200 series camper suggestions? (15 Viewers)

[GT3]

I’ve been selling RVs for 25 years. Quality has gotten better but still isn’t great.
we joke they are built by drug addicts and repaired by alcoholics.
Any mainstream companies that have built high quality units have failed. Consumers may say they want quality but end up voting with their wallets for lower price. Short term thinking but it is what it is.
We sell Coachmen now and the Apex is pretty good stuff. Probably the best we have had that has mass appeal. We have had them since the brand was introduced about 10 years ago, Small and light with Azdel composite sidewalls under the Fiberglass skin. Wall framing is aluminum. Most Fiberglass trailers use Lauan in their sidewalls to bond the inner and outer walls together. It absorbs water like a wick and is heavier.
Apex is on the smaller lighter end of things. Freedom express is bigger and more fully featured.
If you maintain the seals they will last a good amount of time. If you don’t water will get in.
The price is good. They have an off grid package now but I would think customizing will be required for many.

 

[TeCKis300]

^Kinda like Land Cruisers. Mainstream doesn't understand and generally won't cough up the bucks for core strength and long lasting quality.

 

[Cruisin911]

Hey, just a quick tip that you may never need. I have had issues with the P3 throwing a "output shorted, no brakes" for a while now and after checking out everything from changing controllers to changing brake assemblies I have finally found the intermittent problem.
I found an internet post that mentioned the brake wires going through the axles and wearing through the insulation. I pulled out the wires from the axle and found that there was about a foot of extra wire and in the middle of the axle the wire had been worn through.
I changed the wires to on top of the axles and put them in a piece of hose and now my brakes are 100%. I guess rattling along over 2000 km's of gravel highway caused the loop in the wire to wear and, only intermittently, throw the code. It'll probably never happen to you but if it does the cure is easy.

This happened to me on my 29ft Flagstaff. All the trailer axles are made by dexter, or nearly all of them. The wires got destroyed and due to a loose bolt on the hub, proceeded to destroy itself in the middle of I-70 in nowhere Kansas. Luckily a local diesel shop had a guy that could fix it. Found the cheap parts and took a day to get us back on the road. Then it took another 8 months of fighting with flagstaff and dexter to replace the axle due to the damage of the bolt and rotating assembly. Sold that thing ASAP. I don't run an RV at all anymore, just my Turtleback Expedition. Colorado is so full of people now that if you don't reserve a site 6 months to the hour prior to your visit, you're done. All i do is off grid backcountry BLM camping now that none of these rigs would make it to. Actual peace and quiet.

 

[linuxgod]

My wife loves camping in a trailer and i don’t but this could make a great compromise. Anyone experience this brand and or camper? Go Off Road With the OPUS OP 15 Hybrid Caravan | GearJunkie

If you're camping in bear country, you may want to focus on trailers which don't have any canvas. I know the park service does not consider a hybrid (or pop-up) as a suitable bear-resistant option. Just a thought

If you have a fully hard-sided trailer, you can normally leave your food and dirty clothes in it, so long as no food is visible through the windows (or so the rangers have told me). I've heard stories of grizzlies ripping open a hard sided camper or jumping on the roof of a car to pop open the doors, so nothing is bear-proof of course.

 

[Angelo1]

If you're camping in bear country, you may want to focus on trailers which don't have any canvas. I know the park service does not consider a hybrid (or pop-up) as a suitable bear-resistant option. Just a thought

If you have a fully hard-sided trailer, you can normally leave your food and dirty clothes in it, so long as no food is visible through the windows (or so the rangers have told me). I've heard stories of grizzlies ripping open a hard sided camper or jumping on the roof of a car to pop open the doors, so nothing is bear-proof of course.

That’s why I am considering the camper I posted in link. Check it out

 

[linuxgod]

That’s why I am considering the camper I posted in link. Check it out

Sorry, the popup roof makes it a hybrid.

Hard-sided Only Camping in Many Glacier - Glacier National Park (U.S. National Park Service)

www.nps.gov

 

[Angelo1]

Sorry, the popup roof makes it a hybrid.

Hard-sided Only Camping in Many Glacier - Glacier National Park (U.S. National Park Service)

www.nps.gov

Yeah, it makes a safer anti-bear camper. Diamond plating all the way around. Not your typical cheaply walled camper found here in the U.S. We have a lot of Black bears here and plan on touring NPS throughout the North Western states as well.

 

[RyanR]

Yeah, it makes a safer anti-bear camper. Diamond plating all the way around. Not your typical cheaply walled camper found here in the U.S. We have a lot of Black bears here and plan on touring NPS throughout the North Western states as well.

I wouldn't count on diamond plate around the bottom to add any degree of safety, if you're heading to the north western states you are going to encounter bears who are 10+ feet tall so the canvas hybrid portion of the trailer is well within reach and they'll happily climb right on top.

That said, relying on the stoutness of your camper as your anti-bear measure is probably not a great idea to begin with. I have seen bears go straight through the sheet metal on trucks to get at what they want. I backpack in bear country all the time and often sleep in the open. Knowing your surroundings and properly storing your food and clearing your waste will go much farther in keeping you safe than assuming your trailer will withstand a hungry bear.

 

[linuxgod]

I wouldn't count on diamond plate around the bottom to add any degree of safety, if you're heading to the north western states you are going to encounter bears who are 10+ feet tall so the canvas hybrid portion of the trailer is well within reach and they'll happily climb right on top.

That said, relying on the stoutness of your camper as your anti-bear measure is probably not a great idea to begin with. I have seen bears go straight through the sheet metal on trucks to get at what they want. I backpack in bear country all the time and often sleep in the open. Knowing your surroundings and properly storing your food and clearing your waste will go much farther in keeping you safe than assuming your trailer will withstand a hungry bear.

FYI, probably wise to lock your vehicle in any case



A ranger at one of the parks told us the bears learn how the automatic minivan doors work, so lock 'em. Another one at Yellowstone said they had a pair a few years back that had learned to climb on the roof and bounce to cause the body to flex and pop the doors right open (even locked).

Obligatory...

 

[Angelo1]

I wouldn't count on diamond plate around the bottom to add any degree of safety, if you're heading to the north western states you are going to encounter bears who are 10+ feet tall so the canvas hybrid portion of the trailer is well within reach and they'll happily climb right on top.

That said, relying on the stoutness of your camper as your anti-bear measure is probably not a great idea to begin with. I have seen bears go straight through the sheet metal on trucks to get at what they want. I backpack in bear country all the time and often sleep in the open. Knowing your surroundings and properly storing your food and clearing your waste will go much farther in keeping you safe than assuming your trailer will withstand a hungry bear.

The stoutness of this camper is to delay any possible intrusion while my .762 Sig and my wife’s Glock .40 are on the ready. Bear attacks are extremely rare unless you are stupid enough to leave food around for the bear to smell from a mile away.


This lady of mine is highly trained in combat. That’s all I’m going to say about that. Not many people can hit center mass at 100yards. I’m not real concerned, we travel everywhere armed and the camper will be a very dangerous place for anything trying to get into

 

[linuxgod]

If I’m trying to stop a grizzly I’m thinking bear spray and then a 12 gauge as a fallback. Admittedly I’ve not had much experience with them but from what I’ve heard the Uber-potent pepper spray is faster acting than a gunshot.

 

[Angelo1]

If I’m trying to stop a grizzly I’m thinking bear spray and then a 12 gauge as a fallback. Admittedly I’ve not had much experience with them but from what I’ve heard the Uber-potent pepper spray is faster acting than a gunshot.

First, a 12 gauge shotgun is useless against a large bear and second Bear spray is not faster then a gun shot if you’re half decently trained. But, we do carry this with us when hiking as the first deterrent. You’re suggesting ideas to people who know a lot about wilderness survival. Anyone who has a gun, should train weekly with it from drawing position until it becomes muscle memory.

 

[1world1love]

Yeah, the number of innocent people slaughtered by bears while sleeping in their soft sided trailers is staggering these days.

 

[slipkid13]

First, a 12 gauge shotgun is useless against a large bear and second Bear spray is not faster then a gun shot if you’re half decently trained. But, we do carry this with us when hiking as the first deterrent. You’re suggesting ideas to people who know a lot about wilderness survival. Anyone who has a gun, should train weekly with it from drawing position until it becomes muscle memory.

View attachment 2202675

I'd hardly call a 12 ga with decent slugs "Useless" against bears. I'd take it over spray any day, esp. if it is windy.

 

[619TOY]

First, a 12 gauge shotgun is useless against a large bear and second Bear spray is not faster then a gun shot if you’re half decently trained. But, we do carry this with us when hiking as the first deterrent. You’re suggesting ideas to people who know a lot about wilderness survival. Anyone who has a gun, should train weekly with it from drawing position until it becomes muscle memory.

I'd hardly call a 12 ga with decent slugs "Useless" against bears. I'd take it over spray any day, esp. if it is windy.

I’ve been to Alaska a half dozen times and there are more sayings and anecdotes about bears than I can remember but one always stays with me: if you’re going to carry a gun in bear country, you should at least shave down the front sight...

 

[619TOY]

That way it doesn’t hurt as bad when the bear shoves it up your ass

 

[619TOY]

That said, I’ve always felt better with a .45-70 or a .500 or 12 gauge with slugs...

 

[619TOY]

Rabbit hole... we love our Lance 1985! Great quality and about the perfect size for two adults and two Dobermans.

 

[Angelo1]

Slugs are not that same as buckshot, which is what most people have when carrying a Shotgun. The problem with a typical shotgun is people can’t fire and reload them fast enough, while I’ve drawn my .40 and unloaded 15rounds while you’re still trying to reload. Also, I can almost guarantee the majority of people can’t aim worth a damn under stress. Having a clip allows for a couple misses and many hits. If the Bear grounds you, your long barrel is useless while my handgun allows me to still fire it while I piss my pants. . Also, my Glock allows me to hold with my firing hand and the bear spray in the other to use first while aiming down on it.

 

[Angelo1]

Ok, back to campers. For me a hardshell is preferable for family camping as we can carry a ton of fresh water,food, etc as a base camp while we explore our environment on foot and at least lock it up.