Forest River Coachmen

masarost · 04-28-2012, 11:05 AM

I have just purchased a Coachmen 17rbx. Coachmen is owned now by Forest River.

I am wondering if anyone else in this forum has a coachmen 17 rbx and how they like it. I hope I made the right choice

TURBS · 04-28-2012, 11:17 AM

Not very many that I have seen but Im sure there will be more !

showtime0022 · 04-28-2012, 11:22 AM

Congrats!!! Alot of friendly and helpful people in this forum.

masarost · 04-28-2012, 11:34 AM

I cant wait to take delivery and start using it. I hope there are other people here that have coachmen, either the same model I have 17rbx or 151rbx, 16rbx or 17rex.

**bikendan** · 04-28-2012, 12:02 PM

this is a new line for Coachmen and not many of them out there.
you can check out the Expandable/Hybrid section here at FRF, for help with your hybrid.
but we don't have a Coachmen hybrid section, since they are new.

masarost · 04-28-2012, 12:20 PM

So how does one get a Coachmen section put in the Forest River Forums?

TURBS · 04-28-2012, 01:08 PM

pm any moderator

pbrackney · 04-28-2012, 01:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by masarost

So how does one get a Coachmen section put in the Forest River Forums?

They do have one. Go to the travel trailer and 5th wheel section and you will see the coachmen forum

mhartzel · 05-02-2012, 11:35 AM

I took delivery of a 2012 Apex 151RBX in February. I haven't camped in it yet. So far we like it

masarost · 05-15-2012, 02:26 PM

Cool.

Let me know how it goes.

I am just trying to learn everything on the trailer. I had a tent trailer and not so many things on it.

We go out for a test run this weekend.

mickif3 · 06-02-2012, 12:42 PM

Hi, we just bought a new 2011 Coachman Apex 17REX. We haven't camped in it yet, but it's a beautiful camper. The sides fold down; one end is what they call a master suite ( you can actually stand up in it), and the other end has two steps up into a queen sleeping area. Both have queen air mattresses included. Really looking forward to using it when the weather cooperates. Do you have the same model?

masarost · 06-04-2012, 08:14 AM

I have a 17RBX which is a bit different than yours but very similar.

We had the test run locally during our first long holiday weekend (May 24).

Went well for sure, but different compared to tent trailer. Back to front levelling is fine, however side to side leveling I was not prepared for but will be next time.

Everything worked just fine. However, power cord too short. I have since made an extension cord for the 30A so we should be fine next time so when it gets hot we will be able to run air con.

mhartzel · 06-22-2012, 01:47 PM

My first trip out in my 151RBX was over Father's Day weekend at the NASCAR races at Michigan International Speedway.

Everything worked well for our trip. The water system ran flawlessly. I was concerned that something may have broken as my trailer was never fully winterized. Shocking as the final factory inspection was December 1, 2011 and I took delivery February 4. Dealer told me it had already been winterized so I left it as is.

Ran the fridge on propane from Thursday until Saturday due to no electric at the site and the generator I brought along broke. FYI 2200 Watts is nowhere near enough. The trouble started when I bumped the fan switch to A/C and blew the circuit on the generator. It would then only produce 64VAC. My camping neighbor was generous enough to allow me to hook up to his generator to recharge my battery. I tested the A/C while on his gen and everything worked normally.

The mattresses could use a little extra thickness but they were a vast improvement over my 1995 Coleman Royale PUP.

Having my own toilet was a great addition as well. The inaugural "first dump" of the system went very easily as I had done plenty of reading here. Nothing to fear, just take your time and do it right, or you'll have a lot bigger mess to clean up.

I'm starting to pack for my second trip to Algonac State Park from June 29 to July 5. At least I'll have 30Amp electric there so I won't need to worry about a generator.

So far 5 of 5 star rating.

DaveB · 07-01-2012, 01:28 PM

Just picked up my coachman 19sqx, currently in the backyard getting everything together. So far the only issue is some corner molding on the wall near the bathroom buckled. Am think its from shift and flexing on the drive back from the dealer. Nothing a bit of wood glue and a few brads cant handle.

mhartzel · 08-08-2012, 02:22 PM

Has anyone else with an Apex had a problem with the door not closing properly?

During our PDI we noted that the door was hard to latch and we feared that at some point we'd rip the inner handle off the door.

After my trip to Algonac a few weeks ago, we discovered that the door was bowed outward. I took my 151RBX back to the dealer to have them check the door and a window that wouldn't open. Seems the door is warped and has to be replaced (2-3 week wait). The window over the sink is also in need of replacement.

coachmen916 · 08-13-2012, 07:23 PM

Hi. I just took my 16RBX out for a second trip. We are having problems getting the water heater working. This is what we did:

1st Trip: Was a full-hookup site. ran water thru the pipes... turned the "water heater" switch to on. However no hot water.

Spoke to the dealer - he said that when hooked up to the 30Amp line, I need to switch the electric heater element to "on" at the outside access door.

2nd Trip: I did what the dealer recommended. Water was run thru the pipes before I tried any of this. Infact, I didn't flip the switch on for an hour after we had hooked up.

Still no hot water. We are told the hot should be piping! But its as warm as the cold water.

Any suggestions for this new camper would be appreciated.

Thanks!

**Herk7769** · 08-13-2012, 08:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by coachmen916

Hi. I just took my 16RBX out for a second trip. We are having problems getting the water heater working. This is what we did:

1st Trip: Was a full-hookup site. ran water thru the pipes... turned the "water heater" switch to on. However no hot water.

Spoke to the dealer - he said that when hooked up to the 30Amp line, I need to switch the electric heater element to "on" at the outside access door.

2nd Trip: I did what the dealer recommended. Water was run thru the pipes before I tried any of this. Infact, I didn't flip the switch on for an hour after we had hooked up.

Still no hot water. We are told the hot should be piping! But its as warm as the cold water.

Any suggestions for this new camper would be appreciated.

Thanks!

My guess is your bypass valves are still configured for bypass instead of use. The water in the heater "may" be hot or you burned out the element running a water heater that is empty on AC.

Easy to check. Go outside and open the pressure relief valve. If water comes out under pressure, the cross feed valves are open. If nothing happens, you can that your dealer for destroying your water heater's element with his crappy advice.

Turning on the hot water TAP won't prove anything because the bypass valves bypass the heater and send cold water right to the tap.

Your set up MIGHT look like this. It might also be a 1 valve bypass or a 2 valve bypass. THIS system is set up for use. The input and output valves are open (in line) and the bypass valve is closed (cross wise). Your valves (assuming you have 3), are most likely in bypass (the in and outs closed and the bypass open.

mhartzel · 08-14-2012, 06:47 AM

Here's a (poor) picture of the back of the water heater in my 151RBX. I can grab a better picture this afternoon if needed.

In this picture it was set for bypass mode as noted by the input (white line) and output (red line) valvels are shut.

coachmen916 · 08-14-2012, 01:04 PM

Thanks for the quick reply and good info. I will take a peek and let you know.

Much appreciated.

coachmen916 · 09-06-2012, 06:40 PM

I found the the by-pass valve (thanks guys), and took a pic. The attached is what my valves looked like. So, am I right in saying they were left incorrectly by the dealer?

Thanks

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