Introducing Palomino’s lightest current hard-side camper. The new HS-600 targets stout half-ton trucks, trimming weight while keeping convenience on board. Looking for an affordable, lightweight, hard side with a cassette toilet? The HS-600 is calling.
According to GM and Stellantis’ third-quarter sales reports, Chevrolet, GMC, and RAM sold a combined 656,154 half-ton pickups in the U.S. through September 2026, nearly twice their 335,216 heavy-duty pickups. Ford combines F-150 and Super Duty sales under ‘F-Series’, so its report doesn’t provide the split needed to include Ford in that comparison. Even without Ford, that’s a lot of truck beds worth going after for camper manufacturers.
To reach all those half-ton truck owners, the industry has pursued lighter materials, compact floor plans, and more selective feature lists. But “Honey, I shrunk the camper” only works if the finished product leaves enough truck payload for people, water, and camping gear. The challenge is deciding which features to keep and what buyers are willing to leave behind.
Palomino already knows the lightweight market through its pop-up camper lineup, but reaching more half-ton owners with a hard side meant going smaller and lighter. Dealer and customer feedback pointed to a straightforward solution. Some owners wanted a toilet but could live without the indoor shower. Goodbye, wet bath.
That brings us to the all-new HS-600, the lightest hard side in Palomino’s current lineup. We stepped inside at the Forest River Expo in Elkhart, Indiana, this fall and found an inviting dinette, queen-size east-west cabover, kitchen, and built-in cassette toilet. At a reported base dry weight of 1,641 pounds, it also comes standard with 400 watts of solar and a 100Ah lithium battery. The interior shower may have departed, but plenty made the cut.
The HS-600 still requires a properly configured half-ton with sufficient payload for the camper, options, occupants, and loaded gear. It won’t work with every half-ton truck, but it’s a step forward in Palomino’s effort to bring hard side camping to more half-ton owners.
To learn about Palomino’s newest and smallest hard side truck camper, we talked to Ben Meloche, General Manager of Palomino RV.
Above: HS-600 floor plan
The Palomino HS-600 is a hard-side, non-slide, truck camper made for short bed trucks. The interior floor length of the Palomino HS-600 is 6′8″, the width is 7’2″, and the interior height is 6’6”.
The Palomino HS-600 has a 15-gallon fresh water tank, no grey tank, and a 5-gallon black tank. The camper comes standard with one 100Ah lithium battery with an option for a second, and one twenty-pound propane tank.
Palomino is reporting the base dry weight of the HS-600 at 1,641 pounds. The MSRP for the Palomino HS-600 is $24,593 USD.
What feedback led to the development of the HS-600?
We really like our lineup of truck campers, but we’re always listening to customer and dealer feedback. This floor plan came from requests for a smaller hard side camper that would work for more half-ton trucks and still have a toilet.
The HS-750 has been very successful for us, but not everybody needs an interior shower. For some customers, a toilet is enough, and eliminating the shower saves weight. The HS-600 gives those customers what they need in a smaller, lighter package.
Palomino already builds compact, lightweight pop-up campers. Why develop a hard side camper in this size?
Years ago, pop-up campers were often considered an entry-level truck camper. Somebody might have wanted a hard side, but a pop-up was what they could afford.
HS-600 on display at the Forest River Open House in Elkhart, Indiana
That’s changed. Pop-up and hard side campers are closer in price than they’ve ever been.
Now, someone with a payload-capable half-ton or better who prefers a hard side camper can consider the HS-600. If they prefer a pop-up, we still have those models available. It’s about giving customers options.
What do customers gain, and what do they give up by choosing the smallest hard side truck camper in Palomino’s current lineup?
The biggest advantage is getting a smaller, lighter hard side camper that may work with the half-ton truck you already own. Half-ton trucks are incredibly popular, and we wanted to give those owners an opportunity to go truck camping without necessarily having to buy a bigger truck.
The base dry weight of the HS-600 is 1,641 pounds with standard equipment. Adding fifteen gallons of fresh water and twenty pounds of propane brings the calculated wet weight to about 1,786 pounds. You still need sufficient payload for any added options, occupants, and camping gear. It won’t work with every half-ton, but there are particular configurations with sufficient payload ratings.
The trade-off is space. We’ve shortened the floor length and reduced the cabover length, resulting in an east-west bed, so you’re going to give up some interior living space and room up front.
“The biggest advantage is getting a smaller, lighter hard side camper that may work with the half-ton truck you already own.”
You’re also giving up an interior shower because there’s no wet bath. But as far as components and storage go, the HS-600 still has the features you would expect in one of our hard sides, just in a more compact floor plan.
The HS-600 felt spacious when we stepped inside at the Forest River Expo in Elkhart. How did you approach the floor plan and construction to keep it open and lightweight?
One of the biggest things we wanted to accomplish with the HS-600 was keeping the dinette area wide open. Placing the refrigerator and kitchen together on the driver’s side of the camper allows for an open, inviting dinette area on the passenger’s side.
Most truck camper owners spend their time outdoors while camping, but when they come inside, they want to be comfortable. The HS-600 dinette design and the additional sleeping area it provides were important to us.
Other than removing the front cap, which we cut for weight savings, the construction is the same as the rest of our hard side lineup.
How many people can the HS-600 sleep, and what is the bed orientation?
The cabover bed is an east-west 60-by-80-inch queen bed, and you can comfortably sleep two adults up there.
HS-600 dinette before it’s converted to a secondary sleeping area
The dinette converts into a 34-by-77-inch sleeping area. Depending on their size, I could see one adult or possibly two smaller children sleeping there. It’s a large additional sleeping area for a truck camper of this size.
What options are available for HS-600 owners who want to shower while camping?
Whenever you option a water heater on a Palomino truck camper, you also get an exterior shower. That includes a shower nozzle and hot and cold water connections on the outside of the camper. That’s true across our lineup, both pop-ups and hard sides.
Does the HS-600 have a basement? Where are the holding tanks located?
No, the HS-600 doesn’t have a basement. The fifteen-gallon fresh water tank is toward the front wall of the camper under the step up into the cabover bed. The five-gallon cassette toilet serves as the black water holding system, and there is no built-in grey water tank.
Interior cassette toilet (left) and exterior five-gallon black cassette tank (right)
Without a grey water tank, how do owners handle water from the kitchen sink?
The sink has an exterior drain connection, so owners can collect grey water in a portable holding tank and empty it where permitted. It’s the same approach we’ve used in our pop-up campers for years.
What interior decor and exterior color options are available for the HS-600?
For 2027, we’ve updated the interior decor with new countertop and linoleum flooring colors that complement the white cabinetry we introduced last year. We wanted to add more contrast and warmth to the interior, and we think these changes really improve the overall look.
On the exterior, customers can choose between white or grey high-gloss fiberglass.
What solar and battery capacity comes standard, and can it be expanded?
The HS-600 comes standard with two 200-watt solar panels for a total of 400 watts, plus a 100Ah lithium battery. Customers can add a second battery to bring the total capacity to 200Ah of lithium.
30-amp MPPT charge controller routing solar power to the HS-600’s lithium battery bank
What refrigerator, water heater, and air conditioner does the HS-600 offer?
The HS-600 has a Furrion 3.2-cubic-foot, 12-volt refrigerator with a freezer. The optional water heater is a Suburban 42,000-BTU on-demand system. For air conditioning, we offer an optional Dometic 11,000-BTU low-profile unit.
How much could available options increase the camper’s dry-with-options weight?
Options include a second 100Ah lithium battery, air conditioner, water heater with an exterior shower, entry steps, and an awning. With all the options, the dry weight approaches 1,900 pounds. Owners need to make sure their particular truck has the capacity to carry the camper as equipped.
Half-ton owners can use our How To Match A Truck and Camper guide to check payload compatibility. Where is the HS-600’s center of gravity?
The HS-600 has a center of gravity twenty-five inches from the front wall.
What entry step system is available for the HS-600?
We offer an optional four-step scissor-step system.
Does the HS-600 use internal or external tie-downs?
The HS-600 uses the same external tie-down points as the rest of our lineup.
What is the base MSRP for the HS-600, and what would a fully equipped model cost?
The base MSRP is $24,593. A fully equipped HS-600 would be just over $30,000.
What warranty does Palomino offer on the HS-600?
Just like all Palomino products, our nose-to-tip bumper warranty is one year. Components have warranties of two to three years. The roof membrane has a 15-year warranty. Our fiberglass has a three-year warranty.
When will the HS-600 be available at dealerships?
We started shipping units last month, and the HS-600 is now on many Palomino dealer lots.
Is there anything else you’d like readers to know about the HS-600?
We’re always open to Truck Camper Magazine reader feedback, and we really do pay attention to what people say.
One example is the cassette toilet. We actually stopped putting cassette toilets in our campers about ten years ago because of feedback from a Truck Camper Magazine survey. At the time, readers weren’t particularly interested in them.
Now things are coming back around. Cassette toilets make sense for certain applications, and customers are recognizing how practical they can be.
The HS-600 isn’t the only new camper coming from Palomino. We spotted two new pop-ups in Elkhart. When can we announce those?
Very soon! Both campers are built and just need to go through our final inspections. We should be ready to talk about them within the next two months.
For more information about Palomino truck campers, visit their website at palominorv.com. Click here to request a free Palomino brochure.
