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trailrider

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St. Louis
We are an active couple (kids gone) that like to camp and explore the back roads. We have narrowed our choices between a FWC or ATC. We are thinking of going with a shell for price and weight. We do not have a truck. I am leaning towards a extend cab full size truck (possibly a chevy) with 6.5 ft camper. I don't want the camper to overhang past the truck. Going to a full size bed with a 8 ft camper gets pretty long. It seems with a full size truck you have ~50 inches between the wheel wells vs. say a mid size Tacoma that is ~41 inches. Also over all camper width is 80 inches vs 69-75 inches. It seem to me you are giving up a fair amount of living space. EPA mileage rating between a full size 1500 and V6 tacoma are pretty close.

Why do people choose a mid size over a full size? Is the smaller size more desirable on the trail (width and wheelbase)? We will not be doing super technical 4-wheeling. Possible something along the lines of Imogen Pass in CO is the most we would do.

Do any truck camper models fit better? I don't like seeing the camper too high above the bed rails or roof.

The counter-cabinet on each side seems more complete-easily modified on the FWC than the ATC shell. Comments?

Thanks,

Mike
 
Choice of the Tacoma was personal preference as much as anything. The truck is used for errands around town as well as carrying the camper/towing a trailer. The first Toyota I bought was in the 1980's and they were a lot smaller and more manueverable then. The Silverado I had before the Toyota was not too reliable and not well assembled. Enter the Toyota. It was nimble, got better mileage, and was screwed together well. When I rolled it on an icy road after 8 years of ownership, the truck was stout enough to keep the roof from collapsing on me. The Toyotas I have had since have been equally trouble free but the increase in size has taken away some of the nimbleness. The trade off has been an increase in power with mileage remaining good.

Improvements in the 'Big Three' trucks since the 1980's are huge, both in assembly and mileage. The increase in camper space you can get with a standard 1/2 - 3/4 ton truck may well be a deciding factor for you. If it were left to me, I would think seriously about a standard cab, 8 foot bed truck with a corresponding camper. (I really liked my IH 3/4 with an Alaskan in the '70's, but gas was MUCH cheaper then!)

As for modifiability, I found Marty and the group at ATC very easy to work with when I was shopping for my Bobcat. I had suggestions that were listened to and the result was the camper I wanted. I have not dealt with FWC but Stan's posts have been well thought out, a good indication IMHO.
 
We too chose a Tacoma for size, features and reliability. We wanted a truck that we could take into San Francisco and Seattle and similar cities and manuever and park without problems and plenty of power for mountain highways and steep hills. The quality and resale value of Toyotas was a key factor. We chose ATC because they were willing to build a camper exactly how we wanted it (for an additional cost). Sizing it to fit the truck was a major consideration. We went the shell route to manage the weight and it matches the way we camp. That is the major tradeoff with the Tacoma- not much cargo capacity. You can check out our rig in the blog linked below.
 
trailrider said:
We are an active couple (kids gone) that like to camp and explore the back roads. We have narrowed our choices between a FWC or ATC. We are thinking of going with a shell for price and weight. We do not have a truck. I am leaning towards a extend cab full size truck (possibly a chevy) with 6.5 ft camper. I don't want the camper to overhang past the truck. Going to a full size bed with a 8 ft camper gets pretty long. It seems with a full size truck you have ~50 inches between the wheel wells vs. say a mid size Tacoma that is ~41 inches. Also over all camper width is 80 inches vs 69-75 inches. It seem to me you are giving up a fair amount of living space. EPA mileage rating between a full size 1500 and V6 tacoma are pretty close.

Why do people choose a mid size over a full size? Is the smaller size more desirable on the trail (width and wheelbase)? We will not be doing super technical 4-wheeling. Possible something along the lines of Imogen Pass in CO is the most we would do.

Do any truck camper models fit better? I don't like seeing the camper too high above the bed rails or roof.

The counter-cabinet on each side seems more complete-easily modified on the FWC than the ATC shell. Comments?

Thanks,

Mike
Click to expand...
Mile welcome to the site.
Have you thought about a used truck? Myself I am now partial to the 1st gen tundras. I have a ATC Bobcat. It doesn't stick out farther than the cab and the rear of the camper not past the bumper.The sides of the camper are very close to the side rails of the truck box.
We are also just two of us camping and like the size of the ATC Bobcat,which is similar to the FWC Fleet. I am not sure the extra 5" in width to us would make that much difference,but I do like that the camper fits the truck nicely.
You can also check my blog to see the truck/camper.My rig is only used for camping so the camper stays on all the time.
I am enjoying the Tundra size,as Takesiteasy says the size makes it easy to get around in a city.
My shameless plug for ATC is that being a smaller company they can work closer with the costumer.
Good luck in your hunt for a camper.
Frank
 
Oh the small truck vs. big truck debate. We must have thousands of pages worth of that debate! Get what you like and the heck with the rest of us.
 
My 8ft ATC Cougar fits nicely in the bed of my 2009 Ford F150 Supercrew with the really short bed. I install it with the tailgate down. I'd have no hesitation to run Imogene with the camper installed. In fact, I did Cinnamon and Stoney (rated 4 and 5 respectively) in scattered showers a week ago with the rig. The increase in room by going to the 8ft camper is huge.
 
craig333 said:
Oh the small truck vs. big truck debate. We must have thousands of pages worth of that debate! Get what you like and the heck with the rest of us.
Click to expand...
Exactly,you have to get what works for you.Ideas from others are OK but in the end it's up to you.
good hunting.
Frank
 
Agree with Craig-me- I used what I had-a 1/2 ton F150 4x4 and put a big old Granby on it.You can do that w/o modifying anything, but I put on air bags to get some lift and to get threw the ditches better; had allot of problems with the set-up especially with the air bags blowing out all the time- , then Ford rec'm'd a blacksmith and he made and put on special 3/4 ton springs on the set up and me and the truck are now two happy campers- have had no problems with set up around town or in the back country, and I like the extra space, but I carry to much junk anyway, what ever you get you will enjoy it :D !
 
Thanks everyone for the thoughtful comments. My truck will be needing to tow an 18 ft boat from time to time. Possibly with the camper. I think I need a full size. I may get a Silverado extended cab.

Marshfly, is your truck stock? Do you have any pictures of your rig?

Thanks

Mike
 
Go big or go home! ;)

If your towing full size is the best option. I'm partial to an 8' bed for the larger fuel tank and the crew cab for interior room. I've never had an issue taking my truck anywhere even in downtown metros area like Portland, Austin, or San Antonio. Just have to walk further. :D I'm also partial to 250/350 rigs for the running gear but that's just me. Many of the "half tons" are better rigs than some of those "3/4 tons" of just a few years ago. Good luck in you search.
 
Towing a 18' boat and a loaded slide in camper?

My choice would be/was a 3/4 ton truck. It is simple matter of math. Add the trailer tongue weight, weight of passengers, water, propane, food, grill, etc, etc, etc. Compare that total to the payload rating of your chosen truck. Tacoma.....no way and for that matter most full size 1/2 ton trucks will be over loaded. My Hawk was 1,300 dry and I'm somewhere around a ton loaded and no trailer tongue weight.

As far as full size.....yeah much more room and I have no problem on trails.
You asked for a picture:

BQ0QVub.jpg
 
Well step 1 is done! I bought a new 2013 Silverado extended 4wd with a 5.3L 3.42 gears. The incentives were too good to pass up. Plus my son works for GM.

Ideally we would like to find a 6.5' shell. It is lighter and we can do what we want with it. We are minimalist and don't need all the bells and whistles.

Mike
 
Argonaut20 said:
Congratulations! Now to find the camper...
Click to expand...
x3

Not sure of your location. If you can go to the 4WC Rally and check out the campers. If you get a shell you will eventually do a build out to what you want. Lots of ways to go and you have a truck that can carry the extras. I changed my 2002 Hawk from a bench to a side dinette works great for me and the wife. I really like the new front dinette for a better use of space. After looking at the work required to change to a front dinette I might be $$ ahead to sell and buy new.

The hard part is finding what will work best for you, but that is 1/2 the fun.
 
[SIZE=10pt]Thanks for the reply. I am in St. Louis. I don't think I will make the rally. We just ordered our camper yesterday (ATC Ocelot). It will be a shell. We are getting the big passenger window, refrig cabinet (I am buying my own compressor refrig) and reinforcement for a 29" bed extension (I can do it myself). I think I will build a front dinette but we can wait on it. The extension would only be used if we want to sleep more people. If not we leave it at home. I am thinking of using an air mattress for the 29" extension.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]Mike[/SIZE]
 
trailrider said:
Thanks everyone for the thoughtful comments. My truck will be needing to tow an 18 ft boat from time to time. Possibly with the camper. I think I need a full size. I may get a Silverado extended cab.
Click to expand...
I have never owned a boat or towed a boat... maybe this might help access to camper when towing your boat... http://www.harborfreight.com/hitch-extender-with-step-97685.html

Mike
 
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