Hi! New and looking for advice!

[davidisland]

First time poster looking for advice. I live on Vancouver Island. I've always wanted a camper trailer and I recently came into some money that would allow me to purchase a vintage used. I just seriously started looking on marketplace about a week ago and I have figured out what kind of trailers would work with my vehicle towing capacity that I also like which are fiberglass trailers like Trillium, Surfside, and similar.

There is a Trillium for sale on the mainland of BC an hour and a half east of Vancouver that ticks all the boxes from me and is completely vintage from its original 1975 condition and in really good shape since I have only been looking for a short time, I don't really know how yet busy the market is on Vancouver Island and how likely it would be to find something similar in the next couple of months, but so far I have been seeing Bolers for sale on the Island going off of marketplace within a day or two of being posted making me think the market is pretty hot around here and I don't know if I can let this particular Trillium sit.

I've calculated my time and effort and monetary cost and it would be about a 10-hour day round trip and approximately $200 plus gas to drive there just for a viewing (including the ferry from Vancouver Island to Vancouver). Then if I like it, one more trip, at least, to hitch it up and bring it home. Are the Trillium style campers, especially in original condition, rare enough to make this one day, 10-hour trip worth it? I'm already okay with the cost of the trailer itself as it's in line with what I've seen others costing for the similar model.

Thank you! Excited to talk Fiberglass campers in the future when I finally am the proud owner of one.

[Jon in AZ]

Why the extra trip? Many people inspect, purchase, and drive home on a single trip.

But perhaps your vehicle is not yet set up to tow...? If you a newbie to towing, know there is more to it than just trailer weight and tow rating. Has your research gotten into things like tongue weight and hitch rating, payload, trailer brakes ...? Have you read the entire towing section of your owner's manual? You do seem like the thorough type!

Our 13' Scamp was also a somewhat impulsive decision, and it did end up being just a bit much for our vehicle at the time, good on paper but not in the real world. In the end we got it sorted out, and the trailer has turned out to be one of the best purchases ever!

Your inspection should look for signs of water entry (windows and belly band are the common Trillium leak points). Ask when they were last resealed. Feel for softness in the floor. Trilliums have a layer of plywood sandwiched between fiberglass. Not as common as Boler and others, but there are ways water can get inside and rot the wood, resulting in a spongy feel. Check operation of the Bargman door latch. It's a non-standard, vintage component that's not easily replaced.

Welcome to the group, and best wishes with your trailer shopping!

[drdoyle]

Originally Posted by davidisland

First time poster looking for advice. I live on Vancouver Island. I've always wanted a camper trailer and I recently came into some money that would allow me to purchase a vintage used. I just seriously started looking on marketplace about a week ago and I have figured out what kind of trailers would work with my vehicle towing capacity that I also like which are fiberglass trailers like Trillium, Surfside, and similar.

There is a Trillium for sale on the mainland of BC an hour and a half east of Vancouver that ticks all the boxes from me and is completely vintage from its original 1975 condition and in really good shape since I have only been looking for a short time, I don't really know how yet busy the market is on Vancouver Island and how likely it would be to find something similar in the next couple of months, but so far I have been seeing Bolers for sale on the Island going off of marketplace within a day or two of being posted making me think the market is pretty hot around here and I don't know if I can let this particular Trillium sit.

I've calculated my time and effort and monetary cost and it would be about a 10-hour day round trip and approximately $200 plus gas to drive there just for a viewing (including the ferry from Vancouver Island to Vancouver). Then if I like it, one more trip, at least, to hitch it up and bring it home. Are the Trillium style campers, especially in original condition, rare enough to make this one day, 10-hour trip worth it? I'm already okay with the cost of the trailer itself as it's in line with what I've seen others costing for the similar model.

Thank you! Excited to talk Fiberglass campers in the future when I finally am the proud owner of one.

Yes, no, maybe. Risky business. YES - When you find one for the right price in decent condition within a few hundred miles you go look at it with cash in hand immediately. NO - be careful of condition; check the frame (probably needs the box lifted off of the frame for proper frame inspection/ painting and box to frame bolts replaced), know that it probably needs a new axle if it has the original 1978 axel (costly, but worth it if the trailer price reflects this). You're probably going to have to pull the windows out and replace the wood backing frames (simple and cheap) . The "belly band " may need serviced (replaced and steel backing squares reefed out of the gap and gap filled and fiberglass tape/epoxy finished off (a bit of work and some skills required, do it yourself not expensive). Propane refrigerator is probably dead if original. And the heater may need served (simple work if you can do it yourself). MAYBE - if the price is right depending upon what needs to be done (the axle is the big one), then if you are a handy fix it yourself person this maybe just the perfect purchase. Much depends upon the condition of the trailer and how good you are as mister fix it. Also how much of the upgrades have already been done. If you have to rebuild the whole thing and it needs an axle I would think $2k and go for it. If it were all rebuilt and "shiny" , these trailers can exceed $10k for exceptional tricked out specimens. So it's complicated and you need to know what to look at on inspection.

[drdoyle]

PS: if you go for it take a couple of new (marine galvanized 13 inch) trailer tire with you and a volt meter to sus out the trailer tow lights or take a set of magnetic lights to attach to the bumper for the trip home. You need a 1-7/8ths tow ball. If you are serious go see it tomorrow. It will be sold in a few days if it is in good shape. Is this the 1300 or the 4500. The 4500's are in short supply.

[F.Bishop]

Hello fellow Islander! If you are still looking there are a number of vintage moulded fiberglass trailers currently listed on Facebook marketplace including Bigfoot, Boler and Trillium. Good luck on your search.