Considering Jayco

We had a Jayco Pinnacle, great 5th Wheel, Jayco makes a good product.
Our large kitchen / entertainment center slide was Schwintek operated.
If seemed to be overloaded and struggle since the day we bought it till the day we traded it.
We always made sure we were on shore power and level before operating the big slide.
Our Bedroom Slide was also a Schwintek Slide, it always worked flawlessly.
Ours was a 2011 model, I do not know if they have made any improvements to the Schwintek system for large slides since then.

Fiver in my signature has given us many years of problem free travels, and I expect several more.

Just a note on Jayco, they are still using a 10" I Beam while just about everyone else in that size/price range has moved up to a 12" I Beam main frame. Good friends have a new 2015 Pinnacle and are not overly impressed with the quality of their new unit, after owning Jayco's in the past.

My Jayco is twenty years old. and is undergoing a major overhaul (new roof. new Amish refrigerator cooling unit, new upholstery) and it will be good for another twenty years. Jayco makes a very good product.'

This would be our first Jayco & first with Schwintek slides. One for the bedroom & one large kitchen/living room slide. The bedroom slide doesn't worry me but the heavy main slide does.
I wasn't concerned as much about a 10" Ibeam in a 10,000 pound trailer. Our present trailer weighs the same and has 10" beams. Stronger obviously would be better though. Maybe we can find a floor plan that suits our needs with 12" Ibeams and hydraulic slides.
Decisions, decisions!!!
Thanks for the replies.

Rob_Fla wrote:
We had a Jayco Pinnacle, great 5th Wheel, Jayco makes a good product.
Our large kitchen / entertainment center slide was Schwintek operated.
If seemed to be overloaded and struggle since the day we bought it till the day we traded it.
We always made sure we were on shore power and level before operating the big slide.
Our Bedroom Slide was also a Schwintek Slide, it always worked flawlessly.
Ours was a 2011 model, I do not know if they have made any improvements to the Schwintek system for large slides since then.

Rob, I saw your post on the Jayco forum. I see you had problems with your large slide with the Schwintek system. We have considered Grand Design but don't want to change to a new dealer. Friends of ours have the Schwintek slide in a smaller trailer. It seems to be trouble free. I notice more manufacturers are going to this system. I guess cost and weight are factors. I don't want to ask for trouble though. I read that they may have gone to different motors now (greater gear reduction). I need do a little more research before we take the plunge.
Thanks for the feedback.

We purchased the Jayco rig in our signature used, a couple of years back. Our second fiver and the first with electric slides as our prior rig was a Cedar Creek with hydraulic slides. Our Jayco has three slides, with one being a heavy one holding the fridge, pantry, kitchen, etc. We did experience a problem when the motor brake on the on the large slide gave out, allowing the slide to creep out an inch or two when traveling. Fixed that and no problems since. The only thing I don't care for is the amount of time it takes to put the slides out. Seem to run much slower than our prior hydraulic system, but that's a nit. And I don't particularly like the way they designed the plumbing for the fresh water tank. Our old rig had a hose bib, while this one fills the tank via the 'utility center', where the water has to go through some fairly small pipes to make it to the tank. It works, but it takes a long time to load up with 80 gallons of fresh water.Again, not a killer issue, but something that is inconvenient. Overall, we've been very pleased with the quality of the build, cabinetry, and design, and plan on having this rig for a good long time go come.

grampscamper wrote:

Rob_Fla wrote:
We had a Jayco Pinnacle, great 5th Wheel, Jayco makes a good product.
Our large kitchen / entertainment center slide was Schwintek operated.
If seemed to be overloaded and struggle since the day we bought it till the day we traded it.
We always made sure we were on shore power and level before operating the big slide.
Our Bedroom Slide was also a Schwintek Slide, it always worked flawlessly.
Ours was a 2011 model, I do not know if they have made any improvements to the Schwintek system for large slides since then.

Rob, I saw your post on the Jayco forum. I see you had problems with your large slide with the Schwintek system. We have considered Grand Design but don't want to change to a new dealer. Friends of ours have the Schwintek slide in a smaller trailer. It seems to be trouble free. I notice more manufacturers are going to this system. I guess cost and weight are factors. I don't want to ask for trouble though. I read that they may have gone to different motors now (greater gear reduction). I need do a little more research before we take the plunge.
Thanks for the feedback.

Our current 5th Wheel has two Schwintek Slides so I do not have a problem with the Schwintek Slide system, just the application.
Our current 5th Wheel is a front living layout and both out front living area slides are Schwintek slides but they are small very light (with only a sofa in each slide) slides and have worked great.
Our Bedroom and Kitchen slides are Hydraulic operated.
You are right, since 2011 when we bought our Pinnacle they made some changes to the Schwintek slide system and have gone to a 500:1 motor for the larger / heaver slides.

I just sent an email to Jayco with some questions and concerns. I'll see what they say when they respond. We're looking at the Jayco Eagle 321RSTS. Love the layout. Theater seating directly across from the fireplace and TV. Very nicely finished. My wife loves the large island kitchen with the 12 cubic foot fridge option. Love the white high gloss fiberglass with the new front cap. My wife isn't so crazy about the bench in the entrance area but can live with it. She would prefer more counter and storage. We made a plus and minus column for this unit. So far the pluses far exceed the minus column. Actually there are very few negatives.
Our present 5th wheel has reclining chairs with the TV at 90 degrees to the sofa and recliners. We're getting tired of dragging the chairs around and having to tie them down when we move. Our fridge isn't accessible with the slides in. Should be on the Jayco. When we bought our Laredo we thought we could live with these inconveniences. Now we have much better options.
The weight and length are within our wants. Again my biggest concern is the slide system.
Thanks everyone.

Go to the Jayco owners forum and read about the slides and other questions you may have from owners. I did this before we bought our new Jayco. Jayco seems to have very few problems but when a problem occurs the company has a great reputation for fixing the problem. Keep in mind all RV's have had problems with individual units. The folks unfortunate enough to get a unit with problems publicize their problems.