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Old 01-28-2017, 03:05 PM   #1
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Name: Wenonah
Trailer: 13' Scamp
Ohio
Posts: 58
Hi there, I'm new

Hello from Ohio,

I am a grandmother with a 10 year old grandson. Sam and I camp every year, as I have summers off. Big smile. We have always tented but he is getting older, as am I, that ground isn't as comfy as it used to be! I am looking for a 13' fiberglass that I can pull with my Honda CRV. I can tow up to 1500lbs. Bathroom is not necessary but we absolutely need our own beds. My preference is a Scamp. Love camping and want to do this as long as I can within a budget. Thank you so much! I have until June to look. Wish me luck and keep us in mind...I am willing to travel to anywhere in the US or Canada to buy a trailer.
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Old 01-28-2017, 04:09 PM   #2
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Name: Jon
Trailer: 2008 Scamp 13 S1
Arizona
Posts: 11,912
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Welcome, Wenohah! Sounds like you and your grandson are set for some great adventures.

A Scamp without bath will work well- one takes the front bed, the other takes the back.

To keep the weight under 1500 pounds, you will need to keep it pretty basic and pack lightly. You need electric brakes on the trailer for sure- not all used units have them. I recommend adding a transmission fluid cooler in addition to the other towing upgrades you will make to the vehicle.

Best wishes on your "egg hunt"!
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Old 01-28-2017, 04:40 PM   #3
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Name: Wenonah
Trailer: 13' Scamp
Ohio
Posts: 58
brakes

Thanks, Jon. I had thought of the brakes but not the transmission cooler. I hope to upgrade to a bigger vehicle in the future. yes, we would have to pack light. Well worth it though. We have seen Yellowstone, DC, Utah, and many other places with the tent. Just think of what we could do with an egg...
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Old 01-29-2017, 08:14 AM   #4
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Name: Jon
Trailer: 2008 Scamp 13 S1
Arizona
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Hi there, I'm new

Wenonah, I also tent camped before upgrading to the Scamp, and there is one difference I didn't fully appreciate. Out here in the West, interstate speed limits are high, 70-80 mph in many rural areas. You can cover a lot of ground in an 8 hour driving day with a car and a tent.

With a trailer, you're limited to 60-65 mph. It takes longer to get from one place to another- something to consider when planning a long road trip.

On the other hand, you can drive an extra hour if needed because you don't have to set up the tent and etc.. And you can sleep in comfort (for free, where permitted) in a rest area, truck stop, Walmart,...
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Old 01-29-2017, 08:45 AM   #5
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Name: Dean
Trailer: Casita
Kentucky
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Hi Wenonah,

Welcome! Jon is an amazing resource and he definitely knows his egg campers, particularly Scamps. It looks like you are headed in the right direction. Perhaps a smaller vintage rig like a Boler would be an option as well. This forum is a tremendous resource.

Wish you the best,

Dean
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Old 01-29-2017, 09:01 AM   #6
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Name: Ray
Trailer: 2017 Scamp 16 Deluxe
Missouri
Posts: 692
Wenonah,

Although I searched for many months, we had trouble finding a used Scamp13 that was light enough to pull with our 2011 Honda CRV. In October of 2013, we finally purchased a new 2014 Scamp13 Layout 1 with the larger bed (54" wide).

We left off most of the heavier items and drag-producing items to make it easier for our CRV to pull (i.e. no top-mounted AC, no awning, no furnace,
no bathroom, and no wood interior). We did add additional storage cabinets, lights (almost immediately converted to LEDs), and 110v/12v electrical outlets).

We did also order electric brakes for the trailer and installed a transmission cooler on the Honda CRV. Although we sometimes needed to tow with the Honda transmission in "D3" mode, our 2011 CRV was "adequate" to pull our Scamp13. In 2012, Honda added 5 more horsepower to the CRV. IIRC, the very newest CRVs may have a transmission that is less appropriate for towing.

Pictures of our trailer can be found in the later segments of the following post: Scamp Full Size Bed = Smaller Table Size
http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...ize-65096.html

Our daughter has 3 children, our son has 2 children, and our grandkids have enjoyed a lot of camping trips/destinations with us. I'm sure that your grandson will also love being in a trailer instead of a tent.

On one trip, we actually slept 2 adults and 3 grandkids in the trailer for a couple of nights.
We slept 5 in our Scamp13 with 54" bed
We slept 5 in our Scamp13 with 54" bed


After several happy years of camping in the Scamp13, we have finally purchased a truck and have decided to move up to a Scamp16. We should be able to pick up the new Scamp16 in the next 6+ weeks.

Attached is a picture of our Scamp13 behind our Honda CRV:


Good luck on your own trailer search!

Ray
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Old 01-29-2017, 09:52 AM   #7
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Trailer: 2012 Escape 19
Oklahoma
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Norm and Ginny towed extensively with an older CR-V. He has a light foot on the gas pedal, I think, because he always got exceptional fuel economy. This thread http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/f...act-76911.html contains one of his posts, 3rd one down on the page I think... Honda03842 is Norm's moniker.

Are you planning to take long trips, including mountain regions? Or just short trips fairly close to home? It makes a difference. You'd be less happy with the CRV's performance on long, steep grades at higher elevation where the air (being drawn into the engine to mix with the fuel) is thinner.
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Old 01-29-2017, 10:24 AM   #8
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Name: Bob Ruggles
Trailer: 2015 Escape
Michigan
Posts: 1,537
As an aside, more horsepower has nothing to do with the ability to tow heavier loads. More hp means faster acceleration. Torque is what you need to move the load. I forget the numbers but hp is defined in terms of torque.


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Old 01-29-2017, 03:31 PM   #9
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Name: Wenonah
Trailer: 13' Scamp
Ohio
Posts: 58
Ray, Thank you for your insights. Have you decided upon a price yet? My Honda is 2004 and is still running fine. I hope to get the camper this year and purchase a new towing vehicle next year. I too would be traveling as light as possible. I'm not in a hurry when we travel so we could take it easy on the CRV. Excuse my ignorance, but the electric brakes are now part of the Scamp, so go with it, correct?
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Old 01-29-2017, 03:37 PM   #10
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Name: Wenonah
Trailer: 13' Scamp
Ohio
Posts: 58
Mike, Thank you for the encouraging post regarding Norm and Ginny! I'd certainly try to do the same. I had never heard of a transmission fan, but will definitely be researching that. We will be leaving Ohio and heading up to Maine. We will then travel down the coast to Florida to stay for a month. My grandson and I want to see the early American history in Boston, Philly, NY, DC etc. I don't mind being "less happy" with the CRV's performance, as long as we all, CRV included, make it home in one piece...
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Old 01-30-2017, 09:54 AM   #11
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Name: Jon
Trailer: 2008 Scamp 13 S1
Arizona
Posts: 11,912
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Florida... in the summer? I can't imagine camping in the Southeast in the summer without AC, other than in the Appalachian Mountains, due to the combination of heat and humidity. AC raises issues with weight in your situation.

The West is different- much lower humidity- so fans are usually enough for a comfortable night's sleep except in the hottest deserts.

I grew up in Maryland camping with my family in a tent trailer without AC. In the summer we always headed north or west. Have you considered going beyond Maine? We often spent time in the Maritime provinces. Beautiful! The aforementioned Norm and Ginny have coordinated a couple of caravans into Newfoundland. We never went that far, but it sounds fun.

BTW- a transmission cooler is not a fan. It's a small radiator-like part that mounts in front of the main radiator to cool the transmission fluid. More precisely, it's called an auxiliary ATF (automatic transmission fluid) cooler.
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Old 01-30-2017, 12:30 PM   #12
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Name: Ray
Trailer: 2017 Scamp 16 Deluxe
Missouri
Posts: 692
Hi there, I'm new

In situations of high heat and humidity, we use a 5,000 BTU window AC that gets mounted temporarily in the back window of the Scamp. The bottom window track is protected by foam-rubber pipe foam (or pool noodles), a wooden board/platform is put on top of that, and most of the weight is supported by PVC pipe running from the platform down to the back bumper of the Scamp.

Last year, we took two granddaughters to Gulf Shores (Al) in the second week of July.
Even though there was high heat and humidity for our week-long stay, we were cool and comfortable inside the Scamp.

Most of our trips are more north in the summer and south in the winter and a good fan (or two?) is all that is needed. Although our roof is/was prepped for the weight of a top-mounted AC, it didn't seem all that necessary to add the weight and additional frontal area drag of a top-mounted AC unit for only about 5% of our camping trips .... especially when we were initially pulling with a weight-limited CRV.

Ray
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Old 01-31-2017, 12:57 AM   #13
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Name: Ray
Trailer: 2017 Scamp 16 Deluxe
Missouri
Posts: 692
Quote:
Originally Posted by rdickens View Post
In situations of high heat and humidity, we use a 5,000 BTU window AC that gets mounted temporarily in the back window of the Scamp after we arrive at our destination. The bottom window track is protected by foam-rubber pipe foam (or pool noodles), a wooden board/platform is put on top of that, and most of the weight is supported by PVC pipe running from the platform down to the back bumper of the Scamp.

Last year, we took two granddaughters to Gulf Shores (Al) in the second week of July.
Even though there was high heat and humidity for our week-long stay, we were cool and comfortable inside the Scamp.

Most of our trips are more north in the summer and south in the winter and a good fan (or two?) is all that is needed. Although our roof is/was prepped for the weight of a top-mounted AC, it didn't seem all that necessary to add the weight and additional frontal area drag of a top-mounted AC unit for only about 5% of our camping trips .... especially when we were initially pulling with a weight-limited CRV.

Ray


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Old 01-31-2017, 04:55 AM   #14
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Trailer: Boler 13 ft / Casita FD
Posts: 2,038
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Originally Posted by Wenonah View Post
Mike, Thank you for the encouraging post regarding Norm and Ginny! I'd certainly try to do the same. I had never heard of a transmission fan, but will definitely be researching that. We will be leaving Ohio and heading up to Maine. We will then travel down the coast to Florida to stay for a month. My grandson and I want to see the early American history in Boston, Philly, NY, DC etc. I don't mind being "less happy" with the CRV's performance, as long as we all, CRV included, make it home in one piece...

We're having our Spring Fling Rally, May 11 -14 just over the border from Maine in NH.
Your Welcome to come it's going to be a good time but make our reservations fast as the campground opens in 12 weeks and spaces are filling up.
Hope to see ya.
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Old 02-01-2017, 11:59 AM   #15
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Name: Ray
Trailer: 2017 Scamp 16 Deluxe
Missouri
Posts: 692
Wenonah,

Yes.
Our trailer already has electric brakes installed on it.
All of the other trailer options you might specify are about comfort and convenience.
Brakes are much more about safety!

I had sent you a PM (private message) earlier but have/had received no response.
I will send you another (just in case the first one didn't go through) and will include
a regular email address and phone number.

So far, we have been more focused on the new trailer than on selling our current Scamp13.

If you want to discuss our trailer, I will watch for a response to the PM.

Ray
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