1966 kit companion travel trailer

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Kit Manufacturing Company – Long Beach California

Kit was founded in October 1945 in Long Beach, California. Its first product was a small “teardrop” trailer, so-called for its shape. It was to be sold as a kit, with its components assembled by buyers and attached to the rear of a motor vehicle. The manufacturing “plant” was a latticed-front fruit stand in Pico Rivera, and the original plan called for building 60 units. However, the kit proposal was soon dropped, and the company began manufacturing prefabricated but fully assembled trailers.

The company’s initial model, the Kit Kamper, made its debut in February 1946 at a trade show in Hollywood’s Gilmore Stadium. Because of a shortage of materials so soon after the end of World War II, the 12 show models had an unusual exterior combination of war-surplus aluminum and fiberglass fenders. Inside, the trailer included all the comforts of home, including an innerspring mattress and an all-aluminum kitchen with butane stove and icebox. The response exceeded all expectations, with nearly 500 orders booked. About 3,500 Kit Kampers were produced and delivered in 1946.

In January 1947 Kit moved to a 100,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in the harbor area of Long Beach. Shortly after, production began on a larger, 8-by-14-foot travel trailer. Demand for the two models exceeded production. Kit trailers were popularized through department stores and new and used car dealers and also received publicity as prizes in the annual Soap Box Derby and the “Queen for a Day” radio program. A number of units were flown into Buffalo and Detroit in the dead of winter.

By the end of 1947 production had jumped from the original two per week to 120, and sales had climbed from $1,000 to $50,000 weekly. A few years later Kit secured an order from the federal government, which needed trailers as temporary housing.

Pocapalia became president of Kit in 1956, and the company began producing mobile homes at a plant in Caldwell, Idaho, in 1958. A second Caldwell plant, for RVs, was opened in 1964. In fiscal 1968 (ending October 31, 1968), the last year before Kit became a public company, it earned net income of $688,000 on net sales of $22 million. Common stock was initially offered at $14.50 a share, but the majority of the outstanding shares remained in the hands of existing holders. Pocapalia, who assumed the position of chairman as well as president in 1971, retained about 30 percent of the stock. Arnold J. Romeyn, who joined the company in 1946 and was serving as secretary and treasurer, retained about 25 percent. The company’s long-term debt was $1.8 million in 1970.

Kit, at this time, was building mobile homes that retailed between $4,300 and $7,500, and manufactured housing from $8,150 and $12,000. Recreation vehicles offered were the truck-mounted Kit Kamper and Road Ranger models; the Kit Companion Vacation Trailer, top seller in the Pacific Northwest; and the recently introduced Sportsmaster travel trailer. Mobile homes and manufactured housing were accounting for about 70 percent of sales; recreational vehicles for the remainder. The company was selling its products through a network of 700 dealers in 30 states.

The early 1970s were a period of great expansion for the company. In fiscal 1972, when sales reached $47 million, Kit opened plants to manufacture Road Rangers in Chino, California, and in McPherson, Kansas; and a mobile-home facility in Duncanville, Texas. Kit was continuing to produce both mobile homes and RVs in Caldwell, and mobile homes in McPherson; Mount Vernon, Ohio; Forest Grove, Oregon; and Long Beach, Riverside, and Vacaville, California.

The 1973 Arab oil embargo and consequent economic recession struck a heavy blow to Kit’s business, with sales dropping from $54.2 million in fiscal 1973 to $32.5 million in fiscal 1974. The company lost $2.2 million in 1974 and $465,000 in 1975. Its stock, once trading as high as $25 a share, fell as low as $1 a share in 1974 and never topped $2.75 a share in 1975. The long-term debt widened to $3.2 million at the end of fiscal 1975. The company soon turned the corner, however, and earned $1.6 million in fiscal 1978 on record revenues of $61.9 million. Recreational vehicles now accounted for about 60 percent of sales.

Kit sold its Riverside and Duncanville plants in 1976. The following year it sold its idle Mount Vernon facility and opened a third McPherson plant. In 1979 the company was producing mobile homes in single, double, and triple width, ranging in length from 36 to 70 feet and in width from 14 to 40 feet, with floor area from less than 1,000 to more than 2,300 square feet. They retailed from under $15,000 to over $40,000. Travel trailers were designed to be towed behind passenger vehicles and campers to fit in pickup-truck beds. Fifth-wheel travel trailers, introduced in 1972 under the Mark V name, were intended to be towed behind and attached to special couplers in the beds of pickup trucks. Mini-motor homes, built on van truck chassis, were introduced in 1976. Kit products were being sold by 394 dealers in 25 states and three Canadian provinces.

The second energy crisis that followed the Iranian revolution of 1978 ended this brief period of prosperity. Net sales plummeted all the way to $28.8 million in fiscal 1980, during which the company, following a loss of $741,000 in fiscal 1979, incurred a deficit of $1.5 million. RV sales, badly hurt by gasoline shortages, fell to only 37 percent of the company total in 1980 from 60 percent in 1978. Mini-motor homes and Kit Kampers were discontinued, and the number of Kit dealers dropped to 208 in 22 states and two Canadian provinces. The company closed its RV plant in Chino and its mobile-home plant in Forest Grove. A Caldwell plant was converted from RVs to mobile homes, and in 1981 the company was operating facilities only in Caldwell and McPherson.

Kit returned to profitability in fiscal 1981. Recreational vehicles once again topped mobile homes in sales the following year. The company introduced a new line of lightweight travel trailers suitable for hauling by the current models of smaller, more fuel-efficient motor vehicles. Brand names for its RVs during this period included Royal Oaks, Oak Crest, Oak View, Fairview, Sea Crest, Golden Sunrise, Chateau, and Regal.

Kit’s sales, however, did not approach the record 1978 figure during the early 1980s. Profits were modest, and in fiscal 1983 the company actually lost $740,000. The culprit was the mobile-home business, which fell into deficit in fiscal 1982 and did not return to profitability until five years later. In January 1983 Kit announced that the manufactured-housing product line was being overhauled, aimed at accommodating demand for units that were lower priced and constructed more like site-built homes. During fiscal 1984 mobile homes accounted for only 27 percent of company sales.

In fiscal 1987 Kit topped its 1978 highs with sales of $68.1 million and net income of $1.8 million. Increased interest rates on conventional, site-built housing were said to have given manufactured houses a competitive advantage, resulting in an upturn of sales. The RV business was also doing well that year, with Royal Oaks, Oak Crest, Golden State, and Limited models selling for between $19,000 and $45,000.

After Kit reached a new sales record of $73.8 million in fiscal 1988, the mediocre economic climate of the following years took a toll on its business. Revenues declined each successive year through fiscal 1992, when they fell to $55.5 million. Although the company remained in the black, the RV sector lost money in 1991 and 1992, when a new management team was brought in. Its deficit widened in fiscal 1993, despite a sales gain of 11 percent to 3,335 units. The company as a whole lost $33,000 on sales of $59.1 million that year.

Kit’s McPherson manufactured-home plant was destroyed in a 1992 tornado. Production continued at Caldwell, where about 500 homes were produced in 1993, along with RVs. In 1993 the company began work on a second Caldwell facility–opened in 1994–behind the main building, in order to double its production of manufactured homes, most of which were being placed in the western states. In making the announcement, Kit spokesman Ed Tucker declared that “Public awareness and acceptance have increased year by year. … The majority of homes we sell go on private property available for 30-year land-home financing. The homes we build are an affordable value.” In 1994 they ranged in floor area from 1,100 to 2,500 square feet and were selling at $28,000 to $90,000.

Kit expanded its sales network for manufactured housing in 1995 to take in three more Western states: Wyoming, Colorado, and parts of northern Arizona. The company had been selling its homes in Idaho, Washington, Oregon, Utah, Nevada, and Montana, with Utah and Idaho the biggest markets. About 1,400 manufactured homes were produced in 1994. Approximately 91 percent were double- and triple-wide homes, with the remaining nine percent single-wide models starting in size at about 700 square feet.

The company’s RV business turned around in 1994, when sales rose more than 50 percent, to 5,009 units, moving Kit into the top 10 in this field. Produced in Caldwell, the 35-foot-long Companion Cordova was its largest model, with living-room and bedroom walls that slid out by pressing a button. Produced in McPherson and selling for $21,000, the 33-foot-long Sportsmaster fifth-wheeler was a “toy hauler for the guys” with a 10-foot rear patio that could carry snow machines, golf carts, bicycles, motorcycles, Sea Doo watercraft, or all-terrain vehicles. A Kit executive said the market consisted of people age 45 to 65 who “sell their home and want to travel.” Selling for between $9,000 and $32,000, the company’s RV models had carpeted hardwood floors, kitchen skylights, solar panels, electric brakes, deluxe range/ovens, enlarged galleys, and power roof vents.

Kit opened a new RV manufacturing facility in Caldwell in 1995, about three miles from the plant producing manufactured homes and the Road Ranger and Companion RVs. This new plant, aimed at meeting demand in the Northwest and Canada, initially produced the 33-foot Sportsman fifth-wheeler but eventually was to manufacture all 21 models in the Sportsmaster line, ranging up from a 19-foot trailer selling for $8,000. About 2,800 Sportsmasters a year were being produced in McPherson at this time. Kit’s RV production reached 5,516 in 1995.

Kit’s sales rose by about 50 percent to $89.7 million in fiscal 1994, and its net income reached a record $1.9 million. Sales increased to $101.5 million in fiscal 1995, but net income was only $1.3 million due to new-production and plant expansions and consolidations, and the company lost $53,000 on manufactured housing. There was no long-term debt in January 1996. Pocapalia increased his stake in Kit from 30 to 46 percent in 1994, when Romeyn sold his 25-percent holding back to the company, which retired the shares.

Recreational vehicles accounted for 73 percent of Kit’s sales in 1995. They measured from 16 to 36 feet in length and provided sleeping accommodations for two to 10 people, with over 50 different floor plans offered. Components and accessories included name-brand appliances, radial tires, rubber roofs, and fiberglass insulation throughout. Interior features included an entertainment center with AM/FM cassette stereo, skylights in the bath and living areas, queen-size bed, microwave oven, and ducted air conditioning and heating system. Several models had slide-out features for interior expansion of the living room and master bedroom. Awnings were available and could be converted into an enclosed patio.

The company’s RV product lines included Sportsmaster, Road Ranger, Companion, and Patio Hauler. Retail prices ranged between $9,500 and $45,000. Some 239 independent dealers were distributing the company’s RVs throughout the United States, 32 in Canada, and five in Japan.

Kit’s Manufactured Housing Division was producing homes in 40 available floor plans ranging from 750 to over 2,500 square feet, towed by truck to locations where they were set up and connected to utilities. Retail prices, exclusive of land costs, ranged from $25,000 to $115,000. Distribution was through a network of approximately 50 dealers in nine western states.

Most models included walk-in closets, spacious open areas, and Roman tubs with special showers. The Sea Crest was the smallest. Sierra models were double- and triple-wide, with an array of styles and custom features. The spacious Kit Special home was offered in a popular double-section configuration. The Golden State line was described as outstanding value for individuals placing a premium on comfort and luxury. Designed specifically with subdivision application in mind, the Briercrest came ready to attach a site-built garage.

Kit, at the end of fiscal 1995, owned production facilities in McPherson and Caldwell, where it also owned a warehouse and leased a production facility. It also owned an idle plant in Chino, available for lease, and was leasing its executive and administrative offices in Long Beach.

Years built

• Camper – 11 ft
• Sportsmaster – 11 ft
• Model 10 – 13 ft
• Companion – 16 ft
• Royal Chataeu – 23 ft
• Kamper – 12 ft
• Chateau – 23 ft
• Jetstream – 19.5 ft
• Companion Stowaway – 16 ft
• Companion 1500 – 15 ft
• Companion 1700 – 17 ft

Ash paneling and cabinets (Golden State)

Standard Features

Some owners

Drew and alicia keller coeur d alene, id —[email protected]— 1949 kit ten, 1967 15′ companion,

1936 Prairie Schooner

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1966 Vintage trailer 16 foot Kit Companion 004

• Added by Wade and Lisa Long on January 17, 2013 at 5:29pm
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This is after we restored it

• Currently 0/5 stars.

Tags: Albums: Restoring a 1966 Blast from the Past Kit Companion. , Original 1966 16ft Kit Companion Location: Springfield , Oregon

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RoadRunner Revival: Vintage Camper Trailers

On this page.

• Intro 
• RoadRunner Travel Trailer History 
• Archived Newspaper Articles 
• Identifying a Vintage RoadRunner Travel Trailer 
• Finding and Decoding Your VIN
• Other RoadRunners: Same name, different company
• Build Quality

2. RoadRunner Travel Trailer History

3. Archived Newspaper Articles

• Manti Messenger, 1961-04-27 Substantial Gains Revealed by New Sanpete Businesses The L&M Trailer Manufacturingin Ephraim has s completed 25 Roadrunner trailers to 10 date. There are now 12 men employed in comparison to seven employed six weeks ago. The Roadrunner trailer is selling well on the retail lots. All trailers that can be feasibly manufactured in the near future have been sold. Mr. Mosher and Mr. Lott are already planning two variations of the original Roadrunner. The first variation would be a trailer with an overhanging area in the front that would increase sleeping accommodations to eight instead of six. The second variation is another trailer that would sleep four. Source: https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=5640380
• Ephraim Enterprise, 1962-01-12 Ephraim News : Relevant Excerpt: "Jack Steck and Roger O. Peterson returned home January 4 from a nice but fast trip to Arizona and California. They delivered two trailers for the L&M Trailer Co. to Phoenix, Arizona, buyers and then went on to Los Angeles to pick up a truck-load of imported lumber used in the interiors of the trailers. A good season for the local trailer firm is predicted for 1962."
• Ephraim Enterprise, 1962-03-09 Lions Hear Story of Cache Valley Breeders Group Relevant Excerpt: “Robert Stoddard was named chairman of the Lions float committee to prepare a float I for Rambouillet Days parade. I Harry Mosher offered use of the L&M Trailer building and equipment in preparing the float.” 
• Ephraim Enterprise, 1962-06-29 City Council Approves Sewer Ordinance Relevant Excerpt: “… This project is described as one of the most important undertaken by Ephraim City in several years and is expected to add much to the future growth possibilities of the community. There have been several important private and public developments in recent years such as the the L&M Trailer Manufacturing Plant in the old cannery building…”
• Ephraim Enterprise, 1962-09-28 L&M Grounds Graded by City https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=2979945
• Ephraim Enterprise, 1962-10-26 New Industry Given Boost at Tuesday Meet Relevant Excerpt: Referncing a new timber mill near the L&M Trailer plant indicates that the trailer plant used to be the pea cannery: “Reed Madsen has turned over property west of the L&M Trailer Co (The former pea cannery) to the [lumber] Company and logs are now being piled there.” Source:  https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=2980481
• 14' 4-person RoadRunner giveaway for Jaycee's fund raiser: Iron County Record, 1963-09-19, Jaycee Fund Raising Project (RR giveaway) [ PDF ] Source:  https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=4363310 and Iron County Record, 1963-10-10, Campaign for Activities Funds Opened by Cedar City Junior Chamber of Commerce Source:  https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=4360614 And again in 1964: Iron County Record, 1964-09-24, Initiate Fund Drive [ PDF ] Source:  https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=4358826
• Manti Messenger, 1964-03-19 Letters Protest Remark By Mrs. Romney This excerpt from a letter to the editor in protest of disparaging comments made about Sanpete County shows the pride locals had in their town with the L&M Trailer plant being a point of pride, “We of Sanpete regret that you made the remark published in TIME. Before you ever make another statement about the county I hope you will visit our lovely valley drive into our beautiful mountains attend a session in the Manti Temple and look over the valley from Temple Hill and also visit Snow College, the Moroni Turkey Plant, the L&M Trailer manufacturing plants, etc.” Source: https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=5781120
• Manti Messenger, 1964-04-02 Trailer Plant Starts Production in Manti Source:  https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=5781312
• Manti Messenger, 1964-06-04 Local News, new manti plant opens https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=5782530  
• Manti Messenger, 1964-06-04 Local News, new manti plant trailers https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=5782557
• Manti Messenger, 1965-03-25 Business up at L. & M. Trailer Plant  [ PDF ] Source:  https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=5786993
• Manti Messenger, 1965-07-29 L&M Trailer Million Mark  [ PDF  ] Source: http://udn.lib.utah.edu/cdm/compoundobject/collection/mm6/id/12638/show/12684/rec/276
• Manti Messenger, 1965-08-19 L&M Trailer Eyes Plant Expansion https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=5789603
• Manti Messenger, 1966-02-10 Stahle Stuff https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=5728624
• Manti Messenger, 1966-08-18 L&M Trailer Cited Wed. by Industrial Committee   [ PDF  ]
• Manti Messenger, 1965-08-19 L&M Trailer Eyes Plant Expansion [ PDF ] Source:  https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=5789603
• Manti Messenger, 1967-04-13 Untitled "Civic Portrait" [ PDF ] Source:  https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=5729951
• Ephraim Enterprise, 1967-04-14 Local News, pea cannery torn down https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=2982930
• Manti Messenger, 1967-11-23 Letters to the Editor https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=5733641
• Ephraim Enterprise, 1967-05-26 Harry Mosher Feted by SBA Committee [ PDF ] Source:  https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=2983690
• Ephraim Enterprise, 1968-01-26 Uni-Tec Scholarship Fund Aided by Local Industry https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=2988923
• Ephraim Enterprise, 1969-04-17 Sanpete Industrial Development Committee Lists 1968 Gains and Goals For 1969 https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=2993503
• Manti Messenger, 1969-05-15 Stahle Stuf https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=5736184
• Ephraim Enterprise, 1969-06-05 For a Better Ephraim https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=2994396
• Ephraim Enterprise, 1969-07-10 Wind Blasts Plant https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=2994843
• Ephraim Enterprise, 1969-11-27 L&M Plant Sets Fete on Dec. 7th https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=2996887
• Ephraim Enterprise, 1969-12-04 L&M Trailer Firm to Dedicate New Building on December 7 https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=2997033
• Ephraim Enterprise, 1969-12-11 L&M Trailer Hosts Sun. Open House https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=2997151
• Ephraim Enterprise, 1970-07-16 Ephraim West Ways Relevant Excerpt: L&M sponsored a softball team: “The players on L&M Trailer softball team may not be the best, Salina beat them 38 8 to 3 last Wednesday night, but they guarantee to be Improved by next Wednesday night's game with Salina SaUna here at at the old football field Anyone interested in helping this team improve you do not have to be employed by L M please contact Raymond Butch Jensen” Source: https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=3000154
• Ephraim Enterprise, 1971-03-04 Recreational Vehicles Open New Doors for Family Fun   [ PDF  ]
• Ephraim Enterprise, 1971-07-22 L&M Trailer Shows Steady Gain   [ PDF  ]
• Ephraim Enterprise, 1971-12-02 Roadrunner Company Outline Expansion Plan [  PDF  ]
• Ephraim Enterprise, 1971-12-02 L & M Trailer Manufacturing Holds Deer Contest https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=3007379
• L&M Trailer Manufactoring Co. 475 W. 100 N. Ephraim, UT
• Former Employees:
• Bill Grosvenor, Office Manager
• Merrill I. Jacobson, Partner
• "In the early 1970's John went to work as purchasing agent for L & M Trailer manufacturing plant in Ephraim. In July of 1973 he sustained injuries from a fall which forced his retirement at age 59."
• https://familysearch.org/photos/stories/17557814
• This guy worked them maybe I could contact for more info.
• http://www.indeed.com/r/Jene-Beal/8be295fc2dfe68f7
• The Daily Herald, 1973-08-12 Obituary
• Ephraim Enterprise, 1972-10-05 Democratic Candidates Visit County Monday Relevant Excerpt: "After lunch In Ephraim the group was escorted through the L&M Trailer Manufacturing Co by Harry Mosher, President of the company. The entourage was highly impressed with the quality and quantity of the mobile homes they inspected. The governor spoke briefly to more than 240 employees, and complimented them on the fine work they were doing.” Source: https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=3010056
• Ephraim Enterprise, 1972-12-21 Untitled "Seasons Greetings" ad [ PDF ] Source:  https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=3010839

• Times Independent, 1973-03-29, p. 3 ad for trailers for sale with prices https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=20452243 Manti Messenger, 1973-05-03 Untitled https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=5749248
• Manti Messenger, 1973-06-07 Industrialist Named for Honorary Degree https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=5749652
• The RoadRunner Coyotie (yes it is spelled that way) is introduced and custom decal Manti Messenger, 1973-09-27 Wins $200 in L&M Contest [ PDF ] https://newspapers.lib.utah.edu/details?id=5750711
• Manti Messenger, 1973-01-25 L & M Trailers Are on Display   [ PDF  ]
• Salt Lake Tribune, 1968-03-10 New Industry Aids Sanpete, Sevier Economic Outlook Relevant Excerpt: "...That's the agony of central Utah Making a living isn't easy. And a young man had better seek his fortune elsewhere. For though the counties have been scratching tooth and nail to get new industry, the sum total of all their present industry could be absorbed by the Wasatch Front with scarcely a ripple. By any reckoning, however, things are looking better. In 1960 a former North Dakotan Harry Mosher. and three employes' began manufacturing travel . trailers in an old cannery building near Ephraim. Now L&M Trailer Manufacturing Co and Harry Mosher has 100 employees looks forward to record sales of $2,300,000 in 1968 and a worrying about: "How to hold down . . .There is a point of diminishing returns."" 
• Relevant Excerpt: "...buildings that have gone from vegetable canneries to travel-trailer factories to educational facilities.... It had its beginning in 1914, when the newly organized Ephraim Sanitary Canning Co. built a plant "across the tracks" on the west side of Ephraim. Its principal product was peas, but it also canned corn, beans and some row crops like carrots. In 1927, the plant became a member of the Rocky Mountain Packing Co. family. Later it was sold to Hunt's Food and shortly thereafter was closed. The machinery was removed, the doors were locked and the building stood empty - a fading relic, a sad reminder of the years when Sanpete Valley farmers had a cash crop that paid their bills and gave their kids summer employment. On a cold December day in 1960, the building's future took a turn for the better. Equipped with a few tools, considerable know-how and a little capital, Harry Mosher and a friend moved into the dingy ground floor of the old cannery and built their first travel trailer. They called it the Roadrunner. The Roadrunner prospered. It soon outgrew the ground floor of the cannery. More land was acquired, buildings were constructed, the market expanded, the payrolls grew. Roadrunners were seen on highways all over the West. The founders somehow had the perception or good luck to get into the business in the heyday of what a writer has called "the travel-trailer age." The Entwistle Corp., a Boston-headquartered firm also manufacturing trailers and wanting to develop a Western market, took over the Roadrunner plant. The Entwistle expansion program didn't work out. America's appetite for travel trailers had vastly diminished: By 1981, the machinery stood idle, the payroll gone and the "For Sale" sign in place. Snow College entered the scene in 1982, and its administrators foresaw an expanded role for the college - a vocational education program that would train the area's youth for the job market. The state didn't have the money to finance a full-fledged voc-ed program. It especially didn't have the money for a major building program. Seeing the "For Sale" signs at the trailer plant, the office building and the sturdy cement buildings, college administrators decided the complex could be converted to educational uses. After a week of negotiations, Entwistle agreed to a "bargain basement" price of $600,000 for a property valued at several million. The site is now called the west campus. The old, blue-painted cannery building is long gone. Tulips and daffodils are in bloom around the grounds. And the buildings that once turned out thousands of cases of canned peas and later hundreds of trailers bearing the Roadrunner logo will now turn out students." Source:  http://www.deseretnews.com/article/157114/SNOW-COLLEGE-TO-DEDICATE-TEED-CENTER.html
• For the Mormon Miracle Pageant in Manti, UT, "Portable restrooms in 40 ft. trailers were manufactured by L. & M. Trailer company in Ephraim, with Jay Cluff as engineer. These replaced chemical units that had proved unsatisfactory. Four trailers, each containing 15 units with flush toilet, individual booths, wash basins and power ventilators were built. Two inch lines brought water to these units, and sewage facilities were connected." Source:  http://mormonmiracle.org/history/
• Sponsored ad in the 1970 Snow College Snowonian Yearbook (Ephraim, UT). http://issuu.com/snowlibrary/docs/1970 , pg. 163.

3.5 DiGiorgio Leisure Products

4. Identifying a vintage RoadRunner Travel Trailer 

• RR's are more boxy and don't have that rounded all around "canned ham" look.
• The flat roof,
• Slightly rounded at the top ends (front and back),
• Straight slant inward to the bottom (front and back),
• quilted aluminum panels on the sides of the front windows. 
• RoadRunner logo script uses bold, all caps, italicized.
• There is an alternate version so far that we've only seen in the Steve Hartlines  red and white brochure in the Manuals Section of this site (put pic here).
• The following are NOT actual RR logos, but owner-added decals
• https://www.facebook.com/groups/451753901855019/permalink/470658203297922/
• Jalousies windows. Not sure fully yet: earlier to mid 60s had  with older jalousies with three to four horizontal panes by Hehr, like in my 65. Late 60's like  Steven Hartline's '68 has those two pane horizontal windows, with a different cranking mechanism. Does Hehr make those different manufacturer? I'm not sure if they stayed with that style or if experimented and went back to the originals. Need to verify this....
• The 3-5 paned louvered windows went up to 1967 before RR switched to the two-paned louvered windows in 1968 with the different crank mechanism. 
• All RoadRunners had rear windows though. (Most vintage campers do, too, but some don't).
• Oak paneling
• Not sure, but it looks like the paneling changed from smooth to grooved about 1969. See:  https://www.facebook.com/groups/451753901855019/permalink/470489446648131/
• There is a Roadrunner in the dots on the tread of the step.
• "ROAG" (ROAG is a code for RoadRunner's used in vehicle titles/DMV--our 65 has it on our title)

5. Finding and Decoding Your VIN

6. Other RoadRunner's: Same name, different company. And RR anomalies 

• Road Runner...................... ROADR
• Road Runner Mfg Co Inc ...... RODR
• Roadrunner Fabrication Inc ...RORF

• The shape is right... mostly, but not quite, huh? 
• The door isn't one I've seen on any RRs'
• the interior layout, appliances, and cabinetry aren't typical RR.
• The alum siding is also not typical RR. 
• Looks like original paint, but no trademark RR arrow/feather. 
• Also lacks the quilted alum panels on side of front windows.

7. Build Quality

I have some possible info on the one above that puzzles you. With the odd logo and have been looking for info myself. I just bought one. The original title states “1964 Zollinger roadrunner 15S” same as above but the front window on mine is different

Any interest in the Roadrunner motor homes? I have a 1978 built by L&M...

almost 2022 and my1971 Roadrunner slide in 8 foot camper is on my 2006 ford f 250. this camper holds up good. made a movie about it on YouTube. fiction/comedy called SLOW THEN WOW . Google it for free

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