On road CT with low ball weight

[Dbbyrne]

I am just doing some research re buying a CT for the family - 2 adults, 1 teenager and 2 young kids. My big limitation is with my vehicle - Peugeot diesel wagon can tow 1500 kgs but ball weight is only 75 kgs per manufacturer specs. So looking at options available. Tossing up between cub hardfloor vs camprite ( at right price) vs trakshak. Hardfloor appeals because of quick set up but I am not wedded to hard floor.
Wondering if anyone can recommend other options we can look at.
Budget is $15k - $20k and don't mind buying second hand.

Thanks heaps

Dbbyrne

[BigJules]

My recommendation is that you continue to look at full offroad campers, even if you're not going to use the full capability. This means you get the build quality and resale opportunity of an offroad trailer, as well as retained value. The market for on-road campers seems much smaller.

That said, a Cub Spacematic/Supermatic might be worth looking at, and well within your budget though the teenager may wish to consider tent or swag, with the younger kids on camp bunks. I would have thought a Camprite would be over 75kg ball weight. From experience with a mate who has one they're heavier than they look.

How you pack and the length of the drawbar will have an impact on ball weight.

[Barry G]

Where are you located? 
There is a Trak-Shak in Pinewood(?) Qld on Gum tree for well within your budget.
Trak Shak seem a great bit of kit for a larger family. 
Ball weight can be 'modified' by keeping the front of the rack empty (e.g. for firewood when close to camp) but with stuff on the rear of the rack, aft of the axles.

[GeeTee]

As it seems you have already discovered, very few campers are designed/built with a manageable (less than 60kg) ball weight. Another factor against you is the fact many off-road trailers are set-up for higher vehicles (4WDs) so adopt a nose-down stance when behind conventional sedans etc. This means tents and tanks will be skewed when setting up.

A wheel/tyre change to, say, a 14-inch (with a wheel and hub swap) may improve this and may open up your options in a market populated by nose-heavy and tall trailers.

Many people buy once, buy right and keep their camper for a looong time so resale is a factor only if you intend to sell...!

[Dbbyrne]

Thanks for your valuable advice - it's much appreciated.  After much umming and ahhing, we have taken the plunge and bought a Prado so that our camper trailer options are totally wide open