We recently decided to purchase an old pop up camper and restore it to a usable state so we can use it to go camping with the girls. I was inspired to finally pull the trigger on this after listening to episode #143 of RV Family Travel Atlas: Tips for Buying a Used Pop Up Camper with the Pop Up Princess.
We took to Craigslist to find a good deal on a camper that was structurally sound. We found someone selling a 1979 Jayco Cardinal for $450 about half an hour away. The canvas is probably the biggest issue with this camper. There are a lot of holes in the canvas and a little bit of mold. There are places online that sell replacement canvas that we will be looking into as a first step. Other than that, everything else seems to be pretty minor.
High level list of items to be taken care of
- Clean Everything!
- Replace Canvas
- Inspect and possibly replace electrical systems
- Inspect and possibly replace propane systems
- Check and adust brakes
- Inspect and repack wheel bearings
- Reapholster all coushins and beds
- Hitch maintenance
So, this will be a fun summer project and possibly a vehicle reviving this stagnent blog (see what I did there?)
On another note, this is the first time I ever towed anything behind a vehicle. I think my brief stint in flight school was less unnerving than towing this beast of a trailer for the first time behind a mid-size SUV. Read as much as I could about towing, but I don’t think it truely prepared me. Made it safely and even managed to back it into the driveway after only about 10 tries. I’ll have to get some practice in.
