Motorhome!

What brand of motor home? Something I am looking at myself


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I guess this posting has about run its course. To those that would consider mini fiberglass travel trailers, they're just about as expensive as a full size travel trailer with a slider. They're just not good buys.

A 28' travel trailer with a slider is a good compromise in a trailer in size and cost--and they can be towed by a 1/2 ton truck.

I have a new fifth wheel trailer with 4 slides and it's absolutely beautiful. But if you put a new 3/4 ton truck in front of it, you're a talking $110K purchase.

If you go to a new gasoline powered Class A, you're talking $150K. A diesel pusher Class A will average $250K, and it's nothing to see them go $500K. And that's on top of 7 mpg.

It gets expensive to live the simple life of being a wayward retired gypsy traveler.
 
Bamaman said:
I guess this posting has about run its course. To those that would consider mini fiberglass travel trailers, they're just about as expensive as a full size travel trailer with a slider. They're just not good buys.

A 28' travel trailer with a slider is a good compromise in a trailer in size and cost--and they can be towed by a 1/2 ton truck.
Click to expand...

It all depends on what a person wants/needs. For just two people, who might be going for a week at a time, a big trailer doesn't make much sense. For this use, a slider is another place to leak rain water, and it adds weight and complexity. A (used) fiberglass trailer will cost more (per sq foot, with the same amenities) than a typical aluminum trailer, but they seem to leak less often and hold their value well. Plus, used ones are easy to sell--so they may be a fine buy in the long run.

Used truck campers also can offer a surprising amount of utility at a low price--and there are fiberglass versions of those, too. In general, though, the self-contained ones require an F-150 size truck or larger.
 
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Bamaman said:
................ To those that would consider mini fiberglass travel trailers, they're just about as expensive as a full size travel trailer with a slider. They're just not good buys. ...........
Click to expand...

It all depends on what you value - if you buy an RV by the square foot for the pound, I guess I'd agree. But, given that used fiberglass campers usually sell within a day of advertising and that new ones have a 4 or more month wait, it seems some might disagree with you. YMMV :flowers:
 
I have a fiberglass Class C, made by Born Free Motorcoach from Humboldt, Iowa.

They are spendy, but very high quality. I'm travelling full-time, and currently exploring New Mexico and their wonderful state park system. I tow a Subaru Forester.

RV'g is a great way to see the country.
 
Learning to Motorhome!

or how I spent my summer.

DW and I have taken a 3 or 4 night trip each month and have 2 more trips planned.

I have actually experienced a bit of stress worrying about the reliability and complexity of the motorhome systems (inverters, chargers, leveling system, slideouts, etc).

But, gaining experience is the only way forward. The motorhome is becoming easier to operate as I learn. My last trip was 400 miles with a Jeep Cherokee in tow.
 

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Nice rig! Hope you'll keep posting about your experience.

We're hoping to sell the house and get on the road.

To an earlier poster, we looked at Born Free because we heard they are well-made, but ended up with a fifth wheeler (already have a truck to pull it).
 
UtehSkier, Ditto. Very Nice. We have had our most recent RV for 10 years. I can't wait to ER and use it more.
 
Wish I could talk my DH into a motor home but no way-- even renting one. He has some good points like lots of $ into something not used really often, no parking option at our home so have to rent space....but I think most of all he doesn't want to have to empty the sh---er! He has visions of that scene from Christmas Vacation! Oh well...maybe one day!


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itsmyparty said:
Wish I could talk my DH into a motor home but no way-- even renting one. He has some good points like lots of $ into something not used really often, no parking option at our home so have to rent space....but I think most of all he doesn't want to have to empty the sh---er! He has visions of that scene from Christmas Vacation! Oh well...maybe one day!


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Click to expand...

An RV is not the most financially prudent decision. No question they are hard to justify from pure financial perspective. It is a lifestyle choice. It does allow you to go places and do things you can't otherwise do. So just like going on a vacation and spending money to stay at the beach/mountain resort/big city downtown/cruise ship/foreign country; they all take money. Just depends where you want to spend it.

I like being able to go places where I can get away from the big city, or events where I can stay right at the location such as the races or car show. That is something a hotel or other accommodations can't match. We also take our dogs a lot of the time, they love camping and getting out.

Just for adding to the discussion, here is my motorhome with my 52 GMC as the toad behind it. I upgraded to this so we could specifically take longer trips once retired. This summer spent about 5500 miles on trips, and approx 1800 towing the GMC. Next year should be able to spend a bunch more time and miles, once I retire in June :dance:
Crappy pic taken at a rest area, i never think to take pictures usually :rolleyes:


 
itsmyparty said:
Wish I could talk my DH into a motor home but no way-- even renting one. He has some good points like lots of $ into something not used really often, no parking option at our home so have to rent space....but I think most of all he doesn't want to have to empty the sh---er! He has visions of that scene from Christmas Vacation! Oh well...maybe one day!


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Click to expand...

If this is really the only issue, you can set them up in parks where you have a drain hookup. Yes, you hook up the hose but you don't have to fill/drain the tank.
 
ArkTinkerer said:
If this is really the only issue, you can set them up in parks where you have a drain hookup. Yes, you hook up the hose but you don't have to fill/drain the tank.
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What is the difference between hooking up the stinky slinky to a drain or to a disposal site? Still wrestling with the same beast.
 
travelover said:
What is the difference between hooking up the stinky slinky to a drain or to a disposal site? Still wrestling with the same beast.
Click to expand...
The SS was the thing that almost sent my rental plans to the dust bin. But the $45/night special? Yeah, still not a financially sound decision...we'll see if I like the lifestyle.
 
I installed a cleaning input to our waste tank. Hook up a hose, turn it on and it flushes everything out. So,
You
If you never fill the tank, you hook up the Slinky (clean) and stay as long as you like. At the end of the stay, you hook a hose to the water supply and it sprays thru the tank, drains out the Slinky, until everything is clean. Disconnect and put Slinky away. Got home or to the next campground.
 
Hubby and I have two popup trailers -- a Chalet 1938 XL a-frame and a pullout Trailmanor 2720 SL that stretches to 27 feet when set up. Both are pulled with our 2001 Jeep Grand Cherokee, which also serves as our ski-mobile in the winter. I am comfortable driving with these small, light, low profile trailers in tow so hubby doesn't het stuck with all the driving. We use the Chalet, which is lighter and a bit quicker to set up, when we are driving over lots of passes or are doing lots of one or two night stops. The larger Trailmanor is perfect for longer "destination" trips or events like music festivals.

Advantage we have is that they have no engines to maintain, don't require insurance, only have two tires that don't cost a fortune, and we always have a separate vehicle to drive around once we park the trailer. They both fit in our yard for storage. We bought both used for less than half of their full retail, so we don't have much invested in them.

For those who balk at sewer hookups, the cassette toilet in our Chalet just the thing! Very convenient to empty and I can do it with no trouble. I have a girlfriend who has one that she and her 80 year old mother travel around in!


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