New Slide In

[Gunny]

Just got a new slide in camper. I have been towing a 34 ft 5er every sense i bought this new truck, and have never had any problem's. Truck pulls 5er like a dream. There are times however when a 34ft trailer is not the easiest thing in the world to get into some of those tough places. So I bought the camper for those times. now my 2001. 5 3500,4X4 is not a short truck, it has not been lifted at all, but it is not a short truck. I unloaded the camper today for the first time, the camper is a Bigfoot 10. 6, and weighs 2145lbs, by the time I had the camper clear of the truck it was way, and I do mean way up there in the air. To make matters worse my drive way is on something of an angle, and to think of all of that weight hung off of those four jacks makes me a little uneasy. Maybe some of you guy's with a little experiance doing this can give me some advice. Look forward to hearing of a easy way of doing this. Gunny

 

[MUDDY]

it is pretty spooky with all that weight sitting up so high on the jacks. i hate putting mine on and off. mine is worse with a lift, taller tires, and a flatbed. i had to extend my jacks.



i plan to take a tractor with a scraper blade and remove some dirt where the truck would be lower by 2 feet and the jacks would be up on the higher part. i would then built a cart the proper height so you dont have to raise and lower the jacks much, and the camper floor would rest on the cart . i also tie my campers down good so the wind doesnt get em.

 

[wrk2mtch]

I agree, I've owned 2 slide-ins and having them up in the air like that always made me a little nervous. What about those stable-lift systems? Those look like a good solution.

 

[Gunny]

Terry H, Tell me more about this stable lift system. I have never heard of that, well hell there's a lot I haven't heard of. If there is a system that will add some form of stabilty to this bad boy, I want it. I measured the to the top of the camper when it was at it tallest, and that was when it just cleared the bed of my truck. The height was 11 ft 1 inch to the top of the fridge vent. And that's enough to make me real nervous. Any information, or maybe a web-site would be great. Thanks Gunny

 

[RBrunson]

Here ya go Gunny. http://www.stablelift.com/

 

[MUDDY]

i see a few of these devices hanging on to campers just waiting to get knocked off. if they get hit hard, the camper structure suffers as well. they are way too low for anything but a graded dirt road. a good idea if they are taken off for travel though.

 

[LandShark]

Gunny: Are you lowering the camper after you take it off the truck? No way would I leave mine way up in the air! I lower my camper to sit on double 8" blocks in the rear and also use two saw horses under the froor and a long 4x4 brace for the front. With all this, it's quite stable.



It does make me nervous when the camper is at the end of the jacks for loading and unloading.



As for the driveway. Make some angled blocks for the jackstands and be sure to keep the camper level while jacking. Then go out and buy a new house with suitable pads and garage space for trucks, RV's, and guest parking!

 

[Bill Lins]

Semper Fi, Gunny! I've got an old Alaskan slide-in that weighs about 1200#. A friend welded up a couple of pipe "fences" that I anchored into my driveway, far enough apart that I can back my truck in between them. He built screw jacks into the ends of the fences and I installed stub outriggers on the camper that mate with the jacks. After I pull the truck out, I place 4X6's across the front and back of the fences and lower the camper down onto them. So far, this setup has survived a 75 knot gust. Let me know if you want me to post a picture (if I can figure out how!).

 

[Happy Camper]

Very iffy when extended. I saw two Elk hunters who were sleeping in their slide in fully extended with a rickity stackof cinder blocks under it. I would not go near it let alone sleep in it.



Just do not get to far out of level as it puts a lot of strain on the front jacks.

 

[roadranger]

Gunny- Got the same problem you have.



My camper weighs 3100 ready to go (you'll be REALLY suprised when you weigh yours) ,it sits

11'4" high resting in the bed of the truck, and my driveway is pitched downhill towards the road.



Here's how I cope with it;



I place pieces of 3/4" pine board under the legs to keep the leg feet from sliding on the pitched concrete driveway.



Raise the downhill side up to level before raising the uphill side. (I've got leveler bubbles mounted on the back corner, both directions)



NEVER exceed more than 2" of the camper front getting lower than the rear as you raise or lower.



Once you clear the truck bed, ease the truck out from underneath (don't forget to unplug!), then lower the camper all the way down on it's legs.



Have had this thing on and off over a dozen times this season without a catastrophy.

 

[Gunny]

Hey guy's, thanks for the advice. Every bit of knowledge is good.



roadranger, The first time, well actually the only time, that I have loaded this camper, I did so without reading the booklet. The jacks that came on this Bigfoot are remote controled Happijack's. As I was lowering the camper to the ground, after pulling the truck out from under the camper. The one really big problem I had was one of the rear jacks would come off of the ground from time to time. I always caught this before it got out of hand. Now after reading the damn book it say's plan as day--NEVER let the FRONT of the camper get lower than the rear. I believe that I had the front lower than the rear, and maybe I had it so out of balance that it was trying to tip forward. I went out today and raised the camper up as high as it would go, keeping the front always higher than the rear. This seemed to work real good, and the camper appears to be much sturdier this way. I have made soom blocks that I laminated out of 2X12's to take care of the sloping drive way. They also appear to be working real well. Only time will tell, but I believe that I got real lucky the first time I did this. Thanks again guy's, Gunny

 

[DRR-24V]

You Were Lucky !!

Gunny,

If you had dropped that new camper on it's nose we would have laughed you clean off the Range at our next match. See what clean living will do for you?

 

[Gunny]

Yea Don,

Thats why I'm trying so damn hard to get this right. Don't want to come down to Avenal and drop this puppy right there in front of god and everybody. You and Lindsey would never let me live that down, never mind what that Swede might have to say. Gunny

 

[dresslered]

Gunny!



I have the same situation as you do! My Bigfoot is even larger and heavier than yours, and with the slight angle in my driveway, I thought that it was going to flop right over the first time I did it. To get the camper on/off the truck, I have to use an additional 4" block of wood under each jack. This really puts it up in the air! All I can say is that the legs are much more durable than they appear. I've even had it dancing on three before!



Once I get the truck out from under the camper I lower it on a platform for storeage. The platform is made up of cinder blocks, 4x6 beams, 1" plywood, and some various leveling pieces. I also leave a little pressure on each leg and the camper becomes extremely steady. Good luck!

 

[Floor It]

Gunny I didnt like mine that high either so I bought some 4x4 posts and built a plat-form, 4ftx8ft with a 4x8 sheet of plywood on top for the camper to rest on. I use a craftsman 24v cordless drill with a modified socket to quickly and easily raise and lower it. I'm lucky too my camper fits inside my shop and out from weathers harm John