# buying my first camper



## peanutzfarmer (Jun 27, 2010)

The wife and I are looking into buying our first camper.  It would need to be big enough for the two of us and our kids, (we have one 2 yr. old and plan on at least one more)!  What I was wondering was, what size camper can I pull safely with my truck?  I have a 1996 Chevy 1500 2wd with the auto trans and the 350 v8.  The truck is mechanically in very good shape.  We found a 30ft. fleetwood for sale for a good price, but I don't know if that will be too big for the truck.  We are looking for a bumper pull trailer, but do not want a pop up.  Thanks in advance for the advice.


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## Havana Dude (Jun 27, 2010)

I pulled a 30' Trail lite with a 98 chev 4x4, 350. Pulled like a dream. The lighter weight campers will be your best route IMHO. Best thing to do is read your manual and stick to that. If you feel it will pull more, go hook up to one and pull it.


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## wranglerjoe1968 (Jun 27, 2010)

I am going to jump in on this one also.  I have an Expedition what size should I be looking for


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## yonceyboy (Jun 28, 2010)

I pull a 30ft camper with a 94Z71 its a 4x4 w the towing package.I'm still limited to places to go camp stay off the big mountains.If you have any problems it will be the transmisson and stoping ability.I would suggest a lite or a smaller camper.Wish I had a bigger truck myself like a 2500HD.


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## hawgrider1200 (Jun 28, 2010)

I think a 30 ft camper is a stretch to pull with a 1/2 ton truck. U know the manufacturer has weight limits on towing that u should check the weight of the trailer b 4 u hook up to it.


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## marknga (Jun 28, 2010)

The truck's engine, transmission, rear end ratio and if it has a transmission cooler will determine what you can safely tow. I would refer to the Truck  Manufacturers specs.
The length of the tow vehicle isn't the issue it is the GCVWR that you need to be concerned with. 
Feel free to contact me at mark@midstaterv.com and I can get you with one of our tow specialist to help you.


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## Michael C. (Jun 28, 2010)

I would suggest no bigger than a 25-26 ft. with a half ton.  Like everyone before said, you can pull the 30 with minimal trouble but stopping it even with trailer brakes can get really hairy on downhills.  If you're wife is like mine, she takes everything + the kitchen sink, I would also look for one with LOTS of storage.  Bunks for the kids are nice too ( i've got 3 kids myself).

Happy Camping!
Michael C.


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## Doyle (Jun 28, 2010)

You absolutly need to find out what your gear ratio is.  Chevy had a very nasty habit of putting 3.4? rear ends in 2wd pickups.   The difference in the towing capacity of a 3.4? rear end and a 3.55 or 3.73 is a couple thousand lbs.


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## GAcarver (Jun 28, 2010)

do some research on the web. Several manufacturers make light weight campers. Some have drop out or pull out beds like a pop up but have the solid fiberglass bodies. Be careful talking to a dealer, some will tell you that you will have no problem pulling a certain camper when they know that you should not. Do your homework, will save you a lot of trouble.  Call Camping world in Oakwood , Ga. ask for Jason and tell him Randy McClure gave you his name. tell him what you have and let him know that you are limited to weight vs. truck.   For example look at the Jayco Jayflight, the are towable with a 1/2 ton

Good luck.


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## BillK (Jun 29, 2010)

I have a 31 foot Wilderness bumper pull that weighs 6600 lbs dry.  I was hoping I would be able to pull it with my wife's 4 door F-150 with a tow package.  I bought a weight distributing hitch a sway control bar and a break controller but even with all that I could see we were going to smoke the trans and the 5.4 in her truck.  It was really struggling with no gear or water in it.  I ended up with a diesel. 
I think there are some LITE trailers out there but from experience 6600 lbs is too much for a half ton.


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## Doyle (Jun 29, 2010)

> from experience 6600 lbs is too much for a half ton



You have got to remember that all 1/2 ton trucks are not created equal.  The towing capacity for one configuration for a certain brand can be more than double the capacity for the same brand and year of truck with a different drive train configuration.  Go to WWW.Trailerlife.com and under their Tech section you'll see links for towing capacity charts going back to 1999.   If you look at them you'll see how vastly different your truck can be from your neighbors depending on which options each truck has.


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## airboater1 (Jul 1, 2010)

I had a '97 chevy 4x4 350, and recommended not pull more than 4500lbs.I got a 24 ft. fleetwood prowler weighs in about 3900lbs FG sided..No slide.Nice,but most women want more room when more children come along.After about 3 yrs,got a deisel dodge and a bigger rv with a slide and go camping alot now.just got back from West Virginia. Happy camping.


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## Greene728 (Jul 2, 2010)

Too much camper to be "safely" pulled with the truck you have. You could probably add helper springs, weight distibuting hitch etc. and get away with it for a little while, but when loaded its gonna be a struggle with that truck, even with the right pulling gear and set up. I would look at either more truck, or a camper in the 20-24 ft range if not a liteweight. You may could go up to a 26fter if its a liteweight but remember your still gonna fill a liteweight full of gear and stuff, and its not hard to get back up in the 6000# (or more) range with a loaded liteweight. Its not pulling thats gonna be your issue. Its gonna be stopping and controlling it. A windy day or transfer trucks are gonna cause you a lotta headaches with the combo your asking about. Please take this and all advise given here to heart and make your decision on safety. Just this past fall we had an overturned Yukon on I-85 that was pulling a 28 or 30 foot bumper pull when a big rig passed him and got him to swaying and he unfortunately wasnt able to save it. Camper overturned and took the Yukon right along with it like it was nothing. I swear his exact words were...."The salesman said this was plenty of truck to pull our camper".


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## coyotebgone (Jul 3, 2010)

My wife an I purchased a 21 hybrid camper.  Spent 5k on it and 18 trips.  It got totaled one day.  then we purchased a 18' travel trailer.  Paid 9500 new. Here is my two cents. 

1. Smaller is better.  (you will use it more than a giant camper that is a pain to tow) 
2.  Get an aluminum frame.  Wood frames rot and don't retain their value that well. 
3.  Buy the cheapest you can find to start with.  That will give you time to find out what you like and what you don't. Then you can buy nicer. 
4.  Buy in the winter if you can. Used campers are cheaper. 
5.  Use the internet.  I saved 4k on my new camper. 
6.  Dont finance it if you can.  Doesn't hurt your feelings when its sitting in the yard not being used. 
7.  Do not max out your trucks towing capacity, see number one.  Towing is a giant part of camping.  If you camper whips and sways going down the road, it sucks.  
8.  Our camper is 2800lbs fully equipped and we pull it with an 07 1/2 ton chevy. 

Have fun.


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## Miguel Cervantes (Jul 3, 2010)

coyotebgone said:


> My wife an I purchased a 21 hybrid camper. Spent 5k on it and 18 trips. It got totaled one day. then we purchased a 18' travel trailer. Paid 9500 new. Here is my two cents.
> 
> 1. Smaller is better. (you will use it more than a giant camper that is a pain to tow)
> 2. Get an aluminum frame. Wood frames rot and don't retain their value that well.
> ...


 
That is the most thorough list of do's and dont's you could ever find on purchasing a camper. Listen to the man.


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## crackerdave (Jul 3, 2010)

Lotsa good advice here! Y'all are in for some real good times as a family.

Please be aware: _Pulling_ a trailer is one thing._Stopping_ is another! Whatever you buy,make sure your brakes are in top condition.


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## trial&error (Jul 4, 2010)

Whats wrong with a popup?  Opened up 20+feet long fully loaded down you could still pull it with a car.  I know it has it's short comings, but if this is your first camper you'll soon find out they all do.  I can have it completely setup by myself in 10 mins, less than 5 with help.  Also I rather enjoy 17mpg vs the 9mpg I had towing a fifth wheel.


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## coyotebgone (Jul 4, 2010)

Pop up campers are wonderful.  The only two drawbacks that I see are as follows: 
1.  they let unwanted sound in. (ie people are camping next to you.  You hear their every word) 
2.  Your air conditioner will work overtime to keep it cool.


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## crackerdave (Jul 4, 2010)

Also not a good idea to leave anything valuable in a pop-up at a campground. It's a shame that we have to be aware of things like that nowadays,but things have changed a lot since I was camping in a pop-up with my parents and sisters 50 years ago.


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## peanutzfarmer (Jul 4, 2010)

Well, we backed out of the deal on the 30 ft. camper that we had looked at.  Now I have another question.  With small kids, what do yall think about an rv instead?  The wife got me to thinking about an rv due to the fact that with a camper, the kids are stuck in the cab of the truck for the entire ride.  What is yall's opinion....rv or camper?  Oh yeah, thanks for all the advise so far.


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## crackerdave (Jul 4, 2010)

My first thought is that many folks don't wear seatbelts when they're riding in an RV/motorhome. Not good!

Also,unless you tow a small car or truck behind you,if you need to go somewhere after you set up camp,you have to take the camp with you! Most motorhomes get terrible gas mileage,too - if they're big enough for a family to be comfortable in.

Bottom line is: If you don't get a good,comfortable night's sleep when you camp,it ain't gonna be fun.


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## Oldstick (Jul 6, 2010)

marknga said:


> The truck's engine, transmission, rear end ratio and if it has a transmission cooler will determine what you can safely tow. I would refer to the Truck  Manufacturers specs.
> The length of the tow vehicle isn't the issue it is the GCVWR that you need to be concerned with.
> Feel free to contact me at mark@midstaterv.com and I can get you with one of our tow specialist to help you.



Agree and a lot of folks don't consider that the manual's published values for the weights on both trailer and vehicle are for the basic empty vehicles.  They usually don't factor in the added weight of passengers, fuel, water, cargo in both truck and trailer, etc.  They probably don't include the added weight of many factory or dealer added options either.  You really have to take the whole truck/trailer combo fully loaded to a weigh station to get the real numbers.

Also the published weights are while sitting on a level road.   Going uphill the effective weight increases for pulling and downhill it increases for breaking purposes.


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## SissyHunter (Jul 6, 2010)

All good points on heavy campers, pop ups, & rvs. 

I have a 6500 lb camper and yeah I pull it less because it's long and heavy. I don't care for pop ups myself because I like a smidgen of privacy. The rvs don't appeal because you can't do anything without breaking camp.

If I had it to do again, I'd go lighter and shorter. A slide out is okay but I don't think it's all that. And I'd stay with the camper. I like my own indoor plumbing while camping that has some privacy.

When camping, I spend lots of time outside. I used to bring a little tent for the kids to play cards and such while I cooked outside on the grill. I figured the camper was more for sleep time or to stay out of the elements. That's my 2 pennies worth.

Good luck. I hope you get a good match for the family.


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## HALOJmpr (Jul 6, 2010)

Well, based on everyone's comments I guess I'm going to have a really hard time selling my 40' bumper pull that weighs 14000 lbs when swap and sell comes back   On the bright side if we ever lose our home for some reason we can just move into it! (I did after hurricane Charley)


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## HillbillyJim (Jul 13, 2010)

A good site to go to regarding tow vehicle capability is www.rv.net. There are numerous threads that address the exact question you are asking.  I learned alot there before I purchased my first camper.  One thing to keep in mind is that you can pull a fairly large camper with a 1500 but always remember you also have to be able to stop it.  A good rule of thumb is to deal with weights not lengths.  Look at the max tow capability of your truck and then look at the weight of the trailers.  Trailer manufacturers like to talk "dry weight" and will tell you that you can pull 5th wheel with a volkswagen.  Look at trailer "gross weight" in regard to your truck's tow rating.  And lastly, if you go to an RV lot, know more than the salesman.  Which is normally not that hard!


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## allenww (Jul 18, 2010)

*Camper*



peanutzfarmer said:


> The wife and I are looking into buying our first camper.  It would need to be big .



I am looking, as well.  I like the Coachman Apex, 18ft and 4000lbs. Everybody with experience I have spoken with seems to concur that smaller is better from an overall satisfaction standpoint.

      wa


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## Havana Dude (Jul 18, 2010)

peanutzfarmer said:


> Well, we backed out of the deal on the 30 ft. camper that we had looked at.  Now I have another question.  With small kids, what do yall think about an rv instead?  The wife got me to thinking about an rv due to the fact that with a camper, the kids are stuck in the cab of the truck for the entire ride.  What is yall's opinion....rv or camper?  Oh yeah, thanks for all the advise so far.



We did 5500 miles in 23 days in 2002. My kids were 9&6. Plus a 70 lb black Lab, in an extended cab Chevy. Now that is MY kids, and yours may have a problem with that.

I have never understood why some say pulling a longer(heavier) trailer is a big deal. I enjoyed every foot I pulled that camper (30ft) . Even when we sold it(due to lack of use) I volunteered to pull it to the new owners home, just so I could pull it one more time.


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## Gaducker (Jul 18, 2010)

No one will ever enjoy towing a 30 ft trailer with a 1/2 ton truck.  Anyone ever try to go up to Amicalloa falls with a 6500 lbs trailer and  1/2 ton truck?  

I have done it with a F350 crew cab 4x4 and didnt think I was going to make it to the top. It was an auto and about 1/4 the way up I stoped and put it in 4 low, then it was no problem.

We started out in as big a popup as we could find. And the kids were only 4 and 7, that got old fast no matter how easy it was to pull.  So next we got a 28 footer with 2 bunks in the back,  Third time around we got a 32 footer with a quad bunk room in the back with an entertainment center in it, the kids are now 9 and 12 and they both took a buddy with them the last time we went.  When the smores are done and the baths are taken we send em to the back and never hear a peep out of em.


I put a hitch on the back of mine and tow my boat behind it on short trips, I dont know about goin to fla like that.

Theres no way i would tow mine with a 1/2 ton truck no matter what kinda weight rating they may have.


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## Miguel Cervantes (Jul 18, 2010)

RV's are nice if you can find a good used diesel pusher, you definitly don't want a gas model. Had a freind that made that mistake. 

We like our pop-up, opens up to 23.5 feet, and does what we want for camping. If we ever upgrade it will be to a Hybrid with a slide out, but that's about as big as we'll ever go. There comes a point, unless you camp a lot, and I mean a lot, where you are better served just to get a motel room when you consider what you'll spend on the camper / rv versus loss on purchase price and cost of towing and upkeep.

Whatever y'all choose make it practical and don't over do it for your first one.


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## Havana Dude (Jul 19, 2010)

Gaducker said:


> No one will ever enjoy towing a 30 ft trailer with a 1/2 ton truck.  Anyone ever try to go up to brasstown bald with a 6500 lbs trailer and  1/2 ton truck?
> 
> I have done it with a F350 crew cab 4x4 and didnt think I was going to make it to the top. It was an auto and about 1/4 the way up I stoped and put it in 4 low, then it was no problem.
> 
> ...



I happened to enjoy every second I pulled mine. Pulled Raton Pass out of Northern NM, into Colorado, with this set-up. 98 Chevy, 5.7 extended cab, 30' Trail-Lite, loaded to the Max for the long trip.Was it ideal? heck no, but it did it.


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## 1968ford (Jul 19, 2010)

*rv camper*

guys I work for a rv dealership not trying to get anyone to buy nothing but just wanted to let yall know about a new line we have called the slingshot by crossroads this may help some of you thay range for 21 to 29 feet with a slide all your comfort features like ac heat water heater and all that stuff but the best part tongue  weight  is 375 pounds and range form 3100  to 4100 pounds just look them up just giving yall some ideas just trying to help


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## jola (Jul 25, 2010)

We have a 28' camper with 2 bunks in the back, and we have really enjoyed it.  We looked at everything from popups, hybrids, to 30 footers.  In using it, I can say that we don't have as much room as we would if we had a 5th wheel or a bunk room, but we have enough room.  The only time we do much inside is if it is raining, and we DO have enough room to all sit comfortably and watch a DVD on a small TV, or play cards at the table.  Once we are set up at the campsite, we frequently jump in the truck and go do activities in the local area.  I looked at tons of campers online and really studied the floor plans for features that made sense for US.  Then we went to 3 or 4 places and went in tons of campers to see how they "felt".  I also found that only a few models that were not 5th wheels had a little extra headroom.  DH is 6'2" so that was important for us.  

We have 2 kids...we got 2 bunks and the table and sofa beds.  If the kids take a friend, and they want more room than that, they can set up a tent.

In other words, you will need to do research to find out what is going to work best for you and your family.  You can do must of this on the internet to save time.  I'd say strive to find a balance between big enough to be comfortable and small enough to tow!  Good luck!


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