A Women's RV Forum run by Women RVer's!

Hi again everyone -- I hope this post finds you all well and happy!

After a short appearance and then a 2-month absence, I'm stopping in again, coming up for a breath from having been submersed in a huge and intensive vat of research. I've found my trailer and it just had my name on it from first sight. It's been fully prepped and spiffed, new awning, new slide topper, Seal Tech tested, new Group 27 battery (it'll do fine for the time being), new propane tanks and it even already has an electric tongue jack (yay!). It's getting a Blue Ox Sway Pro hitch put onto it, and assuming no glitches in schedules, it should be here in my driveway Tuesday.

I haven't named her yet, but she's a 26-ft. 2005 with a perfect layout for the way I live and play. Short enough to fit into a few more wooded ilk campsites but with its slider, a tad of expanded floor space. LOTS of storage for its size. I took a moisture meter, mirror, flashlight, measuring tape, camera, etc. with me when I first looked at it and while she's "like new" inside, she has two water infections that are being considered in the price I'm paying. (That moisture meter was the best $40 I ever spent, it ditzed one trailer completely.) But regarding these two infections, after I find my truck, I'm taking her to the Midwest to visit a friend I've made who's been EXTREMELY helpful in the last 6 weeks as an advisor. He works on these issues, and he will give me a "friend rate" on fixing it. I will be his assistant extra hand, arm or holder-of-tools-and-lemonade, and do whatever grunt work makes it go faster and easier. (I've nicknamed him "Professor" because he knows a ton and has for some reason taken me under his wing as a pet rock. lol.

So now the search for the truck goes into more full tilt mode. I've become partial to GMC/Chevy so am looking for a good used 2500HD 6.0 with 4.1 axle ratio, either extended or crew cab (around here, gotta add "and one that's not been used for plowing!"). I hope the truck finding angels will like me because I'm not finding used affordable truck searching to be fun, at all. Frustrating, in fact.

Have not so much as even started on the highly dreaded, overwhelming task of going through this albatross house full of STUFF to begin the ruthless purge, but among all my reading of RVing related things my daughter gave me "The Japanese Art of Tidying" which is an odd word for a philosophical and practical systematic method to get yourself over the "yeah but..." that can happen in purging "THINGS." It advocates approaching the task by category, not by room, and it makes sense to me. She suggests starting with all clothing regardless of where it lives. (First category). And ending as the last category with "Sentimental things." And has suggestions for "get over it." Some of them are actually funny, but when you think about it, make sense. (Interesting book for anyone else who might be starting to transition from being a liflelong stick/brick dweller to nomadic.

So that's my update. Again I hope everyone is well!

Congrats on finding your tt. I hope you are quickly successful in finding the appropriate truck.

sounds like a good find both the trailer and the Professor
have fun finding the truck
sheila
I realize that you aren't in the west but check out KSL ads they have a huge selection
might be worth a flight out (Salt Lake City Utah area although you will find ads from
Idaho and Wyo)

Congrats on the TT find. Sounds like a good book. I've never been a saver, but anything to help purge is a good idea.

Let me know how you like the Blue Ox. I had one and had it removed. Too dangerous. And the dealer for the new TT wanted to install one also, and I told them 'nope' keep you trailer or find something else. Blue Ox is a good brand, but it just wasn't for me.

Thanks all! I did look at a truck today that's just soooo sweet. Except it's a gas hog (2500HD with 8.1 engine, 3.73 axle, Allison trans) and though that makes it a very nice tow vehicle at 83,000 miles, it would be expensive as a town vehicle once at destinations. But it has power everything including moon roof, rides like a dream, crew cab so plenty of room and a very nice roll-up tonneau cover. Trying to agree on price (about $1,000 apart with my offer at $250 above NADA "clean retail" and him hugging onto $1,000 over "clean retail." It'll need new tires in the next year or so before any serious long term/distance towing and it needs tranny maintenance (which falls under "maintenance") but my mechanic found 3 things that the guy said he'd do, so will see if we can agree on price. I sure liked the way it rides and all its creature comforts though. A LOT!

I am SO ready to go full time! I've read several blogs from women on this site (the Mexico "prettiest city" one and a couple of others) that have great photos that make me just crave the freedom to do that all the more. The initial expense is a lot all at once, and that doesn't even touch the mifi-related stuff. But piece by piece, bit by bit, just keep pulling it together, eh?

You might look into trucks coming in off leases too. One thing to keep my n mind, the more "goodies" on a truck, the more weight gets added, the more gas to drive. A Chevy V-8 with the max trailer package should be enough for what you need.

have you considered Diesel trucks? get better mileage when towing generally
when my nephew towed my 5th wheel up when the truck broke down was amazed
at how much more the gas cost for the same distance...I didn't even give think of gas
even knowing that it cost more to repair...
sheila

Colliemom, that's true about more goodies, more weight the TV will have. But if I'm going to spend a lot of time in the truck unless it's a huge amount of gas difference, I'd call it overhead. If it's a huge amount, then that would be something else.

Snowball - nope, decided against diesel. For me, the maintenance costs and repairs exceeds the gas benefit -- I've looked into it and that seems to be the consensus I've found. Lots of controversy on that question but I think (again, just for me) I feel more at home with gas. However, where would I find fleet trucks, do you happen to know? I've wondered about that but no clue how to connect with them.

OTW wrote:Colliemom, that's true about more goodies, more weight the TV will have. But if I'm going to spend a lot of time in the truck unless it's a huge amount of gas difference, I'd call it overhead. If it's a huge amount, then that would be something else.

Snowball - nope, decided against diesel. For me, the maintenance costs and repairs exceeds the gas benefit -- I've looked into it and that seems to be the consensus I've found. Lots of controversy on that question but I think (again, just for me) I feel more at home with gas. However, where would I find fleet trucks, do you happen to know? I've wondered about that but no clue how to connect with them.

haven't a clue but as an old member used to say whenever a question would come up google it
I would think that perhaps looking on sites that have sales such as KSL (only cause I know that one) and look and see
if they have them
sheila

Thanks Sheila. Well, I finally got the trailer delivered, so it's home, parked where it works, leveled and all set. If the listing is still up when you read this, here are its pictures (ignore the price because no, I most certainly did not pay that.) http://www.coldspringsrv.com/inventory/ ... 4sr-u7937a

Meanwhile, still looking at trucks. I lost that super nice one (it got sold out from under me but it's my fault for not remembering that something can sit until I look at it, and then it seems the universe suddenly becomes aware of it and wants it, lol). Truck shopping is not for the faint hearted. At least in the northeast where winter road salts/etc. literally eat steel for breakfast and burp out rotted brake lines/fuel lines before lunch. Gaa!