Hello My Name Is Inigo Montoya

[atstepchild]

My name is NOT Inigo Montoya, and hopefully you have not killed my father, and I don't mind if you have 6 fingers on your left hand.


I thought I posted an intro a month ago, while working in WI, but I think that is when I lost my wifi, so lost my post.

My wife and I live in Columbus, Ohio, and are looking for a starter camper. It will primarily be the 2 of us, plus a mastiff. I expect we will use it a handful of times a year, mostly at Buckeye Lake, OH (her dad's lot), which has no hookups of any kind, and a couple times a year at a standard State Forest campground. I have a Dodge Grand Caravan to pull with (rated around 3600 lbs). I don't expect to make long trips with it, so it will probably sit in my driveway the majority of the time.



As much as I would love to get a fiberglass, I have a feeling I'll have to wait a while before I could afford one. I expect I may try to find a traditional camper for the first couple of years until I can try to build up a war chest. Ideally, I would like to get one in the spring, but would at least like to find something by September.



I travel for work a lot, covering about 9 states, ranging from MD / VA to MO / MN as a field tech in bingo.

[thrifty bill]

While molded fiberglass wins the durability and resale value contest, a regular trailer like a hybrid wins the space per dollar. Many of my camping friends are shocked how much FG trailers cost to the point I don’t tell people anymore.

Of course, I had my first FG trailer, bought used, sold 3 years later for the same price. Meanwhile a friends new trailer lost over 50% in three years.

[Jon in AZ]

Former math student of mine works at a local burger joint. When I order mine at the drive-through without mustard, the voice on the other end says, “As you wish.” Love it that a new generation has discovered and appreciates a classic.

One obstacle you’ll be up against is weight. Not a lot of conventional trailers are towable by your GC, and the best used deals tend to be the bigger ones. Keep looking, keep saving, keep an open mind, and eventually something will work out.

Best wishes in your search for a trailer!

[Steve L.]

Originally Posted by Jon in AZ

Former math student of mine works at a local burger joint. When I order mine at the drive-through without mustard, the voice on the other end says, “As you wish.” Love it that a new generation has discovered and appreciates a classic...

Can you hijack a thread that the OP already kind of hijacked himself??? I don't think so, so continuing off on the tangent....

We were in a "bad boy" meeting reviewing early build problems for a new truck. Late for the build were the badges that go on the side of front fender, usually just ahead of the door. The body engineer responsible was called to explain why he was late to a target date that had been identified more than a year previously. (You can hear this coming a mile off.) Build coordinator: "Where were the badges?" Body engineer: "Badges, we don't need no stinkin badges..."

Scattered snickers from the peanut gallery, blank stares from management. A rough audience.

[Tony D]

Inigo, a mastiff sure is a big dog.

It seems that you'd like a 16 ft camper trailer. The medium sized fiberglass RVs would comfortably meet your need if you can pull it. I recently walked through your quandary and decided on a small one (I have a 13 ft Scamp on order). My Outback has limitations with a 200 lb max tongue weight and a 3,000 lb towing capacity. I would have liked bigger, but did not want to buy a new car. I looked around for a used camper, but every time I found one we liked it sold before I could act. Anyway, I figured if my wife and border collie want a bigger camper we could sell our little one and get a medium sized one with a manageable cost for the experience. They'll just have to wait until we are done with the Subaru.

Good luck in your search. I'm looking forward to hitting a couple fiberglass RV rallies this spring/summer. The community has a great reputation. I plan to go in May, before I get my camper. We want to learn the lay of the land and be mostly ready when it arrives.

In light of the silliness of this thread, let's all work to remain mostly alive. True love and a little kissing should help in that endeavor. Actually, that's not too silly.

Tony D

[trainman]

the best thing about this post is, hamburgers with mustard, I agree.

trainman

[atstepchild]

I gave a guy a check today, and will pick up my new (to me) 2013 Forest River Salem Cruise Lite 185rb when it clears. Either my friend, or my brother, will pick it up for me since I'll be in East St Louis for just over a week. I checked it over as well as I could, and didn't see any rot, soft spots, or obvious leaks. Everything seemed to be in good shape, including the awning. He asked $6499, and took $6299 (I am not a haggler). Hopefully I can build up a war chest and look at getting a fiberglass in a few years.

[Tony D]

Very cool. Enjoy it.

[Mike Magee]

Best to take it to an RV dealer you trust and have the roof checked (or check it yourself if you think you know what you're doing), to see if Dicor sealant is needed on any of the seams and roof perforations (vents, etc). I had a stickie trailer that started leaking at 3.5 years old. Water intrusion is the big enemy of trailers.


Consider buying an RV cover or parking it under an overhang.

[sokhapkin]

Originally Posted by Mike Magee

RV dealer you trust

This is a very strange combination of words.

[Renee D]

We currently have a 13' Scamp and spent last summer traveling with 2 Golden Retrievers and 1 Dalmatian. The only time it was difficult was in the middle of the night trying to get to the bathroom with 3 large dogs on the floor. One dog has since crossed the Rainbow Bridge, and there's no problem getting around at night. There's enough floor space so we don't step on them. You can do a 13' with a Mastiff.