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Old 11-26-2011, 08:36 AM   #101
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Well then, I guess everyone will have to start quibbling about new new vs old new. It is pretty much like Chevy vs Ford. It will never be resolved.

Happy Thanksgiving to all.

To the participants of one side or the other of the discussion: Just be thankful that you are not one those poor souls on the other side of the discussion.

Ken
Well everyone knows its Ford of course ..
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Old 12-01-2011, 11:03 AM   #102
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Happily bought new

I'm the proud owner of about a 6 week old 2012 27FB International.

When my wife and I got tired of living in our 19.5' Roadtrek Class "B" van we weighed the choices of motor homes, 5th wheels or trailers. The choice came down to trailers. When we talked about trailers there was no choice it was going to be Airstream or nothing.

We were about 3/4 the way through a 3 month road trip and started kicking tires. Our knowledge of Airstreams was slight, just what we'd read on the Airstream web site, classifieds and talking to dealers. When a GREAT dealer in Gulfport, MS offered us a brand spanking new 2012 A/S in trade for our Roadtrek we jumped at it.

There was ZERO chance of my buying used and after reading the restoration stories here on the forum it would be ZERO+. I don't want the chore, I just want the trailer!
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Old 12-02-2011, 05:54 AM   #103
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xo1rider

Congratulations on your new AS. It seems that we went through a similar process before we bought our 25 ft Flying Cloud. We purchased new basically for the same reasons.

John
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Old 01-07-2012, 08:45 AM   #104
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I had a 1976 argosy. Loved that trailer..fixed it up completely minus cushions and curtains. Had it about 6 months, paid cash for it. never spent one night in it. The blood sweat and tears still hold dear to my heart. Went to a airstream dealer looking for a door knob part. They didn't sell parts..so we looked at new. My wife fell in love with new. Sold the argosy outright for about 3,000 profit and still wish I had it. No room to keep both, but there was something magical about that white looking "pill"

Shane
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Old 01-07-2012, 09:08 AM   #105
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I've bought new and used over the years and both have worked for me. I bought the Airstream new with the idea of keeping it at least ten years. Other than the first year(s) bugs, this has worked out fine. No horror stories here.

Anyone considering one of these trailers, new or used should try to nail down the service right away. Either do it yourself, or have a dependable source of service, or both. Not stressing over the service will make the whole experience more enjoyable.

"It isn't built like it used to be" has been around all of my 60 years. If this is meant to comment on longevity, its best to leave it to time to make that determination. Lots of stuff I've seen with that label has survived the test of time just fine in my lifetime.
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Old 01-07-2012, 09:09 PM   #106
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It's pretty fun to read through this thread and consider none of this discussion would apply to any other brand of TT! Also all this discussion would not apply to chevy or ford or dodge trucks or cars. Perhaps the only other product made in America that compete in the quality arena as Airstream is made by Nautiques (formerly known as Correct Craft). Quality in Airstreams and Nautiques brings out the passion of ownership not found elsewhere. thank goodness American ingenuity and craftsmanship is still alive and well! It is all that will keep America in a position of strong leadership in the future.
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Old 01-07-2012, 09:21 PM   #107
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Originally Posted by nautiqueman View Post
It's pretty fun to read through this thread and consider none of this discussion would apply to any other brand of TT! Also all this discussion would not apply to chevy or ford or dodge trucks or cars. Perhaps the only other product made in America that compete in the quality arena as Airstream is made by Nautiques (formerly known as Correct Craft). Quality in Airstreams and Nautiques brings out the passion of ownership not found elsewhere. thank goodness American ingenuity and craftsmanship is still alive and well! It is all that will keep America in a position of strong leadership in the future.
Great observation!!

Thanks for the new perspective.

Shane
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Old 01-07-2012, 09:53 PM   #108
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Quote:
Originally Posted by nautiqueman View Post
It's pretty fun to read through this thread and consider none of this discussion would apply to any other brand of TT! Also all this discussion would not apply to chevy or ford or dodge trucks or cars. Perhaps the only other product made in America that compete in the quality arena as Airstream is made by Nautiques (formerly known as Correct Craft). Quality in Airstreams and Nautiques brings out the passion of ownership not found elsewhere. thank goodness American ingenuity and craftsmanship is still alive and well! It is all that will keep America in a position of strong leadership in the future.


If we are talking quality...a mission statement worthy of note.

The Impeccable Quality of Allison Boats

The best of design and engineering processes must be teamed with exceptional materials and quality craftsmanship to obtain a uniquely useful, durable, and efficient product. Allison boasts the industry’s first and only welded and laminated Alloy grid transom reinforcement. Allison was first to eliminate transom rot from the list of boat owners’ woes. Metal transom reinforcement with no wood structure was perfected at Allison in the early eighties. Another significant first for Allison set an industry standard. In conjunction with the reinforced No-Rot transom, Allison simultaneously in the eighties removed all wood from the boat structure. Just in the last few years many other companies have started trying to emulate this standard. The Allison difference is a twenty year head start. The best design, engineering, and materials cannot build a superior product without an unusually high build quality.

At Allison, build quality is the product and responsibility of a few highly trained and experienced craftsmen. If you visit our plant on Monday and then again on Friday, chances are you will see most of the same boats at a slightly different level of completion. Hand fitment by skilled craftsmen of virtually every part of structure, superstructure, and each accessory assures the absolute highest quality boat available at any price. Each process is checked, checked again and then inspected. Each Allison Bass Boat for example, is the product of four to five times the man hours required to build our competitors’ similar sized boat. Hand lay-up of every ounce of cloth and resin is time consuming. So is the process of removing every extra ounce of unnecessary resin from the lay-up. Only with such measures can you build a truly exceptional and world class boat. Only one boat holds the most single engine world speed records. Only one Bass Boat can guarantee his owner to be the first to the fishing hole. Only Allison takes the care to design, engineer, and craft from the finest materials available a boat that will last your lifetime. That is the Allison Difference.


Bob
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Old 01-16-2012, 10:54 AM   #109
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The best...

PHP Code:
I think it (mainlycomes down to moneypure and simpleThose who can afford new will buy new. Those who can't will look for the best trailer out there that they can afford. 
I bought mine with a pre-established budget, having decided to not invest in 'real' property again. I started searching, perhaps witha bias towards AS, but looked at all. I finally found mine on ebay early in 2010. I spent as much for an 11 year old coach as I could have for a new SOB, and don't regret it (although the repairs/replacements keep on surprising, lol).

The point is, I bought the best I could with the budget I had when I figured out I could not settle for an SOB (even a 'new' SOB).

This forum is the best! I'm fulltiming in my new home, and thanks to all the priceless experiences/information available, am even beginning to eye that abandoned Argosy with broken window in a storage lot down the street, knowing I don't need a manual, just the internet and Air.

The new ones do look pretty! The old ones have that 'allure'. We all have our preferences and energy levels which dictate the direction we go. As others have mentioned, it's not always about the money we spend, but what we want to accomplish with the money we have.

Philip
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Old 01-16-2012, 11:15 AM   #110
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I certainly don't think it comes down to money, time is money and because of that fact I may end up "spending" as much or more restoring my old airstream then if I bought a new one, not that one is better or worse.
For one thing it's just practicality, it's a big big job working on an old trailer so for some folks it just isn't in their wheelhouse, BUT they still love airstreams and want it to work perfect from the start, which is great.
The other thing is the preferred esthetic. Although they share much of the same genes the vintage and new airstreams are quite different esthetically speaking IMO. For some folks a new one just won't cut it as far as look and feel, while other folks like the new look and feel. Better to keep the genes evolving and growing which I imagine would keep the airstream community alive with fresh members, because in the end, if they stopped making them there would only be a finite number out there and thus a finite number of the community.
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Old 01-16-2012, 11:45 AM   #111
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Eric

It depends on the person. For lots of us it really does come down to the money. I have a hard enough time justifying 8k for a 66 TW that needs some work, that fortunately I have the skills to do. My wife would never agree to spending 50k on a new trailer. Now if I had the 50k and my wife said go ahead and spend it, I am not really sure what I would do. Would I spend the 50k on new or 8k on vintage and put 7k more into it to get it just the way I want it? I don't know, but since I don't have the 50k or the green light from my wife, I do have my 66TW and I am quite happy. Now if I can just get a kitchen pass to head to Florida for 2 weeks in March, I will be real happy. So, maybr you are right, maybe it does not come down to the money. As long as I have an Airstream that I want, vintage or new, then I will be happy. For me, the important factor is that you can make the vintage Airstreams just as good, and in some cases better (lower weight) than the new Airstreams. You can't do this with TV and motorhomes.

Dan
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Old 01-16-2012, 10:41 PM   #112
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Eric

It depends on the person. For lots of us it really does come down to the money. I have a hard enough time justifying 8k for a 66 TW that needs some work, that fortunately I have the skills to do. My wife would never agree to spending 50k on a new trailer. Now if I had the 50k and my wife said go ahead and spend it, I am not really sure what I would do. Would I spend the 50k on new or 8k on vintage and put 7k more into it to get it just the way I want it? I don't know, but since I don't have the 50k or the green light from my wife, I do have my 66TW and I am quite happy. Now if I can just get a kitchen pass to head to Florida for 2 weeks in March, I will be real happy. So, maybr you are right, maybe it does not come down to the money. As long as I have an Airstream that I want, vintage or new, then I will be happy. For me, the important factor is that you can make the vintage Airstreams just as good, and in some cases better (lower weight) than the new Airstreams. You can't do this with TV and motorhomes.

Dan
True enough. I guess there's a third type in there that likes the entire line and all the years and is happy with all of em, which is great.
It seems I'm just seeing it from my point of view, that, personally a new Airstream is of very little interest to me. If given a new airstream I would turn around right away and sell it to put the money into my vintage trailers. That being said I figure there are people out there who see it the opposite way, that they have no interest in the issues (and my how many there are) with a vintage trailer and love the new ones. It makes sense that there would also be people who just love em all!
It also depends on how much restoration one is going to do to the trailer when it comes to thinking about the overall cost in time and money.
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Old 01-17-2012, 11:14 AM   #113
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I guess there's a third type in there that likes the entire line and all the years and is happy with all of em, which is great.
I fall into that category. But I don't have enough skills to personally renovate a trailer (no matter the age), and not enough money to pay someone else to do it. Also, while I appreciate and admire the vintage style, it's not what I want to live in. If I could renovate myself, I'd only put in references to a vintage style, not restore.
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Old 08-25-2013, 03:35 PM   #114
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Vintage or New?

I've spent plenty of years (I'm now 70) restoring or rehabilitating motorcycles, 3 blue-water sailboats (yes, I'm a fool for teak) and a 120 year-old historic victorian home. Been there, done that and have all the scars. Never a question. We bought a 2014 AS for our RV.

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Old 08-27-2013, 06:12 PM   #115
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We bought TWO new Airstreams in four months (traded our new Flying Cloud for a new Classic). I love new things! And having a two year warranty brings me comfort. I liked the fact that I was able to pick the features I wanted.

With that said, I admire people who have the knowledge and skills to restore vintage Airstream trailers.

To each his own.
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Old 08-27-2013, 07:04 PM   #116
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This is a very funny thread to me...
Anyone buy from me(having me restore a trailer) is buying a brand new one. Everything that leaves my door is brand new since it was restored to original condition. They also get every single option they want.
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