I've thought about this same topic for a couple years now. Really, pretty much any commercially available RV, even if comes with off-road tires and looks "rugged", is made out of the cheapest materials possible for the cost and to minimize weight. I keep telling myself whats it going to look like after 5 years of use? If you live in suburbia like I do, then you'll have to also pay to store it, winterize it, likely have to pay various maintenance related bills each year. Seems like cost of ownership could really stack up quick.
The approach that I've started down is this. I bought an M101a2 trailer from a government auction about 3 years ago. I paid $450 dollars for the trailer, and its in great shape. If you look at what guys are doing with these things on expeditionportal.com, its pretty impressive! I haven't done much with mine yet. I've converted the lights to 12V, which was simple, put new tires on it and repacked the bearings and topped off the brake fluid. I am planning on painting it to non-military colors, something that will kind of match my truck. I want to set it up with on-board water/hot water and pump, and a couple deep cycle batteries and solar setup, so Ive got power. What we do now is organize all our camping gear in lockable weather-proof bins and use the trailer to transport. I've got the 10 person turbo tent (which I love!), Mr. Buddy tent heater for when its cold, shower tent, nice tables, chairs, cots for everyone, lights, cooking setup, etc. etc. Big benefit is my wife enjoys camping with me now because we can bring all the amenities of home. It really doesn't take too much to set stuff up. I can have camp set up in 30 minutes probably. Another big benefit, the trailer is small enough that it fits into my garage perpendicular to our vehicles, so we can store it and still park. All-in-all, its been super handy to own, and it hardly cost anything. Now, I dont feel guilty about buying high end camping equipment and I just remind the wife how much I saved by NOT buying an RV
The approach that I've started down is this. I bought an M101a2 trailer from a government auction about 3 years ago. I paid $450 dollars for the trailer, and its in great shape. If you look at what guys are doing with these things on expeditionportal.com, its pretty impressive! I haven't done much with mine yet. I've converted the lights to 12V, which was simple, put new tires on it and repacked the bearings and topped off the brake fluid. I am planning on painting it to non-military colors, something that will kind of match my truck. I want to set it up with on-board water/hot water and pump, and a couple deep cycle batteries and solar setup, so Ive got power. What we do now is organize all our camping gear in lockable weather-proof bins and use the trailer to transport. I've got the 10 person turbo tent (which I love!), Mr. Buddy tent heater for when its cold, shower tent, nice tables, chairs, cots for everyone, lights, cooking setup, etc. etc. Big benefit is my wife enjoys camping with me now because we can bring all the amenities of home. It really doesn't take too much to set stuff up. I can have camp set up in 30 minutes probably. Another big benefit, the trailer is small enough that it fits into my garage perpendicular to our vehicles, so we can store it and still park. All-in-all, its been super handy to own, and it hardly cost anything. Now, I dont feel guilty about buying high end camping equipment and I just remind the wife how much I saved by NOT buying an RV
