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GlueGuy 
Senior Member 
Joined: 15 May 2017 Location: N. California Online Status: Offline Posts: 2628 |
 Topic: Should I buy?Posted: 29 Oct 2018 at 1:35pm |
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bp
2017 R-Pod 179 Hood River 2015 Ford F150 SuperCrew 4WD 3.5L Ecoboost |
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Poddy McPodface
Newbie 
Joined: 27 Sep 2018 Online Status: Offline Posts: 5 |
Posted: 29 Oct 2018 at 2:30pm |
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Good thoughts. I don't think anyone saves money on RVs vs motels. Depending on the situation and usage, an RV might cost more. You camp/RV because it is what you WANT to do - the money is of lesser consideration (along with the maintenance and repair cost/effort/time). I jokingly comment among my fellow RV friends that "Owning an RV is a part time job that doesn't pay very well". They understand the feeling. In regards to potential "newbies" my thought expressed is : Unless they are going to spend at least 6-8 weeks (total) per year using it, it is probably not worth it. There are other options, such as; rental RVs, rental cabins, etc. that are a whole lot less expense and effort. |
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Royal1585
Newbie
Joined: 24 Oct 2018 Location: TX Online Status: Offline Posts: 26 |
Posted: 29 Oct 2018 at 8:18pm |
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What are y'alls opinion on pop-up campers?
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Go Royals!
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OldNeumanntapr
Senior Member
Joined: 23 May 2018 Location: CA Online Status: Offline Posts: 204 |
Posted: 29 Oct 2018 at 9:06pm |
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I had an '89 Coleman Sequoia pop up trailer for 15 years. Pros: 1. Easily towed. Does NOT require a weight distribution hitch. 2. Inexpensive, compared to other types of solid-wall RVs. 3. Roomy and large when set up, but nice and small while on the road. 4. More easily parked (because of smaller size.) than travel trailers. 5. Able to see over the top, from center rear view mirror of tow vehicle. (as long as you don't have an air conditioner than sticks up to obscure your view.) 6. Some have lots of the same interior appliances as larger travel trailers, ie; refrigerators, furnaces, hot water heaters, air conditioners, etc. (Some even have bathrooms, but they are spartan.) 7. Nice large beds. Mine had a king in the front and a double in the back, plus a large dinette that made into a bed. 8. Light weight. My Coleman was 1,200 lbs and I pulled it with a 2002 4 cyl Toyota Tacoma. I got 17 to 18 mpg on the road, but steep hills were out of the question, as was 5th gear. (You can move the tent trailer around by hand. Try THAT with a travel trailer!) Cons: 1. Cold!! (The canvas is just like a tent.) 2. Noisy. (No solid walls means people can hear things outside, especially dogs who like to bark at strange noises in the middle of the night.) I was always quieting my dogs who would be spooked at odd hours by noises from outside. 3. A pain to set up, tear down. (They are not good RVs if you only stay one night and then move on to another destination, as we did numerous times.) You have to crawl around on the ground to pull the beds out, set up leveling jacks, etc, so you can get dirty. (My OCD wife fussed at me constantly for getting on the ground to set up and tear down. Many people heard her little tirades on dirt, especially with the acoustically-transparant canvas walls!! 4. Can be a REAL pain to set up, tear down in the rain! (I kept tarps over the beds for just this reason.) 5. Almost IMPOSSIBLE to 'stealth camp' with. A motor home, truck camper, conversion van, can easily be slept in without people knowing. A tent trailer MUST be set up to be used. (People give you weird looks in Walmart parking lots! We had to stay in a Walmart parking lot once in Tennessee on vacation when we got into town at 3 am. It was basically 'Circle up the wagons', and park near the big motor homes. I felt unsafe.) 6. Must be unhitched to be set up, as the front bed extends over the tongue. Again, if you're spending a week in one place (in the summer time) this isn't a big deal, but if you're stoping each night on a long trip it can be a problem. 7. NO overhead cabinet storage!!! My Coleman had no fridge, no furnace, no bathroom (only a porta-potty.) We used block ice in ice chests and had a portable propane heater as well as 110 volt space heater for use with electrical hook ups. I got tired of the 'cons', so we bought our rPod 180 this year. I paid $2,250 for it in 2002, and got $750 in trade on when I bought the rPod. It cost me $1,500 to own it for 15 years, exactly $100 a year. I replaced the propane tank once and the tires twice. I greased the 'wiffle-tree' gears that raise and lower the top once myself. I replaced the elastic cord that tightens the canvas around the beds once. All in all it was fairly cheap to own. The 'repairs' didn't amount to much money at all, especially over the long run. Under the right circumstances they are a lot of fun, mostly if you are going to one destination to stay for an extended time. And, of course, the weather is warm and comfortable. But, even though my new rPod cost FAR more, I still love it compared to the Coleman. |
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Live2Camp
Senior Member
Joined: 17 Apr 2017 Location: No. California Online Status: Offline Posts: 240 |
Posted: 29 Oct 2018 at 9:43pm |
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To add one another consideration - there are places (and times) in parts of the western United States where only hard-sided camping is allowed due to grizzly bear activity. This may be the situation in parts of Canada as well, I don't know but it's worth checking out.
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2017 R-Pod 179 HRE (the green one)
His:Ford F150 double cab 4WD; Hers/mine:Tacoma V6 double cab 4WD Still love rugged, diggin' comfy too |
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OldNeumanntapr
Senior Member
Joined: 23 May 2018 Location: CA Online Status: Offline Posts: 204 |
Posted: 29 Oct 2018 at 10:01pm |
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We camped with the Coleman in Cates Cove in the Smokey Mountains. You could hear the bears walk through the camp ground in the middle of the night, snapping twigs. I sure wouldn’t want to take one to Alaska! |
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offgrid
Senior Member
Joined: 23 Jul 2018 Online Status: Offline Posts: 5290 |
Posted: 30 Oct 2018 at 3:22am |
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GlueGuy, building a Long-EZ is impressive. I haven't heard of anyone doing that in less than 3-4 thousand hours. Wonderful flying airplane. I almost bought one last year but my wife vetoed the tandem seating configuration, and realistically I'm getting too old to lift the nose and climb in and out.
For sure you're right about homebuilts getting around the crazy costs of flying. You don't require PMA's parts, as the builder you get to put anything in there you think makes sense. In the certificated aircraft world its just prohibitive these days, if you can get parts at all. I had a Grumman Tiger and a Beech Bonanza, both great flying airplanes but both money pits that would put any but perhaps the most complex high end class A RV to shame. Back to Royal1585's question re popups, that feels much more like actually camping than an enclosed travel trailer does. If you are uncertain about your wife enjoying the experience, a popup might not be the best introduction. |
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1994 Chinook Concourse
1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold |
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lostagain
Senior Member
Joined: 06 Sep 2016 Location: Quaker Hill, CT Online Status: Offline Posts: 2587 |
Posted: 30 Oct 2018 at 7:24pm |
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When you really get down to it, if you intend to use an RV in lieu of hotels at desirable resorts and such, as opposed to camping in the boondocks, the real reason to get an RV is not to save money on food and lodging. It's to avoid bed bugs.
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Never leave footprints behind.
Fred & Maria Kearney Sonoma 167RB Our Pod 172 2019 Ford F-150 4x4 2.7 EcoBoost |
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Keith-N-Dar
podders Helping podders - pHp
Joined: 03 Apr 2011 Location: Mayville, WI Online Status: Offline Posts: 1447 |
Posted: 30 Oct 2018 at 10:33pm |
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The issue of bears is the item that convinced Dar we needed a hard sided trailer. I won't point it out to her but bears take car doors off to get at the insides. Fiberglass panels wouldn't slow them down much.
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Keith-N-Dar
Boris & Betty (Boston Terriers) 2011 R-Pod 177 2010 Ford F-150 |
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Royal1585
Newbie
Joined: 24 Oct 2018 Location: TX Online Status: Offline Posts: 26 |
Posted: 31 Oct 2018 at 9:52am |
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As I read more and more on this site (including other discussion topics) and other sites as well, I think I'm inclined to not take this step any time soon. If I do, it will be closer to my retirement when I will be able to spend more time on the road as well as commitment to the maintenance which appears to be a constant and on-going task. I sure do appreciate all the responses and feedback from y'all...it has opened my eyes up to more than what I was considering.
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Go Royals!
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Should I buy?