# Slide In Camper Pro's and Con"s



## banpouchi (Feb 21, 2011)

I am an old guy and was thinking of riding around the US by myself for a few months. As on a fixed income, these will not drive up insurance rates. I really do not want to pull a trailer. I will be buying on a budget also.

Any and all suggestions would be appreciated.


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## ramrod101 (Feb 5, 2015)

We love it! We love it!! We Love It!!! WE LOVE IT!!!!

With that being said let me give you my two cents.
To start with you say you’re on a budget, us too but when i say that what i really mean is I am cheap! Truck campers in good shape are not cheap! If you like the price then expect there to be extensive water damage. How do i know this well i liked the price of our Lance Squire. If the camper your looking at has a forward facing window look it over very well in the areas all around the window inside and out as well jack attachments and anchor points if there are any distortions then there is rot.

Dad had a truck camper when i was a kid and i loved that thing so when the wife said she was ready to down size there was no question on what i wanted, well there was but Casita had like a 3 year waiting list. Anyhow found our Lance at what i thought was an awesome price, which it was but it could have been a way more awesome price if I would have known more of what to look for then. Although it looked great the tie down points, jack attachment areas, back wings, and the full front clip (part with window that is over the truck cab) was all rotten.

After a few trips the front window gave way just from the wind pressure to and from camp sites. So it was either junk it or fix it, I did a lot of searching for another truck camper in great shape hence I figured out at this point good ones are not cheap! So cant break something that is already broken and started pulling the siding off to see what I could do. 

Long story short, I completely rebuilt the front curve removing the front window and the camper to cab window, had to remake all the front curve braces they were particle board along with adding a lot of extra bracing. Pulled all the tin along the sides and replaced all the rot using 2x4’s at anchor points and jack attachment corners. Replaced the wings with plywood (wings are the drop downs that hang off the back where the back step up door entrance is)pulled the bumper off with the wings along with the tank cover which reviled the straps holding the tanks up were in good shape but the lag bolt heads were completely rusted off, literally the only thing holding the tank up was rust fusion. Where I lucked out the roof was in great shape! Fixed all this then started putting all the tin back on. I ordered 4 sheets of thin aluminum diamond plate and replaced the tin from the edge of the roof down and around the curve of the front as well as where i pulled the camper to cab window. Then resealed the whole camper.

I know this sounds like a lot of work but it really was very strait foreword and easy. Even for this 50+ fat guy.

I have done a lot of other things to the inside just for our liking, in all we are under $5000 total for camper and all repairs as i did all the work, the outside work took around 4 days due to rain.

As for the truck part I have a Dually and with the regular bed on it well it was not easy to load unload, I now have a flat bed on my truck and it is way easier to load unload but still not something i would want to do at a camp site or at home so unless i really need the big trunk the camper stays on, If you will have a dedicated truck for this type of camper a flat bed is worth every penny as it opens up 100% more storage space that was locked away by the sides of a regular bed.














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## Rkaechler (Jul 28, 2016)

I'll second a lot of what @ramrod101 said, those things aren't cheap. They can command as much as a travel trailer of the same age. I picked up a slide in Starcraft pop up camper when my wife decided she was done with camping. It fits a long bed but is fairly light at about 1800lbs. It also has a low clearance being a pop up. My only two complaints is the toilet area is small and it has no A/C. I can fix the A/C problem by adding one but it would be pretty difficult to change the toilet area. Plan on much less grey and black water storage as well as fresh water when compared to a trailer. There's not much room for extra clothes or tools. The flat bed idea is good because you can hang tool boxes on or under the bed for more storage. They're great for one or two people. I'm not sure about extended trips though. That would take some planning. I know a family of four that use a Lance with an extra slide out bed on the side. They travel a lot with the two adults and two twin boys. His wife tells them to just stay put and she'll get what they need. There's really only room for one person to be walking around inside. If you're on Instagram check out folks like @roamlab, @flatbedroundearth and others. They travel extensively in truck campers.


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## Jerry713 (Nov 6, 2019)

Man they're not cheap, most require a heavy duty or dually truck and can be hard to sell at least compared to a bumper pull. Biggest thing I didn't like about them is when you're camping it's a pain to pack up and run to the store if necessary.

As far as insurance goes your existing truck policy should cover a slide in camper for liability purposes meaning damage to another vehicle but likely will not cover any damages caused by you, mother nature, etc. A rider or separate policy would likely be required for that.


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## atcfisherman (Oct 5, 2006)

Growing up in the 70's and 80's, my dad built a cab-over-camper for his 1976 Dodge club cab long bed truck. We used that camper from all over Texas pulling our boat for fishing, to New Mexico and Colorado for vacations and skiing all the way to California and many other states. Love having the ability to take it off at the camp site and to tow the boat. However, they are not as big as a pull camper or motored camper. But I would do it again for sure.


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## Wiper (Dec 20, 2021)

Hi, Limited budget is obviously relative, so my response may be off base, but IMHO you'll get far more bang for the buck towing a tag along. They're much less expensive than a comparable sized slide in, and require much less of a tow vehicle. Set up correctly (weight distribution hitch etc), I'm not sure that towing a camper is that much more adventurous than hauling a top heavy slide in unit. I rarely pass anyone on the highway. I believe the primary reason to get a slide in is for the ability to tow something else simultaneously, and if there is that need, then it's the best and in some states, the only option. I'm 68 and have had a 3 slide eagle cap 1165 (loaded wt close to 6,000 lbs) for 5 years that I haul on a F450 (this is far from an inexpensive rig), but I've been on several very long trips pulling a boat or a loaded utility trailer behind. Lots of folks don't offload their camper due to the aggravation. Unless I'm just overnighting, I invariably unload mine and use my truck. It's really not that difficult once you get accustomed to it.


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## redexpress (Apr 5, 2010)

Wiper said:


> Hi, Limited budget is obviously relative, so my response may be off base, but IMHO you'll get far more bang for the buck towing a tag along. They're much less expensive than a comparable sized slide in, and require much less of a tow vehicle. Set up correctly (weight distribution hitch etc), I'm not sure that towing a camper is that much more adventurous than hauling a top heavy slide in unit. I rarely pass anyone on the highway. I believe the primary reason to get a slide in is for the ability to tow something else simultaneously, and if there is that need, then it's the best and in some states, the only option. I'm 68 and have had a 3 slide eagle cap 1165 (loaded wt close to 6,000 lbs) for 5 years that I haul on a F450 (this is far from an inexpensive rig), but I've been on several very long trips pulling a boat or a loaded utility trailer behind. Lots of folks don't offload their camper due to the aggravation. Unless I'm just overnighting, I invariably unload mine and use my truck. It's really not that difficult once you get accustomed to it.


Slide in cabover campers are the most expensive RV's per square foot. They have to be built heavy duty to withstand off roading that some owners out west do. I've had 2 of them. Currently have a 9.4 Bigfoot on a RAM dually. Loading and unloading a cabover on a dually is a test of the nerves. I have maybe 1 inch of clearance between the jacks and the rear fenders, even with swing out dually jacks. 
Cabovers are great for one or two people. Easy to stop for fuel about anywhere and stop to eat without worrying about how to back out of a dead end. Easy to drive down the road without worrying about cheap Chinese tires, brakes, and bearings on a trailer. We have a 40 foot 5th wheel that is easier to "live in" on the road but a bigger pain in the butt to travel with.


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## cva34 (Dec 22, 2008)

I had several 5wheel/tounge pull/Cab over slide in/out (the latter is problem..biggest is stability 4 pads on leg to hold when removed tends to sink etc unless on Pad and loading and unloading is trying to say it nicely.....I have a Hi Low and its pull type BUT its not that heavy and low enough to see around and over...its got its Quirks and they aint made any more...and you can stand on 3f ladder or footstool and clean roof...service A/C


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## bwguardian (Aug 30, 2005)

For a budget style camper that can be towed easily, I would start looking at popup style camper trailers. My grandfather had the slide in cab over campers we use to stay in for long weekends on east beach in Galveston in the 70's. My parents had a Coleman popup camper we took several trips to Seattle via Colorado, Calli, Montana, Utah, and many other states in the 70's and 80's. They now have a 36' RV with 3 slides they take to Colorado during the summer for a couple months...they're retired now. I recently bought an older popup camper that I fixed up to leave in south Texas that I stay in while down there. It's mostly aluminum construction and only weighs 1,200lbs. so it can be towed with a car, plus they are typically only 12'+- long and you can see over the top of them when towing. This one sleeps 8, has a small kitchen, with no bathroom or a/c, but you can get them with that.


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