Steven@146

Hello everyone. The wife and I will be celebrating our 5th year full timing this July and we haven't considered stopping our adventures. Any frustrations we encounter while traveling the country are minor compared to the beautiful and interesting places we have or will see. 

 Having lived near Austin when we had our home, we visited the Museum of the Pacific War in Fredricksburg Tx many times and attended the volunteer re-enactments of the Marines landing on the Pacific Islands. So many places we have visited so far, like the Little Big Horn Battle Field, Devils Tower, Gettysburg, Tombstone, Deadwood, Big Ben Tx, the big 5 NP in Utah, Tucson, Pima Air & Space Museum, National Museum of Nuclear Science & History. Small private museums like the Bryan Museum in Galveston, Monument Hill Texas Historical Site in LaGrange TX or the Wayne County Historical Museum in Richmond Indiana where some of the first electric cars and steam engine / trashing machines were manufactured in the 1900's. The Packard museum in Auburn Indiana.

I could go on and we have barely scratched the surface of the wonderful places left to see. Like I said, for us any frustration we may encounter is insignificant compared to what other people have gone through like the great US migration west of the Mississippi across the prairies. We also hope to visit Canada soon as we have updated our passports, are currently planning to cross over at Sault Ste Marie and follow the coastline of Lake Superior.  

Friends of ours, also full timers, their favorite saying is experience life, don't just live it.

Been using RVTW for 4 years now. Yes it does take a little time and experience using it. It has a lot of options you can choose to use or not. I recommended it to a couple we met that said they were not tech savvy at all and it looked to complicated. I gave them a little tutorial and made up some simple trips and showed them the versatility of the tool. They ended up loving it and they get better the more they use it.. 

We had kind of the same problem with our RAM getting a "Check Trailer Brake Wiring" (intermittent short to ground) or "Trailer Brakes Disconnected" (hard short to ground) messages from our truck. The problem was the trailer brake wires running inside the axle tubes. The wires inside the axle tubes had frayed down to bare wire rubbing on the inside of the axle tubes and caused an intermittent or hard short to ground in the trailer brake system. 

I replaced the brake wires on the RV axle tubes, running the new wiring on the outside back side of the axles. I soldered the wire connections and covered them with sealer heat shrink tubing. I used corrugated plastic split tubing to protect the wires and used tie straps to attach the wires to the tubes. Solved all our problems. Here is a link to a YouTube video I made repairing our brake wiring, it might help you.

https://youtu.be/iF4wVd_MCs8

Disclosure - Our Youtube channel is Non-Profit so we don't make any money from them. 

22 hours ago, Movin On said:

We are in the middle of establishing our domicile at Rainbow’s End RV Park In Livingston TX. We have arrived at the point to transfer our Drivers License from Georgia to Texas and must have the Class A non commercial class drivers license. We understand we can take the written part here In Livingston, but it appears you can no longer take the driving skills test here. Has anyone recently taken the skills driving test, and if so, where do you suggest we schedule an appointment.? It appears to us there isn’t a nearby location. 
Your input would be appreciated. Not looking forward to having a road skills test…wasn’t required in Georgia for our fifth-Wheel. ☹️

Back when I got my Class A NCDL I was told the driving skills test was only given at the DPS Mega Centers. I don't know if that is still true but a little google search says the closest Mega Center to Livingston is North Houston.

I took my driving test at the mega center in Austin. From what I recall you can take the driving skills test at any of DPS Mega centers through out Texas doesn't have to be the closest one to Livingston.

Good discussion. We do a little of everything that you all have been talking about. We do have a fire "resistant" safe in the RV and most all of the documents like passports and a few hundred $ (just in case) are in a fire proof bag inside the fire "resistant" safe, key or digital combination. However, like you say probably end up ashes if the RV burned to the ground. I think they will still replace burned cash if it isn't too burned up. We also have a "Go Bag" in the truck.

We have run into one campground that would only take checks/cash, no credit or debit cards. I haven't wrote out a check in years.

Use CC for refueling, restaurants or other purchases and multiple CC from different banks in case a card is compromised so we are not stuck waiting for a card to be replaced. Watch the postings to our cards very closely and have cancel card on speed dial. Only use debit cards at grocery stores or WalMart and sometimes get $20 or so back.

For irreplaceable documents/items you could always get a bank safety deposit box near a family member and have them on the list so they can get into it as well, just in case. Then they could send you what you need or copy/notarize it and send it to you.

You people are an inspiration to us young folks, coming up on our 5 year FT anniversary. We are still loving every day!

We would second what Kirk said about the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge - We stayed at a campground on Lake Lawtonka near Lawton OK and had a great time. Also visited Medicine Park and had a couple meals at the Meers General Store and hamburger restaurant that will take you back to the 1900s. We got a pass to get on Fort Sill Army Post and visited the Army Museums there, excellent! Civilians can get a Pass to get on the Army Post.

We stopped by the Native American Cemeteries and Burial Grounds also inside Fort Sill. Geronimo, Quanta Parker and several Native Americans are buried on Fort Sill. Fort Sill is one of the oldest Army Post in the country dating back to the middle to late 1800s and the old Calvary Post. Inside the Wildlife Refuge we visited the Holy City of the Wichita MTS and Mount Scott. We had a great time!

This is the best part of fulltiming for us, visiting all these places around the country. Lots of history to discover!

There are so many variables involved , peoples age, health, types of people, type/style of RVs, work/retired, expectations, capable of making self repairs, financially stable, flexible life styles etc.  As for us - we have had our current rig for 4.5 years, been fulltiming now for 3 years, 45 years together, mid to late 60s, both on Medicare, very capable of making repairs. With military service and working in corporate America, the wife and I left "home" when we got married, moved and lived in different parts of the country. We have been "nomads" since the day we got married. That makes it easier for us to blend right in with fulltime RV living.

Our domicile is Texas, winter home port Galveston. We are in good health, financially stable, retired, No real big problems with our rig in over 20,000 miles. In 3 years on the road we have taken 2 very long trips around the country. Stayed in many campgrounds, visited many popular State and National Parks. one trip over 9000 miles, one 5000 miles, otherwise traveling to see family.

You have to really like and get along with the other person you're fulltiming with. Pick the right rig for you to fulltime in. Biggest frustrations for us - inconsiderate people, and those who can't control their dogs or kids. Some campgrounds that cram RVs into sites like sardines. But fulltiming means these frustrations don't last very long, then you move on.

Things like trip planning and reservations in advance are just the things you have to do, but is not frustrating for us. Finding the local grocery or restaurants is fun adventures for us.

In addition to our water softener and PI power monitor,

a Vizio sound bar that was the most economical addition to our RV. We also installed La Crosse technologies remote temperature sensors so we can monitor the temps in the cargo bay and elsewhere. We added recirculating fans inside our Dometic absorption fridge, that has made a big difference.

47 minutes ago, TXiceman said:

Steven@146, on a few occasions while ordering online, I had trouble with the site accepting the Escapees address.  I solved the problem by putting my box number in the box or second line as an apartment number.  It took that as an acceptable address.

 

Ken

 

That would probably work, just like an apartment. I know they tried to resubmit our address but remove the "#". The store tried all kinds of things, but the application just wouldn't go through, kept flagging the address. First time we've had a problem since we first got our Escapee's address 4 years ago. Both of our banks, and our two credit card companies, all of our insurance companies  and investment companies have never had an issue with our address. I just thought it was interesting, it's not like we needed another credit card but we could have saved a combined 30% on our Bass Pro / Cabela's purchases, then canceled the card.

Yeah, we like their Red Head and Carhart clothes and like their camping supplies, we're hooked like a big mouth bass!!

We ran into a situation when recently applying for a card at Bass Pro, they kept rejecting our application because they didn't like our Escapee's address. I don't know the specifics of why they didn't like the address, don't really care cause we were only applying to get some additional discounts on stuff we were buying. It was just an interesting occurrence, I don't know if it had anything to do with the current conversation or not.

Installing a power monitor and adding shock absorption rubber feet to our power converter. Another great addition was when we installed a water softener in the cargo bay.

I don't think a person can really fairly compare the Auto manufacturer industry to the RV industry. Automobiles are bolted, screwed and welded together and mostly robots do the work. A huge amount of engineering goes into the drive train, braking, suspension and ride quality. Very precise, calibrated and strict tolerances. Most Autos do not weigh 10,000-20,000 +# and not like a rolling earthquake going down the road, also most people do not live in their Autos. Yes there are safety related problems in the Auto industry, air bags, faulty electrical system etc, but the NTSB isn't hounding the RV industry.

RVs are mostly handmade. Mostly manufactured with a collection of things produced by other manufacturers which gives the manufacturer plausible deniability, if a Lippert frame fails its their fault, go talk to them as an example. Loose tolerances, no strict calibration or tolerances. Just barely good enough, until recently mostly old school technology, but not nearly overly engineered systems like autos. Yes some welding but by hand labor, and bolted together but mostly pin nailed and screwed together without the use of calibrated hand tools. There is a lot more man made labor involved in the construction of an RV than the Automotive industry. The regulatory agencies involved in both are very different. The contractual relationship between the dealers and manufacturers is totally different. Auto manufacturers can shut down a dealership, not so in the RV world.

Coming from the trailer side of the RV family, all of the RVs manufactured today (in the US) are owned by the same big 3-4 RV manufacturers, with a couple exceptions Brinkley comes to mind. If a new RV manufacturer pops up with a better idea and starts to gain market share they are quickly bought up and molded into the fold. These same manufacturers all set on the RVIA board, they make the rules. The fox is guarding the hen house. Also the insurance industry is not driving constant safety changes into the RV world like they are in the Auto industry. There are just too many differences to compare the two industries.

I don't know first hand but maybe the Motorhome side of the RV family is a little better constructed and regulated as far as the frames and running gear are concerned but still owned by the same big few RV manufacturers.

If the RV industry really wanted to make an immediate big noticeable improvement in customer satisfaction, they should start with the dealership service departments, mostly terrible, absolutely terrible. However the RV manufacturers have no control over the dealerships.

I guess we consider ourselves pretty lucky, as we went into RV ownership with our eyes open. Researched, read, toured factories, crawled through more RV brands before purchase than I care to recall.  At the time in 2018, we thought we picked the best per price point with our fulltiming needs out of the bunch and took our chance. We were not wowed by bling, and nixed hydraulic systems that leak and computer networks and one control software. Give us an old fashioned on/off switch and basic leveling system that works!

Our rig is a 2019 and we have had no major problems with it like windows leaking, broken ripped out frames, suspension, tires, electrical, we have had minor issues with water line leaks. The electrical wiring is atrocious, haphazard at best but we have had no problems with it so far. Our rig had a 1 year warranty on most things, 3 years on some and like 7 years on the roof. The roof warranty is just the material not a total roof warranty. It has never been back to a dealership for repairs, recalls 1.

Friends of ours just last year bought a New Horizons 5er, almost twice the price as ours, nearly every window leaked really bad, I helped him tape up all the leaking windows just so he could tow it back to the factory for repairs.

i guess what I'm saying is we have not been surprised, did, got as much education and researched RVs as we could,  made a decision, bought one and are now living the fulltime life. We knew what we were getting into.

Oh, you guys are bad !!

I see your point Kirk but then again if a forum or any social media wants to stay around they have to grow, change , adapt with the users needs/wants, If not they will die. That's ok about the younger Xscapers taking over, they will replace us older folks and they will get old and retire as well and then they will look back to their old days on the forum.

I limit my social media, one forum specific to our manufacturer,  Escapee's and of course Email. The wife is on Facebook, but I refuse to use it. I don't want to waist my time reading so many forums or IRV pages. I'm on early in the morning and then off, or like now when its too hot to do anything outside like fishing, hiking, biking.

We have a YouTube Channel, non-profit, but ours is 95% about our adventures, the places we have been, the history of the places we visit, traveling and once in awhile a little about repairs and fulltiming. I have a 5 foot walking stick that is over half covered both sides with park and places medallions. I do look up how to videos, seeing it being done is a whole lot better than reading about it.  We had to replace one of our slide skies. There is one channel I look to for the latest RV products, gadgets. I don't ever post pictures or upload something like a fulltiming budget accounting excel spreadsheet or maintenance/repair tracking spreadsheet,  here because it is to restrictive,. but on our manufacturer forum we share everything and can upload almost anything and links to videos all the time.

This site has helped us immensely when we first went fulltime almost 3 years ago.  We are in our late 60s, kind of pups compared to you "older" people 🙂 I would post pictures of our new Stowaway bicycles but I'm not going to try and figure out how to limit my picture size just for this site.

We've had our Grand Design Solitude S-Class now for 4 years almost 5 years now. It's been great but was built in the fall of 2018.

GD makes the Momentum, Solitude, Reflection, Imagine, Transend. Their customer service has been great the only couple of times we needed. Our RV has never been back to a dealer, never will be!

Soda Auto Repair, 6790 US 190 E. @ 6 miles east past the 190 - 146 stop light.  phone 936.563,4234.

Huge area to turn around a 53 foot truck and 5th wheel. The guy is real nice, doesn't really look at much, maybe just the lights. I always just gave him a $10. In/Out 15-20 minutes.

Now down in Galveston, a great place, don't even have to take your RV to them, just the paperwork. 🙂 

Something similar, when I got married to the little girl I had always rode the school bus with in grade school, while in the service, and went to check my wife into the Squadron, the Command Master Chief told me that the Navy did not issue me a wife! My wife had no clue about the military, never been anywhere near the military. She thought she had to go back home!

But funny how the wives always new what was going on, sometimes before we did!

I think it was 79, we were headed home on the carrier from PI after about a 6 month cruise. I called the wife back in the states telling her it wont be long now, we're on the way home. She said, nope, your going to the Indian Ocean and the Middle East. I said no Honey I am on the ship I should know ! She said, no Sweetheart, I just got it from the base beauty shop, you're going to the Indian Ocean. Seems our Commanding Officers wife was in the beauty shop at the same time.

Sure enough, when I got back to the ship docked at Cubi Point, the Captain was on the 1MC telling the crew the President had ordered us to the Indian Ocean. Go figure!

That cruise lasted 9 months. For the next few days underway we took on more planes, bombs, fuel and provisions and the fleet went through the Straits of Malacca nearly full speed. The Ranger was supposed to relieve us later but hit a freighter in the Straits and had to go back to Subic, the Midway came over to finally relieve us.

Several of the crew had onloaded motorcycle crates, stereos, furniture, all kinds of stuff and one guy had bought an old WW2 Indian motorcycle. As we took on more bombs and provisions space got limited, so new motorcycles and furniture went overboard. The guy with the old Indian bike took it all apart and stored the parts all over the squadron work centers, he saved it. One guy brought an old Chevy Pickup on board for transport back to the states. Eventually that old Chevy truck got shot overboard to make room. To relieve the tension they painted up the old truck like an aircraft and shot it off the angle cat over the side! It lays somewhere at the bottom of the Indiana Ocean.

Just about the only thing non military that didn't go overboard was the Admirals black American Motors Ambassador Limo.

Funny the things you remember,,,,,,,,

I do remember one time back in around 1978, the congress didn't pass the budget so the military wasn't going to get paid. The base we were on at the time said we could still buy groceries at the commissary just on our signature, just come back in when the budget passed and we got paid to settle up. No off base retail store would have done that. IIRC the gas station on base was going to do the same thing.

Back in those days we didn't have or use credit cards. I remember reading my social security statement back for those years and our annual gross income was like $7000. We lived on base and didn't get the housing subsidy. We couldn't afford much back then.

2 hours ago, RV_ said:

Good info. Have you tested it to see if it is still in effect? More sales online like Amazon may cause them to become competitive in pricing. That helps us all.

Yes,  three days ago I ordered a couple veteran T shirts from the Navy Exchange and had them sent to my Son's address so they will be there when we get there. Once you go through the vetverify  application- .https://www.vetverify.org/ it will show if the applicant is eligible to shop on-line the exchanges.

Good communications when ordering, e-mail confirmation of order and e-mail when shipped. Of course you have to pay shipping. There was some good camping stuff on the exchanges and I saw one of those camping chairs with the shock absorber back legs for $62. That's a tad lower than other retail stores I've seen like Bass Pro, but then you would have to pay shipping if the total is under $50. But if its what you want,,,,,,,,

Additional info https://veteran.com/military-exchange-online-shopping-veterans/

How Do Veterans Obtain Online Privileges?

The first step is check your eligibility. Go to VetVerify.org and submit your verification form today. Applicants are required to submit verification of their military service, but it’s a very simple process. You’ll be asked to provide your full name, last four digits of your Social Security Number, date of birth, and a contact email.

Successful applicants are taken to a “Thank You!” page which includes notification of when veterans can start using this benefit. Spouse and dependents of veterans are not eligible however this probably won’t stop many from using the credentials of an authorized veteran to make purchases online.

What Exchanges Can a Veteran Shop?

Authorized veterans can shop the four (AAFES, NEXCOM, MCX and CGX) military exchanges: shopmyexchange.com, mynavyexchange.com and ShopCGX.com. Additionally, veterans can shop across all online exchange offerings regardless of their branch of service

You have received a bunch of good feedback. In terms of timing we had our 5er and truck a year before actually moving into it. It took @ a year just to get rid of all our stuff and get the house and us ready to sell it and transition into the 5er. Downsizing is tough. We didn't want to have a storage unit to pay for.  Once we put the house on the market it sold in one day, then we had to hustle to get into the RV and at a local campground. The wife did her last few months at work before retirement in our fulltime RV before we could take off.

Discounting - right now I don't know what its running  at dealerships. On our truck we got @ 20% and the RV @ 30% of course that was back awhile. The only things I can advise is find the RV brand and floorplan you want, research what the weights are going to be approx, like was advised go to RV shows and or find the RV on a lot and look at the weight stickers on the left front for cargo capacity. Estimate the pin weight 22% (fulltimers) of the RVs GVWR. Find the best deal you can

Then shop around for the right truck to match.  Most likely you'll be in dually territory (didn't look up the RV you posted). I would get a long bed so you don't have to fool around with a slider hitch but that is up to you. But if you finance the interest rates could be really high. Try not to finance much.

Once you go for it set yourself a budget and track your expenses so you don't overspend and splurge. Use an excel spreadsheet or quickbooks. Set aside a repair and maintenance savings account just for your truck and RV (oil changes, repairs, tires, misc things you buy for the truck and RV etc).

As of 2017 all Honorably discharged veterans, not qualified otherwise as Rob has posted above,  can shop on-line at exchanges by submitting verification information then obtaining a login/password from the different exchanges. 

Approved Veterans can shop the online exchanges, including ShopMyExchange.com! Shopping with the Exchange online gives you access to exclusive military pricing and offers, tax-free shopping and more. This is a lifelong benefit that will be extended to all who discharge honorably from service"

See info here -  https://www.defense.gov/News/News-Stories/Article/Article/1371458/honorably-discharged-vets-now-have-online-exchange-shopping-privileges/

All Honorably Discharged Veterans can shop the Exchange or other military exchanges like the Navy Exchange and buy online, however they can not use this privilege in person at military base Exchanges, MX/ BX or Commissaries. This privilege does not give Honorable Discharged Veterans access to base facilities. On-line ordering from exchanges only.

Back in 2017 I applied for the on-line access to exchanges and it was granted, but never activated it until recently. I have used the Navy Exchange On-line web site to order stuff and shipped to my address or other address.

31 minutes ago, agesilaus said:

Exchanges don't have better prices anymore so far as I can tell. You pay sales tax and the prices aren't any better and maybe a bit worse than Walmart. I am service connected and we can use FamCamps and the base facilities. We are at Ft Harrison right now. The BX here is very tiny, barely a minute market.

I don't know when the price shift occurred but they are no longer a bargain. It was more than 10 or 12 years ago since we visited my son at the Sam Antonio base and went to the exchange there.  They do have a lot of military gear tho.

Getting your non Vet wife on base can be a pain in the rear depending on the security level of the base.

 

I'm sure the specific base makes a difference as far as security. It used to be a real perk for retiring from the military, using the base facilities. Of course we have been out of the Navy now for 50 years, a night and day change has happened since we were in. We visited a friend at Kirkland AFB a while back and he was saying the same thing about the prices. The wife and I had no problem getting passes to get on base at Kirkland and Fort Sill. Sure brought back a lot of memories for us being on a military base. We really enjoyed Fort Sill and the artillery museums and the Native American Cemeteries. We got a tour of the flightline at Kirkland and a 130 and Osprey. A lot has changed but I saw some things on these newer aircraft that we had on our aircraft 50 years ago.

This year we also visited the PIMA Air and Space Museum at Tucson and the National Museum for Nuclear Science and Technology in Albuquerque. The Boneyard in Tucson is permanently closed to the public.

All of our (my) enlistment was spent at NAS Lemoore. I know a lot of retired vets use base campgrounds when available, seem to be lower priced per night.

In 1979 when I got out, the Navy was kind of purging the ranks, I was offered to reenlist in my current squadron, but 4 more years of sea duty did not appeal to me or my wife. Old Admiral Zumwalt was really shaking things up back then. Heard he felt that if you were in the Navy you should serve at sea. Shore duty rotations kept getting shorter and fewer places to go, the cruises on aircraft carriers and fleet ships kept getting longer and longer. No bonuses for reenlistments, just wasn't they way to raise a family back then, or we might have stayed in.

But it would be nice to visit a Navy Exchange or BX now and again.

What ever happened with the issue of honorable discharged veterans (but not retired) getting access to base exchanges and commissaries? Seems like it just faded away. I thought they were going to allow honorable vets to get ID cards for this purpose. I thought the idea was that the increased buying power could or would lower the prices some what at the bases. As an honorable discharged vet after 6 years service, my intention would not be to buy a lot of things, especially at the commissaries, the active service people and retirees need groceries there more than we do. But it would be nice to get a few things at the base exchanges.

Recently we visited Fort Sill and the museums and stopped by the base exchange just to look around, the supervisor in charge of the base exchange allowed us to buy some souvenir T-shirts from the exchange. Anything more than that and I'm sure they would not allowed it.

Ws just wondering

I would advise not to be wowed or blinded by the "Bling" walking into the RV or "Hype" from a salesman. In fact I wouldn't talk to the salesman much at all. Way too many potential owners get blinded by the "Bling" and forget about or don't know about what's important.

My initial thoughts - What's important after the floor plan is the suspension system, electrical system, holding tanks, solar system?, batteries, converter/inverter, plumbing system, cargo capacity, leveling system (electric or hydraulic), fresh water system, appliances like on demand water heater, 12 Volt compressor or residential fridge and the construction of the RV etc. Double pane windows? Keeps the interior of the RV cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter, but they do add additional weight to the RV. An Example - A lot of owners hate the on-demand water heater especially in winter weather. Manufacturer reputation for service support after the sale.

Look in the cabinets and pantry, are they using plastic shelf holders, if so they will probably bend or break and you'll end up replacing them. We had to replace ours, they are just too weak.

Be realistic about how you will use the RV, will it set most of the time in one place, ie short trips, or will you put a lot (10,000 +) of cross country miles on it? Fulltiming needs cargo capacity since you will be hauling most everything you have in the RV. 1500-2000 lbs cargo capacity is too small for most fulltimers. Remember your holding tanks add to your weight, especially the fresh water holding tank, Calculate 8.3 lbs per gallon of water. Full 80 gallon fresh tank = another 660 lbs of weight.

Suspension - is it just the standard leaf springs and drum brakes? Are the leaf spring frame hangers boxed or "V Clip" supported? What are the axle size and tires rating? Most times with a big 5er the axles are 7000 lbs with G rated tires, if there was an option for 8000 lbs axles and H or better rated tires thats a better way to go. Estimate what the loaded pin weight will be by taking at least 20-21 % of the GVRW of the RV. Size or Over size your truck accordingly.

Example our rig has 4400 lbs of cargo capacity, GVWR is 16,800 lbs, 20% of that is 3,360 lbs estimated pin weight but our actual pin weight runs around 3,500 lbs. Our axles are rated at 7000 lbs each so combined they are rated at 14,000, the rest of 16.8 of the GVWR weight is accounted for in the pin weight on the truck. Our leaf springs are 3500 lbs each, total of 7000 lbs per axle but in reality are too weak, and you end up with flat springs on the heavy side of the RV, so that is another reason to upgrade to 8000 axles, 4000 lbs leaf springs. Our loaded weight runs @ 15,500 lbs. Our truck payload rating is 5,390 lbs and that has to be enough for pin weight, hitch weight, stuff loaded in truck bed (generator, bed tool box), occupant total weight.

Just some things to think about