Scamp won’t be as celebrated in trendy circles as Airstream, however it’s a equally iconic tenting trailer model with deep historical past. Its roots dig all the way in which again to the market’s unique fiberglass camper icon, and far of its trendy lineup appears just about unchanged from these basic fiberglass pods of the Nineteen Sixties and 70s. This month, although, the Scamp household flashes a brand new look with the Scamp X, a ruggedized, all-terrain design that updates the long-lasting egg trailer for contemporary deep-wilderness journey. The X is Scamp’s first off-road-specific mannequin in additional than 50 years in enterprise.
Earlier than the Scamp, there was the Boler. Inbuilt 1968, the unique Boler trailer is popularly credited as being the market’s first profitable fiberglass trailer, leveraging fiberglass’ excessive strength-per-weight and leak-free integrity right into a production-bound design. Creators Ray Olecko and Sandor Dusa rolled out the 13-foot (4-m) 800-lb (363-kg) four-sleeper journey trailer that Olecko would use as a private household camper. The trailer featured higher and decrease molded-fiberglass tub shells bonded collectively to create a curvy RV field that got here to be in comparison with an egg on wheels.
As Boler’s creators labored to develop the trailer from award-winning one-off to marketable product, they seemed to develop their footprint and established an American subsidiary in 1971. Boler American was tasked with bringing the benefits of the smooth, new fiberglass 13-footer to the American plenty. To take action, it signed up US-based fiberglass retailers and tradesmen to function manufacturing companions, together with a Minnesota cellular dwelling remodeler named Duane Eveland.
Boler American proved fairly short-lived and filed for chapter only a yr later in 1972. Eveland’s Inc., based by Duane Eveland and his siblings Gerald and Gladys, was left with the 13-foot Boler molds however not one of the enterprise and advertising and marketing help Boler American was to supply below the deal. It reorganized and rebranded the trailer because the Scamp, constructing out its manufacturing footprint in Backus, Minnesota and growing manufacturing of the unique trailer annually earlier than including 16- and 19-foot (4.9- and 5.8-m) fashions within the late 70s and early 80s.
Scamp lengthy outlasted Boler (Canada) itself, which went out of enterprise in 1988, and have become as synonymous because the originator with the fashion of compact, curvy fiberglass trailer nonetheless recognized fondly as an “egg” trailer. Different manufacturers like Trillium and Casita emerged over the a long time with related designs of their very own, and extra lately manufacturers like LA-based Happier Camper and British Columbia’s Armadillo Trailers (the latter now defunct) have emerged to assist make sure the timeless design is not forgotten within the twenty first century.
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Right now, Scamp continues to function from its base in Backus, Minnesota and remains to be owned and operated by the Eveland household. Present CEO Micah Eveland, grandson of founder Duane, took over in 2020 after his father Kent’s retirement and appears eager on including some trendy upgrades to the Scamp household with out disrupting the classic fiberglass egg aesthetic that is made the model an icon.
Like different fiberglass trailers of the identical fashion, Scamp trailers have lengthy been famend for his or her easy-towing, light-weight development, value-forward pricing, hard-sided leakproof design, and long-lasting sturdiness. It isn’t unusual to see Scamp trailers from a long time in the past nonetheless roaming highways and thriving at campgrounds immediately.
All these attributes make the Scamp a pure platform for a hard-walled off-road journey camper. It occupies an intriguing center floor between off-road teardrops and huge, heavy journey trailers and is as timelessly whimsical as a teardrop however with area for a correct flooring plan accommodating a household of 4.
Given how lengthy Scamp has been working, we thought perhaps we had simply missed its previous off-road trailer efforts, however the firm confirms that that is really its first off-road-specific mannequin in its 54-year historical past. That is as thrilling as it’s shocking since adventurers searching for a extra rugged, off-the-beaten-path Scamp have been beforehand left to transform used Scamps on their very own. Now there’s an choice accessible as new straight from the manufacturing unit … and it is an eye fixed catcher.
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The all-new Scamp X options the tried-and-true dual-tub bonded fiberglass development and elegance of a basic 13-foot Scamp however provides in some beefed-up operating gear to raised negotiate tough, shifting terrain. That package deal locations a Timbren heavy-duty suspension inward of ST235/75R15 off-road tires, pushing floor clearance as much as 18 inches (46 cm), 6 inches (15 cm) greater than the usual Scamp 13.
Along with the knobby off-road tires, the elevated floor clearance is likely one of the first belongings you discover concerning the Scamp X. The unique Scamp’s wheel arches sink down over the tires, whereas the X’s are utterly above. Scamp additional accentuates this distinction with the kind of distinction flares automakers typically use for 4WD/AWD fashions. It additionally provides an “X” graphics package deal atop an olive inexperienced/white paint break up to additional distinguish the brand new trailer.
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The Scamp X flooring plans carry over from the Scamp 13, although they have been rebranded into the extra outdoorsy “TRK” and “ALT” packages. The 2 packages give patrons the choice of a moist rest room (ALT) or bunk beds on the entrance of the inside, the latter fulfilling four-person sleeping capabilities with its mixture of two 76 x 30-in (193 x 76-cm) entrance bunk beds and a rear 76 x 54-in (193 x 137-cm) double mattress transformed over from the U-bench dinette. The bunks remodel into an additional couch through the day.
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Each flooring plans embody a central galley block with dual-burner gasoline range, sink and under-counter fridge. The Scamp X is not essentially totally optimized for off-grid boondocking, but it surely does embody double the propane capability of normal 13-foot Scamps, packing in two 20-lb tanks. A 400-W photo voltaic panel system is accessible optionally for charging the onboard 27 Collection leisure battery.
The Scamp’s composite flooring is secured to the metal chassis beneath and topped inside with a tractive rubber coin floor. Different commonplace options embody a water heater, 45-L contemporary water tank, 45-An influence converter, and 30-A shore energy hookup with cable. An articulating hitch gives a greater vary of movement for uneven terrain, whereas electrical brakes assist pull it to cease. The two-in hitch receiver in again lets homeowners connect bicycle racks and different carry methods.
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The Scamp X has a base weight of 1,986 lb (900 kg) and a 3,500-lb (1,588-kg) gross automobile weight score due to the upgraded Timbren HD 3500 suspension setup. It is accessible to order now for a beginning value of US$28,495. Further choices on supply embody a furnace, air conditioner, lithium battery package deal, roof rack package deal, awning, TV/Starlink satellite tv for pc web package deal, moveable rest room and outside bathe.
Along with its Backus, Minnesota HQ, Scamp opened an all-new Phoenix facility in 2024 that serves as a gross sales showroom and components and repair heart.
Supply: Scamp
