Considering a new RV

[Mike Up]

Well, I started camping when I was young in a Pop Up, then in a 17' Travel Trailer.
 
Since then I started camping again with tents, and it's a great experience when you have a weather tight tent that's right for your needs.
 
I went to a Pop Up in 2005 because I wanted more luxuries with the tent, and doing so, I was packing a lot that wasted time. With a pop up, I wouldn't have to pack as everything would be in the camper.
 
In 2006, I wanted a small TT for my Pathfinder, but around my area, small TTs are hard to come by. When available, they are expensive. I also liked the small footprint of a Pop Up for storage and tow. I did want a bathroom and a better build quality than I had in the 2005 model. I got that in my new 2007 Pop up that had an indoor and an outdoor shower, toilet, and water heater. I did give up storage and seating area which turned out to be a negative besides the leaky tenting issues.
 
I had upgraded my tow vehicle so I could tow a midsize TT. In December 2008, I found my perfect floorplan. A smaller foot print TT that had more seating with a sofa and dinette. It also had a separate freezer from the refrigerator and an oven. What was even nicer was a tub with shower surround and a toilet in a hardwall enclosed bathroom. The toilet did not need to be filled with fresh water (as my previous cassette toilet in the Pop Up) and it's hooked into the water system. This is a MAJOR benefit. Also, waste tanks, DSI and electric water heater, and no tentage made life a lot easier when I was camping in an area I planned to tour more than camp in. We camp more in the TT than hotel/tour, but it's nice to be comfortable doing both.
 
After owning a tent, pop ups, and a TT, I found what I enjoy the most. That is a TT and a tent. A TT is nice for comfortable camping and for touring an area. The tent can go where pop up "trailers" aren't allowed to in most states. I can put my tent on a river bank, on a lake shore, or out in the woods. It doesn't need to stay on a designated 'pad'.
 
Pop Ups were nice, but I had issues with them.
 
As far as trying something different, I'm right where I want to be. I have the floorplan that fits my needs best. Plenty of sitting areas where the sofa is in it's own area, in front of the TV entertainment center. The secondary sleep areas are far enough apart to be in their own area. Also my bunk can support 300 lbs so adults can use it besides just children.
 
With a weight light enough for 1/2 tons and most V8 midsize trucks, and full featured appliances, and a nice tall 6'9" ceiling, it fits us and our guests quite well.
 
We'll stick with this one for a while.
 
Have a good one.

[Old Goat]

We moved to the darkside almost three years ago and the 23' Rockwood with slide we now have is a real sweet heart. It is easy to tow and back into a site and I usually average 10 to 11 mpg on trips with mountains/flatlands. We love the walk around queen bed. It sleeps well and wife does'nt have to do any more crawling over bunks to make them up. The two door fridge is a real treat. It's gas/electric power switches automatically and the separate freezer compartment can make much more ice than we need for daily use. the happy hour and the cooler we use for side trips. Since owning this trailer we have not had to buy any ice. It's full bath is small but we have no problems with it. This trailer is easy to heat and cool and there is plenty of storage space for the two of us. When at rest stops, we like being able to use our own bathroom and having a snack or a short snooze if needed. If we should ever get another trailer it wiil be the same size and not larger. I just can't see dragging a half a house down the road thats hard to park and has lots of extra space thats filled with stuff we probably won't use....

Also, this trailer has fiberglass sides which makes it lighter and much easier to clean and maintain than the ones with aluminum siding. Something else to consider when moving to the dark side....

[Sue Hardee]

If we win the lotto or Dave starts winning all the poker games when we are camping maybe we will trade our 5th wheel in for an A class with slides.  We like all the extra comfort of our 5th wheel but the ride in the truck is not the greatest and gets sort of bouncy for me.  Just drving in and parking it has a lot of potential for me...

[CajunCamper]

After owning a tent, pop ups, and a TT, I found what I enjoy the most. That is a TT and a tent. A TT is nice for comfortable camping and for touring an area. The tent can go where pop up "trailers" aren't allowed to in most states. I can put my tent on a river bank, on a lake shore, or out in the woods. It doesn't need to stay on a designated 'pad'.
 
 

Mike Up, We enjoy taking our tent along with us as well. We love our pop up and it is plenty comfy for us. Many times we will use our pop up as a base camp. We have been known to park our pop up on a site with full hook ups and then take off hiking and set up our tent in a remote area away from the crowds. We also like to take our kayaks along when we go camping and love to paddle and set up our tent site on the banks of a bayou, river lake or even on the beaches of the Gulf of Mexico. There's a couple of state parks near us that have paddle in sites on a canoe trail and those are really nice. Cost about $1.00 per night for the permit.

[Mike Up]

Mike Up, We enjoy taking our tent along with us as well. We love our pop up and it is plenty comfy for us. Many times we will use our pop up as a base camp. We have been known to park our pop up on a site with full hook ups and then take off hiking and set up our tent in a remote area away from the crowds. We also like to take our kayaks along when we go camping and love to paddle and set up our tent site on the banks of a bayou, river lake or even on the beaches of the Gulf of Mexico. There's a couple of state parks near us that have paddle in sites on a canoe trail and those are really nice. Cost about $1.00 per night for the permit.

I'm not much of a hike/canoe tent camper. I'm mainly a car tent camper. Not that I wouldn't like it, just haven't done it. Since I enjoy camping with others, it's likely I'll never go that route. I know no one who enjoys that type of camping. Hek, I'm lucky that I have some friends who enjoy tent camping at all, as most don't. They all like the the comforts of home, when it's time to come in at night. Hek, I used to camp right out on the ground with no tent. Looking back, that may have not been the best thing to do as many critters are looking for a warm place and a warm sleeping bag on the ground would attract them.
 
What I'd like to try is one of the cot tents, but they are so expensive I'm reluctant to even start to shop for one. When I was younger I could sleep on the hard ground, not so much more. A cot does me the best as I find them the most comfortable, even over an air mattress.
 
Have a good one.

[4Campers]

If shopping today, first choice would be a high-wall popup for the additional living/storage space and ameneties that they offer.

This is exactly what the DW and I are looking at (dreaming about) now. She loves the high wall for the full galley with a bigger fridge, stove and micro. We tease each other about having a microwave while camping, I've asked several times if I can add one to our current pup. "NO" is always the answer, but she would probably use it if it's there. My only concern is towing a high wall. No more being able to look over the pup towing with the Blazer. Guess when we hit the lottery we can buy a new TV and pup.
Other than that, we love our (bought new) '94 Dutchmen 1002XS now that I've fixed the leaky roof, added a elec. fridge, HDTV antenna and other mods to make organization/storage better. The biggest reason I want to upgrade is for the hydraulic lift for the roof. Cranking up isn't as easy as it used to be.

[tplife]

I'm considering upgrading my 30 MPG Acura Integra to something with a larger hatch/trunk, like maybe my old Accord that I gave my teenage daughter.  That bit of room might get me to buy a Coleman Hot Water on Demand appliance, although with the bad reviews about its battery pack I have a lower auction price point.  Otherwise I could haul the other 1/2 of my weekend wood with just a wee bit more storage room.  We make it a practice to pack light, since our RV is an Acura Integra. We always take: Sierra Designs 6-man and 4-man tents, two tarps, 4 goose down sleeping bags, 4 ThermaRest sleeping pads, 3 Coleman lanterns with reflectors and tripod stands, 54 qt. cooler, beer, tequila, soda and food, a Kelty Binto Bar (soft 21st-century chuck box), Weber Tabletop gas grill, Coleman 2-burner propane stove, Sunshower and Nalgene portable sink, 12V Optima Marine Deep-cycle battery, 200W Kenwood Ipod-ready CD head unit in a JBL Seagm marine housing, Polk Atrium 45 waterproof speakers, 160 cds and 2 Ipods, LED flashlights, dual CitiLites LED special-effects light bars, Roll-a-Table with 3 Roll-a-Stools, three folding camp chairs, stove support with wood tabletop, extra fuel, spring water, and spare batteries as well as our clothes and about 1/2 of the firewood. In the "old days" we would have needed a pickup truck to haul all the the steel, canvas and cotton around before the advent of lightweight synthetics.
We have USGI cot at home for fun, but we'd never take a cot or an air mattress on a camping trip - I have a family, and they and I are too valuable to risk hypothermia from using a cot or air mattress on a trip in temps between 30 and 50-degrees F when most hypothermia occurs. :sombraro:

[EssTee]

I am definitely considering buying a first RV.  Both my daughters will soon be away at boarding school and I'll have some more free time.  I sail and own a boat so I'm not looking for anything large, just for weekend get-a-ways in New England.  I hike, fly fish and kayak so a pop up would work well.  After reviewing what is available, I've got a short list of 3 very different units:

1. The Opera - if this Dutch model was currently available in the US, it would be in my driveway tomorrow.

2. The Alto 1733 - A Perfect size, and sleeps up to 4.  I can also haul it with my smaller SUV as opposed to my Tahoe.  But, there are as yet no US distributors, so I'd have to go to Canada to purchase and I still have concerns about service.

3. SylvanSport GO - Ultra compact but amazingly versatile. Really only good for two, a tent with wheels, But I could comfortably haul all the toys. As a 3 season quick get-a-way camper, this really is an affordable alternative to the two choices above.

[Mike Up]

I am definitely considering buying a first RV. Both my daughters will soon be away at boarding school and I'll have some more free time. I sail and own a boat so I'm not looking for anything large, just for weekend get-a-ways in New England. I hike, fly fish and kayak so a pop up would work well. After reviewing what is available, I've got a short list of 3 very different units:
 
 
3. SylvanSport GO - Ultra compact but amazingly versatile. Really only good for two, a tent with wheels, But I could comfortably haul all the toys. As a 3 season quick get-a-way camper, this really is an affordable alternative to the two choices above.

Did you see what the Sylvan goes for?!! $6000!!!!! It also looks like a lot of work setting up and from one user, said it was a pain setting up. But he did say the setup pain was alright for it's compability with all his toys.
 
If you want the best, IMO, get a small enclosed cargo  trailer with room for toys. Add a Springbar model tent ($650), some accessories and cots or a framed air bed (for off floor sleeping). You be cheaper with more ability to do other things with the trailer. Ah yes, you'll likely be warmer to since your bed bottom isn't exposed to outside air. You'll also have a shorter setup time with a lot more room.
 
JMHO, have a good one.

[tplife]

... Add a Springbar model tent ($650), some accessories and cots or a framed air bed (for off floor sleeping). You be cheaper with more ability to do other things with the trailer. Ah yes, you'll likely be warmer to since your bed bottom isn't exposed to outside air. You'll also have a shorter setup time with a lot more room.
 
JMHO, have a good one.

You'll only be warmer in cots or a framed air bed if you have a heating system inside the unit.  Cots and air mattresses are notorius for hypothermia risks since they create a heat sink that will cool until equilibrated with the outside (cold or hot) air temperature.  Most hypothermia occurs at tyipical overnight camping weather, between 30 and 50-degrees F.  You'll be giving up body heat since the heat-sink cot or air mattress will be trying to cool itself by absorbing your heat instead of the outside air.  Definitely a risk easily avoided!  Use self-inflating sleeping pads or foam pads instead of air mattresses or cots to have a safer, more comfortable nights' sleep!  You can also get a high-end 6-man tent that weighs 50 pounds less than the outdated Springbar for  1/3 the cost off Ebay, new-in-the-box.

[Mike Up]

You'll only be warmer in cots or a framed air bed if you have a heating system inside the unit. Cots and air mattresses are notorius for hypothermia risks since they create a heat sink that will cool until equilibrated with the outside (cold or hot) air temperature. Most hypothermia occurs at tyipical overnight camping weather, between 30 and 50-degrees F. You'll be giving up body heat since the heat-sink cot or air mattress will be trying to cool itself by absorbing your heat instead of the outside air. Definitely a risk easily avoided! Use self-inflating sleeping pads or foam pads instead of air mattresses or cots to have a safer, more comfortable nights' sleep! You can also get a high-end 6-man tent that weighs 50 pounds less than the outdated Springbar for 1/3 the cost off Ebay, new-in-the-box.

Hum, I thought I was done argueing with you when I left RV.Net . Yet, here you are again.
 
I find inflatable sleeping pads cold and very very uncomfortable. You stick to sleeping on the ground, I'll stick to sleeping on my cots.
 
I would never recommend using an air mattress since it conducts the cold from the ground, right through it. Most ground mats do this as well, inflatable or foam. With insulation, some do better than others and often better than an air mattress laid directly on the cold ground, but from my experience and others I camp with, never better than a sleeping surface that's off and above the cold ground.
 
BTW, you can have the cheap synthetic plastic material tents with expensive names. I'll take a canvas tent any day over a thin polyester or nylon tent. I have better items to spend money on so I went with a cheaper polyester tent that I'll have to seam seal and repair much more often than the best tent offered today, the Springbar. If I didn't have my RV, I'd have a 10' X 14' Springbar tent carried in a small enclosed cargo trailer.
 
Most that tent camp that I converse with, all agree that Kodiak Canvas or Spring Bar are the best offered today. Unfortunately not everyone can handle the prices that these premium tents demand, or have the trunk space that they demand as well.

[tplife]

...
 
I find inflatable sleeping pads cold and very very uncomfortable. You stick to sleeping on the ground, I'll stick to sleeping on my cots.
 
I would never recommend using an air mattress since it conducts the cold from the ground, right through it. Most ground mats do this as well, inflatable or foam. With insulation, some do better than others and often better than an air mattress laid directly on the cold ground, but from my experience and others I camp with, never better than a sleeping surface that's off and above the cold ground.
 
BTW, you can have the cheap synthetic plastic material tents with expensive names. I'll take a canvas tent any day over a thin polyester or nylon tent. I have better items to spend money on so I went with a cheaper polyester tent that I'll have to seam seal and repair much more often than the best tent offered today, the Springbar. If I didn't have my RV, I'd have a 10' X 14' Springbar tent carried in a small enclosed cargo trailer.
 
Most that tent camp that I converse with, all agree that Kodiak Canvas or Spring Bar are the best offered today. Unfortunately not everyone can handle the prices that these premium tents demand, or have the trunk space that they demand as well.

Mike, if I cited the Zeroeth Law of thermodynamics, Boy Scout Manual, US Army manual, or the Holy Bible, I don't know if you'd read it or just look at the pictures!  :book:  Just busting your chops...
  My post simply offered some advice based on 41 years of camping and 31 years as a science professional.  If you are sleeping inside a heated RV this is not an issue since you're insulated from the outside air temperatures.
Cots raise you off the ground and create a cold air space below you, in the same way that any air mattress with hollow tubes will.  The hypothermia danger is the same.  A ThermaRest pad, 2" of thick foam, or thick wool or natural fiber padding will provide a barrier that will not create a heat sink and hypothermia dangers.  
I've had one pole joint repair after 23 years of constant use of my Sierra Designs Base Camp tent.  The MSRP of my tents are 30% less than the Springbar but my actual cost is less than half of that for a tent with a lifetime guarantee and a proven performer in conditions in the mountains and desert that would send other tenters to RV sales lots.  I'm sure the SpringBar is a similar performer.  Quality polyester tents do have high-denier thickness and factory sealed seams now.  It's not about the price, I have almost $1500 invested in down sleeping bags alone.  It's not about trunk space, I've owned 4-wheelers and large cars, and I could always put a rack and basket on my roof and stow it there, and lose a bit of my 30 MPG.  It's more about wasted weight, modern features, pad size, ease of set up, ability to sustain high winds and a light snow load, and resistance to mold and rotting.  I could buy such a tent, but I have a feeling that after a few seasons I'd hang it up and buy an RV.  I've simply got two or three more decades before that day comes.  :sombraro:
Mike you raise some good points in your post, and when I need to know where to buy an Atwood thermocouple or whose 50-to-30 amp converter plug is the best value, you're the man!  :theking:

[GeneF]

Enjoyed reading the wishes of so many of you.

What it really comes down to is what stage of maturity you are at.  The younger you are, the less you mind fussing with setting things up and packing up.  As the bones begin to creak a bit more, less work is wanted and more creature comforts are needed.


We started with a 1969 tent trailer with a six foot box and no amenities.  Tons of fun.  Beds were so narrow that I slept with ds and dw slept with dd.  Had a kids toy table in the middle with a coleman battery operated lantern inside and that was about it.  Tenting was the real canvas, not this vinly stuff.

Moved up to a 1990 8 foot Jayco.  Beds were still on the small side but we had a built in ice box, dinnette. stove and some cabinat space.

Went on to a 1995 Rockwood 10 footer.  AAAAHHHH, we now had a furnace and a fridge and DW and I could now sleep together again on the camping trips.  

Next came the 1998 Coleman Mesa.  Same amenities as above but more storage space, larger beds and a u-dinnette plus another dinnette.  But, the kids were now older and were not able to camp with us that much.

Next came the Kiwi 23B.  DW and I were retiring and we wanted to do some travelling but still wanted to keep the canvas.  Main reason we got the hybrid was there was no way the dw was going to crank 78 times to put the roof up.  Also at this stage of maturity, natures calls were more often in the dark of the night so the self contained bathroom was greatly appreciated.  Hybrid was great for having guests with us on occassion BUT

we then moved onto our current 30 foot tt.  Again as we matured we wanted to get out of the cold NH winters and do some snowbirding.  After snowbirding in the htt for a couple of months, we knew we wanted a bit more comfort.  So now we got the walk around queen, a larger tub, two nice swivel rockers and plenty of storage for snowbirding.

Not sure how much more we will use the tt as we are now permanently snowbirding in FL in a 55+ community.

So I think this will be our last tt and tv.  Both are only a few years old and paid for so we plan on keeping them as long "as the wife can drive."  We do have plans to head north for the summer to see the kids and relatives and hopefully to take another cross country trip next year if all goes well.

So go ahead and get the tt now and get it over with.

[jeezy]

We'd want to upgrade to this.

http://www.colerainrv.com/rv/jayco/foldingcamper/1410/Jayco_Jay_Series_1207

And that "sale pending" is ours! So there's my answer. This is the PUP we really wanted three years ago (albeit a newer model) when we bought our Rockwood, which had some roof damage and rather than wait all summer for a new roof, we traded in and ended up with this beauty. This time around the numbers worked out. Only we still have a week until we can pick it up! :mad:

Wouldn't mind looking into a Hybrid someday depending on finances, how much time we have with the kids in activities, towing capability, etc. Right now I'm not comfortable towing more than a 10 foot PUP with a Nissan Xterra, but we've already decided when it's time to trade that car in, we want something with a V8......just in case.

[Mike Up]

We'd want to upgrade to this.
 
http://www.colerainrv.com/rv/jayco/foldingcamper/1410/Jayco_Jay_Series_1207
 
And that "sale pending" is ours! So there's my answer. This is the PUP we really wanted three years ago (albeit a newer model) when we bought our Rockwood, which had some roof damage and rather than wait all summer for a new roof, we traded in and ended up with this beauty. This time around the numbers worked out. Only we still have a week until we can pick it up! :mad:
 
Wouldn't mind looking into a Hybrid someday depending on finances, how much time we have with the kids in activities, towing capability, etc. Right now I'm not comfortable towing more than a 10 foot PUP with a Nissan Xterra, but we've already decided when it's time to trade that car in, we want something with a V8......just in case.

Congrats, but the last time I looked at a Jayco 1207, it was a 12' box model.:book:
 
Have a good one.