Fishwater
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Re: Who has switched from a '16+ max tow F150 to a '16+ HD F150?
johndeerefarmer wrote: I am looking for people that had an aluminum bodied max tow F150 and moved over to a HD F150. If so how much more stable is the HD version vs the max tow version for towing, and specifically towing in the wind? I currently have two trucks and two RV's and within the next year and a half or so need to move to a single truck and RV. I would consider trading both trucks for a HD F150 if I knew it would tow the 29rs in 15-20 mph winds. Since I am retired from farming I no longer have much heavy stuff to tow. I bought the 16 F250 last year to specifically haul my 29rs to Colorado because I knew trying to do it in the west Texas winds would be a nightmare. The vacation home should be done in a year or so, so at that time I need to bring the 29rs home and at that point sell some RV's or trucks Thanks I would suggest that you test drive a new F250 vs your 2016. I just upgraded(downgraded?) from a 2015 F350 to a 2019 F250 & the ride is noticeably better. I think some of it may be that I had 20’s on the 15 & now have 18’s but either way it’s a noticeable improvement. Both my daughters & my wife can get car sickness, especially while towing. We just completed a trip of 1100 miles towing the fiver & no one got sick, everyone felt the new truck rode much better so you have nothing to loose by road testing one, may not beat your elbows up as much?535Views0likes0CommentsRe: AUXILiARY FUEL TANK
packnrat wrote: Fishwater wrote: We have a short bed, how many folks are running an auxiliary tank with a short bed? I’m not sure if there’s enough room for a smaller auxiliary tank forward of the hitch? short bed here 35 gallon i believe is the listed cap. and plenty of room between the tank and hitch. On my 2015 F-350 short bed it’s a 26 gallon tank which is absolutely pathetic but it is what it is so I’ll be adding an auxiliary tank, just want to be sure there’s room. At the moment I’m torn between the ATI 30 gallon tank which doesn’t take up much room & leaves room for storage on top or a tool box set up with 40-60 gallons. The reality is that I’ll probably never need more than 30 gallons & I barely use the truck unless I’m towing so not sure about keeping fuel in the auxiliary tank long term.577Views0likes0CommentsRe: Jayco quality?
I just went through this & settled on a Grand Design. We started looking at Jayco & maybe it was the dealer we looked at but everything on their lot looked like it was put together in the dark. Brand new units with led strips hanging off, massive gaping holes in the storage compartments with zero expanding foam to close the gaps, wires hanging out of the slides or cabinets. I even joined the Jayco forum & posted a thread asking the same questions about their quality. Now I understand that these units were just delivered from the factory & not prepped yet but I was seriously concerned with what I saw. Then we looked at Keystone units at three different dealerships, they were slightly better but not by much. Same wide open storage concerns & after having mice last year I’m super sensitive to entry points so those units were a turn off right away. Once looking into the storage compartments you could see wiring all over the place, sloppy screws, missing screws etc. The insides were a little better but not by much. Finally we looked at Grand Design & while not perfect they at least had tight seals, tidy wiring & straight trim. We settled on a 290BH Reflection 150 series which is not even close to top of the line but appear to be built a few steps higher than price point would indicate.927Views0likes0CommentsRe: Keystone Hideout "quality" ?
I went & looked at this particular 308 & it was in rough shape brand new as it sat on the lot. The worse part was that the outdoor kitchen door was so warped that it wouldn’t latch close, I’m sure they’d replace it but it’s sitting outside exposed to the elements half open with snow in the kitchen, no thanks. Overall it’s the same floor plan we currently have so we know that it works but I think I need to spend a little more to get similar quality to what we already own. The size of the grey or black tanks don’t concern me since we are always at resort sites with full hook ups. What does bother me is that there are very few fiver floor plans with just one bath, I don’t want or need two black tanks to deal with. As it is my OCD has me flushing my single black tank for at least an hour, fill, soak, drain & repeat, I’m not interested in doing that X2. Plus I’ll take that half bath as additional living space.602Views0likes0CommentsKeystone Hideout "quality" ?
We're thinking of trading in our bumper pull for a fifth wheel & there's a leftover 2018 Keystone Hideout 308BHDS available for a really great price locally. We used to own a Passport a few years ago but traded it for our current Flagstaff which was a substantial jump up in quality over the Passport. As times & camping style changes we really want to expand our range & I'm thinking a fifth wheel with the same exact lay out of our current bumper pull is the direction I want to head in. I have plenty of truck to pull it, 2015 F-350 diesel with over 3k of payload, factory 5th wheel prep package. I understand that the price point has certain shortcuts taken but I'm wondering if anyone out there has any experience with the Hideout 5th wheels & can let me know their thoughts, concerns or issues?2.4KViews0likes6CommentsRe: Flagstaff design harder to tow?
Thanks to everyone responding, I appreciate the insight. To recap, I agree I should find a good HD shop to inspect & possibly align the axles but I live in a semi rural area with a lot of truck shops but not many good ones, same reason why I won't bring it back to the dealership, great guys but service is lacking to be polite. Still, I will hunt one out prior to spring. I seriously considered buying a 5er last season since I have more than enough truck but losing the bed space is tough, especially if I want to bring my trail bike. Again, not out of the question but probably my last resort. Plus the cost for what's comparable to what we have is getting up there... As far as checking the brakes & adjusting, I took the trailer down the highway for a while & then pulled over to measure the wheel temp with my infrared thermometer to detect which wheel was dragging, I found three out of four with higher temps but one was the worst. I adjusted the three while the trailer was connected with a jack but to your point maybe having someone engage the brake & then releasing would show something sticking even when free drag was adjusted properly? Also of note, never once did the brakes smoke or stink prior to adjustment. Although on camp roads occasionally the wheels would lock up aggressively at low speeds which I attributed to the brake controller not being adjusted perfectly after towing to the campground, at that time I was using an aftermarket Tekonsha P3 controller in my first F-350. Again being a new trailer at the time I couldn't imagine (shame on me) that something like dragging brakes wouldn't have been noticed on the long drive from Indiana to NH for delivery. I know some wiggle & shake is part of the TT experience but again, something just doesn't feel right while towing this particular rig down the road. When we bought it the furthest campground we traveled to was 75 miles each way, since then we have expanded as the girls got older & we want to make trips a few states away before it's too late.479Views0likes0Comments
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