Forum Discussion

Ventura_Dogman's avatar
Ventura_Dogman
Explorer
May 21, 2014

Lightweight TC choices

I currently have a Northstar TC800 pop-up on an F150 4x4. I have had the rig about 11 years. The camper has a dry weight of 1,760 pounds. The truck handles the weight fine with the aid of helper springs. I am thinking of going to a hardwall and have been looking at the options in the same weight range. It seems to come down to Adventurer (80RB), Lance 825 or a Northstar.

I looked at the Lance at a local dealer and was not very impressed by the fit and finish. It weighs in about the same as my TC800.

The Adventurer seems to have the best floorplan for a nice open design, but I see very few Adventurer reviews online, so I wanted to get some feedback on the brand, reliability, service, etc. I have yet to see the Adventurer. A local dealer should be getting some in the not too distant future. It is just a bit lighter than my TC800. Also, the 80RB is a brand new design. Is it a bad idea to buy a new design before it has been out a year or two?

The Northstars are nice and simple, but with the wooden frame, are a couple hundred pounds heavier than their comparable counterparts with their aluminum frames. Also, the floorplan of the Northstar is a bit dated and not as open.

I am open to any and all feedback or suggestions.

thanks!
Truck Campers
  • Mello_Mike's avatar
    Mello_Mike
    Explorer
    May 22, 2014
    You should take a look at the Wolf Creek line of truck campers. They are quality, lightweight campers made by the same company that makes the Arctic Fox. They have three floorplans, the 816, 840, and 850.
  • billyray50's avatar
    billyray50
    Explorer
    May 22, 2014
    dadwolf2 wrote:
    Adventurer 86FB owner, but only for one month so far. Love the floorplan, the 7 cu ft fridge, the 4 season build, large holding tanks, reasonable weight, big bathroom. I've contacted the factory several times to ask questions and always got responses back very quickly.

    I see the 80RB does have small holding tanks. The 86FB and 89RB jump up in tank size a lot.


    X2 with the Adventurer brand.
  • Tarkin75's avatar
    Tarkin75
    Explorer
    May 22, 2014
    You could also check out pastime campers, pastimemfg.com. They are out of Oregon. I have a really old one, but my 93 8xx series 8' runs 1400 lbs with jacks off, and they claim to be fairly light campers.

    I run mine on an F-150 4wd Scab with Timbrens, handles it well.

    Later
    C
  • dadwolf2's avatar
    dadwolf2
    Explorer
    May 22, 2014
    Adventurer 86FB owner, but only for one month so far. Love the floorplan, the 7 cu ft fridge, the 4 season build, large holding tanks, reasonable weight, big bathroom. I've contacted the factory several times to ask questions and always got responses back very quickly.

    I see the 80RB does have small holding tanks. The 86FB and 89RB jump up in tank size a lot.
  • Ventura_Dogman's avatar
    Ventura_Dogman
    Explorer
    May 21, 2014
    Thinking out loud some more - both Lances, 825 and 865, only have a 3 cu ft fridge. My TC800 has a 3.7 cu ft and I would not want to go any smaller than that. I bring a lot of fresh fruit, veges, etc on trips. I think that might eliminate the Lance. The Adventurer has small water and waste tanks, but I don't use much water. I don't that is a deal killer.
  • Bumpyroad's avatar
    Bumpyroad
    Explorer
    May 21, 2014
    I looked at the Lance 865 which is about 100 lbs. more than the 825 but has a much nicer bath and the construction seemed fine to me.
    bumpy
  • R2D1's avatar
    R2D1
    Explorer
    May 21, 2014
    Looks like Barber RV in Ventura has a couple of Adventurer campers in stock, but not the model you're looking for. You could check out their fit and finish though. We were torn between the Adventurer and the Lance, ended up with the Lance. I saw flaws with the Adventurer and the Lance, neither was perfect. There were some QC issues with ALP Manufacturing at the time. Things left off the camper, like toilet paper holder and bathroom door latch. I liked the plumbing layout better on the Adventurer than the Lance. We wanted a slide out on our camper and Lance won there.

    Edit... Forgot to mention that you might want to check out the Livin Lite Camplite campers for a relatively light weigh TC.
  • campingken's avatar
    campingken
    Explorer
    May 21, 2014
    Take a look at Panther Campers. They are built on the west coast.

    http://www.panthercampers.com/home.html
  • billtex's avatar
    billtex
    Explorer II
    May 21, 2014
    I'd agree with your assessment 100%.

    We had very good luck with our previous Adventurer...had it for 10 yrs. Moved up to a slide for more room.

    The NS are very well built also...kind of plain/jane...but some Folks like that.
    They also have a good rep...

    Which one has bigger tanks?
    Dual batts?
    Dual propane?

    You should go see both Adv and NS in person and see what you think.

    Good luck, Bill

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