Help Me Start From Scratch

[dasadab]

My wife and I (mid 60ish) want to (well really me more than her) get off the beaten path. I just sold a small Lance Travel Trailer which we towed behind a Grand Cherokee. I also have owned a small Class C in the past and a tent trailer. Having tried them all, I think I am ready for a 4x4 truck and popup camper. I don't have a truck, so it's a start from scratch thing. I am leaning towards a 2015 Chevy 4x4 Crew Cab with a short bed (6'-5"). We live in a big city, so I really don't want the length of a full side bed, but I also need a full back seat. Diesel or Gas? I'm leaning towards diesel because, aside from the upfront expense, it seems like the best option for range, mileage and durability.

I have have come to the conclusion that a popup makes a lot of sense because: 1. I get a truck!
2. I get a 4x4 truck! 3. Don't need ultra fancy because part of the strategy is to mix remote boondocking and campsite travel (Four Corners, Utah, Sierra Nevadas, Northern Canada) with motel stays. Mix it up.

I do require an inside shower and a fold up or curtain protected toilet area. Also want the usual comfort amenities: refrig. heat, stove top (with oven if possible).

I was looking online at the Hawk or Grandby with the inside shower option. The Grandby would hang over, but that seems okay from what I have read. I like the idea of the extra space.

One additional bit of help: My garage door clearance is about 104" I can't find out any real world clearance information with a four wheel camper on a stock Chevy or other 3/4 ton 4x4 truck. I think clearance may be close.

I have looked online at Hallmark Campers also, but based on my boondocking/motel strategy, I don't think I really need to go fancier. Although I do like the North/South option offered by Hallmark and the fold up shower/toilet option as well.

I appreciate your thoughts.

 

[Durango1]

If you are serious about off-road you want to stay with FWC. I'm upgrading my slide-in Hawk to their flat bed model. You should look at this concept and possibly order a PU with the bed delete option and have an after-market aluminum flat bed put on. (For my reasons to go with a flat bed Hawk check the fifth post in this thread.)

NOTE: You really don't want a Grandby "hanging over". And my guess is the FB Hawk has as much or more usable space in less length.

Whatever you order I would strongly suggest going with a one ton PU. Even with my slide-in Hawk I just weighed my 2500 and I am already over the GVWR by 100# with more to come!

Garage clearance will depend on your pickup, lifts, etc. But my 2012 Hawk on a 2012 Ram 2500 with stock suspension clears my 8' garage door with 3/4" to spare!

You will love wheeling the Four Corners. I've lived in Durango (off and on) since 1976 so I can attest to what a wonderful area it is for a FWC.

All of the above is just my opinion and subject to change... depending on what Sioux tells me to do!

 

[Wandering Sagebrush]

If your going to go for a Grandby, why not go for an 8' bed. Any time the camper is mounted, you're going to be that long anyway.

If I didn't pull a large travel trailer, I wouldn't have a diesel. That said, I love mine. Figure at least $8,000 more for a diesel truck. Maintenance is more expensive as well. You can buy a lot of gas for $8,000. You can also buy larger fuel tanks.

Just my two cents worth...

 

[rotti]

One additional bit of help: My garage door clearance is about 104" I can't find out any real world clearance information with a four wheel camper on a stock Chevy or other 3/4 ton 4x4 truck. I think clearance may be close.

Pictured is my 2012 Chevy 2500HD with a Hawk with a 8' garage door. I have about 2 or 3 inches of clearance to the vent covers.
The real problem with the crew cab for me was the length....about 6" too long to fit. A couple thousand dollars later I got her in. I too wanted a full crew cab.

Some random thoughts:

Gas or diesel?
I went gas. The 6.0 with the 6 speed has plenty of power and I'm at altitude.

Hawk or Grandby?
If Grandby and hanging it off the tail go with a 3500HD....only about $700 more I think.
With over a 2,000 lb load on my 2500HD I'm still 400 pounds under my max payload.
Definitely go with at least a 3/4 ton truck.

Good luck

 

[longhorn1]

I would recommend purchasing either a 3/4 or 1 ton pick-up. I disagree with anyone who goes over weight. Your insurance coverage may be jeopardized. If you want more room get a Grandby with 8' bed, or if you really want room get a Grandby with a flatbed. Inside shower and cassette toilet in the self-contained Grandby or Hawk. You will need to fabricate you own curtain to bridge across the counter top. FWC doesn't have ovens.
I have an F-250 crew cab with 8' bed. I wanted the extra cabinet space so I didn't opt for the cassette toilet. They left the doors off the bottom cabinet and I modified the face plate to allow my Porta - potti Curve to slide in. Go to my blog and you will find some interior pictures. Good luck
JD



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[snuffy]

you may want to take a good look at the northstar tc850, it is a good camper and has most of what you are looking for. i had one for years and took it many tight spots, zero problems. now that travel and hunt on my own, i downsized to a hawk but imo northstar makes a great product you will need a 2500

 

[rotti]

you may want to take a good look at the north star tc850

Oops....I'd have to spend a lot more to get that into my garage.
Looks to be about foot taller than my Hawk.
They do build a good product.

 

[JaSAn]

Diesel or Gas? I'm leaning towards diesel because, aside from the upfront expense, it seems like the best option for range, mileage and durability.

One additional bit of help: My garage door clearance is about 104" I can't find out any real world clearance information with a four wheel camper on a stock Chevy or other 3/4 ton 4x4 truck. I think clearance may be close.

I went with gas (2012 Ram 2500). The reasons:
1. ~$8000 more for the Cummins diesel over 5.7 hemi,
2. diesel is a lot heavier, so reduced payload,
3. $ per mile more expensive to drive a diesel; I calculated the crossover was about 150,000 miles at 2014 gas & diesel prices.
On the plus side, with a diesel, I would be less concerned with a Grandby in a 6.5' box because of the increased weight in front.

I have an 8' high garage door(94" actual clearance height) and my Grandby on a stock Ram 2500 with MaxxFan is 3" too tall, I'd shear off my fan cover and maybe my solar panels.

jim

 

[Advmoto18]

I would suggest the long wheel base, 1 ton truck with the Grandby. I would purchase a 1 ton for a Hawk as well. In both cases, I'm assuming a diesel engine. You simply can't beat the torque of the diesel across the power curve while carrying a heavy load over tough terrain or in the mountains.

I don't know who your insrance carrier is, but, USAA doesn't assign much risk to gross weight in determing your premium. Underwirters primarily look at your risk, the risk associated with the vehicle and your declared use and annual mileage. My premium for liability went up ∅ when I declared my Hawk camper.

State by state type of registration vaires. In NC, a F-250, Chevy 2500, Ram 2500 and higher GVWR models are registered by weight of vehicle, plus payload, plus weight of any trailer items; called a "weighted tag restriciton". The owner registers the vehicle and delcares his max weight and such is stipulated on the registration. I have a "weighted tag" registration for 12,000#. Private truck registrations are for trucks under 4000#, under 5000#, and under 6000#. Any truck weighing 6001#+ is registered as a commerical vehicle. However, USAA insures my F-250 for private use since I have no intention of using it for commerical purposes.

Will the camper fit in your garage? Dependent upon the truck you purchase with the camper installed!

The indoor shower is easy. There is no interior privacy when using the cassette toilet. The cassette toilet does stow out of sight.

 

[jha6av8r]

I agree about going to the 1 ton. I have a Granby in a Chevy 3500 HD with a 6.5" bed but I don't tow. I like the shorter wheel base because I feel it's a little more maneuverable. I also have the diesel and have no regrets. Like you I started with a blank slate choosing the truck based on the camper I wanted. Whatever you decide enjoy.

 

[dasadab]

Thanks a lot to everyone. Thinking out loud: Maybe I should ditch the ideal of a short bed and go with 8 foot. I would then just get the extended cab, not the crew cab. I don't want the extra length in L.A. of a full sized bed and a Crew cab. I would then not worry about a Grandby hanging over.

I am still not sure about the drag it out and use it porta potty concept. It's not that anyone is excessively shy, but bathroom privacy is nice. Maybe there is a way to have a privacy toilet curtain with the Grandby.

Thanks for the feedback.

 

[Stalking Light]

I use one of these with my PETT toilet: http://restop.com/productcart/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=1&idproduct=6

 

[Advmoto18]

I am still not sure about the drag it out and use it porta potty concept. It's not that anyone is excessively shy, but bathroom privacy is nice. Maybe there is a way to have a privacy toilet curtain with the Grandby.

I ordered the Potta Potti and never used it; still new in the box. Lifting the PP out of its cabinet with 2.6 gallons of water and waste didn't seem like a pleasant option. Plus, trying to find a dump site when full could prove problematic.

So we bought the Clean Waste PETT portable toilet. The toilet sets up very easily and the bags can be disposed of in a trash can as they are land fill safe. The bags are expensive, but, the PETT toilet is for when no other options are available. We set the toilet up in the Clean Waste Privacy Tent (which is also our shower stall). If on the move and a "duece" is calling, just set the toilet up on the camper floor, plenty of privacy by yourself in the camper. Takes just a few minutes to set up the toilet.

 

[ntsqd]

Wanted a short bed for it's better turning radius, bought a long bed because that was the best option to turn up used. New was not something I was going to consider. Checked the first leg of our last trip, which was from west of Santa Clarita over the Grapevine to Delano. A little over 18 mpg from a '95 320k miles old CTD rolling on 35in tires with the camper in the bed. Maybe a late model gasser can do that, but a '95 vintage gasser can't touch it.

Downside is that the first used camper to come our way is for a short bed. I like the slightly lower weight. My wife sees the "unused" bed length as wasted space and wants an 8 footer.

I plan to build out a funky cabinet to have the same storage as current (our Magma bbq lives there now), but to have a PETT type seat under the dinette cushion. Lift the cushion, place the bag, ready to go, inside.
We have an outside shower/toilet tent. Purpose built unit. First time used at Toroweep and the winds there broke one of the plastic pole corners. Not impressed. Can't recall what brand it is. Currently messing around with trying to use the new interior plastic water plumbing stuff to build a suspended circular shower tent.

 

[DesertDave]

If you want the factory inside shower, you have the option of the cassette toilet. I like it quite a bit better than I expected to. Very easy cleanup and use.

 

[Freebird]

It is all preference/opinion on cassette vs holding tank vs PETT vs other methods/options.
I have only used holding tanks and cassette, and I much prefer the convenience of being able to dump in any available plumbed toilets or pit toilets. I will say that having water around for cleanup with both is pretty much a necessity. Still a little "messy" with the cassette, but better than the long hose and that involved mess (opinion).

You'll get a lot of conflicting opinions on about any feature you can choose, but choices/options are wonderful....

 

[longhorn1]

As stated above I wanted more cabinet space and the cassette would have taken away cabinets. I cut off the bottom cabinet face plate so I can just slide the porta-potti out at night and slide it back in first thing in the morning. For privacy you can make your own curtain. I just take the top off and empty the bottom in a toilet. There are many questions to ask and for you to figure out. As an example we continue to become educated. We went on a 2 week trip with a full water tank on the toilet, have since taken 2 weekend trips and the tank is still half full. We only use it at night unless we need to use in an emergency. After every trip I thoroughly clean the toilet. On the 2 week trip I emptied the waste twice. I bought and tent and have never used it; still in the box. Since we use it at night there has never been a privacy issue, been married 40 years. I was going to buy the self contained, but so far have no regrets. As all of us who post on a regular basis, you learn as you go, try different things. We now know when we go for a week we can fill the toilet water tank half to cut weight. Good luck. PM me if you have other questions. JD


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[billharr]

As stated above I wanted more cabinet space and the cassette would have taken away cabinets. I cut off the bottom cabinet face plate so I can just slip the porta-potti out at night and slide it back in at night. For privacy you cab make your own curtain. I just take the top off and take the top off and empty the bott in a toilet. There are many questions to ask and for you to figure out. As an example we continue to become educated. We went on a 2 week trip with a full water tank on the toilet, have since taken 2 weekend trips and the tank is still half full. We only use it at night unless we need to use in an emergency. After every trip I thoroughly clean the toilet. On the 2 week trip I emptied the waste twice. I bought and tent and have never used it; still in the box. Since we use it at night there has never been a privacy issue, been married 40 years. I was going to buy the self contained, but so far have no regrets. As all of us who post on a regular basis, you learn as you go, try different things. We now know when we go for a week we can fill the toilet water tank half to cut weight. Good luck. PM me if you have other questions. JD


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+1 I have the tall port a potty. We also only use at night so not much water used. Keep the weight down and dump 1/2 full you do not want to carry a full tank.

 

[dasadab]

Thanks for all the helpful responses. One last question: The aluminum Ford F150 shaves a about 700 pounds off the prior version. Anyone consider the aluminum F150 and a Hawk or Grandby?
Thanks.

 

[longhorn1]

Thanks for all the helpful responses. One last question: The aluminum Ford F150 shaves a about 700 pounds off the prior version. Anyone consider the aluminum F150 and a Hawk or Grandby?
Thanks.

Think you would be way over weight with a Grandby and cutting close on a Hawk. You would need to contact Ford and FWC.