ticki2
NH
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Joined: 07/09/2008
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bigjimcruising wrote:Take a look at my sig, you'll see a similar idea to the service bed. A couple problems I found with the service bed design is depending on the camper you might have to make some cut outs or changes to the rear area of the service body to fit the camper on board. I went with the flat bed with boxes since it was a lot cheaper and didn't require any changes to the bed or boxes. There have a been a couple others on this forum that have done the service body thing so if you look around you'll see a couple on here. Also it looks like you live here with me in commie kalifornia so be aware of the MCPA******that the state is saying we fall under when the camper isn't on the truck. Just something to look into.
Bigjim , what are you using for a ladder or steps with that extra height . I'm going to be using mine on a flatbed also .
'68 Avion C-11
'02 GMC DRW D/A
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bigjimcruising
Orange County, CA
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Joined: 02/22/2007
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Yeah it's pretty tall just to get into the camper. The camper came with a four step fold out entry steps so all I did was add a small foot step to make it easier for the girls to reach the first step. And watch your overall height, mine is about 13 feet to the top of the A/C. Out here it isn't a problem but if you mostly camp in heavy wooded areas it could be a challenge. I haven't had any problems but from time to time I do scrape some trees.
Also if you look around the forums you'll find a few others with clever ideas for mounting campers. One comes to mind his screen name is "woodshed", he has a camper on a service body. Another is "rouleau". Do a search for service body and you'll find a few others. You can PM them for questions or feel free to PM me too with any questions. If you're ever down in my area let me know and stop by and have a look at my rig to see what you think.
2007 F450 4x4 Extended Cab, 6.0 PSD AT, 9ft Flatbed with 8ft boxes. Okanagan 117DBL, loaded. 13ft tall! Happy Trails!
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saltamontes
la, ca
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Joined: 05/06/2004
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beside the width issue others have mentioned (off the shelf utility beds are not designed wide enough inside for most TCs), utility beds are mounted to the frame using spacers to allow for the tires to still have clearance and not rub the utility bed. This will raise the camper leading to an even higher COG.
best to build a custom utility bed that mounts as low as the stock bed and does not have the "flatbed" or boxes extend over the tires.
07 f350 srw shortbed 4x4
06 Northern-Lite 8'11" Q
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The Mad Norsky
Yankton, South Dakota
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Joined: 04/14/2003
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Try looking here:
Douglas Truck Bodies
Especially made for campers.
The Mad Norsky, Doll, Logan & Rocky
2006 Dodge Cummins 3500 4X4 Dually
RV'ing since 1991
We never know where we're going till we get there!
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DWeikert
York, PA
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Joined: 02/07/2006
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Take a look at what Dodge did to the Ram 1500 for 2009. Scroll down to picture 13. Not much use with a camper on, even if you had one on a 1500, but it's nice to see manufacturers moving in this direction.
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BiGG
MI - WI - FL
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Joined: 05/24/2002
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DWeikert wrote:Take a look at what Dodge did to the Ram 1500 for 2009. Scroll down to picture 13. Not much use with a camper on, even if you had one on a 1500, but it's nice to see manufacturers moving in this direction.
That new storage area is very cool. The greatest lacking on pickups is storage for even minimum basic survival items and that’s a great answer. I like seeing the innovative thinking also.
Looking for any information available on Del Rey "Sky Lounge" and Kamp King slide-ins for preservation/restoration projects.
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vanbikehorse
Green Lane, PA
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Joined: 10/29/2003
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Alaskan makes custom ones that do that. It looks like they have updated their website with a number of new pictures. I finally found the old blue one also.
2005 Chevy Silverado 2500HD SB, X-CAB, 4X4,G-80,D/A, ALCOA Wls, 265/75R16E, Air Lift Sure Set, SuperSprings, RS9000x,
2003 Alpenlite Laramie w/X CAB & Polar Cub A/C, Happijac FM, EU-2000.
2000 Brenderup Baron TC Horse Tailer
1996 Arab Endurance Race Horse
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SoCalDesertRider
SanDiego, CA, USA
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Joined: 12/14/2003
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BiGG wrote:DWeikert wrote:Take a look at what Dodge did to the Ram 1500 for 2009. Scroll down to picture 13. Not much use with a camper on, even if you had one on a 1500, but it's nice to see manufacturers moving in this direction.
That new storage area is very cool. The greatest lacking on pickups is storage for even minimum basic survival items and that’s a great answer. I like seeing the innovative thinking also. I like that idea. I also like the lower rear storage box the Nissan Titan's have on their truck beds. Ford had that idea way back in the 70's with the lower bed side tool box on some of their long bed pickups. Too bad they quit doing that.
92F350 CrewCab 4x4 351/C6
LoadNGo service body
69Bronco ATC250R CR500
20' BigTex flatbed carhauler
B&W TurnoverBall g-neck Curt Magnum rr DrawTite ft
HD springs Rancho9000s Bilsteins poly sway bushings
285/75-16E BFG AT on 16x8 Stocktons
4.56's & Lock-Rite rear
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msiminoff
San Jose, CA
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Joined: 12/31/2006
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I would give my left arm for a bed like that "Royal Sport Bed" in the link juschuman provided.... WOW!!!!
Appaarently Royal Truck Body made them some years ago but they are no longer available 
Has anybody here seen a bed like that one from Royal for a late model Dodge truck?
2004 Alpenlite Saratoga 935, 188w solar, RV-30S cntrl, Trojan T125, Prosine 2.0
2005 Ram 3500 QC, Cummins, Vision 19.5 w/Michelin XDE-MS 245's, RR airbags, Torklift w/Superhitch, Roadmaster sway-bar, Thuren trackbar, Rancho RS9000X, Modified bumpstops
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SoCalDesertRider
SanDiego, CA, USA
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I saw a Royal bed like that on a late model Chevy last weekend. Looked sharp. The owner said he bought the truck used with the bed already on it. I don't know what year the truck was. He was using it as a mobile RV service truck.
I thought Redding made beds similar to that too?
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