Surveyor rating

[CJ]

My husband and I are thinking of buying a surveyor291. We are going from a coleman pu to a tt. Anyone out there have any suggestions or ratings.

[CJ]

My husband and I are thinking of buying a surveyor291. We are going from a coleman pu to a tt. Anyone out there have any suggestions or ratings.

[FatDog]

CJ
Welcome on iRV2 !
Great to see you here.
I took a look at the floorplan for the Surveyor 291 :

http://www.forestriverinc.com/nd/default22.asp?page=floor&choice=surv&nav=rec

It has some good sleeping room.
But i have a couple questions for you, and that would help anyone here give you suggestions,

What kind of tow vehicle do you have?
Where do you guys like to camp? Do you primarily camp in campgrounds that have full hookups, or do you go off the beaten path a little bit? The 30 gallon fresh water tank in the 291 would be good if you have hookups all the time.

That 291 would be a nice step from the coleman. We look forward to hearing more of your particulars.

Congrats, and again Welcome!
Mike

[FatDog]

ID 14
Model SV-291

Total Dry Weight ............ 4,427 lbs.
Load Capacity ........ 1,320 lbs.
Hitch Weight .......... 420 lbs.
Overall Length (closed) .......... 30' 6"
Exterior Width ....... 8' 0"
Exterior Height (roof edge)......... 8' 4"
Fresh Water ......... 30 Gal.
Gray Water .......... 30 Gal.
Black Water ....... 30 Gal.
Tire Size ......... 205/75/R14

[Randy the sly old fox]

How many of you are there and what do you have to pull it with? Also beware of the load capacity. Check to be sure that it includes full propane tanks, batteries, and water. Does the dry wt inlcude options - I see that they include the wt of the options - they need to be added to the dry wt (which reduces the already low carrying capacity) 30 gal of fresh water is not a problem for a weekend if you conserve a bit. My family of 4 often dry camped with only 22 gals. Limit showers and do dishes once a day.

As for quality I have no idea, Forest River has plants located all over the country - we have one here in Oregon that makes RVs for the Northwest. The ones I have seen have been reasonably good.

[CJ]

[Thanks for the info everyone. we didn't think about the options weights but with the GMC burb we will be OK. We liked the flip up bed in the back for the Gkids when they stay over. We never dry camp so water is not an issue. What else have we not thought of? Help we go this week some time for one last lookz.

[Happy Campers]

CJ-
Hi, we are new to this web site. Your post caught my eye because a year and a half ago my husband and I( well I did the research and just dragged him on long to look.)were on the hunt for light weight travel trailers. We looked at the Grand Surveyor, and was real close to buying one.(different model) Then we walked into an R-Vision product. We bought a Trail Bay by R-Vision.R-Vision has the same floor plans as ForestRiver. To us the workmanship seemed better in the R-Vision compared to the ForestRiver products. I do suggest do your research and go out and look in all differnt type and manufactures of trailers. Check out an Rv show, and if your not strong then leave your check book at home. Best of luck to you.
Denise

[Randy the sly old fox]

Is your burb 1/2 ton or 3/4 ton? If it is 3/4ton than you are probably ok - 1/2Ton and you could be pushing it. At 30' that is a lot of TT to be lugging around. But for five of you that space might come in handy on a rainy day. You might opt for a unit with triple bunks - we found bunks were great with kids - until they became teens and wanted to sleep in tents Happy Camper is right with the idea that most TT mfgs have similar floorplans - there is only so much you can do with a box So to that extent you should look at the quality of the actual unit you want to buy. Spend some time in it - close the doors, sit in the dinette, sofa, go in the bathroom and sit on the pot, stand in the shower, etc. If the floorplan still fits you and your needs, then open every cupboard, look in every nook and cranny for construction details, also look for misplaced staples, bad wiring, hoses, etc. Can you see daylight around the wheel wells? Look for any signs of poor quality construction. Buy the unit that is the best - based on your observations of it. I say this because I once ordered a TT based on a sample of one on the lot - the ordered unit did not turn out as nice as the one I looked at. I will only buy what I can see.

[Happy Campers]

Randy the sly old fox is so right, I only need to add one more suggestion, sit on that pot holding a newspaper. this is the way my husband did his testing. Might sound silly, but some things are important


Kevin and Denise
2005 Siverado HD
2004 Trail Bay 27DS

[CJ]

wow so much to consider. I'll make sure I take along a newspaper cuz I our house it's the "readingroom"

[CJ]

Well we did it!!!! We are PROUD owners of our first TT Surveyor 295, I had my first Nap in it will watching the race on Sunday. all the kids love it and now want to take it for a road time. The season is growing short but we hope to take it our in a couple of weeks. Now I wonder why we waited sooooooooooooo long to go from a pu to a TT. can't wait to get on the road.