Campers

[Sytes]

Contemplating a travel camper. Something simple not a standard camper though not entirely opposed to a short 19'.
Really, we're very interested in pop-up campers that we can place kayaks on top.

Unable to do slide in campers as we both have tonneau covers we value.

Experiences worth sharing? Pro's Con's for the various small travel trailers? Even tear drop type campers. Looking to spend under $8K if possible.

Also, small generator units pro/con. Thinking simple Honda handle carry / storage.

Thanks in advance.

 

[3855WIN]

My family went all over America with a pop up when I was coming up. Easy to pull and store. Try one out. Always easy to sell if you don’t like it.

 

[Moserkr]

Only issue with a soft sided pop up is they are usually banned in places like yellowstone because of the griz. Not that a griz couldnt open up a hard sided camper in short order...

Sister in law is camping with us currently in a $1200 2006 coleman popout thats 14' long hitch to bumper. Opens up to over 20' in bed mode. Lacks a real bathroom/shower, has small fridge, no solar. Blank slate if you want to do a little work to one like that and stay well under budget. That leaves room for cool toys like a portable dometic fridge/freezer, solar panels, maybe a jackery. They are just as comfortable and having as much fun as other family members at 1/50th of the price.

 

[ccc23454]

Generator get the Wen 2350, awesome unit and works like a champ. I have a 16'V-nose cargo trailer converted into a insulated camper that works amazing(it will likely be for sale next spring inside of your budget). Perfect toy hauler and camping set up for guy or two even in COLD weather. Seriously consider building your own if handy and have the time.

 

[Chama Grande]

I like and loathe my pop up. It’s a 2005 fleetwood that is great to get out of the wind and rain with, great to stand up and put on pants in, great to bring out friends and dogs with because there is plenty of room in there. But its older, so the heater is always on the fritz somehow, the fridge works but is so energy intensive that it’s easier just to buy ice, there’s a shower that’s just completely unnecessary for me. And The popup and pop down cycle gets annoying.

I picked it up for $5k trying to avoid spending an arm and a leg on the hottest new teardrop trailers. I’ve been thinking about selling it and just making the leap tho. I might try and rent one for a weekend just to see if I hate it or not

 

[Beignet]

We've been crunching number and looking at some used lightweight fiberglass options like a Scamp to tuck our recently expanded family into with a few more comforts than my truck-bed platform rig. $8k is a hard row to hoe for those light numbers these days, but some bargains show up from time to time.

Personally, the popups seems like a bit of a hassle to set-up and take down, not to mention that you can't heat or cool them.

Could/would you be able to fit a contractor rack on your truck bed for the kayaks and still keep your bed cover?

 

[BigHornRam]

Had a pop up trailer for about 20 years. It was good for 3 season camping. We lived in it for periods of time on 3 different home builds.

Have 2 Honda eu2000 generators, that when hooked up together can run a compressor and skill saw. They are quiet and portable. One would be plenty for camping needs.

 

[BlakeA]

I had a pop up. Was using it in November on a deer hunt and while packing up and attempting to take down, the cranking mechanism failed. It took about everything in me for the better part of an hour or two to get that thing down as it was completely locked up. While sitting out in the elements cussing at the thing I told myself I was done with pop ups and going hard shelled from that day forward. The following spring I had an enclosed 16 ft trailer custom built and I did all of the interior and finish work. We use it for hunting and family camping trips all over the place. It's set up for anywhere.

My cons for a pop up-

-Set up and take down. Last thing I want to do when I get home is have to set the damn thing back up to give it a good cleaning everytime. Lazy? Sure, but just something that gets old. With a hard shell, it is much easier to just hook on and move if you need to and when you get home you just open the door and clean/unpack. Super easy.

-Wind. The constant flapping and drafts let in from wind is annoying especially at night. Throw in a significant downpour and/or 3 day rainy weekend and everything is damp no matter how "tightened" up it seems. They leak at seams. Give me a hard shell any day with any weather over a pop up.

-Doesn't retain heat enough for late season use.

-Storage is minimal and half of what you could store/bring with with even a small trailer.


Pros-

-lightweight and easy to pull

-cheap

-gets you off the ground?



If you are strictly looking at it as a seasonal (May-August) use than OK, but if you want to use it more than that I would go with a small trailer/hard shell camper. They really don't compare.

I also have a 10x14 Kodiak canvas tent that I love and would take over a pop up as well. They are awesome. Something to consider.

Just my .02

 

[Kaitum]

I had an A-frame style hard sided pop up. I got it cheap and rebuilt it mostly. It was fine for what I used it for (mostly long weekend hunting trips by myself) but after one season I could tell it wasn't quite what I wanted. I did like the lightweight portability of it and took it into areas most campers couldn't go. Even being hard sided with some insulation it didn't retain heat at all.

Now I have a 17' R-Pod. I use it more than my old pop up but it still doesn't meet all my needs. I've come to learn campers like like boats, you need 4 or 5 to cover all applications.

 

[mplane72]

Had a pop up to start. Liked it OK. Like having AC or Heat to take the edge off sometimes. Set up take down not terrible IMO but also not fun. Went through 2 full on travel trailers. Family had a great time in them but feel lucky that the first one got stolen and the 2nd I was able to sell during Covid and not lose my a$$. Now have an obnoxiously large Kodiak Kanvas tent. Not much more work then the pop up and I can pull my boat. Maybe a truck bed camper in the future but not sure.

Honestly. I like pop ups. More room, a ready made bed off the ground. In the beginning it's what was needed to get the wife interested in camping. Easy to tow and not bad to store. If you can find a good one used your not likely to lose $ if you decide it's not for you.

 

[SD_Prairie_Goat]

Contemplating a travel camper. Something simple not a standard camper though not entirely opposed to a short 19'.
Really, we're very interested in pop-up campers that we can place kayaks on top.

Unable to do slide in campers as we both have tonneau covers we value.

Experiences worth sharing? Pro's Con's for the various small travel trailers? Even tear drop type campers. Looking to spend under $8K if possible.

Also, small generator units pro/con. Thinking simple Honda handle carry / storage.

Thanks in advance.

Pop up don't seem the greatest in late fall which is when mine gets the most use. For this reason I avoided them. Plus issues with the canvas anyways possible .


I went with an order 21' camper. Pros is it's very good in the winter, great base camp. Recommend getting one with a slide so you gave more room than me, but to each their own. You can also get a hitch rack for kayak I'm sure since most campers come with a rear hitch standard.


Small generator will depend on your needs. If you ever need to run the ac off the generator you'll need to size beyond the 1800w standard that most manufacturers start at. I went with champion instead of Honda due to cost savings and only minor loss in noise level. Look at inverter generators not open frames if you value quiet at all. Also the inverters are very easy to carry compared to the big beefy open generators, easy on fuel as well

 

[wolfpup]

Champion 2500 watt generator on sale for like $360 2 years ago.... still as quiet and works as well as the $800 plus Honda counterpart. Can parallel and do all the same stuff. If it dies in a few years, I'll likely replace with the same and still be money ahead or it will last 15 years and I won't care. Last time I went champion on a larger generator I am 7 years in while critics said it wouldn't last. I can handle $50 a year.

I bypassed a pop up after helping my buddy set up his. Although roomy once set up.... it was a hassle with 2 of us and since I set up and pack down mostly by myself, I wanted no part.

I had a pickup camper that was a 80's Skamper with a pop up... think four wheeling style camper. It was great for just me. Once my wife was there and a newborn and a dog, I wanted more space. Not to mention how many times I hit my head on the small door. The last time I hit so hard, that I literally posted it for sale that afternoon.

Currently in a hard side single slide fifth wheel to accommodate double towing.

I would thing a Rockwood Roo with a large main slide looks like a great happy medium although won't hit your $8k budget. I tend to go with the aluminum / tin siding for maintenance and discoloration. I can pop off sections, repair, rescrew it back whereas the fiberglass siding is not as forgiving.

 

[Scott85]

We are buying our 3rd camper now. First was a 32’ 5th wheel. Then we moved to a 19’ travel trailer. The 19’ was way too small. We’ve been searching for the “right” camper for almost 2 years now. We picked a 30’ toy hauler that gives us a ton of options.

 

[Southern Elk]

We have enjoyed our 15’ camper. I like having something with hard sides because we camp and hunt in Grizzly country.

 

[nrpate05]

We have enjoyed our 15’ camper. I like having something with hard sides because we camp and hunt in Grizzly country.

View attachment 333089

We have a similar model although I believe ours is 19'. It is a big upgrade from our slide in and we paid less for it (both purchased new), which is astonishing. I haven't used it hunting, but it has been great for our family of 4 for summer camping trips. They cram a lot in these things. It can be kinda tight if more than 2 people are moving around in it, but we're usually outside unless we're sleeping. Tows well behind my Ram 1500.

 

[Bambistew]

I wouldn't get a popup or any with pop-out tents. The condensation can be horrendous, and it will rain on the inside.

YMMV

 

[Sytes]

$8k is a hard row to hoe for those light numbers these days...

Have 2 Honda eu2000 generators...

Now I have a 17' R-Pod...

Like having AC...

If you ever need to run the ac off the generator you'll need to size beyond the 1800w standard that most manufacturers start at.

Look at inverter generators not open frames if you value quiet at all. Also the inverters are very easy to carry compared to the big beefy open generators, easy on fuel as well

Much appreciated for everyones comments. Main points that struck well are quoted above. The more we viewed, the more fabric turns questionably concerning, lack of AC, and well heck - we're doing this for the simplicity of adventure together. Have have a wall tent - fun back in the day, now? Bunch of tubs and setup/breakdown. I'm liking more creature comforts over the base camp wall tent extravaganza.
@Southern Elk That is a nice setup!

Budget $ bumped up. We want a light/small enough trailer the wife may tour around with her jeep gladiator that gives us the best bang for the buck for comforts - and that includes AC. Her "Heavy Duty Tow Package" is rated for 7,600 that I would NEVER follow considering tongue weight along approx 10% likely exceeds. However, we are looking at campers under 4200#s and 19' likely max. She wants the freedom to tour herself if I'm unable to gain enough time off. New budget is $15k. Seems some decent options available.

Thanks again all - any further info, please share. Hunt Talk members have helped tremendously on a few mid-large size purchases.

 

[Sytes]

FIL is a guru regarding travel trailers - RV's.

Following pre-covid camper/travel trailer builds, due to COVID shortages causing companies to reduce quality and staffing issues that caused less than stellar builds, we stayed 2019 and earlier.

Kept with higher listed companies, rack and pinion slide out(s), aluminum frame, non ridge sided trailers, we found this 2018 Forest River Micro Lite. 22' from tongue to bumper.
Has a murphy queen with a slide out U shape dinette. Awning over the slide out along with a main door side awning.





Trip how (edit: google changed word to "how") home was great. Learned a ton and a ton more to learn...

Such as have the black water valve closed BEFORE opening the cap to hook up the septic sleeve. I WILL NOT forget that one again along with latex gloves.

 

[Scott85]

Well the toy hauler route didn’t end up working out for us. We ended up with 24 ember 221MSL. It’s got 800 watts of solar and 540 amp hour worth of batteries.

 

[Sytes]

It’s got 800 watts of solar and 540 amp hour worth of batteries.

That is some serious wattage!