There’s a lot of romance that comes with taking a road trip in a simple, classic truck. It’s just the open road, your truck, and those you love along for the ride. That’s the experience being offered by this 1971 Ford F-250 and its 6.9-liter IDI diesel V8 from a newer truck. Perhaps even better is what’s sitting in its bed. This truck is hauling a rare Del Rey Sky Lounge, an incredible vintage camper with sleeping for six through three levels, one of them a sky-high observation lounge! You can be the future custodian of this beautiful rig.
Campers that slide into truck beds are a great way to go on a road trip with your family. You don’t need to drive a huge motorhome and depending on the truck, you still have the capacity left to tow a boat, side-by-side, or a car behind your rig. I love the smaller, lighter truck campers of today, but it’s always awesome to see what truck owners of the past had access to.
Back in the 1960s, Del Rey was the first name in American truck campers and as the RV/MV Hall of Fame writes, Del Rey’s founder’s innovations changed truck campers forever. This Sky Lounge for sale on Bring a Trailer is a perfect example of why Del Rey was on top. It’s a camper that hauls a family of six in a Ford F-250!
Lasting Innovation
The owners of today’s truck campers have a lot to thank William Overhulser for. Sure, he created Del Rey Industries, but he did so much more than run the largest truck camper producer.
Overhulser was born in 1927 and lived most of his life in the Elkhart, Indiana area, earning a GED along the way. As the RV/MV Hall of Fame notes, in 1952, Overhulser started his career on the lines of Richardson Homes, one of the largest producers of manufactured homes. Overhulser’s stint at Richardson Homes lasted just five years because his real dream was to start his own company. That dream came true in 1957 when he opened Lil’ Sport Coach in Elkhart.
Overhulser built those first travel trailers out of his family’s garage and later renamed his company Le’ Safari. Reportedly, this upset Airstream, the registered owner of that name. This forced one more name change to Del Rey Industries, which translates from Spanish into “of the king.”
Overhulser didn’t just build campers, either, as he sought to make RVs safer. The RV/MV Hall of Fame states that Overhulser, through Bock Industries, invented the camper jack that you’ll find attached to countless truck campers from the early 1960s and into today. Overhulser didn’t stop there. In 1969, he invented a new way to secure truck campers to truck beds. In 1999, well after his retirement, he invented a form of automatic emergency braking for trailers that utilized air tanks and a brake pedal for the towed trailer.
Overhulser’s other achievement was being one of the founding members of the RV Industry Association. He sold Del Rey in 1969 to Gladding Industries to enjoy an early retirement, which included becoming a bush pilot and flying relief missions. Overhulser was inducted into the RV Hall of Fame in 2016 before his passing in 2020. Aside from his inventions, Overhulser is noted for the “iconic models of truck campers which set the pace for the burgeoning industry.”
It’s estimated that Del Rey’s operations closed in 1975, which could suggest that it may have been one of the victims of the oil crises and financial struggles of the era.
This Epic Rig
This camper and truck combination is currently up for grabs on Bring a Trailer for the next 6 days. Let’s take a look at what you’re getting.
The truck is really more than one truck in one. The frame came from a 1980 to 1983 Ford F-250 Camper Special. That’s the seventh generation of the Ford F-Series and power comes from an International Harvester 6.9-liter indirect injection (IDI) diesel V8 from 1983.
Depending on the tune, this engine is making between 150 HP or 170 HP and some 285 -315 lb-ft of torque. Keep in mind, that these engines predate today’s powerhouses, so don’t expect to get anywhere quickly. The seller, Mark, says you get four-wheel drive plus a four-speed manual. Mark, the seller, doesn’t say why they went with a newer chassis but does indicate the fifth-generation F-250 body was lowered on top, resulting in a 1970s truck with slightly more modern equipment, said to cruise fine at 60 mph. If you’re wondering about the combo’s height, and I know you are, the camper’s top towers a full ten feet, eight inches above the ground.
When new, the truck was two-wheel drive and was powered by a 360 cubic inch V8 that produced about 215 HP. today, goodies on this Frankentruck include manually locking front hubs, power steering, and rear air springs. Mark states that the truck’s axle seals, bearings, brakes, and tires have been replaced. Some rust shows on the body, but the truck is said to be solid with a new floorboard installed, too.
Of course, some of you are here for the equally sweet restored camper. I could not pinpoint exactly when the camper was made, but Del Rey was advertising these units in 1968, so it’s likely a close fit to the truck it rides in.
Del Rey was known for its physically large campers with the room to sleep large, 8-person families. Yep, that’s a better sleeping capacity than many travel trailers today, and Del Rey did it all on the back of pickup trucks of the era.
How Del Rey achieved this was through an interesting interior layout. Behind the truck’s cab was a main level with your typical camper amenities.
The trick is what happened up front over the cab. Climb up and you’ll find an observation deck. Of course, a family of six or eight couldn’t pile into a single pickup truck, so it was expected that some family members would sit in the chairs of the observation deck and watch the world go by. When it’s time to sleep, those chairs also turn into a bed. But that’s not all, as there’s a third slightly more elevated deck above the observation deck that contains another bed to sleep in.
Del Rey had multiple campers marketed as having three levels, including the Sky Lounge and the Ten Foot Tri-Level. The Sky Lounge appears to be a variation of the same concept. Only, this camper was marketed toward hunters, or perhaps anyone who may want to sleep in the cold. Del Rey advertised the Sky Lounge as being of unibody construction, available as a self-contained unit, and fully insulated for all-weather camping. Advertisements pitched the Sky Lounge as a “Deluxe Hunting Lodge” for families of six. I could not find any information about weight or tanks, but Del Rey did recommend that its Sky Lounge campers be hauled by three-quarter-ton trucks.
As far as amenities go, Del Rey advertised real wood paneling, plus the amenities of a home including a kitchen and bathroom. It would appear that the claim of sleeping six people is based on fitting two people on the bed created from converting the dinette table, maybe two people sleeping in the second deck, and two more people sleeping in the third room behind the observation deck.
Both the truck and the camper are great examples of how people used to go camping over 50 years ago. Forget spending six figures or more on a fancy van when you can ride in style in this time capsule.
Of course, time is something that wouldn’t be on your side with this rig, but that’s just another reason to skip the interstates and enjoy America through its beautiful country roads. If you want in on the ride, bidding is currently $2,901 with six days to go on Bring a Trailer.
(Images: Mark M, unless otherwise noted.)
The idea of this truck seems far cooler than the reality of driving it.
Still sweet, though.
Holy hell!
This screams sturdy Midwestern truck to me, but I can’t imagine piloting that wall through a blustery afternoon on the plains. You’d want lightning rods & goundstakes to deploy each time you stopped for the night.
All that effort on the chassis and drivetrain, and can’t spend a few $$$ at Earl Scheib?
Not a fan of patina.
If this was closer, would buy
And then put proper paint on that Ford
I used to have a 1989 F350 box truck with the 7.3 liter version of the IDI. It probably had similar driving characteristics to this truck with the camper on it. From my experience, I wouldn’t expect to cruise at anything over 60 unless you want to risk permanent hearing damage. Holy hell that engine is loud when you try to keep up with modern highway traffic. It hauled like a train though, and drove the same way empty as it did with a few thousand pounds of whatever in the back.
That is one sweet rig!!!
We had a cheap Open Road RV with a sleeper over the cab in the late 70s. As a kid I rode up there, prone, with my face to the window. It was like flying over the highway. Now imagine riding in style proud as an eagle in this camper’s observation deck. You’re going to feel the highway sway, the speed, each gust of the wind, and every single overpass is going to make you crouch and squint. Awesome.
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSP0yja8EGcIQLodyhTOJpHXHIS0GSbBce_GDeRQHTYBxdehYFG2DmQ9Jg302UTOaTjU-c4fTzAFOSxbi-FL9z3qfjkoffEANbVrevMPQpi39W7rE-ovwtEIt9D6dGOHvs7R6bDnt8oEk/s1600/Untitled-1_0090_Layer+2.jpg
I desperately wanted to post this as a picture comment. For those who know, it’s the “KING O FROD” license plate from the timeless 90s Nickelodeon show, The Adventures of Pete and Pete.
also any state that takes on the nickname “The Sideburn State” wins. They just win.
No dice
Seems like something straight out of Top Gear. I can actually hear Clarkson telling the audience how smart he is for adding an observation deck to his creation.
The camper is weird, but cool. The frame-swapped F-250, on the other hand, is amazing. Banks Turbo it and then put it to work.
Pretty sure that’s a camper with a truck underneath it.
Overhulser? Are you sure that’s not Overloads’er?
For less than $5000, I’d give that a NP.
As the previous owner of a naturally aspirated 6.9, can confirm that your foot will be on the floor a lot. Once there was an aftermarket turbo to be had …
…. then it’s still slow, because even a turbo IDI doesn’t make much power.
Makes me wish I was ready to pull a Steinbeck and hit the road. I’d be rolling with a macaw instead of a dog, but that’s got advantages. This is a great rig and someone is going to steal it. Good find!
“But I don’t want to be a pirate.”
This is a no puffy shirt zone.
Man, it looks like someone stacked a houseboat on top of that truck!
It looks like a hassle to get anywhere and I can imagine a crosswind would warrant a little clenching but once you get there, that’s a hell of a cool setup!
Thanks Mercedes! Now I just want one of these so I can go tornado chasing.
But with that huge camper, I am afraid the tornado would confuse the truck with a trailer park. That would probably suck as most diesels don’t outrun tornados well.
If that’s the case, then I would of thought you would want an Oldsmobile Toronado! 😉
Helen Hunt says she won’t ride with me unless I bring the truck.
May I suggest the Leyland Beaver as your truck of choice! 😉