Is there a market for refurbished camper

mlts22 wrote:
One idea I can see that might would would be repurposing trailers. Hunters might find it cheaper to take a general-purpose travel trailer, rip a chunk out and have a place to dress and process meat with propane freezers at the ready. Others might use trailers for static storage units on their property so the bathroom isn't really needed.

I wouldn't spend a dime on attempting to "convert" a old used RV to a "hunters" special.

In my attempts to sell my first TT (1981 20ft Terry) a few years back I found PLENTY of "hunters" looking for a "hunting shack" ON THE CHEAP.

Most of them I gathered was looking for a $300-$500 shelter to place on their hunting lands. My trailer was rebuilt way to nice and all of them recognized this after they looked at it.

The other problem I ran into was many people showing up with too small of a vehicle to tow the trailer, couldn't tell you just how many people just thought they were able tow a 3600 lb EMPTY trailer with vehicles that had tow ratings of 3500 lbs and under.. That trailer had a GVWR of 7000 lbs!

The one that ultimately bought the trailer pulled in with a 1/2 ton TRUCK and I just barely was able to only get what I paid for the trailer( the labor and materials were "lost" although we did use it for something like 6 or 7 camping seasons).

The point is... it is used, it is not a new trailer, you are not a dealer and folks looking at older aged RVs are in that market looking for an extremely CHEAP DEAL. Let the buyer decide what they want to do with the trailer..

If you are in the market for a RV to fully customize then buying a 10, 20 yr old fixer upper is the perfect way to go since at that age they are not worth much more than scrap prices. My current 26ft 1983 Komfort I bought it for $700 (which is about what the scrap value of the frame and siding was worth). I gutted the interior, removed and scrapped the aluminum siding (PO damaged all of the roofing and siding with a air nailer in their attempts at remodeling it).

Reroofed, resided, all new interior, all told a bout $5K in materials and 3 years of nights and weekends, done they way I want it. Too me, PRICELESS. I will never, ever recoup the money nor the massive amount of labor if I sell it. But, we love the way it turned out and have no plans to sell it..

If curious you can take a look at my profile, it has a before and after external picture of our Komfort..

If you get lucky you might get the materials cost out of it, but even that's a stretch. You definitely won't get the value of the labor.

One idea I can see that might would would be repurposing trailers. Hunters might find it cheaper to take a general-purpose travel trailer, rip a chunk out and have a place to dress and process meat with propane freezers at the ready. Others might use trailers for static storage units on their property so the bathroom isn't really needed.

I learned a long time ago that there is a market for everything. The key is to find the buyer. I used to buy racks of junk at auctions and sell the stuff at a swap meet. I was constantly surprised at what people would buy and at what prices they would pay!

jerem0621 wrote:
Nope, not unless its an Airstream, Silverstream, or an immaculate Avion. You will get no where near the 12k. MAYBE 3-6k... thats the nature of this beast.

I went through this with my 95. Put thousands into it and still lost about $800.00 from the original purchase price.

Fact remains, its a no slide, old TT. That is saying a lot when the RV industry considers a 10 year old unit "old".

Enjoy it if you can, if not dump it now before you put another dime into it.

Thanks!

You are correct. There are folks who make a good profit on restoring old Airstreams, Avions and other similar silver trailers. Restoring other brands that have little or no following won't allow you to get you money back out of them.

You will lose money but your best bet is to sell in a club of like minded enthusiasts. Check out the 'Tin Can Tourists'.

This summer we camped next to a restored 60's camper. It looked really cool! Fun to see it being used and the people seemed to enjoy camping in it.

No real value in it though outside of the joy and pride of ownership. Certainly a conversation starter.

Francesca Knowles wrote:

shasta24 wrote:
Thanks folks. It's a shame my wife and I worked two years on this thing, and never spent the night in it. I'll try to finish . Maybe this spring we will hit the road.

That's where the return on a restored old camper comes in...using it! Got one myself, and a side benefit is all the compliments you'll get on its preservation. Can't cash it, so to speak, but still- it's something.

Have fun!

X2

Enjoy your classic and your handy work.

There is no "profits" in trying to refurbish and "flip" RVs. USED RVs are simply to plentiful and cheap and very few perspective buyers are willing to lay down any extra cash even for a very well done restoration project.

Not many RVs hold value, Air Streams are just one of a couple that you have the potential of getting back SOME of your money, they have a cult like following and some folks would kill to have one of them.

Use yours for a few years and if camping doesn't work out then put it up for sale. But you must understand that it is going to sell for about what you paid for it BEFORE fixing it up. It is a age thing, when it comes to price the older it is the less of value it has on the used market, price it accordingly.

shasta24 wrote:
Thanks folks. It's a shame my wife and I worked two years on this thing, and never spent the night in it. I'll try to finish . Maybe this spring we will hit the road.

That's where the return on a restored old camper comes in...using it! Got one myself, and a side benefit is all the compliments you'll get on its preservation. Can't cash it, so to speak, but still- it's something.

Have fun!

shasta24 wrote:
Thanks folks. It's a shame my wife and I worked two years on this thing, and never spent the night in it. I'll try to finish . Maybe this spring we will hit the road.

Yeah, that sounds like a good plan. Believe me, I know the amount of time needed to do a project like this. If there's any shame involved, it's a shame others can't get done what you and the Missus have. :C

If you have most of the framing and appliances in, the wiring and plumbing done, you are on the home stretch! When I did mine, I started to procrastinate on certain phases of the finishing. I really was in fear of installing the 20+ sheets of plywood for the interior. In hindsight, it was one of the easier things to install.

Do do have any new pictures of your work?