2012 Dodge 5500 - Expedition Camper - The build has started
- Thread starter dtruzinski
- Start date
dtruzinski
4 Season Traveller
Winch, Bumper, Braces, and Tires/Wheels
First I would like to send an apology for going silent so long. I have taken a new job that is consuming all of my time and is on the East Coast. My rig is sitting unused in Montana overlooking the Yellowstone River.
I installed a Buckstop Baja winch bumper with the warn 16.5 winch. I like the look of the Baja, but the large tubes tend to interfere with the lights at night and block my side view. I would not recommend the upper tube and if anyone wants to buy the baja kit, I would be willing to sell (not a good sales pitch
.
I have not installed the Rickson wheels but sent some pics showing the difference between the stock tire/wheel and the 275/80 R20 MPT 81/Rickson. The Rickson wheels look amazing and appear to be nearly indestructible!
I have had a couple of people ask about the flat bed details. The main rails are 6" and the cross rails are 3". If I were doing it again, I would make sure that there are no cross rails in the wheel travel area, creating an additional 3" of clearance.
Also note that the first washboard road I drove the camper shifted on the flatbed, so I attached some plates to prevent that in the future. There are plates in the front and rear as well. I have not tested this solution.
Lastly, I included a pic of the running boards that I had custom built. They are nearly bulletproof and sure make getting in and out a lot easier.
First I would like to send an apology for going silent so long. I have taken a new job that is consuming all of my time and is on the East Coast. My rig is sitting unused in Montana overlooking the Yellowstone River.
I installed a Buckstop Baja winch bumper with the warn 16.5 winch. I like the look of the Baja, but the large tubes tend to interfere with the lights at night and block my side view. I would not recommend the upper tube and if anyone wants to buy the baja kit, I would be willing to sell (not a good sales pitch
. I have not installed the Rickson wheels but sent some pics showing the difference between the stock tire/wheel and the 275/80 R20 MPT 81/Rickson. The Rickson wheels look amazing and appear to be nearly indestructible!
I have had a couple of people ask about the flat bed details. The main rails are 6" and the cross rails are 3". If I were doing it again, I would make sure that there are no cross rails in the wheel travel area, creating an additional 3" of clearance.
Also note that the first washboard road I drove the camper shifted on the flatbed, so I attached some plates to prevent that in the future. There are plates in the front and rear as well. I have not tested this solution.
Lastly, I included a pic of the running boards that I had custom built. They are nearly bulletproof and sure make getting in and out a lot easier.
Every Miles A Memory
Expedition Leader
Cant wait to see the wheels mounted
dtruzinski
4 Season Traveller
I am going to build a receiver mount carrier for the spare. Keep in mind, my entry door is on the side, which frees up the entire back side to store/attach more stuff
GUNSLINGER 67
Guerrilla Machinist
Very interesting , nice work !
dtruzinski
4 Season Traveller
2012 Camper Build - UPDATE Rig is finished and FOR SALE!
I finally got back to work on the truck and installed the RevTek leveling kit and Rickson wheels with the MPT81s. It is absolutely incredible. The problem I have is that I have taken a new job and will not be able to use the truck as originally planned. So I am going to put it up for sale. You get all of the engineering and discounts I negotiated as well as my sweat equity. Best of all you get a rig, ready to roll.
I bought the truck new, 2012 5500 Laramie and added the following:
Aluminum bed, NorthStar American Hero flat bed camper with solar, custom build running boards, Buck Stop bumper with Warn 16.5 ti winch, Rickson 20" wheel (super single) and MPT81 tires. The truck has under 5k miles (we drove it from Colorado to Iowa to install camper and flatbed, and from Colorado to Montana where it sits overlooking the Yellowstone River...the truck is living a better life than I am).
If you are looking for a ready made expo vehicle, you should take a close look. This one is essential brand new and well engineered. email for details dave at truzinski.com
Here are some recent pics.
I finally got back to work on the truck and installed the RevTek leveling kit and Rickson wheels with the MPT81s. It is absolutely incredible. The problem I have is that I have taken a new job and will not be able to use the truck as originally planned. So I am going to put it up for sale. You get all of the engineering and discounts I negotiated as well as my sweat equity. Best of all you get a rig, ready to roll.
I bought the truck new, 2012 5500 Laramie and added the following:
Aluminum bed, NorthStar American Hero flat bed camper with solar, custom build running boards, Buck Stop bumper with Warn 16.5 ti winch, Rickson 20" wheel (super single) and MPT81 tires. The truck has under 5k miles (we drove it from Colorado to Iowa to install camper and flatbed, and from Colorado to Montana where it sits overlooking the Yellowstone River...the truck is living a better life than I am).
If you are looking for a ready made expo vehicle, you should take a close look. This one is essential brand new and well engineered. email for details dave at truzinski.com
Here are some recent pics.
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charlieaarons
Explorer
Very nice vehicle.
2 questions:
1) did you establish beyond any doubt that 16" rims wouldn't fit over the brakes? (thinking re 11.00R16 XZL, 325/85R16 XML)
2) how is the camper actually attached to the flatbed? I apologize in advance if you put that in the thread, I didn't see it.
Charlie
2 questions:
1) did you establish beyond any doubt that 16" rims wouldn't fit over the brakes? (thinking re 11.00R16 XZL, 325/85R16 XML)
2) how is the camper actually attached to the flatbed? I apologize in advance if you put that in the thread, I didn't see it.
Charlie