But, what if I bought a cheap camper, one that maybe wasn't really gorgeous but a least didn't leak. That would beat a tent, and if it had electricity we could hook it up and hubby's sleep apnea machine would work. Then not only would we have a camper for the trip, but we would be able to take off for a weekend here and there to "get away from it all" whatever "all" is. Or we could sell it and be ahead of the game. Sounds reasonable, right?
So on to Craig's list I went and searched around for a camper. Not, please notice, a perfect camper, but one that would be adequate for our needs. Craig's list had tons of campers and I narrowed it down: no pop-ups because the price range I was looking at would most likely only include ones with leaky canvas, no campers that you drive in because then you have to deal with all sorts of mechanical issues, they were all out of the price range, ditto any new-ish ones. This left very few to choose from.
There was one that caught my eye. A vintage camper, one that had lots and lots of personality. One that had seen a few campfires in her years. One that didn't look too bad. One that was guaranteed not to leak, that the electricity and LP gas worked, and that was "solid".
So off I went on Sunday to see it. I was to take "a voice of reason" with me according to my friend Lisa. Great idea, but both of my voices of reason had other plans. The weather was not good: dense fog, snow and rain. I had to go to Thornton, about 80 miles away over Monument Hill. The guy said my trailer hitch and ball were compatible, as was the tail light hook up in case I decided to buy it.
It looked "interesting". There were definitely things wrong with it. However, this was a camper that could be used once it was freshened up with a coat of paint. There was some water damage inside, but the guy said he had repaired all of the leaks. It had some really hideous hot pink curtains, horrible fabric on the dinette benches and a really rank looking futon for a bed. Nothing that wasn't an easy fix. The electric worked, and the stove was used last season with no problems. There is no bathroom, so nothing there to fix. No refrigerator, just an icebox so nothing there to fix either. There is a sink, but no water tank, but that should be easy to add later.
Can you tell yet that I bought it? Yes, indeed I did. It was cheap, and it looks like it will be a fun project. (Feel free to remind me I said that later.) The hitch turned out not to be compatible, I had to get another one at the Wal-Mart. And I had to have the guy include the adapter that makes the tail lights work. I brought it home and Bob didn't laugh in my face, but I'm sure he's really hoping I can pull this off. Matt is psyched to have such a neat project to work on. He can't wait to make the inside "bad ass". (I will remind him of that later.) It only took me 10 minutes to back it into the proper space in the driveway, which I think is pretty good since I haven't backed up a trailer in over 30 years.
I have an appointment tomorrow to take it in to have some of the safety issues like brakes and safety chains looked at. I know there are some things I can't do and will wisely be leaving those things to the experts. I'm leaving the rewiring and gas leak detection and stove check until later on this season. I've had to prioritize what needs doing. This is not going to be a short term project. The immediate priorities are: towing safety, getting the door fixed so it stays shut while driving down the road and locked when at the campsite, leak repair if any is needed, screen repair because there are mosquitoes in Wisconsin, a new roof vent for better circulation, deciding whether or not we need the electricity re-done this year or not, having the gas system (which is really just the stove) checked, deciding on if we want to get the water tank hooked up this year, and then making the interior comfortable, livable, cozy and nice looking. After that, if we decide to keep it for a while, exterior repairs and a spiffy new paint job. The exterior will not happen this year, that I know for sure. So I am prepared for lots of people laughing and pointing. Also for later consideration is a furnace if it turns out that we use the camper enough for the expense to make sense.
Matt and I started investigating it a little closer today after I got back from the DMV to get plates for the thing. The people we bought it from had painted the entire inside baby blue, and they did a really bad job of it. They had painted over the previous owners contact paper, which was white with gold and silver sparkles. The contact paper was adhered to cheap veneer, which came off as well. Under that layer of veneer was more veneer, which also was coming off. Under that, there was a creamy green paint color that I believe was the original paint. It is definitely a 40's color. Oh, I didn't mention the year of the camper? The title says 1941. Yep, the same year as Pearl Harbor. 67 years old. Stop laughing!
We are by no means done ripping back to a good solid starting point for repainting or re-veneering the ceiling and walls. We have decided that part of the walls are covered with 70's cheap panelling, and we think we will probably remove that as well. None of the trim is original as far as we can tell, but the above sink cabinets and the closet probably are. The dinette benches were installed after the panelling, and we may by rebuilding those as well to make them a size that we might like better. We haven't decided whether to keep the icebox or make that space into general storage. If we make it into storage, we will build a place for a cooler under the bed in the back.
Right now we are thinking of a linoleum floor (sticky tile squares really) for ease of cleaning, maybe white and black checkerboard, and having throw rugs to keep our toes toasty warm when needed. The stove and sink are white porcelain over steel, so we are thinking of keeping the walls and ceiling creamy green color with white accents for the rest. I know of a couple places to find vintage inspired fabric for the cushions and curtains, if we decide to go that way. I still have to figure out how to get the window coverings right. Four of the windows will not cause any problems, they are on straight walls, but two windows are on walls that curve. That means the curtains, if just attached at the top, will hang straight down, which means they will hang away from the walls.
There are no identifying marks on the camper. The title just says RQ under make and CMP under model. It does have a VIN number which I have memorized. It wasn't hard since the VIN is "243". I've done a little research on the web and am thinking that it was a kit trailer, or a really obscure manufacturer. There aren't any online that I have seen that are a close match, but I'm going to do more research. There might be a clue on the icebox. They painted over a raised piece that looks like it could be the manufacturers logo. We'll find out after we strip the paint off.
Wish us luck!
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