How much does RV size (length) really matter?

[highdesertranger]

Wow Gemini very nice. Highdesertranger

 

[john*thomas]

My MIL had a 40 foot diesel. Tip outs the whole works. She told us to take it and I wanted nothing to do with it. I had no desire at all to drive it.

I bought a 20 foot Nissan Odyssey. About perfect for me. Now if I was still working and had to work out of it, I could see where it would be too small for more than one person.

Gemini, your choice looks like a great pick for what you were looking to do.

 

[bullfrog]

Looking really good!

 

[RvNaut]

the loud engine noise and coach movement made him nervous at first, but he's starting to be more comfortable in the rig.

You can buy/install heat rated sound insulation to reline the inside of the doghouse...

 

[rvwandering]

Beautiful work!

 

[Cammalu]

Really looks great.

 

[kklowell]

That looks great!

 

[Cammalu]

Gemini are you on your way to Kentucky to help me redo mine?

 

[RoamerRV428]

wonderful and thanks for more pics

your kitchen cabinet color is stellar!!!
love your camp photos. Enjoy the heck out of that!

 

[Ginny]

Of course - to each his own.

I started out with a 37 foot diesel pusher with two slides. There was a lot of comfort with that RV, but it was too difficult to just get up and go.

I’m a part timer and want to be able to spend as much time on the road as I can. I found that the diesel pusher simply require too much planning. There were a lot of public campgrounds that I simply didn’t fit in. Also it seemed to take way too much time just to prepare to go on the road.

I’m currently in a class-B, 21 feet long with no slides. I have a lot of windows so do not feel cramped. I’m very comfortable in it. Best of all, it seems that I can just ‘get up and go’ when I get the urge to get on the road. I need very little preparation time - usually less than an hour. Just grab my clothes and make a quick stop at the Walmart for groceries. Also by being shorter, I fit much easier in state campgrounds so am often able to get a spot that wouldn’t work if I were much larger.

Also I’m fairly comfortable getting into the back spots. Ground clearance is a bit of an issue, but I can fairly easily back out or turn around if I need to.

 

[Gemini1771]

We've been full time for a little over 4 months and are IN LOVE with our 24' Safari Trek, Glinda!!! We've traveled over 3500 miles from WA to South Florida. Glinda is only a 4 cylinder diesel, so she's not fast, especially going up hill. I've been slightly jealous of the vans zipping by us on the mountain passes, but I'm happy we have as much space as we do to work/ live full-time with two humans, a dog and a cat. We shouldn't be in a hurry anyway, so slow going is just fine. Lol! Glinda is also still small enough to make it down narrow/ small roads and fits into tiny spots. She's lifted, so we have good ground clearance. We're hoping to make the trek to Alaska in the spring to do some adventuring. Woohoo!!

 

[rvwandering]

Thanks for the update! Glad you're enjoying the journey!

 

[RvNaut]

We've been full time for a little over 4 months and are IN LOVE with our 24' Safari Trek, Glinda!!!

Hi Gemini...

Glad to hear it is going well... I assume you found TrexTraxs.com?

I just transitioned to FT in the last month and am hanging out in Quartzsite getting settles... in a 2004 Trek..

 

[LargeMarge]

My partner and I have been looking at RVs for a couple of years and plan to shove off for full time living in September-ish. We’ve imagined a host of scenarios (and even almost bought a 5th wheel)- we’re currently leaning toward a 25-28 foot class C or A. We’ll be living and remote working in our rig full time (with a cat and dog), so we need workspace and a little room to move. I feel claustrophobic in some of the smaller rigs, especially ones without slides.

My question is, is going up to 30 or even 32 feet really going to make much of a difference? I have been trying to prepare myself for a smaller living space because we plan on boondocking and I imaging getting a 26 ft rig down a dirt road is going to be a lot easier than getting a 30 ft rig down the same road, but I don’t know if that’s really true. We own a Jeep Wrangler that we dispersed camp in a lot (and also plan to tow)- I know we won’t have nearly the same access with an RV, but the rougher roads we can get down the better. If we could afford one of those 4WD Earthroamer type rigs, we’d totally be there.

Expanding our search to include slightly longer rigs also gives us more options that can tow our Wrangler (4,500 lbs) and some of the longer rigs are cheaper. We’re looking to stay around $25K, so we’re looking at old rigs.

Any thoughts on length? Also, any thoughts on trying to boondock down rough-ish roads in a Class C or Class A? We’ll need pretty consistent internet access, so the will be a limiting factor as well. We’re in Washington state now- a lot of the forest roads here are terrible, but there also isn’t much of a cell signal in the mountains once you leave the main highways.

Any input would be appreciated! Thanks!

Our rig -- 1996 Ford CF8000 we converted to our concept of an ExpeditionVehicle in 2003.
Our interior -- 7w x 12 l x 7h, about 700cf.
We boondock exclusively.
We have zero-zero-zero desire to enjoy the festivities at a lunatic asylum (aka 'RV park').
Shuffleboard marathons?
Canasta tournaments 24/7/360°?
.
Our rig is s a perfect size for three RedHeelers plus two adults (and a frequent yummy third!).
.
"But but but how do you live in such a tiny space!"
Glad you asked...
.
Most of our time is outside.
We cook on induction hot-plates, usually on the porch or at a picnic-table.
An extension cord, one or all three cookers, and we are set.
.
We shower on the porch.
We use stainless-steel five-gallon retired Pepsi kegs.
One of many advantages over a rig-mount tank -- we can move one keg to the picnic-table so everybody can clean up.
.
Twenty-four months twenty-four thousand miles around South America.
Alaska, Panama, all over North and Central America.
Summers up rough logger tracks to remote mountain lakes.
Winters on isolated Baja beaches.
.
Nearly two decades full-time live-aboard, we decided on this size after two years and a hundred thousand miles delivering RecreateVehicles manufacturer-to-dealer and dealer-to-shows.
We have a hard time seeing any value in a factory RecreateVehicle.
Staples into particle-board?
Opinion.
.
On home-built forums such as skoolie, we suggest:
* toss in some car-camping gear, go have fun.
* allow the conversion to evolve organically.
In your situation, 'allow the transformation from stand-still to mobile to evolve organically'.
And avoid thinking 'this rig is my forever rig'.
You grow, your travel needs change.

 

[Jraulpilot1983]

My partner and I have been looking at RVs for a couple of years and plan to shove off for full time living in September-ish. We’ve imagined a host of scenarios (and even almost bought a 5th wheel)- we’re currently leaning toward a 25-28 foot class C or A. We’ll be living and remote working in our rig full time (with a cat and dog), so we need workspace and a little room to move. I feel claustrophobic in some of the smaller rigs, especially ones without slides.

My question is, is going up to 30 or even 32 feet really going to make much of a difference? I have been trying to prepare myself for a smaller living space because we plan on boondocking and I imaging getting a 26 ft rig down a dirt road is going to be a lot easier than getting a 30 ft rig down the same road, but I don’t know if that’s really true. We own a Jeep Wrangler that we dispersed camp in a lot (and also plan to tow)- I know we won’t have nearly the same access with an RV, but the rougher roads we can get down the better. If we could afford one of those 4WD Earthroamer type rigs, we’d totally be there.

Expanding our search to include slightly longer rigs also gives us more options that can tow our Wrangler (4,500 lbs) and some of the longer rigs are cheaper. We’re looking to stay around $25K, so we’re looking at old rigs.

Any thoughts on length? Also, any thoughts on trying to boondock down rough-ish roads in a Class C or Class A? We’ll need pretty consistent internet access, so the will be a limiting factor as well. We’re in Washington state now- a lot of the forest roads here are terrible, but there also isn’t much of a cell signal in the mountains once you leave the main highways.

Any input would be appreciated! Thanks!

Greetings,..I've been RV'ing since 1996, Full time since retirement in 2020. My rig is a 1989 E-350 / 7.5/460cid- V8....on a 29f...Marathon Class C with 116,000 Odo. Miles, (100% very well cared by me, (Military "Grease Monkey")...my Towed "dingy" is a 2010 Wrangler Sport with a Hard-Top/T-top.(12,000lbs Winch). I've been abled to tackle all kinds of Trails, including tight ones that "carress" the body with "soft brushes"...and very careful planning for "low tree branches"(like Ocala National Forest), so my A/C unit does'nt get damaged, (Great,So far). I would recommend this type of Rig with the "big engine" and it will do the job. (These days (Feb 2022)..they are hard to find but if you find One it is like finding gold. If you find One, it is worth it to put money Into it if you are planning to keep it for a long time.) Good Luck in your Journey..!

 

[Jon Donahue]

I have an old 24’ Lazy Daze, which lets me stay in national parks with <25’ space limits. It is a 1991 with a Chevy 454 V8, so I could tow a car with it... but that would be too much trouble. There's no perfect length, but I wish Lazy Daze would make a smaller Class C, at 18-20’. Handier in cities or suburbs!