โJul-14-2012 08:00 AM
โMay-17-2013 04:26 PM
โJul-15-2012 07:49 AM
mister_d wrote:
At one of our dealers, we walked through at least 8 different brands of the same floorplan. Although YouTube and the Internet have made the world smaller, nothing really beats actually walking through a unit.
โJul-14-2012 06:57 PM
โJul-14-2012 06:38 PM
โJul-14-2012 06:33 PM
Mike Up wrote:
Well we looked at the Ameri-Lite 259BH because it was very similar to the much heavier super slide Jay Flight Swift 267BHS that we just didn't have the payload in our truck to pull, with our family and gear. The Ameri-Lite 259BH was only 200 lbs heavier than the none slide Jay Flight 26BH so it was very hopeful until I walked in.
And no I'm not bashing, I'm simply telling like it is. For tall people, it's cramped. With my ball cap scraping the ceiling, it just left me very uneasy and with an uncomfortable cramped feeling. My last 2 pop ups had 6'6" ceilings and I never felt cramped or had my hat even hit the Air Conditioner! I have a hard time believing the ceiling height is 6'4", it looks to be more like 6'2" like I said before. It's bunks aren't a single over a double but more like a single over a twin, which is misleading from the floorplan. This would had been a downgrade over our 19BH which has a double, 48" bunk under the single bunk. That smaller lower bunk also lowers your storage under it since it's smaller, which wouldn't fit all of our gear that we have now under the lower bunk.
Since storage was a MAIN REASON for going to another trailer, the lack of cabinets, with shelves instead, was a very important point.
For a shorter family with less storage needs, this is a very good floorplan but for us, it's extra 1' width from the wall to the super slide's wall was not worth the scacrifice in height, storage, and bed size with a premium price and heavier weight to boot!
Not bashing as I know it's a budget model just like my 2008 Jay Flight was then, when the G2 Jay Flight was available.
I've only heard good things about Ameri-Lite as far as reliability and even the saleman praised them for their reliability even though he stated Jayco was the best out of any brand.
But things didn't go well for the deal so most likely we will stick with our 19BH and get it repaired.
BTW, here's the floorplans:
Jay Flight 19BH
Jay Flight 26BH
Amerilite 259BHS
Misleading as the bottom bunk is not a full bed, but a twin bed. The walk way between slide out and gallery is much narrower than the floorplan would have you believe. It's only about 1' wider than the walk way from the 2 Jay Flight models.
โJul-14-2012 04:57 PM
โJul-14-2012 04:47 PM
โJul-14-2012 04:44 PM
โJul-14-2012 04:35 PM
Mike Up wrote:
We are looking at getting a Jayco Jay Flight 26BH but found that the Gulf Stream Ameri-lite campers with superslides are just as light or nearly as light as the Jayco.
So we compared the Ameri-lite 255BH and 259BH models and I couldn't even stand being in there.
I'm 6' even and the roof was scraping my hat. The brochure says 6'4" but I don't believe it, it felt more like 6'2". I have Claustrophobia and I couldn't wait to get out of this trailer. Also, even though they have a superslide, both models only offered a walkway about 1' wider. Definitely not worth the trouble of a slide.
Then we checked out the bunks. Our 19BH and the 26BH have double beds at 48" wide. These Ameri-lites bunk was much narrower maybe a twin or smaller. At areas without the slide, the width was narrower than the Jaycos. It's exterior width was only 7'6" wide where the Jayco was 8' wide.
The Ameri-lites also had no storage cabinets. They did have a shelf instead of a cabinet but that's of little use for our needs.
The Ameri-lite 259BH was 5200 lbs dry from the factory where the Jayco Jay Flight 26BH was 5050 lbs dry from the factory. Even so, the Jayco was much larger inside with a ceiling height of 6'9" and 1/2' in areas other the slide. Also had more storage cabinets and larger beds. Even the bunk mattresses on the Ameri-lite were flimsy looking to be 2" thick compared to 4" thick with the Jayco.
Also price wise, the Ameri-lite 259BH was about $1000 more expensive than the Jayco 26BH.
Now I'm not bashing the Amerilite as the size difference, other than the beds, didn't bother my step son or wife who are in the lower 5' range. And I realize this is a budget brand so they are going to cut corners so this isn't a surprise. I just wanted to point out some differences that can be overlooked when looking at a floorplan sheet.
โJul-14-2012 04:30 PM
โJul-14-2012 01:09 PM
โJul-14-2012 10:59 AM
โJul-14-2012 10:39 AM
Mike Up wrote:snip
Now I'm not bashing the Amerilite ...
โJul-14-2012 10:08 AM
Doug, Linda, Audrey (USN) & Andrew