Four Wheel Camper (Hawk) for a family of 4?

[bmwrider75]

Anyone regularly use a Hawk for camping with a family of four?

I have two young kids (currently 2 and 5) and we are looking seriously at the FWC campers to set up a good camping rig. I have a four-door F150 (might upgrade to a '10 Silverado but we'll see...) and the FWC is appealing.

However the main concern is size - can two adults and two kids live in these units? I know it's not an RV...I can appreciate the tradeoffs to get a lightweight, robust rig that doesn't sacrifice too much "driveability" and allows you to retain a single-vehicle setup (i.e. not towing a trailer).

I'd love to hear any thoughts/comments from families who use the FWC. Thanks in advance!

dc

 

[Mighty Dodge Ram]

Perhaps I shouldn't answer...I don't own one, yet. But I know someone who does and he started out with two young kids just like you. Worked great for them. But then the kids got older and it got tight. The kids began sleeping outside and only came inside during inclement weather.

Good luck either way...I think those campers are way cool. :sombrero:

 

[roamingaz]

I have a Granby on my f150 and it works well for 4 people but when we have all 6 kids here it is to small to fit all 8 of us in it, our kids are 14 years to 2 years. I do like my four wheel camper but it lacks storage you would find in a larger camper, but with well thought out packing you can still fit a lot of gear in them. I was packing mine up today getting ready for the expo this weekend and after several frustrating attemps I was able to neatly pack all the gear I wanted for a week long trip.

 

[kcowyo]

Anyone regularly use a Hawk for camping with a family of four?

I have two young kids (currently 2 and 5) and we are looking seriously at the FWC campers to set up a good camping rig...

My kids were 2 and 5 when I bought my Eagle. They're (almost) 6 and 9 now and we still make it work. If you have your heart set on a FWC and a half-ton truck, a Hawk with the roll-over couch and the extended cab-over bed would be your best bet.

You can experiment with sleeping arrangements until you find what works - 2 adults up top and 2 kids on the couch-bed, or 1 adult & 1 child up top and 1 adult & 1 child down below... When you're stuck inside on a rainy afternoon, two kids up on the bed with coloring books & Star Wars action figures leaves plenty of room for Mom & Dad to make and serve lunch, read a book, pray for the rain to end, etc.

Four Wheel Campers with kids are all about finding the sweet spot for comfort and being flexible in your need for space.

.

 

[Rockcrawler]

Something else to consider is if you have a dog... the dog gets in the way more than the kid does.

 

[bmwrider75]

Ahh, the dog!! I forgot about the dog!

THanks for the comments so far. Seems about what I would have guessed - it's tight, but workable. I don't really want to LIVE in the space - after all we'd be camping most of the time - but it would need to be workable for those truly inclement days, even if it's tight.

When we rented a small RV (25 ft) last fall for our first family non-tenting trip, it was so massive and spacious that we had to remind ourselves to go outside. It was comfy, but way too big for what we need. I want to find something in between an tent and the small RV, to provide the convenience of self-contained hard-sided camper traveling, but still retain a relatively light, small, single vehicle that could be driven and parked anywhere.

I'll always need a truck for other reasons (carrying the KTM dirtbike mostly!), so it makes sense to use the truck for the travel vehicle also. We'll be getting a new truck soon so I could potentially get the long-bed, but that would make for a pretty long, heavy duty truck that I wouldn't "need" most of the time. Although I suppose I could then use a hitch carrier and just bring the dirtbike along. :bike_rider:

dc

 

[ScottBailey]

Skip the hawk, get the grandby

I find the Hawk size very comfortable for 3, and tight for anymore. I'd look at the Grandby size.

 

[bmwrider75]

Isn't the Grandby exactly the same sleeping setup though? Just the extra 2 feet of floor space?

Would you find the extra 2ft might make a big difference for the four people (i.e. it's not the sleeping arrangements, but the living arrangements that are tight?) ?

Thanks,
dc

 

[ScottBailey]

When sleeping 4, there isn't much storage space for the rest of your gear. The grandby size helps here, I suspect.

I'd settle on the truck before buying a new camper, as there are some fit issues between different trucks.

They are great campers, no doubt about it!

 

[Rockcrawler]

We have the Hawk, and like Scott, I think I would go with a Grandby if I were to do it again... heck, if a good used Grandby fell in my lap... I MIGHT do it again. I could make it work on my short bed truck until I could find a long bed.

 

[ScottBailey]

I could make it work on my short bed truck until I could find a long bed.

If I already owned a short bed truck, I'd keep it and just let the longer camper sit on the tailgate. If I started with a long bed, I'd seriously consider the keystone. I'm pretty certain my next truck is a long bed. I'm also pretty sure I'm not buying for 6+ years.

 

[davidv]

I have similar aged kids (2 and 4) and a 4 door Ford. Currently the kids share the down stairs bunk but when they become too old to share we are thinking the rear seat of the truck will become the 3rd bed for the older one. Like having her own room.

Does anyone do this?

 

[mountainsoul]

I'm in a similar situation and considering the Hawk too.

I have a couple of quick questions:

On the FWC website it states that the Hawk will fit "4 door full size short bed" trucks. But does this include Crew Cabs like the new Ram 1500 or F150 Super Crew with a 67"-69" bed (5.5ft) or would it have to be a smaller Quad Cab/Super Cab with the 76"-78" bed (6.5ft)?

I'm looking for a truck that offers the most room and comfort in the cabin - that being a crew cab - but that will still accommodate a Hawk setup in the bed. Any suggestions on trucks would be great too. I'm open to brands. At the moment my short list is the Tundra Crewmax, F150 Super Crew or Ram 1500 Crew Cab. I just want to make sure the FWC Hawk fits in it before I buy one!

 

[mountainsoul]

Well I think I found my answer. Looks like I need a 6.5ft bed to accommodate the Hawk. That puts the Tundra Crewmax and Ram Crew out. The Tundra DC is not going to cut it with 34.7" of rear leg room. The Ram Quad would work with a larger 36.8" in the rear cabin. Or I just realized that with Ford you can basically mix and match as you see fit. So I can get a Super Crew with a 44" rear seat and still get a 6.5ft bed with it. Looks like my very first domestic vehicle may be on the horizon...

 

[Stan@FourWheel]

You would be OK putting a Hawk Model on a 1/2 ton, crew cab truck, with the shorter 5' 5" - 5' 8" bed.

We do this all the time.

The camper sticks out a little, but no big deal.

On most all of the 1/2 tons trucks you will want to add a set of helper springs or a set of air bags to the rear suspension so the truck will better handle the weight of the camper.

Attached are some sample pictures so you can see what it looks like.

You can leave the tail gate on, and in the lowered position, or you can take the tail gate off. Whatever you prefer.

Happy Camping !




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. . . Looks like I need a 6.5ft bed to accommodate the Hawk . . .

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