Just received our 8299BS... fastest delivery ever!

ThruHiker · 11-18-2018, 09:51 PM

Hi all. About a month ago, we ordered a 2019 Rockwood 8299BS. We then forgot about it, figuring that we'd hear from the dealer in Feb. Maybe late Jan. Maybe March... who knew? Didn't care. Up here in NH, camping is not much on our minds right now.

Then, a week ago, we got a call from our dealer telling us that the trailer was there and that it was beautiful! Wow... holy camping cats and dogs, Batman!! They were right on both counts. We couldn't believe how fast it showed up, and it is beautiful!

We don't even have the TV yet; we are working on ordering an F350 sometime in the next couple of weeks, when we can come to an understanding with a dealer on price. That will probably not show up three weeks later.

Some pics below...

Some differences in the 2019s and the 2018s that we saw to order from. Most are cosmetic. Interior maple cabinets are very nice, but are a darker finish than last year. We liked the lighter finish, of course. They changed the style of the fold out couch/bed some, too... notice the straight lines whereas last year's were rounded. (Jacket not an option, I have a pic without it but that one wouldn't upload correctly LOL.)

We ordered with a king bed, which pretty much fills up the space but we expected that. That's OK, we'd rather have the room for sleeping. Cats and dogs will like it better too, although they only get it when we're not using it. Mostly. FWIW, it turns out with the king bed you can only open those two drawers underneath the closet hatches about halfway. No biggie, clothes are flexible.

Some other changes, less cosmetic, are visible in the pinbox and the rear cargo carrier. When we ordered, we were expecting a Reese Revolution and a large cargo shelf. Well, they changed that for 2019 as you can see. Pinbox is now a Lippert and the rear carrier is about half the size it was. Ouch. I guess having the carrier not fall off from overload is a good thing - but now bulky light stuff is out, too. The pinbox... well, I guess it's the same just different LOL. I had thought about talking to my dealer about swapping the standard Revolution for a Fifth Airborne, and only a little cash, guess that is out now. I may still do that, but I will have to pay for all of it and have an extra pinbox lying around if I do. Anybody using a Fifth Airborne? If so, is it worth it?

Finally, the control panel is pretty even though it is still just switches. Membrane switches and LEDs over them, which is cool looking. Not a touch panel or anything programmable, but it does look good I'll give them that.

Overall, we are pretty excited and happy with the unit. Build quality seems good after reviewing the interior. I did not do anything much with the systems and exterior... the dealer is keeping it for us through the winter, and we will do all that when we pick it up in the spring. Damm. I wasn't planning on getting go-itis until spring... now I want to hit the road tomorrow! Well, there is still the truck to get so that will slow us down some. In the meantime, we have lots of pics and are busy buying all the stuff we will need inside.

dblr · 11-18-2018, 11:08 PM

Looks great now spring can't get here fast enough I'm sure!!!!!!!!

valleyduo · 11-19-2018, 12:12 AM

She's a beauty for sure. Hope she brings you lots of great memories.

tomkatb · 11-19-2018, 05:16 AM

We ordered ours in November and it arrived in March. Then did the PDI and paid for it. Dealer stored it until April. Our first trip.

You need to start the outfitting process. Got shopping time.

UPS beat a path to our door. We bought 95% before we took off. Forgot fuses. Lighter. Square head Screwdriver.

Give yourself a week for a checkout trip. Hope for rain. Gives you lots of time to figure stuff out. There is lots of stuff to figure out. Making the bed takes practice! Several searches for the switch! Lots to learn.

You will have fun. An awful nice way to travel. Start out slow. We seldom leave before 9:00 or drive after 4:00.

Eat and drink well!

nomad297 · 11-19-2018, 05:29 AM

Nice!

You should plan a trip south so you can find any warranty issues now. If you wait until spring, half of your warranty period will be used up.

Bruce

2rad4u · 11-19-2018, 06:08 AM

Very nice! The control panel is very cool!

Yowman · 11-19-2018, 03:14 PM

Dang, that's beautiful! Has Rookwood gotten away from the tan exterior? I want one!

Chazman · 11-19-2018, 06:25 PM

Very nice unit! We understand, and share your excitement. We picked up our brand new 2018 Rockwood Ultra Lite 8311WS in July. We've had TT's for years, but this is our first brand new one ever. This past weekend was a very sad one for us, as we closed it up for the winter. One disadvantage to a unit with slides is, you can't really enjoy it in the winter if it's closed up, especially when it's under a cover. And lucky you, living in NH! We love NH. If it were up to me, that's where we'd be. We actually considered trying some winter camping at Danforth Bay, but unfortunately, it's not going to happen this year. Anyway, good luck with it, and if you don't have one, I would strongly suggest an EMS. Happy camping !

JohnD10 · 11-19-2018, 06:47 PM

Very sweet!

But...

Get that out of the dealers lot the minute you break in that new truck... don't leave it there!

All kinds of things can happen or come up missing while it is there...and the dealership won't be responsible for anything if it does!

As for shopping for stuff, other than the basics, I advise to wait until you start using it as then you'll discover what you really need instead of buying a bunch of stuff that you think that you will need, but find you really don't need.

ThruHiker · 11-19-2018, 07:56 PM

Thanks for all the views and good thoughts, guys!!

Quote:

Originally Posted by tomkatb

We ordered ours in November and it arrived in March. Then did the PDI and paid for it. Dealer stored it until April. Our first trip.

You need to start the outfitting process. Got shopping time.

UPS beat a path to our door. We bought 95% before we took off. Forgot fuses. Lighter. Square head Screwdriver.

Give yourself a week for a checkout trip. Hope for rain. Gives you lots of time to figure stuff out. There is lots of stuff to figure out. Making the bed takes practice! Several searches for the switch! Lots to learn.

You will have fun. An awful nice way to travel. Start out slow. We seldom leave before 9:00 or drive after 4:00.

Eat and drink well!

Yup, we have a bunch of stuff in the basket on Amazon for Friday. My wife is all over the interior, she has been buying odds and ends on sale for the last couple months. UPS knows us very well... one of our dogs loves the UPS guy for some reason too. I am sure we will have everything we need... and some things we don't... by spring. Me, I am keeping an eye on the B&W Companion hitch I want at eTrailer, and the bed cover for the F350. Hoping one or both get a discount of anything this week, since they normally never do. I am also putting together the tool kit, have a ton there since I used to have a hobby car and got rid of it this last year.

Quote:

Originally Posted by nomad297

Nice!

You should plan a trip south so you can find any warranty issues now. If you wait until spring, half of your warranty period will be used up.

Bruce

Yeah, we are deeply bummed about losing half the warranty with it sitting for the winter. We bought it "right now" because we are more worried about the potential for price increases from China for all the stuff that goes into making a camper. Even with show prices in Feb (around here) we decided to place an order and get a price this year. We just never thought it would show up so soon!

Quote:

Originally Posted by 2rad4u

Very nice! The control panel is very cool!

LOL. Yeah, it is. Like I said, really nothing much different is just on/off switches, and membranes at that. But yeah it will look nice in the dark!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yowman

Dang, that's beautiful! Has Rookwood gotten away from the tan exterior? I want one!

Funny you should notice that. We were told that the tan is now standard... because everybody wanted it... and we paid EXTRA for a white exterior instead! Go figure. But, we are getting a white truck, and figure that it will look pretty good with that. Here's hoping, anyway.

ThruHiker · 11-19-2018, 08:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chazman

Very nice unit! We understand, and share your excitement. We picked up our brand new 2018 Rockwood Ultra Lite 8311WS in July. We've had TT's for years, but this is our first brand new one ever. This past weekend was a very sad one for us, as we closed it up for the winter. One disadvantage to a unit with slides is, you can't really enjoy it in the winter if it's closed up, especially when it's under a cover. And lucky you, living in NH! We love NH. If it were up to me, that's where we'd be. We actually considered trying some winter camping at Danforth Bay, but unfortunately, it's not going to happen this year. Anyway, good luck with it, and if you don't have one, I would strongly suggest an EMS. Happy camping !

Thanks, Chaz. Congrats on your new 8311! That looks pretty nice. I am looking forward to the 5vr, but the TTs seem to have gotten a lot more in them over the years. We bought a TT back in 2000, had it until four years ago. We had been wanting the 5vr for maybe 10 years now, finally has happened which is awesome. Now, we just have to get to spring to use it.

We love NH too, LOL. I used to winter camp way back in the day. We might even do that in a year or so, the Rockwood is supposed to be cold weather capable. Although, probably not below zero. Might go through a lot of propane trying to stay warm.

So, the EMS is something that we are pondering. I have generally turned them down, ever since buying one on a used Chevy Blazer in 1988 and getting burned on it. We do have one quote for the 5vr from Wholesale Warranties, and another, put forward by the dealer, that we haven't investigated yet. It is another 3rd party that we will check out. My wife will be all over it, she does the finances and she is pretty good at it. Both are about the same - 7 years and around $3k. What's your thoughts on the extended warranties. If you got one, who is it through?

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnD10

Very sweet!

But...

Get that out of the dealers lot the minute you break in that new truck... don't leave it there!

All kinds of things can happen or come up missing while it is there...and the dealership won't be responsible for anything if it does!

As for shopping for stuff, other than the basics, I advise to wait until you start using it as then you'll discover what you really need instead of buying a bunch of stuff that you think that you will need, but find you really don't need.

Huh. Had not thought about that... but anything is possible, I guess. Thanks. Maybe I will just go visit occasionally although it is about 90 miles from the house. I really want to leave it where it is, though, until spring when we can put water in all the tanks and not have to take it out again. Plus just easier to play with everything when the temperature is above freezing...

We do have a pretty good idea what we want for it. We did a lot of camping in a popup and then TT through 2011 or 2012, then tapered off (work, life, etc.) We sold that TT in 2014 after not using it much the previous couple of years, but we are really looking forward to getting back into it.

Chazman · 11-19-2018, 10:38 PM

We never had an EMS until a good friend told me a couple of horror stories about other friends who lost refrigerators and AC units due to low voltage at campgrounds. I did a lot of research and ended up buying this one - https://parts.unitedrv.com/collections/surge-protectors/products/portable-rv-ems-with-surge-protection-50-amp

(we have two AC units and 50 amp service) but they make this one - https://parts.unitedrv.com/collectio...rge-protection
for 30 amp services.
I'm pretty handy and fix most things myself, so I didn't get any extended warranties, but that's just me.

itat · 11-19-2018, 11:28 PM

Congrats on your new 8299BS. She’s a beauty! If they put a rectangular shower in it, it’ll be my next RV. What is the weight on that white sticker on the pinbox?

ThruHiker · 11-20-2018, 08:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chazman

We never had an EMS until a good friend told me a couple of horror stories about other friends who lost refrigerators and AC units due to low voltage at campgrounds. I did a lot of research and ended up buying this one - https://parts.unitedrv.com/collections/surge-protectors/products/portable-rv-ems-with-surge-protection-50-amp

(we have two AC units and 50 amp service) but they make this one - https://parts.unitedrv.com/collectio...rge-protection
for 30 amp services.
I'm pretty handy and fix most things myself, so I didn't get any extended warranties, but that's just me.

LOL! Oh, electrical protection! Right. Somehow I read your post as extended warranty. Duh. Yes, I will be getting something to go between the pedestal and the trailer. Same for the water hookup. I am wanting to turn down the warranty, but my wife seems to be leaning towards it, so you know how that goes.

itat, the pinbox is rated for 16k. Should be fine... it was just a shock getting a Lippert not a Reeves. I'll get over it! And, as I mentioned, I am considering upgrading to a Fifth Airborne but I think I will wait on that for a while, until I see how the trailer does with what came on it.

5picker · 11-20-2018, 09:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by itat

Congrats on your new 8299BS. She’s a beauty! If they put a rectangular shower in it, it’ll be my next RV. What is the weight on that white sticker on the pinbox?

First, congrats ThruHiker on a super choice.
We have the Flagstaff sister 8529IKBS. We have really enjoyed ours.

You'll be glad you got the Lippert pin box if you are looking to possibly change it out. The Revolution mounts in a way that is proprietary to the framework mounting and is not interchangeable with other pin boxes. Everything I've read about the Lippert suggests it can be interchanged. I hope so.

We hope you enjoy yours as much as we have. Ours has been pretty much trouble free except for the Castle Rock tires.

Unfortunately, as much as the rest of the 5th wheel suits us to a tee... like itat... neither myself or the DW have ever gotten comfortable with the small radiused shower. We both thought we'd grow fond of it but we have not. So much so, we have begun our search for something else.

Enjoy! It's going to be really tough waiting for better weather.

JohnD10 · 11-20-2018, 09:42 PM

Make sure you really read the fine print on the extended warranty before you buy it.

Most are not worth the paper they are written on!

You might be better served to open a savings account and put some money in there to cover any issues.

A lot of extended warranties require specific yearly maintenance that is expensive and often isn't really needed that offsets any savings that might be had by using said warranty.

I got ripped of bad by one sold to me by the dealership for my previous TT and will NEVER EVER buy another one.

Chazman · 11-20-2018, 11:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ThruHiker

LOL! Oh, electrical protection! Right. Somehow I read your post as extended warranty. Duh. Yes, I will be getting something to go between the pedestal and the trailer. Same for the water hookup. I am wanting to turn down the warranty, but my wife seems to be leaning towards it, so you know how that goes.

itat, the pinbox is rated for 16k. Should be fine... it was just a shock getting a Lippert not a Reeves. I'll get over it! And, as I mentioned, I am considering upgrading to a Fifth Airborne but I think I will wait on that for a while, until I see how the trailer does with what came on it.

One more thing. If you do get an EMS, get a good cable lock for it too. I've read stories about them being stolen.

itat · 11-20-2018, 11:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ThruHiker

itat, the pinbox is rated for 16k. Should be fine... it was just a shock getting a Lippert not a Reeves. I'll get over it! And, as I mentioned, I am considering upgrading to a Fifth Airborne but I think I will wait on that for a while, until I see how the trailer does with what came on it.

I asked not because I’m concerned about the rating but because I’m curious what the actual, unloaded weight of the 8299BS is.