Trailer value?

[S. Heisley]

Rob, you may be talking to the wrong crowd for advice on selling an "improved model" because we are a do-it-yourself group. Most of us would probably want the fun of improving it ourselves! That said, the mattress and tongue box would be nice. Lights and an inside shelf (does it have one already?) and maybe a utensil drawer hung on the underside of the counter might not be bad either; but, those would be luxuries on this model. I wouldn't bother with a built-in sink because, if I remember correctly, the back is open to the mattress area. Any leaks or spills and somebody could be sleeping on wet bedding. That outside tap is a nice conversation piece; but, I'm guessing that most people would shy away from that. Ditching that, if you can, is a good idea. ...Just my thoughts.

I had another thought on that tap.... If it can be gravity fed, it might be used for water. Put the jug on the roof and a hose from the jug to the tap and voila! Is that the way it was originally used on this trailer?

[Verna]

Rob, be sure to check the bottom of the walls around the the tires. The main problem with the early Little Guys (those made in Elkart, IN) was that there was no waterproofing of the edges of the plywood. The plywood would wick moisture, it would travel upwards and then the screws holding the walls to the frame would rust and the walls would literally fall down. Sorry I didn't see this post earlier. If your Little Guy has been stored inside and out of the weather, there won't be the moisture problem. Indycamper (Sharon) ran into this and she paid Little Guy to put a new body on her frame.

[Mary C]

The problem Verna mentioned could be a real bad one, hope yours is fine. that being said you could always wait find the buyer and find out what they want and do the remodling and adding then. But you know the front box is almost necessary!!!

Mary C.

[len19070]

I'd go Mid to upper Teens.

$15-1800.00.

Happy Trails

Len

[48Rob]

With it being a base model I would suggest simple electric. As in one outlet inside and one in the galley for charging small electronics, small clip up fan, small kitchen appliance, etc. Let the new owner add the "plug in" items. Any added storage would be a plus. 12 volt in one that small would require finding a place for the battery and that would take up needed storage. I would think that someone going with that model would be stepping up from a tent and won't miss a battery run power system but being able to plug an extension cord in for power when available would be nice.

Thank you John,

I appreciate your opinion!

Rob

[48Rob]

48Rob wrote:Thanks Tom,

Do you think that because of the trailers size, or?

Rob

Mostly the size, but also, I think its worth about 3500$, adding the other things probably won't raise that but they might make it sell faster. I looked at the LG website. I'd suggest adding the 12V/110 power, a sink and an entertainment center. The Sink, because every first time TD shopper thinks they need a sink, the ENt center because your probably looking at a younger demographic, and most of them like their ipods and music.
The base LG 4 wide sells for $7K, I don't see why you shouldn't be able to get 1/2 of that at least.
Tom

Tom,

Thank you for the clarification.

I appreciate your opinion!

Rob

[48Rob]

Rob, you may be talking to the wrong crowd for advice on selling an "improved model" because we are a do-it-yourself group. Most of us would probably want the fun of improving it ourselves! That said, the mattress and tongue box would be nice. Lights and an inside shelf (does it have one already?) and maybe a utensil drawer hung on the underside of the counter might not be bad either; but, those would be luxuries on this model. I wouldn't bother with a built-in sink because, if I remember correctly, the back is open to the mattress area. Any leaks or spills and somebody could be sleeping on wet bedding. That outside tap is a nice conversation piece; but, I'm guessing that most people would shy away from that. Ditching that, if you can, is a good idea. ...Just my thoughts.

I had another thought on that tap.... If it can be gravity fed, it might be used for water. Put the jug on the roof and a hose from the jug to the tap and voila! Is that the way it was originally used on this trailer?

Sharon,

You're right in that this crowd wants to do it themselves, but it is a great idea base since so many are so many thinking through these same ideas, or that have made the choices already.
I chose to remove the beer tap already. While it is a conversation piece, it probably wouldn't appeal to the young start up trailer camping couple.

Thank you for your ideas!

Rob

[48Rob]

Rob, be sure to check the bottom of the walls around the the tires. The main problem with the early Little Guys (those made in Elkart, IN) was that there was no waterproofing of the edges of the plywood. The plywood would wick moisture, it would travel upwards and then the screws holding the walls to the frame would rust and the walls would literally fall down. Sorry I didn't see this post earlier. If your Little Guy has been stored inside and out of the weather, there won't be the moisture problem. Indycamper (Sharon) ran into this and she paid Little Guy to put a new body on her frame

Verna,

Thanks for the cautions!
I did look it over pretty well before buying it. I remembered the mess Sharon got into

This camper has spent most of its life inside, and looks good underneath.
There is a half circle of exposed plywood at the bottom of the wall where the axle comes across, but everything else is covered.
That said, I'll pay special attention to the bottom of the walls and clean and reseal these areas to be sure they don't create a problem for a future owner.

Rob

[48Rob]

The problem Verna mentioned could be a real bad one, hope yours is fine. that being said you could always wait find the buyer and find out what they want and do the remodling and adding then. But you know the front box is almost necessary!!!

Mary C.

Mary,

Thank you for your thoughts, I agree that extra storage is never a bad thing.

Rob

[48Rob]

I'd go Mid to upper Teens.

$15-1800.00.

Happy Trails

Len

Len,

Thank you for your opinion!


Rob

[BrwBier]

With the advances made in LED battery lighting made as fast as they are these days I might not put 12v lighting in. Maybe just a port on the side for an extension core and some kind of hold down system for removable baskets/crates would be appealing.

[bobhenry]

Electricity is a very scary thing to some folks and a big hurdle for them. I , to , think if a nice simple system was in place it would be a worthwhile investment in time and materials.

[48Rob]

BB, and Bob,

Thank you for your thoughts!

I agree that lighting and electric is very important.
Bob, I remember being a young start up at age 17 and being "scared" of electricity.
These days I look at things much differently, and am qualified to install simple, to complex systems.

Adding power was one of my first thoughts. Adding battery powered puck lights made sense too.
I think having both works well!
The simple electrial system can easily include some outlets for basic comfort items like a fan and small space heater, microwave or electric hot plate, and charging for electronics.

Rob

[wincrasher]

Sounds like a fun little project.

Keeping in mind your budget, and the likely buyer, keeping it simple is best. Whoever is buying this likely is moving up from a tent. So what did you want when you did the same thing?

A home for your gear (probably have alot of things from tenting) - so a small tool box and some bins or cabinets inside would be needed. A few lights. A few hooks. Clean and polish. Not sure if 110v would even be wanted. A simple DC system - a small 18 ah battery, a couple cigarette plugs and the lights. Don't forget an outside light.

Use some undercoating on those areas that could be suspect to rot.

Good luck with it!

[48Rob]

Sounds like a fun little project.

Keeping in mind your budget, and the likely buyer, keeping it simple is best. Whoever is buying this likely is moving up from a tent. So what did you want when you did the same thing?

A home for your gear (probably have alot of things from tenting) - so a small tool box and some bins or cabinets inside would be needed. A few lights. A few hooks. Clean and polish. Not sure if 110v would even be wanted. A simple DC system - a small 18 ah battery, a couple cigarette plugs and the lights. Don't forget an outside light.

Use some undercoating on those areas that could be suspect to rot.

Good luck with it!

Thanks!

I do love projects!

Even more I love finding ways to get my kids and grandkids to go camping with us.

When we built our first teardrop, we tried to add as many things as we could.
We did, electric (120) and 12 volt.
A small space heater.
A sink and stove.
A cooler.
And drawers and cabinets.

It worked well!

An outside light is a good idea.
I learned on another trailer that it is best to put the light on the hinge side, instead of the handle side.
(All the bugs fly in when you open the door )

Thank you for your thoughts and ideas, they will help to make this a really nice camper for someone just starting out.

Rob