Could not sleep Dumb Idea or Genius

[98dango]

Ok so I had a Idea last night keep me awake all night.

Here is what kept me up. I am building a 1ton crew cab with a 5.5 foot flat bed. I had this idea to build a small tent trailer type box that I can load and unload easily. We do a lot of base camp and roving camp. I need my truck for work so no long term mount.


Hear is a basic lide of what my truck will liik like finished



So im thinking either making one work for me or just building from scratch. A tent trailer dont need alot of room but want some and off the ground and flat is the goal. I did the roof top tent and just not for me.

 

[98dango]

My idea is to build this as a slide on I can winch it on and off with a pully system on the truck. I have a idea using some rails to slide it up and then lock it in place with hitch pins. What do you all think. I know i could just get a camper but i like to see.

 

[Metcalf]

Sure, why not.

You could run the tent trailer the other direction if you found the right one. A fold out going out both sides. The trailer could be mounted on some jacks similar to what you would see on a hard side slide in camper. The jacks could be run down and the truck driven out from under the camping unit.

I think that would be pretty dang neat.

 

[98dango]

I went to a trailer sales place in billings. They have a small Coleman cobalt and it could work. The guy there told me they where getting an older one in on trade in the next week or 2 and he will give me as call. I thought about the jacks but it seemed like one more thing to deal with. I have a 3500lb warn winch and I figured steel on steel slides easy. I have on figured out the off has bee difficult to figure. The one concern I have about using an existing structure is the frame would it hold up to being drug up on a flat bed would it handle the sliding on and off. The 2 I have owned before have only had a few cross members and the frame is 8-10" inside the body. I know making my own would most likely be heavy but then I know it would hold up to the abuse.

We are also talking about moving to California near Sacramento so this set up would have to with stand a trip to the Rubicone and fore dice.

 

[Metcalf]

Winching it up and down is going to be challenging to do over and over again without damaging the unit. I think some hand crank jacks would be pretty easy, you could also use them to level the camper on uneven ground.

Cool project, hope it works for ya!

Getting a truck like that through the 'con is going to be difficult with a camper on the back?

 

[98dango]

I know what im thinking of is a pain but it think it will work out. I also have my scout but some how it just dose not excite me like it used to

I know the jacks would be easy but my issue is there in no way stable. I want to be able to take it off set it on the ground and still use it. I think this is going to be one of those trial and errior things. My ideas dont always work out but one has to try.

 

[98dango]

Thank you all for the good ideas

I am hoping to keep this below the majority of the back window in the truck. If I want to use this on a trail as I hope to be able to I want it as low as can be. I am not building a crawler by any means but I do plan to be able to clear 37s and with a 140" wheelbase (same as the powerwagon) I should be able to go many places. I have all of WA OR CA NV ID MT and WY to explore with me the lady and the daughter. Of all the set ups I have seen and can come up with this seems to make the most since for me.

 

[98dango]

My biggest problem is keeping the main body under 6' long

 

[Owyhee H]

^^^^^^I like that.

I also like your idea of the popup on the flatbed. I agree that it would be easier to build a frame (dosent need to raise the camper) and have removable jacks. I think that winching on and off would put a lot of stress on the frams so it wouldnt last long. A metal frame incorperated to the bottom of the camper could aleviate the winching stress but jacks would be easier.

Cant wait to see how it goes.

 

[98dango]

Had a chance to take a tape to the coleman cobalt and it just wont work right. I have decided to build my own from scratch. I have an idea for the lift system using cables and to bow's similar to a scissor set up. The bow's would mount the the roof and swing to the edge to support the weight

yellow cable
black bow
blue pulley

 

[HillbillyfromAL]

I don't know who makes them but I've seen a few out here in CO. I've also seen the bed slide ins with storage boxes making them look finished on a flat bed.

 

[98dango]

hear is an idea of the floor plan its not exactly to scale all i have is ms paint

the bed would pull out all the way drawn to show better half what im talking about

 

[Louisd75]

Have you done any looking at tray back campers? They seem relatively common in Australia. It's a camper that sits on a flat bed. Most of them seem to use removeable jacks for putting on/taking off. I've been thinking along the lines of something similar, though permanently attached to the truck.

Take a gander for some ideas:

http://www.slideoncampers.com.au/gallery.html

http://www.trayon.com/

http://www.wallabytrack.com.au/tray-campers.htm

http://www.expresstoolsandcamping.com.au/tray_back_campers.htm

http://www.cm-campers.com.au/trayback-camper/

http://www.travelander.com.au/

 

[98dango]

They are way cool and gave me the idea but there at the end of the day to damn tall. I like the low profile of a tent trailer type. I am loosing a ton of storage but I have to be able to haul wood,hay,motors and the like on this truck. It has also become aparent that I will have to actuly wheel this truck (thanks dad & b.j). I really like the storage of the bigger camper and it would be much simpler to build. But I like to see. There is also the want to still run the rubicon all over moab hunting and the like. I also can only afford one truck of this type and I has to where many hats. This is also the reason for the easy removal. But there are places i have to take it that I want to be able to see to back up and squeeze it in the rocks. I know I am asking a metric tone from my build and It may fail but i got to try.