Bigfoot now making trailers again

[Tony Nowak]

Spoke to Grant at Bigfoot several days ago and he says they have made "a few" 21 foot trailers with the front bedroom, rear door configuration. They will start making the 17.5 foot, single axle trailer soon. The resurrected company has been making truck campers since early in the year, but no more motorhomes are planned. The motorhome info is second hand. This is good news for the molded fiberglass group.

[Robin G]

Nice to hear! Thanks for passing it along.........

[Lizbeth]

That's great news!

[Donna D.]

Cool! Competition is good. Not only for buyers but it keeps manufacturers thinking innovatively.

[David and Nancy]

Thanks for the update, Tony. You managed to scoop the Bigfoot Owners Club website on this one. Mike Henley updated the "Presidents Message" today and didn't mention this news. However he did say that Grant and members of the Bigfoot Inc team would attend the rally this year in Canada.

It's nice to know that Bigfoot trailers are still being made in case I ever wear out the one I have now. Most likely, Nancy will just want a bigger one.

[Larry Tenhage]

That's great! Nice to hear that Fibreglass trailers are still so popular. And no wonder, they're so long lasting, & don't go out of style. There's also a place in the States somewhere that makes a new type of FG trailer. They're call Parkliner. Check them out!

ParkLiner Fiberglass Ultralight Travel Trailers -

[Rvicsvol]

Originally Posted by Larry Tenhage

That's great! Nice to hear that Fibreglass trailers are still so popular. And no wonder, they're so long lasting, & don't go out of style. There's also a place in the States somewhere that makes a new type of FG trailer. They're call Parkliner. Check them out!

ParkLiner Fiberglass Ultralight Travel Trailers -

If you can actually talk to someone there or get them to reply to an e-mail let me know. I don't think anyone's had much success. I'd like to stop by on my way to Lil Snoozy next week but doubt that will happen. Hate to just show up on the doorstep in case they're no longer in business or closed.

[GeorgeR]

I am very glad about Bigfoot’s change of direction. Their move away from light fiberglass RVs heavily contributed to their demise in 2008. During their bankruptcy Bigfoot’s product portfolio became too complex for small company R&D, manufacturing, sales, and marketing. Before the company’s collapse Bigfoot had in their portfolio:
a. 12 models of campers with dry weight ranging from 1,790-3,473 lb
b. 7 models of trailers with dry weight ranging from 2,885-7,338 lb
c. 9 models of motor homes with dry weight ranging from 9,920-16,518 lb
I have direct experience with 2 of their products, 1997 2500 9.5’ camper and 2008 21RB trailer. During the purchase of the Camper I successfully discussed changes with the very accommodating founder. Both units were built well with a few more manufacturing mistakes on the trailer. After the founder and his management team died in the airplane disaster the new management team took over and I think they lost their focus on light RVs and made this company too difficult to manage.
I am a member of Bigfoot forum and found that there are distinctly 2 groups, the owners of motorhomes and owners of Fiberglass trailers and campers. This split also exists on the RV market place and managing a company with such diverse customer base is tough. I am really glad Bigfoot is back to basics which made them successful in the past, focus on light RVs.
George.

[Green Frog]

Thanks for the link to and info about Parkliner. One thing has me a little confused, though. If they are calling it "ultralight" and used the same general size specs as Burro, U-Haul, Casita, etc. trailers, why are they nearly a half ton heavier? Did they use old railroad rails for the frame? What about the extra 200# of tongue weight? What's up with that?

I looked over the pictures of their interior, and the idea of putting wall cabinets all the way around in what would otherwise be dead air space appeals to me, but I wonder if it will begin to get top heavy as you fill those cabinets with your stuff? He definitely tried to use every cubic inch of available space... maybe that's where some of the weight came from.

I'm in VA, and after I get some of my self-imposed to-do list conquered, I may just call down there and see about taking a day trip to find out what is what at their base of operation. I'm guessing it's a little one horse operation that may even be part-time for "Chandler" the owner, so contact may be a little spotty. Regardless, if it really is what they say it is, another FGRV on the market should prove to be a "Good Thing!"

Froggie

[David and Nancy]

George

I agree with your assessment of the demise of the Bigfoot company, and also that the motorhome segment of Bigfoot owners is very distinctive from the FGRV side. I have read your posts on the Bigfoot forum and found your technical knowledge of our trailers quite helpful, too. That being said, I can't help but wonder if the new company is actually addressing some of the issues you and others have pointed out. I remember that the low tongue weight issue on the 21 FB model was resolved by adding iron to the front of the trailer rather than changes in floor-plan, water tanks or axle placement. I remember you had issues with inadequate AC support, and the awning attachments were very unsound.

I had not planned to go to the Bigfoot rally this year because of the distance, but I would really like to meet Grant and directly find out if the new trailers will show some improvements. The rally is somewhat dominated by the motorhome folks, but they will probably not have much to ask about the new Bigfoot fiberglass-only operation.

[David and Nancy]

As for Parkliner, maybe we should move that discussion to a new thread.

However, I did just check out their website and there is a lot to like. But I was put off by the fact that a permanent toilet with a black tank is not being offered, even as an option. That omission may effectively drive away a ton of potential customers. And 15 feet seems like an odd size for a FGRV. Why go smaller than the standard 16 or 17 which is already very close quarters?

[Donna D.]

Originally Posted by David and Nancy

As for Parkliner, maybe we should move that discussion to a new thread.

However, I did just check out their website and there is a lot to like. But I was put off by the fact that a permanent toilet with a black tank is not being offered, even as an option. That omission may effectively drive away a ton of potential customers. And 15 feet seems like an odd size for a FGRV. Why go smaller than the standard 16 or 17 which is already very close quarters?

Escape (and it's very popular!) is no longer manufacturing 13' trailers, perhaps because of the competition from Scamp, Castita, etc. But, they're selling a boatload of 15 footers! Different strokes for different folks ?!