With that said, if good service stands out, then excellent service is definitely worth recognition… and that’s what I’ve received over the years from Four Wheel Campers, the makers of the camper that graces my truck. 

In September of 2004, I decided I needed something more substantial for truck camping trips than a shell and an air mattress.  I didn’t want a trailer, because I often haul the horses around, so whatever I got had to fit in the bed of my truck.  At the same time, I didn’t want to sacrifice road-worthiness and fuel economy with one of the gigantic cab-over campers.  A “Class-C” camper van or RV would never get me into some of the places I go on hunting trips.  And all I really needed was something with a bunk and a galley, and room to store some of my stuff. 

What I found was a Four Wheel Camper, a pop-up cabover that’s built specifically for people like me.  It’s designed to be used on off-road pickup trucks, but also to be comfortable when deployed in camp.  The camper is really lightweight.  I got the deluxe model, just about fully loaded (no AC), but even that one weighs in well under 1000 pounds, even with a full tank of water. 

Anyway, I already said this much and more in a review I wrote for Jesse’s Hunting and Outdoors back in the spring of 2005.  No point in saying it all again.  You can read about it there, and see how much I really like this camper!

Some people buy a camper like this and use it a couple of times a year.  Statistically, most of those folks tend to stop using the camper as the family moves on to other interests.  It ends up sitting in the yard, or sold off to make room for new hobbies.  Not so in my case! 

Since the purchase of this camper, it’s seen an awful lot of miles and time in the field.  I’ve camped from the high Sierra to the Rocky Mountains, and hit most of the great deserts in between.  I’ve hauled it up and over mountain jeep trails, and down interstate highways equally, and it’s served as well on a backcountry trailhead as on the paved lot of a RV park.  It has been my base camp for countless horseback trail rides, hunting trips, and coastal excursions. 

So with this kind of use and abuse, how has the Four Wheel Camper held up? 

Like a charm! 

Sure, there is some noticeable wear and tear.  For one thing, I never stay still long enough to wash the truck or the camper, so there’s a pretty serious patina of bug splatter across the front edges.  The vinyl sidewalls of the pop-up portion are also showing lines and grime, and the constant folding and unfolding has created permanent creases.  However, it’s still completely watertight, as demonstrated during a big storm during a January duck hunt this year. 

Over time, a handful of screws have rattled loose.  None of them have been structural, and I always replace them when I find them.  Usually they’re the small trim screws from the cabinetry, and it’s no big deal if a couple go missing.  Over the years the door latch has also worked loose, and requires retightening every thousand miles or so.  That’s annoying, but hardly serious. 

About the only thing that has seen real damage from the road wear was the window in the trailer door.  Apparently the doors are constructed with only four plastic pegs to hold the window glass in place.  During my trip to Colorado back in September, the washboard roads to the lodge were significant enough to break off a couple of these pegs, allowing the window glass to drop down into the door frame.  I was able to take the frame apart and replace the pegs with blocks of wood.  After a little window caulk to re-seal the glass, the door was definitely better than new.

I did have some issues with the water lines after a couple of years.  I noticed a white, granular substance in the water from the sink and shower.  At first this wasn’t a big deal, as it just clogged the faucet screen and I could clear it.  But the problem progressed until it would plug up the water lines, blocking off my cold water altogether.  I took the sink and faucet apart, hoping I could tinker with it and get it fixed, but I couldn’t figure out what was causing the granular substance.  I finally took the camper back to Four Wheel Parts, and this was my first experience with their high-quality service! 

When I arrived at their shop in Woodland, CA (just outside of Sacramento), they ushered me right in and got right to work.  From my description, the initial thought was that some material had been left in the water tank when it was installed.  There’s no good way to completely flush the water tank on this camper model (a design issue I did mention to them), so they ended up pulling the tank completely.  After rinsing it out and finding very little material, they went through the water lines.  I also asked that they replace the faucet, since the original didn’t extend far enough over the sink, and tended to splash water all over the back of the counter. 

The whole thing took most of a day for two employees to troubleshoot and re-assemble.  When they were done, I went to pay the bill and found that there was no charge for anything except the new faucet.  I was able to work on my laptop in their comfortable lounge while I waited, and they even provided me with a dataport so I could connect to my email. 

Well, it turns out that all that work didn’t solve my problem.  The water lines clogged again, so after almost a year I returned to have it looked at again.  I had a hunt at Tejon Ranch the following weekend, and asked if they could have it ready in time.  “No problem,” said Bobbi, the Service Manager.  “We’ll give it priority status.”

Well, I’m used to hearing that from many various repair and service people, but it seldom works out that way.  But Bobbi and her team were true to the word, turning the work around in only a couple of days.  This meant they would have had to push other work aside to get mine done. 

This time we found the real culprit… the hot water element.  This unit tends to crystallize over time, and is supposed to be replaced every year.  I hadn’t even looked at it in over three years.  Sure enough, the whole thing had disintegrated into white granules!  It could have been prevented by simply reading the manual they provided when I bought the camper.  Bobbi and one of the service guys walked through the replacement procedure with me, and she gave me another copy of the manual for future reference. 

Of course this was my fault, and I think I would have insisted on paying even if they hadn’t billed me.  That said, the bill was extremely reasonable for the amount of work that was involved.  The work was done quickly, and I was able to get the camper back on the road in time for my hunt at the Tejon Ranch. 

A couple of weeks later, I was trying to ease the truck up a mud-slicked road to a hog hunting spot.  The road was sharply off-camber, and I suddenly felt the rear end starting to slip toward the edge.  There was about a six-foot drop off the side of the road, and I did my best to power the truck through the slide, but gravity whipped me again and I held on and hoped for the best as the whole thing went over. 

Fortunately, the truck didn’t flip over, but now I was at the bottom of a steep draw.  The only way out would be to climb the truck back up, over the drop-off and onto a flat section of road.  I put it into low gear, and started grinding.  It took several tries, and each time I slipped back into the draw I had also side-slipped closer to a huge oak tree.  A couple more tries, and I’d be up against the trunk… and that couldn’t possibly be good for the truck or the camper.  The tree looked hungry for some truck flesh. 

I backed the truck as far as I could get it, and got a running start.  The diesel was screaming and mud flew up in a spray from all four tires as I rammed the Dodge up the ledge one last time.  I felt the front tires top out and gain traction, pulling the rear end up, and finally over!  I was out! 

I drove down the hill, and looked for a new campsite, since there was no way I was gonna try that road again.   I found another place about a half-mile away and pulled in.  I sat in the driver’s seat for a few minutes, letting the adrenaline die down a bit, relieved at the near miss.  That could have been a bad situation, and to get out without damage… well, that was more than I could usually hope for. 

I opened up the door and started around the truck to pop up the camper.  As I neared the rear corner, I was dismayed to see the rear jack-leg of the camper twisted back and up… definitely not how it should be.  Closer inspection showed a gash in the aluminum siding, and the jack bracket was hanging by only one screw.  I’d obviously caught it on something coming out of the draw. 

I went back later and saw that the oak tree, not to be denied in its appetite for my truck, had reached out with a huge limb in one last desperate gesture, and caught the jack-leg as I went by. 

I turns out that the damage was much more than superficial.  The aluminum stud that frames the corner of the camper was wrenched and cracked.  The screw holes were all ripped out as well.  I could imagine the cash register ringing up the repair total, but I knew I had to get it back to the shop to be fixed.  With the jack ripped off, I wouldn’t be able to take the camper off of the truck.

I rolled into Woodland again, and waited in trepidation as the service guy went over the damage.  I figured they’d take a few days to cook up an estimate, then shock me over the phone.  Instead, he came back about fifteen minutes later with a clipboard and a completed repair estimate.  He described the repair requirements.  The door would have to be removed, as would the spotlight, the “porch light”, and some other hatches and such.  Because of the way the aluminum skin fits together, the entire driver’s side would have to be replaced, as would all of the siding on the back corner.  The aluminum framing member would have to be pulled out and a new one put in place.  New screw holes would be drilled, and then the whole thing put back together again.  I could feel the cash in my pocket burning away. 

Then he showed me the estimate.  I gasped.  “I know,” he said empathetically.  “It’s a lot.”

“Is that everything,” I asked?

“Yes, sir,” he replied.  “Maybe it will be a little less.”

“That’s awesome!” I exclaimed, probably shocking the poor man with my joy.  “I was afraid it would be a whole lot worse!”

Now for the next big question… how long would it take?  “Oh, we can probably have it by Wednesday.”  

This was the Monday before my trip to Texas, so I told him that the next week would probably be fine. 

The shop called while I was in Texas to let me know the camper was ready.  When I went to pick it up, the bill was exactly what I’d been quoted.  While I waited in the lounge, they loaded my camper and hooked everything back up.  The tab paid, the service guy and Bobbi came out to make sure I was happy with the work.  How could I not be? 

It’s good to find this kind of service and quality product these days.  It’s even better to find it at a great value.  Four Wheel Campers not only produces a great product, they support it with great people and excellent service. 

If you’re interested in a Four Wheel Camper, check out their website, drop them an email at fwc@fourwh.com, or give them a call at:  (800) 242-1442.

In addition to the pop-up camper, Four Wheel Campers also sells the Six-Pac line of cab-overs. 

I’m sitting here this morning, eaten up with it.  I know I need to get to work, but all I can think of is hog hunting. 

My thoughts drift from actually chasing the hogs, to all the preparation I could be doing right now. 

My “new” hunting vehicle needs some work, since the brake lights and turn signals appear to have come unwired.  I also want to look into replacing the springs on it, so it doesn’t rattle my teeth quite so bad on the slightest pothole.  And, as much as I’d like to delay it, I need to go see if it will pass the CA Smog test, so I can complete the registration process.  I also want to look into getting a vanity plate for her.  Her name is Petunia.

There’s a big part of me as well that just needs to get out of the bloody office and into the field.  I know that envy is one of those seven deadlies, but I can’t help being a little jealous of the folks who make their living in the outdoors.  Game wardens, biologists, full-time hunting guides and outdoors writers.  Here’s what I really wish my office looked like:

Anyway, I guess I’m not feeling too bad about it.  At my weekly chiropractor visit yesterday, I got to talking to the Doc.  I’ve convinced him to join me at Tejon over the Memorial Day weekend.  This’ll be his first hog hunt, and he’s gone all in about it.  Every time we get together now, a good part of the visit is spent discussing gear, hunting strategy, ammo, and anything else related to hunting. 

The itch is contagious, and now that I know I’ve passed it along, it makes my own case much more bearable. 

I was initially looking for a Jeep, particularly a Willys, but it’s danged near impossible to find one in running condition for a price that a semi-normal person (that’s me) can afford.  After a lot of discussion with some off-roading friends, I kept hearing the recommendation to try the “Sammie”, and following research of my own, I decided to go for it.  That was four years ago…and the idea has finally borne fruit!

Pending any changes in schedule, and some time in the shop for some maintenance and check-outs, the Strike Vehicle will get its initiation to Hog Country at the end of this month, as I go chasing hogs and turkeys down at my friend Chopper’s place near Hollister, CA. 

 We’ll let you know how it worked out.