I know that there have been innumerable posts about the subject of camper loading and the only reason I'm adding another one is that everyone at the recent Northeast TC Rally in Vermont that saw mine said “Duh, Why didn't I think of that?” Resisting the many calls to market or patent the system here it is for all the world.
1.I attached 3 wire tie pads approximately 2 feet apart along each side of the camper bottom
2.I loosely threaded a small wire tie vertically through each of the 6 wire tie pads.
3.I slipped a 6 foot straight fiberglass driveway marker into the wire tie loops on each side and lightly snugged the ties around the marker.
4.That's it.
To load the camper raise it above the truck bed and pull the markers 4 feet out in front of the camper. Back the truck so that the back of the bed is even with the front of the camper. The D.U.H. shows me 4 things.
1.How high the camper is in relation to the truck bed – Nice to know but not critical information as I can pretty well see that for myself just by looking.
2.I can tell if the camper is aligned side to side where I want it in relation to the wheel wells – this is good information. It works about the same as tape or marks on the back of the bed and front of the camper.
3.If the camper, and more importantly the truck, sits on a side hill then by looking at the markers I can see exactly where the camper is going to come down on the bed. Remember the camper is going to come straight down onto a slanted surface. This alows me to compensate, in advance, for the apparent sideways motion as the camper lowers.
4.This is the important one. The two markers come up about to the front of the wheel wells and lay over the bed. By looking at the markers I can be 100% sure that the camper is properly alligned in a straight line with the truck. Any angle off that straight line and the camper will seem to wander sideways as I back up. We all know that effect. The camper and truck are perfectly aligned before the truck goes under the camper. Straighten the wheels and back up...Duh!
I hope it works for you as well as it has for me. I've loaded about 5 times since I came up with the idea and it has made loading a Pleasure...Truly.
Thanks to twomaniacs2 for the pics. Thanks for all the nice comments about this.
Oh, if you missed the rally this year, don't miss it next year.
Ted White
FarcticOx
* This post was
edited 05/30/07 07:14pm by an administrator/moderator *
FarcticOx
Run Silent, Run Deep
2003 F350 Diesel DRW.
2005 Arctic Fox B1150 solar powered dry camper.
Working essentially the same as the wire tie, but a bit more sturdy, cable clamps. attach with a screw, sizit so the rod is loose. I used that method to stow the f/g rods on my small utility trailer to see it in the mirrors.
Bill & Jolene / FL 1997 Southwind 35P 2006 Yamaha 1100 Classic &
1970 Norton Commando 750 in state of recuperation (Almost road ready!!!)
6x12 Enclosd trailer
Seems like a great idea. I'd use something beside the rods IF I had room. My TC to wheel well clearance is about 1 inch on either side. I cannot fit anything in there. The rods may work well enought for me to try it out. If not, seems cheap anyway.
Ted, I like the name. Lauri took some pics of my modded D.U.H.'s when we offloaded the other day. If she gives them to me I'll post them here. Basically the same thing with 1/2" PVC tubes to hold the stakes.
Now that I have this great mod I've tried another loading method along with it that works exceptionally well with basement model campers. Rob told me about it at the rally. You just back up to the camper, centered perfectly of course by using the D.U.H. Put the back of the drives seat down, lean back and look over your left shoulder. You sight down the extra little wing bump for the basement and just keep it 1" from the tail gate frame on the left side of the truck bed as you back up. You should be able to see this gap the whole time until you are fully loaded on the truck.
It's one inch on a Ford SuperDuty with a Lance because that's centered at 1" on each side. Chevys and Dodges carrying other campers may vary. You'd need to measure your rig to know for sure. My natural tenancy until this point was to look over my right shoulder while loading. Once the camper and truck meet, you really can't see anything doing that.
2006 Ford F350 Lariat CC LB DRW
6.0 PSD w/TorqShift 4x4 4.10LSD
Airlift Airbags/SureSet Controller - Timbrens
2007 Lance 1181 - All the Options
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I like it!! The PVC tubes sound great also. Sounds like it would allow the guides to retract on their own when the truck is backed against them.
Lauri took some pics of my modded D.U.H.'s when we offloaded the other day. If she gives them to me I'll post them here. Basically the same thing with 1/2" PVC tubes to hold the stakes.
