Educate me: 390 vs 391, Chaparral vs Sierra.

[Toddavid]

Currently have a hybrid. Was a great first camper, but the noise and temp insulation of the bunk ends is getting old.

Have an 04 GMC diesel dually TV.

Looked at FR and Jayco fifth wheels yesterday. Didn't really like any of the Jayco layouts.

Budget allows me to move up to the Chaparral or Sierra range (and I was pretty surprised at the better finishes and features you get for such little extra money vs the Hyperlite range below).

We have a 9 year old, and most of our camping is done at a seasonal location on the Chesapeake, near our marina. We do a few short trips in early spring and late fall.

Because of the kid, we're looking at bunkhouse models. Rather than a full width rear bunkhouse, which eats up too much of the common living space, I think we're narrowing to the 390 or 391 QSMB. But: what's the real difference between the two? Just the bunkhouse features?

Also considering the Sierra 372LOK or 371REBH. Would prefer free standing dinnete rather than booth seating and don't see that as an option. Headroom upstairs in the Sierra seemed a tad better (I'm 6'5"), and there was the loft bunk above the bunkhouse.

Can someone educate me on what I'm looking at in these models? Thanks!

Todd

[VizJedi]

I just went through this exact same thing a year ago. We had a conventional bunk house for 13 years. It served us well when my son was small. He's 19 now. We wanted more living space. I wanted 3 side window views from the living area, but we wanted a 2nd bedroom space for our son or friends/relatives. I saw the midbunks (Sierra actually) at the RV show 2 years ago and said "that's it!"

First, the difference between the Chaparral 390 and 391 is the midbunk layout. For 2017, they split the couch vs queen bed option into 2 different models. The cabinet to the left of the door is slightly different too. My 2016 has the fold out couch option, so is the same as a 2017 391QSMB.

I considered every brand within 500 miles that had a midbunk. I was originally going to get the Sierra 372LOK. I wanted the loft bunk above the midbunk, but I didn't care for the outside kitchen and my wife didn't like the interior on the 372. It also didn't have a lot of kitchen storage. The 371REBH was nice, but no loft and the popup TV seemed to block the view out the back.
We kept looking at a bunch of other brands each weekend. I had forgotten about Coachmen and a little dealer in central Illinois. Once they popped up on a Google search, I started looking at the Chaparrals. The dealer was only about 1 1/2 hour drive. It only took about 5 minutes in the 390 to realize this was what we wanted. It didn't have the loft bed above the midbunk like I thought I wanted, but with my son being a teen, after I thought about it, I didn't think it would get much use anyway. Certainly not by adult friends.

Here's my Pro/Con list on the Chappy vs Sierra. I'm only 5'7" so either front bedroom works for me.

Pro- Chappy- Wife liked the interior decor!, Living room layout, 2 pantries, outside slide out grill (vs the typical large door lift up kitchen towards the rear.) Price- the dealer I bought from came in quite abit below the best offer I could get on the Sierra.
Con- Chappy- Smaller fresh water tank

Pro- Sierra- Loft bed (If I had kids the age of yours, I can see this being a big plus.), hall way closet, front bedroom closet, big holding tanks.
Con- Limited kitchen storage, overall living area layout, wife didn't like the decor, price.

I've gone to 2 RV shows since we bought our 390 in January 2016. Everything I've seen reinforces that we made the right choice for us. I did see a Jayco North Point 377RLBH at the RV show this February. It was very nice and I would have seriously considered it, but our local Jayco dealer prices their units like they are gold plated and I didn't think the trailer was worth $15k more than our 390. We still love the 390 and it is perfect for us.

j

[DaveandSue]

You typed faster than me.
Well I'll take a stab at this.
The only difference I see in the two Chaparrals is the bunk room lay out.I can't see anything else in the floor plan pick.
As far as the height,the Sierra i taller,so the head room will be more.I think you may bump your head in the Chappy.
We are on our second Chaparral and we love it. Loved them both,but wanted a front living and it fit the bill just fine.You wont find a better bang for the buck in the Chaparral.IMNSHO.
The Sierra is over 13' in height so the head room will be more.

[VizJedi]

One last thing.

I don't want to talk you out of a Chaparral, but if your trailer will sit at a seasonal site most of the time, you may be interested in a residential refrigerator. You can get one in the Sierra, but not the Chaparral. It didn't matter to me. I prefer to be self contained (have a generator in the front basement) and didn't want to be dependent on a battery/inverter to keep the frig running. If my trailer stayed where it was plugged in all the time, the regular refrigerator would be handy.

j

[shorthorn]

Chaparrals has a new mid bunk layout with a loft and residential fridge... 392MBL... if they had that one a year ago I would have probably gotten over my 360... but we love our 360

[skidsareforkids]

Good luck in whatever you find. We really liked the midbunks but with three kids and full timing we just couldn't find one that worked for us. We went with a Salem Hemisphere Lite 356QB. The bunkhouse easily sleeps our three kids and two dogs.

[scootingranny]

We have a 360IBL and despite having to do some minor tweaks, we really like it. My question about the mid bunk with the loft bed area is...how hard is that bed to make up? It just looks a bit difficult but then I'm an old lady and can't reach and bend like I used to be able to. I thought it would be good for storage but then again...if loaded with tubs or storage bins, how easy is it to get to the the things in back? Just something to think about?

[Toddavid]

Great, thanks to all for the responses. We have a fold out sofa in our current Forest River hybrid, and it has a proper mattress on it (instead of inflatable air mattress). Should I assume all the fold outs in the Chaparral line up also have proper mattresses? The bunk house would be my kid's bedroom.

Shorthorn: 392MBL!!! Yes, I think that's the model for us. I got so confused at the dealer, they had dozens of models open for display, I walked through them a few times and somehow convinced myself only the Sierras had the loft bunk. I also love the island with stools on the 392MBL, in my memory I had chalked that up to a Sierra feature. Thanks for pointing that out.

From what I recall, I had an inch or so headroom upstairs in the Chaparrals, but knocked into the hallway smoke detector a few times. I assume I can just relocate that out of the way.

My boat is a Chaparral brand. People are going to be confused and think I have a thing for small fast desert birds.

[VizJedi]

Originally Posted by shorthorn

Chaparrals has a new mid bunk layout with a loft and residential fridge... 392MBL...

Wow. Look at that.

I'm with you. If that would have been out out last year, that's what I would have.

j

[shorthorn]

Originally Posted by Toddavid

Great, thanks to all for the responses. We have a fold out sofa in our current Forest River hybrid, and it has a proper mattress on it (instead of inflatable air mattress). Should I assume all the fold outs in the Chaparral line up also have proper mattresses? The bunk house would be my kid's bedroom.

Shorthorn: 392MBL!!! Yes, I think that's the model for us. I got so confused at the dealer, they had dozens of models open for display, I walked through them a few times and somehow convinced myself only the Sierras had the loft bunk. I also love the island with stools on the 392MBL, in my memory I had chalked that up to a Sierra feature. Thanks for pointing that out.

From what I recall, I had an inch or so headroom upstairs in the Chaparrals, but knocked into the hallway smoke detector a few times. I assume I can just relocate that out of the way.

My boat is a Chaparral brand. People are going to be confused and think I have a thing for small fast desert birds.

Totally understandable! The wife and I went round and round. I much prefer the kitchen layout of the 360 to the 390/391... the 392 is much Ike the 360.

[TheRowlands]

Originally Posted by VizJedi

One last thing.

I don't want to talk you out of a Chaparral, but if your trailer will sit at a seasonal site most of the time, you may be interested in a residential refrigerator. You can get one in the Sierra, but not the Chaparral. It didn't matter to me. I prefer to be self contained (have a generator in the front basement) and didn't want to be dependent on a battery/inverter to keep the frig running. If my trailer stayed where it was plugged in all the time, the regular refrigerator would be handy.

j

When we ordered ours, one of the options was a residential fridge. In fact, it was cheaper than the elec/propane fridge we chose.

[VizJedi]

Originally Posted by TheRowlands

When we ordered ours, one of the options was a residential fridge. In fact, it was cheaper than the elec/propane fridge we chose.

Interesting. I didn't remember seeing it as an option on the web site.

I bought mine off the lot and wanted a Gas/electric RV style refrigerator anyway. I probably didn't pay close enough attention.

j

[Toddavid]

Does anyone know the actual ceiling height in the master bedroom?

[TheRowlands]

It is 6'3", and about 3/4 of the way into the room it slopes downward to 5'9" at the closets.

[Toddavid]

Thanks. How about the bathroom (outside the shower)?

[TheRowlands]

Doorway is 6' and ceiling is 6'3.5"
I am 6"3' and going into the bathroom is the only time I really have to duck. It took a few hits to get used to it.

[Toddavid]

Again, thanks.

[Toddavid]

I might have to make another 3hr trip to my RV dealer to spend more time inside the Chaparrals and get a feel for the headroom upstairs.

Really liking the 392MBL layout, very logical with good kitchen storage and bunk room doorway in the hallway (instead of stealing kitchen wall space), comparing to other brand mid bunks this model nails it best. But hesitating on the headroom upstairs since I'm 6'5.

What's the deal with other brands at 13' 2" outside height? Seems to be a common dimension they share, but not Coachmen.

[TheRowlands]

Yeah, we got lucky. We couldn't find a 390qsmb locally to look at, so we ordered it sight unseen. Terrible idea, I know, but it worked out.

You will have plenty of headroom everywhere else.

Also, as from as exterior height, the 390QSMB is listed as 12'4", but our measurement while hooked to the truck is 12'10"

[Toddavid]

Interesting about the 12'10" height. Brands like Jayco with 13'2" height list bedroom ceiling at 6'8". If you say Chaparral is 6'3", that would suggest the outside height is taller than 12'4" (unless they use a shorter AC unit).