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Homebrew camper tie downs

WoodburyZuk

Well-known member
Joined
May 24, 2021
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3939
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I have a 2010 tundra and a 1988 sun lite hawk pop up. It’s always been janky tying it down. I use big 2” 3333# automotive style straps at all 4 corners, but I’ve been using the factory bed tie downs. I’ll pull the camper forward and back like an X. Last long trip at highway speed I guess the camper was floating a little bit:homer: and dented my bedsides a bit.

I was looking at these, but I don’t like the price:

I figure I can just sandwich the frame with some beefy steel, 4 big beefy bolts, weld a HF 2” hitch tube to it at whatever angle works, and then I’ll have a removable mounting point.

Am I overthinking this?

Thoughts?
 
:flipoff2:

I will snap some pics later.

This is all I got right now.

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If you look super close you can see the eye bolt that’s right behind that plate. Essentially I’d like to pull it straight down. There’s some free frame space right in front of the leaf spring hanger - which also happens to be the logical spot to pull it down and slightly forward.
 
Got it.

The "frame" you're talking about is the truck frame. You wanna attach some hitch sockets to the frame of the truck, below the box skirt so you can stick in some 2x2 pieces of steel to stick out and give you a place to attach some big ol turnbuckle tie downs.

That will work just fine. Not sure if there's a frame crossmember close to resist frame twisting, but might be something to consider.
 
Correct. Just sort of thinking about how I should fabricate it. I am by no means a fabricator, but I can make it happen. Maybe I can just make a big “U” that goes over the frame, and then I can capture it on the open end with 2 big bolts.
 
The previous owner of my 2011 F250 used it to carry a large slide in camper. He welded up some mounts for it. In the back he used a large flat plate to weld the mount to that used the same bolts as the hitch mount and bolted them all together sandwhiching the frame in the middle. I thought that was a pretty good idea. I can't remember what he did in the front. I still have the mounts sitting at the shop, so the next time I am out there I will look at it if I remember. I removed them when I put a new bed on the truck and didn't want to carry around the extra weight for no reason.
 
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I built these for our old slide in pop up. I wanted to do a receiver hitch style with single pin per corner instead of the 4 bolt flange but I couldn't get material fast enough for the first trip.

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I took some 1-1/2" straps and pulled the short end off and then solidly bolted the ratchet to the outrigger. It was not the simplest to take them off with 16x 5/16" bolts, but it worked for number of years just fine.
 

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If I made them again I was use HD straps too, I hate the steel hold downs and I don't know why the world loves them.
 
My SXS uses 1.5" straps. I don't see the reason not use them. I remove the straps from it when its in storage, just leave the ratchets bolted on.
A little shot of lube when I load it up to make the ratchets smooth.

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KDXSR5 said:
The previous owner of my 2011 F250 used it to carry a large slide in camper. He welded up some mounts for it. In the back he used a large flat plate to weld the mount to that used the same bolts as the hitch mount and bolted them all together sandwhiching the frame in the middle. I thought that was a pretty good idea. I can't remember what he did in the front. I still have the mounts sitting at the shop, so the next time I am out there I will look at it if I remember. I removed them when I put a new bed on the truck and didn't want to carry around the extra weight for no reason.
Click to expand...

Got out into the field to take pictures. I was wrong in the order things were bolted together. It went frame-hitch-camper tie down. You can see how it bolted on. The front must have just picked up some random holes that were already in the frame.

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I'm in the same boat here. Just got a pop up.

It came with the bed rail clamp deals, but I just don't like them. Despite the camper being only like 1300 lbs, I want to go to the frame.

I like the torque lift style, except how low they hang. I'm thinking of having the square tube angle up more once it's outside the bedside if that makes sense.

Also, fwiw, 2" tube is pretty overkill. The torque lift brackets are 1 1/2" tube. A piece of 2x3/16" square will loose fit a 1 1/2" tube similar to a 2" tube in a 2" receiver.

1 1/2" ratchet straps are an interesting idea, much easier to tighten and remove. Especially when going down low to this style mount.
 
Bumping this up.

My buddy is shopping pop ups for his 22 F250 and was asking what I use..... I've been just using nice 1" or 1.5" straps to the stock bed tie downs :homer:

He also doesn't want frame mounts hanging down as he want to use the set up for hunting and will go "offroad" he mentioned the old style mounts the went to the rear bumper and had 2 tabs that went between the cab and bed. I don't think that style will work well with new trucks having a scooped bed side to fit tight to the back of the cab.

I think I'm going to retract doing to the frame for a pop up. What about an angle iron that bolted or clamped to the entire bed rail, with some sort of tabs off of that?
 
YotaAtieToo said:
Bumping this up.

My buddy is shopping pop ups for his 22 F250 and was asking what I use..... I've been just using nice 1" or 1.5" straps to the stock bed tie downs :homer:

He also doesn't want frame mounts hanging down as he want to use the set up for hunting and will go "offroad" he mentioned the old style mounts the went to the rear bumper and had 2 tabs that went between the cab and bed. I don't think that style will work well with new trucks having a scooped bed side to fit tight to the back of the cab.

I think I'm going to retract doing to the frame for a pop up. What about an angle iron that bolted or clamped to the entire bed rail, with some sort of tabs off of that?
Click to expand...
Putting in the the time to put the steel flange between the bed and cab would be my suggestion.
IMO anchoring to the bed is a bad idea.
Rear telescopic off of the receiver hitch seems to be easy enough.
 
CarterKraft said:
Putting in the the time to put the steel flange between the bed and cab would be my suggestion.
IMO anchoring to the bed is a bad idea.
Rear telescopic off of the receiver hitch seems to be easy enough.
Click to expand...

People have been mounting campers that wiegh far more off the bed for decades. Like I said, were talking 1500 lb pop ups.

If you go look at the gap between the cab and bed on these aluminum trucks, it looks like it would be a huge pain and possibly end up damaging one or the other. Probably why they don't sell that style anymore.

You can still buy the clamp on ones or stake pocket style though. I don't see why what I'm talking about wouldn't be better?
 
My original plan if I was keeping the tundra and making it more or a “wheeler” was just to built proper rock sliders with the “bump out” at the back and then have a tapped plate on that part that I could bolt an extension to if I needed more length. Then fab up some sort of receptacle on the rear hitch that would receive something (haven’t thought it through yet). But in my mind this all seemed like a good idea and wouldn’t hang down or look goofy.
 
WoodburyZuk said:
My original plan if I was keeping the tundra and making it more or a “wheeler” was just to built proper rock sliders with the “bump out” at the back and then have a tapped plate on that part that I could bolt an extension to if I needed more length. Then fab up some sort of receptacle on the rear hitch that would receive something (haven’t thought it through yet). But in my mind this all seemed like a good idea and wouldn’t hang down or look goofy.
Click to expand...

I had thought the same thing. Even just some nice HD full length steps with an eye on the back would be fine.
 
Torque lift makes some frame and receiver hit mounted tie downs. They are two pieces. The frame mount sits pretty high out of the way when the camper piece isn’t in use. On the OBS, the front mount doesn’t even sit below body line.

May be worth looking into?
 
YotaAtieToo said:
People have been mounting campers that wiegh far more off the bed for decades. Like I said, were talking 1500 lb pop ups.

If you go look at the gap between the cab and bed on these aluminum trucks, it looks like it would be a huge pain and possibly end up damaging one or the other. Probably why they don't sell that style anymore.

You can still buy the clamp on ones or stake pocket style though. I don't see why what I'm talking about wouldn't be better?
Click to expand...

Aluminum is not the same material the "good ol beds" are made from.

I've never regretted taking the time to put in some overkill.
If they are really light like you say it shouldn't be too hard to get a anchor like you say off a step or something.
 
CarterKraft said:
Aluminum is not the same material the "good ol beds" are made from.
Click to expand...

1 piece of material to the other, sure. But as a structure, the aluminum bed is probably stronger than the old one. We'll maybe not like 60s iron, but probably 90s.

My thought was to also tie into the stock tie down bolts or the 4 bolt deal as well.

CarterKraft said:
I've never regretted taking the time to put in some overkill.
If they are really light like you say it shouldn't be too hard to get a anchor like you say off a step or something.
Click to expand...

Steps are mounted to the cab.
 
YotaAtieToo said:
1 piece of material to the other, sure. But as a structure, the aluminum bed is probably stronger than the old one. We'll maybe not like 60s iron, but probably 90s.

My thought was to also tie into the stock tie down bolts or the 4 bolt deal as well.



Steps are mounted to the cab.
Click to expand...
I don't have a problem strapping my SXS rack to the in bed tie downs, they are low down on the structure and are well tied into the frame floor etc.

I figured you couldn't get to the bed tie downs with the camper in it.
 
rockota said:
Steps don’t need to hold 1500# in an accident
Click to expand...

Exactly, I wasn't advocating doing it that way. Not factory steps at least.

CarterKraft said:
I don't have a problem strapping my SXS rack to the in bed tie downs, they are low down on the structure and are well tied into the frame floor etc.

I figured you couldn't get to the bed tie downs with the camper in it.
Click to expand...

Thats all I've been doing with mine. I don't like it really, but it's worked.

I meant to tie the angle iron mounts I mentioned into those.
 
Looking at the pix again I don't see why the lower telescopic mounts have to be so wide/low.

Wouldn't the attachment point still be much higher than a regular cab step?
 
CarterKraft said:
Looking at the pix again I don't see why the lower telescopic mounts have to be so wide/low.

Wouldn't the attachment point still be much higher than a regular cab step?
Click to expand...
Could be, sure. I thought about a dog leg as soon as it clears the bedside.

The pop ups (at least mine) are narrower than the standard campers, so the tabs may need to be wider to keep the tie downs off the bed sides.
 
I didn't have any factory mounts in my bed, I threw some e track in it to hold my popup in. Stronger then the single 3/8" eye bolt FWC uses in each corner for all the campers they install. Been nice having the etrack, has come in handy for all sorts of other things.
 
BustedCrank said:
I didn't have any factory mounts in my bed, I threw some e track in it to hold my popup in. Stronger then the single 3/8" eye bolt FWC uses in each corner for all the campers they install. Been nice having the etrack, has come in handy for all sorts of other things.
Click to expand...

I'm having a hard time picturing this. You put it on the inside walls of the bed or?
 
I still don't get it, if I did that my camper would cover them?

Unless you mean in front of and behind the wheel wells, but even then it would be almost impossible to get to in the front?
 
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