Support Camper?

OlJarhead · April 05, 2017, 08:20:04 AM

OK All,

On another forum I posted a thread called "sawmill camper" and am discussing all things concerning buying a camper to use as my onsite camper when milling but I thought many of you here may have experience with such things too and after all, lots of cabin builders need 'support campers' to stay in while building. I stayed in a tent trailer in my case as many of you know and it was great...now I'm looking at this:

Found this 1995 Angler 9D on CL for $1k....owner said it had some 'condensation damage'.....NADA shows low retail is $825 to $1235 which I'm assuming does not account for the damage....maybe she'd take $500? $750?

This is the damaged spot. I can put my hand through it without trying.

You can clearly see the damage here.

One other spot had some minor (what I'd think of as minor in comparison to this major damage) water damage.

Owner said she sealed the roof every year and I looked at the roof and it appeared to be sealed without cracks etc....my guess is a leaking window above the seat.

I wonder if it can be repaired by cutting out the bad spot and fixing in new plywood? Is it even worth it?

My thoughts are swing from 'no' to 'maybe' due to the price. I'm not cheap but if I can save several grand by buying an older (read $1000) camper and make it work for a year or two and pay off the sawmill truck first then I'm much more likely to go out (specially if I like the camper option for the mill jobs) and buy a newer or even new camper with slides etc. I could do it now but I suppose you get to this place by NOT doing those things all the time

so I'm looking at this camper thinking "I could cut out that bad plywood, affix new plywood in it's place (maybe sandwich a piece in with 1/4" on top and bottom), rip out the bad panel and re-insulate and put in some Home Depot paneling in it's place, seal the crap outta it and make it work.

Here are a few pics of the interior

Inside

Kitchenette
<

Bed

Drawbacks other than the damage shown:
1. Minor water damage in main bed area by one window
2. No AC (which isn't an issue unless you are milling in August in lower elevations or it's 90+ during the day and the camper is roasting in the sun all day
3. 3" foamy bed -- I'm 240lbs (though I hope to get back to at least 230 before long) and sleeping on a foamy induces pain more often than not.

Pros:
1. Outside shower -- can wash off the dust before entering
2. Wet Bath -- bathroom in remote places? Ya that's a pro, so's the dinky shower.
3. Supposedly everything works (hot water, stove, fridge -- I saw the lights all worked).
4. Had grand kid bunk bed (they always want to go with Grandpa)

Roof looks well cared for and she said she treated it annually. My thought is she forgot the windows and her grandkids saw it was getting wet and left it (she's in her 70's or 80's now).

Otherwise it seems solid and reasonably well maintained and I suspect would go for $3000 if it wasn't for the rotten seat under the window (which i wonder if it has any structural characteristics) which leads me to my last pro: if I buy it, fix it up a little, repair the damage nicely I could probably sell it next year for $2500 and use that to step up to a much nicer one with AC

Thoughts? Am I crazy for even considering it?

OlJarhead · April 05, 2017, 08:24:39 AM

Oh and it's wet weight is 1660lbs so my F350 will be only a little above 1/2 capacity with it in the box -- I take this to mean handle better and get better mileage possibly.

April 05, 2017, 11:42:43 AM

I used to have a 1992 SunLite popup camper that I sold a few years back. When I sold it everything seemed to be in working order but in actuality the propane fridge wasn't functional. It would fire up bit not cool adequately. I ended up splitting the cost of a new fridge with the buyer. Were I considering this unit I would test out the fridge, furnace and water heater to make certain that they all are in working order. The structural stuff is probably the hardest to repair, but least expensive material-wise. Also check the water lines. After several years of non-use there was some mold growth in my water lines. It took forever to clean out.

w1ck3tt · April 05, 2017, 02:09:05 PM

I bought a Jayco fifth wheel camper a few years back that someone bumped the back side and it started leaking where the water heater seal was damaged. The owner didn't know it for several years while it sat at a storage facility and just rotted. I got it for $500, pulled the water heater out, the kitchen, removed ALL questionable wood, pulled the siding off the back, replaced any questionable wood, refit the siding, new subflooring, put the water heater back in and sealed it up nice and tight, replaced kitchen cabinets, and added oak hard wood floors that we reclaimed from an old house. Took me maybe a months worth of work to do, and it turned out gorgeous in the end. We ended up getting $5 grand for it from insurance when a hail storm came through and put baseball sized holes through the roof and sides, and was written off as a total loss. They also let us keep it, and we traded it on our new camper and got another $4 grand in trade value!

I would say go for it if you can get it for $5-800, and have some time to fix it up right. I don't think they are to hard to work, especially the size of that one. It might just pay off in the end for you too.

Adam Roby · April 05, 2017, 05:13:58 PM

I say if the price is right then go for it. I bought an older popup camper for $400 a few years back and friends were telling me to avoid like the plague. It wasn't very pretty but has served its purpose for the past 4 summers I believe and is still going strong. In my case I had to make sure it was road worthy, so I changed out the wheel bearings and made sure the safety stuff was all working or new. Since this will be in your bed, that risk is gone so its just a matter of removing and replacing the rot, and making sure there are no other leaks. You'll probably be able to get your money back (at the very least) in a few years.

April 05, 2017, 11:40:49 PM

They've agreed to prove the fridge works etc and will take $700

ChugiakTinkerer · April 06, 2017, 12:44:10 AM

Toyotaboy · April 09, 2017, 06:21:48 PM

Did the fridge check out? It looks like a good deal since they lowered the price

OlJarhead · April 09, 2017, 11:32:57 PM

Yes! The fridge works (VERY well....froze my pop on 7 so I turned it down to 4)...

Heater does not work but tries too. Everything else works

April 18, 2017, 04:26:08 PM

I went a similar but cheaper route 3 years ago with a lovely 1978 camper I bought for $200 of craigslist. Had to rebuild the over-the-cab bed due to an old leak when the fridge roof vent ripped off sometime in the past, but replaced that and the roof does not leak (I keep a tarp over it just for my paranoid nature as it sits sometimes for months in rain & snow without me around) , and the fridge never worked right but other then that it has been great, MUCH better then sleeping outside during my extended time build. Added the storage shed the second year. The whole thing is still going strong.
Best money i ever spent