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Camper ?

crash2

crash2

-Oh no I picked a side-
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So I have gone thru 2 campers, one was free and the other was like $300 over the years and I am simply done with old POS crap that falls apart after about 3-4 years of use.

I also want a camper with a damn bathroom. So I am looking at wanting to spend $3-4k for one and I believe most with bathrooms are like 8.5' and longer.

But what should I be looking for in that price range? I don't want a POS but don't want a $25k unit either.
 
crash said:
So I have gone thru 2 campers, one was free and the other was like $300 over the years and I am simply done with old POS crap that falls apart after about 3-4 years of use.

I also want a camper with a damn bathroom. So I am looking at wanting to spend $3-4k for one and I believe most with bathrooms are like 8.5' and longer.

But what should I be looking for in that price range? I don't want a POS but don't want a $25k unit either.
Click to expand...

Look for dry rot. Soggy floors, open cabinets, feel the back walls, and inside roofs of the top cabinets. Walk on roof of unit, feel for 'soft' spots. Look under everything, looking for any indication of rot.

IF you can find a 'solid' camper in the under $5000 range, then look at basics next. Enough space in the shitter, so you can sit down without your knees hitting the wall, while wearing boots. Enough headroom on the main bunk, so you can get out of bed without hitting the ceiling. Check the 'roofing' material. One piece fiberglass, plastic, or aluminum is better than a 'rubberized' membrane roof. And multi-piece aluminum with seam sealer is also a turn off.

Then look at secondary amenities. Such as stoves, furnaces, water heaters, camper jacks, fridge, etc.

In this price range, you'll likely be looking at something pushing 20 years old. And you're likely to have to be very selective in your search.

If you step up the price range, look for something under 10 years old, but under 10K, and will probably have a 'keeper'

My 2 cents.
 
I found 8.5 and 9 are the ideal length to bumper tow a trailer behind the truck, without having to get an extended hitch setup.

Downside to an 8.5 or 9 is that they really only camp 2 adults comfortably. If you want to take the whole family, get a bigger unit.

S&S was a popular camper a few years back, and I see them all over the market. However I got rid of mine 10 years ago, because of rot issues. I'm just not into them enough to recognize the inexpensive brand names any more. Bigfoot was a high dollar camper when new. Arctic Fox seems to be the new high dollar camper I see a lot.
 
Here's an example. http://seattle.craigslist.org/sno/rvs/5633527045.html

It's obviously an S&S. And since I was once burned by leaks, I'd pass on it. But it's got a lot of the features, price, etc. that I was talking about. However when a seller types, "always under a cover" often that means it's under a tarp, or 'camper cover' which is like a tarp, and those items trap moisture under them worse than your Toyota parking space
 
Well I can tell ya my last camper had a front window and it apparently leaked down under the main floor and one day I was getting it ready to use and put my hand thru the floor..
 
I doubt you will find a decent camper for 3-4k. I'd bet 7-10k at least. But if you can prove me wrong. I'd be pretty happy with that.
 
Watch for rot around the jacks, especially the front corners. We had an early 90's camper when I was younger, we resealed all the seams every year and that POS was so rotted out by the time we got rid of it. We had to rebuild both sides because walls were collapsing where the jacks bolted on. I personally wouldn't buy a camper unless it had aluminum studs, but that won't be an option in the price range you are looking at.

I hope you had better luck than I did when I was looking for campers a few years ago, I was going up to 10k and couldn't find anything newer than a '97 and even the nice ones had some kinds of issues. I didn't want to pay 20k for something decent, so I said fawk it and bought a 5th Wheel. :redneck:
 
I love my truck, so I sold my camper.


I bought a small one that was custom built by hand and very nice.


Anyone ever see the aluminum camper that was at George the Jeeps?
 
My S&S is a 92, have had it since 2008, and wintered under cover (inside a pole building) since 2010...I have had to reseal the front, and rebuild the front jack mounts, fortunately no rot, everything was till solid. (yes, the front windows are prone to leaking). It's a 9.5, has a bathroom, with outside shower, and a north/south Queen bed...real comfy, with headroom...It is really good for 2 adults, doable with 2 kids, but cramped...Paid $3700 for it, has served me/us well.
Thought about selling, but what would I replace it with???:SMH:
 
CrazyBlueRider & I both have 8.5' Pastime Campers and really like them. Ours are the light models so they don't have much insulation and have small holding/propane tanks. I really like mine and seems to be good quality. It's a '05 that I bought 3yrs ago for $10k out the door at a dealer.
 
ain'tstuckjustresting said:
CrazyBlueRider & I both have 8.5' Pastime Campers and really like them. Ours are the light models so they don't have much insulation and have small holding/propane tanks. I really like mine and seems to be good quality. It's a '05 that I bought 3yrs ago for $10k out the door at a dealer.
Click to expand...

I got lucky and found my 08 in Forks listed as an Apache for $6500 in august of 2014.

So far I have been very happy with it. I've had to fix a couple of stupid things like the sail switch on the heater and the propane regulator, but so far no structural problems or leaks. If all goes well with my shop build last winter was its last being stored outdoors.
 
hlb3 said:
Watch for rot around the jacks, especially the front corners. We had an early 90's camper when I was younger, we resealed all the seams every year and that POS was so rotted out by the time we got rid of it. We had to rebuild both sides because walls were collapsing where the jacks bolted on. I personally wouldn't buy a camper unless it had aluminum studs, but that won't be an option in the price range you are looking at.

I hope you had better luck than I did when I was looking for campers a few years ago, I was going up to 10k and couldn't find anything newer than a '97 and even the nice ones had some kinds of issues. I didn't want to pay 20k for something decent, so I said fawk it and bought a 5th Wheel. :redneck:
Click to expand...

I am well educated in what to look for after 2 that fell apart :D

I camp and wheel :awesomework:
 
I've had good luck finding deals on ones with superficial damage. people dont even wanna go look at em so the sellers usually will just give a blowout price on them. good luck.
 
Been keeping my eyes open for one as well. We have a 23' travel trailer, and its too big for our shrinking family. Thinking about seeing if anyone wants to trade that needs to go the other direction......
 


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