New Montana Light Series

Does that mean the Boeing 787 is a really poor quality aircraft because it is made of lighter materials? Probably not.

And it does not make sense to expect 8K axles on a lightweight unit. The axles match the weight, not the quality.

I have not heard of any issues with the High Country, so maybe they are built better than folks can guess just looking at the scale. If you want a little more insight, although maybe a little bias, check the Montana Owners Club forum.

We can go back and forth all day about what material is better and in the end, it is going to come down to the quality of the workmanship. It does not matter what it is made from if it is not put together correctly. Unfortunately, it seems most builders are only interested in how fast they can build one and get it out the door. The attention to detail is not there even in many of the upper end units. It does not take long reading the post on here to find every manufacturer has issues with things done, or not done correctly, at the factory. Many look at using light weight as a way to cut cost, and obviously manufacturers are going to go as cheap as possible. But, lightweight does not mean it is not a quality build. The quality comes from those who care about the work they do in the building process

I agree that there are a number of ways that weight can be reduced with the use of some of the new materials. However, in the RV world, I think big parts of the additional weight come from items for which a real quality substitute has not been found yet.

8000#lb axels are bigger and heavier--differences in frames make probably one of the biggest differences in weights. The box frames tend to be much heavier than most of the I beams, and even here a heavier gauge steel will add weight over a lighter grade.

Some materials don't make as much difference in weight as one might suspect. For example, Excel uses a wood frame rather than aluminum. I was surprised to find out that the use of the wood only adds about 300# over what aluminum would weigh.

I see both sides. Light is usually from removing strength of material first but after that real innovation is needed using new materials and building methods. I saw what appeared to be a 34 foot 3 slide 5ver cougar high country being towed by a ecoboost. First reaction was no way! After some research now thinking maybe.

weight is only one facet of quality and not always a necessary one. Many things are built today that are smaller, lighter and more durable than then their original counterparts. Think carbon fiber, titanium, lithium, etc..
The jury is still out on whether RVs can be built this way.
I guess we will just have to "weight" and see.

Ken

Dtaylor wrote:

What is this based on??

Quality has weight, real honest weight. The only "weigh" a company can build "lighter" is to remove strength

Yes on the----Montana High Country is a lite "Helium Technology"

Is that the High Country? The Montana High Country is a lite (Helium Technology means Lite I assume), and I think it is even lighter than the Mountaineer. They claim under 10K lbs. The owners I have talked to seem happy with them. They had lighter axles, cable driven slides, but beyond that I'm not sure what else they did.

I spoke incorrect. It was a 34' Montana Light Mountaineer

n7bsn wrote:
IMO, "lite" rigs will not hold up as long or as well as the "regular" rigs.

What is this based on??