3.) ROLITE CAMPER NATIONAL TRAILER CLUB!:

Welcome to the unofficial, perhaps first and only
webpage dedicated to the almighty, wonderful
ROLITE camper, the Poorman's Airstream! Fooled you, eh? You thought there was no such site didn't you? I attached this page to another
site I have dedicated to OLD things because the ROLITE is an OLD thing, as am I, plus the fact that I had some space available here. If this thing evolves perhaps we can move it to its exclusive website. The "ROLITER National Trailer Club" was offered by the company for $2.00 for a one year membership which also included membersip number plates. I have yet to find one of these mailings. It is this man's opinion that in time the lowly little Rolite will be the next Airstream, or at least next best thing. It will never rot or rust if properly cared for, and in a hundred years they will still be Rolling! The Rolite was made in Grantsburg, WI, USA.

This site is for all ROLITE owners, and you are welcome to send in stories of your ROLITE and of how you came to own one, the year and length and such. Does it still fold down? What modifications have been made to it over the years, or by you?? How much did it cost? We can make a list of owners and include city and state. For privacy reasons we should stick to nicknames or last name initials, and e-mail addresses will be optional, and I will replace the "at" sign with the word AT to prevent web spiders from gleening addresses from the site, promoting spam.

I will also endeavor to assemble information on the ROLITE'S history in Grantsburg, Wisconsin. If you need a copy of the Owner's Manual, called
"The ROLITERS Guide, Everything you'll want to know about your ROLITE. Drive it down and live it up", LMK as one came with Pudley's unit and we made several copies of them. I actually have an earlier version, and a later Larson Industries version. I can send a PDF copy by email from the following address. Please send your PDFs and other scans and large files here too:

fertfaust[at]msn.com

If you sell your ROLITE, do the next ROLITER a favor and leave him with an owner's manual and location of this site!

Will a National Camporee be in the future? A parade of ROLITES?

________________________________________

IMPORTANT NEWS FLASH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
2/3/2007:
On the first of Jan., 2007 I had a Roliters best dream come true! I was contacted by the inventor of the Rolite!!! Apparently his son found this site and connected me with his Dad Leo, and we have since done some chatting about the early days of the Roly. For some of the informative emails he has sent, see the bottom of this page.
________________________________________

Here is a list of known ROLITES to my knowledge, that we know the owners. See the SIGHTINGS list below for others (where known, serial numbers are listed; see ROLITE FACTS below for location of this number):

-AZ, Tuscon, 2/3/2007, Gary:
Sure would appreciate being able to talk with other Rolite owners . Just bought a 1966 12 ft. Rolite on ebay. It's a peach. If you can put me on your Rolite page that would be great. Thanks in advance,                                   
Gary Syers of Tucson Arizona.  I welcome all callers 206-920-7694


-MN, Andover, the Packits:
??', 1970^v (jpaquette00[at]hotmail.com

-MN, Baxter/(Brainerd), Pudley:
16', 1968^, serial number 1 68-3L-2XL. Left side-mounted fridge, not operational. (Removed?) He has laboriously re-lined the interior in beautiful oak paneling, cabinets and trim! (pbfaust[at]chartermi.net)

-MN, Brainerd, Daily: 16', 1968?^:
Left side- mounted fridge, not operational/removed. He set it up as a mobile music machine, to fascilitate much wattage in the cottage for his infernal George Thorogood! Wear earplugs. He has re-lined the interior with new paneling, and built cabinets.
(petersen[at]brainerd.net)

-MN, Brainerd, Fert (me):
*12' , 1968^, serial number 12-730 (could this indicate it's really a 1973???): No fridge, my homemade gravity-feed running water. Watch your trailer-tongue for signs of metal fatigue. Mine was weakening at the weld where it meets the unit, and had bent by about 5 degrees. Pudley's older 1966 12' model used a larger size iron beam, so they apparently cheapened up on the steel in later years. This one came with home made holes cut in to the floor so it's a 4-hole ice fishing house too! I have painted the interior a beige color, and added cabinets. I had to re-build the ceiling as the 2X2's were rotten. I laminated the new ones with angle iron so one can now walk with safety on the roof. At first I used it as a collapsable, but it was too cumbersome in the wintertime, and I needed much more cabinetry, so I locked it in to permanent up position, and had cabinets built in.

I got my first camper in about 1985, an American, and I'd like to find one again. It had the neatest arrangement inside. I've found 2 since but neither is for sale. Then I did the big trailer thing, and hated it. From there I did the pickup thing on the ol' F 250 Fords, and man was that scary going on and off. The best one was an Alaskan, which went up hydraulically, like a turtle shell. Then I had one that was a soft side and had a sliding glass door in the back! I always wanted a Bethany but never found one. Then I found my Roly and did a lot of ice fishing from it, and the rest is history...I'm sold. (nostalgiamerica[at]webtv.net)

-MN, Grand Marais, Scott:
12', 1966^. This one was owned by Pudley before he upgraded to the bigger 16'. Strangely, it has a front-mounted fridge unit, box is like a drawer under the bed, but not operational. The fridge must have been an option available on ANY size unit!
(e-mail?)

-MN, St. Paul, Jim & Connie, 9/24/04:
16' ? (See photo below).

-MO, Sullivan, Pat, 5/10/04:
"The person that we bought it from lives in Michigan.  I had never seen anything like it.  We have always talked about the tin can tourists and this seemed like something that we could afford as we got it for $300.00. Hopefully we can meet you and other Rolite owners in the near future.  -Pat"

-OR, Tigard; Mitchell, Rick, 1/6/06, 12', ^v:
"Hello,
 Greetings from Tigard Oregon.  I found your web site through the Apache web page.  I purchased this Rolite camper about a few years ago from an older gentleman.  I had never seen anything like it at the time and have yet to see another rolite in Oregon.  It is a 1971 model which still cranks up and down quite easily. (picture enclosed)  The interior is still in great shape.  I am embarrassed to say I could not locate the serial # on the tongue and have not figured out how water is supposed to get from the tank down on the right up to the sink. The previous owner wasn't sure either.  One question I have had is whether the aluminum finish was originally polished to a sheen or have they always had the dull finish that mine has?   I have actually considered selling the Rolite as it is quite small but after reading comments from existing owners on your web sites, I am reconsidering.  I have no idea what its worth anyhow.  Thanks for  managing this site, its fun to see how others are fairing with their Rolite 
 -The Mitchells"
Carl replies:
Rick,
Thanks for contacting me and sending the photos, which I'll add to my collection if that's OK. I'll post this answer to your query on the site also. Good questions!
The serial number is usually on the top of the tongue, so may be under several layers of paint which may have leveled, so try a wire brush and removing some paint.
Most campers of the 60's-70's used a sealed air pressure system for potable water, with a tire-type air fitting on the tank cap, with a pressure gauge built in. These stems, or the cap seal often leaked, so left one stranded without runnng water often. In later years most manufactures went to a simple lever pump on the faucet, and later a 12V. pump so one could wash BOTH hands at a time!
I think all Rolites prior to the painted ones used the mottled or textured aluminum so that it was maintenance-free, unlike the mirror-finish of an Airstream which is gorgeous, but requires yearly polishing. Interestingly the premier polish for that use is called Rolite!
My Rolite had swelling of the internal particle board on the swing-out corners, beyond easy repair, which was just another reason for me to lock the roof up in place permanently. However, it is amazing to me to hear from so many owners who still have operating lift mechanisms on their 40+ year old Rolites, and believe that in time these will be a real collector's item. If yours still operates, I'd leave it original, even if you leave it up all the time. And if you need more shelving install some on lift-off hooks or with screws, so that a hundred years from now somebody will be AMAZED to see the thing go down and up again!

-WI, Waterloo, Mark, 5/12/05, Serial #12-862, 19??^v:
"Hello Fellow Roliters!!
We found (and bought) this near perfect Rolite sitting by a barn near the Township of Lake Mills, Wisconsin. We are 18 miles East of Madison Wisconsin. It is nearly all original as far as I can tell from your site and the manual. Yes, it came with a manual for a newer model but it did provide us with enough information to get ours to go up and down. There are 4 minor dents, all electrical works and it goes up and down like the day it came off the assembly line.

Right tail light has been replaced with a newer
version. If some one could score a taillight for us we would be grateful. Ours does have a channel on the right side for an awning. I have worked in manufacturing and assembly for many years and it looks factory to me. The awning track looks like a split piece of 7/16 tubing. The split is about 1/4 wide running the entire length of the tube. The awning tube / track tapers down about 8" of the roof contour section on each end. What we are very curious about is the date. Thanks to your site I located the serial number stamped on the right upper of the tongue...... 12-862. It is 12' long, 15' with the tongue and 6' 6" wide on the outside.
Could it be 43 years young? August, 1962? layout upon entry:
dinette on left under large rear window
bench on right with ice box still intact 2 burner / sink hinged on wall straight ahead 2 cabinets that hang on the end wall tracking (remove before lowering) I discovered this the hard way. C'mon it was my first lowering attempt 30 minutes after I bought it - no damage done - We are not sure if the cabinets are factory.
I dropped off some of the trim pieces at a chrome plater today. Wheel covers, license plate light housing, license plate bracket, etc. We plan on scanning the entire manual into a PDF format and emailing it to you.
Anyway, we would love to meet up for the next rendezvous. Feel free to post my email address...... or any other stuff from this email. We are really into this thing and have owned it since 5-7-2005. 4 days!!! Looking forward to hearing from you.
The "Gang from Lake Mills"
Mark, Jill and Sergeant Preston"

Editor's note: I have seen photos of inside and out of this unit, and it is in absolutely pristine condition, a rare find indeed!

-WI, Hillbilly, 6-2-05:
August 29, 2005
Good morning,
 
I've always said there is a owner/collector club for just about anything.  I found your webpage via a link from an Apache website.
 
Attached are photos of my 1970 Rolite 1310. 
 
I purchased this 12' beauty from the original owner (a 79 year-old gentleman) only yesterday.
 
It spent it's entire 35 years stored in a shed in northern Wisconsin.  It's hard to believe this man's party of three pulled it to Canada fishing and moose hunting for 23 years.  It is immaculate, showing only minor wear.  The trip home yesterday was the first it's seen sunshine in 12 years!
 
After a 20 minute drive home and 5 minute assembly it got a hot, sudsy bath inside and out - and that's it.  It didn't need anything else - everything works (although the hand-pumping the water took a long time).  My six-year-old son and I slept in it last night.
 
Here are the specs:
 
    #120A-77TLP
    Sleeps 3
    12' 2"L (+ 14" for add-on bumper) X 7'11"H    
    6'4" interior headroom
    hand-crank roof  
    (2) combination 110V & 12V lights
    (1) 110V outlet
    2-burner range
    ice chest/drawer
    direct water and water tank
    Comfy 5000 BTU furnace
    5.70 - 5.00 - 8 tires (w/2 spares)
    owner manual and other paperwork
 
I bought this unit with the intention of selling it soon on e-bay.  I dabble with vintage travel trailers - selling 42 locally so far.  This will my first on-line auction.
 
I welcome any comments, advice, inquiries, stories, etc. and look forward to hearing from somebody in your group.
 
Thank you.
 
Hillbilly

*=Includes 3' for the tongue.
^=These units have been made permanently erect.
^v=These units still have functioning operation of the fold-down feature! A "PURE" ROLITE!!!

PARTS DEPARTMENT:

-CHAIN: I have a very few link pieces available. A package found in my Rolite was sent to Dahlberg Light and Power Co. in Solon Springs, WI, 54873 in either 1960 or 64 (postmark unclear/5-60-964?), from MN Bearing Co., 821 2nd Ave. N, Mpls., MN, 55405, 612-374-2100. This company may still be in business so parts may still be available. Inside the paper package is an opened bag containing about 6" of chain and a connecting link with C-clamp. This bag is marked Industrial Supply Co., Inc., with 3 locations; Mpls.
(612-559-0033/1-800-627-9434/FAX:612-59-3148), St. Paul and Sioux Falls, SD.   This bag may be more recent than the paper one as the address lists FAX numbers and WATS lines. There is also a smaller unopened bag with one "connecting link" complete. It appears that whoever ordered this got a spare just in case. Some Roliter might do some investigating an find a good supplier of chain links! This chain is about half the size of a bicycle chain. Perhaps this was the design flaw that caused so many crippled Rolites!

-MOTORS: In Brainerd we have 3 12V. motors available, see Fert.
-SKIN: Pudley in Baxter/ Brainerd.
-TAIL LIGHTS: Try to find an old school bus tail light, which are identical. Also look for a date on your tail light!
-WINDOWS: I have one front window, single pane available.
-POST, 3/1/06:
"hello    I recently tore apart my 19' rolite folding hardwall camper. I have windows, door, lift mechanism,and all the interior accessories.  If anyone is interested in buying any of these things , just send an e mail
 Thanks  Doug Mauer              jifinhol[at]smig.net


SIGHTINGS; spotted ROLITES, don't know if they are for sale:

-Badoura, MN, 2 units of unknown length, on the same property!
-Brainerd, MN: 16' on Hwy 25 south of town painted red.
-Brainerd,MN, 12', being used as a kid's playhouse, behind the YMCA.
-Brainerd, MN: 12 located just north of town on Hwy 371 at the elec. place. This one has had some roof leakage and has been pretty well guttted inside, but still has the paneling intact.
-Brainerd, MN: 12', possibly for sale
-Deerwood, MN, 5/7/05: A 12'.
-Malmo, MN, 2-16' just north of town in storage, separate lots, converted into fish houses.
-Maplwood, MN: 1972, 16'? This one is colored white and blue, which is the only one I've seen (a photo of) other than just the aluminum "color". It also has a shower and water heater and toilet and 2-way fridge! It does not apparently stay in the up position, as the roof has buckled. See photo below. $1300.
-Merrifield,MN: 18' available for parts (Pud calls this a 21', so I'm assuming that it is considered then an 18', and he added 3' for the tongue). Could this be the biggest one known, one bigger that what is listed in the owner's manual Pud has, which lists a 16' as the largest at that time (1966 or 68, not sure on age of manual)?
-Mille Lacs Lake: 16' at Bucks Resort, permanently set.
-Pine River, MN: 16'. Pud spotted this one earlier but passed on it since it was mounted on a heavier automotive frame. We found it at We Fest in Detroit Lakes. See photo below.
-San Diego, CA: See photo below, $1500.
-Walkon, MN: 12/5/03, Pudley spotted a 16' at an RV park by the lake so it's likely converted to a fish house. It's not for sale as far as he could tell.
-WEB: 8/9/03: http://www.vonro.com/used.htm
(2-16'ers)

To see some Rolite photos, click here.

Emails to and from me and the Rolite inventor:

----- Original Message -----
From: Leo Hagenson
To: Carl Faust
Sent: Wednesday, January 10, 2007 9:52 PM
Subject: Info
Carl:
The purpose of the inventor show was to find manufacturers interested in building the trailer. None came forward at the show, but in September a person from Grantsburg came to see me and find out if I had found a manufacturer. He said they had a plant available if I were interested in supervising the production. Since this was my first attempt at this type of endeavor, I agreed to do so without any legal support. A mistake because none of the three partners were knowledgeable about manufacturing. Eventually the lack of that expertise doomed the company. With good management , these units should still be built. I was production mgr. to 1968. I stayed until the spring of 69 under a manager Larson Industries put in charge of production. He was just out of collage. I have no idea what his major was, It wasn't production.
I don't know how many we built. Serial number codes were changed once or twice, and it was not my concern how they numbered them. I do have a Club Member booklet and it has 1721 names. I believe there were a good number more than that, but have no way to find out. In 65 I set up a chain system, on the floor that moved the full length of the line.
The line moved the length of one trailer every hour. So we produced one trailer an hour. I had 150 people on the line and  side support bays. Each bay built there part of the trailer every hour. Steel frame, Cabinets, walls etc. I believe Larson built until 72.  Larson was a boat mfg and they wanted there boat dealers to sell the trailers too.
Boat people knew very little about trailers, and much less interest in selling them. Not a very good combination.
The 1/4" chain was a weak link, because the ratio of power with the crank is somewhere near 18 or 20 to 1.  Many times they broke because people cranked it backwards and clamped the top so tight they would break. Also the clutches added to the problem if they would not slip. Too, if the chains became very loose, could break them.
I spent many sleepless nights searching for ways to make them more durable. Larson Ind. did go to a 3/8" chain, I believe later. The wall had to be made wider.
I did find solace in that families could spend time together with friends that had common interests. To me there is no place more peaceful than spending time in the wild and beautiful world. That desire on my part was what spawned the Rolite.
That chain and links are available at all bearing, gear, sprocket etc. supply houses. Grainger Supply for one.
I have four lift chains that I got out of a 14' trailer. a motor, these can be had for paying the freight.
 
I've rambled on long past my bed time. Much of the time, enjoyable reminiscing.  The twelve foot in 1960 price $950.00 16 foot $1900.00
 
Leo

Leo,
 
Wow, what a story!  I remember the first time I encountered a Roly, as we affectionately call them.  I answered and ad that said it was like 3' high, raised to 6, and had a heater, sink, stove and 4 ice fishing holes!  Say what???  He had it in the garage, a regular size garage mind you.  Then he hit a button and up the thing went.  When I regained consciousness and got up off the ground, I said I'll take it, but forgot that he hadn't yet mentioned a price.  It was about $450.   I'd have paid a grand.
 
I drug the beast home and put it in the driveway, and pushed the button.  4 neighbors came over and were dumbfounded, of course I have kind of dumb neighbors.  This must have been in the fall, as I was gearing up for the ice fishing mode, and practiced to see how the plastic bucket sleeves would line up with the ice.  I later had to insulate them with foam to avoid icing up and freezing your line.  As I think about it now, I didn't do much camping, as the wife was kind of a Holiday Inn, not Holiday Rambler camper, although I had already had a half dozen units, from the wonderful Alaskan to the pickup unit with the rear sliding glass doors.  So, this was really  mostly a neat fish house.  That first winter was rough when it got below zero trying to set it up.  Somehow I thought there was some inventor out there thinking there's some dope trying to raise the pig in 30 below weather.  Well, that was the death knell for the raise/lower theory in the winter time, especially since I broke that shear pin.  I continued to use it though in the next few summers in the proper fashion, but later the little brother spotted one in Duluth being used for a storage shed, its hi-lo (pardon the bad word) days long gone.  She was shot, and all married together for good.  So, he being a crackerjack woodworker, started making cabinets for his.  I told him to make 2 of everything, as I was getting to the point where I needed more storage, an obvious sacrifice for any folding/raising camper.  The corners were not lining up, having gotten wet at some point and the particle board sponged up.  I did major surgery on the roof, reinforcing the 2X2's with perforated angle steel.  It was a hard decision locking the ol' boy in the up position for good, but it did solve all of the problems for good too.  So now we had these 2 clones, only the curtains were different.  Then his wife started dragging along and needed more room.  Why, I don't know, with a full 9' inside!  So he got a 16 footer, selling the 12 to his son, back in Duluth!  That is a story in itself, as we were headed for Duluth for the smelt run, but went west to Wadena, bought it, and still made it up there but 6 hours late.  He totally redid the whole thing, and his buddy found one in WI, so, like before, when he made one, he made 2.  It was about that time we actually considered rounding these things up and restoring them for a side business, as they were everywhere, not as common with for sale signs however.  We too could not believe they were out of production!
 
About 2 years ago I saw one for sale on eBay, a 12 footer, and I contacted the owner who turned out to be just 15 min. south of here.  He had one in the repair mode, and sold it for $400.  Then he sold his own, a 72 I think, a painted one (ish), but I was considering a bigger one and bid on it but missed by 3 seconds, at $1050.  Then he found yet another and tore it down to 3 walls.  We looked at it and thought he was nuts, as it would never Roll again.  Well, he's kind of an old cantankerous leftover hippie and a purist and he won't sell one unless it raises and lowers, and he did get it working.  Then last summer I found one in the woods, pretty rough, but an 18' or also with the bathroom.  I told this Mike about it and he went up and rescued it, breaking down on the way back from Leader, leaving it on the side of the road overnight, and is now restoring it.  This is his 5th Rolite restoration.  So, now I find 'em, he fixes 'em.  Since meeting Mike, I now am beginning to believe that in time, more will be restored to operating condition.  I wonder what percentage of them still operate.  I'm guessing more than not. 
 
I still have my original 12 footer, and last fall reconfigured it a bit storing the table so I have more room, as I always eat outside and sleep on the rear couch anyway.  I had the upper sling done in a strong fabric with a southwestern theme, and use it mostly for storage.  I never saw an original sling, so wonder what the material was.   At the Eelpout festival, it'll sleep 5, even 6!  Heat is good.
 
So that's where I'm at, just content with my little 12 footer.  Someday if I retire the wife will want a fancy rig with AC, so I will have a hard decision.  I hope to keep it and use it as a fish house again, since I might have more time TO fish.  In the mean time I enjoy hearing from folks from all over the country who are starving for information on this little wonder.  Through the miracle of the internet it's easy now to share information.  With your permission I'll add a section to the website on the History of the Rolite with your informative stories here.  Do you have any photos of the production line there in Grantsburg?  I'll bet Henry Ford would have been proud!
 
I'll send some photos in a separate email.  If you are on dialup they may load slowly, but I will send small thumbnails to conserve space.  Click on one to enlarge, or click Slideshow.
 
'Bye, now!
 
-Fert

And lastly a letter from a guy who worked with Leo AFTER the Rolite days:

3/24/07:

"I worked for Leo Hagenson  about 15 years after his Rolite project.  He was the most ingenious engineer / inventor / designer I've ever met.  Leo was great at designing mechanical devises to solve problems simply.  He designed the molds for the curved laminated seats you see in restaurants.  Also, he designed a machine to cut beveled photomats at the rate of 1000+ per hour.  He was also very good to his employees and a great guy. 
    We had many conversations about Rolites and every time I see one I think of him.  I've come close to purchasing a few."

URL of this webpage:
http://community.webtv.net/NOSTALGIAMERICA/OldIsGood/page3.html