Camper Tie Down Options

[m.r.h.]

After living in my camper (86 Keystone) for a couple of months it is time to put it back on my truck. The little bit of driving I have done the camper has been attached with some stake pocket tie downs because the camper came with external mounts installed on it. Not a big fan of the stake pocket tie downs as they seem a little rickety. I will likely take the camper off for a few months in winter and have a canopy on so the stake pocket mounts will have to come off.

Should I stick with the external mounts and install some Happi Jacs or go with the interior eyebolt and turn buckle set up? Pros? Cons?

I am leaning a little more toward internal to keep things a little cleaner and installing the happi jac system seems a little bit more complex, and maybe a bit more expensive.

If I go with the internal mounts I need to install eyebolts on my camper. After watching the eyebolt installation video it seems I would install those to my camper 18 inches or so in from the front and maybe 10 inches from the back my camper. That will give me some space to hit that 6 inch mark I got that from minute 1:55 of the video. Does that seem right?

 

[OffTheGridMaps]

I have TorkLift external tie downs on my truck, but only because I had them installed for a previous camper. They work fine, but if I were you and starting from scratch, I definitely would go with the internal tie downs. Invest in the long-term solution, not the short-term solution that you will end up being stuck with.

 

[WillTheThri11]

If you plan to do any offroading, it wouldn't be hard to snag a jack or torque lift tie down and do some serious damage to the truck or the camper. I say keep it inside the truck. Only downside to that is having to tighten turnbuckles from inside the camper through the access doors. It's kinda a pain, but if you're not doing it too often, it's not that bad.

 

[ClimberRob]

Internal tie downs have a lot going for them. I would recommend reinforcing the inside of the camper with some 1/4" aluminum or 1/8" steel plate to help distribute the load.

 

[m.r.h.]

As I thought I decided on going with internet tie downs. Had a nice chat with FWC yesterday about placement of both front and rear spacemen of the brackets for the camper. Did some quick measuring last night and I think everything is going to work out really well. Once all the hardware arrives and I get everything install I will post a photo or two. Thanks for all of the feedback.

 

[WillTheThri11]

I'm thinking of using these in my Tacoma. They don't swivel, but then neither does the FWC option. Plus you could hang like 5 campers from just one of them (of course this doesn't account for acceleration forces, but still):

https://www.metoliusclimbing.com/stainless_steel_bolt_hanger.html

 

[m.r.h.]

I love those bolt hangers. Very useful. I had a couple installed in an old truck (mid way in the bed) and they were so nice for tying stuff in. Work great in pretty much every application.

 

[ClimberRob]

Those bolt hangers would work fine, but it's more about the backing you use. You'd need to put a big plate on the other side (bottom) of the bed.

I used SS boat/marine bow eyes in my truck. They have held up great.