Truck camper or trailer

[m1west]

Now that I’m retiring, I have plans for road trips. The wife has never been out of Ca. I have thru most every state, but at 80 mph.
There are a lot of places I want to visit that I just blew by. Grand Canyon, the major parks, Florida keys etc. it’s just me the wife and dog and can’t decide if I want a truck camper or small trailer. They both have the pluses and minuses, one plus for the truck camper is the wife and dog can ride in it while traveling, easier parking, mileage etc, the minus is you have it on the truck everywhere you go and that limits mobility a little, we could get electric bikes or ?? The trailer plus is you can drop it and go and it’s more roomy, the down side is milage and the wife and dog would be stuck in the truck with me. Choices choices. Throw you opinion and or experiences in the mix and help me decide.

 

[FrancSevin]

The truck camper is very confining and I think you would be disappointed in space, convenience and frankly. mileage.

Get a twenty-foot camper with all the amenities, one big double bunk, a shower and a decent kitchen set up. A good one will let you put a bike carrier on the tail. Get double axles if you can. More stable and more payload.
Some even have bump outs. More room than you'll ever see in a pickup truck camper.
AND;;;;;; Your pickup with the bed empty, can carry extra stuff.

They run about $14K to $20K brand new. The thing is you can park it at a campground, unhook and go site seeing without it on your back.

Cost comparisons are about equal.

I recommend Jayco or Forest-River. Colemans are cheaper but less quality and often poor layouts.

Crumpy may have pictures of ours. We love it.

If your dog is big, put a cheap cap on the pickup bed with a cushion on the floor. Mine has a window up front so it communicates with the cab.

 

[NorthernRedneck]

To be honest with you...and I'm coming with a bit of experience as I've been camping all my life with a variety of different types of campers from a tent trailer to a 19ft ball hitch bumper pull to a pop up truck camper to a regular 31ft camper single slide to a 33ft triple slide to a few fifth wheel trailers. I've never owned a motorhome but have traveled several times across the country to the maritimes with my parents in theirs. Here's my honest opinion for what it's worth.

Smaller travel trailer- for the two of you and a dog, this is a great choice as you don't need a one tonne to pull it. And you can park it and have the freedom to come and go with your tow vehicle. Setup time at the campsite messing around with blocks under the tires to level and disconnecting those gawd awful trailer weight distribution bars, around a half hour. And you can get one with a slide.

Truck camper- I've had 3 of em. Pain in the ass to load and unload out of the truck. Need a one ton dually if you want one big enough to be even semi comfortable. But you're cramped. Now picture driving all day and pulling into a campsite. It's pouring rain and you still have to level it then you cram yourself a wet dog and your wife into it and wait out the rain. You get the point. And also consider holding tank size. Truck campers will need to be dumped more often. It used to take me 3 hrs of swearing and cursing to load the thing in my box and it was hard on the truck. Same fuel mileage as pulling my smaller 19ft travel trailer. And they are expensive. And hard to sell afterwards.

Bigger travel trailer with slides- plenty of room and same benefits as the smaller trailer but takes a bit more fuel and a bigger tow vehicle. 3/4 ton is a good choice for a tow vehicle to avoid the dreaded trailer sway. Same setup time as a smaller trailer.

Motorhome-very comfortable for passengers. You can tow a smaller vehicle behind to use at your destination. But it's another driveline to maintain. Most newer ones are self leveling when you get to the campsite. And be prepared to own stocks in a fuel company to run it.

Fifth wheel- And the winner is! And not just because it's what I have now. But for overall ease of use and setup at the campsite, I can pull in to a site and in 7 minutes, have the truck unpinned, camper level, slide and awning out and be sitting in the lawn chair with a beer in my hand. And have a vehicle to drive around. Also as far as setup goes, I pull into the campsite. Push a button to drop my front legs to the ground after extending them. Pull the fifth wheel handle and drop the tailgate and drive away. Then I use a drill on the back Jack's to drop them. Plug in and open the slide. If I had the money I would have a 3/4 ton minimum tow vehicle and about a 35ft fifth wheel. Consider the size of campsites. Most pull through sites will accommodate a truck and fifth wheel.

When it comes to fuel mileage, as soon as you hook up to any travel trailer or load a truck camper in the truck, it's like a big sail catching the wind and cuts down mileage by half.

 

[Kevlar]

This is perfect timing! I just happen to have a camper for sale!!

Campers must be a lot cheaper in the US, $20,000 wouldn't get you anything new here. Didn't know you could still get a truck camper, sure don't see many around.

The possibilities are almost endless when it comes to picking out a camper, completely depends on what you want. A tandem axle fifth wheel pulls the best but it also ties up most of your truck bed. I prefer bumper hitch because I need my truck box much of the time around the farm, taking a fifth wheel hitch out all the time grows old fast.

I have camped every year since I was 4 months old, and for the first few years it was a truck camper with my parents and 3 siblings, mom must have had incredible patience. And I also know retired couples that have 35 foot fifth wheels with multiple slides and they don't let anyone else come inside.

The main thing is to just get something and get started, there's a lot to see out there.

 

[NorthernRedneck]

What I found after having done 3 separate 5000km trips pulling a 33ft ball hitch. And here's my honest opinion. First off. Let's get the weight issue out of the way. Our 33ft ball hitch is 6800lbs dry. Add water and gear and gear and I'm up around 8000lbs. The truck is rated for 12500. Should be ok? Well, picture white knuckles at 90km and every time someone farts within a km of it the thing sways everywhere. Whenever a transport passes, the thing damned near gets sucked around sideways. I had a heavy duty tow hitch and weight distribution bars along with antisway shocks.

Our fifth wheel camper is 31ft. 6800lbs dry. So I'm dealing with the same weight and similar size trailer. I've been driving through the prairies two days now with a strong side wind and barely felt a wiggle behind with the cruise set at 108km in a 110 zone. So I'm holding my own. Before, I was stuck doing 90km with everyone else flying by me like I'm standing still. An rv trip should be enjoyable. That wasn't. When we traveled in the states before we would avoid the interstate hwys for that reason.

Also, one thing I absolutely hated was hooking up and unhooking a ball hitch with weight distribution. (And anti sway bars).

Pull in. Get out. Put blocks under the tongue and jack it up while still connected. Then hope you took enough pressure off the bars to release them with a metal handle and hope the bar still doesn't have tension, if it does, the handle flies back and wacks me in the arm nearly breaking it. Seriously, I was in my mid 20s unpinning my 31ft ball hitch. When I released the tension on the weight distribution bars, one sprung back and the handle wacked my wrist cracking it leaving me in a splint. I hate ball hitch campers now for those reasons. Plus, the setup is a breeze with the fifth wheel. Barely any bending over or physical labor. And that's important for a crippled up guy like me.

 

[pixie]

I've had several truck campers and lived in one a few summers and driven one across the country in the winter. It's nice to only take up one parking space, hate the steps in and out and I would not want my loved ones in it in case of an accident.

Now I have a 22' bumper pull. Haven't used it much but I can recommend the Anderson equalizer hitch. Chains not bars.

Weight Distribution Hitch w/ Sway Control | Andersen Hitches

Our sturdy weight distribution hitch or sway control hitch reduces any unwanted movement. It's rated up to 16,000 lbs and is available in different sizes.

andersenhitches.com

 

[tommu56]

For me truck camper i borrowed for about 2 months was too small im 6'3" on a good day and my back was killing me bending over. even with 4 jacks its still wobbly when not on the truck.
My travel trailer I can stand up in winner hands down stable, got a bathroom I can wipe my butt with any aerobics or torn muscles, almost shower standing up, way better beds.

 

[m1west]

The truck camper is very confining and I think you would be disappointed in space, convenience and frankly. mileage.

Get a twenty-foot camper with all the amenities, one big double bunk, a shower and a decent kitchen set up. A good one will let you put a bike carrier on the tail. Get double axles if you can. More stable and more payload.
Some even have bump outs. More room than you'll ever see in a pickup truck camper.
AND;;;;;; Your pickup with the bed empty, can carry extra stuff.

They run about $14K to $20K brand new. The thing is you can park it at a campground, unhook and go site seeing without it on your back.

Cost comparisons are about equal.

I recommend Jayco or Forest-River. Colemans are cheaper but less quality and often poor layouts.

Crumpy may have pictures of ours. We love it.

If your dog is big, put a cheap cap on the pickup bed with a cushion on the floor. Mine has a window up front so it communicates with the cab.

Already have the truck cap, good points

 

[m1west]

To be honest with you...and I'm coming with a bit of experience as I've been camping all my life with a variety of different types of campers from a tent trailer to a 19ft ball hitch bumper pull to a pop up truck camper to a regular 31ft camper single slide to a 33ft triple slide to a few fifth wheel trailers. I've never owned a motorhome but have traveled several times across the country to the maritimes with my parents in theirs. Here's my honest opinion for what it's worth.

Smaller travel trailer- for the two of you and a dog, this is a great choice as you don't need a one tonne to pull it. And you can park it and have the freedom to come and go with your tow vehicle. Setup time at the campsite messing around with blocks under the tires to level and disconnecting those gawd awful trailer weight distribution bars, around a half hour. And you can get one with a slide.

Truck camper- I've had 3 of em. Pain in the ass to load and unload out of the truck. Need a one ton dually if you want one big enough to be even semi comfortable. But you're cramped. Now picture driving all day and pulling into a campsite. It's pouring rain and you still have to level it then you cram yourself a wet dog and your wife into it and wait out the rain. You get the point. And also consider holding tank size. Truck campers will need to be dumped more often. It used to take me 3 hrs of swearing and cursing to load the thing in my box and it was hard on the truck. Same fuel mileage as pulling my smaller 19ft travel trailer. And they are expensive. And hard to sell afterwards.

Bigger travel trailer with slides- plenty of room and same benefits as the smaller trailer but takes a bit more fuel and a bigger tow vehicle. 3/4 ton is a good choice for a tow vehicle to avoid the dreaded trailer sway. Same setup time as a smaller trailer.

Motorhome-very comfortable for passengers. You can tow a smaller vehicle behind to use at your destination. But it's another driveline to maintain. Most newer ones are self leveling when you get to the campsite. And be prepared to own stocks in a fuel company to run it.

Fifth wheel- And the winner is! And not just because it's what I have now. But for overall ease of use and setup at the campsite, I can pull in to a site and in 7 minutes, have the truck unpinned, camper level, slide and awning out and be sitting in the lawn chair with a beer in my hand. And have a vehicle to drive around. Also as far as setup goes, I pull into the campsite. Push a button to drop my front legs to the ground after extending them. Pull the fifth wheel handle and drop the tailgate and drive away. Then I use a drill on the back Jack's to drop them. Plug in and open the slide. If I had the money I would have a 3/4 ton minimum tow vehicle and about a 35ft fifth wheel. Consider the size of campsites. Most pull through sites will accommodate a truck and fifth wheel.

When it comes to fuel mileage, as soon as you hook up to any travel trailer or load a truck camper in the truck, it's like a big sail catching the wind and cuts down mileage by half.

More good points, so far the trailer is winning

 

[m1west]

I've had several truck campers and lived in one a few summers and driven one across the country in the winter. It's nice to only take up one parking space, hate the steps in and out and I would not want my loved ones in it in case of an accident.

Now I have a 22' bumper pull. Haven't used it much but I can recommend the Anderson equalizer hitch. Chains not bars.

Weight Distribution Hitch w/ Sway Control | Andersen Hitches

Our sturdy weight distribution hitch or sway control hitch reduces any unwanted movement. It's rated up to 16,000 lbs and is available in different sizes.

andersenhitches.com

More trailer points

 

[m1west]

For me truck camper i borrowed for about 2 months was too small im 6'3" on a good day and my back was killing me bending over. even with 4 jacks its still wobbly when not on the truck.
My travel trailer I can stand up in winner hands down stable, got a bathroom I can wipe my butt with any aerobics or torn muscles, almost shower standing up, way better beds.

More evidence that the trailer is a better choice.

 

[FrancSevin]

Already have the truck cap, good points

At one time my pickup bed was carpeted for such guests. Stanard cap. I made a soft rubber foam "boot" to connect the cabin to the enclosed truck bed thru the windows, and we could sleep there at rest stops on long trips.

Yeah, we were young& crazy back then.

 

[m1west]

Hands down you guys that all have been there and done that recommend the trailer. I have a nice very low mile first gen Cummins that turned up to about 250 hp with 600 to, so pulling it shouldn’t be a problem. I pulled a 5000# trailer load thru the mountains to the cabin with it and still got 14 mpg with it all running in 4 th gear, passing everyone.

 

[m1west]

At one time my pickup bed was carpeted for such guests. Stanard cap. I made a soft rubber foam "boot" to connect the cabin to the enclosed truck bed thru the windows, and we could sleep there at rest stops on long trips.

Yeah, we were young& crazy back then

Already bought a 24 volt heat/ac unit to mount on top with a 400 watt solar panel, I’ll add a battery pack and the dog will be set the unit is only 285 watts so the panel should keep the battery at 100% during the day.

 

[m1west]

Thanks for the advice, trailer it is.