Hello, Everyone from a new member

[Xenon]

Hi Folks.

I current own a very nice Roadtrek Poplar, but is 26 years old. I figure that if I can't expect my 26 year old son to work, then I shouldn't expect much more out of my Roadtrek, either.

My wife and I are retiring in less than 2 years. My plan is to buy myself a nice midsize pickup. I'm inclined to purchase a smallish fifth wheel. I'm pretty handy, so I was thinking of refurbing a Scamp or an Escape.

I am looking for advice. Should I go new or used? What pickups are a good match for 22ft (or so) fifth wheels?

I can't wait to hit the road!

Sincerely,
Rick O'Brien

[BigT]

Originally Posted by Xenon

Hi Folks.

I current own a very nice Roadtrek Poplar, but is 26 years old. I figure that if I can't expect my 26 year old son to work, then I shouldn't expect much more out of my Roadtrek, either.

My wife and I are retiring in less than 2 years. My plan is to buy myself a nice midsize pickup. I'm inclined to purchase a smallish fifth wheel. I'm pretty handy, so I was thinking of refurbing a Scamp or an Escape.

I am looking for advice. Should I go new or used? What pickups are a good match for 22ft (or so) fifth wheels?

I can't wait to hit the road!

Sincerely,


Rick O'Brien

We towed a 21 ft. fifth wheel with a Nissan Frontier V6. Before that we had a 14 ft. 5th wheel that towed it as well. We liked the 5th wheels but found the parts that went into the truck very heavy to take in and out so went back to a travel trailer. We have towed 17 ft. Bolers and a 23 ft. Award and are now back to a 13 ft. Boler with a 4L Ford Ranger. Make sure the tires on your truck are heavy duty with stiff sidewalls as that makes the truck so much more stable when towing.
I would have died for a Roadtrek! I am sure you will miss it. But hopefully you will find your new rig lots of fun. Enjoy.
BigT

[Paul O.]

Scamp 19 is a good match for a Nissan Frontier or Toyota Tacoma, 6 cylinder engines.

Scamp is not a true 5th wheel and the 2 in. ball support is lighter than a true 5th wheel setup, but still heavy. I wish there were something better matching the low Scamp weight. It would not have to be rated for 15,000 lbs!

[Xenon]

Originally Posted by BigT

We towed a 21 ft. fifth wheel with a Nissan Frontier V6. Before that we had a 14 ft. 5th wheel that towed it as well. We liked the 5th wheels but found the parts that went into the truck very heavy to take in and out so went back to a travel trailer. We have towed 17 ft. Bolers and a 23 ft. Award and are now back to a 13 ft. Boler with a 4L Ford Ranger. Make sure the tires on your truck are heavy duty with stiff sidewalls as that makes the truck so much more stable when towing.
I would have died for a Roadtrek! I am sure you will miss it. But hopefully you will find your new rig lots of fun. Enjoy.
BigT

Thanks, BigT,

My desire is to have a roomy, yet smallish trailer that handles well with a medium sized pickup. There is much to learn. I'l look into Bolers...

Thanks,
Rick

[Jon in AZ]

Rick, you spoke of refurbishing a Scamp or Escape... Escapes have only been around about ten years, so I have yet to see one that needed a lot of work. Prices have held up pretty well, too. That said, a used single-axle Escape fifth wheel would make a nice, stable rig with a mid-sized pick-up. So would an Escape 19 bumper pull. Advantage of a bumper pull is you can put a topper on the truck for secure storage of cargo.

On the other hand, if your budget is more limited, or you're in a hurry (used Escapes can be hard to snag), there are plenty of Scamps out there. Biggest disadvantage is that the loft is designed for transverse sleeping. The standard versions (fiberglass interior) can be modified for longways sleeping, but the deluxe (wood interior) versions cannot.

Bumper pull Scamps are quite a bit smaller- you'll have to decide if it will work for you or not.

Nice thing about molded fiberglass is the strong resale value. It means you can buy one, try it out for a season or two, and sell it with minimal loss (and sometimes a tidy gain) once you know exactly what you need/want.

[johno]

Originally Posted by Xenon

Hi Folks.

I current own a very nice Roadtrek Poplar, but is 26 years old. I figure that if I can't expect my 26 year old son to work, then I shouldn't expect much more out of my Roadtrek, either.

My wife and I are retiring in less than 2 years. My plan is to buy myself a nice midsize pickup. I'm inclined to purchase a smallish fifth wheel. I'm pretty handy, so I was thinking of refurbing a Scamp or an Escape.

I am looking for advice. Should I go new or used? What pickups are a good match for 22ft (or so) fifth wheels?

I can't wait to hit the road!

Sincerely,
Rick O'Brien

Rick,

We have had a Scamp 13 Deluxe for 2 years. We have ordered a GMC Canyon short bed with Duramax to pull it. I became aware of an Escape 5.0 in the area for sale and we now own it. I plan to put an extension on the pin box on the trailer and mount the hitch a few inches aft of the axle in the truck...when it gets here. Those are our plans. Feel free to check up with us if this truck looks interesting. Good luck with your choices.

John