Hi all,
I'm looking at the above Bigfoot tomorrow and the guy claims "excellent condition" for $6995. First, if he's right about the condition, is he right about the price? Second, I'm looking for a winter camper that I can take hunting and snowmobiling. I know there's more insulation in the 2500 and 3000 series, but how does the 1500 series match up with winter use. Also, I'm not too keen on the difference between a "basement" model and one without. Any and all advice on this particular camper and year would be greatly appreciated.
Jim, I own a 2002 9.6B (B=Basement) Bigfoot and love it! I am not familiar with the 1500 per se, but Bigfoot in general is very good in cold wx. A friend has one and camps on weekends all winter in well below 0 temps and does fine. Basement models have a storage compartment under the floor for long items, shovels, fishing poles, tools etc... They sit about 6-8 inches higher than a model w/o a basement. The guy you need to ask specific questions about Bigfoot Campers is Mark Holmes, his email is mark@holmesonbigfoot.com
He worked for Bigfoot for 20+ years and runs a website specifically designed to answer Bigfoot owner's questions. He has helped me twice, he is extremely knowledgeable about all things Bigfoot and will respond same day. The price you stated sounds pretty good. Let me know what you find out.
-Andrew
I saw that one last evening, when I was searching for a 15C8.2. Good for you it's in the northwest but bad for me here in Maryland. That is the one Bigfoot that would come close to working with my '07 Tundra. The basement is nice but someone else will have to tell you if its presence enhances the heating of the tanks for cold weather use.
The price is VERY good, from what I've seen. Good luck!
Bill
Current Truck - 2007 Tundra 4x4 DC TRD
1978 27' Southwind MH - Gone
1982 19' Terry Taurus TT - Gone
1990 24' Prowler TT - Gone
TC and different truck coming SOON!
I have a 1988 15C11.5. Mine does not have a basement, but does have a heated basement. I think the tanks are a bit smaller than the basement models. As for value, I would base it on how it is equipped and the condition it is in. You also have to consider how many 1500's you have found for sale and at what price. At a glance, I think what you are looking at is a good price.
I bought my 1500 (1988) about five years ago. NADA said it was worth $2500 if it was in excellent condition. After I bought it, I looked through the Internet for over six months, and for the same year Bigfoot, there were very few for sale, and the cheapest was $9000.
How many have you seen in similar condition for $7000 or less? There are cheaper TC's out there, but how many are Bigfoot TC's and at what is the cost?
Thanks everyone. It'll be my first truck camper and I'm a little gun-shy on buying something that I don't know too much about, but I know just enough to pull the trigger on this camper. I guess if it's not quite what I want, I'll just sell it later on. Any thoughts on what I absolutely need to pay attention too when I'm looking at this used Bigfoot?
You may want to look at the thread on Bigfoot Industries 2009 - Just something to keep in mind. On the flip side the Manufacturer of my Sun-Lite don't exist anymore either and I can still get just about any part I'd need via aftermarket. For $6,000 from what I've seen for TC's in general you want to look for problems. Let common sense be your guide. Check seams and anywhere anything passes thru the shell for leaks and any kind of warping, distortion or cracking. You also don't mention what you're putting it on - Note that the newest Chevy's have a narrower tailgate opening (fix is to narrow the camper and I don't know if that's possible with the Bigfoot designs) and the newer Fords have a higher cab which is easy - just add styrofoam in the bed of the truck under the camper.
Another thought - I remember some threads a year or so ago discussing problems with the water tanks falling out when the camper was un-loaded - you may want to search for them and see what areas of the camper are affected so you can check them.
Fantastic price, and best made camper around, will sell fast, Pull that trigger
I camp at sky resorts in the snow, and have never been cold (with the heating on low)
Thanks again for everyone's responses. I looked the camper over real well today and it does appear to be in great/excellent shape with one or two issues. 1) It has a front window on bed area extending over the cab that at first appeared to me to have condensation between the two panes on the outer and lower edges of the window (Is this a thermal pane?). The owner said that what I was seeing was the "bubbling" of a thin plastic membrane that is sandwiched between the two panes due to over-heating (sun beating on it). He said it doesn't, nor ever did leak. Any thoughts on that explaination? At any rate, it's between the window panes and doesn't appear to have leaked into the camper. 2) Near the hot water heater access panel (exterior), somehow that vent got blocked and the heat generated there overheated an upper corner of the space that resulted in the exterior fiberglass slightly bulging and becoming wavey there about the size of a handprint. It didn't crack or split the fiberglass. Any concerns there? Other than that, it's a nice looking, clean camper.
I'm getting cold feet on the camper due to the front window being a long term concern. I really don't want a front window camper, but if the price is right I might give it a shot. What do you guys say?
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