ticki2
NH
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Joined: 07/09/2008
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You stated that before you changed tires and wheels you didn’t have the problem . What tire brand and size were on then . Double check the actual tires on now , perhaps wrong tires were installed . What are the axle weights for the truck and camper loaded for camping ? Also check the weight rating of the new wheels , many aftermarket wheels are not known for high ratings . It seems the problem all started with the new wheels and tires .
'68 Avion C-11
'02 GMC DRW D/A flatbed
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sportzfann
PNW
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Joined: 08/10/2013
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You will need to check your payload ratings, but that truck looks to have a payload of about 3500 pounds depending on options. The Arctic fox 990 is a heavy camper around 5000lbs loaded. On any single wheel truck, it will sway back and forth no matter what extras you put on it to control the sway. the weight of that camper is top heavy. Only way I was able to control the sway on my 990 was to upgrade to a Dually. I don’t even think about sway anymore, it does sway a little but not enough to worry about ,plus I don’t really worry about a blowout/tire failure while hauling that much weight. For me it’s a worry free trip, and that, is worth a lot to me and family!
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byronlj
Arizona
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Joined: 11/30/2002
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Are you air bags on separate fill lines or a "t" for both? If not separate, the air will run back and forth making things much worse.
byronlj
2013 Dynamax Trilogy 3800RL
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lonegunman
Eastern Washington
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Joined: 08/26/2015
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Rancho 9000 shocks are garbage. Mine were completely useless in about 15,000 miles, if they have been on the truck more than a few miles they are probably bad.
It sounds like a joke but I promise you it is not. The first thing you should do is switch to a shock from KYB or Bilstein for your safety and to protect your truck from damage.
You will see plenty of 990's on SRW F-350'sall over the place, a well made tire will not fail with a 990 on the truck it will simply wear faster and should be inflated to 80 proper pounds. Wheel ratings do not cause your truck to rock back and forth. 19.5 inch wheels will not stop rocking back and forth.
Your truck is plenty strong enough to handle that camper with airbags and since it is a 350 it should have come with a helper spring and sway bar if it had "camper package".
Torklift stableloads will help but when you remove the camper your truck will ride like a truck. If it is your only transportation you might want to consider that in the decision.
I have a 2011 Ford and a 2015 Arctic Fox 865, the rocking problems I had were caused by extremely poor quality shocks, namely Rancho 9000XLs. Buying them was terrible advice from this web site and the 19.5 inch wheel crowd.
As far as airbags, they need to be lined separately or air will simply move from one bag to the other, I figured that out after installing them for the trip home from the dealer, haha.
Yes your truck is heavy. I've seen plenty of F-350s with 990's pulling a boat or 4-wheeler on a trailer out west and no one is crapping their pants or buying 19.5 inch tires. That is garbage advice only seen on this site.
* This post was
edited 07/07/21 11:56pm by lonegunman *
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mkirsch
Rochester, NY
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Joined: 04/09/2004
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If it didn't rock with the old tires and wheels, then the solution seems obvious to me. Put the old tires and wheels back on. If it stops rocking, then your new tires and/or wheels are the problem.
What wheels did you use? There are wheels designed to carry loads, then there are "bling" wheels meant to just look good.
Your tires are rated for 3748lbs each (load index 126). With a ~4K camper you're already at 7000lbs+ on the rear axle.
Putting 10-ply tires on half ton trucks since aught-four.
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JimK-NY
NY
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Joined: 05/12/2010
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Arctic Fox 990 specs:
dry weight 3605#
AF basic package (jacks, awnings, etc) 595#
Water, 2 batteries, 2 propane tanks 660#
Total: 4860
You need to add weight for personal items such as generator, clothing, cooking/eating gear, food, lawn chairs, BBQ, tools, etc, etc. You are very likely to exceed 1000# for these items.
TOTAL: 5860
Almost all of that weight will fall on the rear axle. For my truck the base rear axle weight is 3200#. If yours is the same the new total on the rear axle is 9060# or 4530# on each rear wheel and tire.
Don't fool around with this. Load up for camping and weigh your rig. Then decide if you are comfortable with a grossly overloaded rig including overloaded tires.
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jimh406
Western MT
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Joined: 06/11/2006
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I don’t think there is any reason to assume 1000 for personal items. You can carry the same amount of stuff that you backpack … if you want. With my SRW, we limited what we carried. OP could, too.
On the other hand, it’s clear that you can see 990s on SRWs frequently in the NW. Yes, they are all overloaded. I’m sure OP knows that.
I added 19.5s because I didn’t want to be one of the people who had a blowout in the middle of nowhere in the NW. My Host is a similar weight, but I survived with my SRW for 8 1/2 years because a DRW wouldn’t work for my DD. Yes, I’ve seen SRWs with blowouts due to being overloaded. Some were pretty new rigs. Some stories have been told here. Overloading your tires is never a good idea.
For the record, my Rancho 9000s were still completely fine after 8 1/2 years. They do have a Limited Lifetime Warranty, so assuming you are the original owner, they can be replaced under warranty. That being said, I have Bilsteins on my F450. I didn’t think I needed Ranchos on 9 to control sway, but they definitely worked on my SRW. I have to assume Ranchos fail due to the posts that say it, but mine didn’t.
'10 Ford F-450, 6.4, 4.30, 4x4, 14,500 GVWR, '06 Host Rainer 950 DS, Torklift Talon tiedowns, Glow Steps, and Fastguns. Bilstein 4600s, Firestone Bags, Toyo M655 Gs, Curt front hitch, Energy Suspension bump stops.
NRA Life Member, CCA Life Member
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EYEMLOST
See Above
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Joined: 03/20/2021
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Very interesting point about tire wall stiffness and camper weight, and it's affect to handling. ![[emoticon]](http://www.coastresorts.com/sharedcontent/cfb/images/cool.gif "cool")
1998 FWC Grandby
1994 Ford Bronco 5.0 XL 4X4
Sky's ORD 6" Lift / Sterling 10.25 Dually 5.13 Gear Detroit Locker / '99.5 Front F-350 Leaf Springs at Rear / HMMWVtires
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Geo*Boy
Unknown
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Joined: 04/27/2020
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I just checked the 2021 AF truck camper literature and it still says, recommend a dually for ALL AF truck campers.
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jimh406
Western MT
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Joined: 06/11/2006
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Yet, they show a TC on a SRW on the landing page for their website. ![[emoticon]](http://www.coastresorts.com/sharedcontent/cfb/images/wink.gif "wink") https://northwoodmfg.com/truck-campers/arctic-fox-camper/
For sure, shorter stronger sidewalls help handling. It’s why that’s a typical modification for sports cars. That’s a benefit of 19.5s in most sizes.
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