Thanks for all the feedback. Looked at a local 37 foot Kit 349 made in 1989 for $5500. Gross weight was 10,925 pounds. A bit faded on the outside, nice on the inside. Have not looked at any slides. I am thinking we get more square feet per 1000 pounds with a non-slide, but will carefully consider a slide. When you all say a slide is nice, do you mean the living area?
Yeh, they open up the living area so much and make room for recliners. Our next one will also have a bedroom slide but not until we can use the unit more. I'm not totally sold on kitchen slides yet. I have friends who went back and forth on the kitchen slide units and they aren't totally sold on them either. Craig
I like the way Glen41 said it in his post. How true, thanks Glen for that !!! In reading and doing my share of post, what one persons delight, is another's.... Well, you will have to decide on what fits. A Slide I was told will add 600#'s at least. But I like the vast majority above, think they are worth every pound. Spend some honest time in both studying, moving from front to back in and out. May save you a re-sale. "Look hard before you leap".
Somewhere in this forum a while back someone said a slide added about 90 to 100 pounds per linear foot. The non-slide Kit we just looked at was 37 feet and had a gross weight of 10,925 pounds so that is about 300 pounds per foot. If I had a 15 foot slide that would be about 1400 pounds extra for the slide or about five feet less on a 15 foot slide. It seems to me that the non-slide space would be more useable; however, everyone seems to think a slide adds a lot. I guess the question is which would be the easiest to live with.
Fresno Dude wrote: When you all say a slide is nice, do you mean the living area?
From a usage standpoint a unit with slide gives the ability for 3 or more people to be comfortable inside the unit without sqeezing past or getting in one anothers way. For instance while my wife is doing meal prep I can grab a cold beverage and not be in her way. It really changes the whole experience. For us the slide makes it more like a cabin and less like a box car. If you're good with cozy and less elbow room you'll get a good deal on non slide units for sure.
Fresno Dude wrote: When you all say a slide is nice, do you mean the living area?
From a usage standpoint a unit with slide gives the ability for 3 or more people to be comfortable inside the unit without sqeezing past or getting in one anothers way. For instance while my wife is doing meal prep I can grab a cold beverage and not be in her way. It really changes the whole experience. For us the slide makes it more like a cabin and less like a box car. If you're good with cozy and less elbow room you'll get a good deal on non slide units for sure.
I think rather than the square footage, the biggest gain is psychological. you don't seem so cramped in when the slide is out.
bumpy
I purchased a 92 Prowler in 04 for 7K. It is a 30 5X. I think it's around 30-32 feet long with a 16 foot super slide. We bought it cheap enough but had to replace the roof in 06. I would recommend getting a unit a little newer that's been covered. Those rubber roofs will only last 10 to 12 years if exposed to sunlight. The GVWR of the unit is 9900#. It would be a good match for your truck.
Our first 5th wheel did not have a slide and if we got more than 2 people in there it was close!!!
We have had slides in all 3 of our 5th wheels after that first one. and none have leaked, or had any major problems with them.
Anyone buying a trailer or 5th wheel better be handy with your tools. Better to fix minor things yourself then to drive to the dealer. Have had great luck with the 5th wheels we have owned.
2008 dodge 5500, diesel,Laramie cab, pressure pro tire.
2008 Carri-Lite 36SBQ, 4 slides,dishwasher,washer/dryer,2 fireplaces
D & D
Two Schnauzers, & cat
I wish i had pics of my 1992 30' Sandpiper by Cobra. they were bought by Forest River. NO slides and it was great. kit up front,walk around queen bed in rear,ton of storage,tub/shower. More important it did not feel like that tunnel that most(all) no sides feel like. we looked for a year and stumbled on to this one,got a great deal $7000.
06 F250 6.0 TD,SC,SB,4x4,Towboss,3.73 rear.Firestone air bags,285/70 R17 3795lb tires,18000 slider; 04 38' Jayo Designer "Legacy" 5er; all I need now is satilite TV and hit the lottery; NAVY,"WE'LL NEVER FORGET,land of the free because of the brave"
I am OK doing repairs. The first RV I ever bought from a private party, I think it was 1992, was purchased at night time and we had no idea what we were doing. It took about 100 hours to repair the wood rot so to this day we are careful about our pre-inspection. I should develop a checklist. Anyone have a checklist? I do have How to Select, Inspect, and Buy an RV by JD Gallant and could easily make something up from that. This is a superb book written in 2000, but the information is timeless. He is associated with rv.org. He is very concerned about RV construction, especially safety issues. He also used to be a RV salesman and so knows all the tricks. The wife and I went to the RV dealer to get an idea of what 5th wheel trailers had to offer and the sales person did exactly what Gallant said they would. My wife has also been in marketing. If we did not have foreknowledge and were really serious, I felt it would have been a lamb to slaughter.
Offline
Online
