Hi all, I've been researching 5'ers for awhile and have come to the conclusion that you may be my greatest resource yet I have not tapped the forum for advice!Tow vehicle: '11 Silverado 3500HD DRW DieselI'm looking for a 5'er that has a family friendly layout. I have a 2 year old daughter but that's only for now. More on the way soon. Also have a dog/cat which will also camp with us. Would like something that has room for all of us plus: - good insulation R factors- strong axles w/ room for cargo capacity- front living area or bunkhouse? They seem to take up considerable room - hydraulic or electric slides? Why?- <50k and will consider usedUse will vary, I move alot for work so potentially we may be full-timing for months at a time before we can get a permanent "home". Hence, insulation factors is important. I've looked at a few manufacturers but it seems like they all compromise somewhere. Your recommendations please!

I prefer electric slides. Hydraulic slides are fast and powerful;(just listen to salesperson that has a RV with Hyd slides). However, look down the road when the hoses begin to leak, hyd motor fails,etc. It is also much easier to trouble-shoot & fix the electrical slides; (not near the moving parts or high pressure components for elec slides). On another note, DW & I found that we like bench seats for the table; we have 4 chairs for our 34' Blueridge 5th wheel. Our old prowler had the bench seats. This is just something else to have to tie off before moving your RV. Plus the chairs seem to get scuffed up more due to having to tie them off so much. On the tire issue, I like to carry 2 spares when traveling long distances. Try finding & buying a tire on weekends in the middle of nowhere.

We went with the Forrest River Sandpiper 366FL mainly due to the bunkhouse beds were not big enough nor comfortable enough for the kids, 13 and 15 years old. We are really glad we did just because of the room the family has now since the kids only would use the room to sleep in and during the day it would just be wasted space. It is really nice to have a full living room and kitchen and space for the entire family. Good luck. Travel on.

Good for you starring off with a Dually. Now you are not limited in your search for a new 5er!If I gave my opinion as to what to buy I would just get slammed by a couple people, so good luck with your search.Go big to begin with, seems like most up size soon.

gat75 wrote:I prefer electric slides. Hydraulic slides are fast and powerful;(just listen to salesperson that has a RV with Hyd slides). However, look down the road when the hoses begin to leak, hyd motor fails,etc. It is also much easier to trouble-shoot & fix the electrical slides; (not near the moving parts or high pressure components for elec slides). On another note, DW & I found that we like bench seats for the table; we have 4 chairs for our 34' Blueridge 5th wheel. Our old prowler had the bench seats. This is just something else to have to tie off before moving your RV. Plus the chairs seem to get scuffed up more due to having to tie them off so much. On the tire issue, I like to carry 2 spares when traveling long distances. Try finding & buying a tire on weekends in the middle of nowhere. I never even tie down my chairs and no scuffing in 78,000miles. Go with a trailer with 7,000 lb axles and 16 or larger wheels. That was my first absolute and I have never regreted it.

5th wheel shopping | Good Sam Community

NC_Hauler
Explorer
Jul 22, 2013
peejaykay wrote:
Thanks everyone, these are great tips that you wouldn't know unless you spoke with someone who's been there and done that. Never thought about that with regards to the chairs, good point. I like the U lounges I've seen in a few models. However, going with a U lounge sometimes means no couch. My daughter is 2, I'm not sure how long the bunkhouse will be comfortable for her. Maybe until she is 10? Either way, we like the extra living area too - the dog and cat can roam.

These are great tips. What do you all think of the Dutchmen, Carriage Lite, Open Range manufacturers? I have a few models on my short list from all of these. I also found a used 2007 model DRV mobile suites which might suit our needs too. Are twin 15k A/C necessary in a well insulated 5'er or is 13.5 ok? Why are some AC units so damn loud? My parents have a 34' Class A and their AC is whisper quiet.

Carriage Lite is good, don't know that much about Open Range to say one way or the other, the DRV Mobile suites is a heavy 5er and they're VERY good units....

If you unit comes with two 15,000 A/C's , enjoy it..if well insulated, they won't work as hard to keep unit cool...Don't know why a unit would be so loud that you would notice it that much...I'd make sure it's ok.

Dutchman has some good units out there...just have to know what model you're talking about.
Copperlisa
Explorer
Jul 22, 2013
Take a walk through some of what you want. We like the dinette chairs rather than the bench, but that's because we went through the "she touched me" and "he's on my side" phase with the kids. We were wasting time this week, and walked through the 2013 Jaycos that were under $50K at our dealer. We saw several that would fit the things you are asking for, including the bunkhouse. One had a bunkhouse model that converted to extra dinette space, another converted to lounge/tv watching space for the kids. Where you are in SoCal, you should be able to have your choice of dealers to shop from.

With your TV, your GVRW is huge. You've got a chance to get a nice 5er. Be picky, even with the used models. We looked for 6 months before we found ours. Good luck!

2005 GMC Sierra 2500HD Ext Cab 4x4 6.0L
1998 Jayco Designer 2930RKS
peejaykay
Explorer
Jul 22, 2013
Thanks everyone, these are great tips that you wouldn't know unless you spoke with someone who's been there and done that. Never thought about that with regards to the chairs, good point. I like the U lounges I've seen in a few models. However, going with a U lounge sometimes means no couch. My daughter is 2, I'm not sure how long the bunkhouse will be comfortable for her. Maybe until she is 10? Either way, we like the extra living area too - the dog and cat can roam.

These are great tips. What do you all think of the Dutchmen, Carriage Lite, Open Range manufacturers? I have a few models on my short list from all of these. I also found a used 2007 model DRV mobile suites which might suit our needs too. Are twin 15k A/C necessary in a well insulated 5'er or is 13.5 ok? Why are some AC units so damn loud? My parents have a 34' Class A and their AC is whisper quiet.
oldbeek
Explorer
Jul 22, 2013
gat75 wrote:
I prefer electric slides. Hydraulic slides are fast and powerful;(just listen to salesperson that has a RV with Hyd slides). However, look down the road when the hoses begin to leak, hyd motor fails,etc. It is also much easier to trouble-shoot & fix the electrical slides; (not near the moving parts or high pressure components for elec slides). On another note, DW & I found that we like bench seats for the table; we have 4 chairs for our 34' Blueridge 5th wheel. Our old prowler had the bench seats. This is just something else to have to tie off before moving your RV. Plus the chairs seem to get scuffed up more due to having to tie them off so much. On the tire issue, I like to carry 2 spares when traveling long distances. Try finding & buying a tire on weekends in the middle of nowhere.
I never even tie down my chairs and no scuffing in 78,000miles. Go with a trailer with 7,000 lb axles and 16 or larger wheels. That was my first absolute and I have never regreted it.
Cummins12V98
Explorer III
Jul 22, 2013
Good for you starring off with a Dually. Now you are not limited in your search for a new 5er!

If I gave my opinion as to what to buy I would just get slammed by a couple people, so good luck with your search.

Go big to begin with, seems like most up size soon.
Halmfamily
Explorer
Jul 21, 2013
We went with the Forrest River Sandpiper 366FL mainly due to the bunkhouse beds were not big enough nor comfortable enough for the kids, 13 and 15 years old. We are really glad we did just because of the room the family has now since the kids only would use the room to sleep in and during the day it would just be wasted space. It is really nice to have a full living room and kitchen and space for the entire family. Good luck. Travel on.
gat75
Explorer
Jul 21, 2013
I prefer electric slides. Hydraulic slides are fast and powerful;(just listen to salesperson that has a RV with Hyd slides). However, look down the road when the hoses begin to leak, hyd motor fails,etc. It is also much easier to trouble-shoot & fix the electrical slides; (not near the moving parts or high pressure components for elec slides). On another note, DW & I found that we like bench seats for the table; we have 4 chairs for our 34' Blueridge 5th wheel. Our old prowler had the bench seats. This is just something else to have to tie off before moving your RV. Plus the chairs seem to get scuffed up more due to having to tie them off so much. On the tire issue, I like to carry 2 spares when traveling long distances. Try finding & buying a tire on weekends in the middle of nowhere.
guidry
Explorer
Jul 21, 2013
Clicky
Here's a good one

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