Roamin' Chariot -- the poor man's FWC

[b7bingo]

After years of saving and dreaming of full-timing in a Four Wheel Camper I saw an old pop-up truck camper in a small town ad in Alaska in 2020. $1,200. (Add another zero for a good, used FWC.) It didn't look too bad from the outside but you know the smell test happens inside. But there was no scent of mold or sign of water damage. I gave the guy $1,300. It was a steal. It was a 1990s era (or older) Roamin' Chariot.

Upon research I learned they were built one at a time by a guy in Spokane, Wa. Aluminum-framed. Not sure when he started building them but he stopped in late '90s I think.

My RC is a shell model. The original owner added a solar panel and inverter/two boat batteries. I changed nothing structurally, added no major accessaries other than a cooler style fridge that runs off solar. It's 500 pounds dry, maybe 600-some loaded for full-timing. I travel light.

15 MPG on my 2013 Nissan Frontier and I can go just about anywhere a small 4X4 pickup can go without a camper on it, thanks to the RC's smart wedge build.

I'm 3 months into my dream come true, BTW. I'm an Alaska teacher who took a year off to travel the lower 48 states -- I'm playing a round of golf in all of them, but that's another topic.

This RC Camper has been a dream home. More details and pics later...

Meanwhile, any other RC lovers out there?

 

[corybrown50]

We've got to have pics and a tour or it isn't true
Congrats on the find and on being a good person not taking advantage of the seller.....

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

b7Bingo,welcome to the cult.In the past week or so I have seen several RCs around my area.
I think there actually is a neighbor in our area who has one.I see it driving around in the afternoons.

Post some pictures when you can. Do you intend to play a "round" in the Monterey Bay area.

I am not a golfer but we do have some on the best courses in the world.

Enjoy your travels.
Frank

 

[LuckyDan]

Yup, built in Spokane. IIRC, they got taken out by the Great Recession. I see them from time to time around here, a gent around the corner and down the lane had one and they show up on Craigslist occasionally. There’s a member here, Shap I think, that has a few posts about his. If you search this site there have been a few posts about them and questions about them over the years.

There is a somewhat lengthy post over on Expedition Portal about the front hinge use on at least some of them. Don’t remember the end result of the discussion, but may be worth looking it up and see if it may concern yours.

Congratulations and enjoy your trip.

 

[Mighty Dodge Ram]

Good find!

 

[b7bingo]

We've got to have pics and a tour or it isn't true
Congrats on the find and on being a good person not taking advantage of the seller.....

Some pics are up. After I get the whisk broom going inside I'll give a tour! Gotta go golf the cooler states before heading south!

 

[b7bingo]

Yup, built in Spokane. IIRC, they got taken out by the Great Recession. I see them from time to time around here, a gent around the corner and down the lane had one and they show up on Craigslist occasionally. There’s a member here, Shap I think, that has a few posts about his. If you search this site there have been a few posts about them and questions about them over the years.

There is a somewhat lengthy post over on Expedition Portal about the front hinge use on at least some of them. Don’t remember the end result of the discussion, but may be worth looking it up and see if it may concern yours.

Congratulations and enjoy your trip.

Yeah, the hinge - I have had no trouble with it being loose. But after driving through a a hard three hour rain on an interstate some moisture got in through there. Just a minor thing. I was expecting worse -- how do you 100% waterproof a moving part!

Thanks for the tip on contacting other RCers and EP.

I just put some pics up on mine.

 

[b7bingo]

b7Bingo,welcome to the cult.In the past week or so I have seen several RCs around my area.
I think there actually is a neighbor in our area who has one.I see it driving around in the afternoons.

Post some pictures when you can. Do you intend to play a "round" in the Monterey Bay area.

I am not a golfer but we do have some on the best courses in the world.

Enjoy your travels.
Frank

Frank, thanks. I put some pics up. I'll be heading up the West Coast after winter, on my way back to Alaska. I will let the Google Maps lady take me through MB area.

 

[corybrown50]

Would be cool to mount a hard case somewhere outside for the clubs...... very sharp looking TC. Congrats

 

[b7bingo]

Pulled Over To Let Storm Pass

Update: In Oklahoma taking a weather day -- wind picking up right now as storm moving toward Oklahoma-Texas border. I'm in a hollow with a lake. I can hear the wind over me but barley a ripple on the water-- so far... Anyway, I've posted a few pics, including the latest of the map of states I've golfed over the first nine weeks of my truck camping/golfing trip through ALL of the Lower 48. I've also been harassed this week by Hereford bulls and sand burrs, which I call tiny WMD. (Might post video on bulls and burrs on YT if I figure out how. WTW accepts only low-pix pics as far as I can tell.)

Thanks for your kind welcomes and advice. -Tony.

 

[b7bingo]

Would be cool to mount a hard case somewhere outside for the clubs...... very sharp looking TC. Congrats

Great Idea!

 

[SoCalAngler]

Congrats on the RC find! She looks to be in great shape. I used to play quite a bit of golf, but then turned to fishing. Now, my latest interest is fly fishing.....took a couple of lessons and now I want to get out on a river stream real soon! That's the reason for the pop up TC I am pursuing.....get out and fly fish the West-Southwest!!!

I, too, was a teacher and took some time off to travel Baja back in the 1990s. I had a minimalist camper (bare bones Six Pac) that I used for sleeping. It was a memorable and awesome experience. Your travels of the lower 48 I'm sure are just as remarkable.....enjoy it to the fullest!!

 

[b7bingo]

Thanks for sharing, SoCal. I wish I didn’t need a fishing license for each state. Glad golf isn’t like that. I used to fish a lot. And I’m drooling over these bass ponds I camp near almost every night here down south. But the golf is also good below the Mason Dixon line.