RV's What is the Attraction?

[reb]

Re: RV\'s What is the Attraction?

We started at Sydney in a small Japanese-made caravan (motorhome to those of us who speak english correctly /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif), about 20 feet long, and went north to Brisbane and headed inland to Oakey, where my mother's uncle moved in the early 70's. Then we went south through Glen Innes, Armidale, Tamworth, Dubbo and Canberra. Then over to Wollongong and back up to Sydney. Spent only 3 weeks, but got to see some beautiful country and interesting wildlife and met some fine people.

Driving on the wrong side of the road wasn't too bad until the second day. We were heading north and wanted to turn east to a small coastal town to spend some time on the beach. That required a right turn. I remembered to hit the turn signal instead of the wipers. The traffic was light and I was pleased that I had negotiated the turn without mishap. A short distance down the road, we observed a large truck (is that a lorry down there?) coming at us in the same lane. It took me a couple of seconds to realize who was in the wrong lane and corrected the situation. We were laughing and thought the truck driver had a pretty good sense of humor. That is until we were talking with some folks on the beach who told us what "thumbs up" means down there /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif.

Wish we had had a couple of months to spend.

 

[bgott]

Re: RV\'s What is the Attraction?

Skip the 80K unit and figure it on a 10K used unit. Skip the park while you're on the road and overnight in a Wal- Mart or a Sam's Club parking lot. Most RV parks have older, interesting people staying there so you have neat, quiet at night people to talk to. Skip the chance of a dope dealer renting the $100 a night room next to yours and running his business out of it all night long. I lived in two different RVs on and off over 10 years or so and never caught any parasites. I have, however, caught the crabs out of an $89 a night motel room. Skip leaving stuff in the room. You can still drop $75 on a nice restaurant when you stay in an RV, there is no law against it. But if you feel lazy on Sunday morning it's a little hard to just grab a couple of Pop Tarts and then lay back down in the room unless you pack your toaster. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif Skip pulling your nice clothes out of a suitcase and ironing them, you have a closet to hang them in. No free soap, though.

 

[daedong]

Re: RV\'s What is the Attraction?

This is my camper. We lived in it for nearly 6 weeks in rain forest to stoney deserts. It was the best thing i ever built and it will go any where.

 

[TresCrows]

Re: RV\'s What is the Attraction?

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( J, let's see a pic of that homebuilt , sheesh. Ez? Kitfox?

I wanna know.


Don't wanna hijack the thread. I am sure I put a pic on here at some time. I try to find one that is scanned. I built a Kitfox Model IV-1200. It is the one that is seen in all the magazines , blue with white wings and says Super Kitfox on the wheelpants. It was on the cover of Custom Planes I think it was. I took it to Oshkosh in 96. I sold it in 2001. I built most of a RV-4 before deciding that I really like the RV-7A better so now I am building one of those. RV in this case stand for Richard VanGruenson or howerver you spells his name, the owner of the company. Speed and range of a Bonanza for two people with plenty of payload and mild acro capability and good shortfield. The yellow Lycoming IO-360, 200 plus horses, hung from my loader in several pics is the engine I put together for it. Blueprinted, head flowed on the bench, balanced and someother stuff. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif. It will be done when it is done /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif. J

 

[Taylortractornut]

Re: RV\'s What is the Attraction?

I work for Tiffin Motor homes, They build the Allegro Motor homes I forgot what the least one costs but the biggest startes at 300,000and tops out at 750,000 Its a tandem axle job.
I drive a rolloff truck for them hauling off scraps and get a few minutes every day to talk to the folks in for service, repairs or to look at a new one. One thing Ive learned is alot of the older folks that buy one have saved a little money over the years and never had been anywhere much outside the state. Now they finally get to go where they want to go and dont have to unpack and they get to stay in the comforts of home as well. Working construction i found i hated the time in a motel room. Cant play the tv or radio like you can at home noisy neighbors and such. another group is alot of older folks sell their houses and buy a nice motor home and travel, today a lady told me they sold the house and bought the RV because they hated the up keep on their large house and that the Rv was easier to maintain. Alot of folks like them bacuase they can keep their pets with them and all the amenities of your home,your room is always vacant and such. Ive also heard of them owining remote property they dont have the time or ability to maintain a house on theat land so they buy the rv.. I talked to a man the other day that had retired from a nice city job up north and had been raised on a farm he enjoyed to country and had about 100 acres he camped on. He was pulling a trailer behind his Allegro Bus that had a TC40 NewHolland on it with a loader and a few implements he was gonna stay down here a few months working the lan then go out west a while to leave the tractor at his sons house then tour NorthAmerica. One of my old work mates bought one earlier this year when i first started hes in the pipeline work and says its handy driving the thing up to the job wit the wife and kids and not having to go back to a motel room that gets further away every week.

 

[Bird]

Re: RV\'s What is the Attraction?

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( My wife and I are considering buying a trailer, well she is, I am not. )</font>

Having owned a slide-in pickup camper, two conventional trailers, one fifth-wheel trailer, and two motorhomes, and having been a full time RVer for about 6 years, just a few rambling random thoughts.

1) We were the opposite of you; I wanted a "camper" and my wife didn't because she thought having to cook, keep house, etc. wouldn't be much of a vactaion. I bought the slide-in anyway and within a couple of months, she decided it was great; just not big enough, so I got a trailer.

2) There is probably no way working folks can use one enough to make it a financially practical way to vacation, especially if you buy a new one.

3) The conventional pull trailers are lower profile; don't have to worry quite as much about overhead clearance, but require the greatest level of driving skill and knowledge of such things as sway control, proper alignment, and load distribution, and can be towed by big cars or SUVs (don't require a truck).

4) The fifth-wheel is the most solid and stable handling, even more so than a motorhome, especially on windy days.

5) The motorhome is the least practical financially because of the high purchase cost, and because almost no one is happy with one unless they have a car to tow behind it, but the most enjoyable way to travel. I'm an early riser and my wife likes to sleep late, so I could take off in the morning and she could stay in bed. She could also easily get me another cup of coffee, soft drink from the refrigerator, etc. without stopping.

6) Some people buy a conventional trailer instead of a fifth-wheel because they think the conventional trailer is cheaper, but remember that trailers are usually quoted as overall length and the conventional trailer will include 3' of trailer tongue. If calculated on the basis of square feet of living space, there's almost no price difference.

7) The fifth-wheel provides a shorter overall combined vehicle length and greater maneuverability than a conventional trailer because about 5' of your living space is over the bed of the pickup.

8) RVs give you a much, much greater degree of freedom and choice in traveling over staying in motels, eating in restaurants, etc. You have everything you need and can stop almost anywhere, anytime.

9) There is a considerable difference in the quality of construction of different brands and models, so in my opinion, you need to do even more research than when buying a car, pickup, or tractor.

10) Although there is a big difference in the quality of construction in different brands, there are only a few manufacturers of the appliances and accessories, so there's not as much difference in things such as refrigerators, air-conditioners, furnaces, water pumps, stoves, microwaves, etc.

11) In spite of differences in quality and construction, finding a floor plan that suits your individual needs and preferences may well be the most important factor in selecting a particular rig.

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( You stay in a park with your neighbor 10 feet away and get to listen to his AC running all night. )</font>

Yes, if you want to, but you don't have to, and if you don't like your neighbors, you can be ready to move on in 10 minutes. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

If it weren't for family considerations, I'd probably still be a full time RVer, but it's definitely not for everyone, full time or vacationing. Some people "vacation" in big cities, on cruise ships, etc. and thoroughly enjoy it, while I wouldn't go to those places even if I had Bill Gates' money. Different strokes for different folks. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

If your wife buys that trailer, you may (or may not) find that you're hooked for life. /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[ManofMystery]

Re: RV\'s What is the Attraction?

Tom,

My wife and I use the vehicle shown in the attached picture. It's a full-size Chevy van with a 4WD conversion. It's not a camper--doesn't have a toilet, shower, stove, etc.--but there's plenty of room in it. When we go camping, we take out all three rows of bench seats, and put in a old queen-size mattress. Even so, we still have five feet clear in the back for gear, so there's plenty of room.

The best part is, when we're not camping, we have a one-ton van for towing and hauling.

We used to pull a 32-ft Airstream, but there's only so many places you can take a trailer, and a lot of those places are packed with people. We like to get away from crowds when we take a vacation.

The picture was taken in Elko, Nevada. Nice little town. Wouldn't mind retiring there some day.

 

[ManofMystery]

Re: RV\'s What is the Attraction?

Oops - looks like the attachment didn't make it the first try.

 

[Golfgar4]

Re: RV\'s What is the Attraction?

Gee, I guess you want to live up to your sig name, huh? Keeping the picture a "thing of mystery"?? /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

Oops! /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

Looks like you were posting the pic just about the time I was replying!

I've been through Elko, Nevada. It's on I-80, right? We drove through there on our way out to Fallon, Nevada to visit our son, daughter-in-law and grandaughter. I don't recall that we stopped there, though.

It is very interesting country out there. I can't say that we'd consider retiring out there, but there are certainly a lot of people who have. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[Yankee]

Re: RV\'s What is the Attraction?

Great post, Bird.

On #3 and #4, I agree completely with you - as regards conventional hitches - into which I'd lump regular hitches with sway control added and weight-distributing hitches. There is virtually no difference as far as sway and handling with PullRite and Arrow hitches vs. a 5th wheel, though, given well-spec'd tongue weight (a critical qualification as well as a quality measure). The Arrow mimics moving the pull/pivot point to an equivalent 5th wheel point. The PullRite actually works identically to a 5th wheel hitch. With either of these hitches a tagalong is less wind sensitive than a 5th wheel. Without them, the tagalong is FAR more sensitive than a 5th wheel, as you pointed out. The price of these hitches is pretty stiff and each have their own implications. The Hensley Arrow is heavy and somewhat complicated. The PullRite may require mods to the tow vehicle and may prevent undercarriage spare storage.

I agree 100% with the rest of your comments, and would actually emphasize #9 (quality) and #11 (floor plan). You mentioned it, but just to pull it out, quality ratings vary quite a bit not just by manufacturer, but by model. Floor plans are more than just a preference consideration. They can materially affect balance, too.

The RV Consumer Group publishes quality ratings annually. The URL is www.rv.org Well worth the price of joining if you're going to buy an RV.