Which One???

[Madmountainman]

Crikey, following years in the barren wilderness of fixed longitudinal beds in any sort of motorhome, there are now three demountables, that i'm aware of, that offer this option and i've not yet started to look at the other manufacturers that have kindly been listed on here.
The three i've found are:-

Nordstar Camp 8 SE
Northstar 700 SC
Tischer Trail 230/240

A couple come in an ally sandwich panel construction and grp for the 700SC. I'd appreciate any thoughts on which model(s) anyone's had experience of, which you think is the better camper, which you think is the better construction method etc, etc?
All three come in at a similar price once specced up to similar levels and, having heard from friends how good Alde heating is, it's good to see I can get it on these.

I'm hoping the manufacturers will be showing their wares at the Dusseldorf Caravan Salon in September and i'd like to ask if anyone know's if i'm likely to get a good discount on the purchase price, if I wait for the show, or are there any other recommended ways/times/places I should be looking at in order to get one for the most competitive price?

[Gary W]

Crikey, following years in the barren wilderness of fixed longitudinal beds in any sort of motorhome, there are now three demountables, that i'm aware of, that offer this option and i've not yet started to look at the other manufacturers that have kindly been listed on here.
The three i've found are:-

Nordstar Camp 8 SE
Northstar 700 SC
Tischer Trail 230/240

A couple come in an ally sandwich panel construction and grp for the 700SC. I'd appreciate any thoughts on which model(s) anyone's had experience of, which you think is the better camper, which you think is the better construction method etc, etc?
All three come in at a similar price once specced up to similar levels and, having heard from friends how good Alde heating is, it's good to see I can get it on these.

I'm hoping the manufacturers will be showing their wares at the Dusseldorf Caravan Salon in September and i'd like to ask if anyone know's if i'm likely to get a good discount on the purchase price, if I wait for the show, or are there any other recommended ways/times/places I should be looking at in order to get one for the most competitive price?

You may add SBS/Lely to your list

Regarding you other questions, please allow me to make some observations which I hope might be helpful.

Firstly I understand the quality Euro brands are enjoying really strong sales this year and that's certainly the case at Lely. Consequently discounts are scarce and used values high. And of course, best value doesn't necessarily mean biggest discount!

Regarding heating and construction. If I may suggest in as an unbiassed way as I can, that with demountables weight is crucial. Modern light weight construction is vastly superior in so many ways to the old methods (not just weight) but of course that technology doesn't come cheap. Likewise Alde heating is fantastic - if you you have the load capacity, but with a demountable that's rarely the case. Unfortunately when a truck manufacturer claims a 1000kg payload, that 1000kg must include any driver, passenger or fuel you might need. That's a quarter of your payload gone already. Add 50 litres of water and you have maybe 700kg load left for your clothing, food, toiletries and other personal belongings. And the camper itself course. Take a look around this forum and you'll see how much some of these bodies weigh!

Finally Dusseldorf is a great place to visit, but to exhibit there is isn't really viable for smaller manufacturers just because of the costs. As those costs are obviously passed on directly to the customer it's no problem when you sell 300 vans a year - but if you sell maybe 30, the proportion of the selling price needed to cover the costs can be horrifying. As not all the best stuff is made by the biggest manufacturers you may not find the van of your dreams there. Well not in the Salon anyway - take a stroll around the 2500 place camp ground and you never know what you might find!

I wish you well in your search and hope the above might be helpful.

Gary

[Madmountainman]

Thanks Gary,
I was aware of the tight weight restrictions and found Tischer's website useful as all the extras have their individual weights listed.
I also had an inkling that the Salon might be too big a venture for these smaller companies, so thank you for the confirmation. I'll take a gander at the Lely you've mentioned as I hadn't spotted they did a longitudinal model when perusing their website.
Do you have any preference, or comment, on the GRP versus sandwich panel construction methods?

[Gary W]

Thanks Gary,
I was aware of the tight weight restrictions and found Tischer's website useful as all the extras have their individual weights listed.
I also had an inkling that the Salon might be too big a venture for these smaller companies, so thank you for the confirmation. I'll take a gander at the Lely you've mentioned as I hadn't spotted they did a longitudinal model when perusing their website.
Do you have any preference, or comment, on the GRP versus sandwich panel construction methods?

When we manufactured our own we used vacuum bonded grp/styrofoam/grp sandwich. It's expensive and requires highly specialist skills and equipment, but for me it's the best way and nearly all expedition vehicles are built this way. When done well with the appropriate materials it gives by far the lightest and strongest construction and the incredible insulation and lack of cold bridges are big plusses too. Lelycampers are built this way.

Lely also note weights against options by the way. On the subject of which, as I'm sure you are aware, it's not just the weight that matters but also where it's positioned. This is especially important if mounting on a double cab. Another thing that is often overlooked is that all weights are quoted dry. This makes a massive difference with water boilers and wet heating systems (Alde for example).

The Lely website has a lot of photos but is light on technical info and the English one isn't completed yet, but if you're interested just PM your contact details I'll get some stuff in the post to you.

Best wishes

Gary

[zildjian]

Gary I'd like to see those too if thats OK

[Gary W]

Gary I'd like to see those too if thats OK

Will be a pleasure, I'm back in the office tomorrow and will pop it in the post for you then.

Best wishes

Gary

[Madmountainman]

Gary, sent you an email with our address on, though I only managed to find lengthways beds on the small Runner model, which won't suit as i'm after a self contained unit.
Best looking bed option, at the moment, appears to be the Tischer, followed by the Northstar in 2nd place and Nordstar in 3rd. I prefer the Nordstar as an overall package, but find the bed extensions appear to be lacking some robustness. Northstar's is a 4' 6" double which will do, but Tischer's offering looks plush and is a Euro Kingsize, 160mm wide.
Northstars standard offering in GRP comes in at a weighty 680kg, Tischer's 230 is a lowly 635kg and Nordstar's is a hefty 695kg - but that comes with the best standard options list, including the Alde heating.
Currently, the only pickup I fit in comfortably is the Ford Ranger, which comes with a 1250kg payload rating. Taking into account all the options I could choose on the Nordstar, i'm looking at a 760kg dry weight, which would leave me with a fair bit for Sandy, myself, our camping kit and fluids. If I look at Tischer, we'll have even more safety margin.

If i'm wrong in anything i've mentioned, please put me straight as I've only got the money to do this once and I want to get it as close to perfect as possible.

Oh, and just checked how well the manufacturers stand by their product with a guarantee…
Tischer - 6 year bodywork guarantee against water ingress.
Nordstar - 5 years for the same.
Northstar - Interestingly, 5 years quoted but then you read the small print. 5 years for the floor, but only 2 for the walls and framework!

[Gary W]

Gary, sent you an email with our address on, though I only managed to find lengthways beds on the small Runner model, which won't suit as i'm after a self contained unit.
Best looking bed option, at the moment, appears to be the Tischer, followed by the Northstar in 2nd place and Nordstar in 3rd. I prefer the Nordstar as an overall package, but find the bed extensions appear to be lacking some robustness. Northstar's is a 4' 6" double which will do, but Tischer's offering looks plush and is a Euro Kingsize, 160mm wide.
Northstars standard offering in GRP comes in at a weighty 680kg, Tischer's 230 is a lowly 635kg and Nordstar's is a hefty 695kg - but that comes with the best standard options list, including the Alde heating.
Currently, the only pickup I fit in comfortably is the Ford Ranger, which comes with a 1250kg payload rating. Taking into account all the options I could choose on the Nordstar, i'm looking at a 760kg dry weight, which would leave me with a fair bit for Sandy, myself, our camping kit and fluids. If I look at Tischer, we'll have even more safety margin.

If i'm wrong in anything i've mentioned, please put me straight as I've only got the money to do this once and I want to get it as close to perfect as possible.

Oh, and just checked how well the manufacturers stand by their product with a guarantee…
Tischer - 6 year bodywork guarantee against water ingress.
Nordstar - 5 years for the same.
Northstar - Interestingly, 5 years quoted but then you read the small print. 5 years for the floor, but only 2 for the walls and framework!

The 'North/South' bed arrangement is a factory option on most Lely production models and naturally can be incorporated into most bespoke designs too. Lely have managed to retain the breathable/slatted base system for the whole bed too which is rather nice.

Brochure weights are the subject of considerable debate with many forum members finding their vans weigh substantially more than the manufactures claims. One found his weighed over a third more than the manufacturer's claimed weight! (there's a thread on the subject somewhere). The Lely 'Runner' model weighs 675 real life kilograms in standard form. That seems a comparatively high figure given all the technology and craftsmanship employed to save weight, but that's what they actually weigh and there's no marketing department to say otherwise. As they like to say in Holland, it is what it is...

Best wishes

Gary

[zildjian]

Would be refreshing to find something exactly as on the packet, and something of a first here as you've read lately on this subject.
Dunno where they magic up these specs they even plate campers at when they blatantly aren't

I did suggest Fiona bring along the weigh-pads at the weekend for the brave to try