Just picked up a '88 F150 4x4 long bed. Curious if people have had luck getting water-tight seals with other branded shells, especially more recent ones. From what I understand, '96 was the year they began including a taper which changed the fittings. Does this mean I'm SOL on getting a water-tight seal with those later ones?

A different thought was maybe going the route of getting a soft shell. I have zero experience with these, but am looking to camp around the PNW and up in the Sierra Nevadas. Too cold?

 

You should put ALL the truck's details & history (as much as you know) into your signature so it shows with each post, as this page explains:

(click this text)


Phone apps don't always show signatures, so you may need to switch to a real browser in desktop mode on your phone, or just use a desktop/laptop computer. Put your location (nearest city) in your profile & upload an avatar of the truck. The more pics you post (NOT in your sig) of the truck, engine, wiring, labels, & undercarriage, the more likely we can help you. Not all its details are relevant to these issues, but you don't necessarily know which ones are relevant, so just put everything in now.Other than what? You didn't say what you have now that leaks.Who began including a taper where on what?For what? A hotel? A heavy coat? A sleeping bag? Only you can say what's too cold for you.

The interior of a vehicle is among the coldest places to sleep because ambient air flows all the way around it, bringing its interior down to ambient temperature quickly. It's easy to add remote start with automatic freeze protection & a remote heater core; it's even easier to add a small inverter generator & electric blanket.

 

That's great. Don't know how I missed others doing this when I was browsing around for answers to this question. Will add sometime in the next few days.

Was referring to the bed tapering inward as you go further back, which as I understand it was introduced for aerodynamic reasons. Was curious about the history, so I did a bit of research. Truthfully, there isn't a lot of info about the history on when the taper was introduced, but seems like Chevy was one of the first to do this in '88, and that Ford kicked it off with the F150 redesign in '97.

So what I'm really curious about is for those with these '87-'96 long bed models (FX50), what have people had success with shell-wise? Gave the search bar a good try looking for threads talking about camper shell compatibilities across brands and models, but not a lot of hits for these earlier models. Most of the results were asking if a '97 could use an '06 shell.

Sorry, clearly I came off as a low-effort newb poster (which, I guess it was). I really am curious in hearing about people's experiences. I was probing for responses to the soft shell question that looked something like, "Personally, I found the soft shell to be more than adequate with a 30° sleeping bag" or just hearing anecdotal evidence for/against the soft shell.

Yeah, I wish I had welding gear so I could add a mount for a second battery up front :sad: The remote start + freeze protection is a great idea. I'm kicking around in California and am planning on eventually making it through the Sierra Nevadas and into the Rockies, but I've been pushing this off as I'm a bit stressed about the effect of the frost (I haven't started reading enough to even know what the risks are, so it's 'known unknowns' all the way down).

I appreciate the long, thorough reply Steve!

 

As an example, I found a '95 Silverado long bed. I've been using this (https://raybuck.com/pickup-truck-bed-size-dimensions/) to give an estimate for fitting. Length-wise, this seems ideal. But I know that the post-'88 Chevys have the taper, and when looking at that chart, you can see that the "outer bed" width is off by two inches. Anyone here know if that's actually going to be an issue?

 

If you are looking for water resistance, you can get rolls of tape specifically for mounting a camper shell. If you are worried about fitment, try getting one used from somebody who has a '80-'96 ford truck on somewhere like facebook or craigslist. If it fit their truck, it will fit yours. (as long as bed length is the same, of course.)

 

Yeah, I've had my eyes out for a little while. Been checking Craigslist, FB Marketplace, and Offerup. They're definitely not that common, at least in northern-ish California Found one in Colorado, so right now I'm leaning towards not thinking about the shell, doing a tune-up, getting an undercoat, and then maybe in a week or so going out that way.

 

They have success with camper shells designed to fit their trucks. If you have an '80-96/7 F-series 8' fleetside, buy a camper designed to fit that. If you buy any other shell, you will have less success. But I don't think campers for these 25-43-year-old trucks are being produced any more. So I think you're limited to what you can find used, or what you can fabricate, or have fabricated.IDK what you mean. The effect of frost is a thin layer of ice crystals on something. The risks of frost include frostbite (on living tissue), & reduced visibility (through windows).