make a truck ride as high with a heavy load as it does empty. Leaf springs are variable rate. The more you bend them, the stiffer they get. Air bags, and most coil springs are not. If you hold a heavy load high with springs that won't stiffen rapidly when compressed, it's bound to sway. If you let it settle down to the heavy (overload) parts of the leaf spring setup, it'll ride a bit stiff, but very stable.

The two stage spring setup is the main reason I like a 1 ton to haul or tow a camper.