8ft 1300lb Camper in 1st Gen Tundra Double Cab? Share your Set up

I'm curious if anyone has experience hauling an 8ft slide in camper in a first Gen Double cab. I've scoured the forums but haven't found much. How did your truck drive? Did it cause a lot of wear and tear? I know the payload is around 1600lbs, and from what I've read the Double Cab has pretty slim margin to haul weight given the GVWR. Any advice on a 1300lb dry camper? Post photos of your set ups!

 

Payload is likely less than 1600# for a FGT DC. You haven’t found much out there because the setup would be less than ideal. Most go for a lightweight shell and RTT. Slide in campers really need 3/4 ton trucks for the suspension, payload and frame strength. 1300# is pretty light for a slide in, but as you mentioned, that’s dry weight. Few hundred pounds for gear, batteries and propane leaves you no payload for passengers and a top heavy, poorly handling truck.

 

Thanks for the perspective.

 

My camper weighs in at about 600lb lightly loaded so I'm not the best use case for your question. Also I have very little drive time with this camper in the tundra(<300 miles). At 600lbs the Tundra still drives great, but I would warn you that the loaded weight of a camper adds up quickly.

I have had the camper loaded to over 1000lbs (previous truck)in food/gear/water/etc for a two week trip, and I rough it by most peoples standards.

Personally I think traditional slide in campers are best suited for one ton trucks.

 

Somewhat related, for perspective . . .
I tow / camp out of my DC w/ a shell.
I try to pack as minimal for weight savings, but sufficient for basic needs, & safety.
This set up / load seems fine for the truck. . . but I wouldn't want to go much more.
Tongue weight is probably only around 100-ish lbs. & the boat / motor/ trailer around 1400 lbs.
Cooler, generator, tool box, tackle, water, and some personal crap, and I get 15 MPG on the highway.
Love these trucks . . . they just weren't made for much weight.
I refer to mine as a 3/8 Ton. LOL.

 

Technically a half ton is only 1000#. They are all overachievers these days.

 

Agreed . . . from my experience these trucks do 'ok' pulling (all things considered), but having just 'weight' in the bed seems to add up a lot quicker, if that makes sense.

 

That's a sweet little Whaler. Is that custom wood bench?

Thread jack sorry op

 

Thanks , yeah there's a lot more there than meets the eye. There's a stainless steel frame / basket that sits off the deck about an inch. Inside is the fuel tank, 2 batteries for the trolling motor, fuel filter, fire extinguisher, & tool kit. That seat back slides right out, and theres a base / support for a seat / leaning post in the middle. I got all the teak from a friends lumber yard . . . and even with a good guy price, it was still major sticker shock. I used silicon bronze fasteners for the teak, that was another dose of sticker shock as well! LOL

 

Mine does just fine pulling.

 

Fwiw, my 2wd DC 8' bed has roughly 1800 lbs payload cap and I wouldn't haul around a 1300 lb slide in with it.
Numbers are numbers on paper, but in reality, that's an awful lot of weight to haul around in the bed of a half ton for long stretches. And it's not just the dead weight, but the other stresses of wind, G force from turning, acceleration, braking, etc.
"Can" the truck do it? Sure. Just not something I'd be comfy with.
I've considered and weighed all the pros/cons of a diy slide in, a purchased slide in and a tow behind TT. Effort, cost, convenience, storage, maintenance, etc etc.
In the end, I'll likely go with a smaller TT, if I do anything.
I like the idea of a 600 lb slide in like posted earlier, but I'm guessing that wasn't cheap.

 

Thanks for the perspective.

 

Look at a company like OVRLND CAMPERS or the Project M by 4 Wheel Campers. They're both lightweight... Around 400-500lbs for your truck. Plenty of standing room and a huge bed up top. Depending on how you look at it, a negative is the interior is completely bare and you have to build it out yourself. For me... That's a positive because I want to keep it modular and ready to be used as a truck. So my interior build will be pretty basic. Fridge, some kind of basic water pressure setup, and maybe a cot down below that turns into a couch like the Disc-O-Bunk cots. I already put a deposit down for my camper. It'll be ready in about 3 months.

These aren't my truck. Just examples I've found floating around the web on 1st gen tundras

 

Here's one on a 8ft bed

https://www.instagram.com/reel/C0cSE1gPwe6/