Four Wheel Camper - A Review

[rruff]

It will flex more when loaded. I am surprised how stiff the Gladiator frame is in comparison to my Tundra and old Ford F150. I didn't measure the flex with those trucks, but you could easily see it when off road.

I think all the < 1 ton trucks have a stiff boxed frame these days... except for Tundra and Tacoma. The new Tundra will be boxed as well.

I'm surprised yours flexes that much. On my Tundra the difference between the cab and front of the bed is small, but there is a lot along the length of the bed (it's 8').

 

[FAW3]

A happy anniversary: one year owning my rig with a FWC Hawk. Have 45+ nights in it…good weather, bad weather, in hot and cold. Love it.

This thread helped my decision process. Thanks to the OP and the other contributors.

Among the many options in the general theme of "truck campers" I will say that the combination of a slide-in unit on a flatbed with side storage boxes has proven to be a winning design. All of your occasionally wet, muddy, smoky camping stuff is stored outside your cab and living area. No setup/break down shuffle needed for access/use of the cab or cabin living area.

Site 7; Kring Point SP, NY.:


Pawnee Buttes, CO:

 

[Do-it-all Dodge Dan]

Just happened to stumble on to this thread I will have my old 2004 eagle model up for sale with the aluminum flatbed and tool boxes for sale in the near future it will cheap compared to the unbelievably expensive modern flatbed set ups I see for 40-80k

It has been on 2 8ft bed trucks but could be cut down to 6ft if your truck is a short bed.

It is definitely a fixer upper but it still has a sold base to build back up.

I'm thinking 5k?

Here's a few older pics from its many years of sold service.

pm me I'll give my number.

if anyone wants info to build something like this your self just ask I'll try to help out any way I can with measurements and such.

 

[brookie0907]

FWC Announces Jeep Gladiator Project M

Four Wheel Camper takes the Jeep world by storm with a Jeep Gladiator camper ready for Moab, Mojave, and Rubicon. Jeepers meet campers.

www.truckcampermagazine.com

 

[fourfa]

"Without options, the FWC Gladiator is 380 pounds"

That's good if true

 

[codename607]

Back in December of 2015 I ordered my FWC from Mainline Overland in PA. At the time I didn't even have a truck but I knew a FWC was something I wanted.

Mine is a Swift Shell and with some options, destination fee and installation I paid $14,800. Back then the base model price was $8k.

After several hard years of use I'm still loving the camper. I've never had any issues with anything, but mine is a shell model so I don't have many items to break. The exterior still looks great, no leaks and outside of the annual cleaning of the canvas it's little work to keep it going.

 

[OVRLNDFX4]

Love it!

 

[JCliftonB]

It's hard to beat a Four Wheel Camper in the pop-up, slide-in market. From weight, to durability, to value I have yet to find a better alternative.

 

[jaywo]

What do you all think of all the upgrades they added recently? More storage, electric lift, better heating components and power. Seems like a good value for a fully loaded flatbed fullsize one.

 

[Sparse Gray Hackle]

What do you all think of all the upgrades they added recently? More storage, electric lift, better heating components and power. Seems like a good value for a fully loaded flatbed fullsize one.

My only comment is I’ll never have another new FWC. Maybe a used one, but probably not.

 

[rruff]

What do you all think of all the upgrades they added recently? More storage, electric lift, better heating components and power. Seems like a good value for a fully loaded flatbed fullsize one.

They start at $39k... what is the fully loaded price?

One thing I dislike is the big gap between the camper and cab on most trucks. Most people are going to want bigger tires and clearance for wheel travel, so why not design the camper for a taller bed height?

There are other things wrong with this setup. Like the bed design and where the rear tire sits... looks like it's going to hit the rear box... but you get the idea.

 

[tacollie]

They start at $39k... what is the fully loaded price?

One thing I dislike is the big gap between the camper and cab on most trucks. Most people are going to want bigger tires and clearance for wheel travel, so why not design the camper for a taller bed height?

There are other things wrong with this setup. Like the bed design and where the rear tire sits... looks like it's going to hit the rear box... but you get the idea.

That RAM is a bad combination for keeping the camper low. The Norweld tray has a really cool drawer that utilizes room under the tray. Unfortunately it raises the deck height. RAMs have a lot cab height and it makes for a bad combo of to want to minimize overall height. A flatbed that doesn't raise the bed height in a Ford or GM will be less than 1" the roof of the truck. It's bittersweet to borderline to close. Our friends have one on a second gen Tundra and it's snug on the roofline.

 

[robgendreau]

That RAM is a bad combination for keeping the camper low. The Norweld tray has a really cool drawer that utilizes room under the tray. Unfortunately it raises the deck height. RAMs have a lot cab height and it makes for a bad combo of to want to minimize overall height. A flatbed that doesn't raise the bed height in a Ford or GM will be less than 1" the roof of the truck. It's bittersweet to borderline to close. Our friends have one on a second gen Tundra and it's snug on the roofline.

Yeah, my Hawk non flatbed slide in has a lot less clearance over the cab than that one pictured. The comments are more about the choice of tray.

What do you all think of all the upgrades they added recently? More storage, electric lift, better heating components and power. Seems like a good value for a fully loaded flatbed fullsize one.

The new lithiums make total sense. I don't know why they stuck with lead acid so long. And the new heater looks better.

I don't care for under bed storage much, and not sure I'd want the extra height and weight (I think my model got over 10% heavier). But it's kind of six of one.

The AC isn't for me either, and probably mostly for folks who carry gennies or hit hookups on occasion. But for those that want it, cool (heh).

Lots of owners already have roof raising assistance. Or would DIY instead of FWC's solution. But again, it's an option. If someone wants it, fine.

 

[PirateMcGee]

I like the upgrades. Particularly the under bed storage and extended cab over. Makes for a lot of room. That said it's not available on shell for no apparent reason. Quality to price seems to be pretty bad too as of late.

 

[Herbie]

That RAM is a bad combination for keeping the camper low. The Norweld tray has a really cool drawer that utilizes room under the tray. Unfortunately it raises the deck height. RAMs have a lot cab height and it makes for a bad combo of to want to minimize overall height. A flatbed that doesn't raise the bed height in a Ford or GM will be less than 1" the roof of the truck. It's bittersweet to borderline to close. Our friends have one on a second gen Tundra and it's snug on the roofline.

Agreed. There are a lot of variables there, but a more "conservative" tire size and flatbed placement definitely equates to a tighter cab-to-cabover gap.