Family camping trailers

Submitted: Monday, Sep 15, 2014 at 11:21
ThreadID: 109505 Views:2281 Replies:6 FollowUps:1
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Hi All,
Looking for advice on a camping trailer for a family of 5. I did look at the archives on this site, but need a bit more recent feed back.
Would like advice preferably from people who have owned one and could let me know what to look for and what is needed. We would probably be going offroad and camping for a week at a time or weekends.
There are so many second hand ones and seem to find plenty from $3K -$6k that looks like they would suit.
Advice on for example:
What brand
Soft or hard floor, soft or hard lid, good quality canvas ( no leaks or dust) lighting,
water tanks, space( rooms) beds etc etc.

Thank you for your time in advance.
Regards
Richard
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Reply By: Member - John T (Tamworth NSW) - Monday, Sep 15, 2014 at 14:12

Monday, Sep 15, 2014 at 14:12
Good afternoon Richard

I have a Trak Shak off road camper. It has two queen size beds off the ground and another "room" on the ground that will easily take another queen size mattress - so can sleep 6 fairly comfortably. The kitchen is very basic but it has done everything we could have asked of it in our travels. The camper has two 35 litre Waeco fridges, two deep cycle batteries and a multistage charger . Have a look at the Trak Shak web page to get a better idea. More $$ than you mention but it will go anywhere you might want to take it. Mine will be on the market in about 2 months

Cheers
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AnswerID: 539109

Follow Up By: Derek Jones - Tuesday, Sep 16, 2014 at 09:56

Tuesday, Sep 16, 2014 at 09:56
Another vote for the Trak Shak.

Family of four travelled around Aus in 1997 in Trak Shak. It suited our travel mode which included a combination of overnights stops and longer stays along with off road bush camping and caravan parks.

They are available s/hand http://www.caravancampingsales.com.au/used/trak-shak/camping-trailers/?gclid=CMW0_eG05MACFQIGvAodPiMAeg

Our TS was an early vintage so we didn't have the fridges, batteries etc. We had been kitting the tug out and these items were in the tug rather than the trailer.

Hope this helps.
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Reply By: Member - Alan H (QLD) - Monday, Sep 15, 2014 at 14:29

Monday, Sep 15, 2014 at 14:29
I have an Aussie Swag challenger (2004 model)

I have always found it to be very dust proof. has hard floor and outside kitchen. Also has a large awning on each side and the canvas is as good as new. (Mainly I think beccause we use it for touring and not sitting in one place hence the canvas is usually stacked away during the day.

It is quick to erect and needs no pegs or poles if not using awnings. It has been to many places out west, through the centre, up the cape, etc etc. It is very dry when in wet weather.

Has a double bed above a large rollout drawer plus the hard floor which can and has been used for other campers

This will also be for sale very soon

Alan
AnswerID: 539111

Reply By: Nomadic Navara - Monday, Sep 15, 2014 at 15:38

Monday, Sep 15, 2014 at 15:38
If you are getting one with a beam axle make sure it has shock absorbers on it. See this link - Why Wheels Fall Off - and Nuts Work Loose
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AnswerID: 539122

Reply By: rumpig - Monday, Sep 15, 2014 at 18:37

Monday, Sep 15, 2014 at 18:37
aswell as the advice you get from here, can i suggest you check out MySwag forum, which is a dedicated camper trailer forum....hours and hours of reading for you there on the subject you are asking about. it really comes down to your budget in the end, there's so many choices out there.
AnswerID: 539132

Reply By: Tony H15 - Monday, Sep 15, 2014 at 18:37

Monday, Sep 15, 2014 at 18:37
I've had six camper trailers, the best was a Towtel the worst a Cub. The Towtel was an on road model to which I added a 60 litre water tank, front box and twin 70 AH batteries. It was great, dragged it all through the NT, across the Gibb River Road, down to Perth and up the centre of WA back to Darwin. Despite being an on road model it handled the Gibb and many rougher tracks with no problems at all.

The Cub was the wife's idea, and as it turned out, she hated it from our first trip - it was terrible: the canvas was so saggy you couldn't do up the doors or windows single handed, the inside was miniscule, the awning rubbed against the two burner stove, storage was very limited and it took longer to put up than all the soft floors we had.

Some are easier to pull up than others, the Cavalier for example was extremely heavy to haul up compared to the others.

Great up north when the weather is fine, but nothing worse than standing outside cooking your dinner when it's freezing cold and raining cats and dogs.

Try a cheapy first, it will give you an idea of what you can do with it, what you need to take, how long it takes to errect, etc. But all in all, they are great.
AnswerID: 539133

Reply By: Member - Neil L1 - Tuesday, Sep 16, 2014 at 00:39

Tuesday, Sep 16, 2014 at 00:39
We have an off road Cavalier which we bought new about 4 years ago. It has done a number of trips including the Canning and had no problems. Very strong, good canvas and reasonably dust proof when towing. Also has an additional annexe which we didn't use, a pull out Drifta kitchen and large storage box. It has a queen size bed and 9 foot tent which could sleep 2 or 3 kids. It has survived torrential rain and near cyclonic winds. The only problem is that some water gets in through the stitching in the floor if it ponds underneath. And despite not having shock absorbers there have been no issues. They can be bought second hand quite cheaply too.

Neil
AnswerID: 539149

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