25' FB vs 27' FB...where is the 2 feet? :)

[Gene]

Brian selected the 25' for the same reasons we did. Also, the two bowl sink is a lot more practical. Roughly copying the SuEllen cabinet for a printer and the microwave perfected the 25 for us. The round sink used now is a classic case of form over function as I see it.

We saw a female moose on the Gunflint Trail several months ago—there are some campgrounds with electric and water hookups up that Trail, though the one we stopped at did not have a sewer, but it did have a dump station. The trip up there was worth it. The FS campground at the end of the Trail had water at the sites, but I don't think it had a dump station. The Gunflint Trail starts at Grand Marais. We liked GM better than Ely and canoeing is available at both, though Ely is a lot better known for it. There's a city owned campground with full hookups at GM, no wifi though. We found a hot spot in town. Wifi is hard to find at campgrounds in northern Minnesota.

Gene

[cosmotini]

The round sink has form and function. It's large and deep. My biggest problem has been what to do with the cover when using the sink. There is nowhere practical to store it.

[Foiled Again]

Originally Posted by tksbaskets

I kind of laughed when I was the 'emergency exit' designation on the window above our curb side twin bed. I suppose I could let a small dog or child escape but a full-sized adult??

Let's hope none of us ever had the opportunity to try it.

WAIT. With twins you said the escape window was on the CURBSIDE? In my 2006, it's on the ROADSIDE... and with a QUEEN you don't just crawl out using the bed, you apparently have to swan dive from the end of the bed THROUGH the window. I recommended that Airstream move it from the Roadside to the Curbside... did they really do it on later models?

I'm sixty, not skinny, and vaguely arthritic... a swan dive? NO. I bought an extra BIG fire extinguisher which hangs on the bedroom closet door. I'll set it off and run like hell for the door. Another minor consideration; I leave one propane tank turned OFF all the time. BTW, I fulltime, so I'm perfectly able to find the door and the locks in absolute darkness. If you have kids, make a game of having the whole family do this with blindfolds on - it's a potential lifesaver!

Seriously, good protection for a fire - in a small trailer GET OUT FAST.

In a house, especially a multi-story one - make sure everyone who lives there has a practiced plan for getting out in a fire. Every year in our town alone, there is at least one 2 to 4 year old child whose body is found in a closet or under the bed in the aftermath of a fire. My firemen friends get tears in their eyes just thinking about it. Little children HIDE when they are afraid, but if they are taught exactly what to do, they will do it fearlessly - and make enough noise to get everyone else out too. Ask your local fire department to come to schools, churches, YMCA's and clubs to teach these skills.

Paula

[Gene]

Originally Posted by cosmotini

The round sink has form and function. It's large and deep. My biggest problem has been what to do with the cover when using the sink. There is nowhere practical to store it.

Dennis, to each his own. What we like about the double sinks is we use one to wash dishes, the other to let them dry on a rack that fits inside it perfectly, thus saving counter space. When traveling, bananas go on a towel on the drying rack—bananas don't travel well, so they get less beat up there. There's also the fold down/up shelf at the end of the sink peninsula for more counter space. I agree the double sinks could have been deeper. I think those covers have finger holes in them—couldn't you put a hook up on the wall to hang the cover?

Another benefit of the 25' is it was $4,000 less. But the bed arrangement was very tempting. It really was a hard choice between the two.

Gene

[wayner61]

When we are using the sink, the cover goes one of two places --

On the stove top - Make SURE you don't leave it there when the oven is on though. Don't ask me how I know...

Stuck vertically in between the cushion on the bench and the wall under the TV.

As for washing dishes with the lobster bowl - We set a dish drainer on the stove top on top of a towel. Then we wash dishes and throw them in the drainer. When we are done with washing, we dump them back in the sink and rinse, putting them back in the drainer to dry. As long as you wash dishes pretty regularly, this procedure works fine with 3-4 people eating. More than that and we switch to paper plates ;-)

Wayne

[casarodante]

I don't want to hijack this thread but I have a question about the 'emergency windows'. In our trailer it appears the ONLY differences between the emergency and standard window are a loop of screen spline to remove the screen easier, a warning label and red handels.

Is there any difference in the hardware that makes them different and easier to get out?

[ROBERTSUNRUS]

Originally Posted by CrawfordGene

Dennis, to each his own. What we like about the double sinks is we use one to wash dishes, the other to let them dry on a rack that fits inside it perfectly, thus saving counter space. When traveling, bananas go on a towel on the drying rack—bananas don't travel well, so they get less beat up there. There's also the fold down/up shelf at the end of the sink peninsula for more counter space. I agree the double sinks could have been deeper. I think those covers have finger holes in them—couldn't you put a hook up on the wall to hang the cover?

Another benefit of the 25' is it was $4,000 less. But the bed arrangement was very tempting. It really was a hard choice between the two.

Gene

Hi, like this? [pictures] We put our sink covers in our pantry, but now since we have the tub and dish rack, we leave the sink covers at home. Also we use the extension shelf to hold our trash can; It just clips on and can be removed in seconds.

[tksbaskets]

Originally Posted by Foiled Again

WAIT. With twins you said the escape window was on the CURBSIDE? In my 2006, it's on the ROADSIDE... and with a QUEEN you don't just crawl out using the bed, you apparently have to swan dive from the end of the bed THROUGH the window. I recommended that Airstream move it from the Roadside to the Curbside... did they really do it on later models?

I'm sixty, not skinny, and vaguely arthritic... a swan dive? NO. I bought an extra BIG fire extinguisher which hangs on the bedroom closet door. I'll set it off and run like hell for the door. Another minor consideration; I leave one propane tank turned OFF all the time. BTW, I fulltime, so I'm perfectly able to find the door and the locks in absolute darkness. If you have kids, make a game of having the whole family do this with blindfolds on - it's a potential lifesaver!

Seriously, good protection for a fire - in a small trailer GET OUT FAST.

In a house, especially a multi-story one - make sure everyone who lives there has a practiced plan for getting out in a fire. Every year in our town alone, there is at least one 2 to 4 year old child whose body is found in a closet or under the bed in the aftermath of a fire. My firemen friends get tears in their eyes just thinking about it. Little children HIDE when they are afraid, but if they are taught exactly what to do, they will do it fearlessly - and make enough noise to get everyone else out too. Ask your local fire department to come to schools, churches, YMCA's and clubs to teach these skills.

Paula

Whoops - it is on the roadside. Perfect the swan dive....

[nsteel]

We have double sinks in our 27FB. For us the front to back queen bed sold us on the 27. We didn't want to climb out the end of the bed or over each other when we get up in the middle of the night. Everyone has certain priorities that are important to them.

[ROBERTSUNRUS]

Originally Posted by nsteel

We have double sinks in our 27FB. For us the front to back queen bed sold us on the 27. We didn't want to climb out the end of the bed or over each other when we get up in the middle of the night. Everyone has certain priorities that are important to them.

Hi, the front to back queen bed is nice, but for me to get out of my sideways queen bed, I just turn to my left, drop my feet to the floor, and I'm lined up with the hallway. On the other hand my wife enjoys crawling over me [painfully] on her way to the hallway.

[MissDaisy]

thank you all for this post. I have been reading these forums as a "guest" for a long time, finally became a member several weeks ago. I have been "Houseless" for the better part of a year and think I have found my perfect AS...a 27FB with twin beds. I have two small dogs and a "home" based business. There is a precious lack of twin bed models out there, but I believe I have found a 2009 Flying Cloud. They want about $56K for the thing. I have also found a 2008 Safari SE, queen but it's only $48K. I have lot's of friends, kids and guests and the twin bed option would work far better for me as a single person whose only snugglers are my 4-legged companions. Any opinions? Am I getting rooked? I expect to be houseless for at least another 2 years, maybe longer. The twin bed models sound like they have lots of extra storage space, and yes, I do need room for my work stuff. Any opinions? Am I getting rooked? Thank you thank you!

[JBinKC]

Bill Thompson in the St. Louis area has a twin 27FB. Here's the link: Travel Trailer RVs For Sale at Bill Thomas Camper Sales in Missouri - Airstream, Dutchmen, Forest River, and more.

[Foiled Again]

Originally Posted by MissDaisy

thank you all for this post. I have been reading these forums as a "guest" for a long time, finally became a member several weeks ago. I have been "Houseless" for the better part of a year and think I have found my perfect AS...a 27FB with twin beds. I have two small dogs and a "home" based business. There is a precious lack of twin bed models out there, but I believe I have found a 2009 Flying Cloud. They want about $56K for the thing. I have also found a 2008 Safari SE, queen but it's only $48K. I have lot's of friends, kids and guests and the twin bed option would work far better for me as a single person whose only snugglers are my 4-legged companions. Any opinions? Am I getting rooked? I expect to be houseless for at least another 2 years, maybe longer. The twin bed models sound like they have lots of extra storage space, and yes, I do need room for my work stuff. Any opinions? Am I getting rooked? Thank you thank you!

Hi, I started fulltiming over 4 years ago now. I got my 25 FB before the 27's were on the market. If a tree falls on my 25, I'll replace it with a 27 - so I applaud your taste. As far as guests go, the side couch pulls out into a single, and the dinette folds down to a sort of narrow double... so you'll have plenty of room for a guest or two. Frankly when I have more than that I'll rent them a cabin or hotel. Sleeping space isn't the issue. Something no one wants to say about trailer living is that you CAN hear someone burp or fart from one end of the trailer to the other. (If you're ever dumb enough to cook fish inside your trailer, you'll catch wiffs of it for weeks.) Visual privacy can be achieved, the rest? Your guests might find your dog's farts reason to sleep outside under the awning in a tent...

The twins in any Airstream are Trailer Twins - much narrower than a standard house twin. Before you buy, you owe it to yourself to see and sit and lie down on a lot of different models. You may find out that things you thought you could live with - not really as easily as you expected.
Find a forums rally and attend, Falluminum in Georgia, etc. Most people will be more than glad to show you around their rigs and tell you the benefits and demerits of their particular layouts. Look at the rallies at the bottom of the portal page.

There are a lot of advantages to twins though - especially better access to everything you want to store under the beds. You could even eliminate one of the twins and set up a desk, drafting table, computer station, sewing machine stand, etc. Of course you could also leave the twin frame in, and flip the mattress over to the other twin, and make "flex" use of the other side.

Are you getting rooked? Well the one with the queen is a year older, so that's part of the difference. On RV's generally "List Price" is paid only by very naive people. If you don't get at least 15% (and in this economy 20% off) you just aren't working the deal hard enough. I like being nice, I believe both sides of a deal should win, but I want the other side to win just a tiny bit less than I do. Once you decide what model(s) you want, decide what the most is that you'll be willing to pay and don't go above that. If the dealer doesn't have your requested model in stock, believe me, he can e-mail every other dealer in a 500 mile radius and find it - or you can even order one from the factory though that will take a 4-8 week buildout date and you'll get less of a discount than one that he's already bought "on spec".

If you've got the tow vehicle, you can buy from BATES, from Colonial, or from any other Airstream dealer of your choice. You're in South Carolina - I think the nearest MAJOR Airstream dealer is probably Bates in Florida. I'd make a trip to visit them if you're interested in a new Airstream.


IF I KNEW THEN WHAT I KNOW NOW - I would seriously consider "Gently Used". In this economy people are selling their toys. Health problems also happen that make good people give up their Airstreams. Used 27 FB's seem to be very hard to come by - but keep looking. Check your local craigslist, etc.

(There's actually a 28 CCD for sale at Colonial that is literally super loaded - www.colonialairstream.com and go to used inventory. Someone added solar, a high end dome antenna and synthetic leather upholstery. Of course the upholstery is gray - and it has all of the charm of an aircraft carrier - but in spite of that I find myself strangely attracted. I keep thinking "If I got several jewel toned throw pillows for the couch and a zebra rug for the floor and used bright fiesta ware on the table I bet I could make that look attractive"

Paula

[Gene]

If the 2008 is new and is the 27' you want, then it's a much better price. I don't know what list price is now, but $56K doesn't sound so good to me in this economic climate and at the end of the season.

Gene

[Andrew Selking]

We have 2007 25ft FB and we love it . If we had to do over we would get the 27ft just for the extra space We have the queen but the twins offer a lot of options.

[tksbaskets]

Originally Posted by MissDaisy

thank you all for this post. I have been reading these forums as a "guest" for a long time, finally became a member several weeks ago. I have been "Houseless" for the better part of a year and think I have found my perfect AS...a 27FB with twin beds. I have two small dogs and a "home" based business. There is a precious lack of twin bed models out there, but I believe I have found a 2009 Flying Cloud. They want about $56K for the thing. I have also found a 2008 Safari SE, queen but it's only $48K. I have lot's of friends, kids and guests and the twin bed option would work far better for me as a single person whose only snugglers are my 4-legged companions. Any opinions? Am I getting rooked? I expect to be houseless for at least another 2 years, maybe longer. The twin bed models sound like they have lots of extra storage space, and yes, I do need room for my work stuff. Any opinions? Am I getting rooked? Thank you thank you!

There is a lack of twin-bed Airstreams out there. I prefer to think it's because everyone LOVES theirs and won't give it up.

We went with the twin configuration for a number of reasons and are really pleased with it. DH is 6'2" and the twins are longer than the 'queen'. We are able to walk all the way from the front storage overhead bin to the dinette making the coach seem pretty spacious. We love the area in between the beds. When our sons are along I can pull the first privacy curtain (between the beds and the bathroom) and still have PLENTY of space to move around and dress, tidy, make the beds.

As far as sleeping space - we aren't little people and neither of us has ended up on the floor in the center yet

The twins are very nice for what you described above - friends joining you. There are very few 'friends' besides my DH that I would share an AS 'queen' bed with. The twins function as two extra couches in the evening or during a rain storm. Great to flop on and read (or play hand-held games) When DH and I get up in the morning the boys (I use that term but they are actually young men) crawl back to our beds and are very happy to not have to touch each other.

Can you tell we LOVE our twin bed Airstream??

TK