When do you stop?

I started last year wehn I bought the Arctic Fox. I'm retired but my wife still works and want a Tiffin or similar quality under 40 ft. As I've read I decided I want a King Size Bed, most MHs are too wide, they waste space down the center, toilet needs to be in front of bedrooms,who wants company in the bedroom all the time. My list is longer than my bucket list and now I have $4 million dollars in my dream 39 ft'er and it needs new tires. I'd recommend buying the one you want and having it delivered to Buffalo even, a lot of people do that. You can import it yourself. Don't give up

After about an hour at an RV show my eyes start to glaze over from being overloaded with info. I did a lot of on-line research, then went to the dealer who narrowed it down to 3 specific models that met most of our needs. We picked one from those and haven't regretted anything since.

I've stopped! We bought a 2010 Evergreen Ever-lite 31bhs this weekend. Thanks for all the advice.

smkettner wrote:
You stop at the max tow capacity :B

Yup, when I found the largest thing my existing truck could tow that was within my budget.

I have to tell you that I got a bee in the bonnet a few months ago and told my husband that we needed to start RVing as I don't sleep on the ground any more. I asked him what his requirements were? His response: No extra vehicle expense, must be able to live off grid, larger TV, 4 season. My requirements: Defined bed spaces for parents/kids, shower that you can shave you legs in, area that can be used for school/work, ability to visit other areas from "home base" where ever we are parked.

After the research I did and then presented to my husband, 3 weeks after seeing our top two choices, we placed an order for our Timber Ridge 270 DBHS from Outdoors MFG...we love it and I use it almost daily for work conference calls as I work from home.

djgarcia wrote:

Perspecitve:
Is it possible you have the cart before the horse ?????? Is it possible you haven't spent sufficent time with yourself and your family talking about what your RV needs, wishes, dreams are all about. Where do you want to travel? how often to you want be be out on the RV road? How long to you want to stay in one spot? 1 week, 1 month, 4 months? How many people will be using the bathroom and shower on an RV trip? the more people, the more water, the quicker the tanks will need to be emptied etc etc. How many poeple will need room to watch TV or room to sit and eat etc etc. When you start answering these kind of questions, you will begin to narrow down the kinds and size of RV choices. You will then begin to be able to compare various RV's in terms of cost, features, quality, warranties and then finally make your choice:)

Like I said the grand plan is to seasonal with the exception of 2-3 weeks in the summer and a couple of weekend trips when we will tow to a destination. I'm planning an 8 week trip for next summer with the kids probably more than 6000 miles before we get home.

The wife and I have been looking for a replacement for our starcraft 18sb hybrid.

It started out simple we were looking at a keystone passport, next thing I know we're looking at a tracer, then the laredo and lacrosse, now we're looking at freedom express. Where did you draw the line and why. I like the coachmen but is it worth the extra cost? Do I go back to the passport, and why am I putting so much time into this. Today I drove 2 hours one way with the wife and kids just to look at a trailer. I think I'm starting to lose perspective.

Perspecitve:
Is it possible you have the cart before the horse ?????? Is it possible you haven't spent sufficent time with yourself and your family talking about what your RV needs, wishes, dreams are all about. Where do you want to travel? how often to you want be be out on the RV road? How long to you want to stay in one spot? 1 week, 1 month, 4 months? How many people will be using the bathroom and shower on an RV trip? the more people, the more water, the quicker the tanks will need to be emptied etc etc. How many poeple will need room to watch TV or room to sit and eat etc etc. When you start answering these kind of questions, you will begin to narrow down the kinds and size of RV choices. You will then begin to be able to compare various RV's in terms of cost, features, quality, warranties and then finally make your choice:)

The wife and I have been looking for a replacement for our starcraft 18sb hybrid.

It started out simple we were looking at a keystone passport, next thing I know we're looking at a tracer, then the laredo and lacrosse, now we're looking at freedom express. Where did you draw the line and why. I like the coachmen but is it worth the extra cost? Do I go back to the passport, and why am I putting so much time into this. Today I drove 2 hours one way with the wife and kids just to look at a trailer. I think I'm starting to lose perspective.

Perspecitve:
Is it possible you have the horse before the cart?????? Is it possible you haven't spent sufficent time with yourself and your family talking about what your RV needs, wishes, dreams are all about. Where do you want to travel? how often to you want be be out on the RV road? How long to you want to stay in one spot? 1 week, 1 month, 4 months? How many people will be using the bathroom and shower on an RV trip? the more people, the more water, the quicker the tanks will need to be emptied etc etc. How many poeple will need room to watch TV or room to sit and eat etc etc. When you start answering these kind of questions, you will begin to narrow down the kinds and size of RV choices. You will then begin to be able to compare various RV's in terms of cost, features, quality, warranties and then finally make your choice:)

What can you safely tow and still have the appropriate wiggle room?? That's where you stop looking. And under NO circumstances let a salesman talk you into stepping one foot inside anything larger. How many do you need to sleep on a regular basis? Do you like KOA (kamping on asphalt)or a nice cozy woodsy campground. So now you know that you don't want something that's 40' because you can't get the darned thing into the cozy campground. Do you need to haul bikes, firewood, misc stuff in your tow vehicle?? If yes, a 5er is probably not what you need. Maybe a TT would be better. If you like sleeping under canvas and don't mind the extra efforts needed, maybe look at a HTT. So figure out the big stuff and then start on the details.

I agree that you're overthinking this project. The more you look, the more confused you're going to be. Our first camper was supposed to be a Shamrock 19 HTT....4 months later FR hadn't gotten around to manufacturing it because the world was buying 21SS and 23SS hybrids. Meanwhile, we changed plans and bought a 23SS and it was the perfect HTT for us. We looked at 4 trailers before we towed the 23SS home and never regretted it for a minute.

Forward 8 years and old age has sneaked in. A HTT takes a bit more work to set up and break down and DH had some health issues. Came down to get out of camping altogether or move to the darkside. This discussion went on almost a year without ever setting foot in a trailer. Last trip with the ROO was a huge PITA. Next day I went online to RVW and found THE perfect trailer for us. Still never set foot in it. DH agreed, we got a price, gave them the deposit and a few days later we were heading north to pick it up....still sight unseen. It really is "us".

Gotta sell the ROO. A darling young couple with the cutest 3 year old daughter found it listed on craigslist. They had looked and looked and only knew they wanted the right trailer for their family. A zillion pictures and emails back and forth and they bought it sight unseen. When we met them at their bank, we fully expected they'd want to at least walk through before signing, but nope....it was THE one.

Funny, but the selling feature for our new TT was the shower....DH can actually use the shower and be able to turn around. He's thrilled. Their deciding factor was the pictures of the inside of the frig (???). The whole trailer was like new, but they felt that if the frig was clean and well cared for, the rest of the trailer was, too.

This is supposed to be fun, so try not to turn it into work. Grab a cold one and a tablet and make your list of needs and don't needs, then spend some time online - cheaper than gas. Most dealers show the floorplan and inside photos. Narrow it down to maybe 4 - 6 at the most, look at those and go from there.

FWIW, RVW sells a ton of different manufacturers....also RV Direct. Both are reputable firms and have happy customers. Prices are not posted, as such, but they do show MSRP...you can guestimate the price at about 30% off and maybe a smidge more. Request a price quote and they'll email it to you. We've bought both of our Rockwood campers from RVW and recommend them highly. RVD also has a long list of good experiences reported. Or you may find what you want just a few miles away, but either the RVW or RVD price will give you some bargaining tools.

The more trailers you look at the more they all look alike, to me. Simplify. And enjoy!

jspence1 wrote:

modern family wrote:
We too had a 18' hybrid and were ready to upgrade. We went to the biggest dealership around and just started walking. When we walked into the one we finally bought and just felt comfortable. (The kids liked them all, so can't let them decide too much!) we had a list of must-haves and would-likes, and just pulled the trigger.

It is best to understand the standards and options and layout that you can get in a TT and see what is important to you. The brand is not all important as they all have pros and cons.

I liked the laredo 291 myself but my wife wants the bigger 303 if we go with the laredo.

We have 3 kids and I'm a little worried about the close quarters in the bunkhouse. The grand plan is to use the trailer as both a seasonal camper that we can take the kids to on weekends and to be able to tow when my wife gets time off work.

I too would have liked the 303, but was not comfortable pulling it with my old tv, now it is not an issue and would like to upgrade again next year to the double slide to give the kids more room. The regular bunk house does feel small as the kids get bigger. My son will be 12 next year and daughter is not far behind. I think we would all be more comfortable if they had their own room. If you can pull it, the 303 is worth the extra $$, especially with 3 kids. There will always be rainy days to deal with:)


P.S. We are very happy with the Laredo, the fit and finish was great and "so far", after 13 trips and 7k miles, not one issue.