What's with the ridgey exterior walls on the Jayco TTs?

[MookieKat]

Why would they use the ridgey outside walls like that? It looks like it would create more wind resistance and be less aerodynamic. Also looks tough to keep clean! I have seen old TTs with dirt in every groove.

[Proteus]

Mike Up wrote:
I'm starting to think we have a troll.

First, who in the world would be proud of needing to pay someone to do the yard work he should be doing and use the excuse, I'm not into construction.

Then come off as a pompous elitists, snob and say that there's no travel trailer good enough for him???

Then goes on to say how he's to good for trucks and must have a ride that's so cushy, that he'll think he's being cuddled by mom.

Then come on say how Walmart is beneath him, that he needs his designer food stores that overprice so he can feel he's special shopping there??

Now does anyone know a MAN that would admit, let alone announce this to anyone or on a public board???

I think this guy is nothing but a troll trying to cause a stir in a somewhat conservative working class forum.

Well, I've tried to keep this civil, but to quote one of your heros...."there you go again!" Before you go making this even MORE personal, I'll state the following:

I don't have time for gardening, or yard work, or construction, I work hard for a living, and what precious free time I have, I like to spend with my family, rather than chores I can afford to pay others to do. It's not "elitist" to hire professionals, when time is money. It's not "elitist" to shop at stores with better quality and healthier food. It's not "elitist" to drive a luxury vehicle, that meets *my* needs for both towing, and silent cruising down the highway. And, it's certainly not "elitist" to desire a nice, well designed, efficient, and modern trailer that fits my needs.

It *is* elitist for you to claim that this is a "conservative" forum. Last I heard, love of the outdoors and camping was shared by both Red and Blue alike.

Anyway, this has gone way off topic, and it's clear we're not adding to the OPs question. Enjoy your truck. Hope it's big enough to make you feel "manly".

[pappcam]

Mike Up wrote:
I'm starting to think we have a troll.

First, who in the world would be proud of needing to pay someone to do the yard work he should be doing and use the excuse, I'm not into construction.

Then come off as a pompous elitists, snob and say that there's no travel trailer good enough for him???

Then goes on to say how he's to good for trucks and must have a ride that's so cushy, that he'll think he's being cuddled by mom.

Then come on say how Walmart is beneath him, that he needs his designer food stores that overprice so he can feel he's special shopping there??

Now does anyone know a MAN that would admit, let alone announce this to anyone or on a public board???

I think this guy is nothing but a troll trying to cause a stir in a somewhat conservative working class forum.

I deduced that from his first post. The guy doesn't even own a trailer. Troll indeed.

[Mike_Up]

I'm starting to think we have a troll.

First, who in the world would be proud of needing to pay someone to do the yard work he should be doing and use the excuse, I'm not into construction.

Then come off as a pompous elitists, snob and say that there's no travel trailer good enough for him???

Then goes on to say how he's to good for trucks and must have a ride that's so cushy, that he'll think he's being cuddled by mom.

Then come on say how Walmart is beneath him, that he needs his designer food stores that overprice so he can feel he's special shopping there??

Now does anyone know a MAN that would admit, let alone announce this to anyone or on a public board???

I think this guy is nothing but a troll trying to cause a stir in a somewhat conservative working class forum.

[Terryallan]

Proteus wrote:

Terryallan wrote:

Proteus wrote:

Terryallan wrote:

I'd rather drive a truck too. And in truth. No one is going to tow ant TT of any size with a "normal" vehicle. Unless like me. You think a truck IS a normal vehicle. There are only 2 kinds of home owners. Those who have a truck, and those who need a truck. Trucks are needed for WAAAAY more than just towing a RV.

The truck prejudice here is exactly what is wrong with the US RV industry. I don't have a truck. I just safely towed a 6000lb+ trailer for 2k miles through two national parks. Pray tell, what would I want, or need a truck for? If I need to haul a bunch of****** the dump perhaps? I could see it for towing a large 5th wheel, or a full time trailer, but not a standard vacation travel trailer.

Bottom line is there are lots of people in the US, who, like their counterparts in Europe and Australia would like to tow high quality, well designed trailers with efficient and comfortable daily drivers. There just seems to be a lack of high end options out there....

Lets see, As a home owner. Ever get a load of Mulch? Wanna dump that thru the Sunroof on that SUV? Ever go pick up a water heater, or fridge. Try to stuff that in the back of that SUV. Or did you ever get a load of gravel? Where in your SUV did you put it? Or that load of wood / lumber. Or those sheets of plywood. How well does your lawnmower fit in your SUV?

And while towing that trailer. where would you put the 10 bikes and firewood we carry?
As I said. There are 2 kinds of home owners. the kind that have a truck, and the kind that need a truck. We didn't buy a truck to tow with. We use a truck, because we HAVE one. and they are better suited to tow with. There are no none truck based SUVs on the market today that I would try to tow my TT with. Just can't do it as well.

And you still haven't told us what your TV is.

Mulch? I get together with the neighbors and a blower truck comes down the street. Appliances need to be professionally delivered and installed anyways. Gravel, plywood, lumber? I'm not in the construction industry..why would I need that?. My electric lawnmower fit just fine in my SUV (an ML350 diesel, FYI).

Firewood and 2 bikes fit just fine in the trailer. 10 bikes? Umm..quite the brood you have! Look, I'm not saying that some folks don't need a truck, but I'd maintain that most people don't, and it's really just an image thing (at least where I live). On the rare occasion I need a "real truck"? Home Depot rents em for cheap.

You really don't do anything for yourself? As a home owner. I'm forever going to get something to install or lumber to build something. Or going to pick up furniture that DW bought. Hauling gravel for the TT bed, fixing up DWs flowerbeds, or fertilizer, and stuff for the garden, Trees to plant.
As I say. If you own a home, you need a truck. They are just so handy, and practical.

[Terryallan]

Proteus wrote:

Terryallan wrote:

Mike Up wrote:

Terryallan wrote:
Lets see, As a home owner. Ever get a load of Mulch? Wanna dump that thru the Sunroof on that SUV? Ever go pick up a water heater, or fridge. Try to stuff that in the back of that SUV. Or did you ever get a load of gravel? Where in your SUV did you put it? Or that load of wood / lumber. Or those sheets of plywood. How well does your lawnmower fit in your SUV?

I agree, I can't see how someone can be a home owner and not own a truck. I'm guessing he's the type that pays someone to do everything around his house so he can keep his unibody eco car.

And then prolly borrows a truck, or utility trailer to go to Lowe's. Sorry. But trucks are just better to ride in, and drive. And are WAAAY more practical.

And I do have a SUV for DW to drive to work. But you won't catch me hooking any thing bigger than a popup to a front wheel drive vehicle. They are not built to tow.

Too funny, you guys nailed it. Except for the part about trucks being "better to ride in and drive". Seriously? On what planet?

In most folks worlds. Trucks ride better than most cars, are EASY to get into and out of. They also don't hurt your back like a car does, and you sit up higher, and can see more of what is in front of you, and around you. Plus. The babies in the car seats like to ride in them, so they can see out as well.

DW would much rather ride in the truck than anything we have had in the last 30 years, and we have had some really great vehicles.

And as my son said just last week. He don't ride in the truck so much. They have cars. But as we were running down it big road, to go tow home a vehicle he bought to play with. He looked at the speedo, and said 70 MPH? It feels like we are sitting still.

[Proteus]

Mike Up wrote:

westend wrote:

Terryallan wrote:


And you still haven't told us what your TV is.

I think he has a Mercedes ML350 TDI. Gotta' say, I knew he was putting both feet in it with the truck-hatin'. BTW, #1 vehicle in sales this year, again---Ford F150.

My brother's Mercedes M series SUV is such a POS. He's on his 2nd engine after nearly suing them to fix it. Biggest piece of garbage he's ever owned. It's been in for a bunch of other problems as well.

He's also a GM fan boy, so he has his '86 Grand National and Suburban. He tows his Fleetwood TT with his Suburban, wouldn't even tow his 10' X 8' sport equipment utility trailer with Benz, doesn't trust it.

So I can see why you would want a lightweight small TT for a Mercedes, especially if this one is a unibody.

When a Suburban is considered the reliable vehicle, you know the other cars are pretty bad off. 😄 😄

F150 all the way!

Funny, my friend just traded in his 2003 ML with 280k miles on it...still going strong. I did look at the Expedition (SUV version of the F-150), and saw through its "truck" pedigree right away. Floaty suspension, grunting engine, loose handling? Not to mention Ford's superb repair and safety record? Yeah...I knew who I was trusting *my* families safety to! And give over on the whole "unibody vs frame" thing..modern unibodys are structurally stronger, especially when they use high tensile steel and magnesium alloys. Ask any mechanical engineer which is better in a crash.

[Proteus]

Terryallan wrote:

Mike Up wrote:

Terryallan wrote:
Lets see, As a home owner. Ever get a load of Mulch? Wanna dump that thru the Sunroof on that SUV? Ever go pick up a water heater, or fridge. Try to stuff that in the back of that SUV. Or did you ever get a load of gravel? Where in your SUV did you put it? Or that load of wood / lumber. Or those sheets of plywood. How well does your lawnmower fit in your SUV?

I agree, I can't see how someone can be a home owner and not own a truck. I'm guessing he's the type that pays someone to do everything around his house so he can keep his unibody eco car.

And then prolly borrows a truck, or utility trailer to go to Lowe's. Sorry. But trucks are just better to ride in, and drive. And are WAAAY more practical.

And I do have a SUV for DW to drive to work. But you won't catch me hooking any thing bigger than a popup to a front wheel drive vehicle. They are not built to tow.

Too funny, you guys nailed it. Except for the part about trucks being "better to ride in and drive". Seriously? On what planet?

[Proteus]

Terryallan wrote:

Proteus wrote:

Terryallan wrote:

I'd rather drive a truck too. And in truth. No one is going to tow ant TT of any size with a "normal" vehicle. Unless like me. You think a truck IS a normal vehicle. There are only 2 kinds of home owners. Those who have a truck, and those who need a truck. Trucks are needed for WAAAAY more than just towing a RV.

The truck prejudice here is exactly what is wrong with the US RV industry. I don't have a truck. I just safely towed a 6000lb+ trailer for 2k miles through two national parks. Pray tell, what would I want, or need a truck for? If I need to haul a bunch of****** the dump perhaps? I could see it for towing a large 5th wheel, or a full time trailer, but not a standard vacation travel trailer.

Bottom line is there are lots of people in the US, who, like their counterparts in Europe and Australia would like to tow high quality, well designed trailers with efficient and comfortable daily drivers. There just seems to be a lack of high end options out there....

Lets see, As a home owner. Ever get a load of Mulch? Wanna dump that thru the Sunroof on that SUV? Ever go pick up a water heater, or fridge. Try to stuff that in the back of that SUV. Or did you ever get a load of gravel? Where in your SUV did you put it? Or that load of wood / lumber. Or those sheets of plywood. How well does your lawnmower fit in your SUV?

And while towing that trailer. where would you put the 10 bikes and firewood we carry?
As I said. There are 2 kinds of home owners. the kind that have a truck, and the kind that need a truck. We didn't buy a truck to tow with. We use a truck, because we HAVE one. and they are better suited to tow with. There are no none truck based SUVs on the market today that I would try to tow my TT with. Just can't do it as well.

And you still haven't told us what your TV is.

Mulch? I get together with the neighbors and a blower truck comes down the street. Appliances need to be professionally delivered and installed anyways. Gravel, plywood, lumber? I'm not in the construction industry..why would I need that?. My electric lawnmower fit just fine in my SUV (an ML350 diesel, FYI).

Firewood and 2 bikes fit just fine in the trailer. 10 bikes? Umm..quite the brood you have! Look, I'm not saying that some folks don't need a truck, but I'd maintain that most people don't, and it's really just an image thing (at least where I live). On the rare occasion I need a "real truck"? Home Depot rents em for cheap.

[Proteus]

TxTiger wrote:

Proteus wrote:


1) Residential construction methods are just that, for homes, not for trailers. And even then, it's mostly for lower end or mid range homes.

I guess it's been too long since I've built a home and maybe I've missed something, but what are the non residential construction methods being used now for homes above lower/mid range?

Insulated concrete block,
Reinforced concrete w/foam insulation
Architectural concrete
Aluminum or steel I-beam framing
Fibre/cement siding (hardboard/plank)
Steel, rubber roofing

I've seen example of ALL of the above just in my neighborhood alone.

[WoodGlue]

beemerphile1 wrote:

gmw photos wrote:
...Making statements like "vacuum bonding is a EPIC FAIL" is not a correct statement....

Maybe my reading comprehension is bad, but I swear the statement was;

WoodGlue wrote:
Vacuum bonding the wrong way is an EPIC FAIL on the part of most, if not all RV mfgs....

If you are going to quote someone at least try to do it correctly. What you said is the opposite of the original statement. :S

I was going to say... !!

Thanks,

WoodGlue

[Mike_Up]

westend wrote:

Terryallan wrote:


And you still haven't told us what your TV is.

I think he has a Mercedes ML350 TDI. Gotta' say, I knew he was putting both feet in it with the truck-hatin'. BTW, #1 vehicle in sales this year, again---Ford F150.

My brother's Mercedes M series SUV is such a POS. He's on his 2nd engine after nearly suing them to fix it. Biggest piece of garbage he's ever owned. It's been in for a bunch of other problems as well.

He's also a GM fan boy, so he has his '86 Grand National and Suburban. He tows his Fleetwood TT with his Suburban, wouldn't even tow his 10' X 8' sport equipment utility trailer with Benz, doesn't trust it.

So I can see why you would want a lightweight small TT for a Mercedes, especially if this one is a unibody.

When a Suburban is considered the reliable vehicle, you know the other cars are pretty bad off. 😄 😄

F150 all the way!

[beemerphile1]

gmw photos wrote:
...Making statements like "vacuum bonding is a EPIC FAIL" is not a correct statement....

Maybe my reading comprehension is bad, but I swear the statement was;

WoodGlue wrote:
Vacuum bonding the wrong way is an EPIC FAIL on the part of most, if not all RV mfgs....

If you are going to quote someone at least try to do it correctly. What you said is the opposite of the original statement. :S

[MitchF150]

Lets see.. I've got an 11 year old FLEETWOOD travel trailer (Prowler Lynx 722F). It's got fiberglass siding. Not sure how it's 'bonded', but it's got a sticker on the side that says it's an "Ultra-lite" and has "Aluminum Framing"...

To date, zero issues with delamination, leaks, mold, price, etc... Just common sense maintenance and keeping up with the maintenance as needed.

It has no slide and is easily towed by my 16 year old F150.

It still has all the gas appliances, but the only time the stove top gets used is to purge the air out of the gas lines when it's been out of use for a couple of weeks/months.. (to get the fridge to run on gas easier). I understand MookieKats reaction to the propane fumes, so even that would cause her discomfort I'm sure, so not sure what you can do about that??

It was all we could afford at the time, as the ones with slides cost more and weighed more.. I also didn't want the 'tin & wood' sided models, because we had one when I was a kid and I was the one who washed the dang thing and it was a PITA to wash!! 😉

We've done lots of "mods" to this trailer over the years to make it our own and don't really care about it's "resale value" because it's an 11 year old trailer! Besides, it's been paid for since 2006 and that's the best part about it! 🙂

FLEETWOOD is no longer in the travel trailer business, as they got quite the reputation as a "bad manufacture", but at least when they built mine (built in Oregon) they did a pretty good job for the most part on it.. Sure, there were some things wrong with it, but they have all been EASILY fixed by myself. I know others can't say that about their Fleetwood travel trailers, so the rep kinda fits.. 😉

Anyway, someone mentioned earlier that you just have to find a rig that suits your needs and go for it! I'm glad I DIDN'T do all that much research before buying mine.... Would have drove me crazy with trying to get 'just the right rig'...

You still have not asked about what kind of hitch or sway device you need to get, but I'm sure that's coming soon.... 🙂

Good luck with it all MookieKat. I do think you are doing well by getting as much info as you can, so take this as it was meant and just go out and find something you like and fly with it! 🙂 🙂

Mitch

[westend]

Terryallan wrote:


And you still haven't told us what your TV is.

I think he has a Mercedes ML350 TDI. Gotta' say, I knew he was putting both feet in it with the truck-hatin'. BTW, #1 vehicle in sales this year, again---Ford F150.

It's all good, though. The tin-wood-huggers are having a "Let's Get Acquainted" campfire meeting followed by the "Why We Love Luan" focus group. Everyone's invited!:B

* Sing: Kumbaya, my Lord....*

[MookieKat]

I sort of deduced that when I saw the pics if them.