Ford F250 & Northstar TC650

[coulter6]

I bought the 2009 Ford F250 Super Duty and 2011 Northstar TC650 in September 2012.

We used it a few times and decided that some improvements could be made. Here's some things we've done to it so far.

For our use, the F250 is the perfect platform to carry the Northstar. Not much was needed for the truck itself. It did squat just a little with the camper mounted. I decided that TORKLIFT StableLoad was just the mod needed to level the truck. The StableLoads also greatly improve the handling of the truck & camper. When the camper is offloaded, the StableLoads and be swung out to bring the truck back to stock ride.
Before:

After:

There is a storage area under the table that holds quite a bit of stuff. We found that accessing the stuff was a little frustrating because the table mounts to the wood cover over the storage area. In order to get to the stuff, we had to remove the table and leg in order to raise the cover.

I cut out a small piece of the cover and relocated the table mounting hardware so we could leave the table mounted and still access our stuff.

We found a false panel near the rear of the cabinets that hid a small area behind it.

This panel was purely cosmetic and served no real function other than hide the area behind it. brian90744 used this area to increase the storage capacity of the camper. I used his modification to give my wife more area to store her wine. Removed the false panel, screwed a 1x1 strip to the wall and the glued a shelf to the bottom. Room for 2-3 wine bottles.

Added a paper towel holder.

Since the Ford gets lousy gas mileage, I was looking for a way to carry more gas for longer trips. I had some ROTOPAX 2 gal gas cans that I will use. I toyed with the idea of mounting gas cans to the rear of the camper, but after a phone conversation with Bill McCale (Western Sales Manager) we determined that this may not be the best option. The rear walls have insufficient reinforcement to hold additional weight of the gas cans. Bill actually called me after I sent an email asking about doing this. Great customer service!

I found a Hitch Gate by WILCO for sale locally and decided that this may be the answer. It mounts to the 2" receiver and swings out to allow access to the camper.

I had a local welding shop add some extra tubing and steel plate. Primed and painted it.

Added the ROTOPAX mounting hardware.

Mounted the gas cans. The Hitch Gate also has a Hi-Lift mount bracket that I will add later.

 

[rayct77]

Is the hitch gate welded to the receiver? I really like your setup.

 

[hoptroll]

Spotted your camper at the Santa Cruz harbor today!

 

[coulter6]

Is the hitch gate welded to the receiver? I really like your setup.

The HitchGate slides directly into the 2″ tow receiver, there is a “Wedge Lock” draw bolt that secures it the receiver.

One of the advantages of this over a dedicated bumper (besides cost) is that I can remove it from the truck and put it on my Jeep Cherokee.

 

[adam88]

I like northstar campers, but they sure are fairly high. The overhead portion sits high for a pop-up camper. Looks good though!

 

[ExpoMike]

Nice mods and rig.

One thing I did on ours to make it a little easier/safer to get in and out of the camper was to build a step plate over the "hole" that is left between the drop are of the bumper and Hitchgate. That well seemed like a perfect place to get your foot caught.

Here's a pic before I added the no slip tape to it.

 

[coulter6]

adam88:
Yes, the Northstars are higher than FWC & ATC, I guess it all depends how you use them and your camping lifestyle. There are advantages to the higher camper: I can sit upright in the camper for lunch without raising the top, the storage under the bed is massive (the wife loves that part), less siding material since the canvas part is shorter. Of course some of the disadvantages: have to be careful about low hanging branches, higher center of gravity, more wind resistance. We like how the Northstar feels and we're comfortable in it.

ExpoMike:
Nice work on the steps, lloks very professionally done. Our Northstar sticks out almost to the end on the bumper, so we never really felt like we would step into the void. Also use the TorkLift steps that keeps us away from the void.

 

[coulter6]

Over the weekend we had nice weather today so I installed a “Hepvo” sink drain valve. Frees up a lot of room under the sink.
Before:

After:
Well I found out the gray water tank Northstar is a sealed unit and requires a vent in the sink drain. I'm removing the pics for a while until I fix the vent problem.
The Hepvo unit is a great replacement to the drain trap, but still requires venting to work properly.

 

[mkish]

Oh that's nice! We have a TC800 (there's 4 of us--we needed the extra few inches!) so quite similar. Your plumbing "after" photos are quite the tease! C'mon, don't be shy and post em!

Is the wine cubby under the furnace? I could use that space!

(We also had to go with the NS because of the underbed storage...as well as the actual queen mattress and side compartment storage. Like I said, there are 4 of us, and even though two of us are little kids, there is also a large dog. It's not sleek and it's not low profile but we couldn't fit in anything smaller.)

Thanks for sharing!

 

[coulter6]

Is the wine cubby under the furnace? I could use that space!

Yes it's directly under the furnace. You can stick your hand up under from below and should feel the void.

 

[mkish]

The missing drain photo! That is a lot better. Thanks!

Found the hole. Too good a spot to waste and I had no idea it was there. :Wow1:

 

[plainjaneFJC]

Nice build. Since I am a plumber I was intrigued by the hepvo valve. I had never seen that before.

 

[brian90744]

On the hidden area best to take a razor knife to score around the edge and finally cut out the panel. just FYI.
brian
did you finish the drain/vent???

Yes it's directly under the furnace. You can stick your hand up under from below and should feel the void.

 

[coulter6]

did you finish the drain/vent???

Sorry, been to busy using the camper :sombrero:

I bought all the parts I need, but have not had a chance to do any more work.

Spent a few days near Grants NM around the El Malpais National Conservation Area.

Lava flows:

La Ventana Natural Arch:

El Morro National Monument where European passers by inscribed their names in the sandstone cliff. Earliest ones from the 1600s:

Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary, where the owner rescues mostly wolf/dog mixes:

Hiked in the West Malpais Wilderness:

 

[Joeprunc]

Looks like a good time.

How do you like your Northstar TC650? Are you completely happy with your decision, or do you sometimes wish you went with something lighter and smaller? Or do you wish you went with the TC800 and gain that extra 1.5 foot of extra space? Is it primarily two of you camping? Do you have dogs that accompany you also? Would you feel comfortable sleeping three in there? I'm asking all these questions because we are in the hunt for a pop truck camper...something used and probably a Northstar. I want to get the TC650, but my wife feels like it may be to small especially when our family grows to three. But a lot of our excursions we will be towing a ski boat, or dirt bikes, so a shorter top I would not have to put a hitch extension on, easing the nerves on the highway.

I'm surprised to hear that you needed helper springs on a 3/4 ton truck. The TC650s are very hard to find used in our price range, but there is a TC800 close by that is in our price range, we haven't had a chance to crawl around in it yet.

Glad you are enjoying your new toy!