With a 5,000lb tow rating, you're really limiting yourself to three highwall models that I can see, all by Rockwood. Everything else seems to come in at GVWRs of 4,500+lbs. I would think you'll want to have a lot more leeway in your towing capabilities than under 500lbs.
* This post was
edited 10/26/09 06:19pm by rmnpcolorado *
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If your over 6' tall you will appreciate the "closer to residential" height of all the counters and a actual hardwall bathroom enclosure which are not found on the regular popups. Other advantages are larger fridge, a microwave, a full oven/cooktop/stove, more comfortable seating areas, etc.
I'm not sure about the first part of your statement. The Coleman low wall pups with swing level galleys have full residential height sink and stove though any OTHER counters are quite low.
As for bathrooms, any low wall pup has a jerry rigged bathroom at best. If that's a deal killer, then those are out. High wall pups often have collapsable hard wall bathrooms that offer almost as much privacy as the typical TT (which tend to have a lot of bathroom door gap so no sound proofing there either! )
But bathrooms are over-rated! After all, the average human house has only had one for the past 3 - 4 generations! For many, the joy of camping includes a return to primitive simplicity. Wrestling with all those "conveniences" at setup and tear-down can actually detract from your experience if that is camping's appeal for you.
In the end, you need to learn what you want out of camping and evaluate your choices accordingly.
rmnpcolorado wrote: With a 5,000lb tow rating, you're really limiting yourself to three highwall models that I can see, all by Rockwood. Everything else seems to come in at GVWRs of 4,500+lbs. I would think you'll want to have a lot more leeway in your towing capabilities that under 500lbs.
Except for the dual axle Avalon model, the Coleman/Fleetwood HW's are all under 4000# GVWR.
If your over 6' tall you will appreciate the "closer to residential" height of all the counters and a actual hardwall bathroom enclosure which are not found on the regular popups. Other advantages are larger fridge, a microwave, a full oven/cooktop/stove, more comfortable seating areas, etc.
I'm not sure about the first part of your statement. The Coleman low wall pups with swing level galleys have full residential height sink and stove though any OTHER counters are quite low.
As for bathrooms, any low wall pup has a jerry rigged bathroom at best. If that's a deal killer, then those are out. High wall pups often have collapsable hard wall bathrooms that offer almost as much privacy as the typical TT (which tend to have a lot of bathroom door gap so no sound proofing there either! )
But bathrooms are over-rated! After all, the average human house has only had one for the past 3 - 4 generations! For many, the joy of camping includes a return to primitive simplicity. Wrestling with all those "conveniences" at setup and tear-down can actually detract from your experience if that is camping's appeal for you.
In the end, you need to learn what you want out of camping and evaluate your choices accordingly.
I'm pretty sure about the first part of my statement since I camped in popups for many years prior to going hardsided.
My 2005 Jayco even with the "swing" level counter was lower then the height of their HW popups. As for other brands I don't have ownership experience. In general on most regular PU the swing level applies only to the stove/sink area. On a HW the ENTIRE counter (not just the small swing level) is higher and thus has larger cabinets, stove, etc.
As far as bathrooms, if your going to have one you might as well enjoy a solid wall. I'm not into fighting with vinyl sheets hung from ceilings. Just my thing....
Michael 2 DD's and my DW 6 Acre's in Southern Maine 2009 Crossroads Cruiser CF31SB 2008 Chevy 2500HD LT 4X4 Camping Pictures
mwebber78 wrote: As far as bathrooms, if your going to have one you might as well enjoy a solid wall. I'm not into fighting with vinyl sheets hung from ceilings. Just my thing....
As noted by Guest, the walls in HW provide about as much privacy as those in the HTT's I've seen. As far as the shower curtain, there's a lot more room in the shower in our HW than in our old HTT (which we got rid of and traded UP to a HW PUP ). In the HTT, I even put velcro on the walls and shower curtain, and it would still stick to me because of the limited room in the shower. Both Allison and I agree that the shower was a move up over the HTT shower.
There were a lot of reasons we went back to a PUP, including the gas mileage issue the OP noted. But one of the biggest advantages that we note every time we go camping is how much more view there is from inside the camper. The windows go from ceiling to countertop and wrap around the whole trailer (just close the window in the shower when you're showering at night ). Get up in the morning, open the drapes, and take it all in while getting the coffee going. And virtually every window will zip open so your PUP turns into one big screen room if the bugs are too much.
I was pup camper with a buddy for years. When my wife finally agreed to buy we looked at pups and htts. My wife liked the high wall pup, but didn't like the cartridge bathroom. We both loved the thought of sleeping in a 'tent", but she wanted to feel more secure for times it was just the girls out for a weekend.
We've been out for 2 1/2 weeks on vacation,and went to 3 different locations. Set up and tear down never took more than 15-20 mins. I know fromm experince that we would've taken nearly an hour with a pup. Our biggest selling point was being able to walk into the camper for lunch, and bathroom breaks while on the road. It was also really nice to rest at a rest area and turtle for a few hours whie on the road.
Gblack
All i have to say is if your def set on a pup most def go for the highwall so you wont regret not getting one a year or two later they offer alot more room and convenience and the showers are nice too and I must say Colemans are the best my 2 cents
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07 Fleetwood Sun Valley
I have owned both. We currently have a 2007 Fleetwood Arcadia. I store it in my garage and it is a tight fit. It sounds like you know all of the pro's & con's. You may have missed the privacy aspect of the head. Our daughter in laws camp with us, and having that rigid (sorta) wall is a plus. HOWEVER - If I were to do it over again, I'd buy the low wall. It's lighter, it's less $ and we don't use the shower anywhere near as much as expected. That's just MY opinion. My wife would tell you to go for the highwall, but she doesn't have to tow the beast.
Intergalatic President of the Big Hat No Cattle Society
Being one of the few who have gone high wall (2004 Hemlock) to low wall (2001 cheyenne), I can tell you I actually prefer the low wall for all but one thing...
the Fridge. The highwalls have an extra 8" or so, which is huge. Not having that extra freezer and space is really annoying.
Other than that, I prefer my low wall. Yes, lots of cabinet & counter space in the hemlock, but that's sort of a waste. Where I had a counter, I now have a couch and much more room for the kids to play. Just have to be creative and leave some things at home which I don't miss anyhow.
Also, those highwalls are really beasts. They really such up space and just don't seem as easy to move around. I know, no real footprint difference, but the extra 1.5k pounds really make it more formable.
Though since you are looking for a bathroom, might just go with the Highwall. the wife will probably be happier.
If you have the funds, go for the trailmanor. used, It'll be 3 to 4 times the price, if you can even find them used.
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). Get up in the morning, open the drapes, and take it all in while getting the coffee going. And virtually every window will zip open so your PUP turns into one big screen room if the bugs are too much.
