Small Travel Trailer Please!!

As LS suggests, trailers like Casita's, Escape, etc, tend to sell very quickly when listed for sale. So as always in that type of product/market, you need to be ready to pounce when the right one comes along.
You may also have to widen your search area considerably, and be ready to travel to go look at and buy. Hey, it's all part of the adventure, right ?

And that's good to hear that LS says his Casita is holding up well to the rigors of rough roads.

edubay wrote:
One more thing.....I like the Airliners and Casitas. Still think an older unit would fit my price range a bit better. I know the Casitas go back a few years and could find a used one. any other suggestions on something 5-10 years old that may be an older model that I have not seen??? Most importantly, do the lights in these units run off 12v power also??? Will have a generator, but do not want to run it all the time.

Used eggs are hard to find and sell quickly. Plus, they hold their value very well so there would not be much in the way of savings. And yes, they have 12v house batteries.

Go here to check see if anyone is selling: http://www.fiberglassrv.com/forums/

Good luck!

LS

One more thing.....I like the Airliners and Casitas. Still think an older unit would fit my price range a bit better. I know the Casitas go back a few years and could find a used one. any other suggestions on something 5-10 years old that may be an older model that I have not seen??? Most importantly, do the lights in these units run off 12v power also??? Will have a generator, but do not want to run it all the time.

I have a strong preference for egg trailers on the 60s pattern (Scamp, Casita, Escape), if I were to downsize. I've also looked at hard-sided folders (giving up a few more amenities for lighter weight) and van conversions.

Unlike your case, I would be downsizing, so the economics of the jump are different. What I have now greatly exceeds my needs, and is more expensive to move than a smaller camper, but I can probably move it another 50,000 - 200,000 miles for what it would cost me to downsize, when I consider also costs of moving whatever I choose as a replacement.

SooperDaddy wrote:
This is what came to mind when I read your posting, go to Craigslist of RV Trader to find good used models.Ailiner "A" Framed Trailers

I like the look of these, pretty much all we need.....A bathroom would be nice, but not essential. Towing vehicle is not an issue. Either a full size ford p/u or a dually. Thanks so much for all the suggestions gang, any additional info is always appreciated....Thanks!!

gmw photos wrote:
I've looked under some of the FG campers, like Casita, etc, and from what I have seen, the frames are pretty light duty. I suspect they are designing those with such a light frame, because as you noted, the FG bodies are essentially two bathtub tanks joined in a seam in the middle. I think they are counting on the body structure to have adequate strength on it's own, to keep it's shape. I really have not seen much written about how well they may work on rough roads.

We've dragged our's over some horrendous terrain and the frame has done just fine. The rear bumper, not so well. Casitas will take a beating and do just fine. It would be nice to have a slightly angled rear-end to raise the bumper a bit. Most of the damage we see is to the larger cabinet door inside. They often fall off because the screws vibrate out and lately the hinges have actually broken. That may give you an idea of what we put it through. I'm not going to shoot it to see if it's bulletproof, though. ;)

LS

profdant139 wrote:
gmw, thanks for the kind words -- but really, our Fun Finder is not built for serious off-roading. We do take it on rocky dirt roads, but very slowly -- it can take us an hour to go from the pavement to our remote campsites. We have plenty of clearance, but the frame is not terribly beefy.

So if you want to go for long distances on very rough roads at more than 10 or 15 mph, you will need something stouter than a Fun Finder. I wonder if the Casita frame is up to the task? Casitas are built like tanks -- literally, like water tanks! Very strong units -- bomb-proof.

Robert Ryan from Australia sometimes shows us the amazing "caravans" they drive Down Under -- far superior to anything commercially available in the US.

Hi Dan,
In fairness though to the whole idea of taking any of these trailers on rough roads, "going slowly" are the words of the day. Even watching the videos of the off road caravans in Australasia, we see they pick their way along carefully.

I've looked under some of the FG campers, like Casita, etc, and from what I have seen, the frames are pretty light duty. I suspect they are designing those with such a light frame, because as you noted, the FG bodies are essentially two bathtub tanks joined in a seam in the middle. I think they are counting on the body structure to have adequate strength on it's own, to keep it's shape. I really have not seen much written about how well they may work on rough roads.

My opinion is that when taking my Funfinder on rougher roads, it's best to:

...go slowly....and

... remove the weight distribution bars to allow as much "easy flex" as I can get at the ball. My thinking is, it lets the trailer be the trailer, and the truck be the truck so they are not feeding forces into one another as I cross rough sections. So far, so good.

I'd be willing to bet you have used your trailers in more rugged situations than 95% of the folks that own travel trailers.....so I still think it's safe to say, you are getting your money worth out of this little trailer.

geo

ps. I will admit also that when picking my way along rough sections in just my truck ( 4WD ), with no trailer, I go very slowly. Much easier on the truck compared to slamming along at 15 mph

gmw, thanks for the kind words -- but really, our Fun Finder is not built for serious off-roading. We do take it on rocky dirt roads, but very slowly -- it can take us an hour to go from the pavement to our remote campsites. We have plenty of clearance, but the frame is not terribly beefy.

So if you want to go for long distances on very rough roads at more than 10 or 15 mph, you will need something stouter than a Fun Finder. I wonder if the Casita frame is up to the task? Casitas are built like tanks -- literally, like water tanks! Very strong units -- bomb-proof.

Robert Ryan from Australia sometimes shows us the amazing "caravans" they drive Down Under -- far superior to anything commercially available in the US.

Living Lite is all welded aluminum and light weight. Being welded I would think might hold up better on rough roads

I have had pretty good luck going to the RV shows, giving the salesmen my wants and contact info and looking at some pretty good trade ins a few days after the show. They always seem anxious to get rid of these.