Outdoors

High-rise teardrop trailer makes standing-height base camp for four

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Enjoying some of the Pacific Northwest's renowned ski camping with the Bend Tall Boy teardrop camping trailer
Bend Teardrop
Enjoying some of the Pacific Northwest's renowned ski camping with the Bend Tall Boy teardrop camping trailer
Bend Teardrop
Bend pairs a rear double bed with two front bunks
Bend Teardrop
The Tall Boy base floor plan includes a 71 x 54-in double bed and two 70-in-long bunks
Bend Teardrop
The lower bunk/bench has storage drawers and space below
Bend Teardrop
Bend includes plenty of storage and work space in its galley design but leaves the cooking and cleaning equipment to the owner
Bend Teardrop
On the highway to Moon biking adventure
Bend Teardrop
At over 8 feet tall, the Bend Tall Boy will likely stand above the tow vehicle (the base 2024 Jeep Wagoneer stands 6.3 feet tall, as listed by Jeep)
Bend Teardrop
The Bend Tall Boy offers the same convenient, always-ready camping capabilities as other teardrops, just with a bit more interior headroom
Bend Teardrop
Not counting spinoff sauna trailer brand SaltSaun, the Tall Boy is the latest model to find its way out of Bend Teardrop's factory
Bend Teardrop
Bend Teardrop's original 6 x 12-foot teardrop sits low and long
Bend Teardrop
The top bunk folds down to create a backrest for the sofa bench
Bend Teardrop
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Oregonian small RV builder Bend Teardrop has always had a little fun with teardrop trailer size and form. Its 6 x 12-ft (1.8 x 3.7-m) trailer has long served as something of a stretched limo for the teardrop market, a supersized tear with sleeping space for the whole family. The company builds that idea out even more with the new Tall Boy, using the same chassis as a foundation but adding extra height to go along with the length. The result is a four-sleeper high-roof teardrop with over six feet (1.8 m) of standing height. The Tall Boy works as a mobile lounge, flexible chuckwagon and cozy four-man bunk room, all without any lifting, swiveling or sliding necessary.

Bend Teardrop's original 6 x 12-foot teardrop sits low and long
Bend Teardrop

Since its founding in 2015, Bend Teardrop has designated its camping trailers by the size of the steel 'overland' chassis below. But that alone isn't quite enough to tell the story of the Tall Boy, since what sets it apart is height, as well as length. Along with the same 6 x 12-ft chassis that also underpins Bend's elongated family teardrop (just above), the 17.4-ft-long (5.3-m) Tall Boy has an aluminum-skinned tear-inspired body that stands a full 8.3-ft (2.5-m) high.

The Tall Boy's extra roof height won't necessarily help out on the road, as the trailer will likely stand taller than the tow vehicle, but it definitely comes into play positively at camp, creating an interior with 6.3-foot-high (1.9-m) ceiling. Bend also employs a more level roof than some teardrop makers, ensuring that the extra height can be enjoyed throughout most of the cabin.

Not counting spinoff sauna trailer brand SaltSaun, the Tall Boy is the latest model to find its way out of Bend Teardrop's factory
Bend Teardrop

Rather than sliding atop a bed through a compact side door, as in many teardrops, campers enter the Tall Boy cabin by stepping up on a retractable step and through a 5.8-foot-tall (1.8-m) door. They're immediately greeted by a sofa lounge opposite the doorway, providing sitting space that doesn't require stretching one's legs on a mattress.

At night, the backrest of the sofa seat flips up to separate the bench into two 70 x 26-in (178 x 66-cm) bunks. The main bed is located at the rear of the cabin, providing 71 x 54 in (180 x 137 cm) of sleeping space for two.

Bend pairs a rear double bed with two front bunks
Bend Teardrop

Alternatively, Bend offers several floor plans with a 71 x 80-in (180 x 203-cm) super-queen bed, including a two-sleeper floor plan with a front dinette set. Whatever floor plan the buyer goes with, Bend makes sure the extra size of its teardrop doesn't make things too dark or stuffy, carving in a tinted screened slider window on each sidewall, two driver-side porthole windows and a tall vertical door window.

The Tall Boy also includes the archetypal teardrop tailgate galley. Bend leaves it more as an open, equip-it-yourself space, offering a foundational build-out with a wide countertop, sink basin, upper storage shelves and cubbies, and LED lighting, but without equipment such as a stove or fridge. There's also a semi-hidden 'Speakeasy' pass-through door from galley to cabin.

Bend includes plenty of storage and work space in its galley design but leaves the cooking and cleaning equipment to the owner
Bend Teardrop

Bend loads the Tall Boy with a few extra standard features that are optional on its other trailers, starting with a 200-W rooftop solar system. There's also a 2-in hitch receiver, brake system, AC shore power hookup and rear stabilizer jacks. Despite its extra height and length, the Tall Boy still maintains a dry weight just below 2,000 lb (907 kg), making it compatible with a wide variety of cars, SUVs and trucks.

Bend introduced its first Tall Boy prototype last fall (Northern Hemisphere), while it was also preparing to spin off a dedicated sauna trailer brand. The Tall Boy is available for order now starting at US$18,995, and options include a shore water hookup with kitchen faucet, a 19-L fridge box, an onboard battery system and inverter, heating and A/C, and a side-mounted exterior awning.

Get a better look at the Tall Boy's design and features in the intro video below.

Source: Bend Teardrops

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2 comments
barrelquinglee
holy friggin jesus, $18 grand?

the 18x6' ginormous 4 axle trailer I bought for my NVC3 sprinter (4 cylinder; a 170wb extended high roof panel van trim) was $8,999 brand new zero mileage. Yes, of course its an unfinished trailer without insulation and built from one of those mass-copied trailer designs (and hence built from a a subframe, a bunch of riveted sheet metal and fiberglass, and oriented strand board and particle board)

Still, for the additional roughly $10,000 I could plate my trailer in Gadolinium and still have change to spare compared to that thing.
Steve Jones
This looks really good. But no use if you're tall, because the longest bed is 5'11", which is probably only comfortable if you're under 5'9".