O.K. the wife and I have been looking for a travel trailer for a few month's. Tonight we went to a RV show here in Chattanooga and found a trailer that we really like. It is a 5th wheel which is varying from the original ideal but we really like the floor plan.

Here is the deal: it is a Keystone Laredo 29GS for $24,900 and they throw in a slider hitch + a new brake controller. Is this a good deal? They said the total loaded weight of the trailer would be around 8800 lb. I do not know what the pin weight would be.

The only thing I have not made my mind up on is the 5th wheel part. I know they pull better but I have a camper shell on my truck and don't want to give that up. When I travel I normally carry kayaks and Mtn Bikes on the shell and live in it. I will not need to live in the bed of the truck any more but I still need to carry my toy's around. My wife says I have a short attention span and I need to be constantly entertained. I can't just go some where and sit around.

Last question what size generator would it take to power every thing on a trailer TV AIR/Heat any othe important stuff. A lot of the places that I will be going do not have a place to plug in.

Thanks Tom.

 

I have a TT, like you I like to carry toys. However, I am considering a 5th because they do in fact tow better and I like the layout of them better than TT's. Does the unit you are looking at have a slide out? My TT does and I would never have a another RV without one. You can always carry your toys on a hitch carrier mounted on the back of the 5th. As for a generator, my choice would be a good quality 5k watt. Microwaves and AC's draw serious amps. But expect to pay somewhere in the $2500-$3000 range for a good 5k unit.

 

For that rig it would take about a 2.4 kw generator, your RV dealer will have the exact type, Kawasaki or Honda that you would need. Just make sure its NOT one of those that yo can buy at the local Home Depot or Lowes because most of them don't have the proper voltage inverters and line conditioners on them to protect your TV or AC.
Enough with that.
Personally yo should be looking at a diferent style of trailer or 5VR in order to carry your toys.
Take a look at somthing that has a large access door so you can put your toys on board.
I know yo have to OK it with the BOSS first, but that 's life

 

Why do so many of you say " a 5er tows better",

A properly setup TT with a good hitch and proper sway control will often tow better than a 5er. Often longer is better!!

Better aerodynamics, TV uses less fuel, TT has everything on one floor, Yes it will make for a longer over all lenght, but your TV bed is available for stuff, easier to back in to sites, TTs weigh less then 5ers, cost less, and more.

The ONLY quiet generators are the inverter styles available from Honda & Yamaha, they have from 1000 to 3000 watt models. Many choose the 3000 watt but they are about 150 lbs, or lots do twin 2000 watt Hondas in parallel, giving you even more wattage. They also weigh only about 55 lbs each, use one in the winter and two when you need AC.

 

I have owned two tag alongs and now on my second fiver. The fivers were nicer pulling, no doubt about it. My first tag was a nightmare to pull, the second, a 23 foot Award pulled nice. But the fivers still pulled better. This 16,000 pound 36 foot fifth wheel is less work to pull than my 3500 pound Award. Yes, there is probably more wind resistance but you are not working to constantly maintain the track. Steering inputs with the fiver are really no different than when driving solo.

There are hitches you can buy for the tags that put the effective hitch point just behind the rear axle. Hensley and Pullrite come to mind but they are more complex and cost more than a standard weight equalizing hitch. With one of these, your towing will be similar to pulling a fiver.

FWIW

Casey

 

Thanks for the replies. I have looked at the toy haulers and got the thumbs down real quick. At some point in the near future we hope to be living in this thing while we build a house and the wife said she did not wish to live in a trailer that was layed out like that.

 

As someone previously said,you can put a bike rack on the rear of the 5th.For the kayak get a rack for the roof of the truck.Good luck in your decisions.We looked at the 29gs and decided on the 28re instead.Both really nice floorplans.


mike b

 

Well, I was at the show last night as well. Thought it was one of the better ones lately. Chattanooga doesn't usually have a good show.

Wonder how many times we bumped into each other walking through rigs?

We have a laredo bunkhouse that is about 1.5 years old and has been used quite a lot. I welded a rack on the back to carry a generator and firewood. The rack also has provisions for a bike rack and I am going to add a 2" reciever hitch to it this spring. I would think that with all of those options you could find a way to carry the kayak. I like the roof rack idea on the truck but there are lots of other options.

We have a Honda 3500w generator that does well for our needs. Wanted to get an inverter model but was afraid that 3000w was not enough & I couldn't afford 2 generators. Keep in mind that many state and federal campgrounds have a rule that generators must be off around 10:00 pm no matter how quiet it is.

We have to manage the electrical load but we have to do that with a 30 amp service anyway so it isn't a big deal.

I will have the camper opened up today for cleaning and stocking for a trip next weekend. Please feel free to drop by if you want to see how ours has held up and just to say hi if you want to.

the only caution I have about trailer combination packages is to make sure you get a hitch and brake controller you like. They make a really big difference in how the trailer tows.

BTW, I have towed 2 fivers now and tons of bumber pulls. Although I would like to have the bed available the towing style of the 5th is much better than any bumper pull. Very little interaction with big trucks on the road. Backing is a learning experience but it isn't too hard (though I still have to give it a couple of tries every time )

If you want, e-mail me at malexander@mckenneys.com & I will give you directions on how to get here for a look at the camper.

mark

 

Trailblazenyj: it looks like I have missed you again. One day thanks for the offer ony way. I am real interested in seeing the rack you have welded on. I can put racks on the truck I jsut don't like the way it looks, that and when a boat falls off when you are loading and unloading it takes the mirror with it to the ground. Thanks for the info.
Tom

 

trailblazenyj; how 'bout a couple of pics of that rack that you built?

DeWain

 

I guess I need to get off my lazy rear and get some pics up loaded. The rack is pretty basic and way overkill. When I first fabbed it up I was considering the idea of pulling my jeep trailer behind the camper so I built the rack accordingly. Better sense soon prevailed and while I have towed lite doubles before I decided I didn't want a 6k anchor swinging around in the wind behind my camper. I know, call me a chicken

Anyway, if it doesn't rain tomorrow I will get a couple of pics and get them uploaded.

mark

 

Thanks!

 

I have a receiver on the back of my fifth (Reese) that carries 4 mountain bikes up high, really solid, and super easy to load. You can put a roof rack (Thule) on your truck cab, and come up from your tow hooks, or a front end receiver(eg. hidden hitch) to the front end of your kayak, or carry the kayak on top of the fifth. If you carry it on the trailer, when you want to take it on your truck, all you need is a gutterless roof rack, with the back of the kayak in the truck box. Just strap, it down well.I've had TT's and 5'ths, and besides towing a lot more easily, your 5'th doesn't have an extra 3 or more feet of hitch back there, and a lot of it is over your box. (Ie. Not as much towing behind you!)

 

VPI, why don't you get a utillity trailer to haul behind the 5er? Just check the regulations for the states you plan to visit as long as overall length is less than 55' I think, you're OK.

 

Hey VPI. I hope I can give you some valuable information here, and it's not too late.

First, the price of the trailer you are considering. The mark-up on these units from the dealer are at least 30%. Even if you're looking at a sale price, they can come down a lot more. Shop other dealers if you can. Work them.

On a 5'er, the pin weight will be approximately 2K give or take. The dealer should have the specs. Your tow vehicle should be at least a 3/4 ton.

The 5'er will tow better than a TT, although the TT will tow just fine with the proper set-up.

If you do get the 5'er, you'll have to keep the shell set-up during the time you trailer becomes your home. That is one thing to consider. Along these lines, IMHO, you'll like "living" in the 5'er more than a TT while you're building....more privacy.

I do all dry camping. I have a toy hauler, a buggy, and a Honda ATV. I camp in the Imperial Valley desert in southern California often. It is the wild west.......no hook-ups.

Most Moho's, trailers, etc these days have the option of "ON Board" generators. This set-up is prefered. Start up from the inside at the push of a button. Consider this in a new trailer.

The biggest draw on a generator is going to be A/C. If you have only one A/C unit, I recommend at least a 4K watt unit (I run an Onan 4K watt Microquiet and it works great). If you have two A/C's and plan on using them, go with a 5K watt generator minimum.

More importantly, this is the recommended set up for most dry camping. 6 VOLT GOLF CART BATTERIES. Two 6 volt batteries will last twice as long as TWO 12 volt batteries, and 4 6 volt batteries will last twice as long as that. With four 6 volts and a power inverter, you could go an entire 4 day weekend without ever firing up your generator unless you needed the A/C.

Hope this helps.