slide - in camper
 

I didn't do an exhaustive search, but I did go a couple years; however, I didn't find what I'm looking for... I have a '99 F-150 XL, long wheel base, 4.6, auto w/OD. will this truck carry a slide-in camper? I don't have a particluar one in mind. will I need airbags on the rear? sway bars? overload springs? ???

I know a small bumper pull makes more sense, but with a slide-in, I can trailer my bike. and if I go the route of a TT, I'll have to ramp the bike in the bed.... not really looking forward to that!

BTW: it'll just be me and my dog. I just don't want to spend another spring/summer hanging around the house, you know?

thanks in advance for all the opinons and answers.

Welp, if you can find a slide in weighing in UNDER 1000lbs or so, sure you could. For your own comfort and the longevity of the truck you'd probably greatly appreciate air suspension. A 1000lbs dry camper would allow you enough extra capacity for clothing, "stuff", food, etc. Just keep in mind your tires and axles can really only support 1500lbs, and you really shouldn't plan on doing that all the time. Also remember to add in 10% of the trailer you are pulling; the tongue weight counts against your bed capacity. If your trailer is 1000lbs, your camper 1000lbs, and your stuff (including the dog) is 400lbs, you have pretty much maxed out the capacity of the truck.

Things to do:

Upgrade suspension to air suspension, ideally, or helper springs.
Upgrade tires to "D" range (I think). The next step heavier than LT tires.
Make sure your axle seals don't blow out, and if they do, replace relatively quickly.
Make sure you calculate WET weight of the camper you plan on getting. That's dry weight plus all the stuff you plan to carry.
Add 10% of the trailer weight to the weight of the camper.
Plan on a 1500lb max capacity of that truck, preferably less.

You may find ramping the bike into the truck's bed and hauling a little popup camper much more comfortable and a lot easier than you think. It'll certainly make the weight issue disapear.

i don't have a f150, but 1500lbs seems low. if you put air bags on it then that would help greatly. make sure your tires are rated for what ever weight is in the bed. i think they make a pop up truck camper that is pretty light. look in your drivers door jamb. find your gvwr. go have your truck weighed. take your gvwr-truck weight. this will tell you what the legal weight you can have in your truck. then you can go from there as to fiind a camper.

I have a 1999 and a 2002, 1500lbs is the capacity :) I put that much in my truck all the time and it moans and groans, but does it. For the occasional drive it'll handle it easily, but every day would really overstress it. Biggest soft spot are the tires, replace those first. I have air in mine and it helps a lot, but it can't handle more than 1500lbs in the suspension either.

Also make sure you have good tie downs, I'm using torqlifts after taking my 2K camper home and finding out how easy they move without being tied down. I'll echo the the air bags too, since your in San Antonio, look for some rodeo campers, pretty lightweight but room for you and the dog.

Road bike or off road, you might be able to custom order one to fit a off road bike in the back. Then you don't have to worry about theft, trailer axles, etc....

thanks for the help..... I'm not sure what I'm gonna do, but I'll do something. from what I see, I kinda screwed up 2 yrs ago buying the F-150, probably should have gone with an F-250. at the time, I had no plans to hit the highway. BUT, a new bike and the gypsy coming out in me.... well, I really need to hit the roard and see what's over that next hill. I'm trying to look at all my options - I've even considered an enclosed cargo trailer - make my own toyhauler. I don't need a shower or toilet, just someplace to sleep. I'm open to any suggestions....

can you put the bike in the bed, then get a travel trailer? depending on your state you can pull doubles. get a travel trailer, put a hitch on the back and get a small trailer for your bike.

getting a small TT is an option. as a matter of fact, I'm going tomorrow to look at a 1950 10 ft. Scotty. it's not the best of ideas to have to ride the bike (around 750 lbs) up a ramp into the truck bed.

I'd have to check, but I don't think Texas will allow a bumper pull to pull a trailer.

or trade in the 150 and get you a superduty. i would go for a 350 to get alittle more legal weight. the 250 and 350 are the same truck but the 350 has a higher gvwr. the gcvw are the same. i know my trucks payload is 3200lbs and i think the 350 is 4200lbs.

nah, that's not an option. I'd rather have my Harley and drive a '99 F150. I'll figure something out. I guess I always could just get a tent and small utility trailer.

http://www.hdforums.com/upfiles/smiley/biker2.gif

Toyhauler?? For you, your dog and a Harley the small Toyhaulers aimed at the Moto X crowd would be perfect.

Get a lowboy trailer for the harley, a bed tent for the F150.

http://www.truckcandy.com/TC/TruckTe...uck_bed_tent_b

[QUOTE=Spamjohnson]Get a lowboy trailer for the harley, a bed tent for the F150.

http://www.truckcandy.com/TC/TruckTents/truck-tent.htm?source=gaw_truck_bed_tent_b[/QUOTE]

thanks!! that's the best option I've seen. since I'm on a pension - this and a trailer won't break the bank.

There are also inflatable beds that blow up to the size of the truck bed to sleep in, if you already have a topper on the truck this might make a good option too.

since I'm a retired VET and just moved to San Antonio, and close to an Air Force base, I thought I'd see what's available at REC Services. dang, they've got 19 and 21 ft Aerolites for rent... and the local Army base has 13 and 17 ft Casitas. looks like I'll just avail myself to the military and let them do the upkeep, licensing and storage for me.

oh, they also rent small utility trailers when I need to tow the bike.

thanks to everyone for all the input.