Finally buying a truck camper
We finally found the unit that we want. It is a 2002 Lance 1010 with aluminum siding. It is an extremely clean well kept camper. The camper has quite a few options, such as a generator, and a solar panel. We are supposed to pick it up on Saturday August 30th in Memphis. Buying the unit on E-Bay off of a couple who are no longer interested in using it. We are essentially meeting them half way for the delivery. I have owned three truck campers in the 70's and 80's. I also worked for 10 years, back in the 80's, as an RV service technician. I have zero experience with later model campers, as I have been out of that business since 1992. We sold our last RV in 2006. It was a 1988 Holiday Imperial 5th wheel. Our truck is a 2002 F-350 Crew-cab, dually, 4x4 with an 8 foot bed. Yeah they made a dually with a six foot bed. There is one in the town where we live. The truck is equipped with the 7.3 PS Diesel, a six speed stick and 4:10 gears. We bought the truck new in 02 and have maintained it in like new condition. The truck has 50K miles on it. It was ordered with a camper prep package, and has all of the goodies, such as HD sway bars front a rear. The GVW is 11,500 lbs. According to the Lance website the 2002 1010 weighs 2500 lbs empty. It is a fairly heavy unit, but by no means a heavy weight compared to some of the double and triple slide equipped beasts built these days. This unit has no slide outs. I have ordered a Tork Lift frame mount tie down kit, The front attaches to the frame, and the rear down kit attaches to the 20K receiver. I decided to upgrade the receiver because we tow a 4000 lb boat or a 7500 lb enclosed car trailer with a muscle car inside. We attend several car shows each year. Once I get the camper home, I plan to order the appropriate length Super Truss hitch extension to allow proper clearance between the TC and the front of the towed trailer. I use a Reese ball mount and 750 lb weight distributing bars with these trailers. Right now I am guessing that I will need the 32" or 36" Super Truss, but won't know until we take some measurements. I figure that some overloads will be in order, but will address that question when we return. We will not be towing anything this trip, so the stock truck should not have too much difficulty handling this camper on the trip home. Does anyone have any information to share about this endeavor? For instance, I once talked to an Artic Fox dealer who said that the Ford cabs are taller than other makes, so he places a few 2 x 6 x 8 pieces of lumber sideways in the bed to set the camper on so that there is sufficient clearance between the camper and the top of the truck cab. Is the case the same with a Lance? My goal is to have everything ready so that we can exchange the check for the camper, off load it from the seller's truck, back my truck under it, tie it down, connect the light plug and be ready to roll. The sellers are older, and I am just finishing chemotherapy for cancer. I am also about a third of the way through radiation, so my stamina is not the best right now. It will be nice if we can get this done with minimal problems. We are swapping out at the Graceland RV park at Graceland Mansion in Memphis. We plan to stay in the camper that night. Betty put in her request to tour Graceland since we are going to Memphis. The seller is nice enough to wash the bedding, and leave the camper completely stocked except for food. it will be ready to use. It seems that we have also made some new friends along with this purchase. We are both really excited for next weekend to arrive... if anyone has suggestions, please post them. Thanks in advance, Betty and Charles S.
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