My wife and I went and looked at a 2003 Arctic Fox 1150 today and really liked it. It has less storage and a smaller wet bath than our 1985 Lance 900, but it seemed very well made and the space with the slide out was awesome.
Here's the real issue, we didn't run the slide in, but the dealer told us that it was basically inaccessible with the slide closed. When my wife and I were discussing the camper afterwards, she commented that it would be an "inconvenience" to open the slide whenever you wanted access. When she thought about it more, she added "major inconvenience." My wife is a really smart cookie so I would like to hear from those with slides. Is it actually inaccessible? How long does it take to move the slide for access? Any other advice would be nice.
P.S. If someone has a picture of the back door open with the slide closed I'd love to see it.
I can get my big behind into my 1150 without rolling the slide out. But it only takes like 5 or 10 seconds if you want to pull it out.
but.. beware of the older Arctic Fox's. 100% wood frame, and they are known to have fiberglass delamination problems. I had an '03 1140. If possible, budget permitting, look for one with the "Silver Fox" tag, that means it's an aluminum frame, not wood.
The pre-2005 AF slides were not as "deep" as the newer ones, I had no problem getting in/out with the slide fully retrated on a 2004 990. The newer AF's have a deeper slide and now it's a bit of a squeeze for me on a 2005 990.
It is really no inconvenience at all. If you stop along the side of the road and want in, the slide only has to be opened 6" to get to the front of the camper to grab a soda out of the frig or slide the bathroom door open. It isn't full deployment and retraction.
Truck: 2006 Dodge 3500 Dually
Camper: 2007 Eagle Cap 850
Boat: 2003 Jetcraft 2125 - Yamaha 150 HP & 8 HP Kicker
Boatycall wrote: I can get my big behind into my 1150 without rolling the slide out. But it only takes like 5 or 10 seconds if you want to pull it out.
but.. beware of the older Arctic Fox's. 100% wood frame, and they are known to have fiberglass delamination problems. I had an '03 1140. If possible, budget permitting, look for one with the "Silver Fox" tag, that means it's an aluminum frame, not wood.
So was your 2003 a wood or aluminum? When did they start using the aluminum frames?
Super_Dave wrote: It is really no inconvenience at all. If you stop along the side of the road and want in, the slide only has to be opened 6" to get to the front of the camper to grab a soda out of the frig or slide the bathroom door open. It isn't full deployment and retraction.
X 2, to all the above...No incovenience whatsoever, at my age I end up having to do it waaay more than I'd care to admit!
My wife can easily go by our slide. I have to open it few inches. It's really not a big issue. The extra space and open layout are worth it. Also, it's worth it to be able to pass your spouse if someone else if moving in the TC.
Keep in mind that many manufacturers changed their slides quite a bit. I'd compare some models for a few years. I think most manufacturers changed their slide mechanisms over their first few years to make it better...not that the other designs didn't work.
'06 F350 Lariat Supercab SRW, 6.0 PSD 4x4 Long Bed, Intake Elbow, Walker Big Truck Muffler. '06 Host Rainer 950 Double Slide, Fastguns. Firestone Air Bags, Rancho 9000s, Vision 19.5s with Hankook DH-01 245s, Energy Suspension bump stops.
I am curious as to why the dealer didn't run the slide in. Push a button and thats all. (Ten to fifteen seconds, max!) Maybe the slide didn't work correctly on that TC. Or the dealer didn't know how to do it. I would not buy any TC that required the slide to be deployed before entry, because, sooner or later, the slide will jam, or the batteries will be dead, or you'll be parked on such an incline that the slide will not deploy. My Fleetwood is fully accessable, if cramped, with the slide in. So, it is certainly possible to do it.
Just my 2 cents.
Kurt
2001 Silverado 3500 DRW CC LB 6.0
1993 Lance Squire Lite 150 (8'6")
2001 Fleetwood Caribou 11J (11'6")
Boatycall wrote: I can get my big behind into my 1150 without rolling the slide out. But it only takes like 5 or 10 seconds if you want to pull it out.
but.. beware of the older Arctic Fox's. 100% wood frame, and they are known to have fiberglass delamination problems. I had an '03 1140. If possible, budget permitting, look for one with the "Silver Fox" tag, that means it's an aluminum frame, not wood.
So was your 2003 a wood or aluminum? When did they start using the aluminum frames?
An 03 AF would be wood frame. Aluminum started around 05-06. You can tell if its aluminum if the wording "Silver Fox Edition" is lettered on the TC.
2009 Chevy Silverado 3500 dually D/A, Supersprings, Stable Loads, Bilstein Shocks, Hellwig Sway Bar, Front Timbrens.
2010 Arctic Fox 1140 DB, 220 watts solar, custom 4 in 1 "U" shaped dinette/couch, 59 interior and exterior mods to date and still adding
I am curious as to why the dealer didn't run the slide in. Push a button and thats all. (Ten to fifteen seconds, max!) Maybe the slide didn't work correctly on that TC. Or the dealer didn't know how to do it. I would not buy any TC that required the slide to be deployed before entry, because, sooner or later, the slide will jam, or the batteries will be dead, or you'll be parked on such an incline that the slide will not deploy. My Fleetwood is fully accessable, if cramped, with the slide in. So, it is certainly possible to do it.
Just my 2 cents.
Kurt
We didn't want to take up too much of the salesman's time so we were kind of in and out. This one was way overpriced so we knew it wasn't the one for us. We were hoping to just sneak by the sales force and see it but our ninja skills are not up to snuff and we were detected.
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