Hello y'all,
Just signed docs for our brand new 2019 28-ft Airstream yesterday! We're very excited and can't wait to go camping. We've owned an SOB of similar size before (25ft, 27.x' overall length, 7650 lbs gross weight) and so far the AS seems like a huge upgrade
No trouble with the walk-through, perhaps it's too early to comment on 'quality' but it looked fine to me. (Dealer must have swept up the sawdust, LOL!)
Better in AS
- Thoughtful use of space, storage cubbies everywhere
- Spotlights in bedroom
- Rugged window hardware
- Fit & finish
The same: AS vs SOB
- Appliances
Needs improvement in AS
- Lack of large storage areas, SOBs tend to have huge pass-through cavities in the belly. Where to put lawn chairs? Will figure out something.
History:
We moved to TX about 1.5y ago and sold our SOB rather than hauling it over. We're dying to go camping and explore our new home but the weather out here makes tent camping a challenge (we tent camped for about 15 years before the SOB. ) Apparently my wife has always wanted an AS so we went browsing at the local AS dealer.
They had a great deal on a left over 28ft model that seemed perfect for us and two teenagers: separate dinette, twin beds affording some extra room and a large couch for watching TV. IMO the 28ft is the 'ideal' layout, easily beating the 27 ft model since they share the same external dimensions. While the 27ft has a better kitchen layout the dinette in our 28ft will provide a huge prep area when cooking
We tried to put the shopping trip behind us and I deleted all my bookmarks. For a couple week I cross-shopped for used models and figured out what we were looking for:
- 28ft layout was a must since our kids are still young enough to hang out with us. They don't need dedicated beds (eg. bunkhouse)
- Even if it's just the two of us the large layout will allow use of the dinette & couch without collapsing anything
- Wanted the vented AC, even our SOB had this and a loud AC would drive me nuts. 2015 or newer!
- Wanted the twin bed layout, our SOB had a Queen and moving around the bedroom was a PITA. This meant 2016 or newer.
There aren't very many 28ft airstreams in the used market and the few I found were selling for similar prices as the one at our dealer. So we went back to kick the tires and found they had an additional 1k rebate from AS. Decided to pull the trigger!
Next Steps:
- Will order the Blue Ox
1500 hitch, dealer only carried EQ
- Install Progressive 50A internal surge protector (we have 2 ACs)
- Replace stock power cable with the softer Camco version from Amazon
- Replace stock batteries w/ Trojan T105
- Add power cutoff switch
Eventually:
- Add solar panel set to permit silent boondocking
Wife wants:
- Wallpaper everywhere (how to talk her off this cliff?)
- Knick knacks, throw pillows
Linear Mode
