6 replies to this topic

[Tomas Tierra]

Adding (in this case) ripped down 2x4 between bed rail and camper to let some of the weight sit on the bed rail.Also keeps "some" weather out of your bed.I did this on my old Fleet model fwc because it stuck out the side so far. I was worried about sway tearing the camper apart, and wanted to spread the load to my bed rails a bit. My buddy has done it on his Eagle/Tacoma set up(pictured). Anybody else done this?? And, what do the factory boys think of this?? Stan, Ben, is this healthy or un-healthy for the camper??

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[Tomas Tierra]

Another angle...

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[Sam]

I don't think that it will hurt the camper as this is the same point were the entire camper is lifted with the portable jacks. I don't really see the advantage and it seems like it could add quite a bit of stress to your bed, but I may be missing somethng here?

[Pete D]

Off the topic, but I see you are using pipe insulation as rack padding. I have found swim noodles from Wally (the kind with the hole down the center) to last a bit longer and leave no marks on my kayak. This is a good time of year because they go on sale.

[benburnett]

While the idea sounds good I think that over time you are going to create more problems with this. The campers over the years have been designed and proven to withstand the torque that your bed experiences every time you go over a bump, rock, uneven surface or even up a hill.

To make a point of this, go over a speed bump at an angle so that just one front tire is on top of the bump, now look at how much flex is going through your truck bed and the camper. I have seen this flex enough to put a line in the side of the camper while it was happening. The camper is designed to flex in this way with the bed of your truck.

Now putting the extra support down the side rail as the picture shows is just going to increase the stress that the flex causes transferring more of the bed flex into the side wall of the camper. This is also going to increase the vibration of just everyday driving and every small bump into the camper.

Again, the campers have proven themselves over the years to hold together and the few weak points that we have found over the years have been fixed.

I will never say that we can't still improve upon the design and our customers have come up with a lot of the improvements over the years for us. I just don't think that this one will help in the long run.

The other down side to this one is the wear and tear it is also going to create on the top of the bed rail. Dust will get into that area and over time just chew the paint right off for you. While this will not hurt the overall durability of the truck, it is just a cosmetic consequence of the application.

[Tomas Tierra]

Thanx for the replies on this ( and the noodle idea as well,makes sense).Ben your explanation is perfectly logical. I truely appreciate your willingness to share your experience and knowledge with the board.

I originally did this because my first FWC fleet was anchored through the floor/truck bed. I was afraid that the torque and stress of offroading would be to much for the camper to take, and the camper would rip away from the floor.

I have not done this with my new Ranger, and will not worry about it now..

[benburnett]

Your welcome. The Fleet was a bad design and could have probably used the help. Hence the Fleet was a short lived model also.