New news from Parkliner

[Wallo]

Originally Posted by Raz

Little Guys started as a teardrop manufacturer. First they expanded to several versions. Then they started making T@Bs. Recently the Meerkat showed up. I'm not sure if they make it or just sell it. They have a nation wide dealer network established so I suspect Parkliner will just be added to the order form. .

Little Guy World Wide is based in Ohio. It sells teardrop trailers and is also bringing back the Scottie trailer which is being mfgd. in Indiana by Gulf Stream Coach. Little Guy also used to distribute the T@B trailer made by Pleasant Valley in Ohio. The two companies will officially split in April 2017. I'm wondering if Gulf Stream will also manufacture the Parkliner. This quote is from a press release by LG last July,

"Little Guy Worldwide recently announced its expansion strategy into the distribution of high-end campers and trailers at a new 169,000 square foot facility. Little Guy Worldwide has reserved another 200,000 square feet of space for future expansion."

I don't see the price of the Parkliner coming down, and I doubt the manufacturing lead time will be reduced by much. I had to wait 5 months for the T@B I purchased. Knowing the quality of stick builts, I wonder how the quality control will be. Time will tell.

[Raz]

So little guys doesn't make the T@B. I had read the did? Do they make the teardrops? I bet they don't make the Meerkat either.

[k corbin]

It was not unusual for the fiberglass trailers made in years past to have the shells made by another company. They were then brought to the location where the body was put onto a trailer and the interior fittings were installed. Because they were made in two pieces they were often stacked up (as you would do bowls in your cabinet) for shipping which reduce the space required to move them from the fabricator to the final installation location. This is still a fairly common practice for a different facility to fabricate the fiberglass shells. There are still companies around who specialize in creating molds and doing the molding for people who design such products. These same companies often do production work for fiberglass boat hulls of varying sizes or fiberglass hot tubs and swimming pools. It makes sense for a small startup company to hire out that part of production versus trying to tool up for it and find skilled employees. Especially if the company is located in one of the states where wages are higher than in other locations. In addition there is an advantage to having a facility that is already set up and in compliance with the regulations governing the use of chemicals including storage, disposal, things such as air quality, drains, fire safety, etc. That is a big cost with a lot of time and labor for a small startup to get all sorted out and managed.

As to having the shells sprayed by robotics. That certainly is achievable but human labor will cost far less for a startup firm so robotics is not likely to happen for a small company unless they already have contracts for large quantity orders waiting on their production capability to increase. Technology cost for such equipment is generally going to need to be supported by very large firms with a lot of backers for the capital funds. Such fund raising of large amounts of capital for technology driven production pretty much requires a proven track record for this type of work. One current example of the ability to increase production levels for a fiberglass trailer is Airstream taking on the production of the Nest Caravan. They can pull in the financial backers that are needed.

[Alice L]

Little Guy distributed the T@B and T@G made by Pleasant Valley. Little Guy made the 4 and 5 wide teardrop trailers. Both Little Guy and Pleasant Valley are located in East Ohio about 30 miles from each other. In California, there is a Little Guy trailer that sells T@Bs, T@Gs, Merkets, and Little Guy 4,5 wide teardrops. I do not believe they are connected to the Ohio LG except to sell their products, but I could be mistaken. It has happened one or maybe two times before. Lol

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[BillE]

Well there goes the neighborhood. I have owned 2 little guy tear drops. We picked up our 2012 Yellow Silver Shadow form the factory in Ohio. We toured the factory. Pleasant Valley trailers built both Little Guy and Tab until last year.Little guy is back in the RV armpit of America... Elkhart Indiana. My guess is they will over saturated the market driving down the resale value if used FG trailers.

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[Alice L]

BillE: I doubt it will drive down the resale value. With Escape eliminating the 13' and 15' and Casita also doing away with the 13', it appears that the small well built inexpensive trailer is being pushed out. Whatever we have today we should hang on too. I know I'm getting priced/sized out of the market.


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[rgrugg]

I have two trailers. An Escape 19 for travel and fun and a 35 ft stickie for an Arizona winter home. The stickie will be stored in AZ when not in use. Bringing the stickie from MI to AZ I averaged 8.5 mpg for 2100 miles. I get almost double with the Escape, both using the same Chevy Silverado. FWIW, I paid about the same for each. Pretty much what you or anyone has is a case of to each his own which, by the way, is a movie and song title from the 1940s.


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[rdickens]

Pulling our Scamp13 at about 60 mph, we get roughly 22 mpg with both our 2014 Ford Escape and our 2016 Ford F-150 XLT 4x2 2.7L Ecoboost.

Without the trailer, our 2016 F-150 gives nearly 28 mpg at 60 mph and 26 mpg at 65 mph.

In a few months, I am hoping to find out what mpg the F-150 will deliver when pulling a 16 ft FGRV. 😉

Ray




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[Johnny M]

I think there would be more of a market or demand for the small 13' fiberglass trailers if the manufacturers marketed them more. Every one that has ever seen ours (other than at a ralley) has told us they have never seen one before but love the small trailer and like that it has no seams like stickies. We lucked up and got ours for $1600 and at the time could not afford a new one unless we financed it even a standard Scamp 13'. But I think that model is the most affordable fiberglass trailer for families on a budget that want a better quality product than a stick built.

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[War Eagle]

We pulled our 2010 EggCamper into a Camping World in South Alabama a year or so back to do a little shopping. The RV sales manager (as best I could tell) gave it a quick once-over and commented he could sell small fiberglass campers all day long if the home office would let him. Not sure if he was serious or just talking, but he sure sounded like he meant it.

[rdickens]

Just FYI -

Yesterday, I attended the MidAmerica RV show in Kansas City.
Sadly, Little Guy was not represented at the show.
2017 Mid-America RV Show | GS Events

I wish Parkliner well. If Little Guy actually brings trailers to the big RV shows, it could be a good thing for Parkliner and for FGRVs in general?

If the price had remained at $16,900 (or even $17,500?), I probably would have ordered a Parkliner last November.

The recent price increase pretty well killed my interest.
The base price of the trailer (with no stove and only and ice box) plus the several thousand dollars worth of options we wanted, just became too expensive.

We have very much enjoyed our Scamp13 Layout 1 + big bed for over three years now. However, especially when we have taken 2 or 3 grandkids along, we have wished for a little more storage space, a larger refrigerator, a little more counter space, a closet, and a bathroom.

Since we now have a fuel efficient Ford F-150 XLT 2.7L 4x2 truck that should be able to tow a larger trailer, we have been looking at 15/16/17 ft trailers.

Along with Parkliner, we looked Lil Snoozy, Escape 17B, and Scamp.

In the end, with the base price and our desired options and features, the Scamp16 Deluxe
came out the winner.

Of course, everyone has different wants, needs, and camping styles.
So, YMMV!

Ray

[Jon in AZ]

Originally Posted by rdickens

...In the end, with the base price and our desired options and features, the Scamp16 Deluxe came out the winner.

Is this the official announcement, Ray? If so, congratulations! Which deluxe layout are you ordering? And most important of all... birch or oak?

I hope I may live long enough to introduce grandkids to Scamping. Enjoy!

[rdickens]

Jon,

Thanks! 😊

I didn't really plan on making any "official announcement" .... at least not before taking delivery of the trailer. 😉

Partially because we want/need sleeping space for 2 adults and (occaionally) a couple of grandkids, it will be a Layout A with sofa/bunk-beds instead of the front dinette. We think we prefer the medium wood tones of the oak interior. (Is there a significant weight advantage, or other advantages, to the birch interior?)

IIRC, I think we both thought that a Standard Layout 4 with the 54" bed might be close to our ideal trailer (if such a thing really exists?). This is as close as we could come to that sort of configuration.

Since this was originally a thread about Parkliner going to a dealer distribution model, if you want additional details, maybe you could send me PM with your email address and we could take any further discussion offline? 😉

Ray






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[rdcastle]

It doesn't take long for people to doom and gloom a company and a great product into the grave!! Parkliner makes an announcement and BAM! they can't possibly succeed. Maybe they should have hired a clairvoyant to lead them down the road. Wow...just wow.

[charlsara]

Originally Posted by Jon in AZ

Is this the official announcement, Ray? If so, congratulations! Which deluxe layout are you ordering? And most important of all... birch or oak?

I hope I may live long enough to introduce grandkids to Scamping. Enjoy!

Ray. I hope you enjoy your new Scamp. Enjoyed talking with you at Camp Snoozy.


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[Benita]

Shelby, sometimes the issue is how many nickels do you have to rub together and not longer term financial strategies. Financing will bring them more customers and probably younger customers.

[stevebaz]

I think this is a good move for Parkliner. The old Parkliner was having problems with customer service. They resolved the issue and didn't have to hire non productive overhead employees. I don't know if they are also up against the 25 employee threshold where regulations and employee costs start to soar.

With no added business costs they get sales services, Customer finance, Warranty services across the country. Its a flat cost per trailer which is manageable and The salesmen are not paid employees to Parkliner so there is higher incentive driving sales.

If they were smart they would also be moving the fiberglass shell production to Mexico and moving the assembly line and Corporate office location right across the border in Texas.

Still made in America and centrally located for quick delivery across the US. A win win for everyone.

[rdcastle]

On the Parliner website:
ParkLiner Introduces Longer 16-Foot Model: Designed to Give You Peace of Mind!


The new ParkLiner 16 is longer and more luxurious than ever. While the original ParkLiner incorporated many ingenious features into the lightweight fiberglass camper, the new, improved model rivals the best trailers on the market today.
This new generation model features an inner and outer fiberglass shell. We have also added a double layer of insulation between the shells to keep you warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer.
Additionally, the new ParkLiner features an A/C with a beautiful low-profile 11,500 BTU roof model, allowing for more storage inside.
And that’s not all. There’s an outside storage compartment designed to give you ample room to house your essential camping equipment, and the unit’s entry door is taller for more functionality and safety–all while lending to a newer, sleeker look.
One of the new ParkLiner’s most noteworthy features is that the entire structure is 100-percent fiberglass. That’s right! No wood supporting the trailer, including the floor. The only wood used is for the handcrafted maple cabinet doors, ensuring a completely rot-free trailer, peace of mind, and zero maintenance.
The ParkLiner 16 will offer new features, while standardizing some of the classic options that make the ParkLiner great. This unit will be priced starting in the mid-$20,000’s.

[Sid]

This is the only picture I can find of the PL2. It does show the exterior hatch and new entry door. Inside you can see the mirrored bathroom door and finished closet.

[Jon in AZ]

There are more pictures of the new model on the Parkliner website in the "Blog" link at the bottom of the home page. I'm still trying to figure where the extra foot went. Aside from the smooth walls and flat door, the changes appear subtle.

Subtle or no, they must have been busy as bees last year to make the kinds of changes this new model appears to incorporate.