Maiden Voyage with our 2015 FC 28 rear queen

[kpayne]

Finishing up a rainy weekend in a very nice private campground near Hot Springs. Testing the systems on our new 2015 FC 28. The rain has actually kept us focused on reading all the material supplied by Airstream and the dealership as well as testing all the systems, checking for leaks, filling out warranty forms, etc. We are upgrading from a wonderful 20 year old Jayco 1206 pop-up camper and actually are quite sad to see it go. Raised our kids in it but now they are grown and gone and just my wife and I and thought we needed something a little more mobile and easier to use for our dream of touring the US and Canada. Have lusted after one of these for many years--remember watching the Apollo 11 astronauts in one after they splashed down. Plan to spend a lot of time in this puppy! Our observations so far:

1. Towing a 28 foot trailer for the first time is an adventure. You need to take it slow, make good use of those gigantic outside mirrors, and have some serious support from your navigator. That said, the Airstream tows remarkably smoothly and my new GMC 3/4 ton Duramax Diesel rumbled down the road without a hiccup.

2. Campers are almost uniformly wonderful folks and we always enjoy pulling into a campground and visiting with other campers, checking out rigs, swapping stories, helpful advice, etc. This trip was not an exception. Pulled into this deluxe campground about dark for our first night and were immediately surrounded by other campers eager to help out--a good thing since we needed help. Heck, one of them was actually a recently retired NASA engineer!

3. A 50 amp power cord is an awesome beast--huge compared to our previous camper. Guess it'll be ok since we have 2 AC units and camp Florida in the summer.

4. An equalizer hitch with sway bars is equally awesome. Am struggling somewhat with the medieval looking device used to attach and detach the sway bars. And man, is that equalizer hitch heavy!!

5. Had no clue that a 28 foot trailer could actually have zoned air conditioning! This is mind blowing! Have discovered we only need one unit to keep us comfy at night and the wonderful AC/heat pump will keep us cool or warm depending on the settings. We're using the unit furthest from the bed since this is considerably quieter at night.

6. The twin TVs work as advertised (we have cable!) and we can actually watch Blue Ray movies. We seldom watch TV and never before while camping, but hey, this could be very nice. Watched Back to the Future last night while the rain poured. Lovely!

7. The bed is firm, but comfy. We're average size folks so just fine for us. Maybe a tad small for larger folk.

8. Indoor potties are wonderful, especially in the rain. The shower is a nice feature but suspect I'll continue to use the campground shower if it is ok.

9. Refrigerator/freezer is cavernous. What am I going to do with all of my ice chests??

10. The Sharp Carousel Convection/Microwave has worked as advertised. So far we have microwaved popcorn, heated water, baked cookies, grilled salmon, baked biscuits.

11. The Baraldi Vent Hood is a powerful, if quirky device. It really sucks up all the smoke from the stove top quite effectively and delivers it with hurricane force to the outside (note to self: be sure to free up the outside latches on the vent before use). The vent will shut off if it gets too hot--3 burners in our case caused the hood to become quite hot and the fan shut off, setting off the smoke detector shortly thereafter. Once cooled off, fan works fine again. Note other campers have experienced similar issues with this vent.

12. Better free up those windows from the outside with a credit card or some similar device before opening for the first time. The seals can be fragile and you can tear some holes in them if you don't do this first. Guess the heat from the sun binds the seals to the glass.

13. Dumping is a snap with the proper equipment (we have a handy sewer hole next to the trailer) and beats carting the grey water away in one of those blue tanks.

14. The two skylights really light up this trailer, even in the rain. We seldom turn on any lights during the day.

15. The overall interior design (ours is kind of light tan with olive green counter tops) is clean and looks almost Scandinavian. Reminds us of being in an elegant stateroom on a ship or something like that.

16. From the outside, our trailer reflects the sky and surroundings in such a way so that it seems elegant and almost camouflaged.

17. There are lots of little nooks in this thing and we are continually discovering new areas to store stuff. Will be great not to have to climb over all of our gear in the back of the truck to get to the towels, our shoes, find the toothpaste, etc.

18. The Newbie Guide to Airstreaming by Rich Luhr has been very helpful. It was included with the trailer documentation and I highly recommend it for first timers such as myself.

19. Can't say too much about the awnings as it has rained continuously and we haven't tried to use them. Can say that the big front awning looks like a handful and I will definitely have a small aluminum ladder to help me lower it.

Any way, those are our observations for now. Will leave for home tomorrow and thus try out our hitching up abilities for the first time on our own. Wish us luck!

[KJRitchie]

4. Equalizer hitch. If you use the tongue jack to raise the truck a little more you should on most occasions be able to fit the bars on with the special tool. Maybe you were in an uneven site on this trip. Keep the head lubricated to prevent obnoxious noise.

12. Windows: Once you get them opened then spray some silicon onto a rag or sponge and coat the rubber gaskets liberally. This will make the windows open all the time. You will need to reapply after a few months.

19. Awnings. Practice deploying and retracting. If you have a center support be careful with it as it can come out the hole and slam back into the side of your new Airstream.

Glad you had a good time with it. Welcome

Kelvin

[Ron A]

Congratulations on your 2015 airstream. It sounds like you have got most of it figured out, happy camping.


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[gwydir]

Are you folks at Cathrine's Landing?

[kpayne]

Yes, we are camped at Catherine's Landing in Hot Springs. Nicest commercial RV park I've ever camped in. My experience is mostly limited to state parks, national parks, and BLM campgrounds.

[gwydir]

Stayed there for three days at the end of September. Really plush park. We had a spot down by the river. Really great. Best of luck with your new Airstream.
Rod

[Meeks]

I had a good time reading about your first weekend with your Airstream. We too went from a pop-up tent trailer to an Airstream this year. So many luxuries!
Curiously you didn't yet list the enjoyment of not having to lower your wet pop-up in the rain and then raising it again once back at your house to dry it out to keep mold from developing! Oh, and then lowering again .

[Arcticfox]

Congrat's on the new rig. We also have the 28- queen and love it. It sounds like you have a good handle on the rig and its systems...... If yo run into any issues don't hesitate to drop us a line might not have all the answers, but have run into a few things over time.

Hoping to be in your area in a couple months so getting the heads up on Catherine's Landing was great - thanks

Travel safe

Cheers
Doug


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[DeltaRon]

We've had our 2015 28 since June. Your report remarkably similar to our results. We've only had two problems so far. Our door requires a strong foot to open from inside and very hard slam from outside. Took to JC late June for repair; still a problem. Only other issue you should explore is location of water pump for Winterization. Our WP is located under the refrig behind the electrical panel. Had to remove entire electrical panel and furnace ductwork to install our Winterization kit. Real bummer.

[larryglarson]

Congratulations. You did the right thing reading every thing. We did too, but after 2 years. Takes lots of silicone to keep the windows opening, but they come around.

[Safari Streamer]

We have the same Airstream and are enjoying it. Only issues are the shower door not being level and needs something to support it and the entrance door has the issue of really needing to be slammed and/or kicked. We've made many trips with it and have plans for many more!

[moxie t. moto]

Originally Posted by kpayne

Finishing up a rainy weekend in a very nice private campground near Hot Springs. Testing the systems on our new 2015 FC 28. The rain has actually kept us focused on reading all the material supplied by Airstream and the dealership as well as testing all the systems, checking for leaks, filling out warranty forms, etc. We are upgrading from a wonderful 20 year old Jayco 1206 pop-up camper and actually are quite sad to see it go. Raised our kids in it but now they are grown and gone and just my wife and I and thought we needed something a little more mobile and easier to use for our dream of touring the US and Canada. Have lusted after one of these for many years--remember watching the Apollo 11 astronauts in one after they splashed down. Plan to spend a lot of time in this puppy! Our observations so far:

1. Towing a 28 foot trailer for the first time is an adventure. You need to take it slow, make good use of those gigantic outside mirrors, and have some serious support from your navigator. That said, the Airstream tows remarkably smoothly and my new GMC 3/4 ton Duramax Diesel rumbled down the road without a hiccup.

2. Campers are almost uniformly wonderful folks and we always enjoy pulling into a campground and visiting with other campers, checking out rigs, swapping stories, helpful advice, etc. This trip was not an exception. Pulled into this deluxe campground about dark for our first night and were immediately surrounded by other campers eager to help out--a good thing since we needed help. Heck, one of them was actually a recently retired NASA engineer!

3. A 50 amp power cord is an awesome beast--huge compared to our previous camper. Guess it'll be ok since we have 2 AC units and camp Florida in the summer.

4. An equalizer hitch with sway bars is equally awesome. Am struggling somewhat with the medieval looking device used to attach and detach the sway bars. And man, is that equalizer hitch heavy!!

5. Had no clue that a 28 foot trailer could actually have zoned air conditioning! This is mind blowing! Have discovered we only need one unit to keep us comfy at night and the wonderful AC/heat pump will keep us cool or warm depending on the settings. We're using the unit furthest from the bed since this is considerably quieter at night.

6. The twin TVs work as advertised (we have cable!) and we can actually watch Blue Ray movies. We seldom watch TV and never before while camping, but hey, this could be very nice. Watched Back to the Future last night while the rain poured. Lovely!

7. The bed is firm, but comfy. We're average size folks so just fine for us. Maybe a tad small for larger folk.

8. Indoor potties are wonderful, especially in the rain. The shower is a nice feature but suspect I'll continue to use the campground shower if it is ok.

9. Refrigerator/freezer is cavernous. What am I going to do with all of my ice chests??

10. The Sharp Carousel Convection/Microwave has worked as advertised. So far we have microwaved popcorn, heated water, baked cookies, grilled salmon, baked biscuits.

11. The Baraldi Vent Hood is a powerful, if quirky device. It really sucks up all the smoke from the stove top quite effectively and delivers it with hurricane force to the outside (note to self: be sure to free up the outside latches on the vent before use). The vent will shut off if it gets too hot--3 burners in our case caused the hood to become quite hot and the fan shut off, setting off the smoke detector shortly thereafter. Once cooled off, fan works fine again. Note other campers have experienced similar issues with this vent.

12. Better free up those windows from the outside with a credit card or some similar device before opening for the first time. The seals can be fragile and you can tear some holes in them if you don't do this first. Guess the heat from the sun binds the seals to the glass.

13. Dumping is a snap with the proper equipment (we have a handy sewer hole next to the trailer) and beats carting the grey water away in one of those blue tanks.

14. The two skylights really light up this trailer, even in the rain. We seldom turn on any lights during the day.

15. The overall interior design (ours is kind of light tan with olive green counter tops) is clean and looks almost Scandinavian. Reminds us of being in an elegant stateroom on a ship or something like that.

16. From the outside, our trailer reflects the sky and surroundings in such a way so that it seems elegant and almost camouflaged.

17. There are lots of little nooks in this thing and we are continually discovering new areas to store stuff. Will be great not to have to climb over all of our gear in the back of the truck to get to the towels, our shoes, find the toothpaste, etc.

18. The Newbie Guide to Airstreaming by Rich Luhr has been very helpful. It was included with the trailer documentation and I highly recommend it for first timers such as myself.

19. Can't say too much about the awnings as it has rained continuously and we haven't tried to use them. Can say that the big front awning looks like a handful and I will definitely have a small aluminum ladder to help me lower it.

Any way, those are our observations for now. Will leave for home tomorrow and thus try out our hitching up abilities for the first time on our own. Wish us luck!

you will be told not to do this but I do it and it works! home depot paint dept. get one of their paint can openers the one with the little hook on the end.the hook used very carefully inserted uner the glass and window fram and pulled very carefuult toward you works great in getting it loose! try it it works

[toothpull]

I agree... That hitch is a bear for me too... Heavy and awkward to handle until I found "Hitch Grip" at Camping World. It makes moving the hitch much easier... Not perfect... But better. Relatively simple and inexpensive. FYI...i have no financial interest in the product.

[Ron A]

Sticking windows- I use a product from Napa auto-parts called Sil-Glyde on the rubber gasket around the windows. Helps prevent the window sticking to the rubber gasket.



Ron
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[DeltaRon]

Safari Streamer, sounds like you have same door problem. JC tried to fix it in June. Guess we have to make another 540 mile trip back there as door is worse now. We have to slam it so hard it sounds like the belly pan is falling off. Are you having same issue and how are you proceeding? Frustrating!

[m.hony]

Originally Posted by KJRitchie

4. Equalizer hitch. If you use the tongue jack to raise the truck a little more you should on most occasions be able to fit the bars on with the special tool. Maybe you were in an uneven site on this trip. Keep the head lubricated to prevent obnoxious noise.

12. Windows: Once you get them opened then spray some silicon onto a rag or sponge and coat the rubber gaskets liberally. This will make the windows open all the time. You will need to reapply after a few months.

19. Awnings. Practice deploying and retracting. If you have a center support be careful with it as it can come out the hole and slam back into the side of your new Airstream.

Glad you had a good time with it. Welcome

Kelvin

What he said-
You'll never have to use that funny looking little pry bar.

[KJRitchie]

Originally Posted by m.hony

What he said-
You'll never have to use that funny looking little pry bar.

I meant to say in item 4, WITHOUT the special tool. But I still carry it. I've had to hitch up and pull out of a campsite to more level road on a couple of occasions to get the spring bars on too.

Kelvin

[m.hony]

I have carried it since day 1, but have never used it.
I guess I think the truck 'n' trailer may one day be on a hill so steep to to gue jack won't go high enough.


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[Rocinante]

Welcome! A couple of thoughts:

(1) The Airstream warranty for the sealant all around the trailer is only good for 6 months, while everything else is warrantied for 2 years. So, even though your new baby is not likely leaking at this time, go over it carefully looking for any places where sealant might be cracked or incompletely applied. If you find any, have the dealer fix it under warranty while you're there for anything else. We should have done this but missed it. We've had no problems, but we're now having this addressed to prevent future leaks. If we'd done it inside the 6 month window, it wouldn't be costing us as much now.
(2) If you find yourself needing two or more Lynx blocks to level the trailer (or equivalent height on an Anderson), you may find it easier to remove the Equal-i-zer bars before you level the trailer. If you remove the bars afterward, you may find there's plenty of torque between the truck and trailer that makes it tough to get the bars off, even with the jack waaaay up. Try it and see what works best for you.

[Bigventure]

Originally Posted by DeltaRon

Safari Streamer, sounds like you have same door problem. JC tried to fix it in June. Guess we have to make another 540 mile trip back there as door is worse now. We have to slam it so hard it sounds like the belly pan is falling off. Are you having same issue and how are you proceeding? Frustrating!

Try some lithium grease on the latch part of the door. You can get a spray can at the auto parts store. It's also good on auto door hinges. Check the screws on the on the latch that fold the outside handle onto the edge of the door. You may have to hold the rubber back to get at them