Aluminum flat bed options?

[c7train]

I'm curious what people think of the idea of using an aluminum flatbed to haul a truck camper. For background info my truck is an 03 dodge 4 door short bed 2500. I did a little searching and read some threads here on expo with a little success, but wanted a current take on the trends and what options are out there. I've found these: https://www.alumaklm.com/truck-beds and have heard of UTE, but UTE's webiste isn't great and the number is disconnected. Anyway, any info on this would be good. Thanks~

C.

 

[offroadrolls]

Here's a FWC Hawk flatbed model on a Alumline flatbed. The flatbed is on a 2016 3500 Mega cab. It's super nice and the owner said it worked good.
I think slide in campers on flatbeds with tool boxes filling the gaps on the side are cool too, lot's of storage.
I think there's a thread about one of those builds here on the forum somewhere.

 

[windtraveler]

There are several outfits that build campers for flatbeds. They all have their plus' and minus'. I recently spent a lot of time researching the different companies and decided to go with Bundutec in Iowa. Absolutely no regrets. I believe they provide the best value. They are great to work with, will build you exactly what you want, and they don't take 4-6 months to do it. Give them a call, be honest about what you want and what your expectations are and they be happy to offer their input and feedback. I found they could build to my specs at a cost less than any comparable used camper I could find.

I do not work for them or receive any fees; I'm just an extremely satisfied customer trying to share my experiences.

319-234-0071
sales@bundutecusa.com

 

[c7train]

That's great information I'll give them a call and see what they offer. The link I posted above is pretty nice, 1800.00 ready to go and lighter than factory bed which is nice too.

Thanks!

 

[SportsmanJake]

Does anyone have any more recommendations?
Ute Ltd is $3500 + Shipping and only comes in 4 sizes. I am sure there are better options available.

 

[justbecause]

I got on craigslist and got a quote from a guy who makes pontoon boats. A flat bed is on my long term list after we get something else to DD.

 

[Chandlerdoom]

So this is something that I have been working on for my tacoma, its pictured with the canopy but is a flatbed/tray under the canopy. I should finally have it in my hands in a month time and released end of year after I put it through some abuse. Also working on a matching camper, and starting on a tray/canopy/camper for my new ram that I picked up

IMG_1845 by chandler coe, on Flickr

 

[Paddler Ed]

Have a search using "tray back campers" and that'll bring up the Australian versions, where trays are much more common. Whilst costs may become prohibitive, the ideas may be of use.

Hope that helps a bit,

Ed

 

[Darwin]

So this is something that I have been working on for my tacoma, its pictured with the canopy but is a flatbed/tray under the canopy. I should finally have it in my hands in a month time and released end of year after I put it through some abuse. Also working on a matching camper, and starting on a tray/canopy/camper for my new ram that I picked up

Looks nice, is this something you plan to sell? I would be curious to see the Ram version

 

[Chandlerdoom]

Looks nice, is this something you plan to sell? I would be curious to see the Ram version

Yup, either stand alone tray or with the canopy, the camper will take a little more time. I am hoping to have the ram tray/canopy ready for production sometime in September

 

[cgengo]

We (www.slowcarfasthouse.com) wanted to do something with a flat bed style camper mount. We found it difficult to locate a special camper for the flat bed configuration that would do all the things we wanted it to do and could be available within our time frame. We liked the look of the high end units such as XP and EarthRoamer, but we they lack in storage and are quite expensive! We had specific features we wanted, and things we did not want to haul around. So we built our own.
We removed (and sold) the truck bed. We had a frame constructed of aluminum. https://slowcarfasthouse.com/2016/12/19/building-the-frame-to-hold-the-camper/ We mounted a Northstar camper on it. We added amazing storage boxes along the sides. https://slowcarfasthouse.com/2017/02/21/storage-boxes-theyre-yuge/ We added to the suspension. We modified the interior. And now we are on the road in Mexico, headed to South America. There is a lot more information on our website. Or you can contact me directly for more details. We are still very pleased with this rig and its ability to do all that we wanted it to do! Contact us through www.slowcarfasthouse.com

 

['round n' back again]

highway products in oregon is the go-to ,in my opinion for such custom stuff. nothing is too wild for that outfit to build from aluminum.

 

[mrblah]

We (www.slowcarfasthouse.com) wanted to do something with a flat bed style camper mount. We found it difficult to locate a special camper for the flat bed configuration that would do all the things we wanted it to do and could be available within our time frame. We liked the look of the high end units such as XP and EarthRoamer, but we they lack in storage and are quite expensive! We had specific features we wanted, and things we did not want to haul around. So we built our own.
We removed (and sold) the truck bed. We had a frame constructed of aluminum. We mounted a Northstar camper on it. We added amazing storage boxes along the sides. https://slowcarfasthouse.com/2017/02/21/storage-boxes-theyre-yuge/ We added to the suspension. We modified the interior. And now we are on the road in Mexico, headed to South America. There is a lot more information on our website. Or you can contact me directly for more details. We are still very pleased with this rig and its ability to do all that we wanted it to do! Contact us through www.slowcarfasthouse.comView attachment 414902

That's exactly what I'm looking for to mount my maranda fiberglass cap. Perfect!

 

[hayduke]

Anybody checked out the home depot tray beds?

 

[wirenut]

I really like having my flatbed with tool boxes to carry my camper. My bed was semi custom built to fit the camper. It cost around $6,000. I now have tons of storage for tools and supplies. One bin has an additional battery, another has an inverter and the air compressor for the air bags. I use my truck for work so I have lots of tools in there too. That made the cost of the truck and the bed a business expense. Otherwise I could have never justified the expense.