Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #50 – July 18, 2017, 11:59:06 pm "I also did not care for the tilt-out windows. I much prefer sliders."Interesting. With me it's the opposite. For one thing, I found the huge Lazy Daze windows hard to open and close, both because they weighed so much and because I never could keep the tracks clean enough. The Airstream's tilt-out windows do require some effort to lift open, but they don't have any sliding-friction problems, so overall I find them easier to deal with.But the main thing I like about them is that I can open the tilt-out windows partway even if it's raining, and as long as there's not a big wind no rain comes in. Of course it helps that I have the (optional) window awnings--a very long one on the left side (it also shades the fridge) and a short one in the rear end, over my dinette window. These are short enough and sturdy enough that I leave them out even in string winds, unlike the big main awning.The main Zip-Dee awning is a different story. I'm not crazy about it. While it’s supposedly a more robust design than the Fiamma awning, I find putting it out to be a chore. With the Fiamma awning, you just turn a crank—very little effort is required. With the Zip-Dee, you have to physically lift the awning in order to make its arms extend—and they are square, telescoping aluminum tubes that frequently bind. Plus, you have to lift each end separately. It’s a long awning, and it’s heavy. Deploying it is not a task I enjoy.“we are big boon-dockers, and the low-slung trailer chassis did often drag across old rutted roads, etc.”Yes, I worry about that. As mentioned earlier, I’ll be fitting larger wheels and a 3” axle lift kit this winter to improve the Airstream’s boondockability, but it may never equal Skylark's."I also got tired of hauling the generator in and out of the P/U in order to power the trailer, and chain it up when we day tripped someplace.”I don’t plan to carry a generator. I’ve hardly used mine at all in the past three years of almost entirely boondocking (until I bought this trailer!)—ditto the air conditioner. Once I upgrade the Airstream’s electrical system to Skylark’s level this winter, I’ll have 600 to 800 watts of solar power and 360 to 400 amp-hours of battery storage at my disposal. Experience has shown that with that setup, I have no need for a generator, even in winter. 1 Likes
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #51 – July 19, 2017, 09:55:47 am That's a smart move regrading the solar and batt's upgrade. That is one of the options I did buy on the LD, a second solar panel. I, too, dislike running a gennie. Running the portable gennie with the trailer was a pain in the arse, and keeping it fueled and secure and protected from weather, etc. made it no fun at all.Another thing I appreciated about the Airstream was the one-piece aluminum sheeting on the undercarriage. That made dragging over rough spots a bit more worry free.
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #52 – July 19, 2017, 11:25:04 am Quote from: Andy Baird - July 18, 2017, 11:59:06 pmInteresting. With me it's the opposite. For one thing, I found the huge Lazy Daze windows hard to open and close, both because they weighed so much and because I never could keep the tracks clean enough. The Airstream's tilt-out windows do require some effort to lift open, but they don't have any sliding-friction problems, so overall I find them easier to deal with.But the main thing I like about them is that I can open the tilt-out windows partway even if it's raining, and as long as there's not a big wind no rain comes in. I agree with Andy regarding the Jalousie windows. We had them on our Hi-Lo trailer and enjoyed them very much for the reasons Andy stated. 1 Likes
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #53 – July 19, 2017, 12:39:58 pm We have debated the insulation qualities of the Airstream vs our LD. Andy, I hope you will take some of those nifty IR photos sometime when conditions are right to show us?
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #54 – July 19, 2017, 01:27:25 pm "As mentioned earlier, I'll be fitting larger wheels and a 3" axle lift kit this winter ..."Andy, a cautionary note: A huge Airstream advantage is its superior suspension & low center of gravity. Add in your superb tow rig and you have the safest, most stable trailer in tow.
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #55 – July 20, 2017, 12:45:37 am "Andy, I hope you will take some of those nifty IR photos sometime when conditions are right to show us?"Will do, although of course the thermal photos won't give us a direct comparison with a Lazy Daze. But one thing does occur to me: a Lazy Daze has a metal skin and a wood paneling interior, joined by wooden framing. An Airstream has a metal skin and a mostly metal interior, joined by metal framing. Now, I know from my thermal photography that the LD's framing conducts heat--when photographing the interior, you can see the frame faintly outlined in darker colors on a cold day. It seems a reasonable guess that this would be even more true with an Airstream's metal frame. If I see bands of frost forming on the inside walls next winter, I'll know why. ;-)
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #56 – July 20, 2017, 12:49:33 am "A huge Airstream advantage is its superior suspension & low center of gravity."Understood. But if I can only camp on asphalt, I won't be happy, since I'm a confirmed boondocker. The Dexter lift kit has been around for a long time (the same company makes Airstream's stock suspension parts), but I'll be researching further, particularly with regard to stability, before I make a final decision.
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #57 – July 20, 2017, 01:06:23 am Tandem duallies should take care of any stability problems brought on by the lift kit. Might need some fender flares, though.Chip
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #58 – July 20, 2017, 10:44:23 am I know you'll l come up with the right solutions to the needed modifications. That Airstream is downright gorgeous and it feels so good living in it. Enjoy! 1 Likes
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #59 – July 20, 2017, 07:57:31 pm If the trucks had backup assistance and cameras seven years ago I may have just sucked in a big breath and gone the AirStream path. I have been following this thread with great interest for a few reasons. First I too wanted to wish Andy well. His blogs and comments on this board have been great help as I transitioned from tent camping to RVing. I always liked Airstreams but the cost of a tow car plus the cost of a not to old trailer was just to much for us. I was also intimidated by the memories of the few times I pulled a trailer. Finally, recently my brother and his wife have been talking to her father about buying his '64 Airstream. It is one of the short ones. He purchased it new when he was in the USAF. It is the trailer she grew up with. Her mom and dad would go off every year with the whole famn damily including cats. After his wife passed a few years ago he has done less camping. He still stays on top of the upkeep and it sounds like he would like to see one of his kids take it over rather than seeing it go to a stranger. They (my brother and wife) will have to get a new pickup. He wants something big enough to haul his bike (H-D Fat Boy) in the bed. I told my brother before looking for a truck to find out what the fully loaded trailer and bike weights are then add a 1000 lbs for what if. I was thinking a Ford F250 but it is encouraging that Andy has a F150 but yes, these trucks are not the Camper Specials that I remember my dad owning in the late 60s and early 70s.Take care Andy. As others have said don't be a stranger. 1 Likes
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #60 – July 20, 2017, 10:54:46 pm "it is encouraging that Andy has a F150..."But when ordering, I paid close attention to the truck's payload, and I bought the optional Max Tow package. Even so, without a weight-distributing hitch (in my case the ProPride P3), my truck's rear end would be sagging badly--I tried it, and I know. In other words, a late-model F-150 can be a good tow vehicle for a mid-sized travel trailer, but you need to choose your options and your hitch carefully.With an F-250, there's much less concern about payload capacity. So why didn't I buy I buy one of those instead? Because the truck is my "daily driver"--my only vehicle--and knowledgeable friends told me that the F-250 would be less comfortable, less economical--in short, less suitable for driving around town. For me, the F-150 is the best compromise: capable of safely towing a 7,600-pound trailer, yet a pleasure to drive to the store. 3 Likes
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #61 – November 26, 2019, 02:46:03 pm Two years later...It turned out that I didn't choose carefully enough. The F-150 might have worked if optioned differently (SuperCab instead of SuperCrew, and Max Payload package), but the one I bought ended being overloaded in the rear. I can partly blame Airstream's misleading tongue weight spec--they said 700 pounds, but I ended up with more like 1,200 (and I wasn't traveling heavy!).I ended up trading up to an F-250, which has a much better load rating but is a much less pleasant daily driver. For my 27' trailer, the F-150 was an expensive mistake.Also, the ProPride hitch, while technically superior, is 1) very heavy and 2) very awkward in boondocking situations. I ended up selling it and buying an Equal-I-zer hitch, which is lighter, much easier to work with (and much less expensive!) 7 Likes
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #62 – November 27, 2019, 04:38:34 pm Quote from: Andy Baird - November 26, 2019, 02:46:03 pmthe F-150 was an expensive mistake.Now you can get a Cybertruck.
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #63 – November 27, 2019, 11:18:19 pm Hi Andy,I've toyed with the idea of pulling a trailer as well, so am particularly interested in hearing your pros and cons.I'm also quite curious about your signature line, and how you are using both of the trailers and tow vehicles you have listed.I don't suppose you have started up a blog (or whatever) to describe your improvements, how you use your vehicles, etc, etc.You are the primary reason we ended up with Thistle Dew Too (and of course Ed and Carol Daniels selling it to us). Your information and forum leadership was so valuable to us, and I think to very many on this forum.Wishing you all the best of luck.
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #64 – November 28, 2019, 04:13:37 pm Andy, You're not the first one to end up with not enough tow vehicle. Between the truck salesmen streaching the truck's capacity and the trailer salesmen just interested in a sale, it is easy to let yourself believe it can do the job. I believe that the majority of truck/trailer combinations are over at least one limit. While we do all kinds of things to make the combination driveable, like fancy weight distribution, sway limiting hitches, they are still very questionable. When I decided to sell our LD and go to a trailer, I did a whole lot of homework. I already owned a 1/2 ton truck (Chevy 1500) but knew it wouldn't be up to the job. We committed ourselves to a light weight, relatively small 5th wheel (Montana High Country 293RK). I was open to gas vs diesel, 1/2 ton vs 3/4 ton etc. Keystone says that trailer can be towed by a 1/2 ton truck, but after some homework, I realized that it would be overweight for even a 3/4 ton diesel. It was OK for a 3/4 ton gas, the additional weight of the diesel engine limits it load capacity. I went with a 3/4 ton gas (Chevy 2500 HD). I'll bet 90% of 5th wheels towed by 3/4 ton diesels are overweight. When we ended doing the snowbird thing, we decided to sell the 5th wheel and go to a small trailer, mainly for week long music festivals and short vacation trips. I thought about selling the 3/4 ton as it was overkill for the small Bullet Crossfire 1800RB, but what would I gain? A little smoother ride when not towing? A little better gas mileage? So I now tow my small trailer with the "big" truck, use a standard hitch, no need for sway control or weight distribution, etc. and the old "You hardly know it's back there" is actual. Bottom line, when towing, go for overkill, rather than "it should be able to do it". As an end note, I'm a little worried about your decision to tow that small trailer with that Outback. Are you going to use one of those fancy hitches? Are you sure about the numbers? We need your expertise here, so be safe out there and hang on to that F-250.Rich - Birch Bay, WA - ex 2000 MB now Bullet Crossfire 1800RB following a Chevy 2500HD 2 Likes
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #65 – November 30, 2019, 01:04:39 am "I'm also quite curious about your signature line, and how you are using both of the trailers and tow vehicles you have listed."Steve, I've talked about this elsewhere in this forum, and I don't want to wear out my welcome, since I'm seriously off-topic here. :-) And I'm sorry to say that I stopped posting to my "Travels" website a couple of years ago, when I decided to become a bit more of a private citizen, so I'm not really publishing the details of my change in RVing style. In a nutshell, I plan to park the Airstream and use it as a homebase; sell the F-250, which is a great tow vehicle but a lousy daily driver; and use the Outback + Trillium rig for travel in warmer months--as a summer cottage, if you will. When I need to move the Airstream, I'll rent a truck or hire a transport company.Rich, I can't blame my F-150 mistake on salesmen. I didn't listen to either, and I did plenty of research. But I should not have believed Airstream's published numbers... and I should have taken the results of my first weighing much more seriously, because it showed the rear axle being overloaded. But I thought I could fix that by adjusting my super-duper weight-distributing hitch. I was wrong; nothing I did could eliminate the fact that my F-150 (EcoBoost V6, Max Tow package, but not Max Payload) just couldn't handle the trailer's tongue weight. The truck had amazing pulling power, but the rear end sagged and the truck porpoised on uneven pavement no matter what I did.As mentioned, the F-250 (gas V8, SuperCab, 2WD) is great when towing, but 95% of my driving is running errands in town, and I've grown to hate driving a big pickup for that purpose. Aside from lousy gas mileage, it's a pain to maneuver and (especially) to park. Hence my plan to sell the truck and do most of my traveling with the Outback + Trillium rig.I checked the numbers carefully before buying the Outback; it's the more powerful 6-cylinder 3.6R model, and can handle the Trillium's gross weight and tongue weight without a problem. I bought it without a trailer hitch and installed a heavy-duty Class 3 hitch (Subaru only offers a wimpy class 2). I also bought a tongue scale and am making sure I keep the Trillium's tongue weight below 200 pounds. The outfit tows very nicely, without sag or porpoising. No fancy hitches, weight distribution, or sway control needed. My motto is "keep it simple."That's why I replaced the electric water pump with a marine foot pump; replaced the noisy furnace with a Wave 3 cat heater; and removed the water heater. (There's no shower, and that's the only thing I use hot water for.) I freed up a lot of storage space that way. On the other hand, I substantially beefed up the solar/electrical system, because that's something that really matters to me.It's been a long process (mainly due to my lazy pace of working), but I should able to get on the road again this spring. 3 Likes
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #66 – November 30, 2019, 03:04:31 am Andy,Thanks for the feedback. So you have substantially down-sized your travel requirements, if you consider the Airstream your "home". Personally I'm fascinated by the adjustments in one's priorities to allow such changes to occur.I look forward to following your journeys (if that is possible) to see how life in the smaller trailer works out for you. I find myself always asking "what is enough", though in my case there are two of us that get to answer that question. Someday I hope our paths cross, as such conversations would be great around a campfire, or suitable alternative. Until then, this forum will have to do. I wish you all the best with your adjusted lifestyle, and hope to continue learning from your experiences. Your lessons learned from pulling an airstream are directly relevant to things we have begun to think about. Thanks again Andy for your time and insights!
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #67 – November 30, 2019, 10:58:00 am Quote from: Andy Baird - November 30, 2019, 01:04:39 am"I'm also quite curious about your signature line, and how you are using both of the trailers and tow vehicles you have listed."Steve, I've talked about this elsewhere in this forum, and I don't want to wear out my welcome, since I'm seriously off-topic here. :-) And I'm sorry to say that I stopped posting to my "Travels" website a couple of years ago, when I decided to become a bit more of a private citizen, so I'm not really publishing the details of my change in RVing style. In a nutshell, I plan to park the Airstream and use it as a homebase; sell the F-250, which is a great two vehicle but a lousy daily driver; and use the Outback + Trillium rig for travel in warmer months--as a summer cottage, if you will. when I need to move the Airstream, I'll rent a truck or hire a transport company.Rich, I can't blame my F-150 mistake on salesmen. I didn't listen to either, and I did plenty of research. But I should not have believed Airstream's published numbers... and I should have taken the results of my first weighing much more seriously, because it showed the rear axle being overloaded. But I thought I could fix that by adjusting my super-duper weight-distributing hitch. I was wrong; nothing I did could eliminate the fact that my F-150 (EcoBoost V6, Max Tow package, but not Max Payload) just couldn't handle the trailer's tongue weight. The truck had amazing pulling power, but the rear end sagged and the truck porpoised on uneven pavement no matter what I did.The F-250 (gas V8, SuperCab, 2WD) is a great towing vehicle, but 95% of my driving is running errands in town, and I've grown to hate driving a pickup for that purpose. Hence my plan to sell the truck and do most of my traveling with the Outback + Trillium rig. I checked the numbers carefully before buying the Outback; it's the 6-cylinder 3.6R model, and can handle the Trillium's gross weight and tongue weight without a problem. I bought it without a trailer hitch and installed a heavy-duty Class 3 hitch (Subaru only offers a wimpy class 2). I also bought a tongue scale and am using to it to make sure I keep the tongue weight below 200 pounds. The outfit tows very nicely, without sag or porpoising. No fancy hitches, weight distribution, or sway control needed. My motto is "keep it simple."That's why I replaced the electric water pump with a marine foot pump; replaced the noisy furnace with a Wave 3 cat heater; and removed the water heater. (There's no shower, and that's the only thing I use hot water for.) I freed up a lot of storage space that way. On the other hand, I substantially beefed up the solar/electrical system. That's something that really matters to me.It's been a long process (mainly due to my lazy pace of working), but I should able to get on the road again this spring."I don't want to wear out my welcome, since I'm seriously off-topic here. :-)"Not to worry, Andy. As moderator emeritus, we members are always grateful for your comments and valuable contributions over the life of LDOG.Chris 9 Likes
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #68 – August 05, 2021, 05:28:37 pm So… two years after the last post to this thread about my change from Lazy Daze to Airstream, I thought I’d post an update. Maybe somebody can learn from my mistakes.As of my last post, I had traded my inadequate F-150 pickup for an F-250. It towed my 27’ Airstream without any issues, but I wasn’t enjoying it as a daily driver, so I had bought a Subaru Outback and a 13’ Trillium fiberglass trailer. I planned to use the big Airstream as a sort of homebase, only moving it a couple of times a year, and do most of my traveling in the Trillium.Well, that didn’t work out too well.I sold the F-250, put the 27’ Airstream in covered storage, and lived in the Trillium for seven months over one spring and summer. The Trillium was surprisingly comfortable once I got it fixed up to my taste. Towing it behind the Outback was a pleasure, and the Outback was SO much nicer to drive around town than a big pickup! The Trillium, of course, had very little storage, but I mounted a 16-cubic-foot Yakima storage pod on the roof of the Outback, and that helped a lot. So that part was great, at least for a spring and a summer.But the big Airstream was gathering dust, winter was approaching, and I knew I didn’t want to spend the cold months in the Trillium with 1/2” of insulation. Meanwhile, I realized that my plan to use the big Airstream as a homebase in the cold months would mean basically turning it into a "park model" mobile home. Not only would that be a waste of all the work and money I had put into making it ideal for boondocking, but I don’t like being in a commercial RV park, with neighbors ten feet away in every direction.So last fall I rethought my plan. What I came up with was this: buy the smallest Airstream that could be towed by Subaru’s largest SUV, the Ascent. I was lucky enough to find a 2019 19’ Airstream Flying Cloud, being sold by a couple who were—ironically—upgrading to a new 27’ Airstream Globetrotter. (They didn’t want my 2017 27’ International, or we could have done a trade.)I traded the Outback for an Ascent, hotfooted it up to Michigan to buy the Airstream 19CB, and came back to face yet another round of upgrading projects. (In the past five years I’ve done major upgrades on my Lazy Daze, the big Airstream, the Trillium, and now the 19-footer. This has got to stop! ;-)Now, nine months later, I’ve done most of the electrical upgrades (Battle Born lithium batteries, Victron solar controller, marine breakers, etc.)… except for installing 400 watts of solar panels (all I can fit) on the roof. For now, I’m doing fine with a single 190 W panel lying on the ground. (It’s wired to output 40+ V, so there’s very little voltage drop in the connecting cable.)I’ve replaced the refrigerator with a Vitrifrigo compressor fridge; replaced the three-burner stovetop with a single marine burner (thereby gaining almost a foot of counter space where there was none before); removed the huge microwave/convention oven (to be replaced with much-needed drawers); added a Wave 3 catalytic heater; replaced the righthand dinette bench with a comfortable office chair; and so on.I still need to install a 2.75” Dexter lift kit--same one I had installed on the big Airstream--to gain additional ground clearance; and I need to install the Eaz-Lift weight distributing/antisway hitch that I have sitting in storage. Without it, the Ascent + 19’ Airstream combination is prone to sway, and that’s something I don’t want!I sold the big 27’ Airstream a couple of weeks ago, so I now have a big empty space in my formerly overcrowded storage room. I’ll be doing a lot of sorting, discarding, and donating to Goodwill this fall and winter, but right now it’s too hot to be in there for more than an hour or so.How does the 19’ Airstream compare to the 27-footer? Well, it has fewer windows and much less storage (and I no longer have a crew-cab pickup truck to handle the excess baggage). It has less counter space, even after my modifications. But it has everything I need, and I’m comfortable in it. And I can tow it with the Ascent, which is almost as much fun to drive as the Outback (which I think was my ideal car). I miss the luxurious space of the 27-footer… but I surely don’t miss driving a big pickup!Actually, this 19' Airstream has about the same living space as the 22' 1985 Lazy Daze that I started out in, twenty years ago. But the overall layout feels more practical, and I don't have to climb up into an overcab bed. And I still have panoramic windows. :-)The Trillium is in storage for now, and I may sell it to a friend later on. I loved that little rig. And it made my present rig possible: if I hadn’t learned from those seven months in a 13’ trailer that I could be comfortable in a very small RV, I would not have been able to consider downsizing from a 27’ Airstream to a 19’ one. That was an extremely valuable lesson. And besides, since I'd been living in the 13' Trillium, moving into a 19' Airstream was a big step up, rather than feeling like a big step down from the 27-footer.So that’s my odyssey. In the past four years, I’ve lived in four different RVs and owned five different vehicles. I would never in a million years have predicted that! But I think now I finally have the best compromise for me. 30 Likes
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #69 – August 05, 2021, 08:35:35 pm That was a fun read Andy!! Thank you. Mar 4 Likes
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #70 – August 06, 2021, 10:43:57 am <smile> I guess the take home lesson is you NEVER know where you'll be in the future so enjoy the present......time has away of getting the last word.glen 3 Likes
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #71 – December 15, 2021, 02:47:01 pm Here's another update... a somewhat shamefaced one this time. I'm still living in the 19' Airstream, and I still like it. I just turned 72, and it's likely this will be my last RV. But as to the tow vehicle... well, the Subaru Ascent, while a very comfortable car, turned out to be marginal when towing this trailer.The Ascent is rated to tow 5,000 pounds, with a 500-pound maximum hitch weight. The Airstream has a maximum weight of 4,500 pounds, so going by that, it would be OK to tow with this car--not great, but OK. But the Airstream's tongue weight ranges from 480 to 550 pounds, depending upon how much is in my black and gray tanks (at the rear) and my freshwater tank (up front). In practice, I was experiencing occasional fishtailing/sway (potentially very dangerous) and "porpoising," where the car's front end would be too light to have good control. I bought a weight-distributing/antisway hitch, but then discovered that Subaru forbids using a W-D hitch with their cars, so I didn't install it. Besides, the hitch itself would have added about a hundred pounds to the hitch weight.When I found myself draining my water tank before towing in order to reduce hitch weight, and putting an old car battery in the Ascent's front passenger's footwell to try to keep the front end stable, I knew it was time to admit defeat. So a couple of weeks ago I traded it in for a Ford Ranger Lariat, a small pickup with a 7,500 pound tow rating and 750 pound maximum hitch weight. The truck is not as quiet or smooth-riding as the Ascent, but it has all the basic features I want (4WD, adaptive cruise control, etc.), and it should be a much safer tow vehicle. (I haven't tried it out yet.) And it feels much more comfortable to drive in town than my previous full-sized F-150 and F-250 pickups.As a side note, while I was researching the Ranger, I discovered that Consumer Reports rated the Ascent's reliability as well below average: "Subaru still hasn’t worked out the kinks with the Ascent, which still has subpar reliability. Owners report transmission, power equipment, brakes, and climate system problems." If I had more thoroughly researched the Ascent before buying it, I would not have chosen it.The moral of this story is that I bought the vehicle I wanted rather than the one I needed. Embarrassingly, that was the same mistake I'd made when buying an F-150 to tow my previous 27' Airstream. You'd think I would have learned my lesson! 6 Likes
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #72 – December 15, 2021, 03:48:10 pm Hi AndyI cannot thank you enough for your forthcoming and very honest comments. In my opinion you are a cut above, stay that way,Didn't some say way back HONESTY IS THE BEST POLICY?I wish I had met you in our travels maybe I will and take care, keep it upBob Wilson
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #73 – December 15, 2021, 04:33:31 pm Accessing the information at the link to Consumer Reports requires a subscription to the publication.
Re: Andy Baird Question Reply #74 – December 15, 2021, 05:07:28 pm Oh, darn. I tried to check for that, but didn't see any indication that a CR membership was required. I've removed the link.
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