RV Discussion Forums??

Golfgar4 · Oct 20, 2004

Most of you guys know that I'll be retiring next year. Actually, in 268 days, but who's counting, right? /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

The wife and I are still debating on whether we want to stick around in this neck of the woods, or consider relocating. As we continue to do more and more research, that relocation thing is looking better and better. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

We're seriously thinking about renting an RV for a month or two and visiting the various locations we've been investigating. We'd stay in each location for maybe 2 weeks so that we can get a feel for the area and do some "local" research. I like what I've read about 5th wheel trailers, but do they rent the whole rig, or do you need your own tow vehicle and just rent the trailer? I also like the idea of a class A, so the wife could get me that next cup of coffee or whatever, but realize that then we'd need to tow a "get around" vehicle. Doesn't make a lot of sense to me. /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif

I did a search (gotta follow my own advice, right! /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif) for RV information, and found some RV websites mentioned that I've been able to get some basic information from. But I've not seen any references to any RV discussion forums like TBN. Anybody know if there are any? I realize that it's asking a lot, but it'd be nice to find a discussion forum as friendly and informative as TBN that would let me talk with experienced RV'ers about what's involved.

And please, I'd welcome any comments from any of you also! Like I said, I did do a search through TBN, so I found a lot of information that many of you have already provided. But feel free to throw any comments/questions my way. The more I can absorb, the easier our decision will be. I hope! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

rdln · Oct 20, 2004

Your investigating Idea makes a lot of sense, My aunt and Uncle did the same when looking for a cabin up north (northern michigan) that also would be a summer home during retirement.

Woodalls.com has a good board though when you visit the homepage it is hard to find, try this.

woodalls

RobS · Oct 20, 2004

Your best source is probably our very own Bird /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

I used to frequent a couple of RV boards when starting out but haven't much lately. The ones I liked were RV America and RV.net . Can't vouch for either recently but they certainly helped a lot during our purchase and learning years /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Golfgar4 · Oct 20, 2004

( Your best source is probably our very own Bird )

Yup, already checked out his previous posts on the subject! /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

You have a 5th wheel, don't you Rob?

Golfgar4 · Oct 20, 2004

Steve,

Thanks for the link. Woodalls looks promising! /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

RobS · Oct 20, 2004

You have a 5th wheel, don't you Rob 

Yes, but ours is very much a vacation rig. It's a low end Mallard by Fleetwood. We love it but I don't think it would hold up to retirement/full-time/semi-full time use. Snuck a peek at a slightly larger unit the other week. A Sunnybrook. Had bunks in the back like ours but much more living space and storage space. Seemed much better built than ours and a higher price tag to boot! It's fun looking. Find an RV show in your area, you'll see tons of models in one place. Makes it easy to compare /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

MadReferee · Oct 20, 2004

I keep up with this one. It's probably the most popular of all the generic RV forums.

Open Roads RV forums

BubbaJr · Oct 20, 2004

Garry, you might want to see if you can find a Safari Trek class A to rent. These are very nice units with a bed that slides down out of the ceiling. This opens up the interior for all the ammenities that a larger class A has. We had a 25' Cobra Sonoma for several years which had an almost identical floor plan to the Trek. We were all over the eastern US with it and drove through downtown Chicago, Detroit, Milwaukee, Orlando, and many other large cities without any problems at all. We stayed in western Florida for 3 weeks in it once and had enough room that we didn't have any conflicts over space. Mine had an amazing turning radius that was even sharper than a 4WD 1/2 ton pickup. Mine and the earlier Treks were built on the Isuzu NPR chassis with the 135 hp diesel and OD transmission. I got up to 14 MPG, but averaged around 12.5 overall.

The Treks are very well built, and very easy to drive in city traffic. They came in 25 and 28' layouts. They use a different chassis and drive train now, that I think is gasoline. Just food for thought.

Enjoy the hunt, there are a lot of choices out there. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Bird · Oct 20, 2004

Garry, for many years we were members of the Good Sam Club and the Family Motor Coach Association and found lots of good articles and discussions in both their magazines, but no Internet back then, and it's been almost 10 years since we got out of RVing so I'm not familiar with any RV discussion forums. And I'm sure that much has changed since we got out of it (I'd go back to that lifestyle in a minute if it weren't for family considerations /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif). There have always been motorhomes for rent, but as you said, you'd probably not be happy with that unless you had another vehicle to tow behind it. And the only trailers I've known of for rent required you to provide your own towing vehicle.

I think your idea of visiting the places you're considering for relocation is a good one, and I haven't kept up with prices lately, but you may find it as cheap, or cheaper, to stay in motels and eat out as it would be to rent an RV.

Bird · Oct 20, 2004

Bubba, we visited the Safari factory and took their tour in '91 when we were considering trading our truck and 5th wheel for a motorhome. I found a number of reasons to make me not want a Safari product, but they did have what we considered the best floor plans in the industry; i.e., best use of available space, whether you're talking about the Trek or their bigger models. Of course, much has changed and now Safari is a part of Monaco and instead of that Isuzu diesel in the Trek, you now have the Ford V-10 gas engine or the 8.1L GM gas engine.