Life is full of compromise...
I've been reading a bit here and also made a post in the general area to see who I might chat up in the forums to get ideas. But as I ponder and google and skim I think my curiosity comes down to won...
Forum Discussion
Compromise is the name of the game. We just switched from our fav setup---a truck and travel trailer to a Class C (see sig).
Couple things I'll add to what has been said, from my point of view:
1. We now have 2 dogs, and the truck was crowded with mom, dad, kid 1, kid 2, dog 1, dog 2. With the C, they are in a kennel, and sit above me in the overhang for "safety", not roaming around rig.
2. Generator. Yes, I could have put a small genny in the bed of my truck and run a cable to the TT when we stopped at roadside attractions (wall drug, largest ball of twine, you get the idea). But with the C and it's built in generator, the ENTIRE camper is cooled while driving, AND at a stop along the road to our destination (1 hour, 15 mins, whatever), the dogs are cooled.
3. Leveling. I, too grew tired of manually leveling (boards, lynx, whatever). The C we have came with the brackets from the factory, but not the leveling system installed. For just the cost of the system, I got free installation at the Michigan factory for Big Foot levelers. Now, we have hydraulic leveling at the push of a button (or 2...our system levels front to back. sometimes I need side/side and that's pushing a few more buttons.)
Those 3 points are the main reasons we went Class C. Point 2 is the biggie ... the genset.
The bottom line to your points: We compromised on "losing" the bunks in our TT to have a genset. However, I love the ease of just "going". I put the towbar to the C, main wire and safety cables, done. My girls are getting bigger and 1 will be off to college soon. We gained a lot and lost some. Some day, i can see the "cheaper" alternative to a small TT / truck vs. the C, when it's just the wife & I.
Find a good used C. We have the Ford V10 chassis and love it. Tons of power. I'd have no problem with a Chevy chassis either. Not sure why Dodge stopped RV chassis years ago.
We love our C, and it took some getting used to. But at the campsite, all is the same. Good times, good book, away from it all.
Couple things I'll add to what has been said, from my point of view:
1. We now have 2 dogs, and the truck was crowded with mom, dad, kid 1, kid 2, dog 1, dog 2. With the C, they are in a kennel, and sit above me in the overhang for "safety", not roaming around rig.
2. Generator. Yes, I could have put a small genny in the bed of my truck and run a cable to the TT when we stopped at roadside attractions (wall drug, largest ball of twine, you get the idea). But with the C and it's built in generator, the ENTIRE camper is cooled while driving, AND at a stop along the road to our destination (1 hour, 15 mins, whatever), the dogs are cooled.
3. Leveling. I, too grew tired of manually leveling (boards, lynx, whatever). The C we have came with the brackets from the factory, but not the leveling system installed. For just the cost of the system, I got free installation at the Michigan factory for Big Foot levelers. Now, we have hydraulic leveling at the push of a button (or 2...our system levels front to back. sometimes I need side/side and that's pushing a few more buttons.)
Those 3 points are the main reasons we went Class C. Point 2 is the biggie ... the genset.
The bottom line to your points: We compromised on "losing" the bunks in our TT to have a genset. However, I love the ease of just "going". I put the towbar to the C, main wire and safety cables, done. My girls are getting bigger and 1 will be off to college soon. We gained a lot and lost some. Some day, i can see the "cheaper" alternative to a small TT / truck vs. the C, when it's just the wife & I.
Find a good used C. We have the Ford V10 chassis and love it. Tons of power. I'd have no problem with a Chevy chassis either. Not sure why Dodge stopped RV chassis years ago.
We love our C, and it took some getting used to. But at the campsite, all is the same. Good times, good book, away from it all.
