Just bought our first RV
We just bought our first RV last-night! Can't wait to go camping with it! It's a 2014 Coachmen Clipper 108ST, now we have camped for many years in a tent so was just wondering if there's anything I mi...
Forum Discussion
Welcome to the forum and congratulations on the new PU. I think you’ll have some great camping experiences ahead of you. I tent camped for about 18 years traveling all over the country in a tent. The downside of that was the constant packing and unpacking of gear when I was traveling so I finally got a Coleman PU. A great PU, all metal, small and light, and we took it all over the NW and east to the Smokies. I pulled it with a ’73 Bronco, a ’72 Torino and an ’86 Bronco and they were all an easy tow and the impact on gas mileage was negligible. I gave it to my oldest son years ago and got a small TT and the DW still comments she wishes we still had it for some trips; it gave more of a “camping” feel.
As a tent camper it should be familiar territory to you, just treat it the same as a tent. If it gets wet open it up and let it dry out, don’t just park it. Yours is a little bigger and heavier than mine but I seriously doubt you’ll need any sway control; I never had a hint of it with any TV. Just take it out and try it in bite size increments and see how it handles. I found that I could expect to lose a tire on a long trip, and sometimes a wheel bearing. I got quiet adept at changing out wheel bearings along the road and I carried an extra spare tire and bearings. But it had small tires that got a workout on the highway; I just don’t recall now what the size was.
Keep in mind that if you want to use the furnace it will eat your battery in a night, so you’ll need hookups, a generator, or another means of heating it. I used none of the above, I found that I could get up in the morning and light the stove for coffee and lay back down and in a few minutes the PU was warmed up. You don’t want to do that and doze off again, though.
As said, practice backing up in a parking lot somewhere until you get a good handle on it. I have a different perspective about the difficulty of backing up. A big rig isn’t sensitive to minor tweaks of the wheel so it’s considered easier. Read less maneuverable. I camp in remote national forest locations where it’s tight quarters and maneuverability is king. So sensitivity to input is important and big rigs are harder to me.
I’d pick a spot close to home for the first trip. Take a tape recorder or a pencil and tablet and record your thoughts about the trip. Things you took you don’t need, those you needed and didn’t take, and so on. Have fun.
As a tent camper it should be familiar territory to you, just treat it the same as a tent. If it gets wet open it up and let it dry out, don’t just park it. Yours is a little bigger and heavier than mine but I seriously doubt you’ll need any sway control; I never had a hint of it with any TV. Just take it out and try it in bite size increments and see how it handles. I found that I could expect to lose a tire on a long trip, and sometimes a wheel bearing. I got quiet adept at changing out wheel bearings along the road and I carried an extra spare tire and bearings. But it had small tires that got a workout on the highway; I just don’t recall now what the size was.
Keep in mind that if you want to use the furnace it will eat your battery in a night, so you’ll need hookups, a generator, or another means of heating it. I used none of the above, I found that I could get up in the morning and light the stove for coffee and lay back down and in a few minutes the PU was warmed up. You don’t want to do that and doze off again, though.
As said, practice backing up in a parking lot somewhere until you get a good handle on it. I have a different perspective about the difficulty of backing up. A big rig isn’t sensitive to minor tweaks of the wheel so it’s considered easier. Read less maneuverable. I camp in remote national forest locations where it’s tight quarters and maneuverability is king. So sensitivity to input is important and big rigs are harder to me.
I’d pick a spot close to home for the first trip. Take a tape recorder or a pencil and tablet and record your thoughts about the trip. Things you took you don’t need, those you needed and didn’t take, and so on. Have fun.
