Negative: Poor Quality

[Displaced2]

On road and raining n bored. Decided to change cabinet hardware.
Must have been installed on hangover Monday.

One pic medicine cabinet door. Other cabinet in shower area.
Will have to fill holes and redrill every cabinet hardware hole Thought it odd when had to "alter" handheld for entertainment center.
Poor poor workmanship with no pride in product
Do not n will not recommend FR products

[Toddupton]

If this is under warranty they will fix it.

[Displaced2]

Do it right the first time. Retired OR Nurse. No redos!,

[X96mnn]

Least you have time to make it the way you want it to be. That's half the fun!

[aceinspp]

May need to start doing a closer inspection prior to buying. What I did this last time. Later RJD

[Wire Wrat]

Our trailer had several "bugs" however the folks down at camping world have been working on them. I think the quality control is not up to par. I agree, we should have been a lot more critical when deciding to buy.

[rmac04401]

This is across all brands. They are popping them out so fast they are not keeping eye on detail. Years ago when demand was soft you got a better product. It is no different than anything else you buy these days.

[mrpep]

Most RV's and travel trailers are made cheaper than we want to believe.


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[Herk7769]

So, you want a 30 foot camper that is towable with your 1/2 ton pickup?

Then don't expect solid oak cabinets and a boxed frame or you would need an Abrahams tank to tow it.

It amazes me that folks don't understand that light weight means "not heavy duty". To make these campers light enough to tow and still have all the gingerbread that we insist on, "just good enough" is the rule and not the exception.

Over size axles, tires, and solid cabinetry add unnecessary weight where weight reduction is the goal.

[mrpep]

Ok, good point, what about leaks? Rvs have to checked for leaks at least twice a year. For what they cost one would think that these things would be more reliable .


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[Wobbles]

Originally Posted by Herk7769

So, you want a 30 foot camper that is towable with your 1/2 ton pickup?

Then don't expect solid oak cabinets and a boxed frame or you would need an Abrahams tank to tow it.

It amazes me that folks don't understand that light weight means "not heavy duty". To make these campers light enough to tow and still have all the gingerbread that we insist on, "just good enough" is the rule and not the exception.

Over size axles, tires, and solid cabinetry add unnecessary weight where weight reduction is the goal.

Good point. I went after mine looking for what I thought were my requirements and since I have never traveled this path before I bought the rig that met my needs at the best price point I could find. I purchased far from home knowing that my initial savings might be blown if I had issues. (Dealer service attitudes about where you bought it are another subject)

I got exactly what I paid for. I am happy with that. I am also satisfied with the idea that I will have to chase an issue on my own dime should the need arise.

If I had big bucks, I might never have found this forum. I do enjoy it and subscribe to the theory that... "Nobody has more fun than the poor folks!"

Come on in boys, the water is fine.

[mrpep]

Ha! I agree, there's something about sleeping in a small , crammed Rv , with less comfort than home and filled with family that just feels so good.


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[Herk7769]

Originally Posted by mrpep

Ok, good point, what about leaks? Rvs have to checked for leaks at least twice a year. For what they cost one would think that these things would be more reliable .


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Back to lightweight;

Lightweight frames mean they are flexible. Flexibility means things MOVE as you go down the road. Seams need to also be flexible so they don't break open. To fix that they use a flexible sealant to cover those flexible seams. DICOR flexible lap sealant is the industry standard.

It works GREAT.

As it ages (varies by use and sun), it hardens and becomes "not flexible" and cracks or settles. Regular topping off of hardened DICOR and filling of seam gaps is required maintenance.

If you do it when the camper is new, you can Eterna-bond over fresh DICOR that will create a permanent waterproof seal.

This is NOT cheap! It will add several hundred dollars to the cost of the camper vs an 8$ tube of DICOR that will last a few years of regular roof maintenance.

Most folks elect the 8 dollar solution rather than the several hundred dollar one.

[tuckerdog1]

Understand the need to use less beefy materials to keep weight down. However, mounting cabinet hardware like that has nothing to do with materials used. That's just plain sloppy and shows zero pride in the job someone was doing. They must use a jig of some sort to be sure
all the holes are in the correct spots. And they couldn't even get it in place properly.

Tuckerdog1

[tkmi]

Demand quality and service from everyone you buy from or don't buy. I beg nowone to take my money!!!!

[john5646]

Rv's and there products are an assemblage of individual components delivering certain design objectives. Each part is made in a commercial environment where it is governed by the need to be produced economically. Hence no part can be 100% reliable. If it need to be it would be prohibitively expensive! Each part can't be inspected also in a commercial environment. The probability for a part to fail much before its intended life is more during its earlier life cycle than later. Keeping this in mind, the manufacturers offer to take the risk of replacing/repairing a sub normal part under Warranty! later on the wear and tear take over the failure of the part. There could be a grey area where a part has functioned more than what can be termed as premature failure but lower than what an average life cycle could be. In such cases the manufacturers absorb the cost of failure under GOOD WILL warranty also.
Johnny

[guitardoc64]

Originally Posted by Wobbles

Good point. I went after mine looking for what I thought were my requirements and since I have never traveled this path before I bought the rig that met my needs at the best price point I could find. I purchased far from home knowing that my initial savings might be blown if I had issues. (Dealer service attitudes about where you bought it are another subject)

I got exactly what I paid for. I am happy with that. I am also satisfied with the idea that I will have to chase an issue on my own dime should the need arise.

If I had big bucks, I might never have found this forum. I do enjoy it and subscribe to the theory that... "Nobody has more fun than the poor folks!"

Come on in boys, the water is fine.

I did the same, got mine for less and added sweat equity in doing my own repairs. I'm happy with the results so far, and I've saved probably a couple grand not paying a repair shop.

[Aspenmeadow]

Forest River is a Berkshire Hathaway company. Berkshire Hathaway is Warren Buffett. He is not the richest man in the world because his management team insists on quality. Ask a guy who crashed his car with GEICO, or the guy who have worn Justin Boots for years then finds his new ones are falling apart. We shouldn't blame Mr. Buffett; it is simply the direction American management has been headed for a long time. Unfortunately, craftsmanship is no more.

I knew that when I bought mine, but to get high quality, I would have spent at least 20% or more. I did that once with a Canadian coach and it was a fine product, but I can now live with FR level of quality in an RV.

[SuicideSaints]

Originally Posted by Herk7769

So, you want a 30 foot camper that is towable with your 1/2 ton pickup?

Then don't expect solid oak cabinets and a boxed frame or you would need an Abrahams tank to tow it.

It amazes me that folks don't understand that light weight means "not heavy duty". To make these campers light enough to tow and still have all the gingerbread that we insist on, "just good enough" is the rule and not the exception.

Over size axles, tires, and solid cabinetry add unnecessary weight where weight reduction is the goal.

Time and time again I have said this! Couple this with overloading and people are just in denial.....

Low cost and light weight means "cheaper", if you want a stout/sturdy unit that is capable of 3000 CCCs then you are going to pay for it. When you buy a lightweight entry level unit that is just what it is.

[Crabbyguy]

Originally Posted by tuckerdog1

Understand the need to use less beefy materials to keep weight down. However, mounting cabinet hardware like that has nothing to do with materials used. That's just plain sloppy and shows zero pride in the job someone was doing.

Tuckerdog1

Exactly.