Full size with service bodies?

Stroked 550

Adventurer
is anyone running a regular cab - long or short bed with a service bed?

any lessons learned that you care to share?

pros and cons vs a regular bed?
 

fatkins

Member
I'm running a regular cab with 8ft service body. No experience with regular bed but figure you'll have a narrower camper foot print but more outside storage...reverse for regular bed. Then there's the weight difference. Steel utility bed may weight more than regular bed. I allocate one compartment for my Honda generator, one for tool box, an outside kitchen, wood storage, compressor, etc. My 2cents
 

billiebob

Well-known member
thanks for the response, have you ever had any issues with damaging the compartments on the trail?
I always say an idiot can break anything. But a commercial mechanics service body must be the most durable component in the mix given the abuse they see in the field as a commercial vehicle.

And if you do break something most cities have several truck builders to fix it.... at half the rate an RV mechanic charges. My experience with them is on the industrial end, not the RV end.
 

Stroked 550

Adventurer
I go on tight trails e with trees on both sides or between boulders so I was concerned with damaging the compartments
 

Paul B.

Adventurer
Our set up is an F-350 four-wheel drive crew cab long bed I found an old service body and stuck it on there then cut and welded the service body so we can fit an older Keystone FWC camper into it. Works great I love it, the tools and recovery gear are in the tool boxes. The clothing and bedding and household stuff is in the camper.
 

Paul B.

Adventurer
A definite concern. Have to gauge your trail risk prior to commitment.
When I was searching for the right service body, the one I found had piano type hinges. It was an older style. Like I said in another thread, the newer ones that just has a little hinge on the top and bottom, if you rip that top or bottom hinge off, the door will fall off. With the piano hinge you could bang into it and I don't think the door would flat fall off. I've had that happen to me when my daily driver utility bed truck got sideswiped on the street.
 

Paul B.

Adventurer
It's got to be heavier than a regular bed. But I think it depends on what you want to do. If you're going to go overlanding with a camper, and you want recovery gear and tools and such then you have to have somewhere to put them. Yes it's weight. But if you need those things out in the desert, or wherever you're going, then you need them.
 

billiebob

Well-known member
I go on tight trails e with trees on both sides or between boulders so I was concerned with damaging the compartments
On the commercial end I've seen mechanics need a skidder to drag their service truck & tools to a broken down piece of equipment. Or drive in, have it rain and need a skidder to drag them back to the road. The only reason you get damage on a tight trail is by not having the judgement to keep it centered on the trail. I see more regular bed pickups with that damage than service trucks.
 

Stroked 550

Adventurer
On the commercial end I've seen mechanics need a skidder to drag their service truck & tools to a broken down piece of equipment. Or drive in, have it rain and need a skidder to drag them back to the road. The only reason you get damage on a tight trail is by not having the judgement to keep it centered on the trail. I see more regular bed pickups with that damage than service trucks.


Im pretty methodical with which lines I take, i was out offroading the other day in tacoma and we had some close calls with boulders but we were able to maneuver around them with maybe an inch to spare
 

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