Anyone gone from a 13ft to a 16ft Scamp - Fiberglass RV
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Old 05-21-2008, 07:13 AM   #1
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Hi,

A little history....We purchased a 13ft Scamp a couple of years ago (basically so we wouldn't have to rent motel rooms and because I was too claustrophobic to sleep in a teardrop) and spent last year redoing it top to bottom, and love the trailer and the results. It's small, but with the popup awning outside there is enough room for the 3 of us. We painted it to match the hotrod and mostly take it to car shows with a few real camping trips thrown in. We have one 5 day trip that we do yearly that does not have any bathroom/shower facilities available,(in a parking lot squished between huge motorcoaches where everyone comes out looking perfectly refreshed from showers and air conditioning), otherwise we (the girls we, my husband not so much) are fine with using the porta potty.

On our way home last weekend we pass a gentleman parking a 16ft Scamp on the side of the road and saw him put up a for sale sign. The trailer was in great shape (other than some surface cleaning, I would have scoured it down anyway) and the price right. It has the side bathroom which leaves the front bunk awkward I think, I guess not really much different than the 13ft with the kitchen right next to the bunk, maybe because the bath wall goes all the way to the ceiling... My preference would have been an additional side dinette and front bath-BUT I tow it and have to have the window guard off in front so that I can see all the way through to feel comfortable and the front bath wouldn't allow me to do that. AND I got a "new" old tow vehicle (66 suburban) which doesn't match the 13ft anymore (yet), so with the 16ft I would have two blank slates to start on.

Soooo, now I have two. I dont need two.

So I put the question out--anybody unhappy "moving up" to the next size, losing the "cute" factor for the practicality of a bathroom? Is bigger better?

As an afterthought, just for more info, my husband works at an autobody shop on the side so the cost of labor isn't factored in my decision of which to keep....
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Old 05-21-2008, 07:33 AM   #2
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I went from a 13 to a 16ft.... liked it so much better... mine had the front bathroom with the side dinnette which was really nice..... an extra table for me and the back table was a bed.... I loved the big friggie too... Is this one a side dinnette? I like that layout the best.
Then i got a 5er........
If its in good shape and you wanted to go bigger i wouldnt hesitate to get it.. take the check list with you tho...
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Old 05-21-2008, 09:22 AM   #3
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We went from a 13' Burro to a 16' UHaul and love the difference. The UHaul has a side privacy room, so we can both still see through the trailer to see who is behind us, a feature my hubby loves. He will not consider trying to find something to act as a rock guard for the front window, because he likes to see behind the trailer.
It is amazing to me how much more room it seems to have and how nice it is to have the portapotty out of the way. I do not think we could return to a smaller trailer. Of course, it has made me lazy. In the Burro, I took the bed down immediately, so we had more space. With the UHaul, I tend to leave it set up more than not.
Admittedly, we don't use the front bunkbed, so I cannot speak to that, but it seems as if, at least on the UHaul, it would not be a problem.

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Old 05-21-2008, 09:48 AM   #4
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I went from a 13ft Burro to a 17ft Burro. No regrets.

There are a couple "quaint" things I miss, but not enough to be in tears over. I no longer get an overwhelming "Oh it's so cute" from everyone in the campground.. just a few now, but I don't camp to feed my ego, so it's not a huge loss

The simplicity of the 13 can be had by doing as I did in the 13.. but I had to have a "V8" moment to figure that out. Just because you have the tanks and other infrastructure, doesn't mean you have to use them on quick trips. I often still use my red hot water heater to heat water on the stove instead of filling the tank for one nite, or even 2, and I still use a portable water jug with hand pump when jumping thru the tank filling hoops is too impractical or time consuming for the length of stay.

Everything else is pretty much the same. Hook up takes a whole minute or two longer due to the wdh and sway control. I can still get into tight spots just about anywhere.

I am thinking of going somewhere where the tug would be difficult due to the incline. I would have been able to do it easily with my 13, but the 17 is a bit heavy and the Jeep a bit whimpy for THIS situation. I have a tent still, and there is no law that says once you own a trailer you have to forsake your old car camping ways. Because of the trailer, I have many portable amenities I wouldn't have normally purchased to tent with, like portable electric power and heat, so I will be stylin' in the canvas should I decide to tent it instead of tug it.

Overall, the benefits and comfort far outweigh the negs.

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Old 05-21-2008, 01:13 PM   #5
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We would probably move up to a 16 or 17 now having over a year experience with these Eggs, though we love our 13. I passed on the perfect Scamp 16 last year near our house that was a perfect trailer and price. The problem would be for us, that I can get the 13 in the garage (HOA) and probably wouldn't find a 16 I could get in. The massive expense increase in monthly storage fees would cause me not to enjoy the "bigger Egg" so for now we're remaining very happy in our 13.

You might want to read through a post I put up with a survey about "bathroom and shower use." It opened my eyes that not as many people use the bathroom upgrades in the larger trailers as I would have thought. We posted this poll because as we camped in parks with full hookups we kept noticing most of the folks kept using the campground bathrooms and not the ones in their trailers despite being directly connected to sewer and no dump involved.

Bathroom Poll
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Old 05-21-2008, 01:48 PM   #6
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Nope. No regrets at all. AND, the most commotion I've ever seen in a campground was with my '02 Scamp 16 Custom Deluxe. I came back to the trailer several times in one weekend to find folks circling it like vultures. They were all other campers who were just dying to see what it looked like inside. Most of them came over from 40' diesel pushers.

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Old 05-21-2008, 01:56 PM   #7
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Although not Scamps, I upgraded last year from a 13' (Boler) to a 17' (Bigfoot) and NO REGRETS!! I still smile just thinking about having my *own* bathroom. Ah, the life of luxury, in a still fairly compact, lightweight trailer. It doesn't get much better than this. Biggest difference, like Gina said - no one is oogling the trailer with "cute" and "how do you fit in there" comments.
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Old 05-21-2008, 05:16 PM   #8
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Before you decide which trailer to keep, try out the bathroom and shower as if you were camping to find out how practical it is. We have a 16' Scamp with the side bath and have never used the shower because the room is just too small. Makes a great storage closet.
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Old 05-21-2008, 06:05 PM   #9
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Vivian is right, the side bathroom is tiny. Sitting on the throne my knees practically hit the wall. But my philosophy is, it would be usable if I needed to use the shower and it's nice to know it's available. Then too, every foot of space used for a bathroom/shower area is taking space from someplace you'd rather have more room, or taking space FROM something else... like a larger closet or storage area. After all, how much time a day does one spend in the bathroom/shower? If I expected to be as comfortable as my shower at home... well I guess I'd better stay there, because the Scamp certainly isn't. But would it do the job... And to me, that's what matters the most.
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Old 05-21-2008, 06:58 PM   #10
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We spent spring break on Pine Ridge Reservation, camping in our trailer, rather than staying in a bunkhouse as we were volunteering. The trailer was a long ways away from the bunkhouse bathroom and right next to the workshop where we worked for two days. Our choice on those two days and in the evenings was hike back to the bunkhouse, use the outhouse that was next to the workshop, or use our porta-potty in its privacy room. Which would you have chosen? And since there were people all over, we were glad that our porta-potty was in its privacy room. We can't yet use our shower yet, because the drain sits too high, but that will come. Yes, we use the campground facilities as much as possible, but so do a lot of the guys in the big rigs from what I have seen. Just having the opportunity to have the bathroom where I need it in the trailer is great! I would not go back.

And yes, the privacy room is small but it is private! And local!

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Old 05-21-2008, 06:59 PM   #11
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Vivian is right, the side bathroom is tiny. Sitting on the throne my knees practically hit the wall. But my philosophy is, it would be usable if I needed to use the shower and it's nice to know it's available. Then too, every foot of space used for a bathroom/shower area is taking space from someplace you'd rather have more room, or taking space FROM something else... like a larger closet or storage area. After all, how much time a day does one spend in the bathroom/shower? If I expected to be as comfortable as my shower at home... well I guess I'd better stay there, because the Scamp certainly isn't. But would it do the job... And to me, that's what matters the most.
I am seriously considering selling my 17' casita and buying a 13' Scamp. I bought the casita becasue it was the only 6' plus fiberglass camper trailer I could find. After scamp burned down they rebuilt with a taller trailer... is that right? I cannot remember finding a scamp with 6' plus interior headroom.


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Old 05-21-2008, 08:41 PM   #12
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Post-fire Scamp 13' are taken from a shortened 16' mold and are as tall inside as the 16'. Pre-fire 13' were slightly shorter inside.

BTW, I downsized from a Jayco 16 to my 91S13 and loved it, although I did miss the bathroom for storage and hanging wet stuf.
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Old 05-21-2008, 09:08 PM   #13
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One solution to the rock guard issue that Bobbie Mayer suggested to me when we checked out the Campster was to replace the hideous gold fiberglass in the rock guard with clear plexiglass or Lexan. You can still travel with the rock guard down and see behind the trailer while your front window is still protected from projectiles. I tried a couple of hardware stores yesterday searching for the rubber glazing material that holds the window material in the frame but was referred to window install companies. I think her idea is a great solution. . . especially for the more intrepid, inexperienced trailer towing folks like me who are more comfortable when able to see everything that is behind the trailer.
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Old 05-26-2008, 09:23 PM   #14
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Thanks all who offered insight. It's really funny that I'm the one struggling because I'm the practical one in the family. I only had one summer of using it with everything "just right", darn it. It turned out so cute.

I hadn't thought of actually "trying out" the bath /shower, dumb as that may sound--I just made sure everything worked properly.

The clear lexan is a great idea for the front I will have to check it out.
We did a little test and will have to replace the glass front and back though, it has a really dark tint and I cant see through! I'm considering ordering another set of upper cabinets too for over the sink if I do.

I've parked it in the yard and will spend the week cleaning it out and getting used to it. I will post any upgrades as we do them if we keep it.

Thanks again for the advice.
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Old 05-26-2008, 10:59 PM   #15
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My '13 Scamp is not good for a comfortable place for two to sit. The dinette is a straight back seat. I have to be able to get out of the cold or bugs and have to be able to read for a long period of time. The bench seat is just as bad. Nowhere to get my feet up either. So we sit on folding sling chairs and regret having a '13 jail cell.
Time to sell.
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Old 05-27-2008, 04:56 AM   #16
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My '13 Scamp is not good for a comfortable place for two to sit. The dinette is a straight back seat. I have to be able to get out of the cold or bugs and have to be able to read for a long period of time. The bench seat is just as bad. Nowhere to get my feet up either. So we sit on folding sling chairs and regret having a '13 jail cell.
Time to sell.
I had that same problem in my 16'...no comfortable place to read. So, yesterday I took the top bunk off, and put in a few huge pillows for a backrest. Now, I can bunch them up at one end , and read to my hearts content. I love it! AND, it was my first renovation in my new camper...now I'm ready for anything!
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Old 05-27-2008, 03:56 PM   #17
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with my 13ft Play Pac there's no way i could get in the closet with a porta-potty. on my last trip a met a couple in a pop-up who had a shower tent with a porta-potty in it. checked it out and then got my own. love it. great to me not to have the porta-potty inside the camper. i fill up the shower bag in the morning and it's warm enough by evening to take a shower. like having a personal comfort station in my campsite.
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Old 05-27-2008, 06:14 PM   #18
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My '13 Scamp is not good for a comfortable place for two to sit. The dinette is a straight back seat. I have to be able to get out of the cold or bugs and have to be able to read for a long period of time. The bench seat is just as bad. Nowhere to get my feet up either. So we sit on folding sling chairs and regret having a '13 jail cell.
Time to sell.
I can imagine.
I should have prefaced my choice of a 13' over a 17' by saying, "I travel alone". So I can see where a 13' for two would be very very cramped.
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Old 05-27-2008, 10:23 PM   #19
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With two of us and a medium sized dog it's tight in the Scamp 13. We ran into our first two day camping expedition where it rained. The only saving grace was the awning that I extended to create some living space outside. I two kinda feel trapped. I'm looking to upgrade, but can't afford it this year.
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