wickedtuna
New member
Really nice of you, my family wouldn't mind taking a 5 hr road trip to pick it up. Please please PM me.
Exceptionally Cheap Raising Roof Slide-In Camper (like FWC Grandby shell); Portland
- Thread starter mhiscox
- Start date
2002tacomaPDX
New member
Hello! I would absolutely love this trailer. I work as a bird biologist and live many months out the back of my truck in remote places. I just have a standard topper and would really love a pop up. Just can't afford one. I live in Portland and could come today to pick it up. Please let me know! 845-532-5401. Thanks
mhiscox
Expedition Leader
As mentioned above, I'm working through the candidates now, but no news yet. Turns out I and won't know what's up until after the weekend. I'll be sure to post up then. (BTW: I'd also prefer e-mails over posting in this this thread if you do want to express your interest now.)
And I'd like to add a rough rule of thumb for your consideration, as I have had some questions . . . if a 4x8 foot sheet of plywood doesn't fit flat on your bed floor between your wheel wheels, this is not the ideal camper for you. You could make it work, but it'll likely look like crap because it'll be raised up another foot higher and the gap between the cab roof and the bottom of the camper's cabover will be five times the usual dimension. It's a camper made for a full-size truck . . . 98 inches sits in the bed and it's 11+ feet overall.
Thanks for the ongoing interest. I look forward to it finding a good home.
And I'd like to add a rough rule of thumb for your consideration, as I have had some questions . . . if a 4x8 foot sheet of plywood doesn't fit flat on your bed floor between your wheel wheels, this is not the ideal camper for you. You could make it work, but it'll likely look like crap because it'll be raised up another foot higher and the gap between the cab roof and the bottom of the camper's cabover will be five times the usual dimension. It's a camper made for a full-size truck . . . 98 inches sits in the bed and it's 11+ feet overall.
Thanks for the ongoing interest. I look forward to it finding a good home.
BulletHead
Adventurer
This is so exciting. I can't wait to find out wins this awsome giveaway. Thx Mhiscox.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
mhiscox
Expedition Leader
Buh-Bye . . .
I found a good home for the Roamin’ Chariot. It went away yesterday afternoon.
I’d normally count on the new owner to introduce himself, but since he already did, I doubt he’ll mind me sharing (hope I’m right): the camper went to Joe Jimenez, who told us of his hopes and plans for the camper back in Post 13. Joe was nearby, had the perfect truck, had a buddy (Dan) who is serial Roamin’ Chariot owner and was available to advise and help, and list of promising uses for the truck. Also a veteran and overall swell guy. So I got my wish for the proverbial good home.
Joe’s truck, in addition to being dimensionally ideal, was a pretty sweet old school ride. A ’94 Ford 4x4 extended cab with the big gas V-8, manual tranny, rollup windows, manual hubs, etc. The “it must be fate” points came from Joe’s truck being white with blue trim, just like the Roamin’ Chariot.
Joe’s truck was the best you could ever find for mounting the camper, but it was still a bit of a slog. There are only the two old camper jacks,
so you have to figure out the exact point to put them to balance the unit (obviously it’s marked now, but wasn’t). More annoying yet was that we only had one of the special handles, so you had to lift a couple of notches on starboard, then transfer the handle to the portside jacker, then back, then back, then back, repeat lots of times.
Once the camper was high enough to clear the bed and be impressively wobbly, Joe showed considerable skill backing the Ford between the two jacks--about an inch clearance on each side--and we dropped it into the bed and, as we’d expected, it fit like a glove. All in all, it wasn’t so much difficult as tedious. Certainly replacing the jacks with some improved technology would help, but even then, it certainly struck me as a 2-3 person job.
I enjoyed working with Dan and Joe and they seem to have gotten home with no incidents. The camper wasn’t going anywhere. They secured the right parts to attach the RC’s turnbuckle setup from the camper’s front anchor eyebolts to D-rings Joe had installed in the bed of the Ford. And given that the tailgate closed and latched behind the camper, it all looked safe as houses.
If you’re curious, and I know you are: I spent considerable time sprucing everything up, and as I worked on it, it became obvious that the leak damage was the result of some rusted out rivets across the front hinge, and that the gap was made worse by the roof getting skewed by the whack on the rear streetside. I feel pretty confident that a garaged/covered Roamin’ Chariot of non-ancient vintage would likely be a solid enclosure and that there's no inherent problem with the design.
It was raining hard off-and-on yesterday, but having replaced a lot of the rusty front hardware and then covered the leaky joints with sail patch tape, I’m betting that I got the leak fixed well enough for the camper to survive until a permanent sealant is applied.
As I watched the camper pull away
I was sad these aren't manufactured any more. 600 pounds, a top that opens and closes in literally fifteen seconds, plenty of headroom, credible sleeping for four, a sub-8-foot height mounted when on a full-size . . . I do believe that sort of thing would be a great option for a lot of current and prospective overlanders. If your pickup is in need of additional shelter and you see one of these on the used market, you might want to give it some consideration.
Thanks to all for the interest in keeping this camper on the road. All the people willing to take it were worthy candidates, but the combination of Joe's truck, his location, his availability and his plans was pretty much perfect for me.
I found a good home for the Roamin’ Chariot. It went away yesterday afternoon.
I’d normally count on the new owner to introduce himself, but since he already did, I doubt he’ll mind me sharing (hope I’m right): the camper went to Joe Jimenez, who told us of his hopes and plans for the camper back in Post 13. Joe was nearby, had the perfect truck, had a buddy (Dan) who is serial Roamin’ Chariot owner and was available to advise and help, and list of promising uses for the truck. Also a veteran and overall swell guy. So I got my wish for the proverbial good home.
Joe’s truck, in addition to being dimensionally ideal, was a pretty sweet old school ride. A ’94 Ford 4x4 extended cab with the big gas V-8, manual tranny, rollup windows, manual hubs, etc. The “it must be fate” points came from Joe’s truck being white with blue trim, just like the Roamin’ Chariot.
Joe’s truck was the best you could ever find for mounting the camper, but it was still a bit of a slog. There are only the two old camper jacks,
so you have to figure out the exact point to put them to balance the unit (obviously it’s marked now, but wasn’t). More annoying yet was that we only had one of the special handles, so you had to lift a couple of notches on starboard, then transfer the handle to the portside jacker, then back, then back, then back, repeat lots of times.
Once the camper was high enough to clear the bed and be impressively wobbly, Joe showed considerable skill backing the Ford between the two jacks--about an inch clearance on each side--and we dropped it into the bed and, as we’d expected, it fit like a glove. All in all, it wasn’t so much difficult as tedious. Certainly replacing the jacks with some improved technology would help, but even then, it certainly struck me as a 2-3 person job.
I enjoyed working with Dan and Joe and they seem to have gotten home with no incidents. The camper wasn’t going anywhere. They secured the right parts to attach the RC’s turnbuckle setup from the camper’s front anchor eyebolts to D-rings Joe had installed in the bed of the Ford. And given that the tailgate closed and latched behind the camper, it all looked safe as houses.
If you’re curious, and I know you are: I spent considerable time sprucing everything up, and as I worked on it, it became obvious that the leak damage was the result of some rusted out rivets across the front hinge, and that the gap was made worse by the roof getting skewed by the whack on the rear streetside. I feel pretty confident that a garaged/covered Roamin’ Chariot of non-ancient vintage would likely be a solid enclosure and that there's no inherent problem with the design.
It was raining hard off-and-on yesterday, but having replaced a lot of the rusty front hardware and then covered the leaky joints with sail patch tape, I’m betting that I got the leak fixed well enough for the camper to survive until a permanent sealant is applied.
As I watched the camper pull away
I was sad these aren't manufactured any more. 600 pounds, a top that opens and closes in literally fifteen seconds, plenty of headroom, credible sleeping for four, a sub-8-foot height mounted when on a full-size . . . I do believe that sort of thing would be a great option for a lot of current and prospective overlanders. If your pickup is in need of additional shelter and you see one of these on the used market, you might want to give it some consideration.
Thanks to all for the interest in keeping this camper on the road. All the people willing to take it were worthy candidates, but the combination of Joe's truck, his location, his availability and his plans was pretty much perfect for me.
Mike,
You were a total gentleman and took all the time necessary to get this RC loaded into Joe's truck. Also really enjoyed seeing your current project and the special custom add-ons.
I've been called other things in the past, but I'll gladly accept "serial Roamin Chariot Owner".
Thanks again.
You were a total gentleman and took all the time necessary to get this RC loaded into Joe's truck. Also really enjoyed seeing your current project and the special custom add-ons.
I've been called other things in the past, but I'll gladly accept "serial Roamin Chariot Owner".
Thanks again.
givemethewillys
Jonathan Chouinard
That truck looked like it was made for that camper 
Kudos to you for finding it a good home, and good luck to the new owner!
Kudos to you for finding it a good home, and good luck to the new owner!
mhiscox
Expedition Leader
Thanks for all of the kind words, gentlemen. Joe wrote me a very nice and detailed e-mail after getting home, thanking me profusely and also noting that the camper had received the always-important Wife Acceptance Certificate. They're looking forward to some good times with the camper and, as has been pointed out, it was pretty much perfect on that truck. So it's a story with a happy ending and I'm pleased I went to the effort to pass it on, and I appreciate all the support provided here.
The Toy Guy
Observer
What an awesome thread.
I am back in the area for another day, drove along Walker today and realized I had not seen a post from you for a while and tonight as I pack to head back to Taiwan I come across this - fabulous positive example Mike, thank you for sharing the lesson. - Cole
I am back in the area for another day, drove along Walker today and realized I had not seen a post from you for a while and tonight as I pack to head back to Taiwan I come across this - fabulous positive example Mike, thank you for sharing the lesson. - Cole