Ordered a Columbus 295RL - Page 2

ByronCR · 01-02-2013, 09:04 PM

Finally got the call I have been waiting for. Saturday I am supposed to go in and do my walk through and check to make sure everything works on my new Columbus. I have been anxiously waiting for it to come in, unfortunately it came in at the end of my vacation so I will not be able to take it out for a few weeks.

Bad news is that they will not have the rail kit for the hitch that is designed specifically for my truck which requires no drilling into the frame. I also am having them install the wiring kit that requires no splicing of wires (I hate having someone else do electrical on any of my vehicles). I figure this will all work out in my favor. I figure there will probably be a couple of small items that will need attention and it will give them the time to get the items taken care of.

I have downloaded 4 different PDI checklists and plan on consolidating into one big list before saturday. I sure hope anything I find is nominal and that its all perfect

Earth Station · 01-02-2013, 10:31 PM

have fun with the PDI.... be sure to go at YOUR speed!! and try EVERYTHING!!!

ByronCR · 01-02-2013, 10:41 PM

I told the dealer (Camping World) I planned on taking anywhere from 3-4 hours to complete my PDI. They asked why so long and how I wanted to go about it. I offered to send over a PDI list ahead of time and they said there was no need and that they would work with me. I told them that they could go through their normal PDI with me. After their PDI I will go ahead and have my wife and I go over the RV inside and out and check out whatever their PDI did not cover. After I am finished I would then ask them to come back to the RV and go over my checklist of items that I have questions / concerns / items to be addressed. They said that would be fine. So we will see how it goes.

Earth Station · 01-02-2013, 10:46 PM

we were rushed by Camping World with our first TT......... take your time!

ByronCR · 01-02-2013, 10:49 PM

Thanks for the heads up. I'm definitely not going to let them rush me. Even if I sign off on the PDI, it will still have to stay at camping world till the installation kit for the rails come in on my hitch. So that will most likely give me a chance to think about anything I missed and check it again before I drive it off the lot.

TeresaInCAL · 01-02-2013, 11:15 PM

I saw on You Tube, a gal that video taped her whole walk through. Wish I had.

ByronCR · 01-02-2013, 11:33 PM

My wife and I did that with our travel trailer with our camera. I have to say it was the smartest thing we ever did. I made a DVD out of the videos so that I always had it with us in the RV along with the manuals. We used it about 1/2 a dozen times to make sure that we were doing things right and to confirm normal operation.

I already made sure that our camera along with our phones are ready to video record this PDI as well

Nothing beats watching a "instructional video" compared to reading what the manual says and trying to figure out what the manual really means.

TeresaInCAL · 01-03-2013, 01:05 AM

Good!

I've had to watch the instructional videos of others a few times...I can't seem to remember for the life of me how to put the awning out & back each year...sigh.

debarymjm · 01-03-2013, 10:19 AM

Congratulations Byron. The way it sounds you are miles ahead of most of us when it comes to taking delivery. The stars in the eyes can sometimes cause you to miss some things.

Happy to say we had the 295RL out last week-end and all went well. We really enjoy the added floor space with the two big sliders in the living area. The conflict between the TV and the kitchen island didn't prove out to be as big of a deal as I first imagined it would.

I am pulling the 295 with a 2012 F-250 gas and it works great. You hardly know it's back there when you are on a smooth road. When 18 wheelers pass, it doesn't cause near the sway as it did in my Class A. I did add a couple of Air Cells to the rear of the truck to help on rough roads and they work great.

I've had Class B, Class A and pull behind experience and I have to say the 5th Wheel takes more effort to set up. But after you are set, the added comfort makes it worth it.

Hope you enjoy your new unit and I look forward to hearing about your first trip out. MJ

ByronCR · 01-03-2013, 11:12 AM

Thanks for the info. The only reason I seem to "be ahead of the rest" is because I have been reading posts from this forum since November and have been learning a lot of little things and some big things to keep track of. I am definitely thankful for the information everyone shares and also helps build confidence when walking into situations.

I will definitely keep everyone posted on how things go and my first trip.

rosebunch · 01-03-2013, 05:02 PM

Think you will be happy Byron. We have had our 295 since September but have only had it out 1 time for about 4 days. The biggest issue we have had is trying to find a place to put our satellite receiver. With the entertainment center being in a corner position, there is no room anywhere for the receiver. The factory is working on this issue and maybe your unit will have the resolution built in. They say that they will have a fix for this in my unit by mid Jan. We also purchased from Camping World in Spokane WA. They have been very accommodating on all issues. The factory has been great also in working out my sat receiver issue.

Hope to head south in a couple of weeks. Will be giving cold weather usability of Columbus a good workout!!

Bob

gtb75 · 01-04-2013, 04:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by debarymjm

The conflict between the TV and the kitchen island didn't prove out to be as big of a deal as I first imagined it would.

Can you please elaborate more on the TV viewing issue? Is it something where only one of the recliners is obstructed, or is the TV higher than the countertop of the island? I've looked at lots of interior photos, but they don't really show me anything.

I'm looking at the Columbus 295RL as well as the Cedar Creek Silverback 29RE and this is one of the issues that has me leaning towards the Silverback more right now. I know the 320RS is the popular floor plan in the Columbus line, but I'd like to keep it under 35'.

Thank you!

goduc · 01-04-2013, 08:00 PM

I don't own a 295RL but looked at one several times at the last RV show in Portland Oregon. The thing both my wife and I noticed was that the kitchen faucet is in the line of sight when sitting in the recliner theater seats. If you sit in the left one it;s barely in the line of sight, but bothersome. I was thinking that the rear sofa could be switched with the theater seats and it would be fine. Never measured anything. Good Luck

debarymjm · 01-04-2013, 08:45 PM

I asked about switching the couch and the loveseat at the dealer and was told the weight difference for the sleeper vs the loveseat might be too much additional weight for the design of the slider. Perhaps Christopher Columbus could shed a little light on this idea for us.

The faucet is just off to the left of the line of vision but is bothersome. Luckily, my wife likes to lay on the couch and I go for the the other recliner in the loveseat. All is well! mjm

ByronCR · 01-04-2013, 10:05 PM

In the "Floorplan" of the 295RL they actually show the sleeper couch where the theater seating is.

Either way when I was sitting in the chairs at the Portland RV show, I noticed the sink, but I dont remember my view being obstructed. My wife also took video and luckily she took one sitting down on the theater seating in the chair closest to the fridge and at least for me, I don't think I'm going to notice any visibility interference unless something is sitting on the island counter..

**Christopher Columbus** · 01-05-2013, 04:34 PM

The theater seating will not fit in the rear as it is to deep The faucet should not be in the line of viewing for the t v.

ByronCR · 01-05-2013, 07:39 PM

So I did most of my PDI today. Everything went pretty smooth with trailer. I was unable to test the water systems due to them not having their hose hooked up. I have to go back next weekend to get my hitch installed due to them not having the install kit for the hitch. I will test out the water system and auto level system when I go back next week.

As far as the island obstructing the view of the TV, this is not true. I sat in both seats and reclined both of them all the way back. The island did not interfere with my view of the TV. The sink faucet did not interfere either, it was actually perfectly aligned with the side of the TV from the viewing angle I was at.

The only things that I was able to make a list for the dealer to take care of were simple cleaning, some cosmetic items and adjustments of tie down straps and closet door pins. Everything else seemed to be exactly how it should be and everything looked great. My wife and I are very pleased with the quality and how well things look. The dealer said they had already done their PDI, but I told them I wanted to do mine and they accommodated my request without issue. I arrived at 9:30am and began doing a walk through to make sure all the options we had ordered were installed and then I began examining the trailer. Around 10am one of their service guys came out to do the PDI. I walked through the PDI with him and he was very thorough. At about 11am I began my full PDI list and finished about 2pm. I made note for the dealer that I was not able to complete the water systems and hitch / landing gear inspections but will do that next time.

My wife and I are very happy so far and can't wait to schedule our first camping trip in the next few weeks so we can test everything out.

debarymjm · 01-05-2013, 07:49 PM

Sounds like you had what my friend calls a "best day ever" experience. Also, glad to hear your dealer didn't rush you through the process.

After reading your remarks about the TV viewing we have been discussing, my wife offered an explaination. We are both under 5'5" so the obstruction might be OUR problem and not that of the 295RL.

Sure hope the experience continues to be good. We'll be waiting to hear about the first trip. mjm

ByronCR · 01-05-2013, 07:59 PM

It was close to "The Best Day Ever". Was not able to bring it home which is part of the joy.

Also the dealer and I almost were not able to come to an agreement which I almost called off the whole deal. They wanted to argue the trade in value of my trailer which had already been documented and agreed on. They then proceeded to say the salesman who wrote up the order didn't itemize it out and so they didnt see the trade in on their paperwork and did not want to give me the orginally agreed upon trade in. There was a tense hour where I told them that if they didn't give the agreed upon price then the deal was off (difference of $1500 of what they wanted to give me versus what was on the agreed quote). After letting them know I had no hesitation of walking away and showing them I had a photo copy of the written agreement (Their own quote worksheet with trailer trade in) things started going smoothly again.

All I can say is that I am very happy that we own it now. I am just exhausted since I have spent all day there and am exhausted. I am sure my excitement will kick in next Saturday when it comes home

rosebunch · 01-05-2013, 09:16 PM

gtb75,
Neither my wife nor myself have an issue with viewing the TV from the recliners. We may lose a little bit of view if we slouch on the seat closest to the island. We are also fairly short people, me being 5"5", and wife is 4' 11".

Bob

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