Awning on truck camper

[NETim]

It appears that our wish has finally come true and we're getting a Lance truck camper in the next few weeks. Now I can kinda sorta justify the 3500 a little bit sorta.



Anyway, it doesn't have any awnings on it at all. I think I'd like to have a side awning and a rear awning on it. I have a Colorado Carefree awning catalog and I like the looks of the Freedom III model. It is a "crank out" model. Seems like the way to go since the camper is mighty tall when on the truck.



Any thoughts?



Thanks!



Tim

 

[dewdo]

I have a 11. 5 Arctic Fox with the slide out on the passenger side and after telling the dealer I wanted the awnings on the side as well as on the rear.



When I went to pick it up the side awning was on the drivers side of the camper. I asked them why they had put it there since normally you back into a site. They replied the slide out would hold the awning, so I now have a useless awning unless I want to shade the neighbors site. The rear one works out real well.



Unless they can put the awning on the passenger side I would pass on the awning on the side.



Good Luck



Dewdo in the other Washington

 

[Bill Stockard]

We had an '01 Lance with the Carefree Freedom III crank-out awning. It worked very well. You can either tie the supports to the brackets on the side of the camper or set them on the ground(be sure to anchor them properly!). What's nice about the crank-out model is when it's rolled up, it is in a plastic case and will not unroll in the wind when traveling.



On our '03 Lance 1121 we have a slide-out on the passenger side with a roll out slide cover over it. Also on the same side we have a pull out awning that goes out over the slide out and the slide cover. Works great!!



Both campers have the rear awning and we used it just about every time we stopped for the day. It's good for rainy days to keep the rain off the door when going in and out. Also makes a nice sun shade when the sun is shining on the rear of the camper when parked.



Bill

 

[NETim]

We're getting an 1130. No slide outs for us. The room would be nice, but I figure we'll be toting enough weight already with just the 1130 in back. So the awning can be installed where we want it. (Passenger side)



Carefree seems to be the OEM of choice when it comes to awnings and the crank out feature of the Freedom series seems to be the way to go to me.



And the more I read, the more I think the camper will need a rear awning as well.



Thanks for the feedback.



Tim

 

[MGordon]

NETim



We have a crank out canopy on our 1130. It's on the passenger side. A good sized canopy is a must for enjoyable camping IMHO.



We are going into our third season with our Lance and couldn't be happier. I hope you enjoy it.



PS If you haven't already done so, junk the useless factory shocks. You might also want to consider air bags. I know there is some disagreement over air bags here, but I think they help (plus you can use them to level the camper on some of the more "challenging" camping sites}.

 

[sheldon]

The awnings on my Summerwind 811s are on the back and drivers side. There was only one time I couldn't use the awning on the drivers side which was when I was parked on the street at a friends house. In all the other places I just turned the truck around. The awning on the back is the best thing I ordered on my camper, great in both rain and sun.

 

[NETim]

Rancho's

MGordon,



Yep, the Rancho 5000's are installed already. We had them on my 2500 with the little 8 foot slide in we had. They make a real difference.



As far as the airbags, I am still undecided. It seems to be about a 50/50 thing as far as good/bad opinions of airbags. I figured I'd drive it as is and see how we get along.



After the mystery of the disappearing antifreeze is solved, (and properly repaired) we will be heading to Cheyenne WY to pick up the 1130. I figure 600 miles of I-80 in WY and NE will give me an idea of how the 3500 will get along with the Lance with no air bags. Somehow I think we will encounter some wind somewhere along the journey.



Tim

 

[JohnMcIntyre]

A good choice of awning Tim, I have the same unit on my Lance 1130 for two years now, as a factory installed option. You might want to consider the walls and windows option, if your budget will allow - these are suspended from the awning on all sides and do a pretty good job of keeping flying critters out of your face. Takes just a few moments to hand crank out the awning and about another 30 minutes to finish off the sides. Have a look at the latest Lance campers catalog on-line, where you'll find pictures of this set-up.