New Owner - 2017 Classic

[mojoe7009]

Breathe in, breathe out, move on. What's cherry is cherry, what's laminate is laminate and we love our 2017 Classic.

[RareStream]

...and that's why Airstream's quality free-falls while it's prices snow-ball.

[twbucksr]

If Rare Stream is so sure the wood is fake, he should buy a replacement cabinet door or drawer, saw it in half and post the video.

[RareStream]

If you can't tell the difference between fake and real wood, then the Classic is THE trailer for you.

[EarlM]

I ordered a new 33 Classic, has anyone got theirs yet ?

Thanks

Earl

[69SoulShine]

Betternow thanks, we have been trying to this figure out. That just brought a hole new level of happiness to our new Classic!!!

[66Overlander]

Originally Posted by RareStream

Have they changed the "wood" in the 2017 Classic?



That sure doesn't LOOK like real cherry or maple...looks like pine.

Maybe it matches the fake plastic laminate walls better???


Hmmm...

As I have stated before, some Classic owners, like us, prefer the high quality laminate that is used on the large wall areas like the bathroom walls. It is much more consistent appearing and more durable than the cherry plywood that was used on the early 2015 Classics. And this high quality laminate is nothing like the low end paper based stuff used on cheap SOBs. That said, everyone's opinions may differ, but we like it.

Per the supplier to Airstream, the reason the plywood was replaced by the laminate was NOT due to cost (directly). Airstream was damaging and scrapping too many sheets of the Cherry plywood during installation. The supplier has noted that the laminate was a good change. To us, if Airstream was damaging the plywood too frequently, then we were likely to damage it pretty often ourselves. We are glad not to have it.

But to the main question you asked, that answer is YES, the real wood used for the cabinet doors and face frames in the 2017 Classics did change. While the 2015 & 2016 Classics used Appalachian Cherry, the 2017s changed to a European wood (Ash, I think, but could be wrong, I am not a wood expert). That European wood in the 2017s can be stained the same Cherry color as the 2015/16s, but if you've ever spent time in a 2015/16 and then see a 2017 in person, it is obvious that the wood grain different. They both look nice, but we prefer the "tighter" wood grain of the real cherry used in our 2016. Interestingly, the supplier of some of the Classic cabinets (Airstream expanded from a single supplier to two suppliers for 2017 due to the popularity of the Classics far exceeding their projections), the European wood is actually more expensive than the real Cherry that was used in 2015/16. I do not know the reason for the change, but can only guess that maybe the 2nd cabinet supplier could not get the Appalachian Cherry in sufficient quantities.