Tie-Down for a Slide in camper

[CBALLA]

I know this has been on here before but I cant seem to find it.

I need Tie-Downs for a slide in camper I bought.

does anyone have any information on them.

 

[RMH]

Tie down

The best method is to have a frame mounted tie down for the front and rear. the use of spring turnbuckles is requimended.

 

[Dieselnerd]

I've used Happijac tie downs on two different trucks for many thousands of miles with no trouble at all. I do have the reinforcing bar on the fronts. I'm still using then on my 9. 5 foot Lance camper. For real heavy campers you might want frame mounted tie downs but for lighter campers I think it's overkill. I don't just run over smooth roads either, I go on forest roads, logging roads and some places, no roads and they have never let me down.

 

[Powder Extreme]

I used to have the Happi Jac tiedowns, I switched to Torklift, big difference! The Torklift setup is hands down the best!. www.torklift.com



Jerry

 

[Dieselnerd]

Powder Extreme said:

"I used to have the Happi Jac tiedowns, I switched to Torklift, big difference!"

I have a dumb question. What is the big difference? If your camper is stable on the truck, doesn't fall off and stays where it belongs, what can be different? This isn't meant as a flame, I'd really like to know...

 

[HOSS]

What size camper? How much does it wieght? If you have a 12. 5 foot Artic Fox at over 3000 lbs I would mount to the frame for sure. If you have a 1300 lbs Lance Lite (I do) mounting to the bed is fine I do have the reinforcement bar installed. I use Happijac tie down and they work great! I'm with Dieselnerd how could there be a big difference over holding the camper still without stress on the truck or camper?

 

[dresslered]

Dieselnerd-



The Happi Jac tiedowns attach to the front of the bed and to the rear bumper. Since the bed moves independent from the frame, this setup causes considerable flex to the camper as well as the bed. This flex can cause damage to the camper (especially if it is a stiff framed camper) and/or to the bed. I have personally seen trucks with all the welds breaking in the bed due to this method of mounting. I have also seen cracks in the fiberglass sidings of campers. Don't let the stabilizer bar fool you into thinking that you've resolved the problem. Happi Jac has even realized the difficiency for the larger/stiffer campers and have now come out with their own frame-mounted version.



The Tork-lift tiedowns (both ends are frame-mounted) hold the camper as well as the bed together and thus the two can move as one. Bigfoot campers even caution against using the mixed method above.



I originally had the Happi Jac's installed on my truck for 2 whole hours of driving (to pick up the camper). I then immediately switched to the Tork lift and the difference is astonishing. It's like mountain climbing with rope rather than string.

 

[Dieselnerd]

One of the more common mistakes people make with camper tie downs is to tighten the rears too much. This applies to any type of tie down. When you drive over uneven surfaces the rear of your truck bed flexes more than the front. This is what sometimes may cause the camper frame or truck bed to be damaged, something has to give. The bed will flex no matter what type of tie down you use since the frame itself twists. The rear tie downs should only be tight enough to keep the camper rear from bouncing when you go over bumps. As I said earlier I used Happi Jacs with the same camper on two different trucks. About 50,000 miles with the camper mounted on a Chevy truck and about 30,000 camper miles on my Dodge. I keep an eye on the welds in front that have been known to fail on the Dodge and they are still perfect. Both trucks 4x4 and I do a lot of back country hunting. My camper is not a featherweight either, about 2800 pounds if I really load it up.

 

[HOSS]

When you tie to the frame or the bed of the truck you can use the Happijac tie downs. they cause much less stress to the truck and camper than a solid turnbuckle syle. Again it depends a lot on the size and weight of the camper being hauled. A friend of mine just had Airport Welding set up a frame mounted tie down system useing Happijac tiedowns and he loves it. (he hauls an older 11ft camper over 2300lbs)

 

[Powder Extreme]

When I said "big difference" I meant there is a definite difference in the overall way the truck handles. I had an 11' Northland, and currently have an 11' Bigfoot, both very large, very heavy campers. I use a piece of 1/2" rubber in the bed of the truck. With the happijacs the camper would always slide around, even on the rubber. In Montana we have some pretty bad winds. A 50mph crosswind is actually not that uncommon. That kind of wind would push the camper around in the bed, plus the bed and all would really twist making the camper lean quite abit with the wind. I also bent my rear bumper due to this "twisting" and I'm sure I didn't do my camper any good. When I bought my new Bigfoot they told me I HAD to have frame mounted tiedowns. The new camper, which is bigger and heavier still, has never moved in the bed. And when I get in the strong crosswinds there isn't near as much flex. Also the old way always "squeaked" as if something were giving somewhere (I guess it was). The new set up is rock solid and much quieter.



Jerry

 

[Crazy Horse]

Here is a link: Happijac Just make sure you use the stabalizer bar on the front end from side to side. They don't make beds the way they used to.