Keystone Outback Loft (2 story TT)... What ever happened?

[boosTT]

The seccond floor popup seams like a great idea. It was discontinued after 2 years? Anyone know why? I think it may have been difficult to unlatch the popup roof?

[wowchad]

It's been over a year and I'm not 100% sure, but I'd guess the point I was trying to make is exactly what I said, "wowchad wrote: ....If they install it correctly (just like a well built basement) it shouldn't be a problem."

We did end up buying a LOFT and we really like it. The inside was like brand new but the outside was very sun beaten and the decals were ALL peeling. After a phone call and a few emails to Keystone they are sending me new decals. I can't wait to spruce it up!

It's been the biggest attention grabber in the park everywhere we've gone so if anyone is considering buying one keep in mind you'll be getting A LOT of visitors 😄
Also it's very tall and I found that it sways around like crazy so we'll be adding a second sway control bar in the near future...I still can not believe the guy we bought it from towed with a F-150!!

[Nvr2loud]

wowchad wrote:
Well since you're in MI then would agree that your basement is just a big hole in the ground? If they install it correctly (just like a well built basement) it shouldn't be a problem.

What does your comment mean? Comparing a hole-in-the-roof to a basement is apples to oranges. A basement isn't expected to fold-up into the floorboards of the house.

[suse1023]

sure wish someone would incorporate the loft idea in a better way. say on a fiver with slideouts and properly air conditioned, etc etc.
the idea is great, in this particular example the execution left a lot to be desired.
guess i'll just have to design my own!

[RayC94]

We are the owners of a Loft, and live in Florida. There are only a few issues that I would change: Lack of airconditing and heat in the toy hauler area. I understand that this is probably due to people hauling toys, (no heat), but they could have put a valve. There is an AC vent, but on 4 inch vent doesnt do it. The same with the Loft area, NO heat at all, and one 4 inch vent does not do it, I am concerned with the electrical heaters and the plastic screen covering. Having said that, we love the loft, it is great, we took the hard cushioned couch system out of the loft, and put a light futon up there and a small folding papason chair, folding table, all light. We have tea, coffee, sleep up there sometimes, but mostly read and watch nature.....it gives us a place to get out of each others hair. The big NO NO to me is the sewer handles are practically behind the wheels, we have had issues with that....if you do not get the black totally closed, you have a surpise waiting for you next time.....(WHAT WERE THEY THINKING? IT IS UNSAFE THIS WAY).....regardless, still love the camper....we had a bad, bad storm in central Florida at a family reunion camping trip, tents went down, top handled it, and we ended up with 9 people and 3 dogs. We use the garage as a master bedroom. I moved the bed up 10 inches, still pivots, just doesnt go all the way in, gives us a lot of storage for chairs etc......

Ray C

[MontanaCamper]

I looked at one a couple of years ago, but thought it was called a kangaroo or something like that. I liked the looks of it, but in cool weather only or at a race and your in the middle of the track...Good idea, but lots of space I didn't like about it. And was pretty small on the inside..I did like the garage but not the ramp on the side.

[suse1023]

btw, here's a discussion i found about it, and it has a floorplan.
http://www.roamingtimes.com/rvreports/keystone-outback-loft-travel-trailer.aspx

[suse1023]

we went and took a good look and really, we both love the loft space. the bathroom is tiny, but there is room for a w/d under the stairs and it has the outdoor grill dh requested.
we'd basically gut the main interior, placing a table w/chairs in front of a storage cab where the couch is and replace the banquet seating with a loveseat would be more comfortable for us.
we'd eliminate the garage bed and make the entire back wall a closet and use the space as a mud room. the sellers added a screen door to the ramp which makes it quite open and lovely when it's breezy.
it's priced quite a bit higher than we like, so will wait and see with it for now. the vinyl and carpet must be replaced, but i want the mods anyway so no biggie.
but the loft rocks and we'd for sure use it as a bdrm---though i'll be adding ac and curtains on three sides for privacy--the fourth side (if we took it) would face the sun and moon rise over the pond, which would be gorgeous from up there.
there is an ac vent available up there btw, the sellers never hooked it up so we'll see. the tv is 12 volt and there's an extension cord too.

[dadmomh]

I also took a tour when our local dealer had one on the lot early on. I thought the concept would be interesting for some, but a very limited market. Also found.....the steps up to the loft were steep and very narrow....just waiting for someone to trip and tumble to the bottom. If you lived in a place with very moderate weather, the loft might be the perfect place to read or enjoy a glass or two, but if it's like TN in the summer, you couldn't stand the heat. I didn't see any way to improve on it other than to take a fan up with you, and I don't remember if there was even an outlet. Agree that the "bedroom" left a lot to be desired with the location. Can't recall the bathroom, but if it's any smaller than many of the HTT or TT, it's almost non-functional.

My guess would be that the market for this was so small that it wasn't worth keeping in the line. Being a discontinued model after such a short run, I'd be hesitant to make the investment and then find you didn't love it after all. You'd probably really take a bath getting it sold.

[the_happiestcam]

They were too pricey new ($30K). That's why they quit making them.

[suse1023]

there's one for sale near us and we're intrigued enough to go look at it even though it's not a fifth wheel.
i shall report back if anyone is interested--it's in elizabeth new york btw, upstate near plattsburgh.

[boosTT]

I toured one in person a few months ago. Heres what I found:
The shower doesen't have a dome, so the shower ceiling is very low.
AC is the loft area would be a problem. The loft area has a lot of zippered windows though.
You need to crawl in the loft area to latch/unlatch the roof.
Unit had a soft spot in the floor right were the floor vent by the bathroom was. I read online someone else had a soft spot in this exact same place. I think it's from the lack of a brace near the vent and not rot.

[wowchad]

Well since you're in MI then would agree that your basement is just a big hole in the ground? If they install it correctly (just like a well built basement) it shouldn't be a problem.

[BillB800si]

It's just a big hole in the roof.

[Ranger431]

I thought it was a great idea. But, with 6 kids even the loft didn't give us enough space.

My wife wasn't fond of the "master BR" being a garage, I thought that with the use of an area rug it was a great use of space.

Having come from a HTT background I did have questions about how secure the canvas is/was at the bottom. And yes, I did have one son push another right out of one of the bunks on our hybrid - even though the snaps and velcro were sealed. The fall out of the bunk was bad enough, off the top of the TT would be really rough 😉