Rockwood 8285ikws opinions

[French]

Visited Toronto rv show yesterday. Walked the entire show looking to verify that the 8280 was the best five for or needs and best match for our half ton. Here's the problem, as nice as the 8280 is the 2 lazy boy chairs that we expect will be our tv watching area in it are NOT aligned well with the tv and the new 39 inch tv does not toggle more than about 15 degrees. This was enough of a concern that we asked the reps there who had no suggestions other than " new TVs can be seen pretty well from all angles" really? for 40k I expect better!
The 8285ikws that was beside it has similar weights and cost and seemed much more open and of course the tv watching configuration was much better. So we are very interested in this model now. Unfortunately being a brand new model we worry about being unwitting FR test pilots.
Has anyone on the forum actually camped in one? Opinions, comments?
Any one on here with five experience have you some thoughts on the floor plan specs etc. thanks!

[JoeMazz]

Some things you might consider:
1st; If the position on the TV is important, do you find that the location on the 8285ikws to be too far away from the seating area? (I'm old, so that an issue).
2nd; is the refrigerator on the 8285ikws accessible when the slides are in (doesn't look like it based on the floor plan)? That's important when your on the road in-between stops.

Originally Posted by French

Visited Toronto rv show yesterday. Walked the entire show looking to verify that the 8280 was the best five for or needs and best match for our half ton. Here's the problem, as nice as the 8280 is the 2 lazy boy chairs that we expect will be our tv watching area in it are NOT aligned well with the tv and the new 39 inch tv does not toggle more than about 15 degrees. This was enough of a concern that we asked the reps there who had no suggestions other than " new TVs can be seen pretty well from all angles" really? for 40k I expect better!
The 8285ikws that was beside it has similar weights and cost and seemed much more open and of course the tv watching configuration was much better. So we are very interested in this model now. Unfortunately being a brand new model we worry about being unwitting FR test pilots.
Has anyone on the forum actually camped in one? Opinions, comments?
Any one on here with five experience have you some thoughts on the floor plan specs etc. thanks!

[WFD]

French....when I look at the new Flagstaff brochure online, they dont list the 8280 or the 8285 in their brochure...they have the 8528IKWS and the new 8528RLIKWS. Are those the right model numbers? Are we talking the Flagstaff Classic Ultra Lite's? The Flagstaff 8528IKWS is the sister to the Rockwood 8289WS, both have been around for a few years.

Would appear the 8528RLIKWS which is the new one is just slightly re-configured from the 8528IKWS to give that poor TV angle like you say and has a dinette instead of a free standing table. The 8528IKWS gives you an excellent angle for your entertainment centre with no obstructions. Gets confusing when they use the same model number and just add the "RL" into the model number to signify rear living.

Rick

[JoeMazz]

This is the new model he is referring to:
Rockwood Signature Ultra Lite Fifth Wheel by Forest River

Originally Posted by French

Visited Toronto rv show yesterday. Walked the entire show looking to verify that the 8280 was the best five for or needs and best match for our half ton. Here's the problem, as nice as the 8280 is the 2 lazy boy chairs that we expect will be our tv watching area in it are NOT aligned well with the tv and the new 39 inch tv does not toggle more than about 15 degrees. This was enough of a concern that we asked the reps there who had no suggestions other than " new TVs can be seen pretty well from all angles" really? for 40k I expect better!
The 8285ikws that was beside it has similar weights and cost and seemed much more open and of course the tv watching configuration was much better. So we are very interested in this model now. Unfortunately being a brand new model we worry about being unwitting FR test pilots.
Has anyone on the forum actually camped in one? Opinions, comments?
Any one on here with five experience have you some thoughts on the floor plan specs etc. thanks!

[WFD]

OK....sorry..when I saw the IKWS in the model number I immediately though of Flagstaff because they were using the IK in their models.

[JoeMazz]

Makes sense. If I had to guess, I'd say IK is an abbreviation for island kitchen...

Sent from my DROID RAZR HD using Forest River Forums mobile app

[French]

We did it. We have a 8285 ikws on order as of today. 10 to 12 weeks of waiting...we're told factory has a "ton of orders" as rv show season begins
Rockwoods are the best selling light weight fives in the country we were told

We did get more feedback on the 8280 and the tv. They have started putting 39 inch Toshiba's in these rigs now. The engineers at FR were concerned that these heavier TVs were too heavy for a mounting bracket that has an arm that swings out for more rotation. Therefore the tv is adjustable about 15 degrees. The prime sitting area (lazy boys) are more like 70 degrees from the tv. It's not working.....the factory reps smiled knowingly when asked about this. Engineering wins but practicality loses.

[JoeMazz]

Congratulations Sir, I'm sure you're gonna dig it.
I'm curious about the fridge though. Did they tell you if it's accessible on that model when the slides are in?
Let's see some pic of the new 5er when you get it in...

Originally Posted by French

We did it. We have a 8285 ikws on order as of today. 10 to 12 weeks of waiting...we're told factory has a "ton of orders" as rv show season begins
Rockwoods are the best selling light weight fives in the country we were told

We did get more feedback on the 8280 and the tv. They have started putting 39 inch Toshiba's in these rigs now. The engineers at FR were concerned that these heavier TVs were too heavy for a mounting bracket that has an arm that swings out for more rotation. Therefore the tv is adjustable about 15 degrees. The prime sitting area (lazy boys) are more like 70 degrees from the tv. It's not working.....the factory reps smiled knowingly when asked about this. Engineering wins but practicality loses.

[WFD]

Fridge is not accessible without opening the slide. The island blocks it...freezer may be accessible though, not 100% sure...same thing with the 8289WS. To me thats not a big deal and certainly wouldn't be a deal breaker. Takes 10 seconds to open the slide enough to access the fridge.

Rick

[Fivealive]

Originally Posted by French

Visited Toronto rv show yesterday. Walked the entire show looking to verify that the 8280 was the best five for or needs and best match for our half ton. Here's the problem, as nice as the 8280 is the 2 lazy boy chairs that we expect will be our tv watching area in it are NOT aligned well with the tv and the new 39 inch tv does not toggle more than about 15 degrees. This was enough of a concern that we asked the reps there who had no suggestions other than " new TVs can be seen pretty well from all angles" really? for 40k I expect better!
The 8285ikws that was beside it has similar weights and cost and seemed much more open and of course the tv watching configuration was much better. So we are very interested in this model now. Unfortunately being a brand new model we worry about being unwitting FR test pilots.
Has anyone on the forum actually camped in one? Opinions, comments?
Any one on here with five experience have you some thoughts on the floor plan specs etc. thanks!

Re: 8280ws lazy boy location- we switched them with the couch. We slide them to the middle for TV viewing.

[French]

The fridge is inaccessible with slide closed, as mentioned by others it is unfortunate but not a knockout by any means. Dealer emailed that a customer waited as long as 16 weeks for their ordered rig recently. They were, I assume, managing our expectations