I've been lurking this forum for well over 6 months now and decided to sign up. My wife and I have been looking at TT and Hybrids for several months now. We have seen so many it is almost a blur. I guess we are looking for advice/opinions and/or direction.
Both our parents have RV's. Her Mom has a 27' Artic Fox 5th Wheel, and My Dad has a 24' Komfort TT. Each offers their advice from both sides of the spectrum, to include don't do this and don't do that. There is so much of that the only remaining option is Motel 6.
So the facts I know are the limitations of my TV. I have 07 Ford F-150 FX4 4x4 5.4L Truck. I have crunched the numbers many times and would like to stay around 5000 to 6000 pounds loaded weight on trailer. For my personal comfort no more the 24' in length.
We looked at 2 units today that show some glimmer of hope. We seen a 08 Jayco Jay Feather 23B and a 12 Surveyor SP-220. One used and one new. We really like the Jayco, but my concern is in the tent pop outs and the unit leaking. My wife and I know 2 families that have similar trailers (not Jaycos) and both had major leaks. Now the Surveyor is nice too but for sure more money.
Now my Dad is a RV Technian and has told me all these war stories that have came onto the lot. Some are faults of the owner and some manufacturer. I guess it all boils down to quality of craftsmanship. Are there any units to really avoid? What direction should be go? Hybrid? Travel Trailer? Any advice on simplifying our purchasing process would be great.
Stick218 wrote: We looked at 2 units today that show some glimmer of hope. We seen a 08 Jayco Jay Feather 23B and a 12 Surveyor SP-220. One used and one new. We really like the Jayco, but my concern is in the tent pop outs and the unit leaking. My wife and I know 2 families that have similar trailers (not Jaycos) and both had major leaks. Now the Surveyor is nice too but for sure more money.
Now my Dad is a RV Technian and has told me all these war stories that have came onto the lot. Some are faults of the owner and some manufacturer. I guess it all boils down to quality of craftsmanship. Are there any units to really avoid? What direction should be go? Hybrid? Travel Trailer? Any advice on simplifying our purchasing process would be great.
Sorry for the long read.. Cheers!
don't buy a hybrid unless you LOVE sleeping under canvas.
all the other advantages of a hybrid, will become moot after awhile.
many newbies buy a hybrid without considering the few negatives of the canvas. they focus on all the sleeping space or the extra floorspace since there's no bed on the floor.
most hybrid owners are former popup owners and are willing to put up with the few negatives that the canvas ends bring, since they are used to them.
we love our hybrid because, for us, sleeping under canvas feels more like real camping that being in a "shoebox" travel trailer.
sure we have to keep an eye on the bunk ends maintenence but it's worth it for us. we also love the sound of rain on the canvas at nite or the sounds of the wind in the trees.
since you live in Oregon and it sounds like this would be your first RV, i suggest not getting a hybrid.
Dan- Firefighter, Shawn- Musician/Entrepreneur, Zoe- Faithful Golden Retriever, 2007 Chevrolet Avalanche LS, 2007 Rockwood Roo 23SS w/Equalizer and Prodigy, and 5 Mtn. bikes and 2 Road bikes
It sounds to me that you have some really good experts right at your door step. As this will not be your last rv I would look at it a different way. Get a used unit thats in great shape (your dad should know) and a great price. Treat this unit a a learning tool as what we want and what we don't want. You did not say anything about pets or kids those will add another thought process to the decission.
You will find the more you look that you will not find the unit that has all you want. I guess (for me) I would stay away from canvas in anyform. Look at your life style and go from there.
Ditto on the canvas. They tend to leak. If it rains and you have to close it up to travel home and are unable to open it up again when you get home it will mold.
"We must be willing to get rid of the life we've planned,
so as to have the life that is waiting for us".
I would reiterate Bikendan's comments. Generally people who are happy with hybrids are people who love tent camping but wanted to get up off the ground or have some other conveniences such as a kitchen etc. We love our hybrid. We love the sounds at night, the openness of the bed when it's all opened up on a warm evening. A bonus the is the extra floor space and a relatively light load, but NOT the reason to buy. Just to counter some of the other posters, it's not a big deal to open up the ends when we get home if they are wet (even if it's still raining) it only takes about 3 minutes. We,ve owned a popup for 10 years and now our hybrid for 3, we've been all across Canada and the northern states (BC to Cape Breton) and never once had a leak or mold. There is some extra care involved in the tent ends but worth it to us. That's the decision you have to make.
Lynn, Bud, 2 teenaged boys
2 Huskys, 1 hamster
2001 GMC Yukon
2011 Jayco Jay Feather Ex-Port 17Z
Avoid the hybrid! We camped with friends a couple of weeks ago, they have two little boys and were a 12 hour drive from home. It rained on the final day, needless to say everything went away wet. They stayed in a hotel on their way home. This past weekend they bought a bunk model trailer! You both have parents with excellent RV's, listen to them and good luck
1 husband 2 grown kids
2010 F-350 Lariat King Ranch, CC, diesel, short box
2009 Arctic Fox 27T
I can understand the over whelmed feeling, we felt that way last year when we were looking. We looked at dealerships, rv shows, used local and online. It was a mind numbing experience.
You are very lucky to have both parents into RVing and even more so that your dad is a rv tech. I hope he is close enough to help you check out any used units you consider.
Unless the ratings for your truck say otherwise, I think you are spot on as far as weight for your truck. We pull a 25 ft TT that weighs in that range with a Expedition with a 5.4 and do so very comfortably. We do that in the Rockies with a lot of steep grades and I never wish I had more power or need to go faster.
2011 GulfStream Amerilite 25BH
2007/2003 Ford Expedition
Nights camped in 2011 21
Nights camped in 2012 16
krev wrote: Avoid the hybrid! We camped with friends a couple of weeks ago, they have two little boys and were a 12 hour drive from home. It rained on the final day, needless to say everything went away wet. They stayed in a hotel on their way home. This past weekend they bought a bunk model trailer! You both have parents with excellent RV's, listen to them and good luck
if you're going to diss the hybrid, please provide more info.
did they own a hybrid or a popup? are you saying the whole trailer leaked, for "everything went away wet" to happen?
i've been camping, in the rain, with 2 popups and a hybrid for almost 25 years now and never had to stay in a hotel due to everything being wet.
yes, the canvas will be wet but all i had to do was open it back up when i got home to dry out.
never have had a mildew problem on the canvas because i don't mind a little extra work to make sure the canvas is dry when closing up.
i do agree that a hybrid is not for everyone and i am trying to inform the OP of this and to carefully consider the canvas issue.
for us, it's not an issue nor are we tired of it. we continue to enjoy our hybrid immensely and actually camp more in it than we ever did in our popups.
we don't like the "shoebox" feeling of a traditional travel trailer and will continue to use our hybrid for at least another 5 years.
When We first started we took notes of things we liked and disliked about each unit we looked at,from floor paln, cablnets, beds etc. As we looked we finnaly found one that met most everything we wanted. It was a used Class C, then we moved up to our 1st 5th wheel and now into our current 5th wheel. We did the same on each unit we looker at. Yes after being one you like you always see some other feature you would like. So my advise is to going looking at everything you can, you will find the one that fits your needs for now. Also I would suggest buy used first, becasue after a couple of years you my finds that your wants and needs have changed. Good Luck and happy hunting.
Steve & Linda
Son married (1 DIL, 3 granddaughters 1 grandson)
Daughter can now be called a Teacher.
Miami Co. Kansas
2004 F350 CC dually 8ft bed 6.0 PSD
2009 Bighorn 3670RL
B&W under bed hitch with 18k companion hitch
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, Shawn- Musician/Entrepreneur
, Zoe- Faithful Golden Retriever
, 2007 Chevrolet Avalanche LS, 2007 Rockwood Roo 23SS w/Equalizer and Prodigy, and 5 Mtn. bikes and 2 Road bikes
