Wife needs indoor accommodations....what is worth buying?

[calicamper]

I am for sure not talking about the Opus 15.

Our pricing is based around the quality and ability of our units so yes they are a but more than US made "Stick and Tin" units.

Airstream units are nice is you want to stay on road but like our units they charge for the quality you receive.

Cooking inside a camper like ours is a nice option but honestly do you want your camper smelling like last nights dinner? Most of the time my personal inside cook tops are better relegated to coffee and tea making.
Our outside kitchens exist for just that concern. Having all the kitchen amenities outside allow you to avoid smells and enjoy the outdoors while you're cooking.

Our new design comes in at just a tick under 8ft closed but I guess of off season storage you could swap to a smaller wheel and tire to get the clearance you need?

So XT15 Isn’t Opus? Inside cooking is a nice to have option when out doors cooking isn’t working. Ie Moab winds and dust, Sierras thunderstorms both pose challenges cooking outside my current setup is only outside cooking. Its fine till it isn’t lol.

 

[Deleted member 9101]

Cooking inside a camper like ours is a nice option but honestly do you want your camper smelling like last nights dinner? Most of the time my personal inside cook tops are better relegated to coffee and tea making.
Our outside kitchens exist for just that concern. Having all the kitchen amenities outside allow you to avoid smells and enjoy the outdoors while you're cooking.

Camp in Florida during the Summer.... You'll definitely want an indoor kitchen...haha.

 

[calicamper]

Ok now I know why I’m thinking Opus 15. This same trailer is basically being imported as a kit. Assembled and sold under different brand names. Got it
I bet you could sell a few more selling them as a kit delivered on pallets to the buyers driveway?

 

[calicamper]

Camp in Florida during the Summer.... You'll definitely want an indoor kitchen...haha.

Friend spent a month in Florida just got back he bailed when COVID started to get crazy and he wasn’t seeing any mask wearing or social distancing. He mentioned cooking inside was the norm vs outside when he was in Wyoming and Colorado.

 

[dreadlocks]

Cooking in bear country, you definitely want an outdoor kitchen.. after decades of backpacking and tenting in bear country the prospect of cooking inside seemed absurd when we finally upgraded to a trailer.

not that I'd ever go to Florida to camp in the summer, mebe in the winter.. but yeah I could see how having a bug free indoor kitchen w/air conditioning would be pretty sweet in that situation.. but since chances are high genset would be running for aircon in such a scenario, I could bring the kitchen inside w/some small electric appliances that dont produce flames... like an induction cooker.

 

[MDC USA]

There are a lot of trailers made by the same factories but ours are not one of them. All of our factories only do our units, no other brands and we have AU staff in all of them doing QC.

Yes a lot of the trailers in AU look the same but that's due to the constraints of size / size for road legal use. The features are usually similar due to customer demand and then there are a lot of knock-offs of the successful brands like ours and others.

The big difference is actually in some of the smallest parts that normally go unnoticed such as the quality of the bearing slides, actual name brand appliances (opposed to knock-offs), name brand bearings and seals and other details.

I see your point on the inside cooking, it does have it's usefulness but at that point it's sandwiches for me ?

I don't think anyone wants to unload a 40ft sea container in their driveway to assemble one at home but there are some that are more courageous than others ?

 

[calicamper]

Cooking in bear country, you definitely want an outdoor kitchen.. after decades of backpacking and tenting in bear country the prospect of cooking inside seemed absurd when we finally upgraded to a trailer.

not that I'd ever go to Florida to camp in the summer, mebe in the winter.. but yeah I could see how having a bug free indoor kitchen w/air conditioning would be pretty sweet in that situation.. but since chances are high genset would be running for aircon in such a scenario, I could bring the kitchen inside w/some small electric appliances that dont produce flames... like an induction cooker.

Having been a Bear country camper my whole life I will tell you my recent non bear country camping made hard walls and indoor cooking needs very obvious. Winds in the desert and plains make tents a no go, add desert dust storms and biting flies from the more humid regions I quickly understood why RVs are such a big deal. LOL
Out west in Bear country we are fine as long as we don’t have food in our sleeping space.

 

[TGK]

As far as cooking inside is concerned, any RV I would own has to have the capability of doing at least basic cooking inside. I've owned 2 FWC pop up truck campers over the last 22 years and still own a vintage Airstream that I've had for 15. Prior to that, did a lot of tent camping, river trips, etc. We have used these units year round in the Pacific Northwest from the coast to the high desert. In January, even if camped at one of Oregon's great coastal State Parks, if it's 38 degrees out and dark at 6:00 pm with a good coastal wind blowing a driving rain through the campground, no thanks on cooking outside. Likewise in the Oregon Cascades and also farther east in the high desert Basin there are a few many beautiful out of the way spots in the back country where the mosquitos will eat you alive in the middle of the summer. Again, being able to get inside when needed is essential to us. We also usually carry a portable 2 burner stove and if the weather is great, as it is often, we can cook outside and enjoy.

 

[RockyMountainOverlander]

There are a lot of trailers made by the same factories but ours are not one of them. All of our factories only do our units, no other brands and we have AU staff in all of them doing QC.

Yes a lot of the trailers in AU look the same but that's due to the constraints of size / size for road legal use. The features are usually similar due to customer demand and then there are a lot of knock-offs of the successful brands like ours and others.

The big difference is actually in some of the smallest parts that normally go unnoticed such as the quality of the bearing slides, actual name brand appliances (opposed to knock-offs), name brand bearings and seals and other details.

I see your point on the inside cooking, it does have it's usefulness but at that point it's sandwiches for me ?

I don't think anyone wants to unload a 40ft sea container in their driveway to assemble one at home but there are some that are more courageous than others ?

Are these manufactured in Australia or China? I know a lot of them are under Australian names but are actually built for the most part in China and finished in the states?

 

[calicamper]

Are these manufactured in Australia or China? I know a lot of them are under Australian names but are actually built for the most part in China and finished in the states?

So far my list of manufactured in China is Black Series, Opus and now this XT. They all look like they are coming out of the same facility only different layouts and branding.

 

[RockyMountainOverlander]

So far my list of manufactured in China is Black Series, Opus and now this XT. They all look like they are coming out of the same facility only different layouts and branding.

I think there can be quality units that come out of China, such as Opus. Black Series is a different story. Can't believe the amount of problems I hear about Black Series. I don't know much about MDC, but I see they say they are manufactured in Australia--they do look a lot like BS and Opus.

 

[jmnielsen]

I think there can be quality units that come out of China, such as Opus. Black Series is a different story. Can't believe the amount of problems I hear about Black Series. I don't know much about MDC, but I see they say they are manufactured in Australia--they do look a lot like BS and Opus.

Their post on this page states that they are made in China, and final assembly is done here in the US.

 

[calicamper]

I think there can be quality units that come out of China, such as Opus. Black Series is a different story. Can't believe the amount of problems I hear about Black Series. I don't know much about MDC, but I see they say they are manufactured in Australia--they do look a lot like BS and Opus.

I think quality can come out of China just as Quality can come out of Australia or Texas or Indiana etc. But most costly US travel trailers out of China? They honestly fall on the bottom of my list. I’d rather go find a builder and get what I want. I don’t need half the stuff they pack into these. I just need a box with a bed for two and bunks for 2 and a water closet. A bench and table and cooking surface, some cubbies for storage. That’s honestly not a $40,000 need. I can rent a pile of vacation houses and cabins for that, and not have a single night in a RV parking lot ?.

The boondocking thing is great hell I live on the West Coast, but I’m not dragging a $40,000 trailer and my $80,000 truck up anything more than a graded gravel road anyway. I’ll ride my mt bike or wear my hiking boots or get a dirt bike to do the rough stuff given thats what most of us out west do anyway.

 

[MDC USA]

So far my list of manufactured in China is Black Series, Opus and now this XT. They all look like they are coming out of the same facility only different layouts and branding.

Yes, 90% of all the trailers you see in Australia are made in China as are ours with final assembly done in the country of use.

Just as @calicamper said, it's not where it's made that matters, it's the quality control that makes a good product.
Example of good QC making a good product is your Android or Iphone coming out of China
Example of bad QC making a bad product is a lot of the RV's coming out of Elkheart, IN

Grouping all the brands together as one factory is incorrect here is a simple breakdown:
Opus 15 = China Factory 1
Opus Tent Trailer = China Factory 2
Black Series Caravans = Private China Factory
Black Series Tent Campers & Crux = China Factory 3
MDC Caravans and Tent Trailers = Private China Factory (with AU QC staff and Engineer on site)

Price is price, unfortunately as the old saying goes "you can't make everybody happy all of the time".
If you're looking for a trailer that can do what ours can do then the pricing probably makes a bit more sense to you.
If you're just trucking down fire roads and setting up camp at the local KOA then we may not be in your wheelhouse.

We do try and give a lot of value for the money in our units. Our little Mod Box is a good example.
What you get for under $15k:
Full dipped galvanized steel frame
Full Powder coated trailer body
Independent coil spring /dual shock/ trailing arm suspension
16" alloy wheels with 31x10.50 MT's (Full size spare also)
Stainless Steel kitchen with Dometic 3 burner stove
A ton of storage room
100ah AGM battery
17L Water tank with electric pump and faucet
270 Degree Awning
Hardshell RTT

Sorry if I'm too far off topic here just trying to be informative.

 

[rehammer81]

Yes, 90% of all the trailers you see in Australia are made in China as are ours with final assembly done in the country of use.

Just as @calicamper said, it's not where it's made that matters, it's the quality control that makes a good product.
Example of good QC making a good product is your Android or Iphone coming out of China
Example of bad QC making a bad product is a lot of the RV's coming out of Elkheart, IN

Grouping all the brands together as one factory is incorrect here is a simple breakdown:
Opus 15 = China Factory 1
Opus Tent Trailer = China Factory 2
Black Series Caravans = Private China Factory
Black Series Tent Campers & Crux = China Factory 3
MDC Caravans and Tent Trailers = Private China Factory (with AU QC staff and Engineer on site)

Price is price, unfortunately as the old saying goes "you can't make everybody happy all of the time".
If you're looking for a trailer that can do what ours can do then the pricing probably makes a bit more sense to you.
If you're just trucking down fire roads and setting up camp at the local KOA then we may not be in your wheelhouse.

We do try and give a lot of value for the money in our units. Our little Mod Box is a good example.
What you get for under $15k:
Full dipped galvanized steel frame
Full Powder coated trailer body
Independent coil spring /dual shock/ trailing arm suspension
16" alloy wheels with 31x10.50 MT's (Full size spare also)
Stainless Steel kitchen with Dometic 3 burner stove
A ton of storage room
100ah AGM battery
17L Water tank with electric pump and faucet
270 Degree Awning
Hardshell RTT

Sorry if I'm too far off topic here just trying to be informative.

I much appreciate your feedback on this topic. I think it would be great if you broke this down in a very open and honest manner in the MDC thread specifically. It might help your trust and growth in the U.S. market. I'm sure there are others like myself that are looking for very capable trailers but question the quality of what appear to be mix and match Mr. Potato Head Chinese trailers with a different Australian company name plastered on the side. It reminds me very much of the roof-top-tent market. When you look at MDC, BS, Opus, Lotus, Zone, etc, you can't help but notice how similar and/or damn near identical these trailers are. The suspension look like they are the identical components coming straight off the same manufacturing line. We have all seen the horror stories from some BS owners, probably the most popular of this group of trailers in the U.S. MDC is not as popular yet but I'm sure people see the similarities to BS and get scared off. Especially at that price point.

So how can you address this? If it was my company, I would try to put as much info as possible out there on my website where it is easy to find and try to be as transparent as possible. Provide a thorough walk through of materials used and the build process. Lots of pictures and a detailed video. Airstream and some of the fiberglass trailer manufacturers, like Oliver, have some great build process videos that show attention to detail. If you did this you would differentiate yourself from the Chinese crap connotation. Then it would be up to you to keep up the quality and most importantly, provide unparalleled customer service when issues arise as they most assuredly will. That is another bad rep BS has gotten in the U.S. that I have seen.

I myself am interested in possibly one of Jackson Forward Fold as an intermediate trailer until I can afford a caravan. I do have my reservations on what I'm actually getting quality wise for my money. I'll pay for capability and quality but I don't like getting burned obviously.

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