Tag Archives: teardrop trailer

Small Trailer Snapshot: The Jayco Jay Feather Micro 12SRK

At first glance, you may look at the Jayco Jay Feather Micro 12SRK and think it’s another boxy teardrop trailer…or as some refer to it as a “boxdrop”. But upon further inspection, it’s anything but typical.

Inside the 12SRK, instead of a typical wall to wall mattress, you’ll find a jack-knife sofa that converts to a bed with a comfortable 6’4” length. Having owned a traditional teardrop trailer in the past, you don’t always want to lay down when you climb inside to take shelter from a rainy day at the campground. And underneath that sofa, you have full access storage that’s accessible from inside as well as an exterior cargo door. Jayco has does an exceptional job with the 12SRK creating good interior storage. Aside from the storage under the sofa, you have a mini wardrobe just inside the door as well as overhead storage across the front wall, and to the side of the sofa a handy concealed nook for additional items. But wait there’s more! On the door side wall near the rear, there’s a shelf with two cubbies below. The back wall you’ll find a mounting bracket for the 32” 12 volt TV that you can swap between there or outside in the rear galley. The interior is ventilated with a power roof vent, and for additional cooling, you can go with the optional 8,000 BTU wall mounted air conditioner.




The rear galley gives you a nice area for food prep, which sits above the slide-out 17” Blackstone grill, which is standard along with a nice sized 12 volt cooler. An overhead shelf across the width gives you ample storage for food, and handy peg boards on both side walls gives you the ability to be creative with kitchenware to hang. And as we mentioned earlier, the back wall has a spot for the 32” 12 volt television.


The 12SRK is built with laminated sidewalls using Azdel composite, while sitting on 15” Goodyear off-road tires with self adjusting brakes. A generous 25 gallon fresh water tank is there for the handy outside spray port for washing off dishes, or even yourself!  Interested in camping in the 12SRK in cooler temps? Jayco has you covered with an enclosed and insulated underbelly. Options aside from the 8,000 BTU air conditioner include a Thule awning, accessory roof rack system, solar power package, and an upgraded 30 lbs propane tank for extended off-grid use.




The Jayco Jay Feather Micro 12SRK checks in with a base weight of 1585 lbs, 180 lbs dry hitch weight, 1210 lbs cargo carrying capacity, and 2795 lbs GVWR. From hitch to tail the 12SRK  measures 13’4” long, 7’9” tall, 6’8” wide, and with an interior height of 4’7”. Base MSRP starts out at $20,063. For more info on the Jayco Jay Feather Micro 12SRK or other floor plans in the Micro series, visit the Jayco website at Jayco Jay Feather Micro 

Special thanks to Josh Winters at Haylett RV for the tour and the pics! Interested in the 12SRK? Be sure to visit the fine folks at Haylett RV! https://www.haylettautoandrv.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Small Trailer Snapshot: The Coachmen Clipper/Viking Express 9.0TD

Back in September when I was attending the Elkhart RV open house in Elkhart, IN, I came across this little offering in the Coachmen RV section at the Forest River compound. The shape and size of it instantly caught my eye for a further look. It was a new model Coachmen was introducing in both the Clipper and the Viking lines of camping trailers. The one on display was a Coachmen Viking Express 9.0TD.

Key Features: Unique hybrid design, with elements of both a teardrop and a pop-up camper; Rear entry door; 5,000 BTU air conditioner; Bluetooth stereo; Full pass-through storage; 20,000 BTU furnace; 1.2 cubic foot 110 volt refrigerator; Zamp solar prep; USB charging ports; Side mount grill with quick-connect propane hook-up; Four heavy duty stabilizer jacks; Optional rear awning.

Key Specs: 9′ box length; 13′ total length; Weighs just under 1,100 lbs; 54″x74″ bed; 13″ aluminum wheels; 20 lbs propane tank; 12″x24″ baggage doors; 15″x24″ windows.

Why I Like It: The Clipper/Viking Express 9.0TD hits all the right notes for me in a small camping trailer. Who’s it for? I see it for those who want to “get off the ground” from tent camping and into something with a little more amenities, but without breaking the budget. I’ve seen these advertised for less than $7,000, so they’re quite affordable for most. It’s also excellent for those with low tow capacity, as it weighs under 1100 lbs. While it is a step up from tent camping, you’re still responsible for your potty facilities, as it does not have a toilet, which will be a deal breaker for some. However, it’s safe to say you’ll already know that based on the size of the Clipper/Viking Express 9.0TD. If you like cozy, without having to pay a king’s ransom, this is the ticket. You’d be spending more than half of what an upscale traditional teardrop is going for these days. But one thing the 9.0TD has going for it that a traditional teardrop doesn’t is that you can actually stand in this once the pop-up is popped up. The 5,000 BTU air conditioner should more than take care of you on a hot summer day when you have the tent portion zipped up. And to add to that, you’ll get excellent cross ventilation from the two windows that are on each side of the camper near the head of the bed. And it’s got decent storage for what it is as well, featuring a bed that flips up for storage access, as well as interior cabinets as well as a shelf above the head of the bed, which also houses two speakers for the Bluetooth stereo. Add the optional tent room and you’ve got a nice little set-up that you’re not spending a fortune on. These are slowly starting to show up on dealers lots and websites, but I suspect that will increase over the next couple of months just in time for spring. So if you’re in the market for a teardrop, or if you’re a tent camper and just want to get off the ground, give either the Coachmen Clipper Express 9.0TD or the Coachmen Viking Express 9.0TD a look. I think you’ll find they’re a really nice alternative for your budget and camping experience.

You can find more info of either model at:

Clipper: http://coachmenrv.com/camping-trailers/clipper/9.0TD/4503

Viking: http://coachmenrv.com/camping-trailers/viking/9.0TD/4487

 

(photo courtesy Boe RV & Marine)

 

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And now a word from our sponsor: Car-Go Trailers

Today we welcome the addition of a new advertiser to The Small Trailer Enthusiast, Car-Go Trailers from Terrebonne, just outside of Montreal in Quebec. Car-Go Trailers offers a nice, basic teardrop trailer with just enough features to give you a comfortable camping experience.

Built on a 2220 lbs axle, the Liberty offers:

  • Two 14″ x 17″ venting windows with screens
  • Fantastic fan 3 speed vent fan
  • 3 Piece foldable Queen Mattress – 4″ foam
  • Birch UV lacquered plywood on all exposed surfaces
  • Copy of Birch UV lacquered plywood on all exposed surfaces
  • Cabin cabinets with birch doors
  • Two 110 v outlets
  • Two 12v socket charger
  • 75 amp-hour deep cell marine battery
  • WFCO Power converter and charger
  • 2 x 2 trailer receiver for bike rack
  • Two 26″ x 36″ doors with vented windows

Additional standard features in the Car-Go Liberty include:

  • .060 White powder coated aluminum roof
  • Bed size : 74 inches x 58 inches
  • Rear hatch with 2 hydraulic gas springs
  • Steel wheels with baby moon rims.
  • Tire size : P175/70 R14.
  • 30A Power connector
  • 7 pin trailer hookup
  • Nearly 10 square feet of counter and shelving
  • All wood finished in either UV lacquer or water base lacquer
  • 5 LED lights, two reading, one dome, one galley and one porch
  • .040 Powdercoated aluminum sides

For more pricing and contact info, visit the Car-Go Trailers website at https://www.car-gotrailers.com

 

 

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inTech RV offers scaled down Luna

Introduced to the public in last 2017, Nappanee, Indiana based inTech RV opened eyes in the teardrop and small trailer community with the Luna. The Luna was received with much fanfare. It was one of the finalists in RV Business’ 2018 RV of the Year. With it distinctive Euro design, the Luna quickly set itself apart from the rest of the teardrop trailer community.

In a press release earlier in June, inTech announced a more scaled down Luna called the Luna Lite. “We introduced Luna Lite as a lighter-weight, less expensive option that would help our dealers compete against other teardrop trailers in the marketplace,” stated Rich Schnippel, Director of RV Operations. Luna Lite has the same distinctive front fiberglass cap and full tempered glass windshield found on the standard Luna camper. “Our efforts were focused on maintaining an extremely high quality product, the cost and weight savings were afforded by deleting or down-grading some of the luxury items. The 40” TV was replaced with a 32” TV, the plastic formed fenders were replaced with aluminum powdercoated fenders and the Dometic Cool Cat A/C was replaced with an 8000 BTU Pummel Drive A/C’” stated Schnippel.

The key part I took from this is the “less expense option”. Priced at nearly $20,000, I got a lot of comments on The Small Trailer Enthusiast from people scratching their heads about a teardrop with that price point. So the Luna Lite should ease some of those concerns. The MSRP should be around $16,000, so I would suspect these would be more competitive with a nuCamp T@G in price.

“Our dealers had been asking for something like the Luna Lite early after the introduction of the standard Luna, they wanted a well-rounded product lineup that hit several price points,” stated Schnippel, “they asked and we responded with Luna Lite.”

Despite the reduction of some of the amenities between the Luna and Luna Lite, the Lite will still have the same dimensions of 15’6″ long from hitch to tail, 4’6″ interior height, 5’9″ interior width, and 6’10” interior length. The weight will be reduced from 200-250 lbs, down to between 1450-1630 lbs, depending on options.

Overall, I think this is a really good move by inTech. They build a really solid trailer with the Luna as well as their Flyer lines, but with price points out of line with demand, a lot of folks aren’t going to know how good that product is. This will open their market to a new set of buyers looking for a quality teardrop at a reasonable price.

You can learn more about the Luna Lite by visiting the inTech RV website at http://www.intechrv.com/luna-lite.php

 

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Elkhart Open House – Part 2 – inTech RV

Continuing from part 1 of my trip to the Elkhart Open House, I moved on to what I believe to be one of the better up and coming small manufacturers today, inTech RV. InTech has been around less than 10 years, but their quality I’ve seen thus far puts them near the top of the heap of some of the larger teardrop manufacturers. While their teardrops aren’t teardrops in the form of a traditional shape, they are with respect to their size and function. inTech’s Flyer line includes submodels Chase, Pursue, Explore, and Discover. Weights range from 850 lbs on the Chase to up to 2050 lbs on the Discover, which is their toy hauler touting an impressive 7000 lbs GVRW.

 

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inTech introduced one of the most unique teardrop styled trailers you’ve likely ever seen: the Luna.

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There are several trailers this thing reminds me of. I see bits and pieces of an Airstream Basecamp, a Vistabule, and a T@G in it. Construction-wise, the Luna fiberglass body sits on an aluminum frame with a fully welded cage, as do all inTech trailers, and offers a composite floor deck, which will be standard in the production models. The overall length is just over 15′ and weight should be around 1800 lbs, depending on options, with a 2200 lbs GVWR.

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If you think Luna’s huge front window takes a cue from the Airstream Basecamp, that’s not a coincidence, as inTech’s Scott Tuttle told me that day. But unlike any other teardrop out there, the Luna offers a Cool Cat air conditioner/heat pump combo and a HUGE 40″ flat screen TV. The cushions are interchangeable to offer various seating configurations. And because the LP tank is enclosed in the front panel of the Luna, that creates a handy counter below the front window.

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The galley area offers a 12 volt slide out refrigerator, and stainless steel microwave and sink with a pull down sprayer, as well as stove. Counter space looks pretty good for accessories and other “stuff” most teardroppers will bring along. Overall, I was quite impressed. It’s one thing to have a design that’s unique, but when you add a quality build to the mix, it raises eyebrows. There aren’t many Lunas out yet, as production is just now starting to ramp up, but expect an MSRP in the $20-22K range, depending on options. That said, you should see these picked up from the mid to upper teens depending on your location and dealer you’re dealing with.

That does it for this installment from the Elkhart Open House. I realized there was enough just to do a single post on inTech, but I’ll have more posts coming soon!

 

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Little Guy transformation kicks off with the Max

 

The report of my death was an exaggeration. – Mark Twain

That famed quote by Mark Twain in a letter he wrote in 1897 is something that popped into my head on the drive back home to Indiana recently after visiting Liberty Outdoors’ facility in Somerset, Pennsylvania. For after the split of Little Guy Worldwide (now Liberty Outdoors) with longtime manufacturer Pleasant Valley Teardrops (now nuCamp RV), a lot of people left the Little Guy team for dead.

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Destined to become more than just a teardrop marketer, Little Guy entered the arena of manufacturing, something quite new to them. With the recently acquired rights to the Serro Scotty brand, Little Guy formed an alliance with Gulf Stream to manufacture an “everyman’s camper” in the Serro Scotty. The Scotty took a beating on the internet, and especially in the vintage Serro Scotty community, due to its perceived lack of styling with its standard travel trailer boxiness prevalent in the industry today. Little Guy assured everyone that this was just the first wave, and more products were yet to come that would be more in line with their roots that they would manufacture themselves.

That day has come.

Fresh from their own plant in Somerset, Pennsylvania, comes the Little Guy Max.

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The Max is just the first of many new lines you’ll be seeing coming out of the plant in Somerset over the next two years. And based on my first hand observations of the Max last month, the product offerings from Little Guy will undoubtedly set the small trailer community on its ear. But until then, let’s first take a look at the Max.

I met Little Guy Director of Operations, Dylan DeHoff, at the Liberty Outdoors Somerset plant one Wednesday morning last month. Along with Dylan to meet me was a celebrity in the world of camping podcasts, Janine Pettit of the Girl Camper podcast. Janine was lucky enough to be taking the 3rd Max built back to her home in New Jersey, as she was going to do some hands on critiquing of the Max for Little Guy on a 4 week trip out west starting this month.

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Janine and Dylan took me on a tour of hers before she took it back to New Jersey. The first thing you notice when you first step into the 21′ Max is the incredibly open feel, due in part to the seven dual paned windows throughout, including a window in the door that opens up for additional airflow. IMG_6686[1]

There are also two windows in the rear of the Max that also open, including the vertical window above the spacious 60″ x 80″ queen bed, with a mattress locally made exclusively for Little Guy.

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If there’s one word that really defines the Max it would have to be space. You really feel the space in the actual physical size of the Max, including an impressive 6’7″ ceiling height. In addition,  the light tones of the real maple hardwood cabinetry open it up to create such a refreshing environment that’ll rival the great outdoors for your time spent camping.

lg max4Space is also highlighted in the form of storage space. And for a trailer of this size, I don’t recall anything have the storage, and it’s smart storage, as the Max. A total of two pantries, a deep drawer below the fridge, storage below both the queen bed and the front dinette, as well as three kitchen drawers, and overhead cabinets and cubby holes at every turn.

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This doesn’t even cover the storage under and around the front dinette either, which there is plenty there as well. You’ll notice in the photo above the 24″ Furrion TV at the foot of the bed. There’s also another Furrion TV concealed at the front dinette that opens up with the press of a button. That front dinette also folds down to make a single bed, as typical in most RVs.

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As for construction, the Max is built quite a bit sturdier than your typical trailer in this class. First, it sits on a tubular steel frame that is powder coated to automotive standards. As is the case with most of the components Little Guy uses in production, the frames are locally built. The cage is aluminum and insulated with block foam insulation and covered by Azdel paneling. The one piece fiberglass roof and sidewalls can come in either a white or silver base, with exterior trim in your choice of black, silver, or red.

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The floor is made of a 3/4″ thick product called PerforMAX 500, which is a wood product engineered to better withstand moisture and be more stronger and stable than plywood.

performax500The construction really shines especially in the cabinetry. The dovetail construction used throughout is something you just don’t see much in the industry. I learned during my visit there that they’re building trailers to last you a long, long time. They have the confidence in their trailers that they’ve put a standard 2 year warranty on them, which in the industry is still the exception.

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As for bathroom facilities, the Max has a wet bath with a height of a generous 6’2″, giving ample headroom for most. It also includes a full size multi-speed fan, which is a rarity when it comes to trailer bathroom vents. lg max10

The standards on the Max are plenty, and things you wouldn’t even see as options on other trailers in this class. As for some of the exterior features, they include a 6’3″ Thule awning with LED light strip, 2″ rear receiver for the optional bike rack, 15″ aluminum wheels, sliding screen door, exterior speakers and TV mount, pass through storage with slam latch doors, illuminated aluminum entry step and illuminated grab handle.

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On the inside of the Max, you’ll find (aside from those features already mentioned), an 8″ deep stainless steel kitchen sink with residential style high rise faucet with sprayer, a flush mounted 2 burner gas stove with glass top, a stainless steel microwave, stainless steel 4 cubic foot stainless steel refrigerator, 13,500 BTU roof mount air conditioner, traditional 6 gallon Dometic hot water heater, LED touch screen and switch panel for monitoring tanks and lighting controls, LED lighting throughout including various accent lighting above cabinets, and Furrion Stereo, Bluetooth, MP3, MP4, DVD.

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As for standard specifications, the Max checks in with a dry weight of 2,900 lbs, tongue weight of 281 lbs, and is an even 21 feet long. The holding tanks are 20 gallon fresh water, 14 gallon gray water, and 9 gallon black water. Overall width is 7 feet and height comes in at 9’1″. There’s also an optional Rough Rider package you can buy that gives you a 3.5″ axle lift, black diamond plate, and 15″ matte black off road wheels and tires.

The options on the Max are four: solar panel, bike rack, power tongue jack, and stained cabinetry, if you want your interior a little darker.

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Even though I’ve given you a lot of information here, chances are I’m probably forgetting a few things, which is testament to how loaded this “little guy” really is. It packs a feature punch that honestly I’ve not seen in a trailer this size in the years I’ve been doing this. While some will balk at the $29,999 MSRP, once you see one for yourself, you’ll soon realize that you’re not going to really find much on the level of the Max’s build quality and features. And that MSRP isn’t as high as other similar high end trailers within its size range. And from my visit to their factory, I would consider the Max a high end trailer that will last you many, many good camping years…and look pretty cool rolling into the campground to boot.

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I asked Janine a week after she took to the Max what her impressions were of it and she told me, “Liberty Outdoors just raised the bar in the light weight towable market with their Little Guy Max. It’s built to an exacting standard, thoughtfully designed and affordable. It’s a win, win, win for all RV enthusiasts.”

Based on what I saw of the Max and the other projects set to come online in the next year, that bar will be raised even higher.  Their story is just beginning.

To find out more of the Little Guy Max, visit their website at http://golittleguy.com/lg-max/

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A Look at the Riverside Retro, Jr

Some ten plus years ago before I ever became an RVer, my wife and I pondered how cool it’d be to get a teardrop trailer one day. I remember many nights scoping out the various teardrop websites and thinking of how cool it’d be to own the Airstream of teardrops, a Camp-Inn.

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But reality always set in and that dream kept getting put off until it was virtually forgotten. However, things changed in September of 2009 when over the span of a weekend in Missouri we saw a great looking Route 66 inspired Pleasant Valley teardrop and a Dutchmen T@B.

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After having the luxury of comparing both a traditional teardrop to a T@B over the same weekend, we discussed the pros and cons of both on our drive back home to Indiana. We decided if we were going to do this, it’d be a T@B, and the following weekend sure enough we had our own T@B sitting in our driveway after a purchase from a dealer in Elkhart, Indiana.

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As newbies to the RV lifestyle, we soon realized that despite the coolness of the T@B, we needed a little more space…and a toilet. Seven months later, enter a 2010 Serro Scotty HiLander, just about the same size, but with a wet bath and a smidge more space.

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But as some of you have followed our story over the years, you’ll know that once grandson 2.0 came along, even the Scotty became too small, as we wanted to make sure both of the boys had a chance to have childhood memories of camping with us. So now we call our 2016 Shasta Oasis 18BH our RV of choice.

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The Shasta has given us a good family camper with a couple of bunks, bathroom, queen bed…and a vanilla, generic look compared to the T@B and Scotty we had before it. Gone were the days when it’d take me 45 minutes setting up our campsite, as 35 of those minutes were spent talking to a passerby about the T@B or Scotty. No one’s given a second look at the Shasta. I’ve realized that socialization at campgrounds over the trailer I had was a big part of my camping experience, and one I missed. And after my birthday this past June, one which is taking me closer to 50 and farther away from 40, I realized mid-life crisis was in full effect. I had to do something to tame it. And so with my wife’s blessing, we did.

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We put an order in on a 2017 Riverside RV Retro, Jr 509 back in late June. I know a few teardrop builders in the industry, and as you can see on our Manufacturers Page, there are a lot of them throughout the country. And make no bones about it, they build some excellent products. However, I’ve had a previous working relationship with Braun’s Fun Time Campers in Indianapolis, a Riverside dealer. After inspecting some at their dealership, we soon realized the Retro, Jr gave us what we wanted at an excellent price point.

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Riverside offers a few color schemes to choose from, but after going back and forth on what we wanted, we realized we needed to go with the white with aqua trim with baby moon hubcaps to pay homage to our former Scotty. But on our first camping trip a couple of days after we took possession, it was like old times. At a busy Starve Hollow campground, it got its share of looks and even some pictures. And once we start taking it out more next year, I’m sure I’ll be speaking of its virtues to any fellow camper interested.

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Now for the nuts and bolts of the Retro, Jr. Total length is 13’9″ and dry weight fully optioned is 1,023 lbs. Those options we ordered are air conditioning, sink/stove combo, spare tire package, electric brakes, and a few other minor ones, including a USB/12 volt charging port and solar prep. One thing I did get on my own was a mountable jockey wheel at Menards for about $25 that swings up or down, depending on whether you’re hauling or ready to move it by hand.

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The interior bed dimensions are a nice 60″ wide and 76″ long, more than ample enough for two average sized adults. We added a 2″ memory foam mattress topper from Walmart for some extra comfort.  There are also storage cabinets on the front and rear interior walls, with the rear cabinets a little bit longer than the front, but both sides large enough to handle your typical bags for clothes you’d bring on a weekend camping trip. dsc_1123-2

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The Retro, Jr is now decked out with all LED lighting, inside and out with the exception of the over the door exterior light. There are two main overhead lights as well as two reading lights underneath the front cabinet that are on either side of the USB/12 volt charging station.

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The air conditioning unit is more than adequate for anyone in just about any climate. It was about the time we ordered ours in June when we were informed that Riverside had done away with the interior window-unit style air conditioner in favor of an 11,000 BTU roof mounted Dometic unit. It should be interesting next summer to see how it does in really hot weather.

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Moving to the rear kitchen area. With going with the sink/stove combo option, that also meant we’d have to have a 5 gallon propane tank on the front, and in the rear hatch, we’d need the 17 gallon fresh water tank as well as water pump. But should you decide not to get the sink/stove combo, the entire rear storage area is yours, as the fresh water tank and water pump wouldn’t be included.

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The rear kitchen area offers ample counter space, an electrical outlet for a microwave, coffee maker, or any other electric kitchen device, as well as a decent sized cabinet for utensils and other small cookware. Also included is an LED light for those late night cooking ventures.

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Now one important upgrade that we went with makes our Retro, Jr…as far as I can tell…a one of a kind (for now). And that is the interior Retro package that we asked for. And that is the wood grain interior and kitchen area finish as well as the black & white checkered flooring. This is typically something that does not come on a Retro, Jr and isn’t listed as an option. I’ve scoured every photo and ad for these for the past 5 months and I’ve not seen one with this option. So a typical Retro, Jr interior would look like this:

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(courtesy Curtis Trailers)

Kind of a no brainer to go with the wood grain/checker board look for about $300, don’t you think?

Now back to some specs, the Retro, Jr sits on a 1500 lbs axle, supported by two 13″ wheels. The underside is enclosed by the usual black Darco material to keep out moisture. The 30 amp power cord could be a little longer to suit me, so be prepared to purchase an extension for it as it’s probably about 15′ long.

Construction-wise it appears to be built pretty well. It’s got an aluminum cage with a steel frame, aluminum sidewalls and a fiberglass roof. It tows extremely well and at just 1,023 lbs, can be towed by a lot of vehicles. As you can tell, this is a teardrop with doors on each side, which isn’t always the case with some manufacturers. Each door has a deep tented, vertical sliding window for some good cross ventilation and are draped with color coordinated shades for privacy. The one drawback with going with the rooftop air conditioner is that it eliminates the possibility to have an A/C as well as a roof top vent fan. However, a Fantastic Fan is standard if you don’t order the A/C. And one other request I wish I would’ve made is to have an exterior porch light over each door, as they only put the one over the curbside door.

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But overall, it appears to be a solid trailer with a good build quality. And coming from me, that says something, as I was rather critical of Riverside’s sloppiness on their Retros when I first saw them at the RVIA trade show in Louisville in 2011. However, in subsequent years, I commented on how they seemed to have got their act together on fit & finish for this price point, and the fact that I’m buying from them should show how much I believe in how they’ve improved.

Depending on where you are in the U.S., you can likely expect to see a Retro, Jr fetch an MSRP starting in the $9,000’s, but your results may vary. I’ll keep you all posted on how things are going on it in the near future. And if you’re wondering, yes, we are a two-trailer family. We’ll be keeping our Shasta for when we take family trips with the grandboys. But the Retro, Jr is for me, or me and my wife to play with. I kind of liken it to this: The Shasta is kind of like a minivan that a guy has to drive throughout the week. And the Retro, Jr is that guy’s sportscar that he drives on the weekends. Hope you follow that analogy!

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I’ve put together a walk around video of it that you can find below. Feel free to shoot me any comments or questions either below this post or on the YouTube video. As always, thanks for reading.

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Little Guy debuts T@G and myPod at Hershey show

As I hinted at in late August, Little Guy Worldwide this week debuted the T@G teardrop and the myPod molded fiberglass trailer at America’s Largest RV Show in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The T@G will have optional TV, air conditioning, and refrigerator & freezer. It comes standard with a queen size bed, 2 side doors, 2 side windows, a galley, and fan. With options (including the battery), the T@G checks in at 1.025 lbs and 875 lbs without options. The MSRP is $8,995 and production will start in November. No specs to report on the myPod other than the base weight without options is just over 500 lbs.

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Manufacturer’s Update: Little Guy Worldwide

Fresh off the heels of the highly successful “Rolling Home” rally for T@Bs and Little Guy teardrops, Little Guy Worldwide VP of Sales Dylan DeHoff tells us things are are moving along very well with the Ohio based teardrop trailer manufacturer. First, total sales of all models are up a whopping 130% from 2012, with nearly 1,500 units to be produced in 2013.

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Look for upgrades in the T@B for 2014. Among them is the addition of the Alde 110-LP Water Heater & Central Heating unit, which replaces both the furnace and water heater with the one single unit. Benefits of the Alde unit is that it distributes heat evenly around, is extremely quiet, has programmable controls, and has a 93% efficiency equivalent. Starting in 2014, this will be the standard heating device in T@Bs.

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Other changes for 2014 include

  • S and CS-S Models:  Equipped with 6 gallon black tank in addition to 19 gallon gray.
  • Italian SMEV Stove. Inset, Hinged 2 Burner stove with Glass Cover
  • Electric Brakes replace hydraulic brakes

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Coming some time in September will be the introduction of two new models: The T@G and the myPod. There’s no indication yet what the T@G will look like, but as Dylan tells it, “It’s a true “tweener” between the T@B and the Little Guy, with modern, T@B-inspired, European lines.” There currently aren’t any images available of the T@G, however Dutchmen also created a T@G around 2009 that never advanced any farther than the prototype stage, which was really nothing more than a teardrop trailer without any kind of galley. So right now there isn’t enough info to warrant a guess as to whether or not this is what it’ll look like.

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As for the myPod, I think it’s safe to say what it’ll look like, as Little Guy gave a sneak peak on their Facebook page back in February. The myPod will have a “futuristic”, 100% fiberglass molded, rear loading galley-free design. It will be available in several colors including the option to match a particular paint code. It will also boast an optional roof rack, entertainment center, and air conditioning unit.

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As always, we’ll have more on all of this info as it develops.

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Trekker Trailers to host build-your-own camper class

Eustis, Florida based Trekker Trailers will be conducting a class in late June where the students build their own trailer under the supervision of professionals. The first class is scheduled for June 21-30, 2013. The model used will be their entry level Simple Sleeper, which is a teardrop trailer without a rear kitchen.

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The Simple Sleeper features an air conditioner, rear cargo rack, drop floor, 2 doors, and a mattress. It measures 7 1/2′ long and 4′ wide, which, along with its 650 lbs weight, makes it easy to tow with a large motorcycle or small car.

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In the class, students will be cutting out the shapes using templates, assembling the wood structures, sheet metal, installing windows and doors, and the finishing touches. Some of the work will be done for you so everyone stays on schedule.

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The cost of the class is $3900 ($2500 deposit), which is a $1,000 savings on a Simple Sleeper had you just bought one from Trekker Trailers. Currently there are spots for only 3 students.

For more information, contact Andrew Bennett at 352-409-4005 or email campers@trekkertrailers.com

You can visit the Trekker Trailers web site at: http://trekkertrailers.com

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