Hello,I am looking to purchase an RV with rear slide bed that is less than25 feet long. Anyone have a recommendation? I have been looking at the Jayco Jayfeather x254. Thanks in advance.

Do you mean 25' hitch to bumper? Or box size? The x254 is 27'4". The x213 is 24'. Keystone had the 210TRS at 22'10" and some larger models as well Keystone Outback TerrainIf you're towing with your Titan, make sure you know your payload. If it's a crew cab, half tons aren't known for their stellar payload. With our x213 we're at about the limits of our truck with our family and some cargo.

The two versions I know of was the frontier model 2405 by KZ and the outback model by Keystone, I had the frontier and my buddy had the outback and they both had the bed slide out in the back. hope that helps.

If shopping new Keystone Outback Terrain has a few rear hard slide models.

We looked at the rear slide a few years ago. Our biggest concerns were:1) I'm 6' tall and would have to lay across the TT because of the bed size, and thus crawl over each other to get out of bed (no walk around on the sides).2) The slide does not provide any privacy other than a curtain, similar to a PU camper. The slide also has very limited cabinet/storage area.3) Very difficult to move around inside the TT when the slide is not extended out.4) Requires folding of other furniture such as couches/dinettes in order to retract slide.5) Potential for future water leaks.

Doug33 wrote:We looked at the rear slide a few years ago. Our biggest concerns were:1) I'm 6' tall and would have to lay across the TT because of the bed size, and thus crawl over each other to get out of bed (no walk around on the sides).2) The slide does not provide any privacy other than a curtain, similar to a PU camper. The slide also has very limited cabinet/storage area. Our cabinet above the bed fits clothing for 2 adults and a child. 3) Very difficult to move around inside the TT when the slide is not extended out.4) Requires folding of other furniture such as couches/dinettes in order to retract slide.5) Potential for future water leaks.1) our x213 bed is longer than it is wide so sleeping the other way wouldn't help you. My husband is 6' and he is either bending his knees some or on his back with his heels hanging off or sleeps at a small angle and fits because there is room for him to do that on a long width bed. Anyway, for him it hasn't been an issue. 2) we come from tents first, then a PUP so for us, we've never expected privacy when camping other than in the bathroom which the trailer has. 3) the only time we're in when the slide is in is to stop and pee on the side of road. So the entire family needing to move around hasn't been an issue.4) in ours, the couch flips down in 5 seconds, maybe less. The dinette takes me under a minute. My friends usually have to clear things off the floor in front of their side slides before they can pull them in so not a whole lot different. 5) doesn't any slide have that risk?Not meaning to downplay your concerns. Just wanted to present another side so the OP could have two views to get a better feel for which side they lay on with the issues presented.

Rear slide RV's that are less than 25 feet | Good Sam Community

13 Replies

BigT16
Explorer
Jul 18, 2015
We have an X254 that we bought new this year and love it. It's our first camper. I tow it with my Ram 1500 with ease and I have a loaded crew cab. Obviously no layout is perfect but we wanted something with bunks that we could pull with my truck. We liked the X254 over the X213 and the Outback 210 because the bunks are set off a little in their own room. With the other ones, the bunks are right there when you open the door. The bunks have lot of space too. Other layouts have the bunks in back and are more cramped. There's plenty of room and the bunk room is great for storing things while we're towing it like bikes. There's a separate little door to load things. Also we like the slide out because it still feels like we're camping but without an canvas to deal with. Also the bed is huge! Nothing's perfect but I feel this layout is a great compromise.
HuckFinn410
Explorer
Jul 17, 2015
We've had our rear slide for 10+ years. We have thoroughly enjoyed the Frontier 2405...rear queen slide, with a small couch slide too. It's been to the west coast and back a few times, spent weeks traveling with the family around the country. It's also spent the last 3 years at a seasonal full time site in the Ozarks. It's been a great trailer with very few issues.....decals fading of course, other than that it's been great. We had our first minor leak last week when the area got 10" of rain in 2 days with 80 mph straight line winds. I think that the wind blew open the slide out seals and the rain came in. Pretty minor though. We caught it within a couple of days and have remedied any potential long term issues.
Regarding the bed size. I am 6 foot tall (and shrinking, at least vertically) and I fit in the bed fine..east to west queen bed. With the addition of a 4" memory foam topper and my usual ration of rum and cold beer around the nightly campfire, I sleep better in the camper than I do at home.
One of the only drawbacks to the slide out bed is that my wife is over the whole crawling over my big butt to get in and out of the bed. As we get older, the crawling over each other is not good. Perhaps if we were a bit more, nimble and svelte, it might be less of an issue...... or, she needs to go to bed first, not need to pee in the middle of the night, and get up after me in the morning. Solved that problem!
In summary,
the trailer tows great....24 ft on the road, 29 ft at the campsite. Let me know if you have any questions....Actually, we have been thinking of selling our camper. Let me know if you might be interested (sorry mod)

HuckFinn
DavidP
Explorer
Jul 17, 2015
Doug33 wrote:
We looked at the rear slide a few years ago. Our biggest concerns were:

1) I'm 6' tall and would have to lay across the TT because of the bed size, and thus crawl over each other to get out of bed (no walk around on the sides).

Our Jayco 26P (same slide in Jayco's current offering will have no problem with anyone 6 foot or taller. It is a king bed and you lay front to back. There is no climbing over anyone.

2) The slide does not provide any privacy other than a curtain, similar to a PU camper. The slide also has very limited cabinet/storage area.

[COLOR=]Plenty storage for us with overhead cabinets across the entire rear.
True, there is less privacy but how much privacy do you really have in a travel trailer.

3) Very difficult to move around inside the TT when the slide is not extended out.

We don't camp with the slide in. This goes for any RV with a slide.

4) Requires folding of other furniture such as couches/dinettes in order to retract slide.

[COLOR=]Our couch has to be folded down...takes 2 seconds max.

5) Potential for future water leaks.

Mine is in its 6 year with two slides and no leaks. As we all know any RV can leak slide or no slide. A rear slide is no more prone to leak than any other slide.

The real benefit in my book is I have a 29 foot trailer when towing that is over 35 feet with slide extended. Bedroom really opens up the floor plan where IMO is needed.
shum02
Explorer
Jul 17, 2015
Doug33 wrote:
I believe the issues I heard about leaks along the rear slide were during towing, not during usage on site. This may have been on some of the earlier models (gasket seal issues?) and those issues may have been addressed through revised design on later models.

Had my rear slide since '07 and NEVER had an issue with rear slide water intrusion.
kodiakcanuck
Explorer
Jul 17, 2015
I believe many of the models, like mine, the rear bed is longer than wide, so you sleep head towards the back, and feet towards the inside of the trailer (as SliverEscape said) so you dont have to crawl over anyone. I agree the parents bed area doesnt have much privacy, but I'm not camping for privacy...

Also if you wanted a bit more room and not worry about loosing the table and couch when closed up, why not look at the larger rear slide like mine (24KSSL).. You get a second slide for the u-dinnette. Outback Terrain 250TRS is an option (and Jayco used to make one). The only complaint I have about mine is eventually the kids outgrown the smaller front bunks...
MFinCA
Explorer
Jul 17, 2015
I've had the TT in my signature since it was brand new. I tows at 26' 9" from the ball to the back bumper. I stayed in it during the week for over 13 months and went through heat, rain and even snow. No leaks at all. I'm 5'11 and fit just fine in the bed.

The biggest advantage of the rear slide is that it is a 29' trailer with the slide pulled out and the bed does not encroach on the living space. The biggest disadvantage is that the outside person sleeping on the bed (me) has to wake up my wife to get up first or go to the bathroom.

We are going to be upgrading to a 5er in the future with a walk around queen bed.
Doug33
Explorer
Jul 16, 2015
I believe the issues I heard about leaks along the rear slide were during towing, not during usage on site. This may have been on some of the earlier models (gasket seal issues?) and those issues may have been addressed through revised design on later models.
Thom02099
Explorer II
Jul 15, 2015
3campinglovers wrote:
Hello,

I am looking to purchase an RV with rear slide bed that is less than
25 feet long. Anyone have a recommendation? I have been looking at the Jayco Jayfeather x254. Thanks in advance.

I have a Keystone Outback 25RSS, it's right at 25 feet bundled up, opens to 30 feet -- shown in my signature. It has the double bunk up front across the front and a side slide for the sofa.

The rear slide has worked for us, but it may not be for everyone, as noted in some of the comments. But since that's what you are looking for, I presume you may already be aware of the pros and cons. The slide in ours has a couple of storage cabinets on one side and a shelf on the other, so the storage is sufficient for our needs. Kids not going with us as frequently any more, so the front bunks end up being additional storage. My only real complaint is that the bathroom is a bit tight; wish it was a few feet bigger.
SilverEscape
Explorer
Jul 15, 2015
Doug33 wrote:
We looked at the rear slide a few years ago. Our biggest concerns were:

1) I'm 6' tall and would have to lay across the TT because of the bed size, and thus crawl over each other to get out of bed (no walk around on the sides).

2) The slide does not provide any privacy other than a curtain, similar to a PU camper. The slide also has very limited cabinet/storage area. Our cabinet above the bed fits clothing for 2 adults and a child.

3) Very difficult to move around inside the TT when the slide is not extended out.

4) Requires folding of other furniture such as couches/dinettes in order to retract slide.

5) Potential for future water leaks.

1) our x213 bed is longer than it is wide so sleeping the other way wouldn't help you. My husband is 6' and he is either bending his knees some or on his back with his heels hanging off or sleeps at a small angle and fits because there is room for him to do that on a long width bed. Anyway, for him it hasn't been an issue.

2) we come from tents first, then a PUP so for us, we've never expected privacy when camping other than in the bathroom which the trailer has.

3) the only time we're in when the slide is in is to stop and pee on the side of road. So the entire family needing to move around hasn't been an issue.

4) in ours, the couch flips down in 5 seconds, maybe less. The dinette takes me under a minute. My friends usually have to clear things off the floor in front of their side slides before they can pull them in so not a whole lot different.

5) doesn't any slide have that risk?

Not meaning to downplay your concerns. Just wanted to present another side so the OP could have two views to get a better feel for which side they lay on with the issues presented.
Doug33
Explorer
Jul 15, 2015
We looked at the rear slide a few years ago. Our biggest concerns were:

1) I'm 6' tall and would have to lay across the TT because of the bed size, and thus crawl over each other to get out of bed (no walk around on the sides).

2) The slide does not provide any privacy other than a curtain, similar to a PU camper. The slide also has very limited cabinet/storage area.

3) Very difficult to move around inside the TT when the slide is not extended out.

4) Requires folding of other furniture such as couches/dinettes in order to retract slide.

5) Potential for future water leaks.