Campers and RVs- ownership questions

[mrs.cos]

I grew up camping, my sister and I slept ina tent many nights in our backyard.. I love camping.

 

I married a man who firmly believes we have zero reason to sleep in the wilderness under fabric.

 

A few weeks ago I finally convinced him to go camping with our subie friends. While I love him dearly and know he said he would go sleep in a tent to appease me, he would, unbeknownst to himself, be a miserable cuss the whole time.

 

I made the executive decision to look for a small camper for us to tow and sleep in.

 

We rented a T@B for 400 for the weekend and took it camping and then up to Norwalk for summer NATs

 

 

HE LOVED IT.

 

I've never seen him sleep so relaxed and I think it was because of the wilderness.

 

Before we even left norwalk he was shopping for campers. Nathan does NOT shop for ANYTHING unless it's a car or car parts.

 

We went last weekend to Watkins glen for six hours and found that the entire track is a a camp ground and you can't just setup a popup near the track and walk around

 

This forced us to basically hoodf it all over looking for an ideal location or sit in the hot bleachers.

 

We walked among so many campers and RVs... and now I think we have more questions about what we want and what we can expect as owners.

 

 

1) what do you own and where do you store it.

2) how much is typical storage?

3) what are features that you never use vs use all the time?

4)is it like owning a boat where the only good boat is someone else's?

5) what is depreciation like?

6)what are typical problems that happen?

 

 

We really like the idea of a track camper. Something we can pull with the RAM, and park while we go out and about sight seeing or putter around the track(s)

 

However the idea of a full RV could allow us to get a golf cart, for big tracks, but won't allow us to have have a small vehicle with us unless we tow one... but would also allow us to bring the dogs with us.

 

 

 

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[coltboostin]

Significantly easier if you live with land and no HOA. Otherwise rent as you need it- its not worth paying the rent to store it IMO if you cant store it at your home.

[2 Sweet]

My family had a pop-up when I was a kid. '85 Jayco. That thing was awesome and very easy/cheap to maintain. They are so simple. Personally I don't want a bathroom/shower or any of those extra headaches, so a pop-up suits me. Plus they are small enough to fit in a garage which is nice.

 

One day when I have a bigger garage, I'll buy one. You can find them in good shape (nice roof/canvas/etc) for $1500 or less.

[craig71188]

A few thoughts - note I am a "motorhome guy" as it doubles as a tow vehicle.

 

1) Buy used - the depreciation is horrible on RV's and they can be found used for great prices.

2) Look at "Toy Haulers"- you can stow a bike/golf cart inside and tow one (relatively small) trailer

3) I am shopping now and will store it at my house on a parking pad. Storage lot costs vary greatly - cheapest are typically out of town a ways so shop around.

4) Educate yourself on construction of the units. Most stuff built today is "glue laminate" construction - sidewall/plywood/insulation/inner wall all pressure glued together - it WILL delaminate, it's just a matter of "when". See #2 - many of these are built by companies that build car trailers (metal frame and skin), just check for the quality of the interior bits. If the interior is all put together with staples - it will fall apart. Looking at units that are several years old and see how they are holding up - new ones are all pretty on the lot.

5) It is like owning a second home - there is ongoing maintenance

6) If not a toy hauler, you can haul bikes in the bed of the truck, look at older "Holiday Rambler", Avion (like Airstream but at much lower cost)

[craig71188]

A couple more things...

If shopping on Craigslist, the RV section is the "scam-o-rama" area. At minimum 25% of the adds are scam to harvest emails and phone numbers. As always, if it looks too good to be true, it is!

 

RV dealers have notoriously high markups particularly on used units. The actual sell price can be 50% of what is advertised in some cases. Buying a used unit that was "well loved" by a single owner can be your best buy.

[BloodRed]

Curious where you were able to rent the T@B from? My wife and I have been a fan of tear drop campers for a long time to pull behind my Wrangler. The T@B and T@G models are some of our favorites, but they are a bit pricey to buy and retain their value pretty well.

[Gergwheel1647545492]

Curious where you were able to rent the T@B from? My wife and I have been a fan of tear drop campers for a long time to pull behind my Wrangler. The T@B and T@G models are some of our favorites, but they are a bit pricey to buy and retain their value pretty well.

 

THIS!! How much and where from. would love to rent a camper for a weekend.

[zeitgeist57]

Ever since we missed out on this>>>http://www.columbusracing.com/forums/showthread.php?t=125193&highlight=bounder deal last year, my wife has been dropping hints on doing a motorhome trip out west. She loves the idea of walking around the RV, sleeping, eating, doing all that stuff while we're rolling down the road.

 

Craig has some great points above. I also agree with JP: we're looking at renting something in 2018. Unless it's a decently-maintained RV for sub $15k, it just doesn't make sense to buy one unless you use it at least once a month.

 

If your lifestyle affords you the ability to get by with a pop-up or a teardrop, seems to me like a solid investment.

 

If anyone was at Crowne Plaza parking lot at Goodguys last weekend (or last year), there's this local guy named Mike that set up a "tiki hut" using an LED-decorated 2015 Shasta trailer like this...

http://roamingtimes.com/2015/11/10/2015-shasta-airflyte-16-reissue-travel-trailer/

 

He was a SUPER nice guy and let me look around inside. It was really well done, looking retro but with all the modern conveniences. I think he said you can buy one for less than $15k. Seemed super cool.

 

Good luck! Keep us in the loop on your decisioning! I camp 3x a year with each of my kids for Indian Guides and Indian Princesses. YMCA cabin stuff, but I do love the wilderness Ohio has to offer.

[SRTurbo04]

This might be scattered as im adding in as i think about it.

 

Main thing to look at is roofs for any unit. Almost all older were rubber roofs and didnt fare well and would leak. If you find something with a fiberglass roof your golden.

 

If your getting a travel trailer you can still put a golf cart in your bed for the track

 

One of the most important things is weight weight weight! When looking remember all the # you see are dry weight. Thats no propane no water, no waste water( pooooooooo) and none of your crap. Very easy to add alot of weight so make sure your not even near your max towing when its dry weight.

 

What motor is in you ram?

 

Fridge. Make sure you have a duel power fridge meaning can run off electric or propane.

 

Generator built in is not a big deal as you can get a portable generator for cheaper and still be able to run appliances. Honda makes some great units that you can even run 2 of then together if needed a ton of power.

 

Do you plan to always be at a campground? If not holding tank size for your gray water(sink shower) and black tank (waste pooooo) is a big factor as this will

 

Camping is amazing i grew up camping. Started from a tent ended with a 38 foot diesel pusher with 2 slides lol.

 

Travel trails don't seem to lose a ton of money but motorhomes they do tend to as they are just like a car as the miles go up, the value goes down.

 

Motor home is going to be a significantly higher expense to purchase over a pull behind travel trailer. It does have its trade offs.

Edited July 13, 2017 by Paul

[BBQdDude]

On storage, it will run you. Look at out of town lots for cheaper rates. I actually leased a camping site for ours when we had it. Ran about 1k a year.

 

Features, look at waste and water storage tanks. Some have pretty small ones and that can be a pain.

 

Buy used FOR SURE. However if hitting the major ones in Ohio and Indiana make sure you know the value as they will over price them. On mine I got a few K knocked off after I remarked I knew the value.

 

BIG ONE, at least for me, be ready when camping to be mashed in with no privacy. Most rv/trailer sites are stacked right next to each other. Best place I found while owning and being an avid canoe person was up in Loudenville. It is called camp Toodik. Sak to get a rive spot; trust me you will love it. If just using it for the races smaller is better IMHO.

[Geeto67]

I have two friends that are seasonal rubber tramps living out of teardrop campers 9 months out of the year. I also have another friend who lives year round in a vintage camper parked on a Brooklyn street outside her upholstery shop. I have slept many times in teardrops and when I was a kid my family had one for a short while, but mostly we tent camped because it's hard to pull a tear drop on a soft beach. Here are my thoughts:

 

Having lived without anything more than a 1 car garage for most of my adult life, to me the best camper is someone else's camper I can borrow. If it is hitched to a car and the tags are up to date, there isn't much people can say about parking one on the street in front of your house - normal rules apply. If you have a driveway or back yard you can usually set one up in the back of your driveway under a cover or in your backyard similar to a non-permanent shed (if your HOA allows such a thing). the nice thing about small campers is they don't attract a lot of attention so you can get away with stuff a bigger camper couldn't.

 

In terms of resale - depreciation on new teardrops is terrible. You can get new ones really cheap, built on like motorcycle trailer frames, but you get what you pay for there. On average a new one will be like $6-$20K for one depending on the options you want, and usually you can find a used one on the market for half that. Vintage teardrops do hold their value ok, but often with cheaper ones you end up having to do a whole redecoration.

 

If I were going to buy one now, this is one I would buy because it has damn near everything I want:

https://dayton.craigslist.org/rvs/6204922282.html

 

It's not really roughing it, but if it were just me on the road it would be a bedroll and a tent strapped to the back of a motorcycle. I have a wife and a kid that don't like roughing it as much and for them having a kitchen, portable bathroom, and electrics compatible with campground hookups is ideal. Just remember, the more amenities you have the more chores you have as well to keep them operating.

 

 

As far as getting around at the track, you can get pitbike and minibike racks for the teardrop trailers. Some even have roof racks with built in bicycle racks. something like this will get one of you around any campground as good as a golf kart: http://www.cabelas.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=2229040&type=product&WT.ac=YMAL-2229040&WT.z_pg_ref=prd1429761

[mrs.cos]

Curious where you were able to rent the T@B from? My wife and I have been a fan of tear drop campers for a long time to pull behind my Wrangler. The T@B and T@G models are some of our favorites, but they are a bit pricey to buy and retain their value pretty well.

 

THIS!! How much and where from. would love to rent a camper for a weekend.

 

Haydocy on Broad! They were FANTASTIC!!

 

A weekend rental for the T@B was $435, + a 500 deposit.

 

We loved the tab, but nathan is 6'3" and the peeing sitting down thing isn not his style :gabe:\

 

Thank you everyone!

 

Your points have been great.

 

Nathans parents lived in a HUGE beautiful Winnebago for years as they were ohio snowbirds. They offered it to us about 3 years ago when they finally just built a unit in the campground they stayed at every year.

 

Nathan turned them down.... Needless to say.. i wanted to shoot him. He brought it up the other day like "HAHAH.. remember when my parents offered the camper and i said no??.. that was stupid of me wasnt it.. "

 

Me::fuuuu:

 

 

Anyways.. The T@B seems so ideal for us.. and they have a version that is a Bit bigger, that might be perfect for us..

 

Weight wise they are pretty fantastic for weight. We have the big V8 in the truck and it was basically no issue whatsoever to haul it.

 

Landwise- we don't have anyh, however, where my dad lives, we can easily store it at his house. (we may even share it with him)

[Radio Flyer1647545514]

But an enclosed trailer and build to suit is an option. If you can find a good sprinter I'd look at those as well.

[mrs.cos]

 

If I were going to buy one now, this is one I would buy because it has damn near everything I want:

https://dayton.craigslist.org/rvs/6204922282.html

 

 

 

I like this style of the T@B's however, we cant use that. We need the extra room to make the bed queen size because you lose all the headspace witht he kitchen on the outside.

[spankis]

I grew up camping, parents started with a pop-up which isn't much better than a cabin tent in my mind. You have the security of a soft-top jeep, still have water intrusion / heavy wind concerns, and they're often squirrely to tow with the tiny length and super lightweight. They went from a pop-up camper, to a 23' travel trailer (no slide outs), to a 27' travel trailer (with 1 "manual" slide out), to a 30' travel trailer (dual power slideouts), to a 34' travel trailer (dual power slideouts). They will likely upgrade to a 5th wheel soon.

 

What I can offer is that my parents have had very good luck with Jayco, and have owned Prowler, Starcraft, and Terry in the past. Jayco quality and warranty seems to be the best. Find a model/floorplan you like, and google it to find one slightly used.

 

Given that you have a 1/2 Ton truck, why not buy a more normal format lightweight travel trailer and get more everything or a similar price (except cute/retro-ness).

 

Something like this at least with a single slide out, full height ceiling, way more storage (both for stuff and waste/fresh water), etc:

 

https://www.jayco.com/products/travel-trailers/2018-hummingbird/17rk/

 

https://www.rvtrader.com/dealers/Camping-World-of-Georgetown-3052828/listing/2018-Jayco-HUMMINGBIRD-17RK-122418711

 

I have a nice big tent of my own for now, but plan to buy an RV in the next couple years. I borrow my parents on occasion now. If you haven't found something you like by then definitely go to the RV show next year. Or go to Tom Raper RV in Indiana anytime. It's like the Ricart mega mall of RVs, and you can get a taste for damn near every model/type out there at one location.

[mrs.cos]

Given that you have a 1/2 Ton truck, why not buy a more normal format lightweight travel trailer and get more everything or a similar price (except cute/retro-ness).

 

Something like this at least with a single slide out, full height ceiling, way more storage etc:

 

https://www.jayco.com/products/travel-trailers/2018-hummingbird/17rk/

 

https://www.rvtrader.com/dealers/Camping-World-of-Georgetown-3052828/listing/2018-Jayco-HUMMINGBIRD-17RK-122418711

 

I grew up camping, parents started with a pop-up which isn't much better than a cabin tent in my mind. You have the security of a soft-top jeep, still have water intrusion / heavy wind concerns, and they're often squirrely to tow with the tiny length and lightweight.

 

They went from a pop-up camper, to a 23' travel trailer (no slide outs), to a 27' travel trailer (with 1 "manual" slide out), to a 30' travel trailer (dual power slideouts), to a 34' travel trailer (dual power slideouts). They will likely upgrade to a 5th wheel soon.

 

What I can offer is that my parents have had very good luck with Jayco, and have owned Prowler, Starcraft, and Terry in the past. Jayco quality and warranty seems to be the best. Find a model/floorplan you like, and google it to find one slightly used.

 

 

This is actually why we started shopping. We know the truck can easily pull something bigger, but we dont want to go TOO big, but i think something bigger than the teardrop may be ideal for us.

[Geeto67]

I like this style of the T@B's however, we cant use that. We need the extra room to make the bed queen size because you lose all the headspace witht he kitchen on the outside.

 

you have to go try what works for you, which may mean going down to an RV/camper dealer and just try getting in and out of a bunch of different ones to see what feels right. As a tall person I look at a teardrop as a place to sleep, dress, haul luggage, and that's it - but my much shorter wife and child do not.

 

I forgot to mention, my upholstery friend, before she lived in a trailer, swore by vintage travco motorhomes. Smaller than modern ones, and powered by Chrysler 440's, they were unkillable and parts to fix one could be found anywhere. It's almost guaranteed you'll have to redo any one you see but I think the most expensive one I have ever seen was like $8K.

 

Speaking of "Vintage", something you don't see anymore is the "camper van". Smaller and easier to live with than an RV, but bigger than a trailer. Plus you can pull a trailer with it so you can drag the golf kart along. I haven't seen a new one since the 1990's but something like this isn't bad:

https://huntington.craigslist.org/cto/6207326966.html

https://akroncanton.craigslist.org/cto/6196743973.html

[El Karacho1647545492]

Family friend has a gooseneck/5th wheel in their 3/4 ton pickup, they drive all over the continent. In fact they just got back from a long trip to Alaska, and they can't stop talking about it. We met up with them at Mid-Ohio for the vintage grand prix (see that thread for my photo) and for 2 whole days we just hung out at their RV making food and enjoying the type of stuff we could never fit in a car; lounger chairs, tables for food prep, nearly full size grill, etc.

[SPL_Josh]

Travel for work and live in a travel trailer for 8-9 months a year.

[Sully]

You should buy nurkvinny's travel trailer, try it out for the rest of the season to see how well you like it and then turn around and sell it next season for what you paid for it.

[xlr8tn]

I have a 5er that we use a ton. We just got back from 2 weeks out near va beach in it. We're a family of 5 so the bigger the better for us. We leave it on some property my friend has out in PA on a river and go out there 5-6 times a summer then I use it all winter for hunting season. I store it here at the house in between. This is the 3rd camper I've owned.

I tell people shopping to sit down and make a list of "must have" things and a list of "would like to have" things and a list of "don't need" things. That alone will eliminate some leg work looking at campers that don't work for you.

Next figure out realistically what your budget is. That will eliminate another group of campers.

New vs used. Personally I would never buy a used camper these days. For a first time buyer it's probably not a bad way to go but for me I know exactly what I want in a camper and I know whatever camper I buy I'm going to have a long time. Their condition and longevity depends almost 100% on maintenance. I don't want a camper I don't know the maintenance history of. They depreciate but so do cars. When I know I'll have it 10-15 years the depreciation doesn't matter to me. I spend a bunch of time on mine keeping it in tip top shape. Mine is 7 years old but is also in just as good of shape as the day we bought it.

Lastly when you're looking remember very few people ever buy a camper and wish they would've went smaller or had less storage.

 

We probably have 1 more camper left in us to buy down the road and that'll be about it for us. After the kids are gone we will get our last one that'll just be for me and the wife.....it'll sleep 2 regardless of how many beds it has. It'll be a toy hauler 5th wheel.

[StangBoy39]

We have a small camper that we store at my cousin's shop up in Wooster. Can't beat free storage! Has there ever been a CR camp out?

[The_buster]

We have tossed around the idea of a camper, it would definitely be a future purchase but have looked around. Is there a place where you can get some driving instructions? Especially for the big RV's. My big fear is cutting a corner or swinging too wide.