Opinions from 2306/2504s owners, or anyone!

[Joshbdb]

Alright seasoned campers/towers, looking for opinions/advice.* Looking at purchasing either a rockwood mini 2306 or 2504s, or the flagstaff equivalents.**

I think the 2306 is great; super lite and appears to fit our needs for the most part.* The 2504s is sweet though; more space and more storage.* But...* 1100 pounds heavier and a little taller overall.* However,* it's only $1000 more than the 2306 around here.

My TV is a 2008 ram 1500, 5.7L.* I live in the mountain west so everywhere I go I deal with canyons, inclines, declines, etc.

Should I stick with the 2306, and spare the truck some strain or go with more space and storage and bite it on towing and mpg some more?* I really can't stand suckin it up the hills towing but also don't want to regret not getting the 2504s.* Can't afford to upgrade the truck too, so that's not an option unfortunately.

What do you think?* Maybe some experiences from anyone towing either of these two with a 1/2 ton? Not enough storage on the 2306?

Thanks for letting me rant, hope i got my questions and thoughts across okay. Love this forum; a lot of good info on here!

[53flattie]

As you can tell from my signature line, I have the 2306. Family of three, and we find the size to be perfect. Could we USE more space? Sure. Do we NEED more space? No. (It's kind of like asking if you need to make more money - everyone WANTS to!)

Living space is ample. Storage space is ample.

Personally, I am concerned with towing safety - almost to the point of being paranoid. I really like that the 2306 only weighs 3850#, well under the capacities of my tow vehicle. I am comforted by the fact that if my WD hitch somehow failed, or if the brake controller failed, I could still safely handle the trailer. Also, I'm in the upstate of SC and routinely camp in the north GA and western NC mountains. Granted, these aren't 9K ft mountain passes like you have out west, but they are still quite steep. And most of our mountain roads are 2-lane, and VERY curvy - so there's no way to maintain speed. Having a surplus of power is really nice.

Just my .02.


2015 Rockwood 2306
2015 Tundra CrewMax

[Skip 63]

I have a 2504s and tow it with a 2003
Silverado 1500 with the small V-8 engine. I just came back from a 6,500 trip to the west coast from Missouri. I made it just fine over the Rockies and the Sierra Nevada Mountains.

[cohuttariverrat]

I can only speak for the 2306 as well. We first looked at the 2504 and it has a roomy open feel to it but we wanted less weight in a camper. 2 adults an 2 kids we are fine with our space inside our 2306 because we mostly stay outside or out on adventures while camping. It is a bed, kitchen and shower for us and not a hang out inside unless its raining. More storage = wanting to pack more because you have the room for it. I tow it with a 5.2 dodge ram and a 4.7 toyota 4runner. I have to say that the 4runner is my go to for towing in our mountians in the east. The truck struggles more and uses more fuel. The truck does better at 65mph flat terrain though. Both seem to be good light campers for the size. Just depends on your style and expectations of camping. My brother uses a dodge 5.7 hemi for a 6500lb 26footer and has no issues towing. We both use the equalizer wd hitch as well

[Humteddy2]

I have the 2503s and my '14 Silverado 5.3L has no problem whatsoever with the weight. The extra room is worth the extra weight.

[Bobaloo]

We have a 2013 2504 and pull it with a 2015 Silverado 5.3 and we have no problems towing and love the room and storage of the TT.


Bob

[ontario_camper]

We have a 2306 and find there is more then enough storage for the four of us. The only time it can be a bit tight is when we are all getting ready in the morning to go somewhere. The slide would be nice then, however, we just take turns getting ready now. I think both are very easily pulled by a 1/2 ton. I've easily pulled our 2306 in mountain regions, but wouldn't hesitate with the 2504 either. I think you can't go wrong with either trailer.

[jking46]

The extra weight of the 2504 shouldn't be an issue for your Ram. I pull a Shamrock 23ikss with a 2013 Ram 1500 hemi. My hybrid is 500 to 700 lbs heavier than the 2504 and I have never felt I needed more power. Disclaimer....I live in Indiana where the biggest hills are usually the dormant landfills...not quite as high as Pikes Peak. But still, I don't think you would any problem towing the larger unit. Good luck with your choice.

[Semperfi24]

We love our 2504S, wouldn't change a thing about it. I would say, you are going to be ok with either trailer as far as towing, I would just recommend a WDH. So your decision at this point (just my opinion) is just your own personal preference.

[Sunnycove]

We purchased a 2015.5 2504s this last February. Since then we have traveled 7500 miles with our Ford Expedition. No problems with hills in the Georgia area. We too were torn between the 2306 and 2504s but once inside both it was a simple decision. Hands down the 2504s is a 30 footer with a 25 footprint. Also using an Equalizer WD hitch. If you are raising the question, than you should go with the 2504s with no regrets and your truck will be fine if well maintained.

[craigster_mi]

we also bought a 2015 2504S because of the extra space created by the slide and can easily sleep 6 plus plenty of storage. made a couple mods. 1. mounted "surge protector" in storage bay 2. added electric fireplace

[rkmavis]

We have a 2010 2304s Rockwood Ultralite. We love it - for non-full time camping - max time spent in one swoop was 9 nights. We know that in 5 years when we plan to go full-time we will be going to a 28-30 ft. I don't want to do the murphy bed thing every day for the rest of our on the road lives. As for TV - we started with a 2002 GMC Sierra 1500 - it did ok around the area but struggled with our trip out west and also too much man handling. Just sold it and got a 2000 Ford F250. The manhandling is a thing of the past - we'll see how she does out west next season.

[woodpile]

I was concerned about my 4.7 V8 sequoia when we went from popup to TT.
Like 53flattie, most our camping is NE GA, W NC mts AND Hunting Isl. TT weighs 4600lbs so with equip I'm about 88% tow cap. Our trip to Cherokee, NC was first mtn trip. I turned off the Overdrive and was very satisfied with towing. I do have a 4.1 axel ratio Just hope I not leading her (Toyota) to an early grave.

[PSUFan1]

We love our flagstaff 23lb (sister to the 2306). Plenty of room, but we do wish at times we had a slide just to add some additional room. I don't even notice the 23lb behind me with my f150 ecoboost and even accelerating on hills is nice. Although I'm not a fan of the u dinette plus it's on the curbside. We like the view of our campsite with our camper having the dinette on the street side. Good luck with your choice and happy camping.


2012 Ford F-150 EB Crew FX4 3.73 gears
2012 Flagstaff Micro Lite 23lb

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[zimm17]

Hello, I joined up to research the 2504s as well. After looking (and renting) 30 footers, we think we found the perfect match for us. We want the smallest footprint with a front queen, nice dinette, bunks for the two kids, and quality construction. We're going to look at one this weekend. Any other owners care to chime in on their 2504s? Would you buy it all over again if you had the choice?

We plan to mostly weekend at national forests and parks.

I'm not worried about weight, we have a F250. But overall height is important as we have a 31x12 hard canopy that is just over 10' in height to the center cross bars where the AC until clear- most TT's are taller than 10'.

Also, can anyone with a 2504 measure to the height of the top of the RV roof (not the AC?)

[Bobaloo]

Ours is 10" - 6" to the top of the AC. I can measure the unit itself when I get home if no one else chimes in.

Bob

[zimm17]

Originally Posted by Bobaloo

Ours is 10" - 6" to the top of the AC. I can measure the unit itself when I get home if no one else chimes in.

Bob

Thanks Bob. The website says 9' 9" exterior height. Maybe that's not including the A/C. I wonder if a low profile AC unit can be substituted or swapped in? Getting under that hard canopy would be a HUGE bonus for us- free storage and better weather protection. Plus it's close to my house.

[rockfordroo]

My 2503S is 10 ft to the top of the A/C.

[FrankMor]

My DW would pick the 2504s for the prep area in the kitchen. I would too. The space for a rainy day is nice too. Our MH did not have a slide (too old a 1989) so we wanted a slide to give that room also.

[Joshbdb]

Is the spacing between the bunks the same on both models? Noticed that there is a 4" width difference.