Outfitter Pop-up Truck Camper

[Moosetags]

Outfitter truck campers are some of the rarer ones out there. They come form a small manufacturer with relatively few produced each year.

I have started this thread for others with these truck campers to come and talk about their Outfitters, both the good and the bad. It can also serve as a source for folks considering purchasing a pop-up truck camper.

To begin, I will profile myself and my Outfitter. I have a 2011 Outfitter Apex 8 long bed that I purchased new directly from Outfitter in September of 2011.

My Outfitter has the NovaKool refrigerator, cassette toilet, and solar.

Brian

[Mtngrrrl]

I'm new here, first post...appreciate any and all help in advance.

Last fall I bought my third TC, a new to me 2002 Outfitter Apex 8. I've been dealing with some issues mostly stemming from the neglect of the last owner who hadn't touched it in 4 years. I've just had the roof re-sealed, and had the lift system rebuilt.

I'm now in the process of installing a solar panel, and have never installed one myself before. I've searched a bit, which is how I've come across this forum, but I haven't found the answer to my question, and I thought I'd ask here. I drilled a small core hole out of the roof which is where I'll run the wires, and it also helped me get a better idea of the roof composition...which doesn't seem very strong to hold a solar panel.

For those of you who have installed one, what sort of mounting bolts or mounting system are you using? Again, sorry if this is a stupid question...I'm pretty new to all of this, and thought that people with the same or similar roofs would be better able to direct me.

Thanks!

[rfgaugush]

I don't know the dry weight, Outfitter doesn't weigh their campers.

From their website, I'd estimate the dry weight at around 1000 lbs.

I may eventually weigh it but with my 350 I'm not too concerned about the weight.

[kbaum]

Looks great!

What is the dry weight?

[Geewizard]

Very nice indeed. thanks for posting pics.

[rfgaugush]

Thanks.

It's my first camper. I've previously done nothing but tent camping and historical trekking. It's a big step up from sleeping on the ground.

In doing the extended cabover they have to increase the depth of that section so they can use a 5" mattress. Much more comfortable than I expected.

[silversand]

Looks really nice. This looks like the new series camper. Great looking interior cabinetry, too.

[rfgaugush]

Some interior shots

[rfgaugush]

Sorry, no shots of the rig in New Mexico.

[kbaum]

Sounds awesome !

[silversand]

Yah. A pic would be nice (especially in the New Mexico setting!)...

Standing by...

[Geewizard]

rfgaugush wrote:
I picked up my new Outfitter Caribou Lite 6.5 on 17 March and then spent a week with with it in New Mexico before returning home.

My options:
extended cabover - N-S bed is 80" x 80"
cassette toilet
furnace
3.8 cu ft Dometic 2 way refrigerator
hot water heater
external shower
100 watt solar panel
2 6v batteries
Torklift frame mounts
Torklift steps

I'd like to see pics of your setup.

[rfgaugush]

I picked up my new Outfitter Caribou Lite 6.5 on 17 March and then spent a week with with it in New Mexico before returning home.

My options:
extended cabover - N-S bed is 80" x 80"
cassette toilet
furnace
3.8 cu ft Dometic 2 way refrigerator
hot water heater
external shower
100 watt solar panel
2 6v batteries
Torklift frame mounts
Torklift steps

[Geewizard]

sleepywheel wrote:
Going to have to keep an eye on this thread......

Sold my Palomino Bronco 1251 a couple of years ago because my wife and I had both banged our heads on the fold down rear wall when the top was lowered. I'm in the market now for another pop-up camper and have found an 2006 Outfitter Caribou that sounds promising. From the sounds of it, the interior needs freshening up due to faded cupboard doors but everything else seems fine.

One thing that I really want is a hot water heater and an outside shower. Since this one doesn't have either, how much work is it to put in? Is there usually a spot where they go where I can just cut the holes in the side of the camper to install? I'm not worried about the plumbing side of things, it's if there is enough room to install a water heater. I don't know if the inside cabinets from the factory are the same whether or not a water heater is oem.

Thoughts?

I bet that Outfitter would help you out with information on this if you ask them.

[sleepywheel]

silversand wrote:
Sleepy:

We don't have outside shower nor hot water heater in our Caribou.

I'm not sure where the heater would be installed; I'm guessing: under the kitchen counter?

I think you need to find the aluminum frame (hidden under the fiberglass laminated sandwich making up the camper walls) to determine where to cut through, to mount water heater frame properly. However, the only way to know for sure, is to contact Outfitter with your unit's serial number.

The best way to identify where the aluminum framing is located: on a summer/fall morning when there is a heavy condensation early AM, the outline of the aluminum frame will be VERY evident (the condensate will adhere to the outside camper shell mirroring the frame). You could then use a marking device to lightly mark the framing members, then create a CAD drawing of the entire camper shell framing structure using measuring tools. Same principal discovering aluminum roof framing (both outside and inside).

Good luck.

Thanks for the info silversand. BTW, I'm not sleepy, there's someone else here that goes by that name. Looks like I might be getting an Outfitter!

[joerg68]

Here is a picture of what I was talking about with regard to the door frames and possible leakage (again, these are not Outfitter-specific, but rather typical for most RVs in my experience):



1 - shows the lower edge of the frame. On most frames I have seen, there was no seal of any type on the inner side of the frame. This is not really a problem on the vertical and upper edges. But any water that finds its way inside the compartment drains into the camper structure at the lower edge.

2 - two parts of the aluminum channel meet in the corners. At least on my camper, there is no sealant or the like there. While the corners are manufactured with good precision, the fit is never tight enough to be watertight here.

I apologize for the dirty appearance of our Outfitter in the picture. The camper is sitting outside all year, has been parked since October, and is in dire need of a good cleaning. The LPG bottle is a German-type rental bottle which holds 11kg. The LPG compartment was custom-built by Outfitter to fit the Euro bottle size.