New Horizons build help ?'s

[cwall59]

We are looking at a Majestic approximately 39 -40' and have a few questions on options. This will be first RV and will be mostly on shore power but may boondock some in route to destination. Will have three A/C's with one being a heat pump. Will have a generator , upgrade the inverter and batteries .Dishwasher , washer/dryer , residential fridge. Will not be doing wood floors or granite counter tops . Will upgrade brakes and add BBQ propane outlet and additional awning. Here are some of my questions

1. Go with upgrade of 16 gallon water heater or Truma water heater
2. Max Aire fan or fans , yes or no
3. Trailer hitch ,yes or no
4. Slide toppers , yes or no
5. What brand of hitch do you suggest ,Trailer Saver ,Comfort Ride or other
6. Direct TV or not

Any other options worth considering ?

I would appreciate any help I can get . I also will be ordering a 2020 F450 when we make or final decision's on the RV .

Thanks for any input

[mjdenn]

I'll offer my 2 cents. We have a 18 Summit 39FB4S.

1. Go with upgrade of 16 gallon water heater or Truma water heater
We prefer a conventional WH. The Truma is an excellent unit but requires flow before making hot water.
2. Max Aire fan or fans , yes or no
We have them use them to vent while cooking or vent humidity when I make coffee in the AM.
3. Trailer hitch ,yes or no
Isn't an option on the Summit.
4. Slide toppers , yes or no
We did not buy them and are now thinking it was a mistake. Biggest issue is not debris but the water which can enter when packing up in the rain.
5. What brand of hitch do you suggest ,Trailer Saver ,Comfort Ride or other
We have a Comfort Ride and are very happy with it. We are on a 20K trip and some of the roads up north have not been the best. The Comfort Ride also does not have bags to check or shocks.
6. Direct TV or not
We have Dish and are very happy with it. It's paired with Winegard travler antenna on the roof. I'm on my way back from Alaska and the system worked as far north as Fairbanks. The issue with Direct TV is changing locals. It's painful. Dish uses an app on the phone. One other benefit is that they have monthly service for RV's.

Most of your questions are really about personal preferences. Our trailer was also our first so I understand it can be daunting.

[DTVGuy]

Originally Posted by cwall59

We are looking at a Majestic approximately 39 -40' and have a few questions on options. This will be first RV and will be mostly on shore power but may boondock some in route to destination. Will have three A/C's with one being a heat pump. Will have a generator , upgrade the inverter and batteries .Dishwasher , washer/dryer , residential fridge. Will not be doing wood floors or granite counter tops . Will upgrade brakes and add BBQ propane outlet and additional awning. Here are some of my questions

1. Go with upgrade of 16 gallon water heater or Truma water heater
2. Max Aire fan or fans , yes or no
3. Trailer hitch ,yes or no
4. Slide toppers , yes or no
5. What brand of hitch do you suggest ,Trailer Saver ,Comfort Ride or other
6. Direct TV or not

Any other options worth considering ?

I would appreciate any help I can get . I also will be ordering a 2020 F450 when we make or final decision's on the RV .

Thanks for any input

Here’s our 2 cents:

“Will upgrade brakes and add BBQ propane outlet and additional awning.”

Never purchase a trailer this large or heavy without disc brakes and "H" rated tires unless it is going to "sit" and not move. These are the first two most important safety items on the trailer.

BBQ outlet will require a long hose from time to time when you want to move away from the rig. Wouldn’t bother.

Window awning are good and the more the better at internal heat control. That is heat inside the trailer from the sun.

Here are some of my questions.

1. Go with upgrade of 16 gallon water heater or Truma water heater?

16 gallon. Less maintenance – don’t have to clean it and we’ve never run out of hot water with the 16 gallon.

2. Max Aire fan or fans , yes or no
Yes

3. Trailer hitch ,yes or no
Yes if your going to carry bikes, etc. A choice.

4. Slide toppers?
Yes and no
Yes if you plan to be anywhere there are lots of trees so avoid having leaves and debris getting inside the rig when the slides are retracted (without climbing on the roof to sweep the toppers) and they provide better temp control.
Some who spend a lot of time in the west don’t opt for them as they can “flap” and thus No. Never regretted having them. Personal preference but the derbies issue is real.

5. What brand of hitch do you suggest ,Trailer Saver ,Comfort Ride or other.

Trailer Saver or ET. But if going with a “pickup” like the Ford or better yet a 5500HD - Trailer Saver is good.

6. Direct TV or not?
If you watch TV yes.

Any other options worth considering ?
Generator – solar – depends on your style of RVing.

“I would appreciate any help I can get . I also will be ordering a 2020 F450 when we make or final decision's on the RV.”

I’d sure consider getting a 5500HD truck. The F-450, especially with a hauler bed, can be overloaded on the rear axle. It’s not how much the truck can tow. It’s the rear axle that gets overloaded on pickups. NH’s, Majestic’s especially, have a high pin weight. Put aux fuel, tools and may a hauler bed (which is VERY preferable due to bed rail clearances issues and storage) and one can overload. Get a 5500H and you will not overload the truck and have much better overall control due to the truck being heavier. (Don’t believe the marketing hype.)

[geo-gypsy]

Originally Posted by cwall59

1. Go with upgrade of 16 gallon water heater or Truma water heater
2. Max Aire fan or fans , yes or no
3. Trailer hitch ,yes or no
4. Slide toppers , yes or no
5. What brand of hitch do you suggest ,Trailer Saver ,Comfort Ride or other
6. Direct TV or not

Cwall59 -

1. We preferred the 16 gallon WH. Can run both electricity and/or propane. Works well for us. Truma WH is propane only and can go through quite a bit.

2. MaxAire Fan only in toilet room.

3. Trailer hitch - Yes! Has a bike rack on it right now but can also pull our trailer with Polaris RZR. We are thinking about an Idaho Tote to replace the hitch.

4. We have had slide toppers on all three of our fifth wheels. My personal choice is YES.

5. Hitch? Comfort Ride hands down.

6. We have had DirecTV since 2000. Yes, changing service location can be PIB. Also, DirecTV no longer has SD, so have to use either Winegard Traveler or external set-up elliptical receiver. No longer can use a "carry-out" when blocked by trees. DISH is different. DirecTV has SWM technology - easier when dealing with additional receivers. It's all a personal choice. Go with the one you like.

When it gets chilly, most RVers get out electric heaters. Have a dedicated outlet put in the island toe kick. We chose not to have a W/D since the load capacity is small and the 120V dryer takes forever. We get two weeks laundry done in about 2 hours and the laundromat. But, if you do go with W/D, have an additional dedicated outlet added in bath for that electric heater! Since it's only the two of us, we opted not to have a dishwasher. Instead, we have a Reverse Osmosis unit with UV finish installed in that space. RO faucet on the sink and going to the fridge. We also have an Abode Monitoring/Security system installed. It has caught one water leak when it was only a small puddle so far! It also monitors inside temps if you have pets.

Just my two cents,
Ron

PS - Agree with DTVGuy, don't do a F450 or 4500HD, go with a F550 or 5500HD with hauler bed. Wish we had done it and will be our next purchase.

I had a propane outlet on our DRV - never used it. I rather carry a 20# tank with a 6' connection hose for the grill.

On our 39' Majestic, I upgraded the 3 "axle" MorRyde I/S to 8K, 17.5" rims, disc brakes, and load rated J Michelin tires. Also ordered balancing beads from Innovative Balancing to put inside the Michelins.

[DTVGuy]

"On our 39' Majestic, I upgraded the 3 "axle" MorRyde I/S to 8K, 17.5" rims, disc brakes, and load rated J Michelin tires. Also ordered balancing beads from Innovative Balancing to put inside the Michelin."

Do keep in mind the Michelin "J" tires are speed limited to 65 MPH unless one runs the full side wall listed air pressure. 125 psi if I am not mistaken. Not true of G114 "H" tires which are 75 MPH down to 95 psi, based on load, and according to Goodyear Tire charts based on load. I noticed this sometime back and pointed it out to another OEM. They "didn't realize that."

Not saying there is anything "wrong" with the J tire, just it is speed limited based on inflation.

To the OP: Recommend the "H" tire for safety. Expensive, and well worth it. One can easily get 60,000+ miles from the tire. We have. Our view.

[geo-gypsy]

True, however, all Load Rated J tires have a maximum speed rating of 62mph no matter the inflation. Personally, I am quite comfortable pulling my 22,500 pounds at 60mph.

Interestingly enough, DRV said our Elite Suites required Load J tires. However, DRV put Load Rated H Goodyear tires on the Suites because of the speed rating! Here's a picture of what happened after 3 years of driving 60mph. The tread separated from the sidewall. One can see this happening by examining the side of the tread - it wears in a "wavy" fashion. On the other tires, one could see inside the tire where the tread was separating from the sidewall. Oh, the day before the blowout, the ES actually was fishtailing! Another clue of what is to come.

Just my two cents,
Ron

[DTVGuy]

Originally Posted by geo-gypsy

True, however, all Load Rated J tires have a maximum speed rating of 62mph no matter the inflation. Personally, I am quite comfortable pulling my 22,500 pounds at 60mph.

Interestingly enough, DRV said our Elite Suites required Load J tires. However, DRV put Load Rated H Goodyear tires on the Suites because of the speed rating! Here's a picture of what happened after 3 years of driving 60mph. The tread separated from the sidewall. One can see this happening by examining the side of the tread - it wears in a "wavy" fashion. On the other tires, one could see inside the tire where the tread was separating from the sidewall. Oh, the day before the blowout, the ES actually was fishtailing! Another clue of what is to come.

Just my two cents,
Ron

Ron, well, that is certainly “interesting.” I’ll stand corrected on the 62 MPH “J”. Memory off by 3 MPH at 65. Most ES had an IS suspension on them so it most likely isn’t mis-alignment. Don’t know. 150,000+ miles experience on G114’s and not one bit of trouble over 10+ years on two different trailers under some pretty unfavorable conditions. I do know DRV was overloading ES back before they were purchased by the current owner. Saw that first hand with other ES owners who showed me the weights.

Don’t recommend driving 75 MPH, but I must stick with my recommendation of not using “J” tires with that low speed rating. One “will” drive faster at times and it just doesn’t seem, to me, to make sense to put a limited tire, by specification, on the rig.

[HDrider]

1. Go with upgrade of 16 gallon water heater or Truma water heater
(We went with the 16 gallon and happy. Like the Truma idea but didn't want to be just propane for hot water)

2. Max Aire fan or fans , yes or no
(We did a Max fan in the toilet room and the shower area)

3. Trailer hitch ,yes or no
(yup, need a place to put the bikes)

4. Slide toppers , yes or no
(without a doubt for us)

5. What brand of hitch do you suggest ,Trailer Saver ,Comfort Ride or other
(Trailer saver, and what a nice ride it provide)

6. Direct TV or not
(we did Direct TV for over 20 years but with this coach we opted for Dish and are happy we made the switch, s far)

[cwall59]

Originally Posted by geo-gypsy

Cwall59 -

1. We preferred the 16 gallon WH. Can run both electricity and/or propane. Works well for us. Truma WH is propane only and can go through quite a bit.

2. MaxAire Fan only in toilet room.

3. Trailer hitch - Yes! Has a bike rack on it right now but can also pull our trailer with Polaris RZR. We are thinking about an Idaho Tote to replace the hitch.

4. We have had slide toppers on all three of our fifth wheels. My personal choice is YES.

5. Hitch? Comfort Ride hands down.

6. We have had DirecTV since 2000. Yes, changing service location can be PIB. Also, DirecTV no longer has SD, so have to use either Winegard Traveler or external set-up elliptical receiver. No longer can use a "carry-out" when blocked by trees. DISH is different. DirecTV has SWM technology - easier when dealing with additional receivers. It's all a personal choice. Go with the one you like.

When it gets chilly, most RVers get out electric heaters. Have a dedicated outlet put in the island toe kick. We chose not to have a W/D since the load capacity is small and the 120V dryer takes forever. We get two weeks laundry done in about 2 hours and the laundromat. But, if you do go with W/D, have an additional dedicated outlet added in bath for that electric heater! Since it's only the two of us, we opted not to have a dishwasher. Instead, we have a Reverse Osmosis unit with UV finish installed in that space. RO faucet on the sink and going to the fridge. We also have an Abode Monitoring/Security system installed. It has caught one water leak when it was only a small puddle so far! It also monitors inside temps if you have pets.

Just my two cents,
Ron

PS - Agree with DTVGuy, don't do a F450 or 4500HD, go with a F550 or 5500HD with hauler bed. Wish we had done it and will be our next purchase.

I had a propane outlet on our DRV - never used it. I rather carry a 20# tank with a 6' connection hose for the grill.

On our 39' Majestic, I upgraded the 3 "axle" MorRyde I/S to 8K, 17.5" rims, disc brakes, and load rated J Michelin tires. Also ordered balancing beads from Innovative Balancing to put inside the Michelins.

Ron,
Thanks for the input . You say you have a 450 now and will make a 550 your next purchase . What changed your mind , did you add more weight to your current setup to make the 450 under capacity ?

Thanks again and safe travels

[geo-gypsy]

Originally Posted by cwall59

Ron,
Thanks for the input . You say you have a 450 now and will make a 550 your next purchase . What changed your mind , did you add more weight to your current setup to make the 450 under capacity ?

Thanks again and safe travels

Cwall59 -

Our F450 is not under capacity at this time. But, we have a F450 pickup, that is - it has a pickup bed. With recent research and thought, I would like to have a hauler bed (ala, Classy Chassis) on our next truck. Hauler beds are heavier than the old pickup bed. So, it just makes sense to upgrade all - F450 to F550 / pickup bed to hauler bed. Honestly, I don't know why I didn't get a hauler bed when we upgraded our F350 (hauling the DRV) to an 2016 F450. And even then, I was thinking F550. Who knows. Now, if I can get RVSEF to our NHOG Rally next year, we will know precisely what the weights are on each tire! Keep you fingers crossed!

Just my two cents,
Ron

[cwall59]

Originally Posted by geo-gypsy

Cwall59 -

Our F450 is not under capacity at this time. But, we have a F450 pickup, that is - it has a pickup bed. With recent research and thought, I would like to have a hauler bed (ala, Classy Chassis) on our next truck. Hauler beds are heavier than the old pickup bed. So, it just makes sense to upgrade all - F450 to F550 / pickup bed to hauler bed. Honestly, I don't know why I didn't get a hauler bed when we upgraded our F350 (hauling the DRV) to an 2016 F450. And even then, I was thinking F550. Who knows. Now, if I can get RVSEF to our NHOG Rally next year, we will know precisely what the weights are on each tire! Keep you fingers crossed!

Just my two cents,
Ron

Thanks , post the results when you get to hit the scale.

[glennwest]

I do not own a NH but a 40' Teton. NH actually did build a copy of our Teton a few years ago. It is heavy on pin. Needs to be for the weight. Rear axle on a 4500 not much different than a 3500. Only with the 5500 do you get a higher axle rating. My Teton bowed my previous 3500 rear springs backwards. Had to put air bags on it. Took a lot of air to straighten out springs. Rode horrible. Hurt me to tow with it. I now have a Semi to tow my unit. Carry a Smartcar behind cab. I forget it is even behind us. It also gets better MPG than the dually. Turn radious is better also. Not trying to talk you into one. That is your decision. But I would never tow that heavy a unit with a LDT. Get a MDT or HDT.

[DTVGuy]

Originally Posted by glennwest

I do not own a NH but a 40' Teton. NH actually did build a copy of our Teton a few years ago. It is heavy on pin. Needs to be for the weight. Rear axle on a 4500 not much different than a 3500. Only with the 5500 do you get a higher axle rating. My Teton bowed my previous 3500 rear springs backwards. Had to put air bags on it. Took a lot of air to straighten out springs. Rode horrible. Hurt me to tow with it. I now have a Semi to tow my unit. Carry a Smartcar behind cab. I forget it is even behind us. It also gets better MPG than the dually. Turn radious is better also. Not trying to talk you into one. That is your decision. But I would never tow that heavy a unit with a LDT. Get a MDT or HDT.

Glenn raises a good point - and to clarify one thing about "F-450's." There are two different F-450's and most on RV Forums are referring to the "pickup truck" version of the F-450.

There is a commercial F-450 with higher ratings, but its a different truck with a different "tune" on the engine, etc. for commercial operations. But his point is nonetheless accurate, even with the commercial 450 4500 class IV trucks, (all Ram 4500HDs are commercial - there are no pickups) there is a minor difference in price to upgrade to the 5500 class V trucks but much better axle and other capacity ratings with the class V trucks. Careful understanding of all ratings beyond just the marketing "it can tow this much" is important.