What do you mean by diminishing returns? An Intech trailer isn't trying to solve the same problem, so why even bring it up?
Any love for Patriot Campers here?
- Thread starter ccfdcal
- Start date
What do you mean by diminishing returns? An Intech trailer isn't trying to solve the same problem, so why even bring it up?
It's way more than a tent, but ok.
PirateMcGee
Expedition Leader
PirateMcGee
Expedition Leader
The sleeping area is made out of tent material and they call it a tent in their own advertisements. It will still get wet, have to be dried out, provide little insulation for noise/temperature, and flutter some in the wind. I get it's a solid camper but like anything it comes with compromises and to me it's still tent material, requires annoying set up, and is wildly expensive. Title of the thread is any love for these campers.
I agree that it's a tent, but it's not tent material and it doesn't flutter in the wind - its heavy-duty, Australian-made canvas that is designed to withstand the elements. Mine has gotten rained on many times, but it's never leaked or soaked through. Yes it's pricey, but it's a high-end camper trailer and the rest of the features are what you're really paying for (and the quality of the work - it's indestructible). Personally, I love the tent aspect. I want to feel like I'm camping and it checks that box. I also live in CO and spend my winters skiing, so I don't have a need for camper in the winter.
As for the "annoying setup" - I disagree, I can set mine up in a matter of minutes.
PirateMcGee
Expedition Leader
Yep I had a little trailblazer tent trailer and many a canvas tent. Great material but it still had to be redeployed and dried out once home. They are quality and cool. They sell so it clearly ticks the boxes for some folks.
ccfdcal
Observer
I’ve had and used all sorts of setups. I had multiple RTT’s. One on an M101a style trailer and then just on the rig. I’ve used regular tent trailers and smaller bumper pull RV’s. I’ve also been in an Oztent with the family for around the last 5 years. I would say that my 2017 X1 is by far my favorite. I like that I can take it on just about any trail. I accidentally got on a trail while scouting for deer that was highly technical without a trailer attached to your rig. The X1 took it like a champ. It’s got a couple battle wounds, but nothing that i can’t live with. I would never take a hard sided trailer, no matter how rugged, on some of the trails my patriot has been on. It’s a great rig for a family of 4. The tent is super quiet and roomy especially with the annex on. Setup isn’t bad either. Take down is a bit longer. The kitchen is my favorite part. All of the tedious things that you have to do while car camping is a lot easier. Like washing dishes for instance. A sink and available water are amazing. Also, I love that almost everything I take with me is stored In the trailer and is ready to go at a moments notice. All in all I’m happy with it. I can see how some people can’t wrap their head around it, and that’s cool. I’m gonna run mine for a few more years and then see where we go from there.
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The Patriot and other trailers with tent for sleeping quarters is a whole different breed than a hard-sided camper. You cannot even compare the ruggedness of the two. Two very different demographics, neither one right or wrong. That's the beauty of the market, something for everyone!
2Jeeps&PatriotX1
Active member
Id recommend calling the guys at Exploration Outfitters or asking the FB Patriot Owners - USA group, lots of JLUs in the group. What’s your height from the ground to the top of the receiver tube? I know on our Bronco w/ 33s, it needs a 2.5” ball mount rise. The grand cherokee trailhawk below needed a 2.75” rise but it had air suspension to self-level.
I converted our X1 to a X1N when I installed the skycamp 2.0.
That's interesting, why did you convert? Easier setup? I'm really looking forward to the X1 tent since I really want the staircase and the annex. Tired of the ladders and stuff hanging outside.
2Jeeps&PatriotX1
Active member
We’ve had our X1 for 2.5yrs now. Love everything about it but after one of our spring/early summer camping trips, I wanted to save my marriage lol.
1. Tired of packing up the tent, annex & kids room after/during pouring rain and not easily being able to set everything up at home to air dry & clean. Both front and back yards are severely sloped and I cant continue to block the sidewalk when setting it up and leaving open for couple days at home.
2. Out here in CO, we have anything but flat, sandy spots in the mountains. Very rocky to where the screw pegs don’t work and regular pegs bend like a twizzler. Would be nice to be able to set up a tent without annex and not have to stake it down for a quick stopover or nap during travels.
3. My wife is as tall as a grasshopper’s kneecap on a good day and even with our step stool, helping me pile & fold the wet canvas onto the trailer is not enjoyable for either of us.
4. Find that setting up everything prevents us from moving spots more frequently. Again…no flat, sandy ground w/ killer views here in the mountains, so setting up in 12minutes or less like advertised can be thrown out the window.
Last but not least…happy wife, happy life!
My issue now is that I have the mattress, frame w/ ladder, tent, annex & kids room still taking up room in my house.
Now, that is totally understandable. We'll have to see how we'll deal with it. We had the Skycamp Mini on our 4Runner, but weren't happy with it. It took a long time to set up for the simple reason that the mattress completely sucked and we added two Thermarest 4" inflatable mattresses, that of course didn't fit when inflated, the rest of the gear didn't fit inside, so needed to be moved in and out of the car all the time. It came down to having the thing on the roof all the time AND not having quick and easy setup. We'll see how we'll handle the X1, although I'm more optimistic there. We don't need the nicest view for camp, we just want to be away from people, so from current experience I feel we'll generally be able to find a reasonable spot, especially since we won't need the kids room.
If we don't get along with the tent, we can still add a clamshell that is quick to set up and has space inside for the gear. The Skycamp 2.0 doesn't have some of the downsides of the Mini, so that might be an option, too, but so far I'm counting on using the X1 tent.
One more question regarding this: how difficult was it to take this whole thing off? What's underneath? A specialized platform for the X1 tent? Just raw mount points?
