Building a camper on a 2006Ram 1500 advice.

Disclaimer: Links on this page pointing to Amazon, eBay and other sites may include affiliate code. If you click them and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission.

acolic

Senior Member
Joined
Sep 11, 2018
Posts
266
Reaction score
44
Location
Hamilton
Ram Year
2007
Engine
5.7
Good day

My son and I have spent the last two years rebuilding a 2006 ram 1500. It’s the quad cab with a 6 foot bed. It has an additional leaf spring.

Now we’re thinking of removing the pick up bed and building a truck camper on to the frame.

From what I can tell the payload capacity of this truck is 1400 pounds. I’m guessing the pick up bed weighs around 300 pounds.

Does that give me 1700 pounds to play with?

Meaning the weight of the passengers plus the truck camper plus all accessories must weighs less then 1700 pounds.

I’ve watched a few YouTube videos and I see a truck camper I would want to build which completed weighs 800 pounds.

Which gives me 900 pounds to play with people and interior accessories.

Just want to know if my math logic is correct.

Thanks

Alex
 

392DevilDog

Senior Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2019
Posts
1,939
Reaction score
2,893
Location
Glasgow, Pennsylvania
Ram Year
2015
Engine
392 Hemi
Your logic is good.

If you want to end the guessing...take the bed off and go to a CAT scale and weigh it. Then you will know for sure.

Weighmytruck.com
 

OC455

Senior Member
Military
Joined
Apr 20, 2018
Posts
3,038
Reaction score
2,610
Location
Central NY
Ram Year
2018, 2019
Engine
5.7 Hemi Big Horn, 6.4L Hemi 3500 Longhorn Mega cab
Most junkyards have scales that are accruate too....just ask if they will weigh your truck....may or may not cost you anything.
 

dhay13

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 12, 2015
Posts
3,212
Reaction score
2,792
Ram Year
2018
Engine
2500 6.4L Hemi 4.10's 'Off-Road'
Yep. Find your trucks GVWR and weigh the truck without the bed. The difference will be how much weight you can add including the camper, people and supplies. And I'd recommend weighing with a full tank of fuel just to be on the safer side.
 

392DevilDog

Senior Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2019
Posts
1,939
Reaction score
2,893
Location
Glasgow, Pennsylvania
Ram Year
2015
Engine
392 Hemi
Most junkyards have scales that are accruate too....just ask if they will weigh your truck....may or may not cost you anything.
If you can find one that weighs both axles that would be great. Most just give gross weight. And some do not care (like a quarry or dump)if the weight is exact, they just want to know the difference from in and out.

But yes, it would atleast be better than guessing. And if you can find one that is certified...free is great.

Just giving my experience. Having the axle weights is worth 12 bucks to me.
 

OC455

Senior Member
Military
Joined
Apr 20, 2018
Posts
3,038
Reaction score
2,610
Location
Central NY
Ram Year
2018, 2019
Engine
5.7 Hemi Big Horn, 6.4L Hemi 3500 Longhorn Mega cab
I've been able to do it, just weight the front first and then drive all the way on to get total weight. Scrap yards are usually pretty accurate, they don't usually want to pay out more than they need to.
 
Last edited:

392DevilDog

Senior Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2019
Posts
1,939
Reaction score
2,893
Location
Glasgow, Pennsylvania
Ram Year
2015
Engine
392 Hemi
I've been able to do it, just weight the front first and then drive all the way on to get total weight. Scrap yards are usually pretty accurate, they don't usually want to pay out more than they need to.
I was just giving my experiemce. Just quoted you because you mentioned it.

Around here a scrap yard uses the scale to weigh you loaded and unloaded. They only care about the difference. Same with quarry and dumps. At scrap yard they take the precious metals down to a certified scale and only weigh them. So, people are not throwing out their trash or having there 300lb buddy walk down to the road...hahahaha

I know one local scale that when I drove my 7000lb truck on it said 0. Here they zero it out...so they do not have to say they knew you were overloaded. This was years ago...but it was how they did it. The loader operator said it was cause joe couldn't subtract.

Doing what you did is perfectly fine. It will get a person very close.

I just helped a guy doing the one axle weigh and he couldnt figure out why his axles added up to more than his totals.

The CAT scale takes the guess work out was all.

I was just merely explaining that there are compromises...i have learned in the years of talking on forums...you have to assume people know nothing. Cause in 2 weeks when they got wrong numbers...they are coming back complaining...hahahaha
 
Last edited:

Latest posts

Members online

Forum statistics

Threads
194,926
Posts
2,864,177
Members
155,296
Latest member
VLG6963
Top