Starcraft pine mountain starmate

BigDan

Observer
I was offered a Starcraft Pine mountain Starmate ( 9 feet floor) pop up camper ....it`s a 2008 pristine ....has toilet & shower ! furnace , stove , fridge etc...

The price is good,

Is it a good buy ? are these Starcraft pop up campers any good ?
I just cant afford those top quality units like alaskan , FW or similar ....

Any starcraft pop up owners here that could chime ?

we wish to go for hard to reach ( rough trails ) fishing spots ......I will tow my fishing boat or my modified CJ Jeep ....

Thanks

Daniel ,
still dreaming of a VW LT40 syncro .....
 

jrod420

Observer
I have been pretty rough with this one. It is second hand to me, and was treated even worse by the PO. I frequently take this places where the truck is flexed out to the max towing the quad trailer. It has hit big branches and shrugged them off without issue. i have removed the clearance lights on the front and sides as they are a place for water to enter on the older models, (three holes per light). Just so you know, mine is a 1996 I think. Pretty happy with it. Purchased in the 2000-2500 range and added about 1000 in stuff, fantastic fan, led conversion on all the lights, new deep cycle battery.
The flexing of the box in serious offroad conditions hasn't had any negative impact on the camper as of yet.

2cxdwso.jpg
 

Umtaneum

Adventurer
I had what appears to be the same model as jrod, a 1998. I bought it brand new. It was a fantastic camper for my young family, but the construction quality was not very good. The fabric portion let in a lot of wind and dust. The top leaked in storage and let part of the front overhang rot. In retrospect, if I would have stored it inside it would have lasted a lot better. I gave it to my brother who took it to Burning Man 7 times. He just finally gave it away on Craigslist last month, in dire need of a rebuild. Long story short, they are laid out pretty good, have a lot of amenities like a shower and head which a lot of popups don't have, lightweight, and inexpensive. Downside: some poor quality construction details. Also the crank-up aluminum frame for the top is a pain in the butt.
 

jrod420

Observer
I had what appears to be the same model as jrod, a 1998. I bought it brand new. It was a fantastic camper for my young family, but the construction quality was not very good. The fabric portion let in a lot of wind and dust. The top leaked in storage and let part of the front overhang rot. In retrospect, if I would have stored it inside it would have lasted a lot better. I gave it to my brother who took it to Burning Man 7 times. He just finally gave it away on Craigslist last month, in dire need of a rebuild. Long story short, they are laid out pretty good, have a lot of amenities like a shower and head which a lot of popups don't have, lightweight, and inexpensive. Downside: some poor quality construction details. Also the crank-up aluminum frame for the top is a pain in the butt.

Doods right, I have also completely rebuild the front and rear of the roof. The previous owner hit his house with it and caused some significant damage. I took some ideas from another member here and used poly deck boarding, all plastic, no more rot. I also had the canvas completely replaced new. $600 ish canadian at local fella, had a vinyl flap added to the front for when the camper is in the deployed position the front flap rests on the bug splatter from highway driving. The vinyl is easily wipeable. Also had all the flaps extended by 2" just cause. The heco lift, when properly adjusted works great. Mine works with two fingers now, hardly any effort needed. I think I have a ghetto build thread here somewhere....
 

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