Thank you for the info-purchased our first AS today!

[NMathews]

Hey all,

I wanted to introduce myself but also say thank you for all of the input and content that is present within these forums! I have learned so much about being a new AS owner, and placed an order for our first AS today!

We decided on the 2022 Globetrotter 30 RBT, as it best fit our family of 4 and we LOVED the interior of the GB line, plus all of the windows!

I recently posted a question in the exterior restoration forum about an RV clearcoat our dealer recommended to us, and was wondering if it was necessary for our new AS coming in Dec. It may be the wrong forum for that, sorry if it was.

Input would be greatly appreciated though!!

[Dennis C]

Congrats!

Are you expecting your new Airstream in December of 2021 or December of 2022? Good for you if you can take delivery in 2021!

[NMathews]

Originally Posted by Dennis C

Congrats!

Are you expecting your new Airstream in December of 2021 or December of 2022? Good for you if you can take delivery in 2021!

Dec of 2021-we got really lucky it wasn't taken yet!

[uncle_bob]

Hi

Welcome !!

You may well get your AS in December. It's also quite possible it will come in the middle of June. Don't do a lot of non-refundable reservations until you actually have eyes on the trailer .....

Bob

[wulfraat]

Congrats! Great floorplan.

You don’t need any exterior treatment. Your dealer is just trying to pocket some high margin profit dollars at your expense.

Just wax your trailer twice a year with a good quality automotive wax and you are good to go!

[Fungus]

Congrats.

What’s your tow vehicle?

[NMathews]

2021 Ford F150 Lariat 4WD with the max tow package is our soon-to-be TV.

[Fungus]

Originally Posted by NMathews

2021 Ford F150 Lariat 4WD with the max tow package is our soon-to-be TV.

You might want to rethink that. Payload will be your problem. Count on a higher-than-advertised tongue weight at the receiver of the truck. 4WD costs you some payload as does Lariat. Any goodies such as sunroof take a bite, too. Our door sticker said 1610# of payload. All humans in the truck count against payload, including the driver.

My 2020 F-150 max tow pulled my 2017 International 25FB adequately but payload was a problem. I also felt that the trailer drove the truck sometimes.

[NMathews]

Originally Posted by Fungus

You might want to rethink that. Payload will be your problem. Count on a higher-than-advertised tongue weight at the receiver of the truck. 4WD costs you some payload as does Lariat. Any goodies such as sunroof take a bite, too. Our door sticker said 1610# of payload. All humans in the truck count against payload, including the driver.

My 2020 F-150 max tow pulled my 2017 International 25FB adequately but payload was a problem. I also felt that the trailer drove the truck sometimes.

According to the PDF of all of the payloads and towing capacities of the F150, our configuration-Supercrew, 6.5' bed, 4x4, Max tow package, Ecoboost 3.5L w/ 3.55 rear axle diff. - we *should* get 2155 lbs. of payload, along with 13,800 lbs. of towing capacity.

I know that is before cargo, passengers, etc., but we went as bare-bones with the add-ons that weren't a necessity for towing in an attempt to counter these downsides, which is also why we didn't go higher than the Lariat trim. This is also our new DD, so we didn't necessarily want too large of a TV to drive to work and/or errands. Our dealer rep verified this configuration would work adequately as well before we ordered.

Sorry if I came off a bit harsh, just giving the specs.

[Vantair]

Paper specs one thing, asphalt experience another. You will be on asphalt far more than on paper real world towing. Be safe and enjoy the rigs.

[wulfraat]

Originally Posted by NMathews

According to the PDF

Your door sticker will be different.

[uncle_bob]

Originally Posted by wulfraat

Your door sticker will be different.

Hi

Door sticker could be 400 pounds lower, depending on this or that. They never ever seem to be at the "internet" numbers.

If the tongue weight on the trailer, loaded ready to go camping is in the 1,000 to 1,200 pound range, that would be pretty typical for this trailer and how most folks load them.

Hitch plus shank could be anything from 50 pounds to 300 pounds depending on what you get. Staying under 100 pounds is rare with this sized trailer.

A family of four may be under 400 pounds when the kids are small. They get bigger fast. I have empirical data on this

Even traveling light, you do have certain tools and spare parts to bring along. There simply isn't a choice. If this or that breaks in the middle of nowhere you need to be able to fix it. Is that 100 pounds or is it a bit more .... how lucky do you feel

All the stuff above comes straight out of the truck's payload number. None of it is already included.

Whatever you do, run your rig past a CAT scale when it's ready to go camping. The cost is < $15 and it'll take less than 10 minutes. You don't want to guess about loading if you are close. You very much need hard data.

Bob

[Dennis C]

I’ve never towed a 30-footer, so I can’t offer any advice on tow vehicle. The advice in this thread about going to the CAT scale and knowing your actual weights is the best that I’ve seen here. There are more pieces to this puzzle than the payload number.

I hope it all works out the way you’re expecting. Good luck!

[NMathews]

Thank you! Will look into the CAT scale thing to weigh our rig.

[NMathews]

Originally Posted by Dennis C

I’ve never towed a 30-footer, so I can’t offer any advice on tow vehicle. The advice in this thread about going to the CAT scale and knowing your actual weights is the best that I’ve seen here. There are more pieces to this puzzle than the payload number.

I hope it all works out the way you’re expecting. Good luck!

The scales will be good for our TT in tow, as our truck-to-be is coming with an onboard scale for the hitch/bed to determine our hitch weight and available payload after hooking up.

[Fungus]

Originally Posted by wulfraat

Your door sticker will be different.

Scale could be even more different. Scale dropped my F-150 payload capacity by 60#, which doesn't sound like much except when you're already too heavy or nearly so.

Originally Posted by NMathews

According to the PDF of all of the payloads and towing capacities of the F150, our configuration-Supercrew, 6.5' bed, 4x4, Max tow package, Ecoboost 3.5L w/ 3.55 rear axle diff. - we *should* get 2155 lbs. of payload, along with 13,800 lbs. of towing capacity.

That's my 2020 F-150, except for the longer bed: 3.5L Ecoboost, 10-speed, max tow, Lariat, Supercrew, etc. Worthless sunroof eroded some of my payload. I like the Lariat trim level. It comes with some niceties that you might add individually, anyway.

My F-150 handles more like a sedan than a truck, which is nice for a daily driver, but it has the short bed. Curb-to-curb turning radius of your F-150 might be different from the short-bed F-250 but the wheelbases are within a couple of inches. The F-250 is taller than the F-150 so garaging it can be an issue. And it's a big step from the cab to the ground. All this to say that I'm not sure how much different the F-250 short bed would be as a daily driver when compared to the F-150 long bed. Too little data to know. My F-150 was our daily driver but the F-250 will not be once I put 1000 miles on it. (DW bought a Lexus GX to haul around four or five grandkids at a time.)

We bought our F-150 thinking we would be towing a 20-foot Basecamp. We stumbled upon a barely-broken-in 2017 International 25FB while visiting family in VA. Towed it to Texas in three days. I beefed up the suspension with Roadmaster Active Suspension to mitigate porpoising. But in the end, getting from campground to campground was not as pleasant as I would have liked. Driving should not be a chore.

I second Bob's advice re weighing your rig and adjusting as necessary. It was an illuminating experience for me. CAT scales are easy (and inexpensive) if you download the app and register a credit card.

I hope it works out for you.

[Dennis C]

Originally Posted by NMathews

The scales will be good for our TT in tow, as our truck-to-be is coming with an onboard scale for the hitch/bed to determine our hitch weight and available payload after hooking up.

I don't know how well those onboard scales work, but I'd trust the CAT scale above that. The CAT scales are certified to be correct, and they don't lie.

I've got an aftermarket onboard scale for my truck (Curt Better Weigh) that connects to my OBD II port. It's okay, but not great. Additionally, the weight distribution hitch and the way you load things really do matter. As an example, my Sherline tongue weight scale shows my trailer's tongue weight to be about 535 lbs. This is pretty close to what the Better Weight says also. When I check it on the CAT scales, it's about 620 lbs. I'd consider an onboard scale to be directional at best. Your experience may be better...

[Fungus]

Originally Posted by NMathews

The scales will be good for our TT in tow, as our truck-to-be is coming with an onboard scale for the hitch/bed to determine our hitch weight and available payload after hooking up.

I would be interested in an onboard scale that could weigh each axle. Otherwise, it falls far short of a visit to the CAT scale.

[Fungus]

Originally Posted by Dennis C

I don't know how well those onboard scales work, but I'd trust the CAT scale above that. The CAT scales are certified to be correct, and they don't lie.

I've got an aftermarket onboard scale for my truck (Curt Better Weigh) that connects to my OBD II port. It's okay, but not great. Additionally, the weight distribution hitch and the way you load things really do matter. As an example, my Sherline tongue weight scale shows my trailer's tongue weight to be about 535 lbs. This is pretty close to what the Better Weight says also. When I check it on the CAT scales, it's about 620 lbs. I'd consider an onboard scale to be directional at best. Your experience may be better...

That’s a big difference in weighing.

How do you weigh the tongue at the scale? You could be weighing the downward force on the truck’s receiver at the scale, not the downward force on the ball.

[Dennis C]

Originally Posted by Fungus

That’s a big difference in weighing.

How do you weigh the tongue at the scale? You could be weighing the downward force on the truck’s receiver at the scale, not the downward force on the ball.

I didn’t check tongue weight at the CAT scale, but rather the weight put on the tow vehicle when the trailer is connected. It’s higher than my tongue weight (not a surprise, but more than I expected).