Is this the biggest/heaviest TC on the market?

[Groover]

Rugged flat bed TC

"The 2023 Rugged Mountain Denali 3S is a hard side, triple-slide, dry bath truck camper made for long bed trucks. The interior floor length of the 2023 Rugged Mountain Denali 3S is 12’7”, the interior height is 6’8”, and the center of gravity is 64” from the front wall.

The Denali 3S has an 80-gallon fresh tank, a 77-gallon grey tank, a 35-gallon black tank, and a 6-gallon water heater. It can accommodate up to ten Group 27 batteries and has two 20-pound propane tanks.

Rugged Mountain is reporting the base weight of the Denali 3S at 5,538 pounds. The cost of the 2023 Rugged Mountain Denali 3S is $74,900."

Base price is $74,900. You can option it up to $125,000. 5500 series truck recommended as dry weight is 5,538lbs. Why not go for the F600?

It is a beautiful rig but it is a monster! I used to think that my old 12'6" bed length TC with no slides was large and heavy at 3,500lbs

[RobertRyan]

Grit dog wrote:

Photomike wrote:
I wonder how this will ride on a Tacoma??

Idk about a Taco but a Hilux would hold up! Lol

HaHa yes it would

[Camper_Jeff___K]

I know early on, S&S tried to make a slide out TC, Dinette only, and it had structural issues with the wood framing. They stopped making it after a couple years. Since this beast is going to be on a flatbed, it should be fully supported and not be subject to the same issues as a standard TC. With the weight and size of this model, I would think it to be prudent to install a few Simpson Z-MAX steel connector brackets in the most stressed points of the framing like corner walls and the cabover. It looks like it has decent solar, I would prefer about 600 AH LIFEPO, 3x200AH batteries in there and a 3000 watt Victron or Xantrex inverter charger to run electrical appliances and AC possibly in the form of a mini split. In our case, I could do without the rear couch bed area and convert it into a wardrobe, shelves, and pantry. Everybody has different needs. I'd also consider installing windows in the side wall of the slides. Something else I treasure on my current setup is the cab/TC passthrough. The cats love it and I can squeeze up into the truck in case of an emergency. It's not a friendly design for OffRoad and rougher terrain with the length of the rear overhang sticking out the back. For someone who's going to stick to the main roads and well maintained gravel roads, it's going to be a great home or home away from home.

[Grit_dog]

My 20 year old AF wood framed camper seems to be doing just fine, last I checked.
Sold it a couple years ago but as of last summer the only issue the new owner has had was another sticky jack.

[GTO66]

If it had a welded aluminum frame maybe. My alpenlite is 23 years old and going strong and I'LL its aluminum frame is a big part of that. The weak part is the rear wings, which i rebuilt with PT wood no issues since. Not sure the cost of a 5500 truck but 200k total wood be my guess.

[Grit_dog]

brain wrote:
The spray foam is a nice idea for structure, but it's much better if you put the structure together first and then press it into a mold and then inject foam into the voids from the ends. They do similar for structural panels for houses (called SIP panels, we've long considered building a house from them).

I also concur on the innovation angle. For the price, I'd grab a Okanagan 126TKS (I think Eagle Cap makes a follow on version, or did), which has the same interior space, does not require a flat bed truck. Both still require a 550/5500, but I rather like the idea of having a regular truck bed when the TC is not on.

Jim

How many class 5 trucks with a “regular bed” around?

[BigSwick]

How is the camper attached to the truck bed? I see what may be small tiedowns on the front, but they don't look big enough to keep it in place,and nothing in sight for the rear.

[deltabravo]

The next heaviest was probably the Arctic Fox 1163 Triple Slide.

[dodge_guy]

$75 k plus another $120k for a truck? For $200K I’ll just buy a super C on a Ford or Ram 4X4 chassis.

[brain]

The spray foam is a nice idea for structure, but it's much better if you put the structure together first and then press it into a mold and then inject foam into the voids from the ends. They do similar for structural panels for houses (called SIP panels, we've long considered building a house from them).

I also concur on the innovation angle. For the price, I'd grab a Okanagan 126TKS (I think Eagle Cap makes a follow on version, or did), which has the same interior space, does not require a flat bed truck. Both still require a 550/5500, but I rather like the idea of having a regular truck bed when the TC is not on.

Jim

[monkey44]

notsobigjoe wrote:

Photomike wrote:
I wonder how this will ride on a Tacoma??

Mike I spit my coffee... LOL

Nope, you'll need a Tundra for this baby ... 🙂

[notsobigjoe]

Photomike wrote:
I wonder how this will ride on a Tacoma??

Mike I spit my coffee... LOL

[Grit_dog]

By the time you buy a decked out Denali or Mammoth and a hot rod fancy 5500 to match it, you’re firmly in the 4wd SuperC range. It’s a limited market for sure.
Apparently EC and Host sell more than they can make or it wouldn’t make sense to get into building these.

[Grit_dog]

jimh406 wrote:
Advertisement aside, it will be interesting if it holds up with that wood structure held together by spray foam.

Also, I wonder why they put the center of gravity so far back. With a base weight of 5,538 lbs, and ten Group 27 batteries, it seems they don't think the laws of physics apply to them at all.

Kind of a shame that other than the wood frame, there doesn't seem to be any innovation in the design, but maybe I missed something.

What’s wrong with wood frame? Can’t say there’s an appreciable difference either way.
Kinda agree on the Cog although it probably wasn’t really an option to get it more front heavy.
But you’re right, it’s designed to only fit on a 60” CA truck. So that puts the cog almost a foot behind the rear axle.
Regardless I have trouble finding value in a $100k slide in camper. Hope for the mfg that others don’t.

[Grit_dog]

Photomike wrote:
I wonder how this will ride on a Tacoma??

Idk about a Taco but a Hilux would hold up! Lol