It turns out I hate all pickup manufacturers

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67Dart273

67Dart273

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Well the quest for a "cheap" useable small camper is done for, for now. I may have to make to with a shell (canopy) and a foam pad!!!

Turns out the manufacturers are SCREWING ALL OF US because they are playing games with bed sizes. What this boils down to in one simple complaint is, that "older" campers built for "real" full size trucks don't fit "newer" truck beds.

This "Four Wheel Camper" Grandby I was excited about will NOT fit 94 and later (mine is a 97) Dodge!!

http://spokane.craigslist.org/spo/4999629296.html

(Notice the rear area has storage, "full width" of the tailgate" It lacks about 3/8 of an inch from fitting into the pickup!!!)

00c0c_hrRJFZh0su8_600x450.jpg



Here's a website (if correct) detailing dimensions of pickup boxes. For me the "important" dimension is at far right

http://www.truckaddons.com/tonneau-bed-measurements-guide.html

WORSE the damn thing is not even parallel!!! The FRONT of the box is WIDER than the gate!!! This means if you "threw" your tape across the front, it "would fit" and then drive all that !!! WAY !!!! only to find the box is narrower in the rear!!!

What engineering / design school are these people coming OUT of ?
 
you just need a big hammer and crowbar!???

built in obsolescence?? you rarely ever see a " slide in camper" anymore. maybe this is why??

i'm sure it will hit your purse harder, but what about an older, small bumper pull camper????? having that camper in the back of a t ruck would be a pita.
 
Well LOL it's gonna be pretty hard to pull the big flatbed with a camp trailer behind.

What I want is something small, light, cheap that I can spend ONE or two nights in, or take a nap now and then. Won't be extended "a week in the wild" or anything LMAO

I did find a tall shell up here for under 2 bills But by the time you get a platform for bedding 'n all well, too bad this little pop up didn't fit, is all I can say, LOL
 
They are coming out of the "screw your eyes out University". It's like lumber. a 2X4 just ain't a 2X4 anymore. It was only a matter of time till everybody else caught on. lol
 
Yes.. we had a 2003 ram with the shortest bed we could get.. now we have a 2015 witch the bed is noticeably shorter
 
Any truck camper should fit? they are designed to fit between the wheel wells. If the truck camper is made for 8' bed or 6.5 foot bed they fit. You might have to take the tail gate off.
I been using one for a couple of years now and love it.
 

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dwire67 said:
Any truck camper should fit? they are designed to fit between the wheel wells. If the truck camper is made for 8' bed or 6.5 foot bed they fit. You might have to take the tail gate off.
I been using one for a couple of years now and love it.
Click to expand...

Guess again Look carefully at what I posted

Some campers have stowage pockets "built out" the full width of the gate entrance, and some have a "step" which goes "down inside" the tops of the bed rails. If you look closely you can see that pop-up I was considering is just that way

"It won't fit." The guy selling it found this out (Ferd) and he said a guy looked at it with a 94 Dodge (first year for this) and it would not fit his. Won't fit my 97 either.

If it was as simple as the tailgate "back plate" I could either cheat and let that hang out the back, or maybe (depending) trim it off.
 
Buy a nice older truck.
 
Fortunately, "smog" is not an issue here. so that equipment tends to "fall right off" LOL
 
This is what you need. A Super Camper Special. Those trucks were designed to do EXACTLY what you are looking for. Notice how far back the rear axle is. That's for increased load capacity. No other truck maker did that. You won't find a heavier duty old model truck. That looks like a goodun, too.

http://spokane.craigslist.org/cto/4943249794.html
 
67Dart273 said:
....... because they are playing games with bed sizes........
Click to expand...

The Roll N Lock really shows the difference front to rear on my '05 bed. Notice I was able to install a tie down in the front but not in the back due to the taper in the bed.:wack:
 

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RustyRatRod said:
This is what you need. A Super Camper Special. Those trucks were designed to do EXACTLY what you are looking for. Notice how far back the rear axle is. That's for increased load capacity. No other truck maker did that. You won't find a heavier duty old model truck. That looks like a goodun, too.

http://spokane.craigslist.org/cto/4943249794.html
Click to expand...

Ya and it's too bad they didn't continue. Used to see a lot of 'em up here, which indicated to me they didn't have any trouble selling em. "Bean counters."
 
The beds got tapered for lower drag = better fuel economy. That is, apparently, more important to the OE than end user utility.....

There's plenty of pop-top campers out there that will fit your truck. We bought one out of a 2nd Gen Tundra that fit our '96 CTD fine. Have a look at the Wander the West forum for pop-top camper intel. There's an on-going thread there where campers on CL get posted.
 
ntsqd said:
The beds got tapered for lower drag = better fuel economy. That is, apparently, more important to the OE than end user utility.....

There's plenty of pop-top campers out there that will fit your truck. We bought one out of a 2nd Gen Tundra that fit our '96 CTD fine. Have a look at the Wander the West forum for pop-top camper intel. There's an on-going thread there where campers on CL get posted.
Click to expand...

Thanks, LOL but what is a CTD?

Just got back looking at an old one. Turns out 'his vision' of what it looks like and 'my vision' was different. No harm no foul, I needed a Sat morning fight on the freeway anyhow, lol
 
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