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Old 05-19-2018, 02:10 PM   #1
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Info needed on Blackstone Titanium 260 RLS

I live in East Texas and have recently been considering and researching the Trailer shown above. Of course, there are no dealers near me so laying eyes on one is kinda out of the question. Nearest dealers appear to be in New Mexico and Arizona. I don't mind buying one sight unseen as I have been thru that before. My last purchase was an Artic Fox fifth wheel which I ordered sight unseen from a dealer in Mesa Arizona.

A few questions that I have not found answered in my research online are:
1. Looking at pictures these trailers appear to sit higher off the ground than some others. I will not be ordering the off road package and am just wondering if the units do sit higher as a whole than most travel trailers or do they just appear that way in brochure.
2. Is there room to get to fridge without opening the slide? It appears that accessing the bathroom would be no problem with the slides retracted.
3. I will be towing with a new 2500 GMC 4x4 Duramax diesel. Does anyone see a problem with this truck handling this trailer safely?
4. I will be ordering the 50 Amp along with two A/Cs. I am guessing the BR A/C will knock out the BR skylight, Right?
5. It appears that viewing the TV from the recliner on the curb side of trailer may be difficult or does the TV swivel enough to make it possible? Any thoughts on that?
6. I am thinking ProPride for the hitch. Do any of you guys or gals use that hitch and if so let me hear how you like it?

I would appreciate any thoughts, advise or ideas any of you might share with me. I have had fivers, Diesel Pushers and a Class C in my time but never a Travel Trailer so this would be my first.
Thanks in advance.
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Old 05-19-2018, 03:18 PM   #2
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Hi! I'm just down the road in Dallas. There are a few Texas ORV owners here but not many. I spend 2 weeks a month working from my 24RKS in the oil field.

I don't have any experience with that exact trailer but they do, in fact, sit taller. I run an 8" rise for my Andersen hitch on my F350 DRW. 8" frame and big tires = tall trailer. Expect a coupler height of 30-32".

I'm considering moving up to a propride because I tow in West Texas frequently and crosswinds gusting above 45mph or so get a little hairy. $2500 is a pretty big pill to swallow, however.

Next thing up is to figure out warranty work...I have a few tiny things that need to be addressed after 2100 miles. Other than that, I'm a happy camper.

Good luck!
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Old 05-19-2018, 07:42 PM   #3
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We just purchased our second ORV, a 270 RKS. Our previous was a 250 RKS.

1. Both sit a bit higher off the ground then most trailers. It's not an issue with us.
2. We can open our refer with the slide in.
3. We have a 2004, 2500 Chevy Duramax diesel with a 14,000 lb. equalizer hitch. We used a 12,000 equalizer with the 250RKS, (which was probably a bit undersized for the tongue weight).
4. Our 270 has a 50 amp system and I see where there is wiring in the bedroom (vent) for the second ac.
5. I'm not sure about the tv viewing angle. In ours it's no problem.
6. Sorry but I don't know much about Propride hitch. I can tell you that with the 12k Equalizer we had no sway, no problems at all.

We looked at the Titanium series but at $7000 + I just didn't think it was worth it.
We purchased both our ORV at Lassen RV, Albany Oregon. You may think its too far away but the folks that bought our trade in (250RKS) are from Florida. Lassen are great people to deal with. Plus you can visit the ORV factory in Oregon.

Have you thought about a different model? We found the 250 roomy but not quite enough room in the bedroom so we got the 270 which has the third slide in the bedroom.

ORV are great trailers and I'm sure that no matter which model you choose, you will have years of fun.
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Old 05-20-2018, 07:40 AM   #4
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Thanks Freqz and obwan2 for the good info. The exact kind I need. I see both of you guys have the rear kitchen which I have no experience with at all. Have heard some say they had problems with the dishes and things bouncing badly in a RK model. Have either of you experienced the same and if so......is it a real problem? I have looked pretty closely at the 270 RKS and really like it. My interest in the 260 RLS mainly is the fact that it shows to be about 300 lbs less hitch weight and about 2 foot less in length. I also like having both recliners and a sofa. But I am going to keep the 270 in my mind.

Just wondering if either of your units have the Off Road Suspension package? If I understand correctly......this would make the trailer ride higher, which I do not want. I have had MorRyde suspension and MorRyde pin box on a fiver and really like them but as stated I don’t want the trailer riding higher.

Do you have Maxx Air Vent fans in living area, BR and bath? I am just guessing that I cannot have one in BR since I will have the second air in there. Any thoughts?

Again thank you for the good information.
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Old 05-20-2018, 02:32 PM   #5
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I heard the same thing about rear kitchens but with the 250 we had no problems and the 270 has the same setup.
The 270 is heavier and longer. Our 270 dry hitch weight is 1195. That's why I went with the 14k equalizer.
Have you thought about the 250RKS? It has everything the 270 has except the third slide (and weight and length).
We have the off road suspension but I'm not sure if all ORV models have it. Thats something ORV can help with. Give ORV a call and I'm sure will answer all question you may have.
We had (2) Maxx air installed (in the 250 bedroom and bath). The 270 has 3 Maxx air fans with the third in the kitchen. And yes I believe you are right about the second ac placement.

Good luck!
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Old 05-21-2018, 06:30 AM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Titleman View Post
Thanks Freqz and obwan2 for the good info. The exact kind I need. I see both of you guys have the rear kitchen which I have no experience with at all. Have heard some say they had problems with the dishes and things bouncing badly in a RK model. Have either of you experienced the same and if so......is it a real problem? I have looked pretty closely at the 270 RKS and really like it. My interest in the 260 RLS mainly is the fact that it shows to be about 300 lbs less hitch weight and about 2 foot less in length. I also like having both recliners and a sofa. But I am going to keep the 270 in my mind.



Just wondering if either of your units have the Off Road Suspension package? If I understand correctly......this would make the trailer ride higher, which I do not want. I have had MorRyde suspension and MorRyde pin box on a fiver and really like them but as stated I don’t want the trailer riding higher.



Do you have Maxx Air Vent fans in living area, BR and bath? I am just guessing that I cannot have one in BR since I will have the second air in there. Any thoughts?



Again thank you for the good information.


The rear kitchen hasn't been an issue for me yet in 2100 miles. I do have the off-road suspension but I wanted the 16" tires and greaseable bushings and that meant going with the off-road suspension in the TR class.

3 maxx air vents but only one AC in my unit...it holds mid 70s at daily high temps up to the high 90s (saw that last couple of weeks...sigh) without taking any precautions like pulling all the shades for the day or anything. The second AC will indeed plug the bedroom spot.

If you haven't bought the truck yet, consider moving up to a 3500 especially if you're close on payload. These trailers can get pretty heavy on the tongue with fiberglass caps, 60# of propane, batteries and large front pass throughs.
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Old 05-21-2018, 09:30 AM   #7
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Two reason I'd never buy that TT. The tv's way to high and wrongly placed. Plus it would be harder to upsize it if needed.
2nd is the fixed rear little table between the recliners. That really limits the movement. It's also hard to tell from just looking at the pics as to whether you need to rotate them to bring the slide in. No biggie on rotating recliners but it looks like it would be a fight with that fixed table between them.
I'm a big fan of ORV products but this TT is poorly designed IMO.
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Old 05-22-2018, 09:37 AM   #8
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We have the Timber Ridge in the 260 RLS and we really like this floorplan. As Cumminsfan points out the TV is located high but it’s not an issue for us because we seldom watch any TV. The recliners in the back must be turned sideways to bring in or take out the slide and we haven’t found it to be an inconvenience. We do put some foam behind each chair and the table to protect them from movement while travelling. The straps hold them pretty well but we do that as a precaution. We can access the fridge with the slide in but we often just bump it out slightly so my “slender” body has an easier time to put items in the fridge. We looked at lots of floor plans and while there were others we liked we preferred this one. If this floorplan was not available I think we would have probably gone with the RDS model.
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Old 05-22-2018, 09:57 AM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Titleman View Post
I live in East Texas and have recently been considering and researching the Trailer shown above. Of course, there are no dealers near me so laying eyes on one is kinda out of the question. Nearest dealers appear to be in New Mexico and Arizona. I don't mind buying one sight unseen as I have been thru that before. My last purchase was an Artic Fox fifth wheel which I ordered sight unseen from a dealer in Mesa Arizona.

A few questions that I have not found answered in my research online are:
1. Looking at pictures these trailers appear to sit higher off the ground than some others. I will not be ordering the off road package and am just wondering if the units do sit higher as a whole than most travel trailers or do they just appear that way in brochure.
“They do sit high. My hitch coupler is 29.5” off the ground”
2. Is there room to get to fridge without opening the slide? It appears that accessing the bathroom would be no problem with the slides retracted.
“You can access the fridge with the slide retracted but access is easier if you open it slightly. Accessing the bathroom is easy from the front door but the water pump switch is just inside the rear door so that is a bit of an inconvenience.”
3. I will be towing with a new 2500 GMC 4x4 Duramax diesel. Does anyone see a problem with this truck handling this trailer safely?
“ I towed ours with a 2500 Chev 6.0l for one season. It handled the weight of the trailer just fine but I couldn’t get used to the constant transmission shifting when driving in terrain so we now tow with a 3500 Ram diesel.”
4. I will be ordering the 50 Amp along with two A/Cs. I am guessing the BR A/C will knock out the BR skylight, Right?
“ can’t help you with this one as I have only the 30 Amp service and one AC.”
5. It appears that viewing the TV from the recliner on the curb side of trailer may be difficult or does the TV swivel enough to make it possible? Any thoughts on that?
“ the TV swivels enough to watch from the curb side recliner but the TV is small with not much room to put in a larger one. We don’t watch much TV so it wasn’t an issue. Our last trailer didn’t have a TV.”
6. I am thinking ProPride for the hitch. Do any of you guys or gals use that hitch and if so let me hear how you like it?
“ I tow ours with an Andersen WDH but I would think an Equalizer would perform awesome and if you go ProPride well I don’t see you having any concerns. The tongue weight will likely be north of 1000lbs so keep that in mind when sizing your hitch.

I would appreciate any thoughts, advise or ideas any of you might share with me. I have had fivers, Diesel Pushers and a Class C in my time but never a Travel Trailer so this would be my first.
Thanks in advance.

Have fun shopping. We are happy with our ORV. We are now both officially retired and its going to Alaska this year.
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Old 05-22-2018, 12:49 PM   #10
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Originally Posted by Super Thirty View Post
We have the Timber Ridge in the 260 RLS and we really like this floorplan. As Cumminsfan points out the TV is located high but it’s not an issue for us because we seldom watch any TV. The recliners in the back must be turned sideways to bring in or take out the slide and we haven’t found it to be an inconvenience. We do put some foam behind each chair and the table to protect them from movement while travelling. The straps hold them pretty well but we do that as a precaution. We can access the fridge with the slide in but we often just bump it out slightly so my “slender” body has an easier time to put items in the fridge. We looked at lots of floor plans and while there were others we liked we preferred this one. If this floorplan was not available I think we would have probably gone with the RDS model.
Thanks Super Thirty. Good to hear from an owner of a 260RLS. I like this model because it has the sofa AND recliners. I had to turn the recliners while traveling in my last 5th wheel but really never bothered me. The TV location in the 260 does appear to be too high and may well be a sticking point for me. I also like the RDS.
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Old 05-22-2018, 11:04 PM   #11
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I know this is an ORV forum but when looking at RL floor plans I really like the AF 32A. Made across the street so it has to be built as well. A little longer but a nice open floor plan.
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Old 05-23-2018, 10:30 AM   #12
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I pull an earlier version of that trailer with my 2500HD GMC Denali Duramax just fine. I have a 10K Equal-i-zer WDH and pulled in crosswinds without issue, however I must point out I tend to do about 62mph max.

My "slender" body does not fit well with the recliners so I seldom use them, and have nothing to report as to being able to see the television from the recliner on the PS.

I can open the fridge with the slide in, however I, like stated by a previous poster, like to bump it a bit to make it easier.

I had no idea it could be wired for 50amp and have a second AC installed. I would guess that if it did, it would replace the bedroom vent.

The Titanium series all come with MaxxAir fans (to my knowledge), so you should be good to go there.

The little table in the back is where the utilities come into the trailer, and the outdoor shower is located there. It made it easy to install the Progressive Industries EMS there, and even mount the EMS switch.

Good luck with your search!

//KMac
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Old 05-23-2018, 07:00 PM   #13
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I pull an earlier version of that trailer with my 2500HD GMC Denali Duramax just fine. I have a 10K Equal-i-zer WDH and pulled in crosswinds without issue, however I must point out I tend to do about 62mph max.

My "slender" body does not fit well with the recliners so I seldom use them, and have nothing to report as to being able to see the television from the recliner on the PS.

I can open the fridge with the slide in, however I, like stated by a previous poster, like to bump it a bit to make it easier.

I had no idea it could be wired for 50amp and have a second AC installed. I would guess that if it did, it would replace the bedroom vent.

The Titanium series all come with MaxxAir fans (to my knowledge), so you should be good to go there.

The little table in the back is where the utilities come into the trailer, and the outdoor shower is located there. It made it easy to install the Progressive Industries EMS there, and even mount the EMS switch.

Good luck with your search!

//KMac
Thanks KMac. I appreciate the info. I had never even thought about the utilities coming in the back of the trailer. Looks like that could be a problem as most or at least a a lot of RV Park pedestals are situated for mid trailer hookups.
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Old 05-23-2018, 07:28 PM   #14
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I know this is an ORV forum but when looking at RL floor plans I really like the AF 32A. Made across the street so it has to be built as well. A little longer but a nice open floor plan.
Thanks Cumminsfan. The AF 32 is about 3 foot longer which is one of the things I’m trying to avoid. That’s about the only reason I’m not looking at the Blackstone 270RLS. I bought a new 2013 AF 5 th wheel and really liked the product. Not a big fan of the exterior sides though. That is one reason I like the titanium. I do like the AF 32 floor plan though. Thanks for your comments.
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