slide or not to slide

For what we do with our TC, slides make all of the difference. Extra floor space also gives us room for a dog crate if required. If a Bigfoot will work for what you plan to do, you can for sure do worse!

Slides can get out of adjustment, but they aren't that complicated. the biggest concern is when slides are added without enough structure to support the slide.

As far as things going wrong though, an RV has a lot of things that can go wrong or fail both inside and outside. Relatively speaking a slide is pretty simple. If we were talking TCs from 15 years ago, I'd have a different opinion. By 2005 or so, almost all but the new manufacturers figured out how to make slides reliable.

We love our slide and feel like it really opens up the TC. No problems with it and we can easily enter the TC with the slide in and use all the facilities.

We recently upgraded from a Lance 835 to an 851 with a dinette slide. The 835 really seated only one person comfortably at the table, the other person was falling off the edge of the short bench on the back side. With the slide both of us can sit comfortably, a huge improvement because there is a full size bench on each side. The whole thing feels dramatically roomier even though you are only adding 6 or 8 sq ft.

I'm just hoping it doesn't break!

I have not seen in real life other TC with slides, but sounds like slides are not equal.
My dinette slide makes the "sits 2" into sits 4 comfortably and I can enter and use the camper with slide in just fine.
Sure at 1 point I have to go sideways, but my 205 lb fits just fine.

I depends on your camper. We went from a Lance 945 Legend (which has a floor plan we like but they don't make anymore) to a Arctic Fox 1140 with a single slide. We are going back to a 945. The slide is just something else to go wrong. And you really only get more room in the hallway. The dinette is basically the same size. Plus you have to run the slides out to get into the thing, (unless you are very slim).

After long years of RV with big family in big RV, I bought TC only becouse it come with slide.
There is only 2 of us now, but 3 small dogs and the dinette slide sure makes the camper much bigger.
Also basement adds pretty big storage, but that comes with pretty hefty height, so balance your decision carefully