Another Weight/Compatibility Question . . .

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Pexster

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May 3, 2010
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2
OK, I have read everything I can find on this topic, but am still uncomfortable with what I hear (especially from dealers, lol).  I am looking at a Lance 861, which is a single-slide unit with a dry weight of just over 3,000 lbs.  Now Lance states that this camper is designed for 3/4 ton short bed trucks.  I am looking at Ram trucks, and not even the 3500 (1 ton) will "officially" handle this weight.  What gives?

Both the truck sales guy and two different Lance dealers have absolutely assured me that I don't even need to go to a 3500 -- that a 2500 will be fine.  That combo would be nearly 500 lbs overweight DRY!  Also, the COG that Lance lists in their specs (which don't even include WHERE they measure from, but I think it's the rear) would seem to put it behind the rear wheels by a few inches.  Would having the fluids onboard move the COG forward?

At this point, I don't know whom to trust.  I do plan on going back to the truck dealer and getting the official axle weights from the door panel, which I meant to do when I was there, but forgot.

Oh, by the way, I have also been assured that I absolutely do not need a dually.  In fact, the truck guy told me that, officially, a dually REDUCES the available payload.

Any help/advice appreciated!
 
Trust the official rating numbers from the manufacturers, they are the only thing that do not lie.

Also don't pay much attention to the dry weight, you will not be carrying it dry except the day you buy it.

Axle rating and the GVWR are the two that you don't want to exceed.

If truck + camper > GVWR, it is overweight.
 
Thanks!  I've reviewed the specs again and it seems the only models that come close are the regular cab long-beds.  But the Lance 861 is designed for short-beds and the numbers aren't even close.  With the Cummins diesel and 4WD, it's even worse!
 
Pexster said:
Thanks!  I've reviewed the specs again and it seems the only models that come close are the regular cab long-beds.  But the Lance 861 is designed for short-beds and the numbers aren't even close.  With the Cummins diesel and 4WD, it's even worse!
Not true, my camper is 3250 dry weight, and i have a 04 dodge ram 4wd, cummins, longbed dually. the truck only squats about 2 1/2 inches,(fully loaded) which it just makes the truck level. but beware, dodge dually has the widest fenders of them all, i had to make custom brackets to squeeze my truck between the jacks. but no more than 102" (legal limit here in IL) I personally i like the dually cause i feel safer knowing i have a wider stance in the back with that heavy of a TC, and the cummins has no problem pulling it at all.
Cummins Power!
Nick
 
Like the other poster's say, check the actual numbers.  You'll probably be ok.

A note on SRW vs DRW.  I pulled with both SRW and DRW.  I've spent a lot of time on the interstate over the years and watched folks with various towing rigs and the ones I really hated to come up on was a large truck camper on single rear wheels in heavy crosswind.  Wow, do those things move around.  The difference in cross winds is quite incredible.  The DRW just doesn't move around near as much as the SRW.  There are multiple reasons for this from spring rates to sway bars, but the extra two sets of sidewalls and the wider track really make a difference.  Those many years of observations finally pushed me into the 1ton DRW realm back in '02.  I never figured I needed that much truck, but I didn't want to be one of those fellows fighting the wind or even having to stop due to heavy cross winds.

However, owning and driving a DRW for regular chores in town can be a pain.  Those wheels and fenders really stick out!  You'll find a lot of your garage space disappearing too. ;)  Plus, buying new E rated tires can get salty... :p  If you've got a car to run errands with, all the more reason to get the DRW so you've got adequate truck for the job.

IMHO, moving any kind of a significant load is much better with a DRW just from a stability standpoint.  As long as I'm pulling or hauling heavy loads, I won't go back to an SRW.  I'm looking for a used TC and am darn glad I've got the 1T dually.
 
Remember that one about how to tell if a salesman is lying?  (if his lips are moving).  When I was looking at trucks and campers, I bought a dually F350, thinking that since it was the largest size standard pickup, it should carry any camper available.  Right?  Wrong!  I put an 11'6" camper on the truck before even looking at the GVW specs of the truck.  Boy, was I surprised.  It turns out that almost every cabover made makes almost every pickup over the door-frame recommended GVW.  The rule of thumb is to add 50% to the weight of the camper to get the approximate fully-loaded weight.  Because of all this, your truck will drag its butt going down the road and likely be lower on one side than the other.  About all you can do is add air bags and a rear sway bar to compensate for all the weight, and put on the heaviest-duty tires you can find.
 
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