E-Z Kamper
Located in Loyal, Wisconsin this company was founded by Clyde Grambsch in 1957. They are still in business today and go by the name Canvas Replacements. They no longer manufacture pop-up campers, but now are the largest manufacturer of canvas replacements and many other hard-to-find parts including the exclusive C & R Universal Lift Kit sytem. This company's reputation for quality standards and customer care is firmly established. They probably have a solution for whatever your needs are. Their history is well documented on their web site.
E-Z Kamper's story actually begins in 1954 when Clyde built a pop-up camper for his family. Clyde added features uncommon for the time in a tent trailer like a screened door and steps. In 1956 Clyde had the camper repainted to match his new '56 Ford. As a joke the painter added "Mfg. by Loyal Trailer Co, Loyal, Wis." under the taillight. After the Grambsch family's next camping trip the Loyal Post Office started receiving inquiries addressed to Loyal Trailer Co. Sensing an opportunity Clyde founded E-Z Kamper in the Fall of 1957.
In 1964 E-Z Kamper introduced the Thunderbird into their lineup of pop-up campers. This camper was notable for it's red and white striped canvas, giving the camper flair and dash. Also introduced was the Jet-Stream camper. E-Z Kamper was known for its Do-It-Yourself kits as well during this time. You could buy the '65 Kit for $449.50 f.o.b. Loyal, or $2,925 in 2007 dollars.
E-Z Kamper's full-line of campers for 1965 included the Thunderbird, Jet-Stream, Eagle, Mescalero, Skylark, Konverto, Rod-N-Gun, and Mohawk. The Skylark appears to be E-Z Kamper's first trailer with beds that flipped out from the front and back and was a very popular model. All camping trailers were soft tent tops.
In 1966 E-Z Kamper introduced the Crownline camper, a hard-top camper with a slant towards the back of the camper. This innovative feature offered better visibility behind the camper while driving. A total of 9 models were now offered in E-Z Kamper's lineup including a fiber-glass pickup camper.
In 1967 E-Z Kamper introduced yet another new model. The Lit'l Scout was their new economy pop-up camper that sold for $399 f.o.b. Loyal, or 2,450 in 2007 dollars. The camper could sleep 4-6. There were 9 models in the lineup this year as well. In January 1967 Better Camping featured E-Z Kamper's Thunderbird model on the cover page of the magazine. You can see the flair and dash!
By 1969 E-Z Kamper had developed several new and larger hard-top models, which followed the industry standard. All the hard-top models had two beds that slid out from the front and back. Leading the pack was the '69 Crownline which could easily sleep 8 and featured an automatic push-button top. Next, the '69 Crestline Skylark III could sleep 6. This camper featured an inside-outside kitchen galley that was popular for the time. E-Z Kamper called it the Lazy Susan. And a best seller as well was the '69 Mescalero. It could sleep 6 as well. There were a total of 8 models in the 1969 lineup.
During the late 1960's or early 1970's E-Z Kamper expanded into van conversions. They acquired a plant in Littlerock, California with over 35,000 square feet. Eventually these business operations were sold off. In 1973 Clyde incorporated Camper and Recreation, Inc. which Canvas Replacements is part of. He then bought out his partners and shifted the focus to replacing canvas. The company acquired many original patterns and stock from other pop-up camper manufacturers that went out of business starting with Tradewinds around 1971-1972 time period.
The original pop-up camper developed by Clyde Grambsch in 1954 is displayed in the RV Founders Hall in the RV/MH Heritage Foundation Museum located Elkart, Indiana. It was towed there in 1997 after careful resoration by the family including Clyde Grambsch himself. You can read all about this story in Volume 9, Number 2 April 2007 issue of Pop Up Times. The Pop Up Times magazine is published quarterly by Dean Babbs of PopUp Explorer (PUX).
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