no longer considering a fwc grandby, went and purchased one. the fun begins!

[bftank]

edit update purchased grandby on 2-1-2012. will post updates on it here starting at post # 17






i know the over cab portion is approx. a fullsize bed, question i have is will the mattress support a 6'1" 275 lb individual without bottoming out?

will the top of a grandby support a canoe?

i am considering a granby for my f350 due to its light weight and simplicity. it will be for me, my wife at 5'6" and child (6 months currently). hoping to have enough room for all of us to sleep comfortably, hopefully without having to make modifications.

planned use would be for going to see places like the grand canyon, moab, yellowstone, mexico. i am not planning on doing any majorly technical 4wheeling with it, but it will see rough county roads and some fire roads.

as far as the vehicle goes i have all the sway bar bushings for the front and rear replaced, some airbags i need to make new mounts for. i am planning on welding d-rings on to my lift gate for attaching the camper in the rear, and putting a bar under the frame on the front end of the bed from side to side, to attach the front of the camper to, until i get some sliders made for it.

any other concerns i should be thinking about?

 

[pods8]

It all depends on which style camper you are dealing with. The older regular length cabover (something like 32" if I recall) used a 2" mattress that was doubled over to fill the 4" spot while traveling. Lots of folks complain about that 2" mattress being inadequate. I think that is how the new regular length cabovers still are? The ones with the 48" cabover have a 4" mattress. The stock foam on my 2000 is quite firm so at 6' and 200lb I'm not bottoming out, in reality trying out a softer foam or two layer foam might be nice. Mine doesn't have room between the mattress and roof when down for anything extra up there, some of the newer rigs appear to have a bit thicker cabover profile so there is a bit more room to work with.

Some folks have used canoes on their rigs, however you'll either want to take it off before putting up the roof or install gas struts to help lift the roof (big thread on the struts over at WTW). Otherwise lifting the roof would be more taxing.

I'm unclear on what you're talking about for the mounting/sliders, typical installations use eyebolts in the bed and turnbuckles.

 

[Stan@FourWheel]

If you find an older Grandby with the shorter (standard) cabover, the bed will only have a 2" thick mattress, so you might bottom out on the cushion.

But if you can find a newer or buy a new grandby with the longer (extended) cabover, we use a high density 4" thick foam mattress on the models. You should be OK using the thicker foam.

Yes, if you have some sort of roof rack on top of the camper, carrying a canoe should be not problem.

The roof will be heavy to raise & lower with the canoe mounted, but there are roof lisf assists available these days, or you can just take the canoe off the roof before popping it up.

Is there a reason you want to use the "external" camper tie downs ?

I would probably suggest using the internal tie down method we use, or bolting the camper to the truck bed if you plan to leave the camper on the truck for long periods of time.


Just let us know if there is anything we can help with down the road.

We have a toll free line (800-242-1442).


Happy Camping !





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[bftank]

no reason in particular for the external tie downs. i haven't been around truck campers very much and just assumed the external tie downs were the way to go as that is what i have seen on some of the older chevy's i grew up around. it sounds like the eyebolts in the bed are a much better idea.

that disappointing about the thin mattresses on the older models as the 80's models are the ones in my price range. i need to see one in person so i can get an idea of the dimensions. thanks for all the help so far guys.

 

[bill harr]

that disappointing about the thin mattresses on the older models as the 80's models are the ones in my price range. i need to see one in person so i can get an idea of the dimensions. thanks for all the help so far guys.

I have a Hawk with the 2" mattresses, you can not sleep on them alone. However I use a REI self inflating 3 1/2" pad on top of the 2" and it is great. Just finished a 7,528 mile trip around the USA and no complaints. Trip report here www.wanderthewest.com/forum/index.php?/topic/5387/

If I could have found the extended cabover I would have got it for the extra room but I also shopped price and I am very happy with what I found.

 

[Stan@FourWheel]

If you find an older 1980's model, there is a good chance the cabover bed will have a 4" mattress.

The older models like that usually have a different style, flip up / flip down bed, for the cabover bed extension.

But once a camper gets to be 20 - 30 years old, i'm not sure how firm the bed foam will be ?





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[bftank]

not to worried about condition of the foam, it's more about the room to put decent amount foam in. i figure if it is stock it'll need replaced.

 

[goodtimes]

Keep in mind that with your '94 Ford, you're probably going to be limited to 1991 & newer campers. The older campers are 64" wide, the newer ones are 60". Measure the opening in the bed @ the tailgate - if it's less than 65", you are going to be limited to the newer campers.

The 2" foam used in 1991 won't be up to the task - been there, done that. Some guys carry a foam mattress topper to throw down over the stock foam - some use sleeping pads (thermarest, etc), We use a pair of AIRE Landing Pads (similar to Paco Pads, but half the price and these actually self inflate), there are a ton of solutions out there.

If you're handy and have access to some basic tools - the campers aren't too difficult to refurbish. I completely rebuild mine in 2 months, and spent a total (including purchase) of about $5500. I documented the basics of the build, and am proceeding with some of the lessons learned over at WandertheWest (link.

 

[bftank]

awwww man! i have a catch 22 going on here. my bed is 65"between rails, but the liftgate has a 62" opening. was hoping to go with the older model with the thicker mattress, and keep the liftgate on.

some good pics of the mattress and interior in rotbox's thread and got all excited last night.

thanks for the link goodtimes going through that now.

interior of rotbox fwc camper

http://i750.photobucket.com/albums/xx148/alaskanidi/Alaskan Camper/DSC01257.jpg

 

[goodtimes]

Can your lift gate be modified to give you the extra room?

The older campers (pre '91) are easier to find and command a lower price.

 

[bftank]

i think it would work if i could lift it over the liftgate. the part that is 62" is after where the tailgate would be when closed. as far as modifying it goes it would require extensive surgery and only net me maybe 2". i would rather just take off the lift gate. which doesn't look too complicated with the assistance of a cherry picker. i just would be able to have it on with the camper. i might be able to modify how it mounts to the bed.

alright it's decided the 80's grandby model is still being considered a good possiblity.

i will post pics of how the liftgate mounts in the next day or so. that way it is easier to understand what i am thinking of.

 

[ExpoMike]

My question would be, why do you still need a lift gate if you are putting a camper on? Seems like a lot of hassle to have it on for something I really don't see a use for, unless you plan to keep the camper off 90% of the time. If you do plan to keep the camper off the truck, you will want to get something that will be the right size to slide in and out as I don't know how you are planning to "lift over" the bed to install it.

BTW, we love our 2004 Grandby!!!

 

[bftank]

when i first bought the truck i thought of the lift gate as a nuisance and wanted to ditch it and the bed for a flatbed. it seems the longer i own the truck the more useful the lift gate becomes. makes a great heavy duty work bench, welding table, porch, vise mount, bike lift, step stool, etc., etc. i have considered bolting a spare tire to the outside of it, and all sorts of other things. it is a very versatile tool. is it something i recommend to all as an expedition upgrade? no i wouldn't, however, i appreciate it's usefulness and look forward to seeing how well this works out on some of my trips. or doesn't.

i don't think i will end up lifting the camper over the lift gate. the more i thought about this idea the more dangerous it sounded. i have the steel and am planning on building an a-frame hoist eventually, but i don't think this is a good idea for that application.

the receiver hitch that i have hangs really low, and i plan on rebuilding the hitch so that it bolts to the liftgate on the bottom, and in several places on the frame, supporting the liftgate and strengthening the hitch. i think with some creative modification i could make it so the liftgate bolts on outside of where the camper sits. this would make removal and reattachment of the liftgate much easier.

 

[bftank]

thanks david, that is good info to know about the newer grandby's. gives me some options.


no canoe as of yet just trying to plan for the theoretical future. my grandpa when he was alive had a roller system setup on an aluminum topper that he used to load his fishing boat up there with. hmm. something to think about. i probably won't worry about it to much until the canoe is acquired.

 

[bftank]

took some pics of what i am dealing with in regards to the lift gate.



paint modifications to the reciever hitch


the yellow represents a 3"x5" beam that goes between frame rails, .25" thick, that the recievers are welded to. the red represents a .25" plate that the recievers are welded to which bolts to the bottom of the liftgate, forming a shelf for the liftgate to sit on when mounted. this would make it easier to mount the gate frame. the frame itself would need to mount outside of the inner box some how. still thinking of how best to do that.