Rookie RV'ers from Oklahoma

JimGwen · 02-19-2017, 09:45 AM

Hi all. My name is Jim, and my wife is Gwen. We live near Tulsa, OK. We will be retiring soon, and will be buying a travel trailer. It is just the two of us, so we're OK with something smaller, like the R-Pod (which we sometimes call the iPod). Maybe the 179 model. But we also went into a Surveyor model (the 200 MBL) over the weekend, and really like it too. But also wonder how the 201 RBS compares. If anyone has any ideas or suggestions, we're all ears. (I'm also retired military - US Army).

Wiscampsin · 02-19-2017, 09:53 AM

Welcome from Wisconsin and good luck in your search for your TT.

BandJCarm · 02-19-2017, 09:54 AM

Thank you for your service........and welcome from 4 hours east of you.

Buy small now, buy big later!!

Just kidding........but boy, that seems to be what we all do!

geeman53 · 02-19-2017, 12:00 PM

Welcome from SW Ohio , good luck in your TT quest !

crunchman12001 · 02-19-2017, 12:20 PM

Welcome to the forum from Chagrin Falls, Ohio.

Ford Idaho · 02-19-2017, 12:29 PM

Thank you and your family for your service and a big welcome from SW Idaho.

JimGwen · 02-20-2017, 11:03 AM

Thanks, we used to live in Idaho, when I was stationed at Mountain Home AFB.
Jim

rockfordroo · 02-20-2017, 11:23 AM

Suggest you head over to the OK City RV show March 16-17 and walk through as many units as you can. You'll soon figure out what you think you like.

48th Annual RV Super Show

Not to be the "weight police," but you don't say what your going to be pulling it with. Here's some pointers:

1. Determine the tow rating of your tow vehicle (TV). It should be in your owners manual.

2. Ignore dry weights, they're just a sales ploy. On the left front of the TT there will be a sticker with the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) on it. Use that. You want the GVWR to be less than your tow vehicle's tow rating.

3. Open the drivers door of your TV and look at the payload number on the sticker on the door jamb. The tongue weight of your trailer, plus everything you put in the TV (except the driver) must total up to less than the payload number. Again, ignore dry tongue weights (they don't include a battery, propane on older units, or anything you put in the trailer). Use 15% of the GVWR. Note that you will usually exceed your TV's payload rating before you exceed the tow rating.

4. Most people want to have 20% or so margin on these numbers, but others exceed them and don't seem to care. Do what you feel is safe.

SailorSam20500 · 02-20-2017, 12:24 PM

Welcome to the forum and thanks for helping keep our great nation safe!.

A musing on getting your trailer. We were in the same spot last year. We agreed we wanted a trailer, the DW wanted something as small as possible but we agreed that it needed to be big enough to be comfortable for days when we had to stay inside. Saw a lot of posts about trailer size itch - seemed like a lot of folks traded up in size after a year or two. We agreed that 30+ lenghts were too big and under 25 too small. Then we tried a lot of the chairs, sofas, dinettes that were available. Decided we were more comfortable with conventional table and chairs and could do without the bit of storage that dinettes provide. Also decided we really didn't like any of the sofas, HABs, theater seat options that were available. So when we got down to haggling, we got our dealer to pull the HAB that was in the trailer for credit and bought a couple of recliners from La-Z-Boy.
DW left the more "technical" issues to me. I wanted to have as much control over tongue weight as I could get, so pushed for the front/center kitchen styles - putting the bed in back allows for more storage behind the axle, so if need be, I can put heavier stuff back there to control weight balance.
Finally, we had originally looked at 5vers, primarily based on advice that they were significantly more stable and experienced little to no sway issues. Not sure how I ran into them, but saw posts on the Hensley and ProPride hitches stating that they eliminated sway (not controlled it). Did a lot of research on them and sway in general. Saw a lot of posts that seemed to say, if you get more than a 25 foot trailer, you need a 3/4 or 1 ton truck - go big or go home. Saw a lot of posts from folks with the larger trailers and conventional ball mount hitches who said to make their 1/2 ton rig more stable, they immediately replaced OEM P tires with LTs, added sway bars, air bags, new shocks, etc. to their truck. Many seemed to indicate that even after fiddling with the setup, they never completely got rid of sway. I saw a good number of posts from people who had the new design hitches saying that, if within TV specs (cargo capacity, GAWR, GCWR, etc), trailers into the 30 foot range could be safely towed by a half ton. So I decided to spend the extra $ on a PP hitch and stay in the 1/2 ton truck. I'm not looking back. My stock Platinum F150 has pulled my trailer up and down X-ways wet and dry, being passed by every style semi, and on the X-way with 30+ mph crosswinds. Zero sway, no tail wagging the dog. Truck handles the same in these conditions with or without the trailer, though acceleration is obviously slower. I consider it money well spent.
Good luck, best wishes, and

.

JimGwen · 02-20-2017, 04:43 PM

Wow. Thanks so much. And lots of new acronyms to learn (I was in the military and we lived on them - ha). This is so helpful. I'm doing a lot of research, and it is so good to hear from people actually doing this than just the dealers. Happy trails.
Jim & Gwen

Otegoans · 02-20-2017, 04:45 PM

Welcome to the forum from upstate NY. Let me say that rockfordroo and SailorSam20500 have given you great advice. I want to pass along the best advice ever given to me, buy your second RV first, take the time, research the options, and come up with a must have list based on your projected use. Then hit the shows, the local dealers and RV trader for what you want. Happy Hunting and God Bless

bpadamson · 02-20-2017, 05:03 PM

Thanks for your service, we are a military family as well. Welcome to the world of RVing and to the forum. The info given above is all rock solid, and what we learned when we started the search 3 years ago.
Since I am a truck guy we had the F250 and added a toy hauler. Our kids like our rig; but all went with something smaller or a tent-- so there are many possibilities.

Enjoy!

Iwannacamp · 02-20-2017, 05:14 PM

If you have the opportunity to rent something kinda close for a weekend... it might save you some money later. You could go ahead and buy your WD hitch and you will have it when you do make your decision later. I personally don't want one that small...but that's just me. I require extra crap when I go out.

You are in the hard part of the journey, but it is also the fun one. Good luck with your search.

debit · 02-20-2017, 05:25 PM

The advice on weights and Tow Veh is so very important. We have been TT owners for 42 years, so we do have some experience, including trips to Alaska.
I have a Ram2500 diesel, 6 speed manual so I was not as concerned about weights for what we wanted to buy. You might be money ahead to buy larger now (TT and TV), if the smaller size proves to be too small. We like the less than 30' TT.

I wanted a TT with 15" tires, based on my prior experiences with 14" (I converted the 14" to 15" on another TT and this proved to be a perfect idea). I also wanted an aluminum frame TT. The DW wanted a walk around bed, and when we saw the open space of the Surveyor 251RKS (see picture) we bought it last June.

------------------
Ram 2500 diesel, 6 speed manual, 8 foot bed, regular cab
2016 Surveyor 251RKS

lorocon158 · 02-20-2017, 07:01 PM

Jim, we started off in the spring of 2015 with an RPod 178, came back and upgraded to a Starcraft 21FBS. In April 2016 upgraded to a Flagstaff

lorocon158 · 02-20-2017, 07:13 PM

27RLWS. We are thrilled with the current TT. We love RV camping & the travel adventures which average over 8,000 miles each year. We have 2 large dogs, my wife & I. If you can visualize living in the trailer that presumably you will spend a lot of time in. I did a lot of sailing prior to retiring and a 35ft sloop was fine at the start of a 2 week cruise and by the end of the second week the length seemed to be 18ft. Look at the bathroom space and realize that you maybe forced to have a treble S in same space. Choose wisely & good luck

HyperCamp · 02-20-2017, 07:52 PM

Welcome from N Texas!

JLud · 02-21-2017, 04:02 AM

I'm going to throw out the idea of a motorhome. Why? Having had both, the MH is quite a bit less work which leads to it being more enjoyable and you using it more. You can be completely self contained...easy stay over at Walmart or Cabelas when on trips.

As you mentioned retiring, less work might be good and more travel is probably in the future. I could be off, but something to consider. MH makes the trip part much more fun.

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