Rossmonster F550 ER type vehicle

[rruff]

I was wondering what the new F550 camper looked like.

 

[vwhammer]

I was wondering what the new F550 camper looked like.

Oh. Well they don't currently have an F550 with their shell on it but there is a Ram 5500 that will be at Overland Expo in flagstaff this weekend. I am sure there will be pics available after that.

 

[vwhammer]

Well I got permission to post a couple of sneak peek pics of Rossmonsters new Ram 5500.
These are from early on in the build

 

[rruff]

That's a bit wider than their 8' Baja, but looks like the same length? Thought they'd go longer to be more like an Earthroamer.

 

[vwhammer]

It is a foot longer than their standard Baja and 9 or 10 inches wider.
The F550 shown at the beginning of this thread is a longer wheelbase option and would likely have a longer box.
I think it's all dependent on the wheel base of the truck but the box length can be adjusted accordingly.
I also believe they kept the ram a bit on the shorter side for manuverability reasons.

To me it's a good size and the inside is plenty roomy.

Also for the record the Ram only came to about 15k lbs on the weight and thats with a couple of extra options that probably added an extra 1000 lbs.

 

[rruff]

It looks the same length as the 8' Baja, but definitely wider. These look like each piece is made with a separate mold, but maybe they have a method to tweak width and length without a whole new mold?

It seems a little funny to brag about a 15k weight. My rig is nearly as big and half the weight. It's all the stuff...

 

[gdaut]

It looks like a couple thousand pounds of wheels and tires on that grey model.

 

[vwhammer]

It looks the same length as the 8' Baja, but definitely wider. These look like each piece is made with a separate mold, but maybe they have a method to tweak width and length without a whole new mold?

It seems a little funny to brag about a 15k weight. My rig is nearly as big and half the weight. It's all the stuff...

There are a handful of molds and the parts are bonded together after being removed from the mold with or without extension pieces.
This is so they can build for both short and long bed models with the same molds more or less.
With the Ram they added 12 inches to the length of the long bed model and 9 inches to the width.

Honestly, no one is bragging about the truck weighing 15000 lbs I was simply stating the weight because there was some concern with the truck being over the GVWR.
Just wanted to point out that they are not.

Most of the regular Bajas built on the 350 or 3500 platforms are starting with a truck that usually pushes nearly 7000lbs straight from the factory.
I don't really have any info on what those weigh when finished but given the fact that Rossmönster will be selling them at RV dealers and that generally requires RVIA certification then I assume they are not over GVWR

 

[vwhammer]

It looks like a couple thousand pounds of wheels and tires on that grey model.

If I recall, the weight on one of those tire and wheel combos was a bit over 250lbs.
That's probably double that of the stock tires and wheel.

 

[rruff]

There are a handful of molds and the parts are bonded together after being removed from the mold with or without extension pieces.
This is so they can build for both short and long bed models with the same molds more or less.

I'm curious how they accomplish that without a seam. I guess if there is a structural interface that fits in the edges, that could be bonded?

With the Ram they added 12 inches to the length of the long bed model and 9 inches to the width.

Yes, I'm seeing it now. Looks like they are both 60" CA, but the 5500 has ~60" behind as well, at the bottom level.

Most of the regular Bajas built on the 350 or 3500 platforms are starting with a truck that usually pushes nearly 7000lbs straight from the factory.

The guy selling the one I took the photo from above, said about ~11k lbs... but no idea if he actually weighed it.

 

[Steve_382]

I'm curious how they accomplish that without a seam. I guess if there is a structural interface that fits in the edges, that could be bonded?

Yes, I'm seeing it now. Looks like they are both 60" CA, but the 5500 has ~60" behind as well, at the bottom level.


The guy selling the one I took the photo from above, said about ~11k lbs... but no idea if he actually weighed it.

They told me that one of the recent Chevy Baja units with the diesel weighed 11,300. Guess the gas would be 800 pounds less.

 

[Mack M]

The anomaly of the past few years is settling down. There will be a handful of companies left that are actually competing... no more inflated prices and 2 year backlogs. This could be a particularly bad time to make a big investment in a new product, as many barely used rigs are being put on the market.

If Truckhouse had started with the AEV Ram platform I think they would have been better established, and more likely to make a go of it. For a new company, Rossmonster seems to have a good product and good reviews with the Baja. A lot depends on how they've managed the business end.

For what it's worth, Rossmonster has been doing vans for a long time. They are just down the street from us. I even built a climbing gym back in 2018, and they did all the wood working in our gym. Ross, the founder, is a brilliant wood worker. It's great to see their business pivoting to the overland space.