Travel trailer wanted

[Ryan Carlson]

I see most of what here is firearms and such so I hope I'm posting in the right place, I am looking for a moderate sized travel trailer around or smaller than 20 feet, looking for a road worth trailer, maintenance items are alright if need to be done, needs title of course. This will be my first trailer. Pop up campers in good condition are acceptable too. I will be out in virginia in mid to late may and would be looking then or if your near Illinois where I am then I wouldn't mind traveling a bit. Thanks in advance.

[FirinFlatTop]

Try RV Trader. com, I found a very good deal on a 22 footer, guy used it 5 times,, I paid less than half what he paid, he just wanted it gone.
Not saying you will find such a deal, but I did find many other close to what I wanted. Also try RV Dealers, they like to get rid of trade-ins that come in. Hope this helps some, good hunting.

[bobanderson]

Best time to look for a good used trailer is a week after the Camper show.

[Ryan Carlson]

If it means anything I am looking to stay more on the budget side, don't mind age as long as it is solid floor, road worthy and such.

[762x51]

I see most of what here is firearms and such so I hope I'm posting in the right place, I am looking for a moderate sized travel trailer around or smaller than 20 feet, looking for a road worth trailer, maintenance items are alright if need to be done, needs title of course. This will be my first trailer. Pop up campers in good condition are acceptable too. I will be out in virginia in mid to late may and would be looking then or if your near Illinois where I am then I wouldn't mind traveling a bit. Thanks in advance.

What do you have to tow with?

That will let folks know what you can safely tow.

[Muley Gil]

If it means anything I am looking to stay more on the budget side, don't mind age as long as it is solid floor, road worthy and such.

Having gotten taken once on buying a pop-up camper (NOT from a skirmisher!), make dad gum sure the roof don't leak! I think there were 2000 plus screws holding that thing together. Even using an electric screwdriver, I wound up with tennis elbow in both of them. THEN, the ex-to-be decided she didn't want to camp in it!!! I sold it for a profit, but that profit was eat up in medical bills for the tennis elbow. Plus i had pain for 2 years. :(

Enough of the bad memories. Time to think of warm puppies and fuzzy kittens-and musket competition, carbine matches, etc. :D

[Ron The Old Reb]

I had a popup once I bought it brand new. There are only two thing I can say about a popup.
The two happiest days of your life is the day you buy your popup and the day you sell it.

[762x51]

I had a popup once I bought it brand new. There are only two thing I can say about a popup.
The two happiest days of your life is the day you buy your popup and the day you sell it.

I 100% agree with this..

In 1986 we bought a used popup for use with our kids who were 5 (twins) at that time and we used it several times in late August until early October with them.
The next late June we went to Washington DC and had a lot of "warm" weather to put up with not having a Air Conditioner nor a bathroom in the camper.
On the way home we decided to get rid of the popup and talking to a Ham Radio friend on the air, I sold it to him. I think it was in September that year I found a 1970 24 Ft Airstream that needed rebuilding.
I rebuilt (overhauled) it by the next June and we ended up keeping it until 2002.

Anyway - We now have a 31 ft travel trailer :D:D (not an Airstream) and enjoy using it and I would strongly suggest going to a trailer with a bathroom and a air conditioner ;):D.

[Ryan Carlson]

Figured a pop up would be like a fancy tent, which is what my dad and brother use now, and have for years in the scouts, I do agree on making sure the roof dont leak, as far as what Id be pulling with, just sold a 4cyl colorado for a 5.3 silverado, figured if I want a trailer then I ought to have something that can pull it without screaming down the road.

[Ron The Old Reb]

​The only advantage to a popup is their easy to pull. Other than that their a pain in the A**. You always have to stop early so you can put it up. And if you never fouled one up on a cold morning you in for a real treat. If you camp in it in the fall you freeze. One year I camped just west of Six Flags Over the Mid West and we dam near froze to death it got that cold that the dish deterrent froze and my popup had a furnace in it. If it rains you have to open it up and let it dry it out good for a couple days or it will mildew even if it's vinyl coated. And if it dose mildew then you have a real mess to clean up. I bought the biggest and the best Coachman they made at the time it had electric brakes a furnace a power converter vinyl coted canvas the gas stove could be disconnected and taken outside. and some other goodies. Within four years it fell apart. I tore it apart and rebuilt it and then sold it. The second happiest day of my life The guy I sold it to it was his first happiest day of his life. Back in the 80.s when I was camping they made what was call a Hilo it was a like a regular hard shell camper but the roof cranked up and down like a popup, and I think you could get it with an electric motor to do it for you, making it easy to pull. I haven't seen one for years I don't know if they still make them or not.

[Maillemaker]

Our first camper was a pop-up.

Our biggest gripe was that we usually "boondock" camp (no hook-ups). That means no AC. In times of the year with high humidity, and just from your breath inside the camper, condensation forms on the canvas roof over the beds. Every time someone rolls over at night it jostles the camper and it "rains" on your face from droplets falling off the canvas roof.

The second gripe was the amount of time it took to set it up and take it down. It's not a huge deal, but it sure is nice to arrive on-site and just climb into your bed and go to sleep, without having to go through a house-building exercise.

I agree the #1 thing to look for when buying a camper is water damage. If you see any, walk away. It's always worse than it appears at first glance. When you inspect the camper, believe your nose. If you walk in and it smells like mold and mildew, walk away. If the outside of the camper has any "bubbles" in the surface of the walls (delamination), walk away. Inside the camper, push gently on the walls all around the camper where the wall meets the ceiling. If anything feels soft, or makes a "crunchy" sound, walk away. If any part of the floor feels soft or makes a "crunchy" sound when you step on it, walk away. Water damage is what kills campers. I recommend storing a camper under covered storage if at all possible.

The #2 thing is to ask to see every single amenity in the camper working. The fridge should have been turned on 24 hours in advance to give it time to cool. Sadly if the fridge is a 2-way or 3-way (gas/12V/120V) you generally can't tell if each one works if the fridge is already cold. But when you fire it up on gas it should light off when you turn it off and turn it on. Once it's already cold you can't easily tell if the 12V/120V are working or not. Anything that is not working should be deducted from the "Blue Book" value.

The #3 thing to check is the date codes on the tires. Camper tires almost never tread out - they age out. Tires are good for about 10 years max. Google to learn how to find and read tire date codes. When we bought our first motor home the front 2 tires were 4 years old, the back 4 were 10 years old, and the spare was 19 years old (original). Over $2K for new tires all the way around.

One last thing: If the camper has a generator, make sure it will run for at least 30 minutes without problem. Start it when you begin your inspection and let it run throughout your inspection. When we bought our RV we tested the generator only to find when we got home that it would only run about 20 minutes and then shut down. It's $500 to have anyone touch an RV generator.

Steve

[Ron The Old Reb]

After Ryan reads all this he's going to give up on campers for life.:(
​I forgot about getting rained on in the middle of the night.

[Ibgreen]

The #3 thing to check is the date codes on the tires. Camper tires almost never tread out - they age out. Tires are good for about 10 years max. Google to learn how to find and read tire date codes. When we bought our first motor home the front 2 tires were 4 years old, the back 4 were 10 years old, and the spare was 19 years old (original). Over $2K for new tires all the way around.
Steve


Are you saying that I should replace my spare tire in my 1970 BMW? Can I find another one that says "made in West Germany"? :D

[Ryan Carlson]

Dont worry Ron, been a scout in tents all my life (comparatively short life) all the problems with campers I seem to be accustom to so I suppose that can be a good thing. I appreciate the run down mailemaker, I figured the top killer for these things would be water damage, as for any older ones, Id want to make sure there isnt any structural frame rust, tire condition like you said, decent suspension and if the bearings and brakes are good, maintenance is one thing but I dont want to hit the first truck stop and see my hub and axles glowing red.
Ha, made in west germany, a tad bit before my time.

[Ron The Old Reb]

I figured the top killer for these things would be water
That's what killed my popup. You pay big bucks for it and they build the frame out of particle board. Then when it gets wet it falls apart. That's what happen to the one I had. When your traveling and it rains or there is a heavy dew during the night. you have to fold it up in the morning so you can get going. The inside of the top gets wet and the particle board falls apart. When I rebuilt it I made the frame out of 3/4 pine and treated it with wood life. So in a way it was a better camper when I sold it then it was when I bought it. I was still happy to see it go.

[Ryan Carlson]

Of course hard side is preferable, just solid enough and road worthy is what I'm looking for, I've also considered converting a box trailer. Fix it up into a makeshift camper, be a bit cheaper.

[JW 5875V]

Lots of YouTube stuff on doing one!

Jim Whitehouse Sr. 5875V

[Dheisey#7003]

My wife and I grew up Rving. Both sets of parents had travel trailers, both Dad's were VERY conscientious about maintaining them. When we got married, we bought a pop up. It was a 1980 Coleman Brandwine. It was 5 years old- no rips, no real wear, just a dent in the side panel that did not damage anything inside. It was an easy fix. We took out the couch that was in it and bought a porta pottie. The only things it did not have was AC and a shower. We used it until our first daughter decided to roll half way out of one of the wings. Yeah, it was hot in the summers, cold in October in Virginia and I never liked to put it down wet. But, I have a huge garage that I used to put it up between trips and let it air. We traded it for an old LaStrada 21' travel trailer. This was the worst camper we ever owned- We replaced the water system (which was pressurized) after it blew out the water heater one night at 2 am. No roof issues, but it was HEAVY. We traded that for a NEW 28' Fireside which we had for 10+ years. The only issue we had was we did not have a surge protector and blew the refrigerator control panel. We sold that when our oldest started driving and bought her a car. I went to sleeping in my truck or tent at Nationals, The wife and I went camping in a nylon tent a couple of years, and then we did other time period reenacting and I bought a 11 x17 Marquis Tent. Of course, I built furniture for it also...nothing worse than sleeping o n the ground. Anyway, my buddy and I got a deal on a 28' Monitor- bad roof, but we hauled it to the range and I put an industrial rubber roof on it. The roof will out last the camper!
Since our kids are grown, we wanted to travel so, we ordered an new 25; Coachman last year- still waiting on its delivery, COVID had them shut down for a while.
Oh, my wife and I still reminisce about that tent camper- if they made them the way that Coleman was, we would have bought another!

[Ron The Old Reb]

​The best camper I ever had was one I made myself out of a full size Plymouth Voyager van. It had a Chrysler 318 engine in it. The best engine that Chrysler ever made. I drove that van camper from Prince Edward Inland Nova Scotia to Mexico to the top of Pikes Peak and every state in between but three. What I liked I liked about it you could drive as late as you liked and when you got tired you just puled into a truck stop or Wal-Mart parked it, crawl up in the bunk and go to sleep. I drove that thing for about twenty years. I would still have it if it hadn't rusted out so bad that the radar wouldn't pick it up anymore. For just a husband and wife it's just the thing and a hell of a lot less maintenance and expense. I then built another one but used a Chevy van that time But it wasn't the van the Plymouth was.