Thinkin about an Airstream

[Plasma800]

HI

Just wanted to say hello. Camper here from Texas who also travels for business a lot. Got tired of flying and hotels so bought a 40' DP and put an extra 22k miles on it - then sold it because it was so dang big with a lot of maintenance.

Having been searching for a new unit ever since.

Looked at many motorized RV's since selling, and have found myself very disappointed in build quality, especially if you wanted to toss less than 100k at it.

Then I made the mistake of stepping into a Flying Cloud 25 - WHOOPS

So here I am, to learn a little more about what's going on over here.

[moosetags]

Welcome to the Forums. We're glad to have you with us. You've found the right place to find out everything that you never wanted, and a few things you didn't want, to know about Airstreams.

[KJRitchie]

Fire away on the questions and welcome. There is still maintenance involved with Airstreams like any RV and note they don't take hail very well.

Kelvin

[Plasma800]

Well Ive been thinking about just having something smaller, and under 100k - so I started looking at little sprinter RV's and the quality is really bad, like really really bad.

Just trying to get my head wrapped around several days of driving with one of these.

For instance, when you gotta get some place that's a 5 day drive... what do you do each night?

[KJRitchie]

When you say Sprinter RVs does that include Winnebago's Via/Reyo?

If you are traveling for business that take 5 days you would need to stop at an RV park or boondock, like at a Walmart each night. When the weather is hot you'd want a park to get electric for AC, since a trailer doesn't have a generator. You could boondock in hot weather in a motorhome since it has a generator but you'll use a lot of gas or propane and its noisier.

If you need something for business travel a trailer may not be the best solution. Maybe a small Class C would be better.

Kelvin

[Plasma800]

yeah I was looking at the little Views and Forest River's version Solero/Forester, and Coachmen's version.

I agree that a class c might be a little better long term, I didn't exactly want to go class a again just cause of the size although I considered it.

Business aside, let's say you live in Virginia, but you want to go to yellowstone, and you only have 2 weeks of vacation saved up....

Does one boondock on the way? Does one stay in hotels? Does one find a new campground each night? I'm not exactly asking which is right, I'm simply asking "what do YOU do?"

It "feels" like I get more for my money in an Airstream dollar for dollar in fit and finish, and surely in longevity.....

I agree, in super hot conditions, the need to find parks nightly takes some priority over walmarting it.

[KJRitchie]

I have two weeks to get to and from North Rim Grand Canyon, Zion Natl Park and Bryce Canyon. I've got reserved sites at the parks. I've planned on staying at a Oklahoma state park, then an Amarillo RV park and then an RV park in Holbrook, AZ. I don't expect them to be full so no reservations.

On the way back from Bryce, I've got a site reserved at Heaton COE campground on Lake Dillon, CO and will probably try to get to Salinas, KS then next day where I'll probably stay at the KOA there. Too hot to boondock once east of Colorado and I'll have my dog with me.

I use Google maps and AllStays app to figure out my planning. Gasbuddy to figure out my fuel stops.

If the weather wasn't hot I might try staying at a Walmart just to experience it. Truck stops allow overnight parking but they are noisy from what I've seen.

Check out the Winnebago Via/Reyo, small Class A on a Mercedes/Sprinter chassis. One passed me yesterday when I was commuting to work. It was pulling an empty flatbed trailer and was scooting along faster than my 65 mph. I've seen them advertised on RVTrader for less than 100k. They're 25' 6", 5" shorter than my AS 25fb.

Kelvin

[paiceman]

Originally Posted by Plasma800

HI

Just wanted to say hello. Camper here from Texas who also travels for business a lot. Got tired of flying and hotels so bought a 40' DP and put an extra 22k miles on it - then sold it because it was so dang big with a lot of maintenance.

Having been searching for a new unit ever since.

Looked at many motorized RV's since selling, and have found myself very disappointed in build quality, especially if you wanted to toss less than 100k at it.

Then I made the mistake of stepping into a Flying Cloud 25 - WHOOPS

So here I am, to learn a little more about what's going on over here.

We have had them all. Most recently 38' MoHo, but prior a 25' AS and a 30' AS both FC. Now back to a 30' AS - FC. Probably enough said. Low maintenance for an RV compared to any other brand or type we have had, lots. Easy to tow and set up. Easy to live in. Can sit for months in storage if it has to and no maintenance while there. So, we went back and hopefully are here to stay.

I think a second A/C in a 25' is fine, especially in the hot Texas sun if one were to go out.

Good Luck

Bud

[cwf]

Plenty of 'choices'... but, what will YOU be happy with? I like the Travel Trailer idea because I can park it and have a way of getting around... like getting grub/groceries. Hard to do if you have to tow a TOAD!... more hassle than hooking up the AS.

There are folks here who have smaller, already reconditioned, 'older'/classic AS which would not be as expensive as new, get you a 'nostalgia' notch in your hitch and may work just fine for your travels...

Some more info... good... let us have it.. in Texas AC #2 was a MUST! placed over our rear bed 34' AS... see the avatar.. it's a 1999... while AS no longer builds them, we are the current caretakers.. and it is like an apartment....without the noisy neighbors above and below.. hahaha..

Oh.. and 'Mamma like!' Yes, I am blessed!

AS you can see, we are over here in RR... Austin is our suburb... just to the right (Williamson County) of the Hill Country...

[Plasma800]

When we first started out in our 40' DP, I was a total freak about Walmart parking lots in a NOT good way. I stressed over "what if they kick us out" "how do you navigate that little lot" "is it safe?" "what do you do without hookups!" and so forth.

So our first trip out all the way to san Francisco, we stopped at a campground each night. We quickly discovered this was somewhat painful. They were usually somewhere way off the interstate, and if they were on the interstate, it was noisy and dirty. Getting that 40' bus plus car into who know's if this campground is big enough was sometimes stressful, not all of them were cheap... so on the way I home I said to heck with it! Walmart here we come tonight! And it was actually really cool. By the time we went to bed, there were 14 other rv's of all shapes and sizes, 5th wheels, buses, class-a's and c's. When I woke up, they were ALL GONE, except me haha...

A genset in the truck bed solves all problems and gives the most flexibility overall. Fuel cans don't bother me. An extra 5 gallons would go a long way it seems. Add a battery or two and you're in business. When hot, go through the extra trouble of finding a night spot with hookups and get going.

I really do wish the little Reyo's and small class-c's didn't leave such a bad taste. They are dark inside, few windows, uber tiny, the cheapest cabinets you've every seen, plastic everything - I felt like if I just tried to move the sink faucet it could break in my hands. Tv's in seriously dumb locations, u shapped dinette's that were uncomfortable and dark, cheap doors, cheap locks, cheap toilet, cheap outer doors... but cheap in price too, sooooo ok.. i get it.

One thing (already mentioned) I love about the trailer... no motor, no oil changes, no DEF tank, no turbo's, no transmission. If it sits for 6 months, it sits for 6 months. The interior look and feel of the AS is like nothing I've ever seen, it has plenty of room, looks like nice well thought out stuff inside. It makes me grin ear to ear. I already have a 2500HD I tow my bass boat with. I also still have my car I towed behind my MoHo but it's likely a little heavy for the small MBS diesel chassis.

[Rocinante]

Yes, you've hit on one of the big reasons we went trailer vs. motor home: Only one drive train. Then, once we sat in an Airstream it was all over - we had to have one vs. any of the SOBs we had considered.

[Mrjkq]

I also had a 40ft pusher, loved it & sold it. Then bought two trailers, a 2011 33 ft & a 2013 36ft with 3 slides, sold them both. Fast forward to today: I'm waiting on delivery of my 2016 Airstream Flying Cloud 25 RTB. HERE'S WHY! When you have something that is classy, plush, powerful & exciting like a 40 ft motor home , if you're going to change to a towable you have one choice......AIRSTREAM......everything else is a giant step backwards. I'm downsizing again, but this time I'm doing it in a very educated way, I want quality & a product that maintain its value.
Regarding electric power, I'll purchase two Honda eu2000i generators that link together producing 4000W of power, keep them in my truck bed & plug into the front port on the AS, boon docking at Walmart or anywhere else, problem solved!

[Plasma800]

I like your attitudessssss

[NoNameinNM]

Originally Posted by Plasma800

Then I made the mistake of stepping into a Flying Cloud 25 - WHOOPS

There's a distinct possibility that it's already too late for anything but an Airstream-- it sounds like you may have been infected with aluminitis!

[Plasma800]

Yyyyyyyeah. I'm thinking so

[Plasma800]

How does your stuff in the trailer travel? Does stuff bounce around a lot or pretty steady?

[Rocinante]

Stuff travels fine, and the bouncing around is no greater than we experienced in our B+ motor home.

However, Airstreams have significantly less storage than your typical motor home or SOB trailer. It doesn't bother us, as we've learned to travel lighter than before, but it's something to keep in mind.

[Plasma800]

Originally Posted by Rocinante

Stuff travels fine, and the bouncing around is no greater than we experienced in our B+ motor home.

However, Airstreams have significantly less storage than your typical motor home or SOB trailer. It doesn't bother us, as we've learned to travel lighter than before, but it's something to keep in mind.

Amazingly enough, in our 40' DP, we had a LOT of empty space, like an entire basement doors side to side empty. A lot of empty closet space, and 80% of what we did pack on board, we never touched.

This is part of our thinking in downsizing. Why pay for, put tires on, drive and maneuver something 40' long and 13 feet tall, when we honestly don't need that much space.

Also in my 40', I never, not once, ok maybe once but never again... ever sat down at the dinette.... I also never sat on "the other couch". I never turned the front seats around either except for one time when I actually had guests. I learned that I lived in one spot on the couch, wore three t shirts, used the same 2 pairs of shorts over and over, and 4 pairs of socks was overkill

We used the same two plates, the same two glasses, the same two wine glasses as we washed right away and put away.

We actually cook a LOT, like almost every night cause my wife's food is better than any restaurant. But a short list of handy pans will do the trick.

This is why we started out looking at something way way smaller. But here's the big deal for me.

I walked into a forest river Sunseeker on a mercedes chassis - and it was like a dungeon. Dark, very dark. Limited windows, even with the cheapy sunroof. The driving and passenger seats were "not that great". The dinette was "not that great and then some" It was very tiny feeling, and ya know... so so to cheap stuff inside.

But, something about the airstream... it was light, and airy, and windows all over the place... I was thinking OH BOY, this is what I'm talking about. My crewcab 2500hd pickup truck adds just as much storage space as my basement storage in my old bus. "This could work!" I thought.

[KJRitchie]

Be advised that even with a 25 Airstream, the trailer is 26' + tow vehicle 20' or more you will have a combined length of at least 46'.

Were you towing a small car with the motorhome?

Kelvin

[Rocinante]

Yes, it could.

We're very happy with our Airstream. We had exactly the same experience wrt the open, light, airy feel in Rocinante vs. other brands of RV's.