Offroad Pop-up Camper

[pint]

Looking at the Jayco Baja, Starcraft RT and Fleetwood Evolution models. Any others to consider? I need something for 5-6 people with a bathroom/shower that can be taken offroad. I just saw the Fleetwood Evolution at the Denver RV show and was blown away! Sweet unit! I would love to find a 2007 model or well cared for used one. Anyone with experience with any of these?

[Atoyot1031]

Check this thread which is about six threads down in this forum right now:

http://forum.ih8mud.com/camping-gear...0z-camper.html

I think it depends on what you mean by being able to take it "offroad". I think the campers with the storage trays are too long for any kind of "serious" offroad, but just fine if you are talking about your average Forest Service road.

[RHINO]

atoyot you might reconsider that off road thought,,,,,, i'll have to get some pics at least of the trail to give better idea but i have really reconsidered my take on them as my buddy has the next bigger size from the jayco 10z. it has a huge deck on the front for a quad or whatever and it must be almost 20 ft from tongue to tail, i couldnt believe it but he was confident that he could bring it back where i was camped recently and he did, the spare tire mounted on the back drug at one nasty wash crossing but he will be moving it. i rate this trail at a solid 2 or 2.5, something i would not have thought i would take that trailer on but he did and it was fine.

[Atoyot1031]

Let's seem them pics!!!

[RHINO]

i got a bundle from my buddy a couple days ago and there isnt a good pic of the trail in there, but rest assured i'm not new to off roading and i was impressed at that trailer's ability.

[Atoyot1031]

Well, I'll have to check them out when I'm at the dealership this weekend, but I'm sceptical about pulling a 20'+x 8' trailer on a trail...

[RHINO]

i dont blame you, although he did it it wasnt something i'd want to do regularly.

[Atoyot1031]

Finally got a chance to look at the RTs. They were all 2008s. The only other brand I have been able to look at in person was the Fleetwood last spring. The fit and finish of the Starcraft are WAY better than the Fleetwood. I also felt that 10RT was much roomier than the 11RT and 13RT due to the lack of shower/crapper. Also the layout was more sensible. I'll echo Romer's complaint that the fridge is completely inaccessible in the 10RT when closed. However, since it is so small, I wouldn't be carrying much in there, and there is ample room to keep my giant cooler right inside the door.

I went to see these at a dealership in Rifle. They had two 2008 10RTs differing only in the interior finish. Although the saleman thought they had the 6gal LP water heater options (that come with an exterior shower), neither of them did! This is a deal breaker for me. I need to be able to hose off the kids, wife, and myself (occassionally), especially in the desert, and during hunting season, not having ready hot water would be a PITA I don't need.

So I've got a lead on a 2007 on the Front Range that I'll have to look into. Forgot to mention, the 10RT has the largest bed of any of the offroad brands. It may only be an inch wider and an inch longer, but I found out that inch would help, especially if you are over 6' (I'm 6'2" and only have a couple inches to spare!).

Lastly, I read in another forum and confirmed with Starcraft specs that the 07s and 08s are significantly beefier than earlier models. The GVWR jumped from 2550 to 4000lbs! While the GVW only went up from 1966 to 2241. So my guess is beefier axles and springs as they all claim to have 6" box frames.

[pint]

Originally Posted by Atoyot1031

Finally got a chance to look at the RTs. They were all 2008s. The only other brand I have been able to look at in person was the Fleetwood last spring. The fit and finish of the Starcraft are WAY better than the Fleetwood. I also felt that 10RT was much roomier than the 11RT and 13RT due to the lack of shower/crapper. Also the layout was more sensible. I'll echo Romer's complaint that the fridge is completely inaccessible in the 10RT when closed. However, since it is so small, I wouldn't be carrying much in there, and there is ample room to keep my giant cooler right inside the door.

I went to see these at a dealership in Rifle. They had two 2008 10RTs differing only in the interior finish. Although the saleman thought they had the 6gal LP water heater options (that come with an exterior shower), neither of them did! This is a deal breaker for me. I need to be able to hose off the kids, wife, and myself (occassionally), especially in the desert, and during hunting season, not having ready hot water would be a PITA I don't need.

So I've got a lead on a 2007 on the Front Range that I'll have to look into. Forgot to mention, the 10RT has the largest bed of any of the offroad brands. It may only be an inch wider and an inch longer, but I found out that inch would help, especially if you are over 6' (I'm 6'2" and only have a couple inches to spare!).

Lastly, I read in another forum and confirmed with Starcraft specs that the 07s and 08s are significantly beefier than earlier models. The GVWR jumped from 2550 to 4000lbs! While the GVW only went up from 1966 to 2241. So my guess is beefier axles and springs as they all claim to have 6" box frames.

Thanks for the info! They did not have the Starcraft at the show. I have not seen one in person. Will deffinately check them out. Unfortunately my wife is "demanding" the toilet/shower inside!

[jsuthey]

Hey the tolet/shower inside is cool,My wife & kids love it.The tank is easy to empty at any rv sewer/septic dump place.I just use the biodegradable blue septic goop from camping world.Pour a little in the tank and it smells good!
Very nice to use when camping,take a leak or whatever& its nice to go back to bed and not have to go outside to use bathroom.I have the Starcraft 14rt.There is a real new one for sale SF bay area,it's a 13rt 07 Starcraft-they want alot asking 15K.It's on craigs list,what is the current MSRP on these models?

[pint]

The new Starcraft 13rt is like $17-$19K depending on options. A bit pricey!

[Atoyot1031]

I found out that for '08, Starcraft no longer offers the outside shower with water heater for the 10RT! Instead they only offer an exterior sprayport (cold only!). This blows as far as I'm concerned.

So now I'm looking at an 05 10rt in Texas. The problem with the models prior to 07 is capacity, but it's easier to beef up springs than to try to retrofit a shower. BTW, this camper also has A/C.

I'll keep ya posted.

[e9999]

my main concern for all these trailers would be more the durability than the ability to run the trail. The latter, you can always judge and decide to go back or not to go in the first place. The former is a hidden issue. From what I have seen the sturdiness of the body and cabinetry at least on these is questionable. My bet is that these things will begin to fall apart after limited use on rough roads, especially washboard. Sure, the occasional fire road or beach run should be fine and fun, but Death Valley or Baja, not so sure. But some folks here have more actual experience on that than I do.

[LandCruiserPhil]

Originally Posted by e9999

my main concern for all these trailers would be more the durability than the ability to run the trail. The latter, you can always judge and decide to go back or not to go in the first place. The former is a hidden issue. From what I have seen the sturdiness of the body and cabinetry at least on these is questionable. My bet is that these things will begin to fall apart after limited use on rough roads, especially washboard. Sure, the occasional fire road or beach run should be fine and fun, but Death Valley or Baja, not so sure. But some folks here have more actual experience on that than I do.

I have owned several popups and E9999 is spot on. The cabinetry is no different on the "off road" verses the basic models and it will not hold up on extended wash board travel. One advantage the Baja models have is the ability to air down with the larger tires. The Baja models also weighs a lot more but does give more carrying capacity. Springs work better then torsion from my experience. I went with the same floor plan as a Baja and did a spring over mod and ended up with a lite setup (1400lbs max) that is effortless to tow and goes where I want it to go.

The 2 most unused options is the shower and toilet if you read the pop up forums. The problem with the shower is water storage you need a lot of storage to shower your family. The inside curtain shower set up is a PIA with weak pressure IMO. We use a vehicle on board shower, you can take your Land Cruiser to the water source and never worry about storage and have unlimited hot water with home pressure. I say keep it simple and lite. This time I did go with a 3-way frig that is a nice option and works great as long as you do the frig mod.

As for the toilet do you really want to eat breakfast in the same room after you take your morning %$#@ Or have your family stand outside while everyone take their turn. We were forced to use one on our boat and I hated everything about. Again JMO

Not matter what pop up you go with your wife will like it better then a tent.

[Atoyot1031]

Phil,
I agree (and fortunately so does the ) on the whole toilet/shower deal. I know the cabinetry sucks, but two of my best buddies are incredible cabinet makers. So I'll tow the thing around until the overpriced crappy particle board cabinets fall apart, then I'll rebuild with something durable and good looking.

As to the rest of the durability, I believe that the 6" steel frame will be plenty burly enough. They come sitting on 29" tires on 15" rims with a 6 bolt pattern, and spring over axle to begin with. So a simple block lift will easily gain clearance to run 33"+ tires!

So my theory goes anyways...

[pint]

Originally Posted by Atoyot1031

Phil,
I agree (and fortunately so does the ) on the whole toilet/shower deal. I know the cabinetry sucks, but two of my best buddies are incredible cabinet makers. So I'll tow the thing around until the overpriced crappy particle board cabinets fall apart, then I'll rebuild with something durable and good looking.

As to the rest of the durability, I believe that the 6" steel frame will be plenty burly enough. They come sitting on 29" tires on 15" rims with a 6 bolt pattern, and spring over axle to begin with. So a simple block lift will easily gain clearance to run 33"+ tires!

So my theory goes anyways...

I'm not worried about the cabinetry either since I sell cabinets for a living! I can replace them with something way too nice for very little $. Fortunately my wife is rethinking the whole toilet/shower issue as well. We looked at PET toilets and sun showers put inside a small outdoor shelter this weekend. She agreed if we really need them, this may be a better way too go!

[Atoyot1031]

Good luck with the . As someone pointed out earlier, it's fairly easy to convince a woman once you bring up the whole shit where you eat thing...

[jsuthey]

We eat outside as much as possable,don't really spend to much time inside the trailer.The toilets really don't flush that good also! But it beats a sometimes long walk to the smelly pit bathrooms(if you are in a campground.
Just get one& the famliy will be stoked! Use it or don't! I like just rinsing off the kids feet before bed,clean them up a little!

[Bogo]

Originally Posted by jsuthey

But it beats a sometimes long walk to the smelly pit bathrooms(if you are in a campground.

Just reminded me of the throne rooms in the Boundary Waters. Many had nice commanding views of the lakes with no trees to block the view from the throne.