Forum Discussion

Stpierre142's avatar
Stpierre142
Explorer
Jan 21, 2014

Coachman 29SE

Welll, I have been debating which camper to buy for over 6 months now (between a dutchman, keystone, and coachman)... Took the plunge yesterday and bought a coachman 29SE TT. No frills, but will fulfill our needs.

Needed a camper with a double bunkhouse, which all 3 offered... Why a coachman? Got a great deal.

Any feedback, good or bad, on this coach would be greatly appreciated.
  • I'm on my second Coachmen. My Catalina is a year old, and I've had no problems at all. Never had any with my 04 Captiva either.
  • wrvond wrote:
    Well, I've gone through all the floor plans on the Coachmen website, and cannot find a 29SE in any model TT. Googled for images on a Coachmen 29SE and got pictures of Freedom Expresses, Catalinas, and Apexes. So, I don't know which camper you are buying. However, I can tell you that my Catalina 25RKS has had absolutely no problems. I have gone through it with a fine toothed comb and been unable to find anything wrong. There are plenty of mods to do, to be sure, but that's part of making any camper your own.
    Though I have no data to back it up, I have come to suspect that TT's of any manufacturer are pretty much trouble free as long as they are under 28 feet long. Beyond that, I think the frames tend to be too flexible, which introduces problems.
    Our old TT was 24 years old when it finally wore out, and I imagine our new one will last at least that long, as well.


    I'm sorry, it is basically a stripped down Freedom Express 292BHDS. I was told the only difference is color (tan die not added to azdel), standard white wheels instead of chrome, no power awning or tongue jack, and less fancy cabinets and upholstery on the interior. It was 7k cheaper than a Freedom Express liberty edition.

    I was told the construction is the same as the regular unit... This is a special 50th anniversary show edition...

    Was I sold a bad bag of goods??
  • Well, I've gone through all the floor plans on the Coachmen website, and cannot find a 29SE in any model TT. Googled for images on a Coachmen 29SE and got pictures of Freedom Expresses, Catalinas, and Apexes. So, I don't know which camper you are buying. However, I can tell you that my Catalina 25RKS has had absolutely no problems. I have gone through it with a fine toothed comb and been unable to find anything wrong. There are plenty of mods to do, to be sure, but that's part of making any camper your own.
    Though I have no data to back it up, I have come to suspect that TT's of any manufacturer are pretty much trouble free as long as they are under 28 feet long. Beyond that, I think the frames tend to be too flexible, which introduces problems.
    Our old TT was 24 years old when it finally wore out, and I imagine our new one will last at least that long, as well.
  • I had a 2010 Coachmen Feeedom Express for a couple of years. I was satisfied with it and it was reliable for the time I had it. I traded it for a RL floor plan and I liked Keystone's better than the Coachmen's but I wouldn't hesitate to get another in the future! Good luck and enjoy!
  • I will be sure to seal everything! I guess there's always a chance of having problems, regardless of the manufacturer.

    Surprised no one else here has any thoughts on coachmen products. I hope I did the right thing!!
  • Stpierre142 wrote:
    Welll, I have been debating which camper to buy for over 6 months now (between a dutchman, keystone, and coachman)... Took the plunge yesterday and bought a coachman 29SE TT. No frills, but will fulfill our needs.

    Needed a camper with a double bunkhouse, which all 3 offered... Why a coachman? Got a great deal.

    Any feedback, good or bad, on this coach would be greatly appreciated.


    Oops- coachmEn, not coachman... Newbie
  • As soon as you get it, recaulk all of the window, door and applicance frames on the outside. Use a good sealant, I've used Quad in the past. It's a pain to work with but was told by an RV dealer that it was one of the best. We had a very bad experience with a Coachmen TT that we bought new in 2003. Within 3 years, I noticed a soft spot in the floor, under the carpet near the entrance door. At the end of the 4th season I decided I better take a look at it and see what was going on. I removed the bed, couch, water tank (under couch) and all of the cabinets in the master bedroom. Then I pulled up the carpet and discoverd 4 areas of extensive rot in the floor. I had to use most of a 4x8 sheet of plywood to fix all of the rotten places and even had to sister in some extra floor joists. There was absolutely no visible signs of leakage anywhere on the walls or ceiling and I had no idea of the damage until I pulled the carpet up.
    I'm not saying this is unique to Coachmen either, and I hope you have better luck with yours.

    When we traded this leaker on a Jayco, the first thing I did was reseal all of the openings and many of the seams just to be safe.

    Good luck and happy camping!
  • Very nice! Like the kitchen work area...roomy. Like the u-shaped dinette. Nice color scheme that will be easy to live with. Looks like exactly what you were after, not to mention a good deal. Congrats!