camper tie downs?

[RSeymon]

A friend of mine just gave me a 11 1/2 foot slide in camper for my rig.



Need the groups advice on tie down system for the truck.



Thanks in advance

 

[LHartman]

Torklift frame mounted tie downs are a good product. Torklift

 

[wcjp]

When I had the slidein I sure loved using the Torklift tiedowns.

 

[dieselshu]

Torklift tiedowns rock!



Dave

 

[Bluhaven]

Torklifts are the only way to go. Search the classifieds here or rv.net and you might find a used pair.

 

[klenger]

I have a new in the box set of Stromberg Carlson tie downs that I have for sale. See http://www.strombergcarlson.com/page7a.html for details.

 

[dward]

I have used the Happi Jacks for both a 11 1/2' and now a 9 1/12' and they have worked great. No problems.

 

[tandersen]

I have had HappiJak and Tork Lifts and for a big heavy camper (I also have an 11. 5') the Tork Lifts made a very noticeable difference. They are a bit more expensive but well worth it.

 

[Rman]

I have happijacks. While I'm not dissatisfied, the torklifts really are a nicer looking mount. Oh well, perhaps I'll upgrade one day, for now these will work. One question for those with torklifts... I have a reese class 5 hitch, will they still work? I thought I read somewhere the rear tie down was incorporated into the factory hitch some how.

 

[tandersen]

Rman you are correct. They are bolted to the hitch for the rear. You need to tell them what type of hitch you have and if you have running boards(concerning the tie down configuration for the front). The Tork Lift hitch has a place to put them in and stick a pin through. I don't know how they do it for other brands. Once the initial installation is made they are very easy to remove and replace when needed.

 

[DPelletier]

My advice:



- Any sturdy frame mount tie downs. I use DSP's.

- Do not tie into the bed or the rear bumper under any circumstances

- I like using a spring type turn buckle (or other shock proof system, like the tork lift) up front and a rigid turn buckle on the rears

- bed liners are a no - no with slide-ins. A rubber mat is highly recommended (even if you have a spray-in liner) as it is friction that is the primary force holding the camper in the truck, not the tie-downs.





Cheers,

Dave

 

[DKlimas]

Dave,



I agree with all of your advice, however, I have to ask why you say:



" - Do not tie into the bed or the rear bumper under any circumstances"?



I am using one of the OEM bumper mounting holes to secure my custom rear attachment point. The rear bumper on the '03 3500 is attached quite securely with some relatively stout bracketry.



I believe that the Happijac rear attachment point is attached by drilling the bumper and then bolting on their bracket effectively using the thin bumper for support. In this case I totally agree with the above statement.



Regards,

Dave

 

[DPelletier]

Sorry Dave,

Using the bumper bracket or the frame attachment point for the bumper should be fine, what I meant was it is a bad idea to tie down to the bumper itself. The stock bumpers are way too weak to tie a camper down to. I see so many trucks with a little galvanized hook bolted to the ends of the bumper, and that is just not strong enough. I know Happijack uses a bumper reinforcement bracket to help this situation, but I prefer to avoid the bumper itself altogether. See my reader's rigs for pics of my setup.





Cheers,

Dave

 

[DKlimas]

Very good Dave,



We both agree that attaching directly to the bumper is not a good idea.



Nice rig, once this snow and cold goes away I will cleanup mine and add some more pics to my reader's rig...



Best regards,

Dave

 

[Mike Ellis]

Another for Torklifts, they are stout and work great with my Bigfoot - highly recommended

 

[Bill Stockard]

I've owned four different large Lance campers in the last 20+ years and used the old style Happijac tiedowns on a Ford in the mid-80s, Torklifts in the 90s on Dodges, and now back to the frame mount Happijacs on my '03 truck. The Torklifts I had for the 2nd gen trucks wouldn't fit the '03 and the Torklifts that fit the '03s interfered with the fuel tank fill door so I installed to the frame mount Happijacs.



I haven't had any problems with either the old style Happijacs, the Torklifts, or the latest frame mount Happijacs, or had a problem with camper movement in the truck bed. I've always used a rubber bed mat under the camper, spring loaded front tiedowns, and the Lance camper guides.



Bill

 

[GFritsch]

Torklift Torklift Torklift

 

[AKsmoker]

Torklift is the way to go.