not so much, when I scaled mine it only added 100lbs to the front axle, this is with my 3700lb camper. Others I've seen that have scaled them have had the same experience.

 

^ This. If you are thinking about buying a high-end truck camper (which AF and NL both are) brand new, to go on your also brand new Super Duty, you may have six figures invested by the time you're done. Do some homework and make decisions based on facts. Screwing up following someone that said they thought it would be OK may get scary and/or expensive real quick, and at that point will be no one's issue to deal with but your own. You may want to head over to some forums that deal with truck campers for that side of the equation, to get feedback from more people who have shopped for and own truck campers (in many cases several times over).

Concerning discounts, you are in the sweet spot in Oregon for shopping truck campers. Many of the big brands, including Northern Lite, are made in the PNW (Northern Lite in BC), and the majority of their dealers are near you, as well. Concerning Northern Lite, check their website where all their dealers are listed, and you can see they have fewer than 20 dealers in the U.S., but half of them are in WA/OR/Northern CA. Your best bet is to start by looking at the websites and calling or visiting some of these dealers to get a sense of what it will take to buy one. Concerning discounts, buying a Northern Lite truck camper isn't going to be anything like buying some generic travel trailer that can be had at any one of hundreds of RV dealers across the country.

 

I had a truck that was overweight by 1000 with the camper on. 350 SRW. I did the airbag thing. It had the camper package. It worked OK and went a lot of miles and places. But it always bugged me it was overweight and the swaying.

When I ordered the 17, I got plenty of truck, 350 DRW. Same lance camper. No where near max payload, and man is it nice to drive. Huge difference. My 2 cents is avoid overweight.
So I vote lighter camper or bigger truck.

 

No worries; not often you're caught having something wrong when it comes to SD specs

 

If you ever want to travel to the beautiful province of British Columbia or through it to Alaska. The real 'Weight Police' do care about GVW, It is rare but if you get inspected that is exactly what they go by.

Recreational Vehicles & Towing Trailers - Province of British Columbia

 

OP....

I bought my Arctic Fox 811 camper from Apache in Portland.
I drove from CA to get it. Nobody could even come close to their price.
Check them out

 

Scott, here is one thing to consider. The camper certificate assumes you have a full load of passengers at 150 lbs per. If you don't, you can add back the weight you saved to you total cargo capacity. For example, I ordered nearly the same truck you have for the same purpose... slide in truck camper. There are only three members in my family so I can add back 450lbs to my cargo capacity. This may help some.

 

Scott, we just got back from an 18K trip from W NY to AK and down through CA and back home with a 2750 lb (dry) Lance. With extra spare tire, extra fuel, full of water, tools, clothes, generator, grill, fishing gear and my wifes ever growing rock collection I assumed we were over gross. So I just did not weigh the truck and everything went fine. I did install a Hellwig BigWig anti sway bar (in place of the OEM bar) and Stable Loads on the springs. Both additions worked great. Before next springs adventure, however, I am going to install air bags and even though the ride height was satisfactory I would like to bring it up 1 1/2 inches to level. I have permanent on board air supply so the mod will be relatively easy. I don't know if I will keep the Stable Loads but they are a fine product, especially for those who only haul a few times a year. We saw hundreds of campers on F-350's from rental fleets and they all were doing just fine without any of the mods so if I were you, keep on with your plans and enjoy. Yes there is a learning curve to handling with a slide in camper but to be sure, you can do it!

 

One thing I can tell you about Northern Lite is that they weigh each camper as it comes off the line as the last thing they do. Our 8.11 SE weighed right around 2780 dry and when I got it loaded up, the truck full of gas, both wife and I in the truck, camper full of water, Honda 200 generator in the storage compartment, food and refrigerator stocked, the camper weighed 3700 lbs. That is fully wet. We bought ours at 5 Star RV in the Denver, CO area and they have been a great dealer. I know you have several dealers for NL up in the Pacific Northwest as well.
I can also attest to the Arctic Fox campers weighing a lot more than what they state on the sticker. I have a buddy who has a 996 sitting on a Chevy Duramax Dually 3500 and his camper on the truck makes him overweight. Go figure. I would not have thought he would be overweight on a 1 ton dually but he is. His camper has two slides which add a lot of weight as well.

Also, did you know that in the towing forum there is now a slide in truck camper specific section?

 

There's a big weight difference between an AF990 and a typical camper sent out as a rental. Just because a truck can carry 'a camper' doesn't mean it's a great idea to stick an AF990 on a SRW truck. Everything isn't a one size fits all, generic answer like so many on this forum advise.

 

You are correct in the interpretation of many posts. And there are several rental companies supplying full weight slide in rentals and a plethora of full 8' units on short box F-350's which place almost the entire weight on the rear axle alone. The 990 has a dry weight around 3000 lbs which is light for a unit with a slide out. The water capacity of 59 gallons adds another 480 lbs right off the bat, and other basic amenities would put this camper close to 4000 lbs, plus passengers and extra gear. Although the door sticker would have one reject the SRW, responsible upgrades can overcome the excess pounds. Air bags in particular are routine investment for those with slide in units. Others have added additional spring leafs, and our 18K trip was extremely successful with only Stable Loads. I had also upgraded the tires to 295x70x18's which increase the tire load to 4100 lbs each. The ultimate test, however, is an ability to drive a vehicle with a top heavy load at maximum rated weight or higher. The manufacturers of spring enhancement devices will never indicate a change to the MGW since other factors in the vehicle which determine MGW are not in their control. Intelligent and responsible improvements can, without a doubt, allow one to push the limits stated on the door jamb. Not for everyone, but a gentle touch on the wheel and attention to speed especially in sharp curves will translate to a safe and enjoyable adventure. And remember, a one size fits all philosophy translates to one size fits none.

 

If you think an AF990 weighs 3000 pounds and belongs on a SRW truck with a payload rating of less than 4K, you're right at home here with the many others who happily provide recommendations but don't know ****** from apple butter about matching a truck and a camper.

 

Scott, your truck will have a payload capacity of about 4400 lbs. including occupants. You should check into buying a Lance, they are much lighter than the AF.

A Lance 975 with standard options has a dry weight of 3300 lbs and a wet weight of 3800 lbs. With proper tires and upper torklift overloads your truck would handle this camper fine.

Northern Lite and Bigfoot build fine products but they aren't in the same category as a camper with a slide. A slide really opens up the floor plan and provides a lot more space.

I see a ton of AF campers around the pnw. Imo they don't hold up well in wet conditions due to all of the luan used in the construction. I see lots of them going down the road with a washboard looking exterior from delamination.

Lance uses azdel in place of luan, check it out. If, at the end of the day you decide to go with an AF check out Broadmoore rv in Pasco Wa. they had some great pricing when I was camper shopping last month. If you go that route make sure to upgrade your tires to something like the Toyo a/t with a 4000 lb rating.