33 replies to this topic

[WestyWanderer]

Hi all,

My name is Brent and I am looking at trading in my 1981 Volkswagon Westy for a pop-up camper that will fit on my 2005 Tacoma. I have been researching all of the brands and the Palomino Bronco 600 seems to be the front runner simply because of the price, I can't really afford a new FWC and the used market here in Southern California is dismal at best. Has anyone owned a Bronco or know of someone who owned a Bronco and if so how did it work out?

I mainly camp in Baja or the deserts of California, not a lot of off roading, but definitely some. Any and all help would be appreciated, I haven't had much luck finding reviews on this product.

Thanks in advance from the new guy....

Brent

[rotti]

Go here for a few reviews: rv.net

A quick search tells me they are pretty heavy, 1100 lbs DRY, must be wood framed. Also called "entry level" what ever that means.
I would research what your pay load capacity is on your truck.

Good luck.

[Stan@FourWheel]

Not to steer you away from it, but those will probably be pretty big, long, and heavy for a Tacoma.

I have seen people put similar campers on the Tacomas, but you will need some good tires and a stiff rear suspension upgrade for sure !

99% of the Palomino campers I see on the road are mounted on a full sized truck ?


These are just for comparisons purposes to give you an idea on sizing.

Looking at their website, it looks like the B600 is ...

77" wide for the camper body (The FWC Model is 69" wide -- the FWC Fleet Model is 75" wide).

Floor length is 7' 4" (The FWC Eagle & Fleet are approx. 6' 6" long).

Camper height is 4' 11" (The FWC Eagle & Fleet are approx. 4' 4" tall)


Again, I'm NOT trying to steer you towards the FWC, just trying to help educate you on what is out there.

If I had to buy a "NEW" pop-up camper and I was on a tight budget, I would pick most any other "used" camper before buying a new Palomino.

If you buy a new Palomino, you will probably take a big hit on the resale price when you go to sell it.

If you are going to hold on to it for along time, then no worries.

I don't want to bash them, they build a good camper for what it is.

You live in a dry area, and that works in your favor too.

But it is the lowest price pop-up camper on the market for a reason.

My opinion, and my opinion only, finding something like a nice used Palomino, used Northstar, used Starcraft, used ATC, used FWC, or similar would be my preference.

Have you looked at the www.usedfourwheelcampers.com ?

Or the gear seaction for sale on WTW ?


Hope this helps a little.

Wish you the best of luck on your camper search.

I know it is tough to find a camper for the smaller trucks these days at a reasonable price.





.

Attached Thumbnails

• 

[Dughlas Stiubhart]

I think the aluminum frames of the Four Wheel Campers and the All Terrain Campers is why we buy them. They are light and very flexible, important for off-road travel. Good luck in your search, but I would urge you to consider Stan's suggestion to look for a used camper, preferably, in my opinion, an ATC or FWC.

[WestyWanderer]

Thanks guys for all of the replies, it definitely helps. I am not totally sold on buying a new camper, but the used market in my area for these style of campers is almost non-existent which makes it hard. I am not opposed to driving out of state to buy a used one, but that is difficult as well.

My Tacoma already has an add-a-leaf kit as well as a Firestone airbag system so the weight is not an issue as far as suspension is concerned. I was really hoping to hear from someone who has one of these Bronco's to see if they like it and how durable it has been, anybody out there with one?

Thanks again guys for helping out the new guy...

Brent

[zoie]

Brent, I have a friend of mine who has a bronco on his 2010 tacoma crew cab with a 6' bed. He bought it new because it was inexpensive. It's an okay camper but has flaws, mainly being heavy. We weighed his camper once and he was running a 1,000 lbs over gvw. He has air bags and 10 ply tires and hasn't had a problem with the truck after 50,000 miles but.....

The camper is not made very well. He's had problems with the back door not closing. The door is a full height door so it does not have a cross piece across the top and has become misaligned.

Most of the camper is made out of wood and lightweight particle board type material. He's had the roof supports where the lifting mechanism attaches to the roof come apart and has it to the dealer in Montana where he bought it 3 or 4 times to work on it.

When putting the top down, you have to go around the camper and push in the vinyl sides as you lower the top. The vinyl sides are not air tight in the corners.

He calls it his little piece of 'sh...' But they never have had a camper before and were wanting to get something cheap to see how they'd like it. And they don't do any off road with it. Ignoring the weight they've been okay with it but it has not been trouble free mainly because it's not made very well.

I think it's an entry level camper with a short life span and you do get a camper for about half the price of a better built camper but it seems way too heavy for a tacoma and not for going off road.

I have a lighter and smaller popup camper shell that I bought from Coyote/Phoenix campers in Denver, a couple of years on my 1992 toyota pickup. The dry weight was 600 lbs. I bought a shell as it was less expensive to just get a camper. Since then, I've added some cabinetry and a 12/120 volt fridge and solar panel. I've had absolutely no problems with it and it's light. It does great off road.I previously had a wildernest topper on the truck and I notice no difference in off road performance with the popup.

My thought would be after camping with my friends a lot with their Palomino Bronco, I'd recommend that you try and put the dollars into a used FWC, Coyote/Phoenix, Hallmark camper instead. These campers are lighter and better made.

Good Luck

[BSS]

Be patient and aggressive in your search, and the right FWC will come along. You will probably have to drive a ways to get it but you will be much happier in the long run.

I had a skamper (palomino) as my first truck camper. It got me by and I certainly had great times in it, but I had a lot of headaches with stuff like zoie said. It wasn't trail worthy and I was always fixing stuff.

My friend eric has the bronco 600 on a chevy 1500. We have camped together many nights since he got it. Its about 5 years old and already falling apart, literally. Thing is a total piece of crap. It is the cheapest camper out there for a reason.

Having a cheap camper can very annoying in many aspects.

[rotti]

We weighed his camper once and he was running a 1,000 lbs over gvw.
He calls it his little piece of 'sh...'

Holy hell
A thousand pounds over?

[leadsled9]

Holy hell
A thousand pounds over?

Yes, and we get to share the road with these fools.

[clikrf8]

I would listen to Stan and others who advise against a heavier camper. If you are in So Cal, there are FWC/ATC on CL not infrequently. When we were looking for a used FWC/ATC, most were around the Sacramento area and points surrounding. They hold resale well and are built to take the backroads easily. We felt the same at one time and bought a small hard sided camper for our Toyota. A learning experience for sure. Too top-heavy and bulky. We had a FWC for awhile on our Taco but went on to buy a bigger truck/camper because we needed more room for big dog/camera gear and hubby's back hurt from driving Taco. Do whatever it takes to get it right the first time.