What made you choose a campinn?

Hi there Old Prospector. Your way of traveling is a lot like the way I would love to do it but I am more a fly by the seat of the pants person. It is after I get somewhere that I wish I had done the research so I wouldn't miss anything. I too get more and more interested in history and also geology. The only thing is I find out what I missed out on after I get home and start reviewing all the pamphlets and maps that I picked up along the way. A lot of times I will ask the locals. "If you were traveling to this area what would be the one thing you wouldn't want to miss seeing?" Sometimes I see something spectacular by doing this and some times I wonder what it is they see in it. Or wonder if they gave me a bum steer. Its all good but hope I become more of a researcher in the future trips.
In selecting a camper I wanted to be able to haul everything I need and not much more. I first ordered the 550 but while waiting for the build to start I sat in a 560 and fell in love with it. I decided to change my order because I didn't want to have to remove stuff from the bed before retiring and can haul the sunbrella and some extra stuff on the couch. With the 560 if I am just stopping for the night I can crawl in with the least amount of preparation.
 
Interesting reading how most have chosen to go with the CI. I started looking at Teardrops about 10 years ago. Did a lot of internet research, never had seen one in person. Did stumble on the CI website and could see they were a well built trailer. Thought they were a bit pricey. My first teardrop was a 5 x 10 Silver Shadow I purchased lightly used on e-bay. Had looked for a CI used, but never ran across one and really didn't know where to look. Ran across the Forum by accident. Always thought the CI would be a better trailer than the SS, especially since you see how well and long airstreams are out there. This year I ran across first a used 550 Ultra and missed out on it. Later I ran across a used 560 Ultra. Ended up purchasing that sight unseen. Picked that up a week after it was listed and sold my SS within 3 days of listing. I feel the CI is much better trailer in design and structural integrity. In the end, I ende dup where I really wanted to start.
 
Hi David!

Originally we were looking at a trailer called "Cricket", which we found very appealing. Our goal was simplicity! We then went onto you-tube to look for videos and came across one about a little yellow trailer...and we fell in love with the teardrop concept. From there we found dogorunning's video about the CI 560 Ultra. That was it! We were sold on teardrops/raindrops for sure, and definitely interested in Camp-Inn. We continued researching tears, but ultimately returned to CI. This forum was a big help, biased as it may be!! Lots of great info!

So we settled on the classic teardrop look of a 550 Special. The anticipation is gut-wrenching at times! We want to be on the road now! :grin: But with all of the planning involved, we really need the time to get ready. We will be full-timing, so there is the off-loading now of our possessions and the gearing up for our new life chapter!

I have a blog at birder526.blogspot.com called "Teardropping in Paradise" that is telling the whole story -- if you are interested!

Best of luck and happy trails!
 
We are looking at buying a teardrop for several reasons:

- We're about to be empty nesters, and we want to be able to camp without the tent. We anticipate lengthy road trips and this seems like the easiest way to go.

- We definitely don't want something large and expensive, nor do we want something with a motor.

- We don't want a big kitchen, so a teardrop fits the bill.

We're looking at a Camp Inn for more specific reasons:

- We like the look.

- All the reviews seem to be good; for example, I've heard of other brands leaking, but I haven't heard such things about Camp Inns. I do want a quality product.
 
We chose CI for the same reasons...they look to be the highest quality out there, we don't want a "house on wheels", we love the classic shape and the galley, and so on! Look forward to hearing about your decision!
Have fun researching and planning!
 
I am still in awe of the build quality of our CI 560. Every time I climb inside or open the galley, I am greeted with such quality it is incredible.

We have spent the last 5 days in it with another 7 or 8 to go before we head back home and we just love this thing.
 
I am so glad to hear how happy you are with your raindrop! Your video and still photo gallery are great! Getting us very excited! Happy times!
 
I love old cars, but I hate working on them. I also hate tent camping. When I was a kid my Dad refused to go camping saying it reminded him of Vietnam, so we'd go hiking or fishing and stay in a hotel or cabin. I never learned to sleep on the ground and I hate putting up and taking down tents. So when I mentioned to my wife that I was thinking about buying another old car, she said she'd rather have a teardrop trailer. I called my buddy who has an RV and he told me what a huge PIA it is. And with 8 miles to the gallon that kills any value. Pop ups creep me out! I always have a vision of some maniac slicing down the side with a huge butcher knife...or zombies. We are both really into retro things like music and vintage clothes so the style really appealed to us. I called or emailed every teardrop maker in the country and Camp-Inn offered the best bang for the buck. And we didn't have to get water or propane or electricity or anything else that would break eventually. We'll run a small Honda generator, use a coleman propane stove and call it good. Off the grid is the way to go, or parked at an Elks lodge.

I looked at a local camp-inn and was super impressed with the quality, it reminded me of an old yacht. So we placed an order and pick it up in April.
 
We always knew the day would come when we would consider gong from tent camping to trailer camping. We have enjoyed the simplicity of "roughing" it and getting by with the basic essentials. We've been wet hungry and cold which always seem to be the most memorable trips. Hotels were rarely an option although one 2 week backpacking adventure did result in Missy getting dumped in a 40 degree stream twice (full emersion) and a goose egg sized contusion on her knee we opted for a hotel. We didn't sleep because the bed was too soft and too quite!

I started our search two years ago and a tiny camper was what we wanted..."KISS Philosophy". Wanted to keep initial cost down something that was easily pulled and stored and economical. We researched all of the tiny camper manufacturers (Little Guy, Cricket and a few others). Then I found Camp-inn researched their website, found this forum and we were hooked. We currently have a 560 Ultra on order with most of the bells and whistles and a few of our own options added in (delivery scheduled for mid-April). Have visited the factory three times and have been treated like royalty each time, the staff is incredible. The entire manufacturing process is impressive to say the least. The employees at Camp-Inn are true craftsman and they treat each unit as if it were a work of art.

Like you hear over and over the 6-9 month wait for a unit is at times unbearable. We have researched many of the items discussed in this forum and have been making summer plans for camping.. Will we miss the isolation camping that backpacking brings?...sure...but we still can throw in the backpacks and take a few side trip overnighters. We will still be able to get to a lot of the true back country areas and camp off the grid in real comfort and truly enjoy our Camp-Inn. R
 
Hi Ron and Missy! You remind me of my husband and myself! We too have a tenting and backpacking heritage. And when we decided on a small trailer, we looked at Cricket and Little Guy and a few others before settling in with Camp-Inn. Our teardrop will be ready for pick-up around 4/1/15, and we are now planning our travels, insurance, domicile, etc., as we will be full-timing it. I am so glad to hear of your very positive experiences with CI and we really look forward to meeting everyone there.

And like you, we'll be bringing backpacks with us and a tarp for those days we feel we need to really get off the grid!

Look forward to hearing about your build process!
 
My happiest memory growing up was camping with my family at an isolated campground in Iowa that had nothing more than a small farm pond and a picnic table at each grass covered site. Dad was a craftsman and had converted an old, rusty Econoline van into a camper complete with bunkbeds and even a small black and white TV, very innovative for 1969. When you opened the twin back doors there was a substantial, iron, gas stove with storage drawers underneath. Mom would fry up a weeks worth of chicken before we left and each of the four kids had insulated cups with label tape inscribed names on them for drinking powedered lemonade out of a coleman jug. We would wake up every morning to the smell of bacon and seeing Dad casting for bass at the lake while smoking his pipe. We had so much fun climbing trees and building dams in the feeder stream.

I knew I eventually wanted a camper to recapture those fun times, escape car clogged Southern CA and explore all that the West has to offer. My goal was to get something that would fit in my garage. My brother has a huge 5th wheel and while very nice, it's just too much for me. I am an extreme researcher and never buy anything without doing my due dilegence to get the best. The more I read about CampInn the more I knew that was the one. After my visit to Necedah, I was instantly taken by the craftmanship and quality and knew I had made the right decision. So here's to Dad, wish he was still here to join me but know he will be looking down with a smile. He would for sure appreciate the engineering and craftsmanship of the CampInn.

Randy & Michelle
 
What wonderful memories on which you can build a whole new set of memories! Is your CI in your possession yet? Or are you awaiting delivery?
 
Final inspection this wake, then waiting for a delivery truck date. Getting close, getting excited!
 
Randy,

The truck is supposed to be here this afternoon. We thought it was going to be Friday but I came in this morning to find out the driver called and is coming today. Picking up yours and Joe and Lisa's together.

Cary
 
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