New to Travel Trailers - 2019 Bambi 16RB

[chs_stream]

Hey there airstream community! I'm new to the travel trailer world and excited to take our first adventure.

I just bought a 2019 Bambi 16RB. I purchased it used out of Florida and have it being delivered early next week to Charleston SC. The goal is to outfit it and then use my 2018 Toyota Tacoma double cab 2WD to tow it out to my brothers house in Grand Junction CO - where we will use his house as a home base to take 2-4 day adventures out west.

Coming along for adventure is my wife, 2 kids (12 and 9), and our dog!

I've found lots of good advice on this forum but I figured since I'm new to towing a travel trailer (I've been towing boats for 20+ years) I would post what I have so far and see if you folks can suggest other items that I "need" to make it a safe and pleasant adventure!

For the Airstream Bambi

• Honda 2200i inverter generator
• Hutch Mountain propane conversion kit with quick connect & NGK iridium spark plug
• Easy Start Soft Start for the A/C
• 12 V DC cable for Honda inverter to charge house batteries.

For the TV (2018 Tacoma)

• Tekonsha Primus Electronic Brake Control (I already have the tow package)

The Questions:

1. Do you suggest that I purchase a no-sway weight distribution hitch? It appears many of you recommend Andersen but I also see others saying they don't use one so I wanted to get some opinions since it's a $500 purchase.
2. What do I need in terms of cables/hoses? It comes with the Airstream provided 30A electrical cable.
3. Do I need an adapter for the 30A cable to plug in the 2200i inverter? It only has the 110V standard outlets.
4. What do I need to level and secure the Bambi when it's not connected to the TV? ie. wheel chocks, tongue level blocks etc?

Thanks in advance for input AirForum community!

[waninae39]

sway and weight distribution is a MUST IMHO.

like insurance, it gives you peace of mind

[Erika_C]

Hi and welcome!

I am a newbie as well and asked similar questions. I got lots of good info from folks on this forum I figured I would like to my post as it was really helpful to me.

https://www.airforums.com/forums/f36...ml#post2367501

Safe travels!

[farafield]

Hi, congrats on your new AS! I highly suggest that you get Rich Luhr's books (below) and keep them handy with the OM at all times. Read them at least 20 times. What you need somewhat depends on what kind of camping you are going to be doing. "The Newbies Guide To Airstreaming" and "Airstream Life's (Nearly) Complete Guide to Airstream Maintenance" Have fun! I love my 16 so much! And, wow, I have learned A LOT. -Kim

[Hans627]

Congratulations on your new AS. It's great to have another member of "the club".

And welcome to forum. As you already know it's a great place to learn and share.

I'll take your number 4 question:

To level many use something like this as shown on YouTube (

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b4JQV15VzBc

). It works well.

You will definitely need wheel chocks. I suggest ones made of rubberized material as those made of plastic slip easier.

And for the tongue some carry short pieces of 2X6 or some like this (https://www.amazon.com/Homeon-Wheels...2132032&sr=8-8).

Not directly related to your questions I'd suggest getting a tire pressure monitoring system. A single axle makes have a flat tire more challenging. TST Truck makes a nice unit (https://store.airstreamlife.com/coll...your-airstream)

All the best!

[chs_stream]

Thanks!

[GetawA-S]

For your "full house", may I suggest a "clam" type outdoor shelter?

[chs_stream]

Originally Posted by waninae39

sway and weight distribution is a MUST IMHO.

like insurance, it gives you peace of mind

Thank you for the advice! I've decided to go with a setup... now just researching.

[chs_stream]

Thank you for all the input! We took our first trip for fathers day up to the smokey mountains and it was a huge success! I ended up with the EAZ LIFT weight distribution hitch and my 2018 Toyota Tacoma towed the 16 Bambi very comfortably. I didn't install the anti-sway portion of the WDH but I didn't need it. I will say that the Tacoma struggled a bit over 70 MPH and only 12 MPG but overall it was easy to tow. 4 of us in this little trailer worked and the solar system kept the battery charged no problem. Still trying to figure out how much propane the refrigerator uses!

[Erika_C]

Great! Keep us posted. I am particularly curious about the propane conversion kit and how much you can get out of it. Do you plan to run the AC at all?

[chs_stream]

Originally Posted by chs_stream

Thank you for all the input! We took our first trip for fathers day up to the smokey mountains and it was a huge success! I ended up with the EAZ LIFT weight distribution hitch and my 2018 Toyota Tacoma towed the 16 Bambi very comfortably. I didn't install the anti-sway portion of the WDH but I didn't need it. I will say that the Tacoma struggled a bit over 70 MPH and only 12 MPG but overall it was easy to tow. 4 of us in this little trailer worked and the solar system kept the battery charged no problem. Still trying to figure out how much propane the refrigerator uses!

I installed the Hutch Mountain Tri fuel conversion kit on the Honday EU2200i inverter. It works great! easy install. I also installed the Easy Start on the A/C. We ran the generator with the A/C for 2 hours during the heat of the day and the generator ran on "eco" mode and didn't skip a beat. I can't say how much propane it used, but not much.

[kpfate]

Welcome! We are newbies ourselves and will pick up our 2018 22FB Bambi on July 4th in north Denver!

While you are visiting "our neck of the woods" (We are in SE Wyoming), come to Wyoming as there are soooo many places to see and stay - no, not just Yellowstone...we have far better unknown places that are off the beaten trail :0)