Scamps

[Stumps]

Hi Folks!

Well - after 4 years without a camper (had 2 kids in college at the same time, so the former Jayco went overboard) I made my final payment to Carson-Newman University and I'm ready to get back into camping. I still have one going into college and one at home, but our needs have changed - I will be camping with 2-3 at the most. I'm looking at a few light weight campers, and the Scamp (13) looks promising, but it's tough not being able to visit a dealership and sit in them.

Would love to hear how folks like theirs, and how the buying process was if you bought new.

Thanks!

[Bobbo]

bakerkids wrote:
It's funny how some couldn't imagine spending much time in a 28', while others are perfectly happy in 15' or less. I camp in a T@B, and this will be my 9th season. Large bed, plus all the other amenities I need. Some couldn't fathom sleeping one night in one. lol and I love that thing. Previously had a 28' Class C. I use the T@B way more.

If I had been 2 inches shorter, our TT would have been a T@B. DW absolutely fell in love with the outside kitchen model. She didn't care that I could not stand upright anywhere in the trailer without hitting my head, but when she saw I could not lay full length in the bed, she gave it up.

[Ron3rd]

Congratulations you

Scamp and Casita have their own dedicated forums. Go there for max return

[bakerkids]

FrankShore wrote:
Here is a very nifty, well constructed small trailer, with a ton of storage inside:

Little Guy Max

You might be able to score a gently used Lance Trailer for around the same price as a Scamp, Casita, etc

Um, "well constructed", I don't know. There are many unhappy campers in their FB group. LG has a lot of issues to work on and need to step up their game, and hopefully they will.

It's funny how some couldn't imagine spending much time in a 28', while others are perfectly happy in 15' or less. I camp in a T@B, and this will be my 9th season. Large bed, plus all the other amenities I need. Some couldn't fathom sleeping one night in one. lol and I love that thing. Previously had a 28' Class C. I use the T@B way more.

[arkie_guide]

I have had a couple 12 & 13 ft, T.T they are crowded with only 2 people, take warning 3 or 4 people it will be very overloaded.The arrangements in them are not using the space well.They look cute from the outside but please be careful, the wrong choice could turn you against T.T. camping.Good luck.

[mitw44]

Before buying our Salem Cruise Lite 171RBXL, which, by the way, is a great smaller trailer, with no slides, we did look at the Forest River Rpods. They look like a great small minimalist trailer, and the quality seems good. The smaller Lance's are also appealing.

[RobertRyan]

NYCgrrl wrote:
Scamps and Casitas made it to my short list of appropriate for us TTs.

Reliable, easy to pull w/o a truck and the right amt of amenities to fit our current less is more lifestyle.

Many of the smaller TTs are made by companies without nationwide distribution and the attendant offsite trained technicians' network so after much thought I chose an Alto Safari Condo as the right fit for us.

I'd suggest you contact the manufacturer of the Scamp who maybe able to put you in contact with a local private owner. They are often eager to show off their acquisition in the spirit of sharing the love.

Joining a Scamp-centric forum is also a great idea.

These were popular in Australia Egg Campers in the late 1950’s-1960. Bigger than the US versions. Sunliner was a popular brand here.
Same deal here as far as distribution, fairly localised

[gheicher]

Scamps and Casitas are hard to find used - A few years back I found a one year old 2005 16 ft. Scamp on the Casita forum site and had to bring it from MA to PA. It was a very easy to tow unit trailer, however,the rounded corners compromises a lot of interior storage space. Also the interior walls was covered with a furry insulating material (known affectionately as "rat fur" that I was not fond of). The combination of the rounded shape and furry walls to me gave it a cave like feeling. However, the fiberglass people are a loyal group and really love their small "egg" campers, and the unit is very well built - Just wasn't my "cup of tea" so only kept it for about one season and replaced it with a small regular square TT. Strangely someone from NH purchased the Scamp and took it back to New England.

[FrankShore]

Here is a very nifty, well constructed small trailer, with a ton of storage inside:

Little Guy Max

You might be able to score a gently used Lance Trailer for around the same price as a Scamp, Casita, etc

[CavemanCharlie]

Stumps wrote:

rbpru wrote:
So much depend on your needs. When I retired we needed, a bed you could exit without crawling over your spouse, a good sized bathroom, pantry and linen closet and a bed for the dog.

Yes - excellent point. I have owned two popups when the kids were smaller - 2004 and 2009. At the time the popup was a perfect camper for our needs - I could put all three girls across the king bunk, we had plenty of seating based on the floor plan, we kept camping trips simple so storage and packing was maximized, and it was easy to tow and maintain.

NOW I am a dad of a 24, 23, 18 and 14 year olds. That's basically 5 adults on a trip, and also rarely will we ever all be on the same trip. Over my son's birthday we went shopping and had a great time sitting in all the campers. Our needs were quickly identified: we love been connected to the outdoors so fell in love with the hybrids - open bunk ends, lots of good air flow and light; seating that provides for a dinette and a couch across from each other; indoor bathroom (FOR DAD!); basic kitchen amenities and plenty of bed space options. the other requirement - easily affordable - also helped us identify the hybrid camper. We are brand loyal to Jayco, so we will likely start with them when we're ready to buy. What has been extremely rewarding is to hear my children all continue to ask to go camping and ask to do summer road trips. it's our way of life.

If you kids are that old you should plan on maybe taking the grand kids along once and awhile on a short trip.

[Stumps]

rbpru wrote:
So much depend on your needs. When I retired we needed, a bed you could exit without crawling over your spouse, a good sized bathroom, pantry and linen closet and a bed for the dog.

Yes - excellent point. I have owned two popups when the kids were smaller - 2004 and 2009. At the time the popup was a perfect camper for our needs - I could put all three girls across the king bunk, we had plenty of seating based on the floor plan, we kept camping trips simple so storage and packing was maximized, and it was easy to tow and maintain.

NOW I am a dad of a 24, 23, 18 and 14 year olds. That's basically 5 adults on a trip, and also rarely will we ever all be on the same trip. Over my son's birthday we went shopping and had a great time sitting in all the campers. Our needs were quickly identified: we love been connected to the outdoors so fell in love with the hybrids - open bunk ends, lots of good air flow and light; seating that provides for a dinette and a couch across from each other; indoor bathroom (FOR DAD!); basic kitchen amenities and plenty of bed space options. the other requirement - easily affordable - also helped us identify the hybrid camper. We are brand loyal to Jayco, so we will likely start with them when we're ready to buy. What has been extremely rewarding is to hear my children all continue to ask to go camping and ask to do summer road trips. it's our way of life.

[rbpru]

So much depend on your needs. When I retired we needed, a bed you could exit without crawling over your spouse, a good sized bathroom, pantry and linen closet and a bed for the dog.

Others need much more, some much less. The Scamp, Casita and A-liner really appealed to us but in the end, they were too small for our travel plans.

So, we rented the size TT we needed with a floor plan we liked for a week in the Ozarks. We learned a lot really quick before we spent the big bucks. Later we found a used TT we wanted.

Finally, it would never buy a TT without seeing it, to many subtle variations and surprises.

Good luck

[Stumps]

Olddawgsrule wrote:
Also staring at an Alto Safari.

My reasons are design, interior a plus for me, exterior with the roof lowering plus the weight makes it very towable. Add in all that glass for a real outdoor feel from inside. Ya, I'm sold!

Now to get up there and walk through one!

To the OP: You have yours yet or still on the 'count-down'?

Well - I will resurrect this thread! Feel free to chime in, the discussion continues.

I had put down a deposit on a Scamp...then I got connected to a Scamp online group...THEN i started reading about an unreasonable amount of quality issues right off the lot with new units. I cannot imagine driving all the way to northern Minnesota to pick one of these up, get it home, and have to take it back for repairs, or pay for repairs out of pocket and hope the folks at Scamp reimburse me in a timely way. I pulled my deposit, and I'm glad I did.

We continue to tent camp - heading to Maine this summer and Grand Canyon in 2019. I am 2/3 the way through my dissertation, so at this point I am going to wait until I have my doctorate and I have a new job, then I will go shopping. When I removed the tow limitations of the Subaru from the equation, my kids and I really like hybrids, esp. the Jayco line. My guess is that I'll end up buying a used TV specifically for what we want, and I'll get the camper that best fits our needs, but I'll just wait a bit longer. I'm good with that.

[Olddawgsrule]

Also staring at an Alto Safari.

My reasons are design, interior a plus for me, exterior with the roof lowering plus the weight makes it very towable. Add in all that glass for a real outdoor feel from inside. Ya, I'm sold!

Now to get up there and walk through one!

To the OP: You have yours yet or still on the 'count-down'?

[ng2951]

rbpru wrote:
Before you buy, rent a similar sized TT for a week...

Great advice and a lot easier than it was a few years ago. Not only that, some will set up the trailer at the park for you so if a different TV needs to be purchased you won't need to do that.