Just a Gen, Observation...Air VS. SOB

[THEPILL]

Originally Posted by flyfisher

I had a 2004 Classic Limited for 3 years and replaced it with a 2008 Newmar Kounty Aire.

I got just one of many poor quality Airstreams that have been built since, at least, 2000. I do not believe all of them have been built as poorly as mine was, and a number of Airstream purchasers don't really mind buying a poorly built trailer and overpaying for it, so more power to them, but if you did get a good unit it is more a matter of chance than design IMO, however.

Here's a picture of my 5th wheel (foreground), and our neighbors 5th wheel, who are fulltimers, in their Travel Supreme (I think theirs is a 2000 model).



I doubt if I'll keep my 5th wheel for 10 years, but if I wanted to I'm sure it would last well beyond the 20 years I may have left to enjoy RVing in my lifetime, and I'll enjoy the comforts of staying in it much more than I could possibly enjoy any Airstream.

John

ps. Our Kountry Aire and our friends Travel Supreme are both 40', 20,000# gvw, 3 slide-out trailers.

Wow nice 5th, You don't tow it with that jeep?......

Anyway, Nice post till the bashing of the Airstream in the last paragraph. But you had a bad expierence and I see you can still taste it. These airstreams are like Harley davidson riders. Don't care if they spurt or drip oil and are un-reliable they are true blue Airstreamers. Never have liked the hd much, but I can kinda see the following. I believe these hd guy/gals mostly buy them to "fit in".... With Airstream, I believe just camping is fitting in no matter what you tow. Nothing uppity about owning one.
Like I stated earlier, I believe in my heart of heats that I DID buy quality. Until proven otherwise. I did own a Airstream Argosy,briefly, 1976 24' and it was 33 years old and was solid. I had to replace parts of the floor because the holding tank drain leaked,.....nothing structural. Oven worked even the fridge got cold,water heater pilot light and thermostat and everything... just wanted new. My wife wasn't keen on the used thing so we got new. Anyway, I looked at the 5thwheels recently and as stated was impressed with the gadgets and the room, just didn't feel solid. I mean you know when you walk into a house, you can feel it. Everyone I have been in , well seemed like a Mobile home as in a manufactured home. Just not solid.



Well. Thanks for the pictures, you seem happy and thats what counts.

I hope I got a "good one"

Tow Safe,
Shane

[mojo]

What ever floats your dream. A big fiver might be worth looking at if you were planning to full time, but way to big for my tastes. I have walked through a few at the RV shows and I find the country, all-wood, down-on-the-farm look a little dated.

[LisaP]

The Pill has been quite amusing in all his post. Come on... when will he get with the program. White boxes are average. AIRSTREAMS ARE CLASSICS. Get it?

[THEPILL]

Originally Posted by LisaP

The Pill has been quite amusing in all his post. Come on... when will he get with the program. White boxes are average. AIRSTREAMS ARE CLASSICS. Get it?

Well his Box is brown.....


I understand the meaning, hence the Harley Davidson reference.

LIke I stated, I believe I bought quality. Also there is nostalgia, like a V-twin HD . An American Classic. I get it, but it doesn't make me any better to own one. Just my preference. In other words,again, I bought in my mind quality. The history is just a bonus.

Shane

[DreamStreamr]

I agree with Kevin about walking the Sportsman's Show looking for quality. We walked in almost every moho at Tampa RV Supershow and if the moho was less than $400k, it really didn't improve on what we see daily in our Airstream trailer. Seriously -- this seems like a pretty high threshold to have to go for quality in a motorhome.

Some other brands are fine. The Newmars are gorgeous and I'd be proud to own a Kountry Aire 5th wheel if I wanted such a large RV. If I wanted a moho, I'd be buying a 2004 Country Coach or similar. No way I could afford to get into the right quality on new unit prices. But, we're small home people and sticking with this Airstream awhile longer.

When we're ready for a stationary home, we're thinking about an iHouse. Seen these yet? Whoops -- don't hijack this thread, Jim.

[Silvertwinky]

I saw this thread and it struck my interest; I suppose because we have owned three different Airstreams and now we are the owners of a fifth wheel.

We started our search for a different unit when our 31 foot simply became too small for us. There were several things that were discouraging to us as A/S owners. I thought of listing them but my intention isn't to run A/S down. I can find fault with any brand we've owned including the one we own now. The one single advantage I liked about the A/S is the way in which the frame and walls are constructed in that they can be repaired much easier than what we have now. However, the one we have now, even though it's made differently, I have become mich more comfortable with how it's built. It does have an aluminum frame completly around it.

When we first sold our A/S we had purchased a M/H. We got a real good buy on it but after a while we realized the expense became too much for us due to its age and the amount of maintenance we had overall. We started looking again and found the fifth wheel we have now. We bought it in April of 2007 (Keystone Montana.)

As mentioned before, we needed more room. We presently travel and camp with our grand-daughter and find this to be the ideal trailer for our needs. Being an A/S owner we weren't afraid to purchase an older one rather than new and ours is probably considered more of an older one with our observations among other Montana owners. I'm not positive but I believe they started building the Montana's in 1998. Ours is a 2002 model and was physically built in 2001. I have no reason to believe that this unit won't last for many years to come.

We have to be careful for low bridges and tight places but that is something I'm much more comfortable with now. The towing is... lets just say phenomenal after towing a pull trailer for several years. Take care and maybe we'll see ya on the road sometime.

P.S. We have our "AIR" sticker in the back window.

[AZ-JH]

Originally Posted by Ganaraska

I've been wondering why all the people who tow Airstreams with heavy duty pickup trucks don't buy 5th wheel trailers. They already have the tow vehicle and you can buy a really big roomy fiver for less than an Airstream.

No offense intended, but if you have to wonder, you just won't understand. A big, tall, bulky, heavy fifth-wheel would totally cramp our camping freedom style plus use a lot more fuel to haul the brick around. We fit most anywhere in beautiful secluded spots.

For us there was no substitute for the Airstream. It's comfortable, loads of fun, cool, aerodynamic, low-profile, tows efficiently, long-lasting, and even fits in our out-building.

[Ganaraska]

I can understand the Airstream. What puzzles me is why some people buy the easiest towing trailer on the market then hitch it to a diesel Dually 1 ton truck.

I can see buying the diesel truck but then you might as well buy the 5th wheel to go with it.

The cognitive dissonance is in the combination of big diesel truck and Airstream trailer.

[Silvertwinky]

I bought a 1-ton dually while we still owned the A/S. That was the best thing I had ever done at that time for towing stability. I know they preach about not using too big of a vehicle and that it'll cause your rivets to break. Well I didn't have any trouble with that that I'm aware of. I would have kept using it if I had kept the A/S.

[Ag&Au]

To Paraphrase a sticker often seen in the west -

Its an Airstream thing...
You wouldn't understand

Regards,
Ken

[whitsend]

Originally Posted by Ganaraska

I've been wondering why all the people who tow Airstreams with heavy duty pickup trucks don't buy 5th wheel trailers. They already have the tow vehicle and you can buy a really big roomy fiver for less than an Airstream.

It's a matter of the old "If you gotta ask, you just never will "get it". Many of us have those honking great heavy duty 3/4 ton diesel pickup trucks to pull our much loved Airstreams with ease. It's somehow satisfying to pass up the big rigs on those long-climb slopes. Sides, I have a friend who's owned SEVEN of those big roomy fivers in less than 10 years. Each and every one proved less than satisfactory. They finally found the Airstream of their dreams (a 34', slide, fireplace, etc.) and have never been happier.

[Wabbiteer]

The last time I was wandering around a luxury RV lot we were attracted to a new & huge 5th Wheeler - I expected Willie Nelson to pop out of the bedroom suite asking me what time it was... more than a little bit. Not my cup of tea.

[noreen&sal]

top heavy. seen a few flipped over all my years on the road.

[bolerama]

Originally Posted by Whirlaway

I wanted an AS for ten years before I got one. Every time one went by my heart skipped a beat...

Quality...(please don't jump all over me for that statement) When I sat in SOB's it just did not feel right for me and then I sat in an AS...and my heart skipped a beat...

I just smile every time I look out the window and see it in the yard. Counting the days until the season starts, then next trip, new projects and places to see.
It is my stress relief and it is my passion...It's a state of mind:. Freedom.

I am so grateful to have my AS...for me it represents a good value and quality workmanship I truly love. Yes I have had my share of items to fix QC items but so is life.

Lin.

Lin, you hit the nail on the head (or the rivet with the gun). I felt the same way when I saw my Airstream and have felt the same way every day since. I kind of get giddy when I think about my trailer.

We weren't in the market at all when we bought our AS. We were very satisfied with our 13 and 14 foot fiberglass "egg" trailers. They were cute and modern (inside and out), easy to maintain, inexpensive to refurbish. We were in want of nothing else.

THEN, the winter blahs set in. It was March, and we went touring around our local RV dealers, just to get in the camping mode. We love to just sit in trailers and dream of summer. (I do admit, we spend a large amount of time mocking the interior decor. Why do RV manufacturers think it is still 1989?) Nevertheless, I've always loved Airstreams, though I thought their interiors left a lot to be desired...until Christopher Deam came on the scene. Well, a new CCD in Paprika (interior color) was in the showroom. My heart skipped a beat. It was love at first sight. I totally was smitten! I had butterflies for weeks thinking about it. Then, I became obsessed. We are youngish and 25+ years from retirement. Did we need to buy something like this now? But, rational thought was long gone. I had the bug and had to have that Airstream.

Two years later, I have no regrets. Actually, the AS has changed my life. I spend at least some portion of every waking hour thinking about my AS and camping. Obsessed? Yes. As a result, I have set my retirement date (September 1, 2020). I'm not waiting until 67 as my employer has set as my retirement age. I'll be 51. We plan to live full-time in our AS. Will we be able to manage living in a 23 footer? We'll see. We might need a 28 footer, but that's the absolute max. Would I have had the same life-changing experience in a fifth-wheel? Never. It goes against all I believe in.

My parents raised 3 kids in an 800 sq. ft. house with one bathroom. I'm proud of that. Paul and I have a 1000 sq. ft. house that we feel is too big for us. I like simplicity. We can afford a bigger house, but why? We do get comments from "5th wheel state of mind" people..."How will you live in that thing?" The answer is SIMPLY.

When you buy a 5th wheel, you do get more space, but when you buy an Airstream, you get a life.

Lisa

[TerraYacht]

Wow...where do I fit in with my Class A TerraYacht (or is it a Brownstream?)

A house on wheels has the synergy of both: drag around a house & stuff shakes loose, breaks, etc, but not more than expected. My neighbors' SOB (a Winnie) is the same 30' as mine but taller, wider, has more storage...and less character. Its like the difference between a hotel room and a home in the feel of our unit, and we have the same basic chassis.

We went to the local rv show in January and were in the big 5ths, giant buses, and several shiny 'Streams. (A fake electric fireplace looks so...fake.) As a professional pack rat I like more storage, but the Airstream s/o trailer or Class A looks like a good balance. We did not have a tow vehicle so the Class A lets us haul the toad & now I have my standby earthquake lodging.

Quality is the key, and size/volume/quantity: to each his own.

[DreamStreamr]

Stiff truck, lithe Airstream. Smoother highways. Slower driving.

We haven't popped a rivet in almost six months -- our longest streak yet. Maybe it's because we stopped replacing the last few popped ones. Or because I-10 was the smoothest highway we've traveled the past three years.

We sorta expect to pop rivets, don't think a 3500 would be any worse on our trailer than our truck. But if we were towing a 34 I would sure want a 3500 in front of it. Remember, it isn't how much your truck can pull -- the truck has to be enough to stop and stay in front of the trailer.

jim

[TG Twinkie]

Here here on the stopping part!

[xonvldz]

i bought the airstream to travel.its funny how wherever i go people are always interested in the airstream.my wife and i look at this trailer as our condo.wouldnt want a fifth wheel since it wouldnt fit our criteria for travel.trully like the simplicity of our airstream.also towing long distances is not overwhelming as it used to be with the old sobs.only trailer wife would trade for this,is a new 34ft airstream.however this is the only trailer after 4 years that she trully would not want to part with.

[eleighj]

Originally Posted by Boondocker

I dont think most buyers are all that worried about their rigs lasting a long time. I get the feeling that a lot of buyers have the plan of using them a few years as they do the trip of a life time kind of thing and then sell them. Face it, if someone is 65 buying a new camper what are the odds they will be using it over five years. Those doing so over ten are probably pretty rare. Given that, who would want to spend twice as much on construction designed to out live themselves?

Guys:

My goal is to wheel up to the "Men's Club" at the age of 85 and go on in! We bought a new Airstream within the last year and intend to use it for many years. Of course I have 28 years to reach that goal.

eleighj

[moosetags]

We have had Lucy for almost four years now. During that time, we have towed Lucy over 50,000 miles, and have slept in her almost 600 nights. We have immensely enjoyed our Airstream adventures, and look forward to many more.

We have two tow vehicles because we go Airstreaming so much. We hope to wear those out and replace them several times.

We are sixty and sixty-one, respectively. The years have been kind to us, and we hope to be able to Airstream for another fifteen to twenty years.

There are just so many places that we have yet to go.

Brian