If accurate, could be good news for those who want a rugged, well-built , insulated camper shell for Baja travels. They used to do custom orders, from
empty shells up to full campers.
I hope this new venture succeeds! I've driven thru Baja with a Callen since 2013. Highly recommended.
callen
kevin_in_idaho - 12-30-2016 at 06:12 AM
They've been making shells for a long time and based on that photo, it looks like they may be making them at their home?
A friend of mine here in Boise, has one on his truck.larryC - 12-30-2016 at 08:10 AM
Well it looks like it is true, because that is Jimmy's house in Lakeside. I'll give him a call later today and see what is going on. Good to know,
thanks for the info Whaleista
so hey Larry...
Duffys Tavern - 12-30-2016 at 02:26 PM
is that a Callen Camper upside down in the pic there? Happier New Year, mi amigo. larryC - 12-30-2016 at 04:58 PM
is that a Callen Camper upside down in the pic there? Happier New Year, mi amigo.
And Hey to you to Jay. Yes that is a Callen camper upside down. Jimmy built me a new one after I wrecked that one, but surprisingly that shell was
still usable after the roll over. Just the front corner on the driver side was pushed in a little and the aluminum skin was torn some.
I talked to Jimmy Callen this morning and he says he is building shells again. He's doing it at his house in Lakeside. He is going to take orders and
build campers between October and April but after April he goes to his place in Colorado and goes hunting. He's thinking he will just do 2 or so a
month.Whale-ista - 12-30-2016 at 05:22 PM
Thanks for the update Larry- I'll pass along the info to others who have expressed an interest.
And I'm not surprised the shell held up in the crash- they are very strong. I suspect mine will outlast my truck!
[Edited on 12-31-2016 by Whale-ista]hombre66 - 12-30-2016 at 07:29 PM
I heard Callens have a steel frame. Anyone know what a Callen weighs for an 8' bed truck? Like to compare it to my Belair, which seems to be the only
other thing out there like it. My Belair weighs 350 lb with 8" of cabover. Paid $2200, new, for the Belair.Hook - 12-30-2016 at 09:15 PM
Wasnt there some discussion here about the older Callen campers being too heavy for the rails on truck beds these days? larryC - 12-31-2016 at 08:04 AM
I'd have to ask Jimmy if he knows for sure how much they weigh. I do know that they are made of 1x1" square tube with a 1/16" wall thickness. My guess
would be that the metal adds 50 pounds to the weight of an equivilent camper shell. Well worth it for the additional strength. I had Jimmy build my
shell as a slide in so it sits on the truck bed like a cabover camper and not on the bed rails. The metal the newer trucks are made from is so thin
that it almost only has one side.Barry A. - 12-31-2016 at 05:39 PM
Wasnt there some discussion here about the older Callen campers being too heavy for the rails on truck beds these days?
I ordered a custom self-designed CALLEN 42" cab-over build in 1982 and it is still going strong on it's second Ford pickup. It is steel framed, and
mine has a custom built steel rack on top also that covers the entire camper. The camper weighs in at about 800 lbs, and yes on rough-terrain it will
collapse the side-rails of your late model pickup. I learned that the hard way. I had to completely beef up the side and front rails of my pickup
bed to support it, and that worked great (after crushing my pickup bed sides and front somewhat). I am really happy that they are sorta "back in
business"--------a truly wonderful rugged camper, for sure.
TecateRay - 12-31-2016 at 07:09 PM
My Callen has a subframe that mounts directly to the floor of the bed - no stress on the rails. It did crack the bed originally but you just need to
go with a subframe, no problems and many Baja dirt miles since then.
My 1990 pickup held up okay, but 2002 had much thinner metal in the bed.
