Community Forums

Boston Tiger · 02-20-2016, 01:59 PM

Hi all,

Thought it would be a good idea to introduce myself before diving back into scrolling through the great posts on the site.

Like many other newbies that I've seen, I've started looking into RVs after realizing that retirement will be sneaking up on my wife and I in three years or so, if nothing unexpected should happen. One thing we know we will want to do is to get out of the high cost Boston area once our recent college graduate settles in for her first permanent job. We will be taking a trip down to southern Kentucky, eastern Tennessee and western North Carolina in April to see is we want to set up semi-permanent roots in any of those areas.

We are also intrigued by the part-time opportunities that are presented by RV life. I grew up tent camping, but cut back on it even when our son was in scouts, since I discovered that I really could not handle the energy of multiple pre-teen boys. My wife made enough tent camping trips with the girl scouts to know that only type of camping she liked would involve a toilet nearby and a comfy bed.

We went to the Boston RV show last month, largely to see if I would fit into any RVs. I'm 6'8" tall, and we pretty quickly discovered that our search would be limited to Class As. And pretty much, only the newer versions that had 7 foot ceilings, just in case we ever wanted our 6'10" son to come by when we were down in Texas visiting him. Beds are definitely going to be another issue, since we will be looking for something with a true king sized bed.

We are still going to be in the research stage for the next year or so. I'll continue with my internet research, and we might try to drop by some RV parks on our spring trip to at least start checking how well we like them. Who knows when or if we will progress to any later steps, but the start of this process sure is fun.

MSHappyCampers · 02-20-2016, 02:05 PM

Welcome to IRV2! We're sure glad you joined us!

Hope you find the perfect rig for your needs!

Good luck, happy trails, and God bless!

Bruce C · 02-20-2016, 03:18 PM

**TonyDi** · 02-20-2016, 09:48 PM

Glad to have you here with us.

Good luck in your search for a tall mans coach.

Happy Trails!!

denlock · 02-21-2016, 05:21 AM

Dsrtrider · 02-21-2016, 06:23 AM

Are you looking for new or used RV? There are some good floorplans out there with King Beds.

Eratosthenes · 02-21-2016, 09:36 AM

6'8"?? And I thought I was tall at 6'3".

I was very enthusiastic about a Class B MH until I walked inside of one ... I thought the 26 foot Class C MH we rented was sort of cramped for our 3 week trip to Yellowstone. So now we are looking for something like a 29+ foot Class A to purchase.

Good luck on your search!

Boston Tiger · 02-21-2016, 09:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dsrtrider

Are you looking for new or used RV? There are some good floorplans out there with King Beds.

Maybe we will be looking for something that is new right now, but will be broken in by someone who else who is being nice enough to take that big initial depreciation hit for us when we buy used.

Based on my limited research so far, it appears that the later models might be a better fit than something older. I discovered at the RV show that units with padded ceilings were much better if I hit my head, which means some lower tier units will never make our list. But ultimately the decision will come down to what brand I can fit in, then seeing how happy my wife is with the rest of the floor plan. I've been around long enough to know that!

Dsrtrider · 02-22-2016, 06:10 AM

If you look at 2007 2008 Winnebago voyage or Adventurer. They Have 7ft 2 headroom and 35L models have a king bed option. There may be some newer ones with these options also but these come to mind.

Eratosthenes · 05-08-2016, 01:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boston Tiger

We went to the Boston RV show last month, largely to see if I would fit into any RVs. I'm 6'8" tall, and we pretty quickly discovered that our search would be limited to Class As. And pretty much, only the newer versions that had 7 foot ceilings, just in case we ever wanted our 6'10" son to come by when we were down in Texas visiting him. Beds are definitely going to be another issue, since we will be looking for something with a true king sized bed.

I do not think that what I am about to suggest will help you, but you can never tell. So I am posting this here just in case.

My wife and I went to look at RVs the other day and we are looking at some 33+ foot MH because of my height. Of course, I am only 6'2", but I also have a bad back and need to be able to walk around the sides of my bed as opposed to crawling onto it from the bottom of the bed like I did in our 26' Sunseeker a couple of years ago. So most sales people have steered us to the 30'+ MH, but not this time. She took us to see the tiny Thor Vegas 24.1 (basically a 25' MH), suggesting we would be surprised ... we were.

The Vegas 24.1 bed is designed as two twins with space in the middle to get in and out, but you put a cushion in and it could be a King. Now the bed length is only 75 inches which is a little more than my exact height so it is perfect for me, but I rarely stretch out to my full length as I am a side sleeper. There is an added benefit that when I get foot cramps in the middle of the night I can push on the wall with my foot to work the cramp out ... I have a footboard on my bed at home, but no MH beds have footboards ... so paradoxically this smaller bed looks like it would be better for me than a bigger bed. Now the interior height of the MH is 82 inches so although you might be able to stand up easily inside (you still might have to duck in the shower though), it might be pretty close for your 6'10" son.

Long story short ... I looked at the Vegas online (note the Axis is the twin to the Vegas in the Thor lineup), and thought that I would hate it and that my wife would too. But when we saw it in real life, we changed our minds and we are going to rent one this summer to try it out. If we can enjoy our two week vacation in one, then maybe we will think about buying one.

Good Luck!