I'm looking for some TT advice from experienced RVers

Snomas wrote:
. How come the Winnebago Mini Winnie is not mentioned ?

Probably because no one mentioned it yet.

I really like the Outdoors RV 21 RBS

I have owned a lot of entry level Forest River products, Rockwood, Flagstaff, Puma, etc and find Jayco trailers to be much better in terms of quality and workmanship. Not perfect, just better.

This one looks pretty sweet—> https://www.jayco.com/products/travel-trailers/2019-white-hawk/25fk/

I like the front kitchen because most of the weight is up front where you want it. Seems like this layout would be a pretty stable tow.

Interesting. My wife and I sold our 2005 Monaco 40DP last year. We are thinking about long weekend trips with grandchildren. I am looking at a 2015 Ford Expedition (9,200 towing capacity) and a Jay Flight 287BHSW. It should run about 7,000 fully loaded. I think the tongue and axle weights will be within limits.

We have the same truck other than the motor. Power is not a problem for my EcoBoost. You're 5.0 has almost as much power. We are towing a Cougar 29BHS. It's 7,000 empty. I wouldn't go much heavier than that. I'm closer to 8,500 loaded up. If our daughter wasn't still living at home, I'd go without the bunkhouse. The Cougar is a real nice trailer but their smallest one is 26' and still about 6,600 empty. If you're wanting a nicer trailer and can live without a dinette, check out the Grand Design 2250RK. I looked at Grand Design and they're really nice. They just didn't have the floorpan that was perfect for us at the time. The Cougars have king size beds. My wife and I are both tall so we like that. That 2250RK has the walk around bed and theater seating. It's also 5,500 pounds dry. Easy for your truck. It would be a perfect weekend getaway camper for a couple I think.

I don't know if you've towed anything with your F-150, but it's a great TV. I tow my trailer between 65 and 70 on the highway. No problem maintaining speed up long hills. I do have a ProPride hitch and airbags in the rear for a more solid feel. But it's no problem. I'm confident I could tow even more but the experience would probably be less enjoyable beyond what I'm doing now. You're 5.0 only has slightly less power than the EcoBoost so, you'd be good there too.

I bought a Jay Feather RBM 23 new in Jan of 2016. It is 23 ft on the floor, plus about 3 ft of tongue length with GVWR of 5995 lbs. I tow with a Ram 1500 with the 5.6L gas V8.

I have pulled this trailer about 20,000 miles including a 6 month stint all over the western US (including lots of mountains and some rough roads) This is at the upper end of your size range, but I never had trouble fitting into the sometimes small CGs at state and national parks.

We LOVE the livability afforded by the Murphy bed. There is one fairly large slide out for a very comfortable dinette, and the sofa that is part of the appeal of the Murphy bed floorplan is a real plus, IMO. It only takes a minute to put it up or down, and it makes the trailer live like a 30-footer! BTW, I also chose this model for its large kitchen space. That may not matter if your use is more short trip oriented than ours.

Sounds like you are already a fan of the Murphy bed, but I've never understood why more people don't go for these. Seems like people either love or hate them. Main complaint seems to be reduced storage, but my unit has more storage than I need, even living aboard for six months. I do have a cap on my truck, though, which kind of solves any storage shortage.

My Jayco was made before the sale to Thor, but my few warranty items after two years were handled very well under Thor's ownership.

I've been very satisfied overall with the quality of the unit, and if you're thinking about buying used, finding one like mine would be a good choice, if you decide to go that big.

Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.

I really like the Rockwood 2304S. It is a modern lay-out with a Murphy bed and one big slide. It is a 24 foot trailer that feels bigger. Great storage and a large U shaped dinette big enough to sleep an adult. The bathroom is spacious. Well appointed, fiberglass and alum frame with 4 season insulation and heated tanks. It weighs around 4700 pounds dry and will fit in USFS camp sites.

We downside from 37ft fifth wheel to Forest River Mini Lite 25ks 2 years ago. Last year we 12500 trip to Alaska. I t worked perfect for us.

jmtandem wrote:

My DW and I sold our 40"DP after 15 years of wonderful use and are now considering to downsize to a small TT for short weekend trips.

Airstream!

Great, if not the best TT, IMO. Trouble is OP wants a slide in a 20’-24’ TT, Airstream was only ‘till 2010 or so and in larger sizes - maybe 30’?

Lots of offerings out there and the resell on <24’ is usually good.