Why have you sold your pop top? (Dove/swan style )

[bassyk]

We currently have an Aussie Jays Big Red off road CT and are looking at moving up to a Jayco swan style pop top van.

our main issue is our set up / pack up times at the moment and the jayco's look to be far quicker than our current setup.

So my point of all this is to find people that have moved on from their "pop top" style van such as the swan , flamingo etc.. and find out what the down sides to this style of set up to see if it is worth us changing

we have 2 kids (3 & 6) and all the stuff that comes along with them too

TIA

[PhilW]

I recently sold my Eagle outback and in the process of purchasing an Expanda 14.44.4 OB.

Really enjoyed the Eagle and had no issues regarding the pack up time.
I think people place way too much emphasis on the whole "Set up / Pack up" thing.
I have a good mate with a Customline soft floor camper and found very little difference in set up time between that and our Eagle. I probably could have made it quicker however never rushed.

My main reason for the change was to get something with rigid sides and thus a little more solid.
We do a lot of coastal camping and the prevailing N/E winds in summer would really give the pop top a work out.
Also the winding mechanism for the roof, although well proven,was perhaps I thought a potential weak point.

Having said all of that.........the pop top campers are very good value for money and great rigs We certainly had some fantastic family holidays in ours and will miss it.

I hope this helps with you decision.

[Palmer]

We sold our old Jayco Dove to buy an outback  version Swan, as we wanted to update

[seenthelight]

 "and find out what the down sides to this style of set up to see if it is worth us changing"
I have an eagle outback and the only problems we find is storage..eg(1) living out of bags,
(2)A pain to enter for road side stops  (3)unable to enter the rear of the prado if set up and still
connected to the camper....(4)unable to tow it hard off road(we have swags & tents for that)
Road side stops we can be in bed in about 10 minutes,pack up about 15 minutes,
full set up about 20 minutes...no bed end covers, no bag awning...bag awning add 20minutes+
What I like about the camper is 1/room to move in wet weather (4 people) 2/ease to tow, fuel economy when towing
3/able to cook inside if need be...
Cheers
Geoff

[nab]

I have a 2005 Dove. The original Jayco interior storage is pretty average IMO for day to day living. I gutted mine and redid the inside so we had somewhere to store all our clothes etc without living out of bags and it is much much better.

Setup time is about 40mins from unhitching to all open, beds made, awning up, bed ends up with poles to sitting down at the table ready to make lunch. A little bit quicker than my old soft floor camper.

BUT for an overnighter it only takes about 10mins, wind it up and push the beds out (no awning or bed ends). With the soft floor you basically had to set it up the same whether it was it was a week or overnight stay.

We have 3 kids (~2, 4 & 6) and suits us well. We only spend time inside if it is pouring with rain (even then the kids play in the mud!) or sleeping. Another benefit is that if the ground floods you are up out of it, also being so high it stops the snakes coming in when the kids don't zip the door up properly on the old soft floor...

[The punter]

We recently seriously considered one, but the reason from moving from a soft floor was primarily setup time. Constantly double handling gear became tiresome especially for lots of one nighters.

While the demo at the shows looks very appealing the issue that concerned us was having to put a lot of "stuff" inside and still have to double handle things at setup time. Maybe we just take too much stuff!

[bassyk]

I have a 2005 Dove. The original Jayco interior storage is pretty average IMO for day to day living. I gutted mine and redid the inside so we had somewhere to store all our clothes etc without living out of bags and it is much much better.

Setup time is about 40mins from unhitching to all open, beds made, awning up, bed ends up with poles to sitting down at the table ready to make lunch. A little bit quicker than my old soft floor camper.

BUT for an overnighter it only takes about 10mins, wind it up and push the beds out (no awning or bed ends). With the soft floor you basically had to set it up the same whether it was it was a week or overnight stay.

We have 3 kids (~2, 4 & 6) and suits us well. We only spend time inside if it is pouring with rain (even then the kids play in the mud!) or sleeping. Another benefit is that if the ground floods you are up out of it, also being so high it stops the snakes coming in when the kids don't zip the door up properly on the old soft floor...

Cheers everyone for the great replies , a lot of the points everyone as mentioned are valid to us.

-we would like to do the "quick overnight stays" however the setup/packup of the soft floor camper puts us off this and even moreso if there is some moisture around!
-I really like the appeal of being able to do the 10min setup if all we want to do is get in sleep and move on (previously we have stayed in motels with the CT still on the back of the car) this would allow us to set up off road or at a caravan park for a quick nights stay

nab - if you don't mind do you have pics or a build up of what you've done with the inside of yours? as this would be a potential downfall to us too.
our current setup we live out of a couple of large space cases that go inside the trailer and get moved inside the tent once setup.

thanks again and keep the replies coming

[bassyk]

We recently seriously considered one, but the reason from moving from a soft floor was primarily setup time. Constantly double handling gear became tiresome especially for lots of one nighters.

While the demo at the shows looks very appealing the issue that concerned us was having to put a lot of "stuff" inside and still have to double handle things at setup time. Maybe we just take too much stuff!

So I take it you ended up staying with your soft floor as the gains weren't enough to be worth the change?

this is what I am wary of and trying to avoid.

so often its "the grass is greener on the other side" until you get there......

[The punter]

So I take it you ended up staying with your soft floor as the gains weren't enough to be worth the change?

this is what I am wary of and trying to avoid.

so often its "the grass is greener on the other side" until you get there......

Nope, we bought a LCT Reconn :-) - all the "stuff, can stay stored unless we need it, true 5 minute overnighters, and more beer!

I have a mate that has a Jayco, and he advised me that the difference in setup between a soft floor and a Jayco wasn't anywhere near as good as they make out at the shows. He also hates his bag awning as the whole thing needs to be lowered if you change your mind and want it up later in your stay. This is why we went the Thule awning.

[Colmano]

Tia,

We have just bought our Swan (March) after much decision making...We had our heart set on a soft floor, hired one for 6 weeks (incl a lot of 1 nighters) up to Cape York...There was a considerable amount of stress in the one nighters, especially with tired kids (12, 13 & 10mths) and arriving at stop late in the day...upon our return, and having given it a red hot go, we decided against it, and went the Swan.

Pros
- Set up ease (one of us can do on our own)
- Nice seating comfortable seating inside
- Nice having sink/fridge/microwave & drawers
- Feels solid, secure & warm in wet weather
- Comfy beds for all - no need for stretcher set up, etc
- Tows nicely

Cons
- Too big for my garage 
- Storage looks great when u first see them, but a lot of cupboard space consumed by HWS, pipes, etc

In our first few trips, we found ourselves moving bags, clothing etc off one chair onto a bed, the back again...but to overcome this, we have shelves in the wardrobe and we're about to order a set of Skytracks to take care of small items (wallets, hats, towels etc) that seem to accumulate throughout the day with two teenagers...

Basic set up time (no bed flies) is around 20mins....add an extra 15mins for the bed flies. We have a wind out awning that is very convenient and has held up under some decent winds no issue.

It's not perfect, but for us it met the budget and does what we ask of it...and we love it...given an extra $20k in the budget and we would've gone to an Expanda with bunks...

Good luck with your decision 

[topcat]

I don't have one but 90% of my camping is with a mate who has an Outback Eagle (previously on-road Dove). Very little difference between packing up his and mine (Trackabout soft floor). He hates his bed bag awnings and main bag awning but loves everything else.
TC

[RebsWA]

Some of the reasons we sold  our eagle outback camper.
Packing up after rain, wet canvas over the bed.
Difficult to access some of the limited internal storage.
Too much trouble to access interior  at roadside stops.
Access to front bed by standing on lounge. (broke the 3ply once)
Have to climb over partner to get out of bed when first in bed.
Insufficient depth for decent mattress.
Pillows had to be off bed for pack down.
No real gain over our soft floor camper for set up and pack down.
Access to rear of tug limited on overnight stops if hitched up.

[nab]

No probs bassyk. Follow the link below:

http://www.myswag.org/index.php?topic=35404.0

Also, there are probably more quicker and easier to setup soft floors than our old 14ft one, not sure how quick yours is.
Our friends bought a PMX camper and it had the same basic tent as our old one (with a few extra flaps/zips). Last time we went camping with them it reminded us of why we sold it!

[cruiser 91]

Ive heard a few complain about access to tug with camper hitched.
Our 02 OB has a extended draw bar that gives us no hassles opening the rear door of the Cruiser when the camper is hitched. Just something to think about 

[rockinj]

We only purchased our Flamingo last year so do not have the experience of many other campers on here but here is my 2c worth. I LOVE our van but am well aware of niggling things that annoy me.

Negative
1. I agree with the statements made re storage - there really isn't much. As a tall person it is a pain crawling on the floor trying to access things. We find we are constantly moving bags also which gets tiring really quickly. The inside always looks messy due to this.

2. I worry about the day I have to pack up the canvas in wet weather, I hate to think what this would do to the beds. I have wondered should I buy two small tarps to place between the canvas and beds if the happens.

3. No access or HARD to access the van when travelling or when packing to go away

4. Would love to somehow option an outdoor kitchen like a CT but there is just no room to do this

Good points however are;

1. I have one!!!!!!!
2. Set up is reasonably easy. ( I struggle to push the 'hockey sticks' out and be able to also slide them in place by myself though. I can do it but it is a struggle. I am quite strong so am thinking I have not worked out the angle for this. Any hints?)
3. Pack up is also reasonable, it takes A LOT longer to pack up all the 'stuff' than actually pack up the trailer.
4. Budget camper???
5. I can set up/pack up this camper by myself with help/hindrance of our 7yo son, it takes me a lot longer by myself obviously.
6. 17 min set up when hubby and I are both there including bed flies (not with poles) and wind out awning (I am sure we can get it faster!) lol
7. I love the low profile when towing

We don't get to go away much and when we do it is usually only for one night so for us set up/pack up is a MAJOR factor. To be honest, if I had the money I am pretty sure I would love an expanda or similar mostly as I suspect they are a little quicker to set up than the flamingo types plus the added benefit of hanging space.

[jimc1]

I had one of the original Doves. It was gifted to me, so I shared the karma when I passed it on to the current owners. We are a significantly taller than average family, so it was replaced with a walkup offroad trailer with large tent and bunks.

True the setup of the camper is longer, the more we do it on a trip, the faster we become. Last trip we were setup and cooking in about 15 mins by the end. Knowing how much of the awning canvas to setup, became the trick.   

pros.

super fast setup. kettle on in 5 minutes kinda thing.
permanent place for everything
semi secure in camp site (well you have a key to lock the door)

cons

wider than my camper trailer which means use of wing mirrors
cabinetry not made for corrugations. ( I hear the new ones are not much better)
beds too short for anyone over 6 foot tall.
if the weather is bad the family cant "live" inside  due to limited internal room
got to setup the annex to make more livable space
no matter what the manufacture claims, you cannot sleep 8 in a dove, unless they are all kids under 5 years old!

[Goose]

I honestly would have thought more people would have pointed to better rain proofing and being completely off the ground as the 2 main advantages of pop tops over soft floors.

I'm surprised to read the setup times are quite similar too.

Good thread.

[buildermidwife]

Hi . We sold our jayco hawk and went to an ultimate xtrak to be more durable off road . Then decided the ultimate was too small inside . Then swapped to a coronal 511 magnum pop top . We now have gone back to a gold stream wing 3 .
These are the reasons we went back to the wind up style of camper .
They only take a few minutes more than the caravan to set up .  (Good exercise )
They are a bigger inside than a lot of caravans .
They are a lot easier to tow than a caravan
We like the windows all around .
Our friends we travel with still have a jayco hawk which they took to all the places we went in the ultimate .
Cheers Paul

[UIZ733]

We had a Coromal F400.
Dislikes;
1 It was too wide (for my liking).
2 We found the beds claustrophobic (the plastic/vinyl was just above our heads and condensation was a problem).
3 Pulling out the beds and winding up the roof was not as easy or quick as it looked at the show.
4 Putting it all back down was not easy either.
5 Bagged awning was slow to erect and even slower to put away.
6 No outdoor cooking option.

Likes;
1 Interior space was good.
2 Being able to sit comfortably when indoors was good.
3 Good value for money.
 Good luck with your research and choice.

[Jen, Sprogs n Him]

Slightly off track,  but have you considered a hard floor camper?
We just spent 3 weeks in the Kimberlys,  with quite a few one nighters and roadside stops.
Couldn't be happier with it. .
Pros: low profile for towing,  outside access to waeco and kitchen and all storage boxes for roadside stops,  flip the top tighten the poles and we're  ready for bed. 
Kids beds were on top of ours so pull them down on the floor and your good to go.  Overhead clearance from our bed to roof is about 5 feet, nice and high. 
All clothes are stored in bags or boxes under the bed, which is still accessible with the bed down,  or through the back hatch if camper is folded up.
Set up time is literally 5 minutes. Add 10 for the annex.
Took it on some gnarly corrugations and nothing came loose or broke..
For longer stays,  we zip on the kids tent then we have more room inside.
We've never really liked cooking inside a camper or caravan so only really need to go inside to sleep..
I throw a tarp over the bedding incase the floor is grotty but no issues with wet canvas inside for folding up.

Sent from my SM-G900I using Tapatalk

[Jen, Sprogs n Him]

Slightly off track,  but have you considered a hard floor camper?
We just spent 3 weeks in the Kimberlys,  with quite a few one nighters and roadside stops.
Couldn't be happier with it. .
Pros: low profile for towing,  outside access to waeco and kitchen and all storage boxes for roadside stops,  flip the top tighten the poles and we're  ready for bed. 
Kids beds were on top of ours so pull them down on the floor and your good to go.  Overhead clearance from our bed to roof is about 5 feet, nice and high. 
All clothes are stored in bags or boxes under the bed, which is still accessible with the bed down,  or through the back hatch if camper is folded up.
Set up time is literally 5 minutes. Add 10 for the annex.
Took it on some gnarly corrugations and nothing came loose or broke
For longer stays,  we zip on the kids tent then we have more room inside.
We've never really liked cooking inside a camper or caravan so only really need to go inside to sleep..
I throw a tarp over the bedding incase the floor is grotty but no issues with wet canvas inside for folding up.

Sent from my SM-G900I using Tapatalk

Sent from my SM-G900I using Tapatalk

[03hilux]

Slightly off track,  but have you considered a hard floor camper?
We just spent 3 weeks in the Kimberlys,  with quite a few one nighters and roadside stops.
Couldn't be happier with it. .
Pros: low profile for towing,  outside access to waeco and kitchen and all storage boxes for roadside stops,  flip the top tighten the poles and we're  ready for bed. 
Kids beds were on top of ours so pull them down on the floor and your good to go.  Overhead clearance from our bed to roof is about 5 feet, nice and high. 
All clothes are stored in bags or boxes under the bed, which is still accessible with the bed down,  or through the back hatch if camper is folded up.
Set up time is literally 5 minutes. Add 10 for the annex.
Took it on some gnarly corrugations and nothing came loose or broke..
For longer stays,  we zip on the kids tent then we have more room inside.
We've never really liked cooking inside a camper or caravan so only really need to go inside to sleep..
I throw a tarp over the bedding incase the floor is grotty but no issues with wet canvas inside for folding up.

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Or maybe a forward folding camper.

[xcvator]

Slightly off track,  but have you considered a hard floor camper?
We just spent 3 weeks in the Kimberlys,  with quite a few one nighters and roadside stops.
Couldn't be happier with it. .
Pros: low profile for towing,  outside access to waeco and kitchen and all storage boxes for roadside stops,  flip the top tighten the poles and we're  ready for bed. 
Kids beds were on top of ours so pull them down on the floor and your good to go.  Overhead clearance from our bed to roof is about 5 feet, nice and high. 
All clothes are stored in bags or boxes under the bed, which is still accessible with the bed down,  or through the back hatch if camper is folded up.
Set up time is literally 5 minutes. Add 10 for the annex.
Took it on some gnarly corrugations and nothing came loose or broke..
For longer stays,  we zip on the kids tent then we have more room inside.
We've never really liked cooking inside a camper or caravan so only really need to go inside to sleep..
I throw a tarp over the bedding incase the floor is grotty but no issues with wet canvas inside for folding up.

Sent from my SM-G900I using Tapatalk

Can you tell us which camper you have please ?

[Jen, Sprogs n Him]

We have a Pioneer,  Longreach model..

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[Jen, Sprogs n Him]

We have a Pioneer,  Longreach model..


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Sent from my SM-G900I using Tapatalk