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Old 07-11-2019, 04:35 AM   #1
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Observations when shopping for a new TT

We really love our current rig, but it is a '92. We've been using it a lot since last September and we decided to "shop" to see what might be out there that would be an "upgrade" for maybe next year.

The following is a random list of observations that I hope may inspire or help others who are looking to upgrade from an older rig. YMMV
  • Newer doesn't mean better. Our rig has a Samsung not-quite-house-sized
    (bigger than any RV size we have seen) microwave, Magic Chef stove and oven, and Norcold fridge. Kinda tough to beat that on anything but high-end rigs.
  • Longer doesn't mean bigger (Yeah that's what she said!). Seriously.. the look on a salespersons faces when you tell them the bathroom on your current nearly 30 year old rig is roughly 5' x 8' in size and one wall of it is completely storage... priceless
  • Floorplan Floorplan Floorplan. Size really doesn't matter. We found the Forest River Vibe 26RK is our size because of the floor plan. The 28, 33, etc. of the same Vibe line, have different floor plans each one taking AWAY something that the 26 has. We found this in all makes we looked at. 1 foot of length can be the difference of having a couch or not.
  • Don't be seduced by bling. That fireplace, TV, Corian Counters and wood grain on the fridge door that raised the price of the RV by $10,000 can be custom or DIY installed for about $2000 with better quality higher-end items. I'm not saying don't get them, but if like in our case we really want a nicer counter top in the kitchen.... I'm pretty sure for less than $800 I can have one custom cut and installed by any decent counter guy (or myself).
  • Don't let the sloppy "finishing touches" get to you. When/If the time comes, go over the rig with a fine-tooth comb and make them fix everything before you sign the paperwork, or... get them to start deducting off the price tag.

My advise is start with a list of what you want from the floor plans. Ignor price, make, model, everything until you find the floor plan that matches what you need. Then find the rig that matches the floorplan.

For us it's
  • walk-around bed
  • underneath rig storage
  • dinette, couch and chairs
  • entertainment center/fireplace (whether installed or not) should be across from couch, not off to the side, or up near the ceiling
  • outdoor kitchen area
  • Large single sink (vs dual sinks)
  • Full length awning (as long as reasonable).

Over the course of a couple of weeks, we looked through 100's of floor plans, and ended up with ONE model from ONE company that checks all the boxes. We've so far looked at about 20 rigs in person, and it turns out this ONE model we found is pretty much the ONLY model we really like and will likely get next year. Forest River Vibe 26RK.

What inspired this post was not only the experience we've had in the preliminary stages of shopping, but in watching the assorted RV shows on TV where show after show, people who genuinely seem to be looking for a new RV or Upgrade, end up getting sold an RV that doesn't match their wish list or they compromise for price. Now I realize that's just TV, but there is a aire of real-world to it.

YMMV. Just my perspective as somewhat of a newbie to all of this.
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Old 07-11-2019, 09:47 AM   #2
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Great points.

I'm trying to decide what to do when you find a floor plan you love, but the interior is hideous. As my mother used to say, "Who do they let decorate these things? The lot boy?"
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Old 07-11-2019, 10:01 AM   #3
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Beyond floor plan, Fit and Finish were our biggest headaches.
Totally surprised by the very poor workmanship on most manufactures TTs when we were looking. Most were junk if you just looked closely.
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Old 07-11-2019, 10:23 AM   #4
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Nice write up with very good info.
A trailer and it’s intended use, and expectations are always overlooked.
Sounds like you’ve done lots of research, and found one that fits your intended use.
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Old 07-14-2019, 07:20 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Cliffy View Post
Beyond floor plan, Fit and Finish were our biggest headaches.
Totally surprised by the very poor workmanship on most manufactures TTs when we were looking. Most were junk if you just looked closely.
I've decided (or just resigned myself ) to only look at the "bones" and not sweat the fit'n finish stuff but rather just use it as bargaining power if I can. The bottom lines, and there are two, is that appearently most people don't care enough to force them to do better, and if they did want to do better that would translate to more cost for us.

In one day... we were in a Grand Design(?) and they have the heat ducting in the walls. One of the covers was mounted off-center far enough to where you could clearly see the ducting behind the cover along the edge. It was about 1/2" gap.

On another lot that day, we were looking at a Forest River Vibe, and the sales guy pulls out the outdoor kitchen unit and they hadn't put the stops on the railos so it came off the rails. Lisa and I happen to be on either side of him and both instinctively grabbed a side and got it back into the rails.

I so much wanted to take pictures, but felt sorry for the sales guys who were visibly embarassed in both cases.

Besides the obvious cost savings, these are examples of why I won't buy a "new" trailer unless it's an amazing deal, and I mean amazing. At least with a gently used one, depending on the previous owner I guess, but there's a better shot of knowing that most things that weren't put together correctly would have already failed for someone else.


Quote:
Originally Posted by bneukam View Post
Nice write up with very good info.
A trailer and it’s intended use, and expectations are always overlooked.
Sounds like you’ve done lots of research, and found one that fits your intended use.
We were really overwhelmed until I started looking a floorplans. If you google Travel Trailer Floor Plans and look at images.. 1000's come up, but it's pretty easy to start narrowing down features and finding models that fit. In reality, with my oddball list, I happened upon the 26RK in a few minutes and I've been trying to find "something better for us" unseccessfully ever since. That was some of the motivcation for this post. I'm no expert by any stretch, but it was obvious we were never going to find anything going from lot to lot.
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Old 07-14-2019, 10:50 PM   #6
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I couldn't tell if the 26RK had a full size queen bed or an RV short queen. You might want to check on that.
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Old 07-14-2019, 11:05 PM   #7
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I couldn't tell if the 26RK had a full size queen bed or an RV short queen. You might want to check on that.
The two or three we looked at were all Full-Sized Queen. Doesn't really matter to me as I like my feet to hang off the end.
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Old 07-15-2019, 05:03 AM   #8
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Just for comparison, run down to Everett, (Apache), look at one of these:
https://outdoorsrvmfg.com/black-stone-280rksb/

Very heavy, you'd need a big truck to handle it. Go to the mfr. site, check out the construction video.
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Old 07-15-2019, 03:22 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Desdinova View Post
In one day... we were in a Grand Design(?) and they have the heat ducting in the walls. One of the covers was mounted off-center far enough to where you could clearly see the ducting behind the cover along the edge. It was about 1/2" gap.

On another lot that day, we were looking at a Forest River Vibe, and the sales guy pulls out the outdoor kitchen unit and they hadn't put the stops on the railos so it came off the rails. Lisa and I happen to be on either side of him and both instinctively grabbed a side and got it back into the rails.
We were in one the other day and the overhead cabinets from the slide were laying on the floor. And in one of the others, the tri-fold sofa fell apart when the salesman was demonstrating it. He didn't miss a step either time, so my assumption was that it was common for them to have to show trailers that should never have left the manufacturing facility.

Desdinova, we are in south SnoCo...we are probably looking at the same dealers.
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Old 07-15-2019, 04:53 PM   #10
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Desdinova, we are in south SnoCo...we are probably looking at the same dealers.
Indeed we probably were. I kinda feel sorry for the sales folks.
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Old 07-16-2019, 09:34 AM   #11
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Indeed we probably were. I kinda feel sorry for the sales folks.
Oh, you have no idea. Bwahahahaha!
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