Help Wanted!!!!

[LB]

Like most newbies have been an avid on looker, but now we are about to join the ranks of the camper trailer family thought I would try to get some advice. We are down to two KK Platinum or Aussie Swag Ultra? pros and cons for both would be good. Hoping to make the final decision and place an order at the Penrith Show in September.

LB

[Hairs]

G'day LB,

To Myswag,
Sorry can't help you with any information on either camper.
I wish you well in your decision, good luck with it all.
What every you choose, there is heaps of good info here to help you with your mods and there are excellent trip report to help you use it. 

[Heiny]

Hi LB and welocome to My Swag

Brett

[sablesoft]

Like most newbies have been an avid on looker, but now we are about to join the ranks of the camper trailer family thought I would try to get some advice. We are down to two KK Platinum or Aussie Swag Ultra? pros and cons for both would be good. Hoping to make the final decision and place an order at the Penrith Show in September.

LB

Hi LB,

They are both GOOD campers, it will come down to what you want in a camper,

Ray

[Jason B]

They are both great campers and I don't think you could go wrong with either. We have a 2005 KK LE and it had been to the cape a couple of times. We cant fault it really, it will just come down to personal preference in the end. If you are considering a kids room (not sure of your needs) have a look at them for both as they are considerably different. The KK one goes on the end making the camper very long when set up in a van park. The AS one sets up on the pasenger side of the camper making it wide (especially with the awning up out the other side). Whilst i havent seen the AS one in the flesh, it looks like a better more funtional design to me, not sure how much more difficult it is to set up than the KK one.

Check the Drawbar weight for both as this may be important depending on your tug, the KK's are bloody heavy 135kg - 220kg fully loaded with jerrys, boat, motor jenny etc.

Welcome to myswag.

Regards

Jas

[rescue1]

Just check where the doorways are and do you have a place where you can set up a small table without falling over it during the night...

[BigJules]

G'day & Welcome.

Both are fantastic premium camper trailers. I prefer the Aussie Swag, particularly for the kitchen and pantry design.

[LB]

I have been tossing up the pro's and con's on both so many times I could go mad.

Figuered that so many other people have had to make the same decision. We were dead set on the KK (their kitchen is amazing) but through this forum heard really good things about AS. Have received basic quotes from both and there is little difference in price.

He is a bit more info on what our requirements are

We will mostly be travelling with out daughter, but our 18 year old son will be coming with as to Alice Springs next year as well.

We will not be adding a boat (bush people not water people)

Tow vechicle is an 80 series landcrusier

We want to be self suffient with power (both quotes with solar panels

Need to be able to set up quickly for over night stays but with awning options for longer stays.

Storage is a major concern don't want to have to pack the car up like we do for camping now (even thou we have a trailer behind)

LB

[Jason B]

The 80 will handle both fine, just check you towbar and hitch as the factory towbars only had a downball weight capacity of only 120kg, some latter models had 220kg (still cutting it a bit fine IMHO if you are going off road) The haymen Reese bars were similar, however if you have a late model 80 (mine is 1997) hayman Reese will upgrade the compliance plate on the bar to 350kg and 3500kg towing capacity for free. I have done this with mine (was rated at 120kg DB - now 350kg) as luckily mine was a Hayman Reese bar.

Both of the campers will do what you want. The small kids room on the end of the KK can Left on and folded up, once you start getting into the bigger room they are a take on take off proposition so this adds to set up time. As for the 18YO boy grab him a quality swag and throw that on top of the camper or the tug.

If I was making the decision today I would probably stick with KK, simply because I know the brand and the build quality. Also I preffer their kitchen set up ( I don't like cooking so close to the canvas as with AS, just my opinion) and the storage, gullwing arrangement in the KK.

I wish I had your problem mate....lol..either way you go you will be happy.

Have you considered hiring one or the other for a weekend?

Regards

Jas

[BigJules]

Don't put too much thought into it, there is not a wrong decision to be made, just a decision. It's like asking should you get the 7 series Beemer or the S class Merc.

That said, here's a curve ball for you...Are you deadset on a hardfloor? I reckon some of the better soft floor campers, and here I'm thinking Complete Campsite or Trackabout, with their extended walkway configuration are also worthy of consideration. They have loads of storage space, more internal space (was thinking of your daughter) and would be close in terms of ease fo setup and packup these days.

Your young bloke needs his own pup tent or swag.

[Pipeliner]

have you looked at the AORC Odyssey?  We've had one for 5 years now and are very happy with it.

Can't make many comparisons between it and your other two as I don't know them that well, but a few comments.

Odyssey hot water system is gas, KK is diesel.  Which you think is a better option is up to you, but if your 80 series is petrol I wouldn't particularly want to cart a diesel can around as well as gas.

Odyssey has the ensuite shower/toilet enclosure at the side - very convenient when there are two of you, but it makes it difficult to put a third bed on the hard floor as you have to step over/on it all the time when using one or other of the two doors.

The extension room zips on the end, making a long setup.

I don't know any hard floor camper which (IMHO) has sufficient room inside to set up chairs and a table, however small.  Maybe if you have very small chairs, but who carries those when camping?

The majority of the storage in the Odyssey can only be accessed when the camper is open: this means you need to have somewhere at home large enough to open it out for packing/unpacking.  Advantage of this is that there are a minimum number of openings for bulldust to get in through.

For your 18yo son I would just get a tent (OzTent, Black Wolf, etc) that goes up and down quickly and get him to sleep in that.  How old is your daughter? Will the same deal be OK for her?

[Jason B]

Agree with Jules here also. Our girls are 4 and 7 and the KK/AS design is small. Yes they are convient and easy to set up and pack but they are small.

I will actually be looking to upgrade (ooooohh) to a Complete Campsite soft floor when my kids grow up for the reasons mentioned above. The CC are built well, easy to set up and pack up, now have awesome kitchens and the interior space is fatastic (atleast 2 x more than KK or AS).

Also the set up time for a KK or AS with the kids room and awning, would be the same or longer than a CC softfoor. They do some great independant suspension models that are every bit as robust as the KK and AS.

I like your thinking Jules.

Regards

Jas

[LB]

Thanks for all your great advice, called toyota today regarding tow rating as ours is a genuine toyota and the said 350kg so all should be fine.

We definitly want a hard floor and did spend a lot of time considering both soft and Hard. Most if the time the kids are in their own tents, but for the Alice trip next July we a considering the attached  bedroom so they an get the benefit of the heater!

We were also concerned about the cooking being close to the cavas in the AS.

Does anyone have any comments about service and parts availability when not in a city?

[Kit_e_kat9]

Hello and Welcome LB,

It's very duanting when researching your first camper trailer.  There is no Perfect Camper out there for us all unfortunately. 

Our top 2 were KK & AS (base models) and you can tell by the below photo which way we went.  I found it very helpful to compare apples with apples by whipping up a spreadsheet.  Then you can see what you do & don't get for you $ side by side.  We found them pretty comparable ... couple of extra $ here and there on the KK ... but the kitchen, pantry and friendly owners of AS won us over.  We really liked that the batteries weren't under your bed head, the kitchen was along the CT rather than coming out from it ... our preferences there.  We also loved that the AS website was so easy to navigate as well.  So, that's what sold it for us. 

Althought they are both hard floors of similar design, they are worlds apart when you get into the nitty gritty, making your final decision a curlie one.     I wish you the very best of luck with it.   Which ever you purchase, you know you'll be getting the best quality camper that YOU want.

Kit_e (rather biased though ... go the AS!!)

P.S.  We have a rather tall (now 18 yr old) who fitted on the hard floor well, but now has his own tent.  We have our pups (medium-large dogs) sleeping inside with us each night we camp.  They have large beds and I like that the hard floor stops the cold coming up under their beds.

[Jason B]

Thanks for all your great advice, called toyota today regarding tow rating as ours is a genuine toyota and the said 350kg so all should be fine.

No worries, just check the compliance plate attached to the towbar as it will have the details on it. Toyota may have given you a bum steer also as most of the Toyota bars were built by Hayman Reese but specced lower (120kg and 220kg) because Toyota requested this (to prevent people towing 350/3500kg legally for warrenty reasons). Unfortunately if it is a Toyota factory bar, Toyota wont upgrade it for you. As I said I was lucky because mine was a Hayman Reese bar ( I can supply you the part number if required as HR are quite happy to upgrade them). Also even though as far as I can tell the 80's are all pretty much the same, the early ones have a max towing capacity of 2200kg or 2500kg not 3500kg like the later ones. This wont be an issue for the camp trailer, but just ensure you stick to these max weight limits for insurance purposes (Not 3500kg if yours is an early 80).

Regards

Jas

[LB]

Ours is a 1997 working on find the compliance plate.

One of the things that originally sold us on the Kimberley was the distributors at the show, the guy we spoke to was really great about letting us know what was over kill eg the second water tank he said as it is not connected to the water pump and it was accessed only through a hand pump his advice was you better off just keeping a couple of Jerry cans with drinking water if water is going to be an issue. Travelling with both tanks full when you don't need it would just add weight and cost more in fuel. My better half wanted the swing away wheel carrier as he was concerned it might be hard to get to the spare underneath depending on where you are advice as you have the same wheels on the trailer as the car just use the wheel off the swing away on the car and switch them over when you are in a better spot. This advice alone was saving us a couple of thousand $$. He also suggested just leaving the daughter in her touring tent instead of purchasing the zip on bedroom as it was just as quick to set up, but this was before we decided to get the deisel air heater.

We have seen the Aussie Swag a the shows as well, but they didn't seem as interested in spending time going through it with us, which is why we never really considered it before reading some of the threads on this site.

We did look at all the brands Australian Off Road (Odyssey wasn't fussed about the kitchen or the underbed storage) complete campsite (The Fraser hard floor had this edge on the step at the end of the bed which I could see me catching after a couple of warming scotches) Pioneer (Little rough around the edges not enough kitchen), googled many more.

I surpose at the end of the day I really want to know is there any good reason why we should not get the kimberly. We have never even spent this much on a car but this is a long term investment, and hopefully means it will mean getting out in the bush is a little easier. Just want to make sure we have not missed something

LB

[BigJules]

Where are you located?

The guys from Express Campers at Ununderra, who sell Kimberley are good people.

One of the two brothers who runs Aussie Swag is a member on here, Scoot. Check out his youtube videos

[Jason B]

All good points and is sounds like you have done your research. With the KK if you plan to shower using the diesel heater you will soon use all of your water if you only go with one tank. The two are easily hooked together to run off the pump even though they dont come like this from the factory. Think of it this way, if you are travelling and use all of the water in one of your tanks (say the one you shower with) you can refill it from a stream, river or other source of water with the pump. Now this water may not be suitable for drinking, but perfectly fine for showering. So you can just fill the one tank and not contaminate your drinking water supply. Keeping one tank for quality drinking water all the time. If you only had one tank you don't have this option without compromising your drinking water supply.

If it was me I would get the twin tanks, it would be high on my options list. I wouldn't worry about the swing away for the spare tyre. KK's are high at the back and the spare is easy to get to underneath. If you must get the swing away I would consider getting the jerry can holders on there to keep the weight off your draw bar if you need to carry extra fuel. The swing away also is a bolt on option, so it can be added at any time, so try it without one and see if you really need it before spending your $$$.

Just consider the options you need, there is plenty on the options list that are not essential for extended touring in complete comfort.

Regards

Jas

[Jason B]

I second what Julian said above. Give Peter Hand a ring at express campers. He has been fantasic with us and we didn't purchase from him (we bought second hand).

He uses KK's in anger so can steer you in the right direction without the BS.

Regards

Jas

[LB]

It is express kampers we have been speaking with.

We may have to reconsider the second water tank, but it may depend of the deal they do for us as with the options we already want we are at our financial limit.May have to consider selling one of the children

BS

[Jason B]

My opinion would be to get the water tank over the swing away in the first instance, as the water tanks is integrated into the KK with the plumbing and piping etc and harder and more costly to fit down the track as an upgrade. The swing away on the other hands is just a bolt on option that you could do at home yourself.

regards

jas

[Wuzgonna]

Hi LB,

Its a hard decision choosing a camper!! Especially a hard floor!!

I have made the decision twice now and both times I picked the Aussie Swag.

After spending countless years looking and comparing - in 2009 I bought a Rover LX with side kids room. It was fantastic with 2 young kids and we loved it.

After 10 trips we sold it as number 3 was arriving. We now expect delivery of our new AS Ultra D next week and we looked at many many trailers on the market including the KK and CC and AOF.

We are biased having owned an AS before but the reasons we chose it the second time were:

Customer Service, Locally made, Excellent Build Quality, resale value (try to buy a second hand one), ease of use, swing around kitchen and many, many, many more reasons..... (PM for a full list)

You are most welcome to come and look.

Each to their own, and I prefer not to comment negatively on any brand but both are excellent!

Good luck and enjoy!! NExt the decision is where to go.....!!

[LB]

Thanks Ultra D

For us AS is not local as we are in Sydney but there is a KK distributor just over an hour away in Wollongong who has a really good reputation. It seems to me from this forum you are either a AS person or a KK person (bit like Toyota or Nissan) no one really has good reason why one is better than the other.

LB

[WaituiRob]

Hi LB,

Just to throw something else in the mix, we saw these campers at the Wauchope Camping Show,very impressive and they are manufactured in Sydney. Very different, hard roof ,soft floor but able to pack up wet as canvas does not fold over bed.

http://www.brix.com.au/

Cheers and good luck with your decision, Robyn

[Wuzgonna]

Hi LB,

Its so true how you mention people are toyota or nissan, like ford or holden etc!

BTW - I am located in Sydney if you do want to have a look at the AS up close and personal.

Good luck with it all.

Cheers

Dave