Three (3) Top FB Trailers

[Traxless]

From reading this FG RV forum, it looks to us that the Oliver 23, Escape 21 and Bigfoot 21 are among the top quality built trailers regardless of type of material. I'd have to say, we could be mighty happy with anyone of these trailers. As most know, none of these three (3) are easily available in Texas or surrounding areas.

I've gathered quite a bit of information by reading the manufacturer's websites, this forum, and the forums for each of the above trailers. I haven't found a way to measure the actual storage areas except my counting cabinets, closets, and areas in the basements. It seems to me that the Bigfoot 21 has the most storage areas, followed by the Escape 21, and the Oliver 21 has the least storage.

I'd be grateful for any feedback about these storage observations.

PS. Edit on Oliver 23

[floyd]

All nice, all large, what do you plan to tow with?

[Ron Merritt]

check out my review video on my blog if you want to see all the storage areas in the Oliver. It's alot of storage, especially the large closet. BTW, Oliver is 23.5', not 21.

[Traxless]

Originally Posted by floyd

All nice, all large, what do you plan to tow with?

We have a Ford 5.4L F150 CrewCab with factory towing options to include transmission cooler, frame mounted hitch, etc. It seems like it should do the job if we load carefully and travel with empty tanks. That's the plan anyway.

[Steve Outlaw]

Not counting the closet or the basement, we have over sixty cubic feet of interior storage in our Oliver. I doubt that puts it at number three!

[Jack L]

Bigfoot trailers are wider by about a foot. The width is great on a rainy day when I'm in the trailer with the wife and dog, and it increases floor and storage space, but when you are towing in a narrow road or in a congested urban area that extra width does create a challenge. It's a tough call to say which brand I would choose if I was buying a new trailer today. My primary focus would be on which floor plan was best for me.

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by Traxless

From reading this FG RV forum, it looks to us that the Oliver 23, Escape 21 and Bigfoot 21 are among the top quality built trailers regardless of type of material. I'd have to say, we could be mighty happy with anyone of these trailers. As most know, none of these three (3) are easily available in Texas or surrounding areas.

I've gathered quite a bit of information by reading the manufacturer's websites, this forum, and the forums for each of the above trailers. I haven't found a way to measure the actual storage areas except my counting cabinets, closets, and areas in the basements. It seems to me that the Bigfoot 21 has the most storage areas, followed by the Escape 21, and the Oliver 21 has the least storage.

I'd be grateful for any feedback about these storage observations.

PS. Edit on Oliver 23

You can call Escape and they will set you up with a owner near you to go and see one first hand.

I love all three brands of the trailers you have mentioned and have had an opportunity to see all three first hand - two of them many times. The Bigfoot and the Escape are both on my future trailer radar (most probable will end up with Escape due to its weight and pricing) but I would not class the three as being equals. The Oliver and Bigfoot are probable more comparable as far as bells and whistles and interior finishing than the Escape is to either. I would put Escape more the middle of the road between the Scamps/Casita's and the Bigfoot and Oliver in regards to interior finishing & general build. The price of the Escape reflects that as well.

[rbryan]

Originally Posted by Traxless

As most know, none of these three (3) are easily available in Texas or surrounding areas.

It depends on how you define 'easily available'. All 3 manufacturers will build you one if you give them a call. We ordered ours last June, then traveled to BC to pick it up in March and camped on the way home. It was a wonderful trip. You could easily do the same for either the Bigfoot or the Oliver. As for storage, any of the 3 will give you more than enough.

The advantage of having a trailer built is that its done the way you want it. If you can find a used one that fits the bill then by all means do, but as is widely known, they don't last long. We even had two offers to buy our 19 on our way home with it.

[whip2001]

we've got a Bigfoot 2002 and the storage space is by far the best we've seen.
ours is a rear bed 21. we don't have a microwave by choice and the cabinet it goes in serves as our library. even with two Kindles we still have a need for books.
the depth of the many cabinets is very useful. due to the extra foot width.
we've been on many long trips, 3 to the south west, and one to Alaska.
have never had trouble with moving around narrow camp sites.

only negative is it's a heavy trailer loaded, 5200 lb. we tow with a Tahoe 5300 liter V8 and gas milage is about 11.5 mi/gal. honest mileage measured on every trip.

we love it and it's currently better than new with all our modes. at least for our needs.

[David Tilston]

Originally Posted by whip2001

we tow with a Tahoe 5300 liter V8

That is one HUGE engine......... or, do you mean 5.3 liter or 5300cc?

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by rbryan

It depends on how you define 'easily available'. All 3 manufacturers will build you one if you give them a call. We ordered ours last June, then traveled to BC to pick it up in March and camped on the way home. .

Escape will also arrange to deliver it to you - trucks heading out all the time loaded up & heading to points south and east.

[BatDude]

FYI 5.3 liter = 5300cc as 1 l = 1000 cc

[tractors1]

A big reason I focused on the Escape 21 is the medium width - wider than my Casita was but still not 8 ft wide; easier to see around and less aerodynamic drag. All our stuff for a 2 week trip doesn't fill up the storage!

[whip2001]

Yes, you caught my error. my bad. :0

[brian m.]

You can definitely see Escapes in Texas! I personally know 5 or 6 Escape owners, most all of them former Casita owners. Tammy and Reace were even at the Bluebonnet Rally in Bandera, TX this past April with two different trailers. They can connect you with Escape owners in Texas if you'd like to see one in person.

[Kentucky]

We had a Bigfoot 21FB for 8 years and now have an Oliver 23. The Bigfoot had a lot of storage, especially the double door shelved cabinets & double drawer stacks beside the bathroom. The vanity & medicine cabinet were also great. My favorite storage in the Oliver is the pantry (very large & easy to access) and the closet with 2 large shelves for folded clothes above the rod. The Bigfoot closet was less accessible because we kept a small dog kennel at the foot of the bed. The amount of overhead cabinets seems similar; however, the cabinets in the Oliver are more accessible to us because we have twin beds which makes the cabinets easier to reach.
The storage in the Bigfoot was one of the primary reasons we bought it; however, we found that we usually packed more things than we really needed. My only advice is for you to consider more factors than storage (i.e., bed layout, ease of towing, etc.).
Both are high quality trailers so just do your homework to see what best meets your needs. Good luck!

[Glenn Baglo]

Wife and I are about to go through our trailer with the aim to eliminate stuff that we don't need or even use. We've been dragging a 13" flat screen TV, 7" DVD player and DVDs around for three years. I hooked it up once and never got beyond "memorizing channels". We've got too many clothes, kitchen utensils - stuff.
Perhaps less is more.

[Traxless]

Thank you for your guidance on my post regarding Oliver, Escape, and Bigfoot. Very helpful information.