Palomino Soft-Side owner reviews

[Cober83]

Hi,

I'm considering the purchase of a new Palomino SS-1608 or SS-1251. I have read about Palomino quality problems in earlier models and have also read that many of those issues have been corrected in the newer ones.

I'm looking for feedback from some folks who actually own one of these newer pop-up campers, how do you use the camper, what sort of terrain do you travel on and how has it held up?

Thanks in advance for the feedback!

[SidecarFlip]

tommy salmon wrote:
I bought an OLD Palomino Bronco pop up. Haven't had a chance to use it yet, but if I like it enough - I might spring for a new one. I paid $1,000, and I have put about $500 into new jacks, paint, etc. Here in Colorado, pop ups are crazy popular, so shouldn't have any trouble getting my money out of it.

The split rear door section will always be an issue because they inherently leak (which is why on the new ones, Palomino eliminated it) and the crank up canvas mechanism needs regular lubrication, also eliminated on the new ones.

The old ones are still popular, I was at the factory last fall and they had at least 3 in for new canvas.

Like any TC, one has to develop a 'taste' for one.

[tommy_salmon]

I bought an OLD Palomino Bronco pop up. Haven't had a chance to use it yet, but if I like it enough - I might spring for a new one. I paid $1,000, and I have put about $500 into new jacks, paint, etc. Here in Colorado, pop ups are crazy popular, so shouldn't have any trouble getting my money out of it.

[SidecarFlip]

Additionally, none of the units come with a sewer hose storage caddy. I made my own from a rectangular PVC hollow fence post and some plastic brackets and attached it to the underside of the camper at the back. I put on 2. One for my sewer hose and one for my fishing rods. Never enough storage in a TC.

[SidecarFlip]

discovery4us wrote:
Congrats. Keep us posted on how you like it. I am trying to decide and also get the wife onboard to pick up a TC and for me right now the Palomino 1251 is the front runner.

Wife wants to know if the shower is big enough, if we have to put the top up to use the toilet while traveling, if there is a spot to store a microwave (gourmet cooking :(), and if we can camp in it off the truck (makes it easier for her to get in and out). I am also a little concerned with the short door.

I have only seen the shorter floor non bathroom model in person. Dealer is about a hundred miles away so hoping to get there in the next couple of weeks to see one up close. The dealer also carries the Lance 650 so it will be nice to see them side by side for comparison.

I'm 6'1" and my wife is 5'10" and the shower works. It's tight but doable. Sort of reminds me of a cruise shop shower room wise.

We carry a convection microwave, I put it on the counter across from the wet bath (there is an outlet there) for it.

You can access the toilet with the top down and the fridge as well. You can sit on the dinette bench as well, Because I'm tall, I have to remind myself the roof is close. If we are going somewhere, we use a rest stop bathroom but we get out lunch and beverages from the fridge on the road. This winter I'm buying a Cool Box for the backseat of the truck just for frozen stuff and cold pop when travelling and my wife will use it when she goes to the grocery in the summer to keep frozen things frozen in the summer heat. It's a trek to the store, we live in the middle of nowhere.

We both thought the door would be an issue and it's not at all. Your natural instinct is to lean forward as you go in so the door height is never an issue. We run a set of Torklift Stow N Glo-Steps with the adjustable feet and the units come with a swinging grab handle so it's up and in, no issue. I like the TL Steps. They fold up into an attached bracket and stay on the camper all the time unless I have the unit off for winter storage.

When the unit is on my truck it's pretty high up. My bed height is 37 inches so it's a ways up to the door and necessitates the steps. We would not be able to get in or out without the steps attached.

When I first got the unit, I was using a short stepladder to get in and out and considered a 'Little Giant' ladder, which is what a lot of pop up owners use but I settled on the TL steps and they have worked out just fine. They aren't cheap by a long shot but they are built well and made here in America.

Removal and attachment is via 2 pins. Takes about 30 seconds to remove and 30 seconds to attach them.

If I had a low, 2wd truck, I'd probably get a set of Brophy steps that fit into the receiver hitch but my 4wd is too high for them.

Iurs has an outside shower too. I think all the SS's come with an outside shower. I'm not bashful, I use it. My wife won't......:B

[SidecarFlip]

Funny, I went the opposite way with no issue. The agility and ease of transport makes up for the drawback of drying it out, which has never been an issue for us, if it's a weekend trip, we get it home, open it up, let it dry and stow it and if it's a, longer trip, along the way, it will dry out anyway.

Any pop up will have the same issues, Hallmark, North Star or Palomino and 4 wheel as well. Anything with a canvas upper. Of course, as a rule we only camp disbursed so ambient noise for us, isn't an issue.

Different strokes for different folks, I guess.

[JTLance]

egarant wrote:


Second was it's lack of insulation. You might as well be sleeping in a tent as there is no meaningful heat retention. I found the optional insulation package was too bulky to carry around, took too long to install and when installed you had no more windows.



Just though of another reason.....DW was not going to camp in a soft sided camper in Grizzly bear habitat anymore.

Bingo on both complaints.....Wife froze her jazz off, too much noise from everything that anyone did within 100' of us, and finally, if it rains when you camp, YOU HAVE TO OPEN IT UP TO DRY OUT!

Honestly, a Lance light from late 90's and early 2000's was a huge improvement.

So, my Bronco 1250 went bye-bye.

[discovery4us]

Congrats. Keep us posted on how you like it. I am trying to decide and also get the wife onboard to pick up a TC and for me right now the Palomino 1251 is the front runner.

Wife wants to know if the shower is big enough, if we have to put the top up to use the toilet while traveling, if there is a spot to store a microwave (gourmet cooking :(), and if we can camp in it off the truck (makes it easier for her to get in and out). I am also a little concerned with the short door.

I have only seen the shorter floor non bathroom model in person. Dealer is about a hundred miles away so hoping to get there in the next couple of weeks to see one up close. The dealer also carries the Lance 650 so it will be nice to see them side by side for comparison.

[SidecarFlip]

egarant wrote:
I owned a top of the line Northstar pop-up. I sold it after 4 years primarily because of two things.

The desert winds would make move the pop-up material and keep me up at night. The noise is especially annoying when metal zippers click against each other. Several times Mohave Desert I've dropped the top down and slept on the dinette do to the wind.

Second was it's lack of insulation. You might as well be sleeping in a tent as there is no meaningful heat retention. I found the optional insulation package was too bulky to carry around, took too long to install and when installed you had no more windows.

I decided to sell it when I started to see areas of wear on the tent material....I didn't want to be the one replacing that tent material.

Just though of another reason.....DW was not going to camp in a soft sided camper in Grizzly bear habitat anymore.

Zippers on the Palomino have plastic pulls, not metal. No noise.

We haven't had a heat retention with ours at least on cool mornings, I quick burst of the furnace is all you need. I don't use it in cold weather, I use the Super 8.

Never camped in Grizzly bear country but my wife is real handy with a pistol and long gun, a regular 'Anne Oakley'....

Everything wears out over time, you and me included. The tent on the Palomino is replaceable in sections and sold that way. IOW, you need the back section, you unzip it, pop the tabs and it comes right off.

When I was a kid, I saw what a bear did to a station wagon in Pennsylvania. The guy put his garbage can in the back to take to the dump on the morning. During the night, a bear literally ripped the entire side off the car to get to the garbage. I don't think a Filon side 1/2" thick is going to slow down a determined bear for much longer than about 15 seconds.....

We always sleep with a piece close by anyway. Bear or no bear.

[SidecarFlip]

wanderingbob wrote:
Well I bought me one , Palomino 1251 , bought it Monday and have hauled it 600 miles and slept one nite in it ! Ain't had nuttin but fun . Got it on my 2500 Ram . Do not know it is back there except when in a tight parking lot and I look back and see them legs sticking down , I'll get used to it . Been pulling twenty and thirty foot trailers for 40 years , time for a change !

The legs do come off (if you leave it on the truck for a while).

I find mine to be very comfortable and mine actually has a descent mattress. The Lance I had, had a terrible mattress.

Nice unit at a very reasonable price. I think you'll be very pleased with it.

You'll need a set of folding steps for sure. I have a set of TorkLift Stow and Go steps. Work really well.

[egarant]

I owned a top of the line Northstar pop-up. I sold it after 4 years primarily because of two things.

The desert winds would make move the pop-up material and keep me up at night. The noise is especially annoying when metal zippers click against each other. Several times Mohave Desert I've dropped the top down and slept on the dinette do to the wind.

Second was it's lack of insulation. You might as well be sleeping in a tent as there is no meaningful heat retention. I found the optional insulation package was too bulky to carry around, took too long to install and when installed you had no more windows.

I decided to sell it when I started to see areas of wear on the tent material....I didn't want to be the one replacing that tent material.

Just thought of another reason.....DW was not going to camp in a soft sided camper in Grizzly bear habitat anymore.

[wanderingbob]

Well I bought me one , Palomino 1251 , bought it Monday and have hauled it 600 miles and slept one nite in it ! Ain't had nuttin but fun . Got it on my 2500 Ram . Do not know it is back there except when in a tight parking lot and I look back and see them legs sticking down , I'll get used to it . Been pulling twenty and thirty foot trailers for 40 years , time for a change !

[SidecarFlip]

I might add that advertised weight is pretty close, within a couple hundred pounds. Mine stickered for 1900 wet and it weighs 2100 wet. Not that far off in actuality.

[SidecarFlip]

I have an SS1500 which is the biggest and heaviest of the soft side pop ups.

Mine is a 2014-15 model with the RT electric roof lift and solid one piece door and I have to honestly say, I have had absolutely no issues with mine, nothing. I use mine primarily for off road camping (seasonal access and fire roads on a 1 ton 4x4 diesel pickup.

Nothing has broken, nothing has quit, nothing has fallen apart and it don't leak anywhere either.

I did change all the outside lights to LED's and added the backup wireless camera. I also installed a 1000 watt PSW inverter and a second house battery.

The RT electric roof works flawlessly just like everything else and fit and finish are first rate. The units are much, much improved over the older Palomino's with the crank up top and the 2 piece leaky rear door.

Your only issue will be getting in and out. I would suggest a set of scissors steps. With the short door, it can be a head bumper climbing in and getting out.

I would just buy one new for what a new one costs, it's a pretty good bargain in TC's today.

My 2 cents

[Old_Days]

I used to own a 2011 1603. We had that camper for 2 years. I didn't have any problems but it was stored inside when not on the truck. The new ones have a electric roof which is nice. If it is your first truck camper I would look for a good used one, just in case you want something better later.