The Perfect Fiberglass RV

[Timber Wolf]

Originally Posted by Glenn Baglo

Self-waxing.

I'm already there, I have never waxed my Scamp.

[Kai in Seattle]

A great and fascinating topic. Helps me focus on the possibilities, because some things can be achieved.

And others only dreamed of.

Meanwhile...

BEST
Kai

[Jim G. - Ohio]

As already mentioned, each camper is a compromise and you have to try to fit your own needs and desires. You mention: (So with fiberglassrvs' being more limited in floor space due to the lack of slideouts) The benefit of no slide outs is less trouble, leaks, and weight. I recently spoke with a gentleman who formerly worked on 'stick and staples' RV's, and he will not own one with a slide out or a rubber roof. Something to think about.

[charlsara]

As for vehicles I have to agree with Clif on the Falcon (when I was 21) Floyd on the Pinto (when I was 35). Now it's Ford's wonderful Expedition.



As for the perfect trailer. Thar ain't none...but we are pretty close with our heavily modded LiL Snoozy.

[WendyW]

A 20’ Casita that’s four-season.

[k corbin]

Originally Posted by floyd

Its really not about the perfect RV. Its more about favorites.


I have owned about 85 motor vehicles, many of which were largely my own handiwork. Among them I have had several favorites, one of which is the Ford Pinto. It is really IMO the quintessential automobile endowed with an "honesty" and competence that is endearing much like a loyal and enthusiastic pet. If that sounds odd you must bear in mind that anthropomorphic projection is an innate part of the human condition commonly applied to such things as pets and inanimate objects.
Irrational? ...Maybe, but rationalization is not entirely rational.

Pinto....Worst car I ever owned.

[k corbin]

The perfect travel trailer for me is one with lots of desk and work top space with room for a comfortable chair. A lot of people are hitting the road full time but still need to work. Trying to sit for very many hours in a standard RV dinette is painful, the shape of them gives no back support. The distance of the table edge to the seat is wrong. You can't adjust the seat height or the table height for different tasks.

It should have a retractable, rotating antenna mast for bringing in better cell tower signals.

Family camping is one thing but there is almost nothing on the market for working travelers who need the trailer to also function as office/workshop space with the ability to boondock away from hook ups and 4 season does matter to working travelers. When you add that versatility you will have the market niche pretty much to yourself at this point in time.

[Pam Garlow]

I love my little CT-13 UHaul, but I wish it had insulation between the hulls.
And a brand new rust proof frame.
And non-proprietary wheel rims/hubs
And brakes
And NO LEAKY ANYTHING
And a door handle / latch that is tight and smooth working (and locks reliably)
And a tiny mini AC / heater unit that runs on both propane and electric
And a retractable awning that when deployed, can hold up to strong wind and rain
And motorized stablizers and front tongue jack
.....ummm I'm sure there is more.....

[Gilda]

Originally Posted by Mikmay

For me the perfect trailer would
Be small and light enough to be towed by almost any vehicle
Ability to have a full queen sized bed and a front dinett
Ability to sleep 2 in a queen sized bed and also sleep my 3 grandchildren.
Ability to easily load bikes
Ability to unload all the interior and hose out the inside and out the drain in the fg
floor
Panoramic windows so l can enjoy the view from anywhere in the trailer
Large side entrance door so my hips don’t get stuck as well as easily bringing items in and out the trailer
Ability to not have to bring a kitchen stove and sink with me when I have no intention on using it
Ability to have a kitchen stove and sink when I do plan on using it
Ability to fold the tongue for that little extra room or so I don’t bang my shins (ouch)
Ability to use the trailer for other than just camping ,maybe hauling home an ikea kitchen or sofa with out having to borrow somebody’s truck
Ability to take my dirt bike and my queen size bed
Ability to use my inside furniture outside just in case I forgot the lawn chairs or I need extra
Not having to deal with black tanks
Side skirts that not only look cool but give the bed almost 10 inches in length as well as a wider track for extra stability
A all fg interior for easy cleaning and extra regidity for the extra strength to hold a roof top ac
The ability (sorry for this one ) to not have to ever deal with rivets.
These are just some things I would like in a perfect camper I’m sure there are more available but I’d be typing for a while more but need to get back to work.

You and K Corbin might like the "Happier Camper" trailer. Everything about it is modular and is as easy to "transform" as Legos. The table design is brilliant as it can be used as a traditional dinette table or placed against the wall as a desk. The modules with padded tops make storage containers that serve as seats, benches and/or beds. Everything can be removed and the back hatch door opens and the shell becomes a toy hauler. IMHO it is a brilliant design.

[floyd]

Originally Posted by k corbin

Pinto....Worst car I ever owned.

Mine was a Datsun PL620...It was fun though.


Still the Pinto is one of the ten best cars ever built... cheap,indestructible, best handling and most reliable car of its decade.
If you could break a Pinto , you could break an anvil with a rubber mallet.
( I know some people who could)

[Raspy]

I think the perfect trailer is the one you have the most fun with.

No trailer is perfect in itself. All have glitches of some kind. I could produce quite a list of items on my Oliver if the occasion should arise. The operative word is excellent. It is that, even with it's little problems.

Of course, I've had some joyous times with a much simpler and smaller trailer. Either standards change, or one had some feature that really touched my heart.

Even now, with my Oliver standing by, I'd like to have a Happier that I could pull behind my Rubicon for an easy overnighter by a campfire and stream up in the Sierra. There is something about the appeal of a simpler trailer. It might not be so much fun to use while crossing the country, but for a weekend it might be even better.

[Derek Gore]

We went in the other direction. From a Coleman popup with nothing but beds to a 1972 loaded VW bus Westphalia popup, to Full time RVing in a 1992 1 ton diesel Ram Dually with the Cummins 12 valve and a 34.5' HitchHiker fiver, to a 36' Challenger fiver pulled by the dually, then after ciming off the road, now a ling bed Ram 2500 Cummins 24 valve direct rail injection diesel and a 19 foot 2013 like new Scamp fiver we are tweaking for us. It was and is just us two, our pup, re-tired, everything paid for, for seven years in the big rigs then came off the road full-time and bought property to help our aging parents.

When we were doing Alaska I met a guy full timing in a Scamp fiver. I was amazed at it, and thought how I could full time in one but my SH? (Significant Harassment) No way. But now, as long as it is for part time, and we have a home to come back to, she likes it. So now we have a king size bed lying long ways instead of cramped sleeping side to side. I flipped up the sofa back filled it in with the cushions and measured it - king size! So we bought a 3" king cooling gel with cooling cover mattress topper. The john looks a bit tight and I can wait to take my first navy shower in it.

I'd like the Scamp fiver a foot longer and a foot higher with bigger black fresh and gray tanks, bigger bathroom.

I have the king size bed done, and now to build in some custom storage and trim.

Here's the couch back up, with the couch seat cushion next, then the white layer is the king size mattress topper:

Click For Full-Size Image.


And we did the floor in floating composite flooring that matched the Birch wood perfectly:

Click For Full-Size Image.

It has a fantastic fan which is a must for us in all our RVs, and a wall mounted combo TV and DVD player. We're using a Bose Soundlink Mini II for the TV and for music from our phone's Micro SD card.

The first owners ordered it with no awning and no TV antenna but a cable connection that goes to the wrong side from where they put the TV. I've already set up a temporary antenna, and all works fine but I'm considering getting the King RV antenna and installing it myself.

The long bed truck can carry two of the Home Depot locking boxes: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Stanley-...025H/202300294

And still have room in the bed for a grill, spare propane tank, and fold up propane fish fryer.

Right now we're enjoying the minimalist approach to Scamping, but not missing creature comforts. We're looking here and elsewhere for pics of good ideas. Great website here.

[pete_britt]

My perfect travel accommodation would be a Tardis. Small on the outside, huge on the inside, and self powered.

[Mike Magee]

A truly comfy chair is a must-have in my ideal trailer. No trailer mfrs seem to include this item, and most FG trailers only have room for one in the aisle.

[pete_britt]

[A truly comfy chair is a must-have in my ideal trailer.]
Comfy chairs and zero gravity chairs fit nicely in our Clam screen house.
A Clam is a slide out (to get it out of the pickup) and popup (to set up) addition for our Casita.

[Fred762]

Originally Posted by David L. C.

For me and the wife, a 17 ft plus casita with the bed lengthwise so either could get up without bothering the other, would be the perfect rv for us. That is all we do not like about our SD Casita 17. So perhaps a 18ft Casita SD with lengthwise bed would be our perfect rv.

We bought the 2018 Casita 17' Independence Dlx just for that reason..31"x83" real twin beds, one on each side, in back. We hate to climb over each other if one has to go to the head at nite! Grrr.
There's two of us and we rarely even use the table tops anyways, tho we carry one and a table post in the closet, most trips. IF Casita had offered it, we probably wd have bought a version of the Indy with a "convertible dinette" made into the passenger side... of the twin beds...but we both love the wide twins. It wd have been a bit more trouble tho bks we use a piece of 3" memory foam on each bed now. Oh well.......................

[jhsdbvjhc]

I really only wanted a "motel room". AKA just bed, bath, environmental, and no dinette.

[Thomcat316]

We started out deciding we were going to build our "perfect fiberglass RV". We built a 5x12 teardrop of glass over honeycomb, with a finished empty weight of 340 lbs. (and a second, 4x10, at 240 lbs.)

Now that we've got somewhere around 60,000 miles on the little tear we're ready for something more boondockable.

Next one is going to be a 32' superstreamliner fifth wheel in the same construction, with staterooms over the kingpin and aft, and a fully loaded weight of around 3,000 lbs.

We joined here to read about folks' preferences and workarounds, and haven't been at all disappointed!

Looking forward to getting started on the new one!

[Raspy]

Originally Posted by Thomcat316

Next one is going to be a 32' superstreamliner fifth wheel in the same construction, with staterooms over the kingpin and aft, and a fully loaded weight of around 3,000 lbs.

I'm curious how you can have all of this and only weigh 3,000 lbs.

[Glenn Baglo]

That the pin weight?