811 vs 855S

billtex wrote:
Just checked my notes;
EC850 dinette bed = 70" x 42".

AF811 dinette bed = 67" x 39"


Yes, I have notes from these 3 models in question as we did a LOT of research before upgarding to a slide last year...

Bill

I know this post is a bit old, but I did check out a 2015 AF 811 the other day, and the dinette is definitely 76" long (I don't know about the width). I'm 6'3" and could lie down on the dinette bed with room to spare. Did they make a change between model years?

The Lance 855s is also 76" long.

brholt wrote:

The tanks are hung in AF camper so it shouldn't make a difference on or off the camper. (I know one person "blew up" his tank by over pressurizing it)

YEP.

I saw them being built as such at the factory.

THe floor framing starts upside down. Once all the pertinent parts are installed, the basement assembly is flipped then the rest of the camper is built.

When you get your Lance 855S, be sure you get the AGM batteries, not the wet cells you have to check and fill, It's just too hard to do the maintenance on them and to ensure they are vented correctly. Verify the hand operated crank for the slide out works. Just in case... Check all the water fittings. We had the outdoor shower fitting only finger tight and it leaked, showing up on the outside near the shower and bath. Check and make sure the emergency disconnect switch works correctly too. If the dealer is wiring up your truck with the proprietary plug Lance uses, make sure they do it per the Lance manual with the ground and the hot lead 8gauge wire directly to the battery via a breaker. You should get both propane tanks filled when delivered too. Our dealer gave us something like $150 credit at their RV store where we bought a water pressure regulator, an upgraded sewer hose and the rest towards the Lance shock struts. BTW, those struts, while expensive, make all the difference in the world on providing a smooth ride. I can't say enough good things about them. Our dealer also said we would get 15% off anything we bought through them, like the struts. I used the Torklift tiedowns and really appreciate how strong those things are.

Hope you enjoy your camper as much as we do ours!

alstraub wrote:
We settled on the Lance 855S over the others after spending over a year looking. It's going on our 2012 F350SB. The overriding deciding factor was weight as they're really not all that different otherwise.

What is the loaded weight of your 855S?

Our EC 850 is ~ 3900# locked/loaded.That is with 49 gal H20, the Lance has much smaller tanks (which was another factor for us). The EC and AF have nice big tanks, a factor if you will boondock.

We found the EC and Lance to be about same on weight, AF ~ 400# heavier.Plenty of Folks run these on 3/4 ton though (look up bedlam...he is all over the place with his AF on a 3/4 ton. You should be fine with any of these on a 1 ton.

AMLRV post actual weight of each camper as it leaves the factory on a plate in the cupboard.

Good luck,
B

We settled on the Lance 855S over the others after spending over a year looking. It's going on our 2012 F350SB. The overriding deciding factor was weight as they're really not all that different otherwise.

Just checked my notes;
EC850 dinette bed = 70" x 42".

AF811 dinette bed = 67" x 39"


Yes, I have notes from these 3 models in question as we did a LOT of research before upgarding to a slide last year...

Bill

Grodyman wrote:
I can't imagine the dinette in the Lance is larger than the AF. My dinette in my AF990 was 76" long I believe. Adults could easily sleep on it. Can someone confirm this?

Anyway, with kids, using the dinette as a bed, the dimensions for me would be critical.

The AF990 is a long bed camper, the dinette might be longer because of that.

Billtex can give you more details about shortbed camper dinette size.

805gregg wrote:
If you are getting a new truck why not get an 8' bed, it opens up so many more camper options, 1.5 ft in the bed makes for a lot of room in the camper

I always felt that way...untill we got the slide. The difference in floor space is amazing. We are very happy with the room in a SB slide.It really did chnage my mind about moving up to a LB someday...

Grodyman wrote:
can't imagine the dinette in the Lance is larger than the AF. My dinette in my AF990 was 76" long I believe. Adults could easily sleep on it. Can someone confirm this?

The dinette in the AF 811 is much shorter than the 990...IIRC 5'4"?

The disadvantage I can see having the fridge in the slideout is the Cu plumbing and wiring are moving, this could lead to wear/binding/chafing and the slideout roofs can get real hot in the summer...this makes it tough on the fridge as slideouts are not as well insulated as the main coach.
Not knocking the AF...we almost bought one (if we had a LB the Wife REALLY like the AF990)...but these were considerations for us.

Bill

Grodyman wrote:


Also, placing the fridge in the slide opens the AF up and gives you another place to sit or set things on the landing below the fridge. I found I would sit there often.

Can't beat Northwood's full wall slide outs, and they know how to build them. You never hear of anyone complaining about their AF full wall slide causing problems, or related structural problems to the corners of the slide out or areas around the openings.

I can't imagine the dinette in the Lance is larger than the AF. My dinette in my AF990 was 76" long I believe. Adults could easily sleep on it. Can someone confirm this?

Anyway, with kids, using the dinette as a bed, the dimensions for me would be critical.

Also, placing the fridge in the slide opens the AF up and gives you another place to sit or set things on the landing below the fridge. I found I would sit there often.

Also, I think AF is made better. Given they are usually cheaper, it is a no brainer. But if weight is a concern, the Lance is probably lighter.
Gman