Best family boondocking rigs?

Our Pioneer 180ck is well suited for smaller campgrounds and dry camping, which is what we do most of the time. For us it is the perfect compromise in length and living space vs fitting in small campgrounds and out of the way places. It is an "entry" model, and while materials are obviously not expensive, build quality is decent, it is also a bit heavy for its size. We have 3 kids, and DWs aunt often comes along. Can sleep up to 7 with single over double in back, dinnette (72" long enough for most adults) and jacknife sofa. Yes it can get a bit snug, but we quickly worked out a plan where all the stuff goes during the day and how it gets moved at night. It literally only takes a couple minutes to drop the sofa, the dinette, and pull out the kids sleeping bags. Hardest part is getting the kids settled so they go to sleep!

Our 180 ck is 22'4" ball to bumper
HD solid steel ladder frame
Spring over axle for rediculous ground clearance. Wheels do not protrude into the box, so no wheel well penetrations required.
The waste outlet is right next to the rear tire so it won't get broken off going through a driveway
Load range D tires, no where near max even if TT ever hit 5900lb GVWR
Aluminium exterior. No delam and I can repair if I need to
No slide, a good thing in my mind for strength and ridgidity while on dirt roads.
3x30lb propane tanks and room for my 2x6V GC2 batteries for 230AH
50G fresh (heated) 40G grey 40G black tanks
Ducted heat with lower draw furnace (4.6A when running vs more common 8+) It is also surprisingly quiet compared to non ducted.
Ducted AC
Full standard residential double basin sink and faucet(easy to cover 1/2 for counter space)
Full extension ball bearings slide drawers
Water pump mounted on damping block
Our oven is one of the few that has a built in flame difuser, we don't get the burt on the bottom raw in the middle problem (and we use our oven a lot)
Swing down table, converts from dinette to bed in 15 seconds or less.

Stuff I added
22" LED backlit TV directly powered by 12V
LED replacement lights
Under sink water filter with separate spigot for drinking
Fantastic Fan in bathroom
Dividers and shelfs in all the cupboards
Circulating fan inside the fridge
Mattress topper of course

This model is not made anymore, in fact I think 07 was the last year before the changed to the "spirit" variant which retained the floorplan but lost many of the features that we like on ours. We plan to keep ours a long time. The floorplan is one of the most common in small trailers and most manufactures make it, but some are low to the ground, or have small tanks, etc. You would just have to find one that had features slanted to dry camping.

Good luck in your search, only you and your family can decide where you want to make the compromises

Kach wrote:
I like the Keystone Outback for a small towing package but more space when we get there. 210rs is a great size and small, but 230rs is roomy with the "flexible" toy hauler space, might be better for the kids. 23' and 27' respectively. Worried a bit about the durability of the rear slide and overall ruggedness. "Arctic Package" is mostly hype, but probably good enough for my purposes.

I own the 280RS, and the durability of the rear slide out also concerned me at first, especially with it not being supported better and with me being a big fella, but we have been nothing but happy with it since buying it in September 2011. It has held up just fine. As far as the ruggedness goes, can't help you there, as we keep ours at a seasonal site through the year, with the occasional weekend trip to other places, but have been overall very pleased with this unit.

It's not that bad to set up and take down. Can be done in about the same time it will take you to do a TT or Fiver. Maybe even faster once you get it down.

I'm still going back and forth a bit - currently thinking about staying in a hard wall rig. Some interesting options have presented themselves in my searches (some may have seen various inquiries in other forum areas).

I like the Keystone Outback for a small towing package but more space when we get there. 210rs is a great size and small, but 230rs is roomy with the "flexible" toy hauler space, might be better for the kids. 23' and 27' respectively. Worried a bit about the durability of the rear slide and overall ruggedness. "Arctic Package" is mostly hype, but probably good enough for my purposes.

Arctic Fox - found a couple of the small 5th wheels (about 24') that could work (although would be using couch/floor space for sleeping potentially). I like the ruggedness and 4-season usability. Small and should be maneuverable. Lose most of the truck bed (and canopy) for storage, but a nicer highway pull.

Outdoors manufacturing - supposed to be similar to Arctic Fox (thanks for the earlier suggestion). Lots of nice rigs, but would be moving to something bigger (and maybe not much smaller than what we have). Like the suspension and insulation factors.


Of coarse, off-road pop up is still in the running and may still win. Had an offer in on one but the deal fell through. Keeping my eyes out. My only concern is the setup-take down on overnighters while traveling on longer trips...

Since the legendary four-stroke Honda EX650 (about as loud at full speed as a new Honda 1000i or 2000i is when idling) is no longer made, you have to buy them used at places like Craig's List or eBay.

Here's a typical one in immaculate condition, but this price is the highest they ever go - many times you see them for around $250 or less:

http://for-sale.yakaz.com/honda-ex650-generator-for-sale#lo=4&docid=000cgtobt8sbgjng

You could a champion 2000i and it would be able to run the a/c if needed or wanted.

And the cost is about the same if not cheaper than the ex650.

Kach wrote:
Would a Honda 650ex generator be sufficient to top off the battery in short order?

That depends upon the charger you would be using with the Honda EX650. Total - with no other loads on this generator - it can supply up to about 35 amps into your batteries if they are down low enough when you first start charging them so as to take this much current.

You can occasionally find used Honda EX650 generators on eBay.

For what you want to do, I would definitely do the pop up.

Off-road pop up is still the front-runner... I think it will work out nicely for us. I'm coming up with ideas to mount bike racks to the front deck and maybe a couple of storage bins. Kids and the dog add a good amount of "junk" to the equation as well!

Would a Honda 650ex generator be sufficient to top off the battery in short order? I'm thinking of getting a pair of golf-cart batteries. It doesn't sound like we'll need a genny very often, but I'd like to have one and also for small appliances etc... No AC or microwave

Kids and camping...good times and hell on the budget. I'd go for the Off-Road Pop Up, myself. It's pricey, yes, but nothing like a TT or camper or a C. If you have the space at home, you throw in a fan/heater and let it dry when it's stopped raining/misting/fogging. Unless it's snowing hard, it can just stay up anyway.

One neat thing about the pop-ups is mounting solar on the roof. A single large panel will see you through most anything, as long as you don't run the furnace all night. A couple el'cheapo plug in inverters will keep everything charged (get two ciggy lighter plugs installed), including the electric drill one must always have on hand. Want to watch a movie? Use your laptop and some exterior speakers.

Once the kids have kicked you to the curb, then you can go bigtime and get something a bit more comfy.



Gary Haupt