Need purchase advice on an Aviator

[KenHwy61]

Interestingly, my Aviator didn't come with Tow Master tires like yours did. Mine are Power King Towmax STR tires. Don't know if they are any better but I haven't had any problems as of yet. We are heading out Thursday morning for South Dakota, Yellowstone and the Tetons. Busy loading up and getting excited!

[Abrumley]

[QUOTE=Blackhat6mike;902997]The more I see and hear about other TTs, and the more time I spend doing mods on my WF, the happier I am we bought this great unit. Yep, it had bugs as all new units do, but what you get in innovative construction materials and design far surpasses the nit-pick upfront problems.
This is my 4th RV and I couldn't be happier now that I've gone full solar with inverter. The DW is even happy.....and that is saying a lot!!! She fell in love with it on sight and like me, is still learning all the neat things it will do, not to mention it's a dream to tow, just tongue heavy. [4 x 125 amp hr batteries up front]

I ended up going a different direction and bought an I-GO. Not nearly as cool but I know it's all aluminum and vacuum bonded glass. I doubt this one will be my long term rig but it will suffice for the time being. Hopefully I will find a nice properly built WF in time.

On a side note I am going solar to help me boondock it and your write up has been hugely helpful, thank you!

[Abrumley]

Igo 280qb

[SteveEckart]

Hi All,


I'm looking to purchase one of the Aviator Wright Flyers. Does anyone know of one for sale?


Please just call.


Thank you.


Steve Eckart
in Leander, TEX
512-260-2274

[KenHwy61]

New and Used Forest River Aviator RVs for Sale - RVTrader.com

These are the only two I know of if they are still available. The Wright Flyer in Georgia is a really great deal.

[Blackhat6mike]

The only thing the three "White Coffin" Aviators have in common with the "Original" Flyers is the shape and company and nothing else.
The original WFs have 5" block styrofoam insulated walls, no wood structure, full panoramic windows up front, composite floor, fireplace, etc, etc. A list way too long to post.
If I wasn't fortunate enough to already own one, I would wait till I could find a used one [original production unit]. I've owned 4 units and none compare to this unit.
As far as buying one of the last three, I wouldn't touch them at any price. IMHO

[Blackhat6mike]

Just took a look at the Aviator Wright Flyer in Byran GA at $29,000. If I didn't already own one, I would run, not walk to get that unit. You won't see that price ever again, IMHO. It was one of the last ones made if I'm not mistaken. I bought #1919 and it was one of the last three in the country for sale. Their unit is #1923

[Abrumley]

Yea absolutely run for that!!

[KenHwy61]

At that price you could have a "his and hers". Now that's something to think about!

[KenHwy61]

Abrumley how do you like your new I GO camper? Haven't seen one in person yet.

[Blackhat6mike]

Originally Posted by KenHwy61

At that price you could have a "his and hers". Now that's something to think about!

KenHwt61 With 11 more years till retirement, you should by that one in Byran as a backup unit. lol

[KenHwy61]

Originally Posted by Blackhat6mike

KenHwt61 With 11 more years till retirement, you should by that one in Byran as a backup unit. lol

I tell you if I didn't already have a camper payment I would buy it because it is such a good deal. I went as far as calling the dealer to see if anything was wrong with it because it is priced well below any previous used WF sales. With only 35 Wright-Flyers ever built I think the value will hold quite nicely especially when time proves they are built to last.

[Abrumley]

Well it's no Aviator but I actually like it quite a lot. Being an all aluminum/composite vacuum bonded structure gives me some piece of mind as far as durability and I can factually vouch for its sturdiness. I suffered a blow out on the way home from a rail road spike and even with one side of the coach listing the door still opened flawlessly which is more that I can say for other trailers I've owned. And they are really good about warranty issues. I discovered a flawed window bent track that missed quality control as well as my PDI and upon notifying them about it they asked if I was comfortable replacing the entire window on my own which I was. The dealer is a ways away and I didn't wanna lug it up there for something so simple. They promptly sent me a huge wooden crate containing the new window and a $100 gift certificate for my trouble. On the down side it is Filon skins not true gel coated glass. But I keep it stored indoors with a healthy coat of wax for when its in use to keep oxidation at bay. I have compared it to my friends Dutchman and it seems better built but perhaps that's just opinion. Long story short it tows very well, seems well built for the money and serves my needs quite well. My only regret is not stumbling across that wright flyer for sale at $29k in time

[KenHwy61]

That's a nice looking trailer you bought and I'm glad their customer service has been good. The aluminum structure is the way to go for sure. I also prefer to do my own repairs even though It sounds like you haven't had too many issues anyway. I had lots of minor issues at first but I seem to have gotten all the bugs worked out and the trailer has been very solid ever since. I hear you about that Aviator in Georgia. I could of saved many thousands but we can't predict the future. I'm happy with what I got and my wife and I are very much looking forward to travelling around and enjoying the freedom rving and retirement bring.

[aceinspp]

Well if there where any issues on it can take it back to the Rally next year and get it fixed free. I did not read through the hole thread but I did meet a couple this year at the Rally that had one. They had some problems and FR will be taking care of it but down side they will have it the rest of the year. They said they would make it right no matter how long it takes. Just from what I was told. First I had heard of them and first pics I've seen and I think it a cool looking rig. Boy If I'd not bought a new one this year I'd take the short drive to Bryon GA and buy Later RJD

[cjearle2]

Originally Posted by Abrumley

Anyone? Pretty please? This is killing me

We are Aviator owners and truly love our Wright Flyer. I know ours are full composite. No wood. The white Aviators are not true Aviators. It was embarrassing they even put the Aviator name on it. Faux window, cheap cabinets. Ours is all composite and aluminum. With loads of foam insulation. a true all season camper, with a big picture window. (That is a wow factor) There is a wright Flyer that was on the RV trader that was reduced to 29,000.00 painted with the premium paint. It is the true Aviator. It will really be up to you if you want to buy this knock off Aviator because of the all composite body. If you are a handy man you can rebuild or remodel your unit. It was and is built with left over parts. Good Luck!

[cjearle2]

Originally Posted by SteveEckart

Hi All,


I'm looking to purchase one of the Aviator Wright Flyers. Does anyone know of one for sale?


Please just call.


Thank you.


Steve Eckart
in Leander, TEX
512-260-2274

There was three wright flyers on Rv Trader. two solid gray ones and the premium paint one in GA. For some reason the gray ones are priced pretty high. The one in GA was reduced to 29,000.00. that is a great buy. We love our wright flyer.

[cjearle2]

Originally Posted by ToyBoy

I know these units very well as my WF was up there getting service 2 times. These units were an attempt to get the costs of building these units drastically reduced. Everything was cheapened including the frame work and the axials, tires, etc. The head of FR hired his home remodeling contractor to attempt this project. He is a young guy with good ideas but the budget was killing him. I actually have some pictures of the units being built. And yes these units have a wood floor and wood structure. The only resemblance to the original Aviator was the body, and those walls and front and rear caps where leftovers from the original builds. Basically this unit is a Pilot as he use components from the pilot plant across the street.

In my opinion, find a used one and enjoy it. I have seen the way these new units were built and would say "Run Forest Run"!

The original unit was very good as I did compare it to an Airstream, as I originally was going to buy an Airstream. Today, since Thor bought Airstream, it is junk as Thor has cheapen it dramatically but they still hold the price and people buy them because it's an Airstream.

FRs problem with the unit is two fold, in my opinion, they are not set up to market higher end product, it's all about a price point with FR and marketing to the masses. Second, with a few minor floor plan changes the unit would have been more acceptable.

I think FR is a company that if a product doesn't take off the first year and make money, they dump it. Plus they started making the Aviator when the market was soft. If they would have stayed in, today they would have trouble keeping up with orders as the RV market is booming and price doesn't necessarily rule the purchase.

I throughly enjoyed my WF, and yes it had issues which FR repaired to my satisfaction with no questions asked. It was my entry into the RV world and glad I did it. I am the type of person that doesn't like "Me too" product, especially when your spending this kinda money. The last thing I want is to be assigned an RV site only to pull up and see the same unit I have in the spot next to me. With the Aviator, this is highly unlikely and if it does, that would be cool!

My unit was the 19th unit to be built and I was buyer #6.

At the time FR had a gentleman named Brian Moran running the Aviator Div and handling customer service. This gentleman was absolutely all about customer service and made it his personal goal that every Aviator owner was happy and satisfied. I must say his magic worked for me as he was the most pleasing person in this industry I have ever met. His heart was truly into making the Aviator RV fly! Unfortunately FR didn't give it time enough to really get its wings.

I wish today I had kept mine just as a collectors piece as some day it will be sought after like old Airstreams are today! Once you see one going down the road, you never forget it!


Sent from my iPhone using Forest River Forums

Brian Moran is a genius. He worked on ours at the Goshen Rally. We have the 8th one made. We truly love our Aviator. Brian has it now taking care of some issues. We have not regretted purchasing our Aviator. Brian Moran is all about customer Service and so is Susan Thornburg.

Carol Earle

[SharkGirl]

Does anyone know how many wright flyers vs Electras were built? Are there more wrights or Electras out there??

[KenHwy61]

From what I've read there where 35 of each built starting with serial number 1903 and running to 1973. I would like to contact Brian from Forest River that Carol (cjearle) met at the rally. He was in charge of Aviator service and probably can give us the history of our beloved campers.