Maintenance & Restoration

Denise M. · 06-13-2007, 05:59 AM

I am purchasing a 1999 widebody Burro that is in excellent condition. I have been on several sites and a few are loyal to the Burro but I have read many negative comments and am wondering why? I think it is a really COOL looking trailer. Just wondering how many out there are pleased with there Burro.

gail todd · 06-13-2007, 06:28 AM

Quote:

I am purchasing a 1999 widebody Burro that is in excellent condition. I have been on several sites and a few are loyal to the Burro but I have read many negative comments and am wondering why? I think it is a really COOL looking trailer. I considered the scamp and casita which I like also but I chose the Burro because the space and I love the clean white interior. I would love to hear from some Burro owners who are happy with there Burro instead of reading all the negativity against them.

I have had my 1999 17 foot widebody since January. Only took it out for a one week trip to Mexico. Found a few glitches-just some maintenance and fairly simple repairs. Previous owner kept it very clean. I am 57 years old and want more comforts than the camper shell in the back of my Toyota Prerunner. I now have a lovely bathroom, kitchen, and 110-propane fridge. Toyota pulls it just fine-about 14-15mpg. Went 35mph coming up mountains west of El Centro, but I'm in no hurry.
I LOVE MY NEW TRAILER!!!! Looking forward to a longer trip this fall.
Gail Todd

Denise M. · 06-13-2007, 06:34 AM

Glad to hear from another Burro owner. I can't wait to get ours in about a week or so.

Gina D. · 06-13-2007, 07:43 AM

Hi Denise, welcome to the world of BIG.

I have owned 2 Burros. The first was a 13 foot Sac City model. I bought it when it was 24 years old, and it had held up extremely well. It saw very frequent use from me, and I am happy to say it lives with a new owner who is having just as much fun with it and it still holds up to this day.

I currently own a wide body 17 footer anniversary model. It's an Escondido unit, and out side of some "oddities" in quality of fit and finish, it seems every bit as robust as the 13 was. The oddities are just that.. items that are not critical, such as how straight the door opening was cut (The door works fine, however) and missing spots of insulation, .. toilet location etc.

Burro had the issues as the company was dying, but all in all, I think you will be happy with yours. There isn't any show stoppers. Go use it and enjoy the character.

Denise M. · 06-13-2007, 07:49 AM

Hi Gina,
Thanks for the information. The Burro I purchased was on this site posted by I believe by Rand. Did you see it?? The shower is in the front I have not seen any other Burro's like that? I was also wondering if it is a Burro anniversary model? Thanks!

Gina D. · 06-13-2007, 07:54 AM

I have never seen one with a front bath.. and thats the only one I have heard of. No doubt, a custom order.

We would love to see more pictures and descriptions of it!

CindyL · 06-13-2007, 07:54 AM

Denise,

I can't speak for the widebody, but we owned a '78 13' Burro and loved it! We wanted a bathroom, though. As I looked for a larger trailer, I was looking strictly to Burro, as I loved the style and the fact that both of us could stand in ours (Hubby is 6'1".). While I did not buy a Burro as our second trailer, we bought a UHaul which is almost the same, if fact, made from the molds I think I read. We love it too. No problem telling what kind of trailer is coming down the road if you see us.

CindyL

Denise M. · 06-13-2007, 08:04 AM

The stove and sink are switched compared to what I have seen in pictures on other Burro's The owner did tell me there is a hole on top of the counter where the fridge is below. I believe some one took the original stove top off and put the new stove/oven on the left side under the window?

Brian B-P · 06-13-2007, 11:50 AM

I assume Denise's Burro is the trailer shown in the topic Friend SOLD his Burro Widebody. If so, and if the range (stove+oven) under the window was a later installation, does anyone know what would have been in that cabinet space originally, or what would be there in a "normal" Burro?

The water heater and refrigerator are presumably in their original locations, since their installation involves large holes in the body shell.

Denise M. · 06-13-2007, 12:37 PM

I am not sure what would have been where the stove/oven is now? I really like the layout of the trailer. The fridge is in the original place above it where the stove would have been is a hole but as you can see in the pictures a wooden piece is covering it which I think looks fine. I have never owned a fiberglass trailer or one this new and am so excited to be getting this one soon. I have owned an Airstream and serro scotty. The scotty was nice but way too small for us. The airstream was nice too but it was older and needed more attention.

Donna D. · 06-13-2007, 12:46 PM

Quote:

I have been on several sites and a few are loyal to the Burro but I have read many negative comments and am wondering why?

Just out of curiosity, are the negative comments made by owners, or people who have "heard" something. Quite frankly, I haven't heard anything from a Burro owner except glowing comments...okay, so some would prefer their 13' to be 17' widebody...but we can say that about most of the brands (see the topic Twofootitis

).

Denise M. · 06-13-2007, 12:56 PM

Most of what I personally read was not by owners but by what someone had heard or read elsewhere. Does the Burro feel roomier than the Casita and Scamp? It's difficult to tell just by pictures.

CindyL · 06-13-2007, 03:07 PM

I thought that my 13' Burro was roomier than others I saw. I went looking on one of the camping tours for something that would work for my son and his wife and decided that they needed a Burro too, as he is even taller than my hubby, although I have since seen other kinds and some others would fit his height. (I understand that new varieties are being made taller now.) However, we had only two people in the Burro and redid the front couch into a the dining area, so we had no dining area in the original place that it was located. That was our seating area during the day and bed at night. And I always took the bed down.

CindyL

Gina D. · 06-13-2007, 03:17 PM

Where the stove/oven combo on hers is was originally the sink and a lower open cupboard with the waterpump and gas works (Mine has 4 seperate feeds with shut off valves for each appliance.

The infrastructure items may be far enough to the side to not interfere, but how you would access them is somewhat puzzling. The picture isn't clear in that regard. Maybe from under the oven.

Quote:

Does the Burro feel roomier than the Casita and Scamp?

To me, yes it does. I truely feel like I have two rooms + the bath.

In my 13, it seemed more open, tho I know there was not anymore footage than any other 13 foot model to speak of.

The one 17 I saw with no bath seemed cavernous!

CindyL · 06-13-2007, 03:34 PM

And our 16' UHaul, although narrower than the wide-body Burro, is just right now. There is room for both of us to move around when the bed is put together. We are not bumping behinds anymore or tripping over the porta-potty, now that it has its own room. And, thanks to Wayne in Dubuque's idea, we just added a mod to increase counter space without decreasing space for anything else. Kevin attached a flip-out cutting board that lays over the sink when not in use. It is supported by a flip-out arm that folds against the counter. This way, it is cooking counterspace when over the sink and drying dish counterspace when flipped out.

I predict you will love your Burro like we loved our old one and the new one.

CindyL

Denise M. · 06-13-2007, 04:32 PM

I was looking at a scamp for sale the same time I was looking at the Burro. It was on craigslist and I just called last Friday about it. It is a 1987 scamp with the bathroom, slept four with the bunks, airconditioner, new tires etc...asking price 6,500 The owner was very polite and said his family have had it for ten years. He sent me pictures and it looked very nice but I kept leaning toward the Burro and decided on it. I would have loved to have had the extra sleeping space the scamp provided (bunks). The table in the one I am buying makes into a huge bed. Does anyone know if that is a queen size or what are the measurements? The main thing I did not like about the scamp was the carpet on the wall. It is a well thought out design for insulation purposes. I have asthma and thought it might aggravate that? Plus I love the white fiberglass interior on the Burro.

Roger H · 06-13-2007, 04:33 PM

Denise, as a former '87 Sac City Burro 17 owner, I feel compelled to tell you that you'll absolutely detest owning a Burro 17. As a matter of fact, it'll undoubtedly bring down the property values in your entire neighborhood if you merely park it at your house. It will be too big for you to comfortably use. It'll be too warm when it's cold out, and too cool when it's hot. You won't like not having to go to the campground outhouse in the middle of the night during a thunderstorm. I'm sure you just won't be happy with any of it.

So, as to spare you the incredible embarrassment of being saddled with such ridicule, I'm prepared for you just to sign the title over to me when you get it, and I'll take it off your hands so you won't have to deal with it.

If there's anything else I can do for you in this matter, you just let me know.

Best regards,

Roger

Denise M. · 06-13-2007, 04:42 PM

I may hate it so much I may buy another one to park in the driveway just to bug the neighbors. Just kidding too. I know I will love it. I forgot to mention I also looked at the bigfoots. Super nice trailers. A little to pricey for me right now. I never thought I would switch to anything but an Airstream but I am more excited about this Burro than I ever was about the Airstream.

Per Walthinsen · 06-13-2007, 06:09 PM

Denise:
Bed in the back of ours is about 54 to 56" wide, depending on how you measure it, and about 86" wall to wall. Unless you are as tall as Roger your toesies should not need to be curled up.

Roger H · 06-13-2007, 06:31 PM

Quote:

Denise:
Bed in the back of ours is about 54 to 56" wide, depending on how you measure it, and about 86" wall to wall. Unless you are as tall as Roger your toesies should not need to be curled up.

Per... the one little trailer I had that I didn't have to curl up my toesies WAS the Burro!

Roger