Manufacturers of Hard-Sided Pop-Ups

We took a long hard look at the A-liner and other hard sided campers. We wanted quick set up and easier towing. But in the end we opted for convenience and bought a used TT.

The 10 mpg of the TT is a pain, but you can buy a lot of gas for the price differential of a Trailmanor or A-liner. I kept my Palomino PUP because at times it is still the better choice.

We bought the smallest Trailmanor last year and traded in our 14ft Highwall Coleman. The Coleman was fine when we had 2 kids who went camping with us, but we wanted to downsize now we are empty nesters. We were underwhelmed with the choice, quality and dealers for traditional PUPS. We found ourselves at the Trail Manor dealer who was great, and we loved the unit. Perect for the 2 of us and a very occasional tag along college student.

It is much more comfortable than the PUP and much easier to put up/take down.

have owned our 2004 hi lo for 7 years and love it. there's just the 2 of us and our 2 corgis so the 17 footer works great for us. also it fits in the garage.

Thank you so everyone for taking the time to respond. This is very good information and you can never have too much information. We always take our time and change our minds a few times during the process but often go back to our first choice but that helps us not end up with "buyer's remorse". Thanks again!

Cannot speak for the Trailmanors or Hi-Los (Hi-Lo would have been our second choice) so will stick with the A-Frames.

When we were looking for our first RV, it took us two years just to decide on a type, let alone a make and model. In late 2005, we decided on the A-frame. At that time, there was only Chalet and Aliner in the mix. I was not excited about aluminum sided trailers and as at the time, the only real difference between the two was skin and wall height.

During the following winter we went to the "local" Chalet dealer (100 miles away) 4 times before we decided on a high wall Alpine model with the wet bath option along with the off-road kit. It was a 2004 model, new on the lot. We got a great price on it and were very happy.

In 2009 we were at a rally and fell in love with the Chalet XL1935. After a long discussion and search for a used one, we ordered one from the factory. Despite some quality control problems, we love our XL and have no plans to part with it.

I have been involved with the a-frame world for several years now and have seen a lot of bad from all. It seems to go year by year, management changes, weather, who knows. Basically, they are all good products and it eventually comes down to personal likes and dislikes.

Chalet and Aliner have dormer options and higher sidewalls. Chalet has the wet bath option. Aliner has the torsion axle. Forest River runs at a lower cost and has a toy hauler platform.

Best way to go is to do your research and look at as many as you can, especially older units to see how they are holding up.

Good luck.

A-Liner Expedition (14 foot box) can be fitted with a toilet-shower combo while still sleeping three adults in two beds.

F-R once showed a wet-bath model in a 12-foot box, but it had sleeping space for no more than two and the dealer told me (2012) that the could no longer order that one, and it disappeared the next model year.

HiLo and TrailManor are sort of different categories from the A-frame hardside, the first usually heavier than a conventional TT of similar size, the second much roomier than a similar (towing) size TT because you put some beds in the extensions to free floor space.

I have had an Aliner of some type for over ten years. You need to realize I use it mostly as a travel trailer rather than as a camping trailer. The light weight is great on the highway and fast setup/tear-down is a real plus for overnight stops. There is limited storage if you want to do some extended camping, which we rarely do, but I have seen a family of four camping at a state park in the smallest Aliner and having a great time (go figure). I have never experienced any unusual problems with any of my Aliners but don't know about the other manufacturers except their units are considerably more weight.

You can see my present / past trailers and mods at My Campers

The A-frame trailers, like many popups, will me more limited in storage space than the Trailmanor or HiLo types; the former have all storage down low (lots of bending over), whereas the latter still contain upper cabinets.

That said, I am seriously considering an A-frame anyhow. Trailmanor is plumb out of my price range, for one thing.

We had a Trailmanor for a couple of seasons before moving up and would suggest you seriously look at their various models; including one that fits in the standard garage. I think they are well made and, when we had one, their customer service was tops.

Should still be plenty of HIGH WALLS POPUPS still available. A friend of mine (BONDEBOND)in Searcy AR has one and lifted for bigger tire. Gets him way back in the woods there.

I am very happy with STARCRAFT 14RT setup but I suppose HARD SIDES would be better. Camped a couple of times in a borrowed A-FRAME and that is definitely not for me. I need alittle more headroom inside.

The TRAILMANOR went under new management and they were OK inside when opened up...

I keep looking at the ROBERT RYANN posts from Australia and have decided to take on a couple of their off-road design ideas for my StartCraft 14RT model. Will enclose my front deck area and take on the same idea of this AUSSIE off-road setup... My trailer has a 12-box on it so would still have alot of room inside it. I want to add some solar panels to the roof line as well...


The POPUP idea sure is best for me as far as moving around and getting great gas mileage. My 2010 F150 truck tows my 4200 lbs setup just fine. Actually the gas mileage is almost the same when pulling or not (19-20MPG)

I can't image the expenses with the 40-foot plus big units moving the whole house down the road. That can't be all that much fun but that is what everyone wants - the bigger the better...

Not my camping style idea. Give me a creekside site and a bon-fire and I am a very happy camper...

Roy Ken