a new hard side truck camper that fits a 1/2 ton (750 lbs) ... <$10k

[Cave_Campers]

It's been pretty tough to fit a hard side truck camper into a 1/2 ton and still have payload for gear, people, water, etc. Cave Campers is a new entrant in the market and we've taken a different approach to the design which we think could be a fit for the overland market. We'd love to hear your thoughts.

Three tenants of the design: lightweight, durable, and easy to clean. Our goal is to make it easy for outdoor enthusiasts to spend more time playing outdoors. You'll notice that we purposefully did not include a bathroom or kitchen. We believe that there are some of us that would prefer to use the bathroom and cook outdoors versus the same confined space that we sleep. The benefit of this design trade-off is pretty compelling. It's incredibly spacious inside making it easy to walk around to store and retrieve gear. There's nothing to break so your time and money can go towards playing outside and buying other toys. High durability and quality is seen in every inch of this camper making it a great fit for the off-road. At the end of the trip you can even hose it out.

 

[Bushcoat]

Nice &#55357;&#56898;

 

[Cave_Campers]

Thanks for the feedback Bushcoat (although I'm not sure how to interpret the two ? marks ). What do you like about it? What do you NOT like about it?

The pictures you see here are of our first prototype. After a summer of driving around and gathering feedback we've made some adjustments to the production version which will start shipping in December.

Key Changes in production model:

1. We drop the over cab storage down so there's not a big, silly gap catching all that air.
2. We made the hole for the cab storage larger so it's more ergonomical to store and retrieve large items.
3. We add a removable table to the interior (room for 4 to play cards or eat).
4. We add the ability to arrange cushions into a queen bed or two separate beds.
5. We doubled the interior lighting.
6. The front counter is removed making it easier to get to the storage. Two counters in the corner are added to the rear.

 

[xterratime]

Looks pretty cool!

I was actually looking at buying a Shell only Four wheel camper thinking the same thing. Already have Coleman stove, Yeti cooler, like to cook outside, etc. At around $10K your pretty competitively price with them.

Advantage of yours would be fully enclosed vs the pop up but disadvantage would be taller ride height without the pop up. Probably comes down to personal preference.

We ultimately ended up getting a contractors cap for all our gear and are just going to stick with the tenting. Partially for cost and not being sure if I would want a camper on my daily driver. But mainly because as a family of 4 it's just too tight in the truck camper.

Eventually when it's down to just wife and I I would love to get some sort of TC.

Cool product though, good luck getting it launched and out there.

 

[calicamper]

Nice to see a basic option. Xterratime has a good point. The argument of a typical cap and tent has pluses too. Except shoulder and winter season use.

Something a little sleeker, and with a wide rear door would make it multi use without to his point being viewed as too much camper on a daily driver.

Its that inbetween zone I keep trying to find an intersting option. The tacomahabitat actually falls into that inbetween zone, but its no hard side.

Think about a neighbor he has one of those tall hard top glass caps with a full rear hatch no tailgate and a small camper style door in the rear hatch. Everyday use he can open up the big hatch and load the kids bikes in the back. Camping he tosses a cot in and just uses the small camper door. His complaint head room still stinks.

I think this camper idea is touching on that middle ground, but just needs a few touches and tweeks that would really make it interesting.

You know FWC offered hard sided stripped models at one point. I think it looked too camper like vs sleek cap and they got super busy with build orders they stopped offering it.

I think there is a market for this type of rig but the right combo of sleek, vs head room, vs everyday usability on the DD hasnt been cracked yet.

 

[washington taco]

I like the camper as a whole! The stated changes will help. I like your heater/cooling unit for winter use and dehumidifier. Cost is spot on! Does the price include the heating/cooling unit?

 

[washington taco]

Any chance that one will come in a downsized between the wheel wells? A first gen Taco is 40" I would guess that a 2nd and 3rd are slightly wider.

 

[RedF]

I like the simplicity. I agree with the thought of a larger door for more utility and ease of ingress/egress. Are they equipped with tie down anchors inside?

 

[chilliwak]

What I would like to see Mr Cave is some kind of fold out kitchen and bathroom/toilet facilities on that camper. Maybe this could be built as something that is accessed outside. I can see it makes things more uncultered inside but those are basic necesities that everyone has to have. A price tag of 10k should be able to incorporate rudimentry needs. Cheers, Chilli..

 

[Cave_Campers]

I like the camper as a whole! The stated changes will help. I like your heater/cooling unit for winter use and dehumidifier. Cost is spot on! Does the price include the heating/cooling unit?

The price does not include the heating/cooling unit. However, on this prototype unit we could be open to make a deal.