2018 Palomino SS550

[HandTurkee]

I thought I'd write a bit about my experience with the Palomino Backpack SS550 as I've found very little about it in the forums.

First off, I'll pay my respects to FWC as I do understand they are a superior product regarding longevity, quality and their ability to handle tougher offroad applications. I'll also tip my hat to them as I grew up 20minutes away from their HQ in Northern California.

That said, for the price, I've had a superb experience with my Palomino so far. I purchased my camper a year ago here in Bozeman, MT for $9500. I hunt pretty hard during the fall so bought it to have my little motel on wheels when I'm in the mountains. I've been pretty hard on the camper already and it has held up well. I commonly drive on rough roads getting into the mountains and also did a coues deer hunt in Arizona that tested the offroad limits of the camper. It did great.

Some things I really like about the camper:
-Proper queen size mattress. This makes the camper taller in height than a FWC, but having a real mattress has been really nice.
-North/South bed. The cabover portion of these campers allows for north/south sleeping configuration, meaning you don't have to climb over your partner getting up in the middle of the night. It also makes the bed area feel like its own room.
-I understand that the camper is some sort of particle board with veneer, but I really like the feel. It isn't ultra premium but feels kind of like a Holiday Inn Express. Just good enough
-Upper cabinets: I haven't seen these in FWC but do like them in the Palomino
-Heater: The heater COOKS. I've spent comfortable nights in -F without any issues

Some things I dislike:
-Power Lift Roof: This was obviously sold as as a +, but if you have battery issues or a mechanical failure, there isn't an easy way to raise or lower the roof. I can see this leaving you in bad situations either not being able to lower or raise when you need to.
-Weight: I believe these have a dry weight of around 1700#. Really not bad, but not as nice as FWC. I had mine on a half ton and decided to upgrade the truck to 3/4 to carry it easier and safer
-Wood construction: I know the wood construction simply won't stand up over a long period of time compared to aluminum.

To summarize, I think for the price performance this camper is hard to beat. It provides a very comfortable camping experience in a form factor that let's you take it pretty far into the backcountry. I have the means to afford an FWC but have struggled to justify the upgrade at 2x-3x the cost. I no doubt will end up with an FWC one of these days, but for now I'm loving the Palomino!

Happy to answer any questions anyone might have.

 

[Old Crow]

Thanks for posting your experience.

Your post also led me to find this Truck Camper Magazine review of the 2016 version for more photos and that in turn linked to this TCM article on the Rieco-Titan electric lift developed for it. And I see that last one appears to say you can also raise and lower the roof with a drill if there's an electric problem with the lift. ( I see in this manual for the lift that you apparently chuck a supplied flexible shaft into a cordless drill to turn the motor (assuming no mechanical problems)). And the manual has roof-loading limitations.

Very interesting reading!

 

[HandTurkee]

Old Crow, thanks for the response.

I've found those articles as well. I've searched all around to order the flexible bit they describe but haven't had any luck. I also don't know where in the camper it is inserted. I've planned to head down to a dealer to get their feedback, but haven't gotten around to that yet.

I'd feel a whole lot better having a 'manual' way to raise and lower the roof.

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

Welcome to the forum. Very nice report on the Palomino SS550.
I looked at that brand 10 years ago after a trip to Yellowstone using a Kamperoo tent type trailer.
I did like all the upper cabinet space and the interior I thought looked very nice,but the camper was heavier than
I could use.
They are another of the many Pop Ups on the market.
How about some interior pictures.
Thanks for posting.
Frank

 

[HandTurkee]

Thanks for the welcome TheNewGuy. I've watched the site for a long time, happy to interact a bit.

I have the exact interior as can be found in this link...and their photos are a lot better than anything I have https://www.truckcampermagazine.com/camper-reviews/2016-palomino-ss-550-review/

 

[ardvark]

Having worked on RVs for decades professionally the one thing I can say is there is "perfect" camper nor manufacturer. They can all be fun and they can all have a bad day and make you want to tear your hair out. Maintain your rig and it may well outlive you no matter how it is constructed.

I am glad to hear you are enjoying the camper you bought. You eventually will have some kind of problem with it as will everyone who owns an RV. That is part of the fun!

 

[Old Crow]

All-

For those of us interested in what the various truck-camper manufacturers are doing, the video below has a couple of interesting points. It's a tour of the 2019 Palomino SS-550, this one the 'Badland' edition. The Badland version has a few more options- like 2nd battery tray, solar, and Thule roof-rack tracks.

Video Tour of Palomino SS-550 Badland camper

Comments on the video:

1- The skirt at the base of the vinyl softside portion of the roof. I'm not a fan of the look and wonder why it's there (when other manufacturers don't appear to have it).

2- At 0:45 we learn about 'performance' versus gel-coated fiberglass. The whole subject of fiberglass siding for RVs is somewhat mysterious. After a bunch of searches I'm guessing Palomino uses Crane Composites products for sidewall and roof given it's a Forest River brand and Forest River appears to have a relationship with Crane.

3- @1:45-- integrated shade in back door. Nice.

4- @2:03 - mounting bracket for backup camera. Seems oddly shaped and larger than necessary for the purpose. I assume it's wired to the truck's reverse-lights pin via the camper's connection to the the truck's 7-pin trailer plug.

5- @3:30 - tankless water heater! Appears to be a Girard. (Not a great idea according to several Forest River owners in this thread)

6- @4:40 - connection to truck's seven-pin trailer connector. Provides clearance lights plus battery charging (via the aux pin of the seven pin connector) while driving. I'm sure many would consider this an inadequate method of charging from the alternator. I guess the counter argument is the fridge is a three-way one so could be operated on propane and this Badland model has a solar panel (and a connection for an external solar panel)

7 - @5:09 - electrical port for portable solar panel. Interesting choice of wire connector.

8 - @5:22 - an external 2nd-battery tray! What are the pros and cons of having one battery inside and one out? And if you choose flooded, does that mean you need to take the camper off the truck to maintain the battery?

9 - @5:30 - as the shot scans up from the battery tray, we see the propane lines are run externally and appear to be the rubber ones.

10- @6:10 - uh-oh... flexible solar panel adhered directly to the roof. Also- the online spec sheet says it's only 100 watts. And couldn't they do something with those solar-panel wires? They'd eventually fail just from flopping around in the wind.

11- also @6:10ish -- note how Palomino applies the sealant I'm guessing it's the Dicor self-levelling lap sealant but I thought it interesting to see how much they apply, not only at the solar panel but also at the vents, solar-wiring fitting, and roof edges. Yet, curiously, we don't see it at the Thule tracks. And what's with the shorty tracks? I know they have to cope with weight limitations of the roof-lift actuators and their placement but putting anything on the middle of that rack blocks the Fantastic Fan (and those other two vents don't move much air).

12 - @6:45 - Single propane tank. Looks like it's the less-expensive upright but raises the question of how to monitor capacity and what to do if you want to run a propane campfire (same with most truck campers)

13 - @14:00 - that door doesn't look high enough for a 5-gallon porta potti but the opening may be close. My brother's old Sunlite had that problem and it was just a matter of cutting about a half inch off the top of the opening for the potti to fit and the door still covered the opening when closed.

Also- here's an older (2010) tour of the Palomino factory which has some interesting photos and descriptions of the vacuum-bonding process used to build these campers.

.

 

[Ruck_and_Roll]

I'm looking at one too for the same purposes. Looking for pop-up that is light enough that I can take on hunting trips into state forest/ BLM lands. My only issue is weight. I have a 2014 Ford F150 Supercab 4x4, the payload rating is about 1500 lbs. It is really hard to find a lightweight pop-up without doing a bunch of truck mods.

 

[Old Crow]

Welcome to Wander the West, laherro!

Yeah, weight is always an issue.

Can I ask what engine and wheelbase you have in the F150? I was just looking at this 2014 F150 specs chart and it looks like the V6 Supercab 4x4 has a payload in the 1500 range but others are significantly higher...

.

 

[Ruck_and_Roll]

3.7L V6.....145 in wheelbase...actual payload listed on the door is 1350 lbs I believe. So I'm not sure why it is 150-200 lbs less. Maybe some of the factory options? It is a XLT model.

Welcome to Wander the West, laherro!

Yeah, weight is always an issue.

Can I ask what engine and wheelbase you have in the F150? I was just looking at this 2014 F150 specs chart and it looks like the V6 Supercab 4x4 has a payload in the 1500 range but others are significantly higher...

.

 

[tbug]

Thanks for the great review and straight forward information.

I have a similar experience with previously owning a FWC and even a Northstar and this time going to Palomino mainly because of how out of control the prices are on some of these truck campers. This time I ordered a SS 1240 Badlands to be ready the end of this month. It will be on a Ram 3500 diesel. I'm all for quality, technology and comfort features, but I want to get a sense that I am getting a fair deal. I am not willing to pay north of $30K for one of these units. It is getting out of control.

I am a bit prejudiced on Palomino's lack of quality from previous owner's reports over the years. Since it had been years since I looked at their campers I thought I'd take a fresh look. Today, I think they have made several improvements to their product improving its overall integrity. I was actually surprised. I hope this unit meet my needs with minimal issues, but only time will tell.

I'll take a road trip to Indiana to pick it up in a few weeks and will report back.

 

[Old Crow]

Looking forward to it, tbug!

All-

For readers wanting more on the SS1240 Badlands Edition, here's a well-executed video tour of one. The tour guide provides a lot of helpful detail on features...

Interesting! Electric roof lift, windows all around the top, north-south Serta mattress with deep lockers beside it, storage under the bed, Dometic 3-way fridge, Suburban stove top, Suburban NTQ series furnace, Girard tankless water heater, 100-watt flexible solar panel, single battery with outside-the-camper tray for a second one, (no info on converter/charger), etc. It's under $15K, 1900#.

-----------

One of the things I like about watching videos like this is they sometimes bring to light things I hadn't thought much about... like this one...

At 6:09 our tour guide describes disconnecting the front truck-to-camper cable "when you want to park overnight at a Walmart" and says that's to allow you to run the camper off its battery with no draw from the truck. That suggests you'd want to do that anytime you're not camping with shorepower. Personally, I think the holder's just there to keep the cable end out of the way for loading. And if you ARE going to disconnect, wouldn't you pull the back one? In any case, I've not seen that disconnect-when-off-grid recommendation.

But it does raise an important issue for anyone using the receiver-hitch plug to connect truck and camper batteries: Is your 7-pin connector's +12 (aux) pin powered all the time?

If so, we have to think through the ramifications. Does the camper have some type of battery separator? The tour-guide's advice to pull the plug suggests it does not in this case. I'd expect to find the +12 pin on the camper's 7-pin connector is wired to the battery's positive post. And that could lead to a dead truck battery-- like the Ram 3500 owner in this RVnet thread learned.

So the tour guide's recommendation to pull the plug is a MANual battery separator. (And you are the MAN or woMAN doing the separating!). (The RVnet thread discusses several alternatives)
.

 

[Limestone cowboy]

Is that a 6.5 ft truck bed? If so how does the 550 sit in the bed, is the left over space in the rear, leaves the tailgate on?

 

[HandTurkee]

Yes, 6.5. The camper overhangs a few inches so cannot leave tailgate on

Is that a 6.5 ft truck bed? If so how does the 550 sit in the bed, is the left over space in the rear, leaves the tailgate on?