Preparing for the Road

[GaryZero]

Hi,

Names Gary lost my Job beginning of February. While I looked for a job, lived on unemployment I decided I don’t wanna go back to work. I’m 53 and I’m tired of the day to day work life. 

I’ve watched a lot of the videos from Cheap RV Living for maybe 2 years but just didn’t know when to make the leap. Once I got a divorce 2 years ago I thought why am I hanging out in humid Illinois, which I’ve always hated. 

I’m hoping to have sold most of my stuff by August and figure out what kind of rig I want and can afford. I already have a 2012 Ram 1500 and I think I wanna keep it. My only other options I liked was a Class B van like a Travato which I like. But I don’t wanna pay 60 to 80k for it. 

Next option would be a cargo trailer. But I have to have a nice bed and bathroom. Nothing else matters but those two are a must. I can’t custom build it so that option is out. 

So I think I might try to find a small trailer for 20k or less and go with that. 

I still have a 12 year old daughter I would like to live with me in the summer so that’s kinda why I need a decent bathroom rather than a bucket. She would never understand or be cool with that. Lol

Well that’s it for now. Any suggestions on a Class B similar to a Travato would be appreciated.

Take care,
Gary

 

[rvwandering]

Welcome to the CRVL forums Gary! It sounds like a trailer is a good choice for you. Good luck with your search!

To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips & Tricks" post lists some helpful information to get you started. We look forward to hearing more from you.

 

[AMGS3]

Hi and welcome to the forum Gary!

I would suggest finding out what your tow vehicle's tow weight rating is, since that will be impt info to consider when looking for a trailer to fit your needs. It's more to consider than just the year/make/model of your truck, since different available features change the towing capacity.

Here's a tow guide spreadsheet for 2012 Ram 1500s-
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sou...FjASegQIAhAB&usg=AOvVaw3evqyLLgH8Uom-IPkkGwj8
Please note that there is a pretty wide variation even though all these trucks are the same year/make/model.

Also, since you will be loading your belongings into it, when trailer shopping, aim for a trailer with a dry weight (weight of just the empty trailer alone) less than your truck's max tow weight. Otherwise, if you max out your truck with just the trailer alone, filling it will put it overweight.

This is problematic for many reasons. It will be harder on your truck brakes/engine/transmission, harder on the brakes/frame/axel(s) of your trailer, illegal if you ever got pulled over by a LEO looking for overweight trailers, and if by chance you got in an accident, possibly grounds for your insurance company to refuse to pay because your vehicle and trailer were carrying an illegal weight load. So it's important to avoid that.

~angie

Sent from my VS501 using Tapatalk

 

[A Savage Adventure]

Welcome, Gary! Looks like you share a similar story to many of us. Safe Travels!