Used Fleetwood or Jayco

[arosenau]

Well everyone was very helpful on my first post regarding Travel Trailer length I have been looking at some of my options. In comparing 2 different used trailers both 28 foot (i'm waiting to find out what measurement that is). 1 trailer is a 1982 Jayco, and the other one is a 1995 fleetwood, both appear to be similar trailers and similar condition, I will be looking at both of them soon. They are both similarly priced as well. Given the above would there be any reason to consider the older Jayco over the fleetwood?

Thank you again for your help, can't wait to join the Travel Trailer community.

[arosenau]

We ended up buying a 2005 Hybrid Travel Trailer actually. We really enjoyed the tent sides of our popup so we were excited to find a reasonably priced Hybrid close by.

[Camper_G]

Yep, my 1989 layton stays outside, no cover year round and the original aluminum roof is still in great shape. I am very anal about roof maintenance though

[kaz442]

I have a jayco of that vintage,1989 and it has an aluminum roof and under belly. So no worries about roof replacement.

[normal_dave]

Regular readers will soon tire of my typical response which goes something like this:

You: "Looking for decent used travel trailer with "A+B+C" options etc."

Me: "You need to find a Sunnybrook Harmony." Then I try to find the nearest Sunnybrook Harmony that is anywhere near what you are hunting for feature and size wise, and recommend you consider it first.

Like this one:
2011 Sunnybrook Harmony 26FBS

Why? In their day I think the best constructed travel trailer for the dollar, all aluminum superstructure, gel coat fiberglass exterior, pocket screw built cabinets w/hardwood faces, hidden hinges on the cabinet doors, porcelain fixtures, residential plumbing faucets, Equaflex suspension with shock absorbers from the factory. Unfortunately they only had less than a 2% market share in their day, but a loyal following. Winnebago bought them out to start their towables business, and today's designs reflect the old Sunnybrook styles, but some of the best high end features have been left behind.

FWIW, this one measures 27' 7" from center of coupler to rear bumper according to the specs.

We don't know what your budget is, but with the two you've picked, your savings in price may be eaten up in restorative maintenance in short order.

Give one of these a look. Here's the brochure for the Harmony, compare the construction to what you are looking at now. All aluminum walls and ceiling vs. small wood studs and metal trim. Since you are a snowmobile guy, you'll appreciate good construction and mechanicals. Think about how tough your snowmobile trailer is with it's welded steel tubing walls/ceiling. Now imagine that but with welded aluminum in your soon to be purchased Harmony, plus all the nice fixtures.
2011 Sunnybrook Harmony brochure
----
Now if a fella didn't mind a road trip to Cleburne, TX, and wanted a deal on a real nice older travel trailer, before the Harmony line was launched, Sunnybrook made the Brookside, and for the Western States, the Mobile Scout line.

I've had a hard time passing this one up, and have shared it with a few folks, I think this is a really nice older trailer at a great price, and is better quality than much newer used trailers that are often up to 3x the price. I called about it, new tires, less than 500 miles, interior rated 9/10 exterior 8/10, roof resealed in the last two years as regular maintenance, i.e. not for leaks. Look at the condition of the decals in the pics and the shiny gel coat exterior, this trailer had to be stored under cover most of it's life.
2000 Mobile Scout 26FK

2000 Mobile Scout Brochure

Why am I so passionate about these? When I find something built that well vs. what the industry does today, and it's available on a budget, well, I think everybody should have one.:)

Good Luck, and thanks for letting us help you spend your money!:B

[Ron3rd]

Biggest killer of trailers that age is water intrusion so proceed with caution. The roof has probably been patched many times to go up top and look.

The other big issue is the suspension and the bearings and brakes. Do they roll? Can you pull it home without smoking a spindle? Do the brakes work? What about the tires?

[TurnThePage]

I don't know how long they last. If the unit was stored under a cover, the roof could easily last decades. Mine, which lives outside fulltime, is 13 years old and is starting to look pretty rough. I plan on coating it this year with some kind of liquid rubber or related product. I think that could be done to pretty much any roof, and would expect to do it to anything older than 10 years, which is the typical material warranty. If the rest of the trailer is in good condition and suits your needs/desires, don't let an old roof stop you (unless you can't or don't want to perform that maintenance). RVs, especially these older box on frame trailers have routine maintenance requirements that you really can't put off. The roof and exterior walls are full of potential leak locations that need to be dealt with before they inevitably leak.

[arosenau]

TurnThePage wrote:

arosenau wrote:

Bumpyroad wrote:
the fleetwood will have a 22 year old rubber roof. the jayco a 35 year old ???
bumpy

This is the only thing that worries me buying a trailer this old. I'm fairly handy and can fix, replace most anything else. I also have a brother and brother in law that are carpenters. I'm just not sure how you fix/prevent the roof from leaking.

As long as the roof hasn't leaked yet, you have plenty of options. You can do various coatings or completely replace with EPDM. If it's leaked, I personally wouldn't buy. Much bigger can of worms than I would want to deal with.

I don't plan to buy anything that has leaked already. I realize all trailers are different and it is largely dependent on how it was taken care of, but is there an average for how long the roofs last on these things? If I went newer how much newer would I have to get for it to make a difference?

[TurnThePage]

arosenau wrote:

Bumpyroad wrote:
the fleetwood will have a 22 year old rubber roof. the jayco a 35 year old ???
bumpy

This is the only thing that worries me buying a trailer this old. I'm fairly handy and can fix, replace most anything else. I also have a brother and brother in law that are carpenters. I'm just not sure how you fix/prevent the roof from leaking.

As long as the roof hasn't leaked yet, you have plenty of options. You can do various coatings or completely replace with EPDM. If it's leaked, I personally wouldn't buy. Much bigger can of worms than I would want to deal with.

[Oasisbob]

No matteer what you buy have it checked over prior to signing by a non biast quality service tech. Money well spent. I have found problems even the seller did not know about.

[arosenau]

Bumpyroad wrote:
the fleetwood will have a 22 year old rubber roof. the jayco a 35 year old ???
bumpy

This is the only thing that worries me buying a trailer this old. I'm fairly handy and can fix, replace most anything else. I also have a brother and brother in law that are carpenters. I'm just not sure how you fix/prevent the roof from leaking.

[mikakuja]

My choice would be based on condition. As already said, it makes no difference who makes it at that age.

[downtheroad]

At those ages, it doesn't make a bit of difference....Jayco, Fleetwood, or whatever.....make your choice by condition and best floor plan that fits your needs.
Forget about the label and graphics on the side...
And prepare to spend some money beyond what you pay for it.

[Bumpyroad]

the fleetwood will have a 22 year old rubber roof. the jayco a 35 year old ???
bumpy