Bigger is better? Long vs short bed

[pappawheely]

I've had both. If I lived back East I would probably want a short bed. Living in the West I would not want to go with anything less than a long bed. YMMV.

 

[IdaSHO]

Something else to note, as I figure the majority of fear of a long bed is length and turning radius, is that the newer rigs, being all coil sprung, turn MUCH better than the older leaf sprung rigs.

The turning radius is dramatically reduced.

Iv e yet to check the specs, but the 2011 super duty Im building now feels like it turns as tight or even tighter than a short box.

 

[rruff]

Something else to note, as I figure the majority of fear of a long bed is length and turning radius, is that the newer rigs, being all coil sprung, turn MUCH better than the older leaf sprung rigs.

Or torsion spring rigs...

But the long wheelbase is still a bear. The front wheels turn tight and the rear ones are much farther inside the arc, making it hard to negotiate obstacles.

 

[IdaSHO]

No argument there.

But for the folks (like myself) that have lived with leaf spring solid front axles and have dealt with the terrible turning radius, the point is valid.

Especially considering the time spent on pavement FAR outweighs off the pavement.

 

[Colorado_Outback]

I daily drive mine and never wish the bed or cab was shorter.

20170727_193918 by colorado_baja, on Flickr

 

[OverlandTherapy]

The only reason I could see getting a SB is if in someway you already had a camper and needed to stick with those specs.

I have wheeled a 155 WB 99 Dodge 4x4 through everything I have taken my YJ jeep on so far. Sure is it as easy? No... Do I have any body damage because of it? No.
You will have to wheel your rig under the idea that you may not be able to take the same line as your buddies and vice versa. But I would never go to a SB. What they give you in "trail ease" they steal heavily from what you can pack in it.

I daily drive my rig. 99 Cummins 4x4, 5spd. I just treat it like a jumbo jeep.

 

[ramatl73]

Has anyone here made a sleeping platform in a full sized truck that goes across the width of the vehicle rather than lengthways? You couldn't do it in a "compact truck" but some full sized vehicles are nearly 6' wide.
.
I've wondered if it would work to do, for example, a sleeping setup in the back seat of a crew-cab truck, basically kind of like a "sleeper" arrangement in a semi? With the sleeping portion taken care of by the width of the vehicle, length would no longer be an issue (and also you would have the entire space of the bed for equipment, while having a safe and secure interior sleep area.)

To answer your question. Depends on the type of truck. Currently have a 2011 Ram 1500 Crew 4x4 as my daily driver. Sleeping width wise is a no-go both in the bed and cab. Interior cab width is only 5-1/2 ft "ish". I've tried it and it sucks - I've 6'5" pushing 6'6". So unless your willing to sleep in a fetal position it's not a possibility.

Even in a bigger truck like a Ram 2500 I believe the width is somewhere around 63" interior door to door. So even then sleeping in the crew cab area is tight. Bed width wall-to-wall is 66" on a 2500 so sleeping width wise is tight even in the bed. The one advantage the 2500 Ram has over the 1500 is the availability of an 8ft bed on the crew cab.

From a maneuvering standpoint and parking ease, the short bed is the best option in the 1500 for me though. It's all about tradeoffs. Considering a 1500 6'4" bed or a 2500 8ft bed Crew Cab now.

 

[GoinBoardin]

Back seat sleeping.. The back seat of my 96' supercab F150 folds flat, and is around 68" wide, 72" with interior panels removed. I've slept back there many nights, when tired on the road. I've been comfortable enough to sleep 10 hours and be confused as to my location when I woke up. I'm 6'4". Tried building a platform in the back of an 05' Tundra crew to do the same, had about 60" width and could not sleep more than 45 minutes. So, in my experience this is very truck dependent, as well as your height.

 

[herm]

I put over 100k on an f350 crew long, 100k on a gmc extended 6.5 and just bought a gmc crew 6.5.

The long crew was a bit unweildy in a parking lot. I would not want one as my daily.
The ex cab 6.5, i only a few times wanted more room in the bed, but as my life changed from single to married with 3 large dogs We needed more room in the back seat.
The 6.5 crew has been great, i do not need extra bed space, and we can fit 2 people and 250 lb of dog in the back seat, while still having plenty of room in the bed for ski gear or whatever.

 

[Kach]

I have a 2003 Ram2500 crew cab short bed. The Ram rides so high on solid axles (and slightly oversized tires), that it feels like a keep off road. The Ram is a bit shorter than the other ccsb's. I'm fine with the short bed until I start thinking camper. That said I just barely get to some spots as it is - the break over would be the biggest issue for me in a long bed. Turning around in crappy spots is nice in my rig too...

 

[Ashton]

Yet another .02 cents thrown in. The 8' bed is really nice for camping in, plenty of space to work with and design to your needs. If I was a few inches shorter, I could probably make a sleeping area that covered the width instead of sleeping along the length. That might change some of the design options I've been exploring. When I was looking at options I decided to go with a rig that I can pack up and camp out of for longer trips and hikes. You won't make any goat path switch backs in a 140+ in wheelbase, but you can still get out and go remote. Will probably always use a long bed for base camp, and likely tow a short wheel base vehicle if going to explore known trails that need it.

 

[Rockhard426]

I Vote Long Bed !, Then you can Support the LBDT Community ( Long Bed Diesel Truck )

 

[Mighty Dodge Ram]

My ‘96 Ram Ext Cab SB is tight but doable in terms of camping out of the back and I have to drop the tailgate if I want to carry plywood panels. Upside: it has an excellent turning radius that helps offroad and in the parking lot. My ‘02 Chevy Ext Cab LB is much roomier and more comfortable camping out of the back (and carrys way more material), but turns like a battleship on tight trails and at Costco. You'll need to decide which is more important to you. I'm leaning towards the comfort and utility of the long bed...YMMV. :sombrero: