Travel Trailers

[FESTER665]

There are a few new versions of these that are pretty cool, They fold out and transform and what have you. There is an RV show coming shortly, I am sure they will be there to check out.

Oh for sure, I've looked at a few of them and they get up there in price pretty damn fast... That one I posted even has a bathroom in it, which would be nice for the times you wake up in the middle of the night and wouldnt have to go outside.

That one still has the kitchen in the back so you'd be cooking outside as well. They make one with the kitchen inside but I don't know if Id want everything on the inside like that.

 

[sickmint79]

this girl sounds legit homeless and giving advise to others who may be homeless or considering it, sleeping in a small economy car isn't where I was going with this

i think her story is out in LA and decided to live in van to save a bunch of money. i think she has some other vids on temp jobs for money but if you're cute and have personality and can rack up views on youtube you probably don't need to work all that much.

i'll probably do a video on the bullshittery around some of the digital nomad movement where some people actually say "sell your shit, move to chiang mai, figure out how to make money here" where they basically advise you ways to come out there, be clueless, blow through your savings, and spend money on them telling you how to make money on things where probably 10% of people will find success.

 

[LikeABauce302]

My parents have a travel trailer and have always had one when I was growing up. I'd say avoid pop up trailers. They get damp inside when it rains, plus many of them don't have a bathroom.

My parents just picked up a gently used 27 footer with a large slide out. Having a full bathroom and amenities in the trailer sure beats having to walk to the campground's showers. Maybe I'm just lazy though lol.

 

[TCG Member 5219]

My buddy is a sales manager at General RV in Tampa. He was an F&I guy at the one in Huntley, but he transferred to FL. Anyway, he said the margins on new ones are like 50-60%. So if you want one, I can hook you up with him and he can get you a new one for thousands off of sticker. I was looking at one that stickered at $30k. Cost was $14k on it he said. Totally crazy. Plus they host yearly RV shows where you can get all the good prices on them. Travel trailers are awesome.

 

[FESTER665]

My buddy is a sales manager at General RV in Tampa. He was an F&I guy at the one in Huntley, but he transferred to FL. Anyway, he said the margins on new ones are like 50-60%. So if you want one, I can hook you up with him and he can get you a new one for thousands off of sticker. I was looking at one that stickered at $30k. Cost was $14k on it he said. Totally crazy. Plus they host yearly RV shows where you can get all the good prices on them. Travel trailers are awesome.

Well that's what I'd call a hookup!

Going to need to get a group of people going down to pick up the trailers.

I think we found out the next TCG tour!

 

[TCG Member 5219]

Well that's what I'd call a hookup!

Going to need to get a group of people going down to pick up the trailers.

I think we found out the next TCG tour!

That would be a fun road trip. Plus I think they can ship them up here. They have the Huntley location too and he still knows the GSM over there and basically all the sales people.

 

[FESTER665]

Found [MENTION=340]Eagle[/MENTION] next purchase.

 

[Bruce Jibboo]

It would make a nice big plot of land much more than just a plot of land up north

 

[FESTER665]

That would be a fun road trip. Plus I think they can ship them up here. They have the Huntley location too and he still knows the GSM over there and basically all the sales people.

Just for total curiosity sake, next time you talk to him ask him how much for this model.... I'm curious how much they would really go for instead of me looking at a used one.

New 2017 Little Guy Worldwide TAB CS-S Max Teardrop Trailer at General RV | Wixom, MI | #147428

 

[OffshoreDrilling]

chicago boat and RV show is this weekend.

 

[TCG Member 5219]

Just for total curiosity sake, next time you talk to him ask him how much for this model.... I'm curious how much they would really go for instead of me looking at a used one.

New 2017 Little Guy Worldwide TAB CS-S Max Teardrop Trailer at General RV | Wixom, MI | #147428

I just texted him. Ill let you know what he says.

 

[FESTER665]

chicago boat and RV show is this weekend.

boat/rv show.

pretty weak for rvs though

 

[The Bluegrass Nomad]

Shoot, you get a trailer small enough to park in your driveway, you can just hit up forest preserves on weekends. Stayed in our 5th wheel camper in elgin for 1 month and had a blast doing it.

 

[Bruce Jibboo]

at Paul Wolf? That's like a 1/2 mile from me

Then just keep going south as it gets cold

 

[Primalzer]

I'll just pass along some things my parents have gone through over the years with RV's and trailers. Just like everything else, you get what you pay for. Parents decided on a new trailer, because they got a great deal...well, they had nothing but problems..AC unit went out twice in the first year, constant issues with manufacturing defects/issues (buttons that wouldn't work, stuff not fitting properly, etc.) They finally figured out why it was so cheap. Was even from a reputable brand. Luckily they sold it, barely after a year, and only lost a couple grand on the whole thing.

They've also had 3 RV's, over the years....a Class A 23' mini-winnie, a 31' Class A Bounder, and a piece of junk Class C Ford that leaked like a sieve.

Thorough inspections if used. Check as much as possible, and try to look behind the walls, or at the walls for warping from leaks. Any water stains could be signs of issues. They are generally very basic, and use crap materials to make them as light as possible to cram more stuff in.

 

[The Bluegrass Nomad]

at Paul Wolf? That's like a 1/2 mile from me

Then just keep going south as it gets cold

Yep. Also stayed at Big Rock Campground for a few weeks before moving to KY. They have really nice facilities and theres a bar 1 mile up the road

 

[Bruce Jibboo]

I know people and actually have family that bought one of these trailers and leaves it up in the dells permanently at a campground, and they literally go up there 75%+ of the summer weekends. Not something I'd be interested in, but I bet its fun.

 

[TCG Member 5219]

Just for total curiosity sake, next time you talk to him ask him how much for this model.... I'm curious how much they would really go for instead of me looking at a used one.

New 2017 Little Guy Worldwide TAB CS-S Max Teardrop Trailer at General RV | Wixom, MI | #147428

He said on these models, not much markup. The price for you would be $19,873.00. Plus TTL.

 

[OffshoreDrilling]

fuck, that's so much money for that little thing

 

[FESTER665]

fuck, that's so much money for that little thing

Exactly why I didn't get one. I saw them originally and thought they would be perfect for my SUV to pull no worries... Then I saw the prices and am out.

 

[Yaj Yak]

fuck, that's so much money for that little thing

Same sticker shock came to me when i was looking at slide in pickup campers.



30k happens pretty easy on some of those.

but, it's a different crowd i guess. these people look at 22' boats for 72k and go OH FUCK NO THINK ABOUT THE CAMPER I COULD BUY FOR THAT

 

[Yaj Yak]

havent we had this thread before?

 

[Yaj Yak]

Same sticker shock came to me when i was looking at slide in pickup campers.



30k happens pretty easy on some of those.

but, it's a different crowd i guess. these people look at 22' boats for 72k and go OH FUCK NO THINK ABOUT THE CAMPER I COULD BUY FOR THAT

$20k for a used one.

 

[Yaj Yak]

Holy fuck this thread gives me a headache. Allow me to ramble like everyone else did.

We went from tent camping with my GTP through a fuckload of stuff on up to where we are now. 2003 Excursion. Bought it stock. Now is Bulletproofed w/ studs, sct X3, and a 4" turbo back. Stock wheels with 285's (e load range.). It's loud. A little gnarly. Starting to get a touch of rust on the front and rear bumpers. But, Only has 155k. Paid off. 3 rows of seating (wife and I have two kids, and lesbihonest... Sometimes the in laws like to come along as well.). Still plenty of storage. With mods, 17-18mpg on the highway unloaded. Pulling the camper with tanks full, we average 12-13mpg.

2013 Keystone Sprinter. Bought new. 35' long ball to bumper. Bunk house, 2 slides, outdoor kitchen, two doors (one goes into main living area, one with direct access to the shitter.). 15k a/c. Dual battery setup. 3 flat screens.

I'm laughing a little bit at earlier in the thread where you posted a picture of a 23 footer. You'd outgrow that fuckin thing the first night.

We go usually 2-3 weekends a month when temps are comfortable enough outside for the kids to be out playing.

If you've got the cash to buy new and are dead set on the whole truck+camper thing, Might as well drop coin on a new 3500 Ram. A 3500 CTD would be THE SHIT if I had that much coin, but by the time you get the truck and the camper, you could have put yourself into a NICE motorhome and not have to worry about hooking up to the camper, disconnecting at the campground, getting a genset for when there is no power, reconnecting to go home, disconnecting when you get home... All the while, your kids are fucking screaming, and your wife is bitching because you are 'spending too much time dicking with the damn camper'. Blah. My entire family LOVES camping, but it's a fucking headache every time we go, and we've got it down to an art.

If you are set on a truck and camper, start cheap. If you want a new truck, get a new truck, but if you are mainly going to use it to pull a camper, there is no sense in dropping $50-60k. Find a good RV dealer, (we do all of our business with Pontiac RV) and start cheap. They are great with trade ins.

Fuck that was a lot of rambling, partly incoherent shit. Will maybe post again tomorrow and include pics of our chariot. I'm tired.

Thanks. Not much more to say really, so below are some pics of our setup currently. I pulled our smaller campers we had with our TBSS and our V10 Excursion - and there really is no comparison. I really dont plan on owning a non-diesel truck again... ever. I'm not sure I would feel comfortable with any gas truck - ecoboost or not - yanking this current camper around. It is right at 8700lb without water and without all of our stuff in there. Easily goes over 10k lbs loaded. Thats a shitload of weight to be pulling with a half-ton. No way around it.

Our progression of campers over the past 5 years:

Tent.
Popup Camper.
Popup Camper with a slide.
Older 24 Foot Jayflight - no slides.
2010 28 Foot Coachman Catalina with a single slide.
2013 Keystone Sprinter 311BHS (actual 35' ball to bumper).

You'd be doing yourself a major disservice to not at least try one out for a weekend before flapping down cash on one. Not sure how rental deals work, or if you have family friends that could let you borrow for a weekend, but I'd strongly advise you to go that route first. They are a sizable investment, and like new cars - the values drop significantly once you take the thing off of a lot. Our Sprinter was the first one we bought new - but we did that based off the fact that it will last us long enough until we want to get into a motorhome. Most places we go do have at least 30a power receptacles. If no power is available - we bought a Honda EU3000 that does the job.

The rigs. I think this was at the beginning of this season before our first trip out.

At a local dirt track for a long weekend.

In line at Chicagoland Speedway waiting to get in for the fall race last year.

Local campground.


Seriously though - the whole process to get ready to leave and then to finally be able to sit down when you get home is cumbersome. No easy way around it. Its just time consuming. But its worth every minute when you crack open the first beer and sit down to relax.

Enjoy!

Our V10 Excursion did not sag a bit - but I had swapped in V-code springs in that. The Excursion we have now does sag slightly when we are all loaded up with the camper and all of our stuff. Weight distribution hitch takes care of a lot of it. Sag is not really noticeable until I load up the back of the excursion with 150lb worth of Honda generator.

Going to do some air-helper springs in the spring I think. Just have not had time this season to do it.

havent we had this thread before?

so kinda, but i read through it, and basically [MENTION=561]shaferz[/MENTION] had the only worthwhile posts in it

so i brought those here.

 

[Bub]

is that [MENTION=561]shaferz[/MENTION] in the last pic on the golf cart?? I'm glad he's able to enjoy himself and relax after how hectic December must be for him