Getting a new TT

[naneen]

Hello!

We've been camping in our 2004 Shadow Cruiser Fun Finder T160 (3500 GVWR) every spring, summer, fall and now we are considering upgrading to a bigger camper and expand to boon docking, the occasional winter camping and longer trips. We live in Maine so there are lots of places to boon dock along magnificent lakes and rivers.

We are two adults and a daughter who always brings a friend and two dogs. The shadow cruiser is awesome (sleeps five, a dinette that seats four adults, tons of storage) but the tiny tanks for black and greywater really prevents us from boon docking as much as we'd like. We have a five gallon potable tank we use when we stay places that have a dump site but no sewer. My lovely husband would love some more space and we'd love to have a big dinette that on rainy/cold days and nights four adults can sit and play cards or board games without having to unmake the bed. Having a big dinette has saved many a camping trip when the weather turned nasty - it's great family bonding time and it allows us to enjoy camping regardless of the weather.

So far we like the lance 2185 and the camplite 21bhs.

Are there any others in the 21-24 size range with bunks and a full/queen bed and a big dinette.

Many thanks!

Btw: we tow with a Toyota Tundra crew max and it is usually loaded with 3-4 kayaks and 2-3 bikes.

[WoodGlue]

LOL!!!

Be sure to have a peek in the DIY and Modifications section of LOA for some great ideas on storage optimization (like the 1685 needs any kind of optimization - it has crazy space to store stuff!)

WoodGlue

[naneen]

WoodGlue wrote:
Congratulations on the new 1685! You still have room for 2 little grandkids in the upper bunk! LOL!!

Have you ever been to LOA?

Lance Owners of America

WoodGlue

I'm going to make my husband join LOA as he's already drooling over the idea of solar panels and batteries. Engineers are so easy to entertain.

[naneen]

WoodGlue wrote:
Congratulations on the new 1685! You still have room for 2 little grandkids in the upper bunk! LOL!!

Have you ever been to LOA?

Lance Owners of America

WoodGlue

Just joined. We are still in the car driving home from the dealer. 😉 I'm so excited about how much it opens up our camping possibilities that my daughter told me "mom you need to calm down" in that 13 yr tone of superiority. Next time she "squees" over a kitten (or a boy band) I'm reminding her about this.

In short, I'm very excited. We are already discussing upcoming trips. Squee!

[WoodGlue]

Congratulations on the new 1685! You still have room for 2 little grandkids in the upper bunk! LOL!!

Have you ever been to LOA?

Lance Owners of America

WoodGlue

[naneen]

jma3910 wrote:
To the OP...how do you carry all the kayaks and bikes? I am struggling with a solution for 2 kayaks and 2 bikes. Don't want to steal the thread so PM me if you prefer.

Just in case you don't have a pickup. When we had a Toyota highlander we put three kayaks on top of that and slid the three or four bikes into the camper itself. We don't travel with the tanks full so we were fine on weight.

[naneen]

jma3910 wrote:
To the OP...how do you carry all the kayaks and bikes? I am struggling with a solution for 2 kayaks and 2 bikes. Don't want to steal the thread so PM me if you prefer.

Our TV is a Toyota tundra crew max with Thule rack that holds three kayaks and we put the bikes in the bed (bungees down)

Easy peasy.

On another note we just bought out new camper. -We chose a lance. After looking at the camplite, freedom express 230bh (too big), koala Eco camp 20bh (too blah) we came to the lance 1695 (just right). Our daughter loves the dinette and two adult sized kids can sleep together. As our daughter put it "I don't like bunks anymore because once you are in them you can't talk anymore". Probably a selling point for the parents but I much prefer the smaller footprint.

[jma3910]

To the OP...how do you carry all the kayaks and bikes? I am struggling with a solution for 2 kayaks and 2 bikes. Don't want to steal the thread so PM me if you prefer.

[naneen]

profdant139 wrote:
Don't throw the new Fun Finders out of bed -- the tanks are much bigger than they used to be.

They were the first manufacture we looked at because we LOVE our T160. However, they stopped putting bunks in their <21 foot campers - and for 2014 they don't have bunks until the 27' model.

Hell, if I thought I could do it I'd just put bigger tanks in the one we have - but we are NOT DIY people. We did one DIY project - once. Now we place a phone call. 🙂 It's better and safer for all involved.

Plus my DH, is craving a little bit more space now, he's a radio amateur and dreams of 'shack space'. We already travel with a solar-powered battery charging station, a buddipole for his antenna, and some radio thingy so the he can communicate on 6M. If anyone is interested I can get the details - but I do the loving smile and nod when he gets too detailed about it. He does the same thing when I blather on about dog breeds and upcoming doggy events, so we're evenly matched.

[profdant139]

Don't throw the new Fun Finders out of bed -- the tanks are much bigger than they used to be.

[WoodGlue]

Here is how Lance solves the 4 season camping tank system:

Lance Heated Enclosed Holding Tanks - Insulated Valves

I hope this help better explain how Lance handles this.

WoodGlue

[tbred]

I'm a pretty new tt owner myself but would pretty safely bet you cant use the plumbing system at all in those temperatures. Our tt has an insulated, heated and enclosed underbelly and at that I wouldn't remotely attempt to use water in below 0 temps. I guess my cutoff would be about 25 degrees with the heat running. Once parked at home, all bets are off. Would need to have system drained and winterized immediately. Maybe more exp'd folks can enlighten us both!

[bigcitypopo]

That Lance 2185 seems like the eticket... Get it loaded. The triple bunk is awesome.

[naneen]

naneen wrote:
Thanks. Just when you think you know all the RV manufacturers you find some you've never come across before.

We are really leaning towards the Lance. It seems to have a good balance of things we need and want. Plus, it's something we can camp in for the next ten + years and still enjoy it. We may end up not purchasing it right away but at least at we can keep our eyes open for a sale, or the availability of a used one.

We have one dealer that sells both lance and camplites so we are going to go over and slam some cabinet doors and kick some tires.

One question - for those of you that camp in the winter. How do you 'store' your camper between trips? For instance, we go for a weekend (its below freezing) everything is great; we are snug as bugs during the trip. We come home and unpack the perishables and go on our merry work/school lives. Now what? Do we have to run the heater during the week if it is below 0 so the RV pipes don't freeze?

We live in Maine - so below freezing temperatures is the norm.

My husband asked - and I couldn't make up a good answer 🙂

-Naneen

[naneen]

epsteinlarue wrote:
We just got through buying a new RV and looked at a 23ft Lance. They are great for 4-Season camping even in the cold of Idaho or Maine!

Yeah, living in Maine and enjoying snowshoeing, cross country skiing means we are out and about all the time. We'd love to take the camper with us in the winter (so far we've only gone up to the end of October).

Which 23ft model did you get? We are in love with the 2185. Quarantine the 13 year olds (daughter and friends) in the bunks and still have a big dinette for late night board games, etc and our own bed.