Buyer's remorse??

[Herimpression]

Hi. I'm totally new to this site and RVING. Hubby is in the Navy and got orders to Virginia...we decided to take advantage of living on the other side of the country by traveling to all the neat places we've heard about. So buying a TT seemed like a no-brainer. We looked at everything from Class C to fifth wheel to ultralights. We decided to get a light TT so we didn't have to upgrade our vehicle. We have a 1500 suburban with a tow package that can pull 8100 pounds.

So after a year of looking we were in between the Keystone Bullet Premier 31BHPR or 34BHPR The bunk house and outdoor kitchen were requirements and both have them. So after a lot of thinking we picked the 34BHPR because it has more interior storage and we liked the kitchen layout with the island. (This was a really hard choice because the other model has an exterior door to the bathroom and it's 500 pounds lighter because it only has 2 slides we thought that was great too.) So, we put our down payment down and we are waiting for them to do the do the walk through with us next week when we take it home.

Now I'm waking up at night worried we picked the wrong one because of the island. I hadn't seen the inside with the slides pulled in until the day we bought it. When the slides are in you can't get to anything because the slides pull right up to the island and you would have to climb over it to get to the bunk house. And getting to anything in the kitchen or storage under the table isn't possible with slides in. So you can only get to the bathroom and master bedroom with slides in.

Is this going to be a big deal??? We are in Virginia and are planning on going all the way up to Maine and down to the Florida Keys. I'm scared I'll hate that I can't get to our stuff on long hauls. We usually pack a road trip cooler in the car when we travel so hubby doesn't think we'll need anything from the trailer when we're on the road. But I don't know since we're new to this. Please give me advice. I can still change my mind and buy the 31BHPR that doesn't have an island...the dealer will be mad...but we haven't signed on the dotted line yet. Thanks in advance for your help!

[TSeck]

Don't go crazy with a new truck. Find something you can tow safely with what you have and work our way up to your dream camper. Most small kids could care less about the accomodations and will be so worn out by the end of the first night you could stand them up in the closet. We had 4 kids (1, 3, 8, 10) and started in a Coleman Pop-up. Moved to our first hard sided trailer (also a Coleman) after a weekend of hard rain pulled by a GMC Safari. The salesman also said "Oh yeah, that'll pull it fine". What a load of BS. After a white knuckle trip to Disney World I bought the Excursion. Several trailers later we now have our dream rig,

Take your time, do your homework and enjoy the experince. If your going to enjoy the lifestyle, accept the fact that your needs will change and you may have to go through several trailers/Tow vehicles to get to the sweat spot. Just remember to give your self some cushion.

[Mont_G_J]

SoundGuy wrote:

Mont G&J wrote:
I'll probably get kicked off the forum for what I'm about to recommend, but here's what I'd do.
I'd buy a used 21' Airstream (no slide) in excellent condition, pull it with the vehicle you have. Keep the Airstream in good clean condition and if you decide at some future time you want to go big, sell the Airstream for nearly what you paid. They hold their value real good.

Why would you "get kicked off the forum"? :h. There's absolutely nothing wrong with your recommendation and is one many would agree with. 🙂

Getting kicked-off was sort of a tongue- in- cheek statement. Being a long time member on the forum I have observed that many posters that mention Airstream trailers are usually directed to go to the Airstream Forum by some quick fingered member laying in wait

[dodge_guy]

toedtoes wrote:

dodge guy wrote:

rexlion wrote:
I skipped from page 6 to page 14, so pardon me if I missed something important.

That said, I am glad you are re-thinking your purchase. First, the lack of accessibility with slides in. Think of it this way: if the slide malfunctioned, would you be ok camping in it anyway? If not, pass on that model.

Same could be said for any malfunction. try camping in a TT with a failed A/C. besides, how many failures of a slideout have ever happened?

Many people camp without A/C. It all depends on where and how you camp. In addition, over the years between the TT and the clipper, I have camped without the fridge, electric power, water, heat, toilet, etc. - it didn't make it impossible, just less convenient - definitely not enough to cancel a trip.

Second, the length issue. The longer the tail, the more leverage it has to wag the dog. Know what I mean? With a long enough and stout enough lever, you can lift that trailer all by yourself... maybe only a half inch, but you could do it. Ok, 30' is a pretty long lever and 35' even more so. You definitely would need a hitch with built-in sway control, but even with that you might feel uncomfortable when towing in strong winds or when big trucks pass by.

A properly setup trailer should not sway. a good sway control hitch will prevent that. and anything over 25 feet should have a good sway control hitch. If you have sway, you have a setup problem!

Third, you'll have a much harder time finding a campsite than you would with a 25' TT.

Never had an issue finding a site with my 35 foot trailer.

Depends on where you want to camp. Many of the campgrounds where I camp won't fit anything over 25ft. Sure I could choose to camp at a different campground in the area, but that could mean I have to drive 5 miles to get to the waterfall pond, rather than hiking less than a mile to get there. Add that most of the campgrounds where I camp are up in the mountains and getting to a favorite day spot from a different campground could be a difficult hike rather than an easy hike.

Fourth, the struggle your Burb will have with a big trailer. In that regard length is not the issue. The issues are #1 frontal area, and #2 weight. An 8' wide by 127" high TT is pushing 45% more air and wind than a 7' wide by 100" high TT.

I agree with this, but the Burb with the proper gearing will do fine with a 10.5ft tall TT.

DW and I started with a 23' Rockwood TT with 1 slide. Since then I've bought smaller trailers only. All of them around 16'-17'. Easy to maneuver, easy to fit into smaller sites and in tight CGs. I like national forest CGs, and some of them just can't accomodate anything over a certain size. I also like smallish tow vehicles, BTW. I've towed over 140,000 miles with my '08 Toyota Highlander. That's just my preference. For your family and vehicle, a 25'-26' TT should be just about right.

And if I may suggest it, please consider a used TT. That Rockwood I mentioned off-gassed for about a year after we bought it, freshly built from the mfr. This is not un-typical. The formaldehyde and chemicals used in the typical TT interiors will sting the eyes, nose and throat of many people. Buying a 1-4 year old, used TT lets you escape that break-in period (much healthier) and miss out on the worst part of the inevitable value depreciation. If you decide a year later to sell the trailer, you won't lose much money on the pre-owned one but you will lose thousands on the new one.

Oh, and make sure you know how heavy your trailer's tongue is when it's loaded for camping. Don't guess or presume, you may be shocked! Especially if the fresh water tank is up front, like it was on my Rockwood. Water weighs 8.3 lbs per gallon, and the trailers you are looking at have huge tanks!


Fill the tanks at your destination and TW can be managed easily!

Many public campgrounds don't have the option to fill up at your destination. If you're staying at places with hookups, this isn't a big deal, but for many folks, not being able to tow with a full fresh water tank is a deal breaker.

Again, this is why it is very important for people to make decisions based on their own needs and usage, rather than simply going with the majority or most vocal opinions (not directing that at anyone on this post).

I agree. It gives to ways to go about research. These just make it easier for someone to decide based on how they'll use their RV.

[toedtoes]

dodge guy wrote:

rexlion wrote:
I skipped from page 6 to page 14, so pardon me if I missed something important.

That said, I am glad you are re-thinking your purchase. First, the lack of accessibility with slides in. Think of it this way: if the slide malfunctioned, would you be ok camping in it anyway? If not, pass on that model.

Same could be said for any malfunction. try camping in a TT with a failed A/C. besides, how many failures of a slideout have ever happened?

Many people camp without A/C. It all depends on where and how you camp. In addition, over the years between the TT and the clipper, I have camped without the fridge, electric power, water, heat, toilet, etc. - it didn't make it impossible, just less convenient - definitely not enough to cancel a trip.

Second, the length issue. The longer the tail, the more leverage it has to wag the dog. Know what I mean? With a long enough and stout enough lever, you can lift that trailer all by yourself... maybe only a half inch, but you could do it. Ok, 30' is a pretty long lever and 35' even more so. You definitely would need a hitch with built-in sway control, but even with that you might feel uncomfortable when towing in strong winds or when big trucks pass by.

A properly setup trailer should not sway. a good sway control hitch will prevent that. and anything over 25 feet should have a good sway control hitch. If you have sway, you have a setup problem!

Third, you'll have a much harder time finding a campsite than you would with a 25' TT.

Never had an issue finding a site with my 35 foot trailer.

Depends on where you want to camp. Many of the campgrounds where I camp won't fit anything over 25ft. Sure I could choose to camp at a different campground in the area, but that could mean I have to drive 5 miles to get to the waterfall pond, rather than hiking less than a mile to get there. Add that most of the campgrounds where I camp are up in the mountains and getting to a favorite day spot from a different campground could be a difficult hike rather than an easy hike.

Fourth, the struggle your Burb will have with a big trailer. In that regard length is not the issue. The issues are #1 frontal area, and #2 weight. An 8' wide by 127" high TT is pushing 45% more air and wind than a 7' wide by 100" high TT.

I agree with this, but the Burb with the proper gearing will do fine with a 10.5ft tall TT.

DW and I started with a 23' Rockwood TT with 1 slide. Since then I've bought smaller trailers only. All of them around 16'-17'. Easy to maneuver, easy to fit into smaller sites and in tight CGs. I like national forest CGs, and some of them just can't accomodate anything over a certain size. I also like smallish tow vehicles, BTW. I've towed over 140,000 miles with my '08 Toyota Highlander. That's just my preference. For your family and vehicle, a 25'-26' TT should be just about right.

And if I may suggest it, please consider a used TT. That Rockwood I mentioned off-gassed for about a year after we bought it, freshly built from the mfr. This is not un-typical. The formaldehyde and chemicals used in the typical TT interiors will sting the eyes, nose and throat of many people. Buying a 1-4 year old, used TT lets you escape that break-in period (much healthier) and miss out on the worst part of the inevitable value depreciation. If you decide a year later to sell the trailer, you won't lose much money on the pre-owned one but you will lose thousands on the new one.

Oh, and make sure you know how heavy your trailer's tongue is when it's loaded for camping. Don't guess or presume, you may be shocked! Especially if the fresh water tank is up front, like it was on my Rockwood. Water weighs 8.3 lbs per gallon, and the trailers you are looking at have huge tanks!


Fill the tanks at your destination and TW can be managed easily!

Many public campgrounds don't have the option to fill up at your destination. If you're staying at places with hookups, this isn't a big deal, but for many folks, not being able to tow with a full fresh water tank is a deal breaker.

Again, this is why it is very important for people to make decisions based on their own needs and usage, rather than simply going with the majority or most vocal opinions (not directing that at anyone on this post).

[Bumpyroad]

IdaD wrote:


Filling up at your destination means your destination has services. Most folks in my part of the country camp at primitive sites or in campgrounds without services.

most folks can stop at some point shortly before leaving civilization.
bumpy

[dodge_guy]

I use photo shop. Upload your photo and then copy the Link for "Direct". Put that into the "photo" link on this site and set the width as 600 then click finish. It took me a long time to get it. Hopefully you'll get it faster than I did.

[IdaD]

dodge guy wrote:

rexlion wrote:
I skipped from page 6 to page 14, so pardon me if I missed something important.

That said, I am glad you are re-thinking your purchase. First, the lack of accessibility with slides in. Think of it this way: if the slide malfunctioned, would you be ok camping in it anyway? If not, pass on that model.

Same could be said for any malfunction. try camping in a TT with a failed A/C. besides, how many failures of a slideout have ever happened?

Second, the length issue. The longer the tail, the more leverage it has to wag the dog. Know what I mean? With a long enough and stout enough lever, you can lift that trailer all by yourself... maybe only a half inch, but you could do it. Ok, 30' is a pretty long lever and 35' even more so. You definitely would need a hitch with built-in sway control, but even with that you might feel uncomfortable when towing in strong winds or when big trucks pass by.

A properly setup trailer should not sway. a good sway control hitch will prevent that. and anything over 25 feet should have a good sway control hitch. If you have sway, you have a setup problem!

Third, you'll have a much harder time finding a campsite than you would with a 25' TT.

Never had an issue finding a site with my 35 foot trailer.

Fourth, the struggle your Burb will have with a big trailer. In that regard length is not the issue. The issues are #1 frontal area, and #2 weight. An 8' wide by 127" high TT is pushing 45% more air and wind than a 7' wide by 100" high TT.

I agree with this, but the Burb with the proper gearing will do fine with a 10.5ft tall TT.

DW and I started with a 23' Rockwood TT with 1 slide. Since then I've bought smaller trailers only. All of them around 16'-17'. Easy to maneuver, easy to fit into smaller sites and in tight CGs. I like national forest CGs, and some of them just can't accomodate anything over a certain size. I also like smallish tow vehicles, BTW. I've towed over 140,000 miles with my '08 Toyota Highlander. That's just my preference. For your family and vehicle, a 25'-26' TT should be just about right.

And if I may suggest it, please consider a used TT. That Rockwood I mentioned off-gassed for about a year after we bought it, freshly built from the mfr. This is not un-typical. The formaldehyde and chemicals used in the typical TT interiors will sting the eyes, nose and throat of many people. Buying a 1-4 year old, used TT lets you escape that break-in period (much healthier) and miss out on the worst part of the inevitable value depreciation. If you decide a year later to sell the trailer, you won't lose much money on the pre-owned one but you will lose thousands on the new one.

Oh, and make sure you know how heavy your trailer's tongue is when it's loaded for camping. Don't guess or presume, you may be shocked! Especially if the fresh water tank is up front, like it was on my Rockwood. Water weighs 8.3 lbs per gallon, and the trailers you are looking at have huge tanks!


Fill the tanks at your destination and TW can be managed easily!

Filling up at your destination means your destination has services. Most folks in my part of the country camp at primitive sites or in campgrounds without services.

[FLGup]

To post pictures use This

[tragusa3]

Yes, pictures!

[ReneeG]

navydivercamper - looking forward to pictures, but now that you may be buying a 2500HD, you can get something bigger 🙂 🙂

[navydivercamper]

Alrighty everyone my wife and I have found what we want to use. We found a good deal on a new 2016 Dutchmen Aerolight 282DBHS. Much smaller than the Premier and MUCH lighter. Still going to use it with the Burb but only for local camping. For anyone that thinks the Burb is too undersized for this, I'm in the works with my buddy to buy his 2006 GMC Sierra 2500HD Duramax diesel. I really appreciate everyone's help with this. You guys really saved us from making a horrible and potentially dangerous decision.
PS @dodge guy, how do you add pictures to these forums? It would really help me out with posting stuff.

[Atlee]

WRT a slide, there are three things I must be able to do with the slide in, or that floor plan is a no go.

1) I must be able to get to the bed with the slide in. If I stop and need to take a 30 minute to 1 hour nap, I must be able to use the bed without putting the slide out.

2) If I stop somewhere that a rest room isn't available, I must be able to get to the TT's bathroom with the slide in.

3) I must be able to get to the refrigerator with the slide in.

I a floor plan fails any of these, I move to the next floor plan.

[SoundGuy]

Mont G&J wrote:
I'll probably get kicked off the forum for what I'm about to recommend, but here's what I'd do.
I'd buy a used 21' Airstream (no slide) in excellent condition, pull it with the vehicle you have. Keep the Airstream in good clean condition and if you decide at some future time you want to go big, sell the Airstream for nearly what you paid. They hold their value real good.

Why would you "get kicked off the forum"? :h. There's absolutely nothing wrong with your recommendation and is one many would agree with. 🙂

[Mont_G_J]

I'll probably get kicked off the forum for what I'm about to recommend, but here's what I'd do.
I'd buy a used 21' Airstream (no slide) in excellent condition, pull it with the vehicle you have. Keep the Airstream in good clean condition and if you decide at some future time you want to go big, sell the Airstream for nearly what you paid. They hold their value real good.