Your opinion on a few rigs, please!

[carold]

I have the same flooring as "one step ahead" Sharon, but in a lighter color. Think there's a picture in the rigs section. Admit it, Sharon, you loved mine so much you had to be a copycat carold

[sharon]

I have the same flooring as "one step ahead" Sharon, but in a lighter color. Think there's a picture in the rigs section. Admit it, Sharon, you loved mine so much you had to be a copycat carold

Ummmm....actually, it was a case of the BF's dogs aren't real housebroken, even tho he thinks they're perfect. So it was a case of strangle his dogs, shoot the BF or tear my hair out every time we used my rv instead of his. Plus I go to Glamis Sand Dunes all winter...sand up the wahoo. But I do love your floor!! That's one of the fun things at the GTG's, touring the rigs to see what all we've done to make them work for us.

Emily, there's a thread in rigs "Hopes Mods". More pictures there. New tv, new chair, etc.

Colleen, I have a 1/2 box of the flooring in the garage, I'll go out later and get the name for you if you're interested.

[longdog2]

Sharon, I would be interested. Like to know if it is the same thing. I like yours in the picture better.

[oregonrambler1]

As far as Class A's, I just find them way too intimidating. I don't think I'd ever feel comfortable driving one. I am sure they have great storage, but I am not sure I'd feel safe not having anything in front of me at the wheel. I'm sure you get used to it...but for a first-time RVer, I don't know! Anyone start with a Class A?

Emily, I started with a Cls A, 36ft Pinnacle and never had a problem learning. My driving experience may be different from others, my dad never let us girls back down from driving anything we needed too, even insisted that we all learn to drive a stick before ever driving an automatic. Really all you need to do is remember how big you are, be aware of your road surroundings, don't compete with anything larger (or smaller for that matter), know your pivot point forward and back and practice. Personally I love the driver seat height in a Cls A. I feel it gives me an advantage driving the freeways and highways because I can see over the cars in front of me and I feel it gives me the advantage of knowing what is way ahead, like brakelights! We currently have a 30' Cls A Holiday Rambler with 2 slides, tons of storage and a chassis that can handle more weight than a comparable Cls C.

What we like: our two slides are the headboard of the queen rear bed and the dinette/couch section. We didn't want the slides to have any water or propane hoses so stayed away from kitchen slides. We also didn't want the refrigerator to slide. Also the slides are electric and work off the coach batteries, no hydraulics. There is a safety feature where I cannot start the engine if the slide is out, even a little. We have two 6V sealed coach batteries which provide more power than two 12V batteries for boondocking. I personally like the Ford chassis, probably because we've owned many ford products over the years so I'm most familiar with the ford dash. The connections for water / sewer / electric hookup are very conveniently located, especially the sewer. It's in a cubby and not under the rig so I don't have to contort my body to reach anything. We have a microwave / convection combo oven which satisfies the need for a conventional oven. I'm just now learning to bake in convection mode.

What we don't like: when we pull off for a few zzzz's at a rest stop or parking lot one of us has to climb over the other to get to bed because when the slide is in, it's all the way in. There's no room to go around the foot of the bed (minor inconvenience). A couple times we did extend the bed just enough to get around and looking outside the slide was extended all of about 5 inches. Also with the dinette/couch slide in for travel it leaves a very small space to get to the back. We have to sidle sideways but again, we're not big folk so it's a minor convenience. We can still reach the bathroom, bedroom and have plenty of room to make lunch.

so, don't fear looking at Cls A RV's, it's a short curve to learn to drive one and you might be pleasantly surprised. Happy RV hunting.

oh.. my last 2 cents. As you hunt, keep a log and even digital pictures of what you like and what you don't. If you go to RV shows definately bring a camera and log. Ask tons of questions and don't believe everything salespersons tell you. As with anything the more you know the less you'll be fooled.

[TarheelBornGal]

Paulette & Mary -- Thanks for sharing your opinion on Class A rigs -- we probably shouldn't totally rule one out and will try to keep an open mind. They are snazzy, that's for sure. My husband is fine with driving one; it's just me who's a bit of a scaredy cat. I've always had small cars, so they just seem HUGE. Then again, when I had to, I drove my husband's F150 truck with no issues, so I suppose I could learn to drive a big rig too.

However, I did read on another forum about a Class C rig that might just work for us -- if we can find one. They're no longer made, so we would be limited to the few we can find on the used market. The Bigfoot 29G. The "G" stands for "garage", and it's a huge one. Looks like it would fit all four of our bikes with ease, thus solving that problem. That leaves the cab-over bed for our take apart kayak pieces. Here's a review of this unit with a great photo of the garage storage area:

http://www.rvguide.com/manufacturer/other/2005-bigfoot-3000series-review-1240.html

So, I'm scouring the web now for units for sale -- most seem to be out west so far. Since we're in Belize for the foreseeable future (until our condo sells), I'll have to re-scour later, of course, but it is fun to look and dream while we are here!

Thanks!
Emily

[TarheelBornGal]

Just a follow-up: I found a small Class A that might work for us -- it is actually billed as an A/C Hybrid since it has an electronic cab-over bed that can be retracted. http://acemotorhome.com/floorplans.php It's got the "mega-storage" in back that we would need for our bikes and a lot of other nice features. It's a newer model, so there are plenty of them around in North Carolina we could have a look at once we get back to the US to see if it would work for us.

Emily

[TarheelBornGal]

Emily, there's a thread in rigs "Hopes Mods". More pictures there. New tv, new chair, etc.

Thanks, Sharon! Will go take a look.

Emily

[sharon]

Wow! Love that ace rv! Finally found in there that Thor makes it....good brand. Only a couple of things I would get the option on...get the Onan generator instead of the generac, they're a piece of crap. Had one, son had one and we both got rid of them. Noisy, rattle and bang and spent more time in the shop being worked on than being used. Get the roof ladder, think it's an option on the model you want. I was surprised it only held 50 gal of water, tho and only had 1 aux battery...think there was also an option for a 2nd battery..get it. And oh yeah, the leveling jacks, those are really great to have. KA-CHING!! We do so love to spend someone else's money!!

[Birdie]

Nearly bought one of those ACE rigs this past January. It doesn't have any storage on the inside to speak of. I solo, Emily, and full-time. There was two small shirt closets in the bedroom, a couple of small night drawers, and about 4 or 5 inches under the bed. Not enough for me to have season clothing or any transition clothing either. You are right that there is mega storage outside. But when you have to store your clothing outside....it doesn't work. Check the figures on the rigs that you look at for the interior and exterior storage capacity. Keep in mind the overall CCC (cargo carrying capacity). All class A's are not alike storage wise. My class A doesn't have mega storage outside, but it does inside. I carry my inflatable kayak in the car. Everything else works well in the bins but the bins aren't that large. I have 3 slides. The year earlier model has 2 slides and that might have more storage room outside too. If you tow, you have extra storage space in the car as long as your tongue weight doesn't go over the specified amount. Take your time....I looked over a year before I finally picked Suite Pea. And I nearly got the ACE 29' instead of the Vista 30T. That would have been a big mistake....no comparison on the quality and interior space.

Sharon, you beat me on the post. The cost to get the levelers, the 2nd battery, a power inverter, ladder, spare tire, and they wouldn't do the Onan generator...that cost brought it up close to the Winnebago. My research showed the Winnebago was a better quality made rig than the Thor. Each rig can be a piece of crap no matter the manufacturerer. My Winnebago has the double pane windows, MCD day and night auto roll up shades and the sofa that has an air bed, TV in LR and BR. Doesn't have the cute pet water/food tray or the sliding pantry. Everyone has to evaluate each item and check the must haves and the wants and the deal breakers. Those items you listed were deal breakers for me. I called and canceled my order after reviewing the extra cost involved.

This is my opinion and I have been driving Suite Pea since the end of January. Currently headed to Alaska driving her and towing Herbie, The HHR.

[TarheelBornGal]

Hi Nancy,

Your Vista is gorgeous; however, I looked at them and don't think they'd have the exterior storage we need. We do not want to tow. We want to be able to back into spots at state parks, and being first-time RVers, we don't feel comfortable with the extra length or complexity of adding a toad, initially, anyway. Plus since we are avid cyclists, we think we could get by without one. We don't currently own a car and travel by bikes alone now, and people are amazed what we manage to haul. (We live on an island in Belize at the moment but are moving back to the States once our condo sells.) We plan to take four bikes along (2 road, 2 mountain), and a take-apart kayak (can be made into a single or tandem), so exterior storage is probably our #1 requirement. I looked at toyhaulers, but those are really overkill for what we'll be hauling, and you give up so much in the interior since we want to be 30' or less to get into the more restrictive campsites. We don't want to have to use a sofabed to sleep in every night.

I am sorry to hear that the ACE is lacking in certain areas, but after being the (previous) owner of a 30' sailboat, I know the same must be true in the RV world -- there is no perfect rig any more than there is a perfect boat. There are only rigs that are perfect for each person, and we all have different needs. Some of the ACE's I have my eye on are 2011 models that already have all the options included, and the price is right since the previous owner already took the "depreciation hit". Still, our minds are in NO way made up yet. We have a list of about seven Class Cs and 3-4 Class As we will try to take a look at. But because of our requirement for "mega storage" outside and no longer than 30' overall, our options are limited. Budget is much less of an issue than these two requirements. And a fixed queen bed. The rest is all negotiable.

If you or anyone else has other suggestions of rigs we might have overlooked, I'm all ears. I have been researching online like a madwoman and can't come up with a lot of choices. Our top candidate Class C at the moment is the Bigfoot 29G because of the HUGE garage space, but they were only made for a few years and all that I've found for sale online are in the west, which is a bit more difficult for us (but not impossible -- will just cost $$ to get there).

Thanks -- your perspective is much appreciated!

Emily

[Birdie]

Emily, I wouldn't want to make down a sofa bed every night and up every morning either. That would be a deal breaker for me. As a full-timer I wanted more space on the interior than what I had with the Class C. My Class C, Bunkie, was a Fleetwood Jamboree 29V. It had lots of storage outside, 4 bunk beds in the back, a cabover 'queen', the sofa made a bed, the dinette made a bed. It had no slide. When someone came to visit, in order to pass around the dinette and sofa area, someone had to sit while the other person went by, then get up and go where ever they were headed. There was lots of storage inside. The foodstuff was short on storage as was the cooking utensils. But it did have lots of storage. It was 30'. That was one of the things that we kept looking at...Bunkie had more storage than a lot of the new rigs.

The Class A, Suite Pea, is 11 inches longer, 30' 11", however, there is no comparison with the storage space. The queen is a walk around and the slide is the head board goes out, and in the living area both the dinette and the sofa go out. Gives the appearance of a great deal of space. Both the dinette and the sofa have storage under them, too. So I only worry about the sofa bed when I have company. As an inflatable, it's quick and easy. Both the sofa and the dinette make up very quickly.

So go take a look at the Jamboree in the Fleetwood line. They now have one with lots of outside storage, the queen bed in the back has a slide and a door that goes directly into the bathroom, and there is a side entry to the bath from the front of the rig. There is a drop down bed that is really neat and the dinette slides out. One of the gals in our group has one of these. It's 31' I think. I didn't go for it as I wanted a Class A.

The class A drives easier than the C for me that is! Matter of fact one of the ladies I am traveling with drove it the other day and she was totally blown away. Said she thought all the glass on the front would be intimidating...it wasn't. The turning she couldn't believe was that easy, so we just kept driving around the RV park! Anyway, go see, touch them sit in them, test drive them, crawl in the storage spaces, research inverters, solar panels, batteries, generators, stoves, refers, all of the things that make them what they are....homes on wheels. Good Luck! and happy hunting, you will either find one that will do, or the absolute one you love.

[TarheelBornGal]

Thanks, Nancy -- I'll take a look at the Jamboree. But according to my husband, a lot of places are restricted to rigs 30' or less in length. I see so many 31' rigs but have not even looked at them because of the restriction. How strict are they about that extra foot?

Emily

P.S. Just checked, and at least in the current 2013 line, the smallest Jamborees are 31'8". That's getting a bit bigger than we want to go. I'll take a look at older/used models, though.

[carold]

Emily, when we began fulltiming we had a 28 ft 2005 Holiday Rambler Atlantis. Lots of storage, in and underneath, with 2 slides. Got rid of the carpet and put in vinyl floors. Loved it. My husband is tall and had no problem with head room, which can sometimes be a problem with big storage bins. Not sure if we posted pics. We were able to stay at most campgrounds, even in the Redwood Forest. We had a small motorcycle when we started and put in on the back along with bike racks. Have fun in your search for your next home. carold

[oregonrambler1]

Hi Emily, me again. Liked the Ace floorplans, at first, then noticed the slides. The only one I'd consider is the 30 ft because it's the only one where the stove wasn't in the slide. One reason we chose the Admiral was because the dinette and couch slides out, nothing with hoses (propane or water) moves when the slides do. This might not be a big factor, might be bigger in my mind than actuality but I didn't want anything that could kink moving around.

[Travelinana]

I am searching for my next RV too. It's actually fun for me I guess because I can't buy until my Chinook is sold. I am learning so much from the girls. The one thing that is swaying me from Class C to A is the turn around driver and passenger seats. I will live in mine and on my son's property when my house sells and it will make it possible for me to have my girlfriends over.
I will have to tow and I am nervous about it but I have always learned fairly quickly especially if I concentrate.
My husband and I were avid sailors. We even sold them on weekends. It's been 25 years so I've forgotten much of the lingo. I'm surprised you aren't pulling a small sailboat.
Good luck
Nancy