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You’ll Never Believe This Isn’t A Vintage Camper

This post was updated on March 15th, 2024

As “baby boomers” reach retirement age, many feel a sweeping sense of nostalgia for the things they remember from their childhood. For some, that includes family road trips in wood-paneled station wagons pulling “canned ham” campers, and the frequent stops at roadside attractions and national parks.

This newly built RV was inspired by vintage campers from the 1960’s.

Vintage Inspired Newly Built Camper
Vintage campers from the 50’s and 60’s now often cost more than they did when they were brand new. With renewed interest comes increased demand, and many of these campers – even those in questionable condition – sell for astronomical prices. Complete renovations from the frame up are often required, and the process can be expensive and lengthy.

Jerry Ragon of CH Campers (“CH” stands for “Canned Ham”) started his business during his own remodeling of a vintage camper,

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Before I could get it completed I had people begging to purchase it from me. I never got a chance to camp in that camper before it was gone.

I started getting calls to see if I had any more for sale, preferably for vending use.  It was very difficult to find older campers to renovate into vending campers so I started building them brand new from the ground up.

Jerry designs the campers himself, from top to bottom, keeping an eye to the past for design elements, but using modern materials and building practices. CH Campers are stronger than the ones built in the 1960’s, with ceilings and walls twice as thick as those on the original models. Energy efficient spray foam insulation, instead of the 1/4” fiberglass found in the originals, makes the campers more livable, too.

These newly built campers are stronger and more energy efficient than older models.

Custom built camper

With models starting at $8,800, CH Campers are a great option for anyone who wants a vintage-looking camper – without all the headaches of actually buying and maintaining a 40-50 year old trailer. Vintage Shastas, which look very similar to CH Campers, can cost more than $4,000 without renovations, and can often require thousands of dollars’ worth of work before they’re usable.

These vintage-inspired campers have all of the charm and none of the problems of antique RVs.

Vintage Inspired Camper

A CH Camper can be customized for you from the start, and is ready to go the moment you pick it up. Many people have had custom built campers designed for vending operations or mobile businesses, including boutiques. Most customers though are just looking for a fun (and good looking) camper for weekend getaways.

This custom built vending trailer is brand new, but has vintage charm!

Vintage inspired vending trailer
There are many benefits to buying a vintage-inspired camper, as opposed to the real thing. For one, everything is brand new, so there are no concerns about faulty wiring, water-damaged sub floors, mold in the walls, or any of the other hidden dangers often associated with a decades-old vehicle. You won’t have to worry about devastating surprises that might strand you at an RV park far from home. Or worse yet, lead to an accident as you drive down the road.

The custom built interior of the CH Camper can be designed to fit your needs.

Custom Built Camper Interior
All-new construction with a smaller company like CH Campers also allows you to be a part of the design process, so you can fully customize your trailer to fit your exact needs. And even though these are newly built, they stay true to their vintage lineage. Jerry says,

The new owners, 100 percent of the time, always say it’s much more than they ever expected. They seem totally amazed it’s a new camper and not an old camper restored.

People can’t believe these are restored vintage campers!

Custom built campers look vintage

More information about CH Campers:




3 thoughts on “You’ll Never Believe This Isn’t A Vintage Camper”

  1. I’m really getting an itch for a small camper for quick weekend camping trips. These don’t help that any… I really just need to buy a full coach, ditch the apartment, and live on the road! Anyone want to help convince my wife for me?!? 🙂

  2. We just passed several of these prominently on display at an RV dealer along I-5 in Washington State! We didn’t get to stop and check them out in detail, but they immediately caught our attention and we couldn’t stop talking about them. How great that you’re featuring them here, and how everything old is new again! Thanks for the article. We want one! 🙂

  3. I would do anything to be able to go camping again. One of these would be perfect for me. I don’t camp anymore because I can’t sleep in a tent and don’t have the money for a camper. Good luck to everyone who enters.

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