Good truck for a Northstar 650?

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rgomez

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Joined
Feb 22, 2010
Posts
8
First time getting a truck or truck camper for that matter.  :-\ Am looking into a Ford Ranger but never dealt with TC's so don't know how to judge if it will fit or not.
 
I doubt if the Ranger has the weight carrying capacity for much of  truck camper, but you have to compare the TC weight with the specs for the particular year and configuration of the truck. All Rangers are not alike in their specs. 4 cylinder vs V6, suspension options, etc. make a big difference

Also, as far  as I know, all Rangers are short bed trucks (6 ft instead of 8 ft). Will the camper fit in a short bed?
 
They do have a 600 that is made for compact trucks so it might fit, If not I am thinking of getting a F-150 then.
 
Most truck campers need a heavy duty truck to be practical, e.g. an F250 or F350. I don't know much about the Northstar line-up and only a little about truck campers in general, so can't give any useful advice on what might work. I found some specs here:
http://www.briarecreation.com/index_files/Northstar.htm
that indicate there are models that might work in a short bed or light duty truck.

My basic comments about the Ranger apply to the F150 as well. You have to discuss a specific F150 to make a meaningful statement about its capacity, suspension, etc. All F150's are not created equal - far from it! Check out the Ford specs for payload, rear axle GAWR, etc. to determine what configuration of Ranger or F150 will meet your needs. Remember the truck has to carry you and passengers as well as the camper, and that the camper dry weight is not what it weighs when installed on the truck, batteries and water and propane added, etc. You need to allow for a lot more weight than what the camper spec says.

A TC is generally large and heavy and it makes the truck top-heavy. You need a hefty suspension to counteract that, and you need a lot of rear axle capacity because nearly all the weight sits  right there over it.
 
Thanks for the reply again. I'm a newb when it comes to this  :p. F250 seems nice, I was trying to lower the price a bit to make it cheaper but it would seem the only way to get a camper on a Ranger would be to build my own. :-\ I did read an article online from someone who did indeed build there own camper out of wood and put sheet metal on it to protect it from the elements. It worked and was a cheap project since it cost them a fraction of what it cost to buy one off the market.
 
Understand the budget problem with a big truck, especially a new one. Are you looking to get a new truck or would a used one do? You can often find some really nice used trucks these days - folks who can no longer afford them bailing out.

I merely want to caution you about the newbie problem with trucks. Most newcomers tend to think "it's a truck and can carry anything", but nothing could be further from the truth.  You need to figure what size & type of camper would be acceptable to you, then get its weight (including gear and accessories) and THEN figure out how much truck you need to carry it well.
 
The most basic of camper will do. I just plan on doing some mild camping nothing like living in it but when I factor in the cost of a used/new truck and a new camper the cost are greater than just getting a Class C. There are cheap RV's in my area where from one dealership they have a 1994 RV with 78,999 miles on it for 10K. Do to its age it would need to go though a lot of tests and some new equipment would be needed but it will still be cheaper than getting a TC. Might wan't to wait till 2016 since there is a law that got past or is trying to be past for transportation that requires all vehicles such as trucks(F150+) to have a highway mileage of no less than 35. http://www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=370075
 
In Australia they sell Northstar under the "Freedom Off Road" banner. The TC650 is available for the Landcruiser Pickup.
http://www.freedomoffroad.com.au/gallery/data/upimages/landcruiser.jpg
It is suitable for a 1980's Toyota Hilux, which I think was sold in the US.
http://www.freedomoffroad.com.au/gallery/data/upimages/JOHN_HILUX_650.jpg
The Toyota Hilux. As big as Tacoma but is much more capable of considerably larger loads than the Tacoma.
http://www.freedomoffroad.com.au/gallery/data/upimages/hilux_tray.jpg
 

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