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Topic: Boy, did I ever make a BIG mistake - LONG (Read 8 times) previous topic - next topic
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Boy, did I ever make a BIG mistake - LONG
Yahoo Message Number: 117735
To set the background: When DW and I bought our RK, we had in mind, primarily short to mid length trips centered around boondocking in good places to go jeeping. Somewhere along the line, without our quite knowing when or how, we evolved into planning on becoming fulltimers upon retirement.
 So, we started upgrading our Tumbleweed. Just this last weekend, upon completion of our latest upgrades (2x100 watt solar panels w/3 stage charger, rock guard, bathroom vent thing, See Level guages), DW asked me, "Are we done? Is there anything else we need to add to make it ready?" The only thing I could think of we didn't have that we wanted/needed was a tire pressure monitoring system.

Then.........
Last Saturday....... we helped a friend........
Look at a used 30' Island bed for HIS retirement.
It's a good deal, we think. After we left him, we started talking about the LD (IMAGINE THAT!!!) The more we talked about the benefits he would have with that floor plan, the separate sleeping area, the additional underneath storage, etc... the more attractive it became.
 So now, we start all over. We have to find a new home for our beloved Tumbleweed, then start looking for it's replacement, which we decided should be a 30' Twin Bed, 2005 or later.
 This was an expensive lesson on helping  a friend *G*! but we think it the right thing to do. So, once I get a chance to put the listing together, I will post our Tumbleweed in the for sale section. As a long shot, if there is anyone with a 30' TB that would be interested in downsizing, please email me.

So remember, when you help your friends..... be careful! *weg*

Lee
2000 TK
2014 Can-Am Spyder RT
Re: Boy, did I ever make a BIG mistake - LONG
Reply #1 –
Yahoo Message Number: 117736
"the more we talked about the benefits he would have with that floor plan, the separate sleeping area, the additional underneath storage..."
 Just remember, Lee, that additional storage comes with a greatly reduced cargo carrying capacity. For example, in 2005 the 26.5' rear kitchen model had a CCC of 1,509 pounds, while the 30' island bed could carry only 757 pounds. And the actual disparity is even greater, because the 26.5' RK is rated for six adults while the 30' IB is only rated for four. With you and your wife people aboard, the usable CCC is 2,125 pounds for the RK vs. 1,075 pounds for the IB.
 So... before you make this expensive switch, you two need to ask yourselves whether you can give up *a thousand pounds* of personal possessions. I know from experience how hard that can be. When I traveled with my old twin/king, Gertie, she was comfortably underweight for four years of vacation trips... but as soon as I went full-time, I found Gertie was overweight by hundreds of pounds. When you move from vacationing to fulltiming, you need to carry a LOT more stuff!
 I know several couples in this group who are fulltiming in 30' Lazy Dazes, so it can be done. They fall into two groups: the first (smaller) group watches every ounce like a hawk in order to stay within their rigs' weight limits. The second group has thrown up their hands, resigned to being constantly overweight, and just hoping nothing will go wrong. Neither situation is a comfortable one from my point of view.
 Bottom line: if you do this, you'll be in one of those two groups... and you'll have given up the ability to carry a thousand pounds of personal possessions that your current rig can handle without a problem. Think long and hard before you make that decision.

Andy Baird http://www.andybaird.com/travels/
Andy Baird
2021 Ford Ranger towing 2019 Airstream 19CB
Previously: 1985 LD Twin/King "Gertie"; 2003 LD Midbath "Skylark"
Re: Boy, did I ever make a BIG mistake - LONG
Reply #2 –
Yahoo Message Number: 117737
Think long and hard before you make that decision.

Quote
Andy Baird http://www.andybaird.com/travels/
We have, and will give it more thought. Before we make a permanent commitment, we will evaluate what all we actually need to take with us. I am thinking we can do it, but, the proof of the pudding is in the eating, as they say.

Thanks for your input,

Lee
2000 TK
2014 Can-Am Spyder RT
Re: Boy, did I ever make a BIG mistake - LONG
Reply #3 –
Yahoo Message Number: 117740
On 10/25/2010 7:58 AM, Lee wrote:
 
Quote
Before we make a permanent commitment, we will evaluate what all we actually need to take with us.

 Get a scale and start weighing everything you'll want to take with you.
You'll probably be shocked at how much "stuff" weighs!

Linda Hylton http://earl-linda.blogspot.com/
Linda Hylton
Re: Boy, did I ever make a BIG mistake - LONG
Reply #4 –
Yahoo Message Number: 117741
On Mon, 25 Oct 2010 14:05:53 -0000, "Lee" inflt@...> wrote:

Quote
So now, we start all over. We have to find a new home for our beloved Tumbleweed, then start looking for it's replacement, which we decided should be a 30' Twin Bed, 2005 or later.
You might feel even more comfortable in a Foretravel. But, geesh, Lee, why not try spending a year in the 26, before you change. Sounds very impulsive to me.
Don & Dorothy
Sold our LD in June of 2023

Our boring always non-PC travel blog
Traveling Dorothy
Re: Boy, did I ever make a BIG mistake - LONG
Reply #5 –
Yahoo Message Number: 117743
Kathleen and I full-timed in a 26 footer and enjoyed it a lot. First in a MB and then in a RB.  If you can sleep over the cab in a 26 footer  you probably end up with as much and perhaps more daytime living space than in a 30 footer.
 And be sure to look into the CCC of a 30 footer.  That would be a deal killer in a 30 footer for us.
___ best, paul "Thriving not surviving" Some once thought a million chimps would in time type great old works of literature Now that we have the Internet we know that not to be true.......
Re: Boy, did I ever make a BIG mistake - LONG
Reply #6 –
Yahoo Message Number: 117747
"Before we make a permanent commitment, we will evaluate what all we actually need to take with us."
 Try this: set a bathroom scale next to the entry door, and remove a thousand pounds of stuff from your current rig. Now see whether you can get by on a full-time basis with what remains. It'll be an eye-opener, I promise you!
 I'm with Mike: "Why not try spending a year in the 26, before you change?" That's essentially what I did when I started out as a fulltimer five years ago: I traveled full-time in my 22' twin/king for a year and a half to see how I liked it. Then once I was certain I wanted to continue fulltiming indefinitely *and* had a very clear idea of what my needs were, I upgraded to a newer, larger coach that I was able to outfit with a desk and other things I hadn't been able to fit in the 22-footer.
 Suppose I had traded Gertie for a bigger coach before I started traveling. I might have discovered after a year that fulltiming wasn't for me. Or I might have learned that the floorplan I upgraded to wasn't really the best one for my needs. Either way, I would have wasted a huge amount of money.
 You already have a good coach. By your own testimony, it's very well equipped. Why not, as Mike said, give yourselves a year's trial run? Unlike buying a 30-footer, it won't cost you anything. You'll learn a lot about your needs and wants, which, let me emphasize, are going to change when you move from vacationing to fulltiming.
 After a year, if you still want a larger coach AND you are convinced that you can live without that thousand pounds of stuff... *then* you can trade up with confidence. Doing so now, before you've had fulltiming experience, could end up being the most expensive mistake you'll ever make. Just my two cents' worth. :-)

Andy Baird http://www.andybaird.com/travels/
Andy Baird
2021 Ford Ranger towing 2019 Airstream 19CB
Previously: 1985 LD Twin/King "Gertie"; 2003 LD Midbath "Skylark"
Re: Boy, did I ever make a BIG mistake - LONG
Reply #7 –
Yahoo Message Number: 117749
Don't jump off the cliff before you know the cliff you're on! We had it in our minds to buy the 30' when we went to see them at the Mothership; we were persuaded by the difference in CCC between that and the MB knowing that we would be traveling for long periods of time rather than 2 week or slightly longer trips.
 WFP and I full-time for 7 months a year (and that includes tax prep season which is always stressful no matter how big a space you inhabit) in our 26.5 MB. You'd be surprised what you can do without and still lack for nothing.
 We carry all kinds of things (such as a paper shredder and a printer) and have learned to downsize as we go along...fewer clothes, less on-board food reserves, have bought 2 Kindles to replace the 3 grocery-store size bags of books (do have a few "real" books at hand), reduce the back-up toiletries from, say 5 spare tubes of toothpaste (you gotta love Costco) to 1 spare. Little parings that one by one add up (or subtract, depending upon your math skills) and cause no loss of comfort.
 You've made no mistake, BIG or small. You've got a great RV in the RK and have made some very good additions...give it a try for a season and then make an experience-based decision.

TinaP 2006 MB "Wild Thing" Packing to Leave for 7 Months on Wednesday

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
2006 MB
Re: Boy, did I ever make a BIG mistake - LONG
Reply #9 –
Yahoo Message Number: 117770
I want to second Andy's comments about part-time versus full-time RV'ing weight requirements.  We also had plenty of carrying capacity in Gertie, but never fulltimed in her.  We didn't spend as long at a time in her as Andy did in later years, but we did spend two 3-month periods, as well as many much shorter periods in the ten years we had her.
 Like Andy, we knew fulltiming was for us, but we felt we needed more space and carrying capacity than even a larger Lazy Daze could provide.  So after much deliberation and a visit to the Mothership, we moved from Gertie (22 feet) to a 40-foot diesel pusher that was a dream to live in, but a nightmare to drive and park.  After eight years in the 40-footer, fast forward to a new life of part timing in a 26.5-foot rear bath.

Having been spoiled by the capacity of the 40-footer for all of my kitchen toys, we solved the carrying capacity and physical space problems of the smaller Lazy Daze by retaining our 18-foot Sportsmobile van camper (a Dodge 2500 RAM) and using that as a toad.
We don't actually tow it, of course.  I have to drive it separately, but it allows us to take along just about anything we want to, while leaving plenty of living space in the Lazy Daze.

This might also work for someone in a 30-foot Lazy Daze, if that is the choice of living unit.  Something has to give somewhere in order to be safe, so if the travelers can manage two driving units, that might solve the problem.  We don't do long-distance driving, nor are we on the road for many hours a day due to my husband's limitations now, so this is not a hardship.  Hard core, 500-mile a day trips, I suspect, would be very unpleasant under these circumstances, however.

We used this method by choice when we had the pusher because we wanted to still be able to go to small campgrounds from time to time, but now, with the smaller Lazy Daze, I find that I can cram out-of- season clothes, my water distiller, bread machine, copious small appliances, and not inconsiderable amounts of staples, into the Sportsmobile.  A regular van might be even better for this use, although the camper has many nice cabinets to contain my treasures.

An unintended consequence is that we also have "guest quarters" for hardy visitors with us at all times, as it is a full-service camper! Personal use methods would dictate the practicality of this scheme.
(A fancy way of saying YMMV!)  Waving to Joan!!!  ;->

Virtual hugs,

Judie (2005 RB) Not quite so grounded in Sierra Vista, Arizona

Re: Boy, did I ever make a BIG mistake - LONG
Reply #10 –
Yahoo Message Number: 117779
Andy said, and I agree, "Think long and hard before you make that decision."

Now, if Steve still had one of the Kodiaks left...

Ken F in NM

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
'08 MB
 
Re: Boy, did I ever make a BIG mistake - LONG
Reply #11 –
Yahoo Message Number: 117781
Wouldn't matter if he did, I am afraid, I couldn't affor a new one, in any case.
 While I really appreciate everyone's concern about weight, Deb and I had already talked about the CC vs room aspects. We have been on this site and read all the pro/con discussions over the years.
 In our case (which admittedly is not the same as it is for others; everyone has different needs/wants/things that are important to them), carrying more "stuff" is much less important than having more room. We really feel the additional room will enable us to want to full time longer. We have been downsizing for years, ever since a move from Atlanta to Colorado made us realize how much unneeded "stuff" we have. In preparation to fulltime, we have switched to laptops, digitized all our music and books to about 8 ounces each. other than clothes (casual only) and food, I don't anticipate our weight requirements being out of line with the TB's CC. We will tow our Jeep and can put some stuff there, if we really feel the need.
 Our plan is to snowbird, spending about 4 months a year along the Texas coast and Rio Grand Valley area. What we do keep, we will put in storage there and have access to 4 months a year, but I don't think it will be that much, truly.
 Again, thank you to all for your concern, but I still believe we are moving in what, for us, is the right direction.

Lee
2000 TK
2014 Can-Am Spyder RT