Camel The Beachcomber

Camel Camper Beachcomber Plus review – We purchase an ex-show model Camel Camper Beachcomber Plus, and although it looked very good in there Sydney showroom, once we go it into the daylight we started spotting things new customers should be aware of. But first I’ll start with the things we like about this camper: - it tows very well - has lots of room in the tent - tent… Read more

quality looks pretty good, although we haven’t had it setup on completely level ground, we have noticed the tent seemed to pull more to the back and didn’t quite sit right on the ground

- trailer seems to be built tough

- tow hitch is good

- comes with inner spring double mattress

Some of the things we’ve found that we don’t like:

- base model kitchen is useless (Chinese campers come with a lot more), finished edges are quite sharp, I have cut myself a few times on them

- all the water pipe fittings we’re cable tied on instead of hose clamped. 60% of the cable ties and water pipes were loose

- we chose the Camel Camper over the GIC camper because at first glance the build quality looked better. On closer inspection this doesn’t appear to be the case. Some of the finishes are quite rough, not what you would expect for a camper that costs a fair bit more

- plastic jerry cans don’t fit in the jerry can holders. Looks like only metal jerry cans can fit or we need to shop around for a smaller profile plastic jerry can

- the sales person offered to touchup the paint where it had been scratch or worn off while it was being used as a show model, the plastic kitchen drawers were covered in overspray and a lot of the touchup paint has come off

- the aluminium door on the jerry can holder on the step side of the camper doesn’t open far enough to get a jerry can in, and I don’t have a metal jerry can to try to see if it fits

- the carpet in the walk up section is fitted using velcro, this was pealing away the first time we opened the camper after we purchased it

- the access door under the bed (ply board) has a split in it

- the front a-frame storage box lid has the locks riveted on, the problem there is the rivets are too long and prevent the lid from sealing. The first time we used the camper the storage box filled up with dust

- the general quality of the front a-frame storage box is average at best (I have seen Chinese campers with better quality storage boxes)

- the plastic kitchen drawers are screwed in from underneath, but not very well. The set of drawers with the two smaller drawers, when you open the bottom drawer the weight of whatever is in the top drawer is enough to cause the drawer to fall out of its slide

- the water pipe to the kitchen tape gets crimped in the rear tailgate when it is shut

- tent cover blows about so much we've added three tie down straps to help stop this (mainly a distraction while driving)

- when we first got the camper, the tent leaked from at least four different areas on the tent

- when we went to register the trailer with the RTA (in NSW), the trailer was listed at least 100kg heavier than the information we had found about the trailer

This review is not meant to favour GIC campers, as from our visits to GIC's store we saw many of the same problems. This review was written to help those looking at buying an offroad camper, to help them with things to look out for when buying a camper. To give you an idea of things to consider that you may not have thought of when looking over the campers.

These Australian built campers may be built tough and offroad able, but you get bugger all with them (unless you pay big bucks). And this is not just a gripe at Camel Campers, but at all the Australian built campers. This Camel Camper is great offroad.

But, we have had to make a lot of modifications to our trailer to make it more usable, and we still have a long way to go.

You may think we are just complaining about trivial things, but when you are out using your camper, these things will stand out. And many of these issues aren't really warranty problems but design floors. The cost of transporting your camper to Qld for a warranty repair may outweigh the cost of the repair if you did it yourself.

In general Camel Campers seem to be a good tough camper trailer, they just have a few design issues and rough edges, and you don’t get very much for the money you are spending.

Best tip we’ve heard, hire a camper, then make a list:

of the things you don’t like about it

the things you do like about it

things its missing that you would add

things you don’t need

what you could do better

Then when you are shopping for a camper, use this list as a tool to narrow down your options.

Happy camping...

Good – We have an older model of this camper and the design has changed a little now. We have had no problems with it what so ever and we use it at least once a week. I stongly recommend hot dip galvanising if you intend to use it for beach work. We have been very happy with this product. Durable, Easy to assemble, the company is supportive, good quality canvas and zips A little heavy for beach towing. Would prefer wind down stabalisers.