Day trip to Colonial Airstream, FC 28RB and a peek at the Basecamp

[jackpsavidge]

Was a really nice day so went with our son and daughter in law to check out the lot at Colonial Airstream. We are about ready to be done with college payments and the wife can retire in a year so we are getting about ready. Was intrigued by the FC 28RBQ but wanted to spend some time in it and a 27FBQ.

We loved the layout of the 28 with the seperate dinette and sofa. I know alot of people prefer the 27FB but we felt the 28 suits us better. Thats a great thing about the Airstream. There is no one fit for everyone. You can find what works for you. I think we lose some closet and counter with the 28 and we are cool with the oven and no microwave (we rarely use the one at home). We welcome any comments!!

We also peeked in the Basecamp 16 amd 20. They are really neat little trailers. We could see why they are so popular expecially with young people more into adventure. Our 25 year old son loved it. Btw the spinning table in the 20x is a design win!! If we were younger and more i to hiking, biking, kayaking, etc, the Basecamp would be hard to beat.

Got to get in a Bambi 20. Man that one is all about the kitchen!! That is a ton of counter space!

[Silverbee]

Hi,
We have a 28 foot Flying Cloud with Queen Rear Bed. We had a 25 foot that we traded for our current trailer.
What we like in the 28 foot:
Being able to walk around the bed and the bed orientation
Separate closets on each side of the bed
The separate lounge from the dining area
The convection microwave/oven combo

What we miss
A pantry

Overall we are very happy with the 28 foot which will probably our last Airstream.

[Wayne&Sam]

Originally Posted by jackpsavidge

Got to get in a Bambi 20. Man that one is all about the kitchen!! That is a ton of counter space!

Yes, our '07 20' Safari had the best kitchen (same layout).

[Dennis C]

We really considered a Caravel 20 footer. The kitchen is really nice in that unit!

[DewTheDew]

Just to brag for a minute; my nephew wrote this article. https://www.outsideonline.com/241848...021-basecamp-x

[Baby Zeppelin]

Originally Posted by DewTheDew

Just to brag for a minute; my nephew wrote this article. https://www.outsideonline.com/241848...021-basecamp-x

Your nephew did a good job. I enjoyed reading the article. Thanks for sharing.

[Ironhaus]

Originally Posted by DewTheDew

Just to brag for a minute; my nephew wrote this article. https://www.outsideonline.com/241848...021-basecamp-x

By far, the best article I’ve read of the Basecamp 20X experience. Very accurate with pros/cons. The descriptive narrative writing is excellent. I’ll be checking out Outside mag more.

Favorite quote: “[Basecamp] gives a sense of structure to the camping experience, but with a design that encourages you to spend more time outdoors than in.”

Thanks for sharing!

[jaybauman]

Originally Posted by DewTheDew

Just to brag for a minute; my nephew wrote this article. https://www.outsideonline.com/241848...021-basecamp-x

Your nephew wrote a nice article...and I'm a big fan of his band, too.

[Spaggs]

What is your tow vehicle?

[DewTheDew]

Originally Posted by jaybauman

Your nephew wrote a nice article...and I'm a big fan of his band, too.

Thanks! He certainly has a number of talents

[gypsydad]

Originally Posted by jackpsavidge

Was a really nice day so went with our son and daughter in law to check out the lot at Colonial Airstream. We are about ready to be done with college payments and the wife can retire in a year so we are getting about ready. Was intrigued by the FC 28RBQ but wanted to spend some time in it and a 27FBQ.

We loved the layout of the 28 with the seperate dinette and sofa. I know alot of people prefer the 27FB but we felt the 28 suits us better. Thats a great thing about the Airstream. There is no one fit for everyone. You can find what works for you. I think we lose some closet and counter with the 28 and we are cool with the oven and no microwave (we rarely use the one at home). We welcome any comments!!

We also peeked in the Basecamp 16 amd 20. They are really neat little trailers. We could see why they are so popular expecially with young people more into adventure. Our 25 year old son loved it. Btw the spinning table in the 20x is a design win!! If we were younger and more i to hiking, biking, kayaking, etc, the Basecamp would be hard to beat.

Got to get in a Bambi 20. Man that one is all about the kitchen!! That is a ton of counter space!

We owned 3 different year/models of 25's before we purchased a new 2017 28' vs the 27'. We did not/do not like the long" bench seating" for lounging with TV or with guests like in the 25' or 27'. Thats why we went 28'; L-couch, and separate dinning. Also, the FC model has 2 extra cabinets over the dinning the International models do not have. But, we also have come to love the extra storage of a Twin model...inside, and outsid..plus you get 34" sleeping area each vs 60 for a queen...the twin models offer more storage inside and out, more room to change, and looks so much cleaner when looking from front to back! It's all good...it's an AS, so get what you like!

Son is getting the 20X Basecamp this month also...AS family!

[MotoMannequin]

It was originally the Basecamp that drew us in. We were shopping for a cheap RV and driving south on 101 to an RV mega store in Gilroy, a route which passes within eyeshot of the gleaming silver palace that is South Bay Airstream.

Driving by, we started by dismissing the idea of visiting just because of price. Then my copilot googled the Basecamp and it seemed to be within range.

After a day of suffocating formaldehyde pressboard in cheap boxes, we were really taking seriously the Lance, due to its use of marine grade plywood throughout. That was the first step on extending our price range upwards. On our way home we stopped to look at the Basecamp, and were amazed that a 16' trailer felt more roomy inside than the 23' Lance. Just better design all around. That got us thinking Airstream, but also thinking that we probably wanted a larger trailer. A coworker convinced us we'd want dual axle, and another day at the dealer we labored over the 23' floorplans and finally decided 25' was the smallest size that didn't compromise anything important to us.

The rest is history, except that I still love the Basecamp. I can imagine having both and using the Basecamp X for quick weekend getaways to rugged locations, and our 25' International for comfortable, extended trips.

[jackpsavidge]

Originally Posted by gypsydad

We owned 3 different year/models of 25's before we purchased a new 2017 28' vs the 27'. We did not/do not like the long" bench seating" for lounging with TV or with guests like in the 25' or 27'. Thats why we went 28'; L-couch, and separate dinning. Also, the FC model has 2 extra cabinets over the dinning the International models do not have.

This is exactly what keeps drawing us back to the 28. We are planning to Full time so would love to hear your thoughts on the storage issues in the 28 and the stove/microwave issue. We are thinking we have no use for the microwave.

[gypsydad]

Originally Posted by jackpsavidge

This is exactly what keeps drawing us back to the 28. We are planning to Full time so would love to hear your thoughts on the storage issues in the 28 and the stove/microwave issue. We are thinking we have no use for the microwave.

Sure! We love the storage in the 28' Twin...the extra room in bedroom plus the extra easy to get to storage lockers at the foot of the bed and under each bed are great vs queen, and they are easy access with pull out plastic bins for shoes, 2 under each bed. You also get 2 extra long outside storage compartments not available with queen model. The 28 also has 2 extra storage compartments above the dinette. All in all, it is pretty nice layout. Our friends who bought a new 28' Lance last year, liked our layout so much, they also got a new 2021 28' FC and are selling the Lance!

As for the oven vs convection/microwave, really depends on what you do. You need electric for the convection/microwave, but we always have a generator when boondocking anyway. It's basically a microwave with an electric oven. Works fine once you understand how to use it...wife was frustrated at first, but now we have no issues. Nice to have popcorn, baked potatoes, re-heating a meal in the microwave when needed...oven works well also, but we don't use much. Didn't use the gas oven very often either...try to cook outside when we can.

The 28' layout is very functional. Towing it is great; parking takes a bit more due to size then our 25's and the 1 foot longer F250. An ideal trailer for us, would be the 28' with the Classic 30' couch, but that sucker runs $10K and would require us to relocate our water heater! We settled for just replacing the foam in the couch with a denser foam which works much better for lounging for us.

[Cyclist]

Originally Posted by Silverbee

Hi,
We have a 28 foot Flying Cloud with Queen Rear Bed. We had a 25 foot that we traded for our current trailer.
What we like in the 28 foot:
Being able to walk around the bed and the bed orientation
Separate closets on each side of the bed
The separate lounge from the dining area
The convection microwave/oven combo

What we miss
A pantry

Overall we are very happy with the 28 foot which will probably our last Airstream.

Our thought exactly except ours is an International. We have 84,000 km. on the trailer including three years of full timing.

[jackpsavidge]

Originally Posted by gypsydad

Sure! We love the storage in the 28' Twin...the extra room in bedroom plus the extra easy to get to storage lockers at the foot of the bed and under each bed are great vs queen, and they are easy access with pull out plastic bins for shoes, 2 under each bed. You also get 2 extra long outside storage compartments not available with queen model. The 28 also has 2 extra storage compartments above the dinette. All in all, it is pretty nice layout. Our friends who bought a new 28' Lance last year, liked our layout so much, they also got a new 2021 28' FC and are selling the Lance!

As for the oven vs convection/microwave, really depends on what you do. You need electric for the convection/microwave, but we always have a generator when boondocking anyway. It's basically a microwave with an electric oven. Works fine once you understand how to use it...wife was frustrated at first, but now we have no issues. Nice to have popcorn, baked potatoes, re-heating a meal in the microwave when needed...oven works well also, but we don't use much. Didn't use the gas oven very often either...try to cook outside when we can.

The 28' layout is very functional. Towing it is great; parking takes a bit more due to size then our 25's and the 1 foot longer F250. An ideal trailer for us, would be the 28' with the Classic 30' couch, but that sucker runs $10K and would require us to relocate our water heater! We settled for just replacing the foam in the couch with a denser foam which works much better for lounging for us.

Thanks so much for all the information. The plan is the FC28RBQ. We weren't big fans of the twins after 28 years married. Although the feeling of more room as you look down the hall is significant! We'd be looking at the F250 or similar and it seems the payload at that class will be more than ok for our purposes. From your comments it looks like our thinking is on point.

BTW, which hitch are you using with a FC28 and the F250?

[brick1]

We have a 2018 Serenity 28RBQ. Have spent 159 nights in it so far. Great layout, easy to tow with an F250 diesel.

[jackpsavidge]

We probably aren't going with the diesel. I think the F250 will be plenty of power and payload for towing the 28. (I know everyone has an opinion on TVs and there's always that "I've been towing my 30 with a Rav4 guy - i exaggerate! but a gasser F250 should be plenty).

[gypsydad]

Originally Posted by Cyclist

Our thought exactly except ours is an International. We have 84,000 km. on the trailer including three years of full timing.

We miss the pantry also but in the 28' FC model, you do have 2 more storage cabinets above the dinnette...not offered with the International model. We use that area for our "pantry" food storage!

[gypsydad]

Originally Posted by jackpsavidge

Thanks so much for all the information. The plan is the FC28RBQ. We weren't big fans of the twins after 28 years married. Although the feeling of more room as you look down the hall is significant! We'd be looking at the F250 or similar and it seems the payload at that class will be more than ok for our purposes. From your comments it looks like our thinking is on point.

BTW, which hitch are you using with a FC28 and the F250?

We like the Blue Ox Sway Pro with 1500 bars, as recommended by Blue Ox folks...we had Blue Ox with 2 of our other 25' AS's with 1000# bars, but when we got this one, our actual tongue weight was 1100lbs, so they recommended the 1500#bars... At first, we had them set at 4.5links showing for first year; now we have 3.5 links showing as recommended, and they show a little bow, which means the tension is working fine. It tows great with the F250 we have...important to get set up properly...we use a 1" socket on a 18" braker bar to set the chain cams. Make sure you watch the youtube and understand proper way to load/unload using your power jack up front. I have also had the Equalizer and Reese in the past...Equalizer broke while backing up, is how we got into the Blue Ox with our second 25' AS.

Lot of folks like the ProPride and Hensly also...lots of bucks and some issues hooking up for some, but they say they are great hitch options also.