Recommendations/Suggestions for first 5th Wheel

[B-Lake]

Greetings.

1st post and brand new to the RV world. We are a few years out from retirement and looking to get a 5th wheel to travel a bit and have a mode of transportation to go visit our kids, two of which are out of state.

We are not really sure where to start, we have looked at 3 models to this point: Brinkley, Keystone Montana, and Jayco Northpoint. We are open to other manufacturers, but this is all we have seen up to this point. As of this moment, the Brinkley is probably the favorite, to our untrained eye, it looked like it had the best build quality.

If there are any suggestions or recommendations we need to look for, we would love to hear them. I don't want this thread to turn into anything negative, but do want honest feedback, positive and not so positive, that we should consider. There are a lot of things, I'm sure that is common knowledge to the experienced RV'er that we have no clue about. For example, we really want a washer and dryer, one of the salesman said most folks opt not to have those units. Why is that? Water Supply, weight???

We plan on purchasing by the end of year so any thoughts you had would be appreciated.

Planning on pulling the 5th wheel wiith a Ram 3500 MegaCab (Yes, it's the short box.) Should that be a concern?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Derby6]

I like my Montana and feel it’s a nicer unit than some others. Can always get custom, but that’s pricey.
Floor plan and options you want is the key. Make a list of your must haves and wants and go from there. I went to every dealer in st George and Vegas (I had to go there) before we pulled the trigger. Had pages of notes on every trailer we looked at and made our decision. Of course check weight, especially pin weight. I wanted more room but bigger fivers required a dually and I didn’t want that so I went with 37 1/2 footer. So glad it’s perfect for our use.

As for the short bed. I like my long bed, but many do it with a short bed. Just be cognizant of cab in tight areas. May want/need a sliding hitch but I’ve heard on here many don’t.

 

[tlmgcamp1]

The main issue is making sure the truck suits the trailer. This forum is a good source, but even with that, the only thing we will all agree on 100% is that you can't trust a dealer to help you with that.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Your main concern should be the floor plan (layout), size and features that are suited to your lifestyle wants & needs. Quality & reliability are important, but there isn't all that much different across brands in equivalent price ranges. You've picked some of the better examples, but you will likely get additional suggestions such as models from DRV Suites and Grand Design. The top-line models generally get more assembly time and better materials as well as having extra features and amenities. Brinkly & DRV are probably the top trailer makers today for comfort and quality construction, but Keystone's Montana & Alpine models are solid contenders at usually priced a bit lower.

No simple answer to the bed length question. You said "short", but I think you mean what the pick-up builders now call "standard", i.e. 6.5 ft ("long" is 8 ft). "Short" is anything less than standard and could be as little as 5 ft. Crew cab models are often "short" to keep the overall length down. Be careful when you hear the term short bed because the term is often misused by sales people or in casual conversation (like here).. I would avoid anything less than 6.5 ft for any good sized 5W. Then take into consideration the front end styling of the specific 5W - most now have a tapered nose better suited for truck beds shorter than 8 ft, but there you need to measure to make sure.

 

[TonyL]

We tow a 34ft highland ridge with the short bed F350 (6'8")
We have a B & W companion hitch mounted using the puck system.
It's heavy hence solid and never given us any concerns. It's not a slider and in 6 years we've never needed one.
When the turn looks tight especially on a campground, the wife hops out and watches the pinch point. As soon as it's getting close she shouts stop.
We're from the UK so you won't find long fifth wheel trailers common there.
My only advice regarding what to buy,
Rule 1 NEVER EVER TRUST A WORD ANY SALESMAN TELLS YOU!!!!
After that, forget about getting anything sorted under warranty once you drive off the lot. It could take months to get the simplest item sorted. We stayed 3 days at the dealership at their offering to ensure everything works. Hence, test everything.
Build quality since covid is definitely hit and miss, that's why many on here say about buying second hand in the hope the first buyer has had everything sorted, and they take the hit on depreciation.
Finally, welcome to the best forum, ask any and every question you can think of, but try and limit each post to 1 or 2 questions at a time. You'll get much better responses.

 

[TonyL]

As for washer dryer, our unit is prepped for it and we considered it, but the cost, water usage, power usage (we boondock a lot) put us off.
Everyone to their own, but the purchase price buys a **** of a lot of laundry time.

 

[Dan_Frisbie]

We’re very happy with our Grand Design Momentum. Maybe you should add that manufacturer to your list.

Get more truck than you think you need.

 

[richclover]

Greetings.

1st post and brand new to the RV world. We are a few years out from retirement and looking to get a 5th wheel to travel a bit and have a mode of transportation to go visit our kids, two of which are out of state.

We are not really sure where to start, we have looked at 3 models to this point: Brinkley, Keystone Montana, and Jayco Northpoint. We are open to other manufacturers, but this is all we have seen up to this point. As of this moment, the Brinkley is probably the favorite, to our untrained eye, it looked like it had the best build quality.

If there are any suggestions or recommendations we need to look for, we would love to hear them. I don't want this thread to turn into anything negative, but do want honest feedback, positive and not so positive, that we should consider. There are a lot of things, I'm sure that is common knowledge to the experienced RV'er that we have no clue about. For example, we really want a washer and dryer, one of the salesman said most folks opt not to have those units. Why is that? Water Supply, weight???

We plan on purchasing by the end of year so any thoughts you had would be appreciated.

Planning on pulling the 5th wheel wiith a Ram 3500 MegaCab (Yes, it's the short box.) Should that be a concern?

Thanks in advance.

Our last camper was a Coachmen Chaparral 5’er. 36’, 12,000# gross with 3000# (weighed), on the pin. It served us well including nearly a year full time. Electric jacks with auto leveling was a great feature. I pulled it with a short bed Ram Cummins. Didn’t need a sliding hitch largely due to the front end design. We had a combination washer/dryer installed (it came pre-wired), but decided it wasn’t worth the weight and space. It was similar to the current 298RLS model.
Good luck, safe travels and have fun!

 

[Laura & Charles]

As Tony alluded to, the washer/dryer question depends largely on how you’re going to be using it. If a great deal of boondocking, you probably won’t use them much (and a lot of added storage if you don’t get them). Our first coach had a combo unit. I wouldn’t recommend that. Our current coach has a stacked set and we wouldn’t be without it.. but we stay with full hookups at least half our sites.

Consider used models. More often than not these things come with problems/issues from the factory. There’s plenty of late model used rigs available that (hopefully) the original owner got all the initial problems corrected.

Also, you did good coming here before you buy. Many times first time posters are asking about things that could’ve been avoided had they asked here before buying.

 

[Kirk]

From what I read and saw looking through one, the Brinkley does seem to be of higher quality than most. My son bought an Alliance about a year ago and would have gone with Brinkley if they had been building a floorplan like he wanted. I would also suggest that you look at the Alliance line as well.

In general, the higher quality RVs will weigh significantly more than the cheaper built ones. Things like solid wood, dual pane windows, and steel increase the weight.

 

[B-Lake]

Your main concern should be the floor plan (layout), size and features that are suited to your lifestyle wants & needs. Quality & reliability are important, but there isn't all that much different across brands in equivalent price ranges. You've picked some of the better examples, but you will likely get additional suggestions such as models from DRV Suites and Grand Design. The top-line models generally get more assembly time and better materials as well as having extra features and amenities. Brinkly & DRV are probably the top trailer makers today for comfort and quality construction, but Keystone's Montana & Alpine models are solid contenders at usually priced a bit lower.

No simple answer to the bed length question. You said "short", but I think you mean what the pick-up builders now call "standard", i.e. 6.5 ft ("long" is 8 ft). "Short" is anything less than standard and could be as little as 5 ft. Crew cab models are often "short" to keep the overall length down. Be careful when you hear the term short bed because the term is often misused by sales people or in casual conversation (like here).. I would avoid anything less than 6.5 ft for any good sized 5W. Then take into consideration the front end styling of the specific 5W - most now have a tapered nose better suited for truck beds shorter than 8 ft, but there you need to measure to make sure.

Thank you for the response. And you are 100% correct. I should have said I planned on pulling this setup with the Ram 3500 6'4" box.

 

[B-Lake]

From what I read and saw looking through one, the Brinkley does seem to be of higher quality than most. My son bought an Alliance about a year ago and would have gone with Brinkley if they had been building a floorplan like he wanted. I would also suggest that you look at the Alliance line as well.

In general, the higher quality RVs will weigh significantly more than the cheaper built ones. Things like solid wood, dual pane windows, and steel increase the weight.

Yes sir, that is the only holdup on the Brinkley, we don't just love the floorplan!

 

[B-Lake]

Our last camper was a Coachmen Chaparral 5’er. 36’, 12,000# gross with 3000# (weighed), on the pin. It served us well including nearly a year full time. Electric jacks with auto leveling was a great feature. I pulled it with a short bed Ram Cummins. Didn’t need a sliding hitch largely due to the front end design. We had a combination washer/dryer installed (it came pre-wired), but decided it wasn’t worth the weight and space. It was similar to the current 298RLS model.
Good luck, safe travels and have fun!

Thank you very much for the response and the pic! Was that Ram the i6 cummins?

 

[Kirk]

Have you looked at the Alliance line? Also the Grand Design?

 

[B-Lake]

As Tony alluded to, the washer/dryer question depends largely on how you’re going to be using it. If a great deal of boondocking, you probably won’t use them much (and a lot of added storage if you don’t get them). Our first coach had a combo unit. I wouldn’t recommend that. Our current coach has a stacked set and we wouldn’t be without it.. but we stay with full hookups at least half our sites.

Consider used models. More often than not these things come with problems/issues from the factory. There’s plenty of late model used rigs available that (hopefully) the original owner got all the initial problems corrected.

Also, you did good coming here before you buy. Many times first time posters are asking about things that could’ve been avoided had they asked here before buying.

Thanks for the response. Like what kinds of things could have been avoided, lol? That is what we need to know. We don't know what we don't know lol!

 

[B-Lake]

We’re very happy with our Grand Design Momentum. Maybe you should add that manufacturer to your list.

Get more truck than you think you need.

That's great to hear! GD has been one manufacturer I've been a little "iffy" on doing my research. How long have you owned it? Besides minor things that come along with anything, any issues? If so, was it taken care of with the warranty!

 

[Dan_Frisbie]

That's great to hear! GD has been one manufacturer I've been a little "iffy" on doing my research. How long have you owned it? Besides minor things that come along with anything, any issues? If so, was it taken care of with the warranty!

We bought it in March, had it out for two trips and absolutely no trouble.
The quality of this 5th wheel is much better than our older (2017) Forest River Class A.

 

[B-Lake]

We bought it in March, had it out for two trips and absolutely no trouble.
The quality of this 5th wheel is much better than our older (2017) Forest River Class A.

Thanks Dan, appreciate the feedback!

 

[msw3113]

We've had an Alliance for five years and are quite happy with it. May I suggest that you join an Alliance Facebook group and see what people (mostly owners) have to say about them.

 

[B-Lake]

We've had an Alliance for five years and are quite happy with it. May I suggest that you join an Alliance Facebook group and see what people (mostly owners) have to say about them.

done!