Rockwood/Flagstaff vs. Cougar 5th Wheel Differences?

itat · 11-19-2018, 01:46 PM

I hope to be able to upgrade to a 5th wheel in the next couple of years before retirement. I've owned 2 Rockwoods (see my signature) and feel they are good quality. I bought both used but may end up buying new for the 5er. I'm looking at Rockwood Signature 5ers (and the sister Flagstaff Classic models). I'm also looking at Cougar Half Ton 5er models since their mid-profile models are too heavy IMO for my 2016 F-250 gasser TV.

I looked at Grand Design Refection 5ers but I hate the cold and slippery covering they put on their furniture, and I've never seen a Jayco that I thought was anywhere close in quality at that price point.

I've been through several 2019 model Rockwoods and Cougars. Both have decent quality - I think the Rockwood/Flagstaff is a bit better than the Cougar but there was nothing really show stopping about the Cougar's shortfalls on the surface. They've all but eliminated the big step in the bedroom and their pass-thrus are now on par with the Rockwood/Flagstaff, if not better.

So I'm looking for some feedback on the differences between the two brands' "ultralite" fifth wheel products.

I found these recent videos of plant tours from both Rockwood and Cougar:

Rockwood

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6apZD-2k2gM

Cougar

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XAv...ature=youtu.be

I can find issues with both but for those who have done the tours, what differences can you see between the two lines?

This thread is not meant to bash either brand, but to simply provide info on the differences in construction methods and materials.

Some quick searching of Canadian dealers' websites seems to indicate that the MSRP on Rockwoods are about $10K more than similar Cougar Half Tons so there must be some things that Rockwood/Flagstaff does better to justify the extra cost. (I know the rule of thumb is to not pay more than 65% to 70% of MSRP. Assuming that holds for both brands, the negotiated Rockwood/Flagstaff price would be $6500 - $7000 more than the Cougar. I'm not wealthy - that's a significant difference.)

Fundy · 11-19-2018, 09:14 PM

We went through the same comparison this time last year, Rockwood vs Cougar and we went with a 2018 Rockwood Signature 8289WS 5th wheel.

We too had a Rockwood some years ago and had good luck with it.

We had a long wish list on what we wanted in our new unit and the Rockwood met most items on our wish list.

We were also surprised to find that the actual dealer asking prices were comparable between similar units (Cougar vs Rockwood) while the MSRP were not, we checked several dealers in both NS & NB.

Best of luck in your hunt and I'm sure you will be happy with either mfr.

As and an added note after a year with our unit we have only had some very minor issues/adjustments and the dealer/mfr have been great, check some of my other post for additional details.

itat · 11-19-2018, 10:53 PM

Thanks, Fundy. I’m glad to hear that the Rockwood dealers’ in your area had asking prices more inline with the Cougars. Hopefully I’ll find that when I’m ready to buy. If you don’t mind me asking, were they willing to get to the 65% to 70% of MSRP that is reported here on the forum about US dealers?

Fundy · 11-20-2018, 09:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by itat

Thanks, Fundy. I’m glad to hear that the Rockwood dealers’ in your area had asking prices more inline with the Cougars. Hopefully I’ll find that when I’m ready to buy. If you don’t mind me asking, were they willing to get to the 65% to 70% of MSRP that is reported here on the forum about US dealers?

Right around 72%, but I agreed to let the dealer put the trailer in the local RV show for 3 days, the price include PDI, delivery & etc. We paid the tax, provincial registration & licenses.

itat · 11-20-2018, 11:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fundy

Right around 72%, but I agreed to let the dealer put the trailer in the local RV show for 3 days, the price include PDI, delivery & etc. We paid the tax, provincial registration & licenses.

Thanks, Fundy.

RFSims · 11-20-2018, 11:35 PM

The Rock/Flagstaff roofs are foam. The Cougars are truss insulation. I have two buddies with Cougar 5ers and I have a Rockwood 2902WS TT. I believe and so do my buddies that the foam ceiling/roof is easier to heat and cool, BUT rain is MUCH,MUCH louder in the Rockwwod. Rain one can not hear in the Cougars sounds like a hail storm in the Rockwood.

itat · 11-20-2018, 11:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RFSims

The Rock/Flagstaff roofs are foam. The Cougars are truss insulation. I have two buddies with Cougar 5ers and I have a Rockwood 2902WS TT. I believe and so do my buddies that the foam ceiling/roof is easier to heat and cool, BUT rain is MUCH,MUCH louder in the Rockwwod. Rain one can not hear in the Cougars sounds like a hail storm in the Rockwood.

Thanks, RFSims. I hadn’t thought about that but I agree that a torrential downpour can be a bit loud in our current Rockwood TT. We really don’t mind it though. It kind of reminds us of our previous Roo and popup trailers.

jimla · 11-21-2018, 08:49 AM

Check the interior doors of Keystone products. We had one and I had to make a fix myself. Found the issue and Keystone sent the same door as we had. The interior had foam where the doorknob passed through. Because of that there was nothing to keep the door handle tight.

RACarvalho · 11-21-2018, 08:56 AM

We still have some years to go until retirement but our thought is moving to a 5er by then and since we already had 2 Rockwoods that performed very well, we keep investigating and keep coming down to these two: Ultralight Rockwoods vc Half ton Cougar 5ers.
I believe Cougars use Azdel in the walls... that to me would be a plus.
I love the Rockwoods suspension but I think their ultralight range of 5ers is more limited in floor plan than the cougars.
Also I have the impression that all 2019 Rockwood models are heavier than the 2018 so check that to see if the model you were looking are still withing your towing range.
Lastly, for 2019 Rockwood upgraded the water tank capacity to 60 gal, what , I believe, Cougar always had....
We tend to lean towards Rockwood because of the experience we have with them, but the Cougars are very appealing....

**Herk7769** · 11-21-2018, 09:05 AM

I am partial to Flagstaff/Rockwood.
The customer service is first rate.

TNVJONES · 11-21-2018, 01:56 PM

Following this thread as we are in the same situation and have a similar tow vehicle. We drew the same conclusion about weight of the Cougars as most were in the 12 to13k dry weight range. We have looked at plans for one Cougar Model (315RLS) that is not in the "half ton towable") but have not actually seen one yet. We spent the day at a dealership that has both lines this past weekend. I think both Cougar and the Forest River products are of similar quality. Would add that we are also looking at the Heritage Glen and Salem models as well. One factor for us is that we have a great dealer about an hour away for the Forest River products and not sure of local proximity for a Cougar dealer. I avoid the major chains and prefer to deal with local dealerships. Good hunting to you and I find the information shared to be of interest.

Fundy · 11-21-2018, 02:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TNVJONES

Following this thread as we are in the same situation and have a similar tow vehicle. We drew the same conclusion about weight of the Cougars as most were in the 12 to13k dry weight range. We have looked at plans for one Cougar Model (315RLS) that is not in the "half ton towable") but have not actually seen one yet. We spent the day at a dealership that has both lines this past weekend. I think both Cougar and the Forest River products are of similar quality. Would add that we are also looking at the Heritage Glen and Salem models as well. One factor for us is that we have a great dealer about an hour away for the Forest River products and not sure of local proximity for a Cougar dealer. I avoid the major chains and prefer to deal with local dealerships. Good hunting to you and I find the information shared to be of interest.

I agree your dealership is almost as important as the unit you select. The minor issue we had were fixed asap, friends bought a Flagstaff from another dealership different story along with the fact I don't believe any PDI was done on their unit as they had a ton of minor issues, water leaks, elec plugs not working & etc. Their unit was delivered with a group 24 battery and ours was delivered with a group 27 battery. Only small items but the all add up to make a difference.

Old Bleu · 11-21-2018, 03:12 PM

I know that you are comparing Rockwood & Cougar 5th wheels, but thought I'd mention the Cedar Creek Silverback line. I retired this year, and we decided we wanted something a bit roomier than our Rockwood 2618VS. We bought a Cedar Creek Silverback 33IK. The dry weight sticker is just under 11,500 lbs. We love it, and it tows well behind our Ram 2500, although we do have the diesel engine.

We loved our Rockwood, and the quality made us quite picky when looking for a replacement. The Cedar Creek has lived up to our expectations, and we love the added space.

itat · 11-21-2018, 05:32 PM

Thanks for the feedback everyone!

RACarvalho, I've never seen anything to indicate that the Cougars have Azdel walls. Their website just says laminated walls. It would be a plus. Azdel's website has the Rockwood logo on it and they don't use Azdel so I don't know how they can suggest they do.

Herk, I agree that Rockwood provides good service. They helped me with delaminated bed doors on a used Roo that we had. They shipped the replacement blank doors at no cost. I had to have them installed. Can't really complain about that. That's a big reason why I would buy another one (or a Flagstaff).

TNVJONES, we also walked through the Cougar 315RLS. We really liked it but IMO it would be too heavy for our F-250.

Old Bleu, I'd love to consider the Silverback 33IK but, like the Cougar 315RLS, they are a mid profile fifth wheel and IMO just too heavy for my F-250, not to mention more expensive.

I emailed Doug Fought at the Rockwood factory today and he said they don't have any plans to expand the number of floorplans with the larger 30x60 shower. The shower size is a show stopper for me. After having walked through the 8299BS we loved everything about it except the radius shower. Our current Rockwood TT has the old style "garden shower" that's very spacious. I'm hoping to find an 8290BS locally sometime in the next few months.

davetrom · 11-21-2018, 08:15 PM

I researched for 9 mths and wanted the extra room of 3 slides with quality. The rockwood was first for quality ( in my fussy opinion ). We replaced a 2466 with a mesa ridge 2910. ( highland ridge which also builds open range ). The interior is a cheaper grade finish but still o k. My main objective was decent quality but less weight. ( 2016 chevy 2500 6.0 engine /2wheel drive ) Quality in the places that matter. The 2 things I like about the rockwood are the torsion axles and the revolution hitch. I installed a sidewinder pin box on my mesa ridge and put 9500+ miles on this year and am quite happy with everything. I have quite an extensive background in mechanics and fabrication. I have many miles behind me driving almost any kind of truck/trailer/lowboy semi new and old, I want to relax as much as possible when on the road. Many people who get in rving do not understand that having a rv at the top end of the weight rating makes driving more challenging. One main concern was the roof and mesa ridge ( highland ) has a 10 year roof without any quibbling. ( my rockwood had roof problems after 3 yrs and the fix was quite expensive. The mesa ridge tows just as good as my smaller rockwood. In closing if I had a dually one ton I would go for a rockwood/flagstaff with the extra weight. And a side note having two good size pantries makes my wife happy.

gastan · 11-21-2018, 08:26 PM

Something that is a big deal for me is floor construction. Soft, spongy or sagging floors are a bear and a half to fix.

Rockwood uses 5/8" T&G plywood glued and screwed to the floor frame.

Cougar uses 5/8" Dyna Span (aka OSB or chipboard). They are proud that it is "treated" and one piece but for me, an old carpenter who has seen what OSB does when soaked, that would be a deal killer.

itat · 11-27-2018, 03:53 PM

Does anyone have a source for pricing of options on Rockwood/Flagstaff 5ers/TTs? I'd like to see the MSRP for the base unit and all possible options including mandatory options, "build" my preferred unit and take 65% to 70% of that as a basis for talking price. One website I looked at has an advertised price of $36,776 for a 8290BS with (I think) all the options we'd like except for slide toppers.

jdhoskins3 · 12-02-2018, 02:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by itat

Thanks for the feedback everyone!

RACarvalho, I've never seen anything to indicate that the Cougars have Azdel walls. Their website just says laminated walls. It would be a plus. Azdel's website has the Rockwood logo on it and they don't use Azdel so I don't know how they can suggest they do.

Herk, I agree that Rockwood provides good service. They helped me with delaminated bed doors on a used Roo that we had. They shipped the replacement blank doors at no cost. I had to have them installed. Can't really complain about that. That's a big reason why I would buy another one (or a Flagstaff).

TNVJONES, we also walked through the Cougar 315RLS. We really liked it but IMO it would be too heavy for our F-250.

Old Bleu, I'd love to consider the Silverback 33IK but, like the Cougar 315RLS, they are a mid profile fifth wheel and IMO just too heavy for my F-250, not to mention more expensive.

I emailed Doug Fought at the Rockwood factory today and he said they don't have any plans to expand the number of floorplans with the larger 30x60 shower. The shower size is a show stopper for me. After having walked through the 8299BS we loved everything about it except the radius shower. Our current Rockwood TT has the old style "garden shower" that's very spacious. I'm hoping to find an 8290BS locally sometime in the next few months.

The only Rockwood product that uses Azdel is their GeoPro line of travel trailers.

**bikendan** · 12-02-2018, 03:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jdhoskins3

The only Rockwood product that uses Azdel is their GeoPro line of travel trailers.

And the same goes for the Flagstaff twin, the E Pro.

jtatum65 · 12-03-2018, 07:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Herk7769

I am partial to Flagstaff/Rockwood.
The customer service is first rate.

Agree with Herk. I have friends who have bought Thor products and have had nothing but heads when getting warranty work done by Thor. I have had both Flagstaff and Rockwood models and they do not hesitate on warranty claims and they will still sell parts directly to the owner, no going thru dealers like Thor makes you do.

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