Is a "Hard Side" pyramid style trailer considered a PUP?

[AVNTech]

DW has become fixated on a lightly used A122S Rockwood Hard Side trailer. It seems to be good quality, and the bed fits me 6'2". Is this a PUP or a regular TT? There does not seem to be much info about these on RV.net. How effective is the furnace, the "CoolCaT" heat pump, water heater etc?
Any feed back is appreciated, thanks.

[RobertRyan]

Tatest wrote:
Jayco/Starcraft is also building these (in a Starcraft plant). I've looked at the Jaycos at the factory showroom in Middlebury a couple of times when passing through, and seen the Starcraft models at RV shows. I've been a bit disappointed about some of the finish details, not up to the quality I've expected to see in Jayco RVs over the past 10 years. I've not seen this quality slippage in any of their motorized RVs, so it may be a plant issue; still, I would expect better attention to detail.

Gerry Ryan of Jayco Australia, bought some US Popups to see if some cash strapped younger people might like them. Well he basically could not give them away, so that little venture quickly faded away. Very similar to the Winnebago Travel Trailers, that Talvor now renamed " Winnebago Australia " tried to sell. They still had some left from the original shipment, they could not move. I would say the Jayco and Winnebago experiments have gone nowhere.

[kknowlton]

Definitely a regional difference, though depending on where you might go with the camper, you will probably find you want a/c available as well. (Remember, everyone, "below zero" in Canada does not mean "below zero" in the U.S. ) Still pretty chilly for camping, though. 🙂

One thing we love about having a full-height trailer rather than a popup is just what you mentioned: pulling off the road (for us, it's usually in a rest area) and being able to access fridge, sink, etc. to make lunch, eat inside if the weather is bad or there are no picnic tables available, use the bathroom, etc. Not possible with a PUP; when we had ours, we kept most things in the tow vehicle anyway (an SUV in the day) and would just make sandwiches from our food boxes & cooler - but no place to sit inside except in the car. Then there was all that loading & unloading every time we set up or broke camp...It just got old - but it did take 17 years to get old. (We were younger then.)

[AVNTech]

Thanks for all the replies, you've been very helpful. We're closing in on deciding between a Rockwood a122s, used, 2013 for $15,000 CDN, or a Prolite Evasion 16, used, 2012 $13,000 CDN. Both are well under the 4Runners 5K tow limit. I like the PUP for where we can take it, we really enjoy boondocking. But the Prolite is very well built, lots of quality touches, and its so easy to just pull over at the side of the road for a quick snooze, rest break, or whatever, I guess it seems more convenient for stealth use. Both choices fit my 6'2", beds are 76" or a bit longer, headroom is sufficient. A lot of comments about cooling/ac capacity, I'm actually more concerned about heating capacity, It snowed here yesterday, and is still below zero at night. Even July temps on the Atlantic shore can be nippy at night. I guess its a regional difference?
Thanks again for all the great responses you guys rock!

[tatest]

RVIA puts them in the "camping trailer" category which also includes pop-ups and tent trailers. I suppose this forum is called "folding trailers" as well, to include more than pop-ups (and I don't know of any manufacturer that sells them by that name).

I looked at a 122S when we still had a dealer in the region carrying Rockwood folders, and was fairly impressed with the build and finish, but concerned about the Cool Cat being under the bed. I was also looking at lightweight pop-ups (dealer was selling off the rental fleet and good prices) so hadn't decided to buy anything (still haven't, three years later, convinced myself I need a second RV for camping at the lake).

I got taken over to look at an A-Liner that someone had just traded on a toy-hauler version of the Rockwood, and was no longer so impressed with the Rockwood. This was a Thursday afternoon. I called back Monday to ask about buying the A-Liner, and it was already gone.

If you have an air-conditioner in one of these, you want the Cool-Cat. It is designed to operate through a wall with just a vent. Lately I've seen manufacturers, to save money, installing low-cost residential window air conditions in a box (rather than having the condenser sticking outside), and these do not work so well, having air flow restrictions and sometimes drainage problems if the RV is not leveled so as to force condensation to run outside. You don't want that.

Jayco/Starcraft is also building these (in a Starcraft plant). I've looked at the Jaycos at the factory showroom in Middlebury a couple of times when passing through, and seen the Starcraft models at RV shows. I've been a bit disappointed about some of the finish details, not up to the quality I've expected to see in Jayco RVs over the past 10 years. I've not seen this quality slippage in any of their motorized RVs, so it may be a plant issue; still, I would expect better attention to be paid to the finish of an example being displayed at the factory showroom.

[xteacher]

We have a 2015 Aliner Ranger 15 (15 foot box; 18 feet total), which I think of as a PUP, especially if booking a site that says "Tent, Pop Up, or Camping Vans Only". We love ours - it fits almost anywhere, and tows like a PUP. We pull it with our 2010 Nissan Pathfinder with no problems at all. It weighs around 2100 lb. dry, and it can be pulled easily with any vehicle that has a 4000 lb.+ towing capacity. Aliners are lighter than the other brands, due to their construction materials (also less impervious to water), which is why we chose this brand, despite paying a bit more for it.

The Aliner Ranger 15 and the Aliner Expedition have a taller ceiling than other models of any brand, so they would be good for a tall person. They are also 3 feet longer than other models of any brand.

We have the Cool Cat and LOVE it! It has an 11.5k a/c (I think), with vents and a digital thermostat, just like at home. You can also order a propane furnace so you can use it without electricity, but since we never boondock, we skipped that option. The heat pump provides plenty of a/c or heat, depending on the setting you put it on. Since we do most of our camping in GA and FL, this is important. We sold our Aliner Classic (12 foot box; 15 feet total) that had the 5k window a/c - it just didn't cut it in southern heat.

To gather additional information, I suggest that you join the Facebook group: A Frame Campers: Aliner, Chalet, Rockwood/Flagstaff, Starcraft.... It's a great group with helpful people (some salty ones, too - lol).

[SDcampowneroper]

A liners and Hi Lows have their own definition as hard side expandables.
Go www.rvia.com to get the nomenclature.

[RoyB]

With the sloped roof you will be losing some head room as compared to a regular POPUP roof line...

Having hard side sides however has its PLUSES...

I saw one like this photo the other day which caught my eye with the large front deck added...



Roy Ken

[Merrykalia]

Most people refer to them as a popup A. A-Liner was the original maker and they look like an A from the front.

[kknowlton]

Not sure if there's an official definition, but I certainly consider this kind of camper a popup. It's just a hard-sided one. We haven't looked into them very hard, though did take a cursory look at our old dealer's, some years ago. It's a Forest River product; you might try checking their website and also looking into the Forest River owners' forum for more specific info on this model. Good luck!