WANTED for a young family: Airstream 280 or Argosy 28 Motorhome

[dadstoy]

I've always been jealous of Mayco's 310. Perfect size and he had done an outstanding upgrade on it!

[mayco]

Thanks Dean, that's awful nice of you to say!

[Isuzusweet]

Originally Posted by dadstoy

I've always been jealous of Mayco's 310. Perfect size and he had done an outstanding upgrade on it!

Jeez, now I really do feel like a true sidekick.....

Cheers
Sidekick Tony

[mayco]

Wait till I get these LED dimmers installed Tony, then you'll be REALLY jealous

[Isuzusweet]

Originally Posted by mayco

Wait till I get these LED dimmers installed Tony, then you'll be REALLY jealous

Nawww; only if you change your username to "Allison" will I be truly jealous.

Cheers
Sidekick Tony

[mayco]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9GlC9GyF4Y

[Isuzusweet]

Sure! Rub it in mate.....That little geeky Elvis guy is married to the hottest jazz singer in the world, Diana Krall; born two days earlier than me and Canadian to boot. Shania Twain and Diana Krall......how could you choose?

Cheers
Sidekick Tony

[Magnet18]

Originally Posted by mayco

Wait till I get these LED dimmers installed Tony, then you'll be REALLY jealous

Were the 2 way high/low switches i have not standard? Or just not enough control?

Anyway, to the OP, i happened upon a 290 in the wild this week, owners traveling with their 3 kids, so what you describe does exist, just keep looking!

However, if you're considering a 290, why not a 310? It still doesn't have a tag axle, and it'll open your options wide open since they made so many, relatively speaking, and the layout is awesome, my wife and I live in ours very comfortably, sometimes I feel like we could downsize!

Are you sure that extra 24" is going to be a deal breaker?

[dadstoy]

Now I feel bad! How could I forget about Tony's (Isuzusweet) 310. I love yours too Tony. Love the woodwork and your chairs! Again jealous of you guys and your rear bedrooms!

[mayco]

Originally Posted by Magnet18

Were the 2 way high/low switches i have not standard? Or just not enough control?



Anyway, to the OP, i happened upon a 290 in the wild this week, owners traveling with their 3 kids, so what you describe does exist, just keep looking!



However, if you're considering a 290, why not a 310? It still doesn't have a tag axle, and it'll open your options wide open since they made so many, relatively speaking, and the layout is awesome, my wife and I live in ours very comfortably, sometimes I feel like we could downsize!



Are you sure that extra 24" is going to be a deal breaker?

Without getting too far into it and hijacking the thread here, a few years ago I changed out the original lighting to go with LED recessed puck lighting. With the new lights there is no "high/low" function, either all on or all off. I want to be able to dim these general lighting fixtures. LED dimmers are a bit tricky and they don't function like incandescent dimmers. They must have a dedicated ground wire to the device. That poses some challenges when retrofitting with LEDs because so much of the wiring is behind the interior wall panels. Ill be updating my thread here soon with what Ive done to solve the dimmer situation, waiting on one part to arrive. Here are my overhead lights now, the panels are covered in the same material as the rest of the upholstery and the puck lighting recessed into the light panels.

[bkahler]

Originally Posted by dadstoy

Now I feel bad! How could I forget about Tony's (Isuzusweet) 310. I love yours too Tony. Love the woodwork and your chairs! Again jealous of you guys and your rear bedrooms!

Not to worry.....Tony just likes to troll.....

[Isuzusweet]

Originally Posted by bkahler

Not to worry.....Tony just likes to troll.....

I resemble that remark!

[izzyce]

Bumping - still looking!

[Magnet18]

Have you stood inside any motorhomes in person yet?

[izzyce]

Originally Posted by Magnet18

Have you stood inside any motorhomes in person yet?

No I havent. We have just been in our rentals. It’s so frustrating - it’s like I’m in the hinterlands...

[Magnet18]

My advice is to get on Craigslist and air forums classifieds, and start looking at as many as you can in your area, even if you know they aren't nice enough. It's hard to have a feel for what size these are until you stand inside one. I was expecting 310s to feel super cramped, and to need a 345, but looked at a 310 in meh condition anyway and was surprised at how large it felt, and at how the 345 didn't feel that much larger inside but felt a lot larger outside (to us)

It also helps get you familiar with what you're actually looking at, and starts giving you a point of reference. It's really hard to tell the quality of an interior from pictures unless you've stood in a few, you know what systems to look at, what rusty vs non looks like, etcetera. After looking at 2 others I was able to step into the 310 we got and immediately tell the major quality difference, even though in pictures they all look similar


So yea, my best advice would be to go look at as many classic motorhomes in person as you can, regardless of size, just so you know what you're shopping for. Also gives you confidence to walk away from a bad deal when you practice a couple times (Pick ones you're mildly interested in obviously, don't completely waste someone's time, but you can be upfront and let them know you don't plan to buy on the spot)

[tevake]

An interesting 31 just showed up on the classic motorhomes thread. It's in Reno, seller says it in good shape, with lots of resent work done on it.

For your use I'd think a good 345 should be on your list too. The much dreaded tag axel can now be serviced or replaced. Unlike for a few years ago, when few parts were available.

I to was focused on the single rear axel when I was looking, but ended up finding a nice well cared for 345 that has done well for me for over 30k miles.
I like the extra room.

Cheers Richard

[Magnet18]

Originally Posted by tevake

An interesting 31 just showed up on the classic motorhomes thread. It's in Reno, seller says it in good shape, with lots of resent work done on it.

For your use I'd think a good 345 should be on your list too. The much dreaded tag axel can now be serviced or replaced. Unlike for a few years ago, when few parts were available.

I to was focused on the single rear axel when I was looking, but ended up finding a nice well cared for 345 that has done well for me for over 30k miles.
I like the extra room.

Cheers Richard

I think they're more worried about maneuverability on the east coast, rather than the tax axel itself.

Good to hear they can be serviced though! what's your source for that? Would be a good thing to know when I eventually outgrown the 310!

[tevake]

Andy's place in SoCal ( Inland RV ) has new tag axels available. I got complete brake assemblies for it from them too. It's the hubs that are still hard to come by as far as I know.

The rear wheels do scrub when making a very tight turn. Plus the extra length can be an issue in tight parking spots. But on the up side the extra axle does track well when on the highway perhaps giving more directional stability, I've been told.
I haven't done much driving of the shorter models, to compare.

But especially for a family the extra room and storage would seem attractive.

For me the active resent history, and good maintaince were big factors for my choice.
I flew from Hawaii to Fla, bought it, then headed out to Az a couple of days later.

It's been good to me on many trips. I'm back in Fla now

Cheers Richard

[Keyair]

I’ve talked the the OP at length and she is set on under 30’ due to their home setup and Storage space.