Adventurer 89RB/ Lance 855 Comparison
I am in the market doing my home work for a new camper. I was really leaning towards the Lance 855. How ever based on cost I began looking at other brands. I was surprised at what appears to me to be...
Forum Discussion
Lance makes a good product - I own one. If I were buying a new camper I would definitely look at the ones from Wolf Creek and Arctic Fox which are both made by Northwood Manufacturing.
Weight is important for most trucks and if a camper weighs 500 lbs. less that means you can carry an extra 500 lbs of gear and also water with the same load on your truck's rear axle and tires. Some provide room for two batteries and two propane tanks and this is advantageous if you do extended travel or spend time off the grid at campsites without hookups.
Layouts also differ along with usable storage space. I would not get a camper without a North-South bed - one that is parallel to the bed of the truck, so that either my wife or I can get in and out without crawling over the other person. Refer capacity also varies and I would want a 6 cu ft or 8 cu ft. fridge. Holding tank capacities vary and our black water tank is usually the limiting factor on when we need to find a dump station or stay at a full hookup campground. Some bathrooms have a toilet arrangement that is best suited to little people and something to dry test when looking at campers. Stove cooktop and sink arrangements and counter space also varies with different campers and with such small spaces a gain in efficient space utilization is quickly noticed. Insulation and dual pane windows and winterizing of the holding tanks and water lines also varies by model and manufacturer.
New is nice but a three year old camper of the same make and model will save you up to 40% compared to a new camper. Part of this is that the older camper probably sold for 10-20% less than the current model. We bought a 5 year old camper that was barely used most of the time by its original owner and we saved 50% compared to the price for a new version of the same Lance camper. The cash saved paid for a three year old bass boat so the amount spent was the same, only I got the boat for "free".
Weight is important for most trucks and if a camper weighs 500 lbs. less that means you can carry an extra 500 lbs of gear and also water with the same load on your truck's rear axle and tires. Some provide room for two batteries and two propane tanks and this is advantageous if you do extended travel or spend time off the grid at campsites without hookups.
Layouts also differ along with usable storage space. I would not get a camper without a North-South bed - one that is parallel to the bed of the truck, so that either my wife or I can get in and out without crawling over the other person. Refer capacity also varies and I would want a 6 cu ft or 8 cu ft. fridge. Holding tank capacities vary and our black water tank is usually the limiting factor on when we need to find a dump station or stay at a full hookup campground. Some bathrooms have a toilet arrangement that is best suited to little people and something to dry test when looking at campers. Stove cooktop and sink arrangements and counter space also varies with different campers and with such small spaces a gain in efficient space utilization is quickly noticed. Insulation and dual pane windows and winterizing of the holding tanks and water lines also varies by model and manufacturer.
New is nice but a three year old camper of the same make and model will save you up to 40% compared to a new camper. Part of this is that the older camper probably sold for 10-20% less than the current model. We bought a 5 year old camper that was barely used most of the time by its original owner and we saved 50% compared to the price for a new version of the same Lance camper. The cash saved paid for a three year old bass boat so the amount spent was the same, only I got the boat for "free".
