What to buy???

[Kaffeetee]

Hi all, very excited, just done with my registration process with the forum!!
We are shopping for a trailer, hoping to get one in time for the Thanksgiving break. This is our first trailer, so many options and so many things to learn, hope that you guys here can help us out a little.
I have been looking on Craigslist, we want to find a used one, with about 10k in our budget. We have 4 young children, planning to do some serious driving/ traveling with the camper. We have a Dodge Ram 1500, looked up and confirmed that it can tow up to about 8500 lbs, we don't have much space to store a large trailer, can go max 27 ft or 28 if we push it.
Now the questions: should we go for a smaller one so it is easier to handle? Or should we go for a bigger one with slides for more comfort? In your opinion, with young children, will we spend a lot of time inside the camper? Should we go for a 5th wheeler? Is 5th wheeler much easier to haul? If we get one that has a manual slide out, will it be a lot of work and trouble to slide? We are hoping to find a private party to buy from, but is there any benefits to get it from a dealer? Thanks!!

[shortlance]

You are going to need a lot more truck to tow a fifth wheel. The pin weight alone would be too much for a half ton truck. As far as a travel trailer goes even just one slide makes a big differance in living space but will add weight to the RV. Make sure you go by the gross weight for the RV and not the weight the RV is empty. No body pulls an empty RV.

[Bucksmom]

Another thing to think about...a slide can make things heavier, and more expensive to purchase and repair. You might be able to get more for your money without a slide. Just my 2cents. Just have fun!

[awarnes]

Question: When camping do you spend time more inside or outside? Not counting on bad weather. Are you going to use it mainly for sleeping or do you plan to eat meals inside? With 4 young kids you will need to have a trailer with bunks or go with a nice hybrid. That way you can have sleeping arrangements. Alot depends on your style. We have 2 and sometimes 3 young girls with us and 2 dalmations. We spend very little time inside. Except to sleep and eat breakfast. By our sig we have large size MH and the only time it gets crowded is when the weather is very bad. Go see many different types at RV shows and sit and picture yourself being in them when the weather is bad and at night and morning. There are alot of lite weight trailers that are large with slides below your weight range. Try to stay a couple grand under limits. Believe me from experience that is a big deal.

Happy Camping and be sure to ask any question of the group. Just be sure to give us as much information as possible.

Arnold

[WpgCouple]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kaffeetee Hi all, very excited, just done with my registration process with the forum!! We are shopping for a trailer, hoping to get one in time for the Thanksgiving break. This is our first trailer, so many options and so many things to learn, hope that you guys here can help us out a little. I have been looking on Craigslist, we want to find a used one, with about 10k in our budget. We have 4 young children, planning to do some serious driving/ traveling with the camper. We have a Dodge Ram 1500, looked up and confirmed that it can tow up to about 8500 lbs, we don't have much space to store a large trailer, can go max 27 ft or 28 if we push it. Now the questions: should we go for a smaller one so it is easier to handle? Or should we go for a bigger one with slides for more comfort? In your opinion, with young children, will we spend a lot of time inside the camper? Should we go for a 5th wheeler? Is 5th wheeler much easier to haul? If we get one that has a manual slide out, will it be a lot of work and trouble to slide? We are hoping to find a private party to buy from, but is there any benefits to get it from a dealer? Thanks!!

You should probably look at the PUMA line by Palomino. They have some great floorplans,the 28-BH would suit your needs. They are well constructed and entry level priced.

Happy hunting,
Marv