soft verses hard floor campers

[donpato]

Still trying to decide but from what i can see it looks like the hard floor might be easier for an old bloke like me.

Would be interested to hear opinions from the experienced out there,i know a lot will be based on personal preference however am interesed in the practical differences.

[evolution]

My father just picked up a pod camper, really light weight and very easy to put up.
It could be worth a look? I know new they aren't that expensive.

Cheers
Evo

[Jason B]

Hardfloor for ease of use and if you don't need the space. If funds permit look at a cross over van thingy, no canvas or set up, and still robust enough to go where you want.

Jas

[fuji]

That's why I bought an Aussie Swag, still bloody hard to do it myself.

[xcvator]

My father just picked up a pod camper, really light weight and very easy to put up.
It could be worth a look? I know new they aren't that expensive.

Cheers
Evo

How much money do you want to spend ? From what I have seen generally the more you spend ( with out being stupid) the easier the camping is.
You really have to prioritize just what YOU need to be easy.
1/ opening the camper up ( include pegging it down with soft floor or adjusting the floor legs if it's a hard floor)
2/ folding the camper up ( reverse of above)
3/ Setting up the awning ( can it be left on and is packing up more difficult if it's left on)
4/ How much room do you need ( think about a couple of wet days)
3/ How much storage space will you need ( soft floors generally have lots more than hard floor)
4/ Speed of set up for overnighter (hard floor I don't know haven't got/had 1, my camper 15 minutes from pull up)
5/ Win lotto and get a crossover

[02-SR5]

I have a soft floor. But I hate soft floor campers with a passion. They are a pain in the arse to set up on your own, they are worse to even pack up.

IMHO, soft floor campers suck balls, and I still can't believe what companies charge for a tent on a box trailer.

They are not easy to live with for over nights. The hard floor, flip the top over, extends the internal poles and you are good to go. Soft floors require poles, guide ropes, pegs. Too much stuffing around for over nighters.

The only advantage to owning a soft floor is the space.

I would buy a hard floor in a heart beat if I could afford one.

[xcvator]

I have a soft floor. But I hate soft floor campers with a passion. They are a pain in the arse to set up on your own, they are worse to even pack up.

IMHO, soft floor campers suck balls, and I still can't believe what companies charge for a tent on a box trailer.

They are not easy to live with for over nights. The hard floor, flip the top over, extends the internal poles and you are good to go. Soft floors require poles, guide ropes, pegs. Too much stuffing around for over nighters.

The only advantage to owning a soft floor is the space. 

I would buy a hard floor in a heart beat if I could afford one.

Look around mate, my camper for overnight=no poles and 6 pegs and get into bed 

[moseyroc]

Hard floor all the way, we hated our old soft floor as well, too much stuffing around. Hard floors aren't perfect but its a damn sight easier to set-up & pack away on your own, we have a 14 month old baby so the wife is busy keeping a lid on him & I can set it up in 5-10 minutes depending on the level of the ground, enough for her to walk in & get eveything inside sorted. Once thats done I fuss around getting little things done but you gotta do that with whatever style camper/van you own anyway. Call me lazy! Theres two companies in Brendale (Bris) with new rear fold & one with front fold as well, for sale , all under $20g. Supposed to be oz made, might be worth a look

[02-SR5]

Look around mate, my camper for overnight=no poles and 6 pegs and get into bed 

I just had a look at Outback campers, they look good. I really like the rear fold design.

How much are they with the extras? Like kitchens and annex walls. Is the cost getting close to Jayco price range?

This one thing I have never under stood. Take away all the fruit and you have a canvas tent with internal bow's, stick it on a trailer and charge any where from 8k plus.

[xcvator]

I just had a look at Outback campers, they look good. I really like the rear fold design.

How much are they with the extras? Like kitchens and annex walls. Is the cost getting close to Jayco price range?

This one thing I have never under stood. Take away all the fruit and you have a canvas tent with internal bow's, stick it on a trailer and charge any where from 8k plus.

http://www.myswag.org/index.php?topic=21005.0
$29,900 and happy with it 

[TrevJel]

I have a soft floor which has a heap of floor space but because its so much stuffing around setting up and packing up I've removed the tent and in the process of build a lid for the trailer. I've purchased a Black Wolf tent simply to save time because whether its on the trailer or on the ground its still just a tent. never had a hard floor but I reckon it would be easier than a softy.

[Alan Loy]

The Sturt and the Canning from Outback are well under $20,000 even with extras.

The Bushranger Joey http://www.bushrangercampers.com.au/joey/joey.html at under $30 000 seems like a good deal if you want to avoid canvas

I have been looking at National Campers Hermit.  This has fixed sides so no drama putting it up. http://www.nationalcampers.com.au/hermit_(caravan_style).html

Anyone know anything about National?

[weeds]

i have used both, they each have there own pros and cons.

in wet weather hard floors are the go

the soft floor i had didn't have the amount of canvass as most seem to have these days.....it was a basic flip over, two pegs and no poles

i think there is way too much canvass on modern soft floors

in the end i built my own turning a RTT into a soft floor camper (not that it has a floor), great for the two of us and is easy to set up.....the kids have there own tent that they put up....the only downside would be when it rains as space wouold be tight

[Redcherokee]

Our Outback Sturt was $16k with a fair few extras.  It's 18 months old now, but when we took it in last weekend with a failed water pump, Greg fixed it for free. Can't complain about that 

If you can't decide between a soft or hard floor, you really want to try to hire one of each.  That way you will suddenly find out what matters to you - and it probably won't be something you expected.

[KingBilly]

I have a soft floor. But I hate soft floor campers with a passion. They are a pain in the arse to set up on your own, they are worse to even pack up.

IMHO, soft floor campers suck balls, and I still can't believe what companies charge for a tent on a box trailer.

They are not easy to live with for over nights. The hard floor, flip the top over, extends the internal poles and you are good to go. Soft floors require poles, guide ropes, pegs. Too much stuffing around for over nighters.

The only advantage to owning a soft floor is the space.

I would buy a hard floor in a heart beat if I could afford one.

Coming in a bit late but our soft floor doesn't require pegs or ropes for overnighters.  Flip it out and extend the internal poles and you are into bed.  Don't need to worry about levelling anything.  I can do it on my own but two make it easier.  Matter of minutes.

Now with setting up awnings and kitchens, I can't see any difference between a soft floor and a hard floor.  Same setup times and methods for both types of campers.

This one thing I have never under stood. Take away all the fruit and you have a canvas tent with internal bow's, stick it on a trailer and charge any where from 8k plus.

You could argue the same with a Jayco pop top CT with bed extensions.  Take away the roof and kitchen and you have a canvas tent with internal bows.  The sleeping arrangements in a Jayco with bed extensions is nothing different to those in a soft floor camper.  You have to climb over your partner to get in and out of bed and you are sleeping against canvas walls with a canvas roof in most cases.  In fact my soft floor has a better bed setup than a Jayco.  It is similar to a hard floor.  Only our pillows are near any canvas and we don't have to climb over each other to get into/out of bed.

I would go with Redcherokee's suggestion and hire both before deciding.

KB

[GraemeL]

If you have the budget and want something that is super easy to setup and packup, you can't go past Adventure Offroad Campers.

We have the Grand Tourer and have just come back from our first trip away with it. Setup time was approx 10mins and packup was about 15. This will get quicker as the canvas softens and we get used to doing it.

Its really that easy to setup and packup, that the wife can do it on her own while I get the fire going.