Swap 5th wheel for Class A MoHo?

[tim5055 120]

Congrats!!

 

I think you will be happy driving instead of towing......

[PGHFiend 140]

10 hours ago, tim5055 said:

Congrats!!

 

I think you will be happy driving instead of towing......

In Atlanta airport on way to Jax now. So we'll know in a few hours!

[BradyBzLyn...Mo 2,023]

6 hours ago, PGHFiend said:

In Atlanta airport on way to Jax now. So we'll know in a few hours!

Good luck!!

[LONE-STAR 370]

Well how did it go 

[fladogfan aka Gretchen 259]

Are you in love with it yet?

[PGHFiend 140]

On 9/14/2019 at 4:02 PM, BradyBzLyn...Mo said:

Good luck!!

 

22 hours ago, LONE-STAR said:

Well how did it go 

 

15 hours ago, fladogfan aka Gretchen said:

Are you in love with it yet?

 

 

Well, "Penny" is home!

Landed in JAX Saturday at noon, took an uber to St. Mary's, Ga and did the deal. Took off about 2, yesterday and got home noon today. 

Initially made it 30 miles and thought it was hard to keep rolling.  Found 70 psi in all 6 tires, got them up aired up to 90 and major improvement.  Drove another few miles and started hearing knocking on the roof. Climbed up and found Spanish moss had gathered on the satellite cable wires  and was making them slap on the roof.  Otherwise smooth trip home!

Got if from an owner who had a divorce situation and needed out if it.  Made a deal for about 15k under current values.  Needs minor TLC in a few things but is in overall great shape. 

My wife LOVES it. She relaxed, got drinks, read at the dinette, used the bathroom and took a nap or two in the recliner co pilot chair.  

Initially I missed the speed of the 6.7 dually but quickly made up for it by not stopping every 2 hours (or less) for her and with 500 miles of range (estimate) we only made 2 stops other than sleeping.  Definitely a huge increase in comfort and travel time that wasn't initially apparent that I am very surprised at.

The strangest thing was sleeping in a Cracker Barrel last night and not ever getting out of the vehicle.   Turned off the engine,  cranked the generator for some ac and went to bed.  In the morning I got up, washed up and took off. Very strange feeling not having to do extra chores or pack lunches and cooler for the truck. 

As someone else said, I felt much less tired from not having to watch the trailer all the time and the ride was so much better....no jerking, bouncing etc. 

There was some wind sway in GA, it was very windy yesterday afternoon on the way up but calmed down later in the evening.   I've read about something called the "cheap handling fix" that I'm going to try before I buy anything.

On another note, I initially felt very venerable for some reason. The MoHo has 22.5 wheels and no spare and if it stops needs a big tow truck.  Something to think about moving forward.  

Time will tell, but so far really liking it!

 

 

[Beckers 1,136]

Congrats!!

[LONE-STAR 370]

Congrats enjoy it. It looks nice.

[dblr....Rennie 224]

Congrats!!!!!! Very nice, enjoy

[twiceblessed....nacole 433]

9 hours ago, PGHFiend said:

 

 

 

 

Well, "Penny" is home!

Landed in JAX Saturday at noon, took an uber to St. Mary's, Ga and did the deal. Took off about 2, yesterday and got home noon today. 

Initially made it 30 miles and thought it was hard to keep rolling.  Found 70 psi in all 6 tires, got them up aired up to 90 and major improvement.  Drove another few miles and started hearing knocking on the roof. Climbed up and found Spanish moss had gathered on the satellite cable wires  and was making them slap on the roof.  Otherwise smooth trip home!

Got if from an owner who had a divorce situation and needed out if it.  Made a deal for about 15k under current values.  Needs minor TLC in a few things but is in overall great shape. 

My wife LOVES it. She relaxed, got drinks, read at the dinette, used the bathroom and took a nap or two in the recliner co pilot chair.  

Initially I missed the speed of the 6.7 dually but quickly made up for it by not stopping every 2 hours (or less) for her and with 500 miles of range (estimate) we only made 2 stops other than sleeping.  Definitely a huge increase in comfort and travel time that wasn't initially apparent that I am very surprised at.

The strangest thing was sleeping in a Cracker Barrel last night and not ever getting out of the vehicle.   Turned off the engine,  cranked the generator for some ac and went to bed.  In the morning I got up, washed up and took off. Very strange feeling not having to do extra chores or pack lunches and cooler for the truck. 

As someone else said, I felt much less tired from not having to watch the trailer all the time and the ride was so much better....no jerking, bouncing etc. 

There was some wind sway in GA, it was very windy yesterday afternoon on the way up but calmed down later in the evening.   I've read about something called the "cheap handling fix" that I'm going to try before I buy anything.

On another note, I initially felt very venerable for some reason. The MoHo has 22.5 wheels and no spare and if it stops needs a big tow truck.  Something to think about moving forward.  

Time will tell, but so far really liking it!

 

 

Thanks for updating us!  I'm always curious to hear comments from those who made the switch from towable to driveable.   Glad you enjoyed the first drive... here's to many more!  Congrats!

[BradyBzLyn...Mo 2,023]

Congrats - sounds like a great fit all around! Glad things went so smoothly.

 

re: tire changing, funny story...

One of my most memorable childhood family vacation stories is the time my parents rented a MH to take us 3 kids and my grandparents to FL. Somewhere in NC with Mom driving, we blew a tire.  It was an inside tire and Mom drove a school bus for a bunch of years, so that part was really no big deal.  She got us safely to the side of the road, we flagged someone down (this is pre-cell phones) so my dad could get to the nearest pay phone to call a tow truck.  A van full of people pulled over with an a/c unit out the side and a big recliner in the back.  (My sister and I still joke that we never thought we'd see dad again)

It eventually took 3 trucks to change the tire... the first one they sent was too small.  The second one got stuck in the soft shoulder.  The third one came, pulled the 2nd one out and changed the time quickly and easily.

Running family joke is "how many tow trucks does it take to change a tire in NC?"

 

[keith_h 420]

Congratulations. I'm sure you will have some good times with the new MH.

 

5 hours ago, BradyBzLyn...Mo said:

Running family joke is "how many tow trucks does it take to change a tire in NC?"

Now, now be nice. Some of us live here you know.

Of course I still haven't figured out how I'm suppose to know where to turn when I don't know where the old Mt. Olive Church use to be.

[BradyBzLyn...Mo 2,023]

2 hours ago, keith_h said:

Now, now be nice. Some of us live here you know.

Of course I still haven't figured out how I'm suppose to know where to turn when I don't know where the old Mt. Olive Church use to be.

LOL!

It could have been any state really - just happened to be NC.

Directions around here are very similar.  If you don't know where "the weird looking tree" is, you'll probably miss that left turn.

[caveat lector 181]

Wow, that rig barely fits in the picture. You might need a bigger camera now. Lol

Congrats and let the excitement begin.

[PGHFiend 140]

9 hours ago, caveat lector said:

Wow, that rig barely fits in the picture. You might need a bigger camera now. Lol

Congrats and let the excitement begin.

If definitely doesn't fit in the garage! 

Thanks and we can't wait. 

[Duane 152]

18 hours ago, keith_h said:

Congratulations. I'm sure you will have some good times with the new MH.

 

Now, now be nice. Some of us live here you know.

Of course I still haven't figured out how I'm suppose to know where to turn when I don't know where the old Mt. Olive Church use to be.

Now, now, remember some of us are FROM here you know...     Everyone knows that the old Mt. Olive Church is just beyond that old oak tree on the other side of the that big 'ole curve in the road where the old school used to be.

[Duane 152]

When you have a chance, crawl underneath and check the rear anti-sway bar bushings...  When we brought ours home from the mountains last week, I was doing my usual checks and noticed the the rubber factory bushings were shot.  One was completely gone and the other crumbled in my hands once I removed it.  Not sure what year you have, but ours is a 2009 with 26,000 miles.

I replaced the bushings with polyurethane from Roadmaster.  Huge improvement on the body roll when driving through curves and when passing semi trucks.

[Travisma 1,317]

2 hours ago, Duane said:

Now, now, remember some of us are FROM here you know...     Everyone knows that the old Mt. Olive Church is just beyond that old oak tree on the other side of the that big 'ole curve in the road where the old school used to be.

When I was doing telephone work in rural areas, that was the kind of directions we used to get on the work orders!  Turn right at the road where the red barn used to be.

[BradyBzLyn...Mo 2,023]

4 hours ago, Travisma said:

When I was doing telephone work in rural areas, that was the kind of directions we used to get on the work orders!  Turn right at the road where the red barn used to be.

Sounds familiar around these parts still.  "Turn at the field with the stone wall..."

Um, this is New England. You can't throw a rock without hitting a stone wall. (pun intended)

[fladogfan aka Gretchen 259]

Turn right, at the pasture where the brown and white cow, with the Mickey Mouse marking on her side lives.

[keith_h 420]

On 9/17/2019 at 9:15 AM, Duane said:

Now, now, remember some of us are FROM here you know...     Everyone knows that the old Mt. Olive Church is just beyond that old oak tree on the other side of the that big 'ole curve in the road where the old school used to be.

Well that clears the whole thing up then.

[PGHFiend 140]

Ok, 

Whos' keeping a log on repairs?

First issue...vac flush toilet. someone replaced it with a gravity unit because they are 1/3 price.  Need a dometic 5006 replacement, and only 2 distributors in US sell them on-line.  $600 so far. 

 

[Country Coach Guy 5]

Congratulations and welcome to the club! 

[PGHFiend 140]

Figured I should update with the 2 weekend trips under our belts.  

While I have a CDL and love driving trucks, and how much I loved 5th wheel towing and the power of the dually and driving the 2 Super Duty trucks we had, everything about our traveling has changed. 

There is absolutely no comparison to having the party start once you pull out of the driveway! No more waiting for the relief of the weekend until you arrive, its happening as soon as we shut the garage door.   

Got stuck in an hour long traffic jam. My wife made food and I cranked up the Sirius radio through my phone app and we had a great time. 

I truly can't believe how much easier the motorhome is to travel in with no bathroom breaks necessary and to have the ability to get snacks and to pet the dogs or whatever. I don't have to move the dogs back and forth, or the kennel in and out of the truck.  My wife no longer has to pack road snacks and coolers,  or move pillows and blankets The dogs can get comfy on the floor anywhere.

Setting up camp is backing in, hitting the auto level and putting out the usual gear.  Leaving is just as easy, crank it and go. 

The ride is no contest better than the truck and 5th wheel.  All of the bumps I used to picture the wheel breaking off the camper is soaked up with ease by the motorhome, even thought it's a leaf spring coach. Also, g rated tires on 22.5 wheels definitely eased the blowout gear from the trailer (though that can happen to any vehicle) 

I did the "Cheap Handling Fix" with the sway bars and it drives so much better than the way home from Georgia. One hand steering now. 

The views are unbelievable with the huge windshield.   When we came through Wytheville, VA on the way home it was like watching a movie with the mountains rolling ahead and we saw a fully grown pumpkin farm in the morning mist, truly a new sight we hadn't ever seen on a route we've driven a dozen times. 

Fuel mileage is back to exactly what it was with the 2008 v10 we used to tow with, but the difference is now I drive an f150 that gets 8 mpg better when going to work. Insurance for the truck went down 200 a year, the 5th wheel was 100 a year and the motorhome is 500, so it is costing about 200 a year more for insurance.  

Travel time is definitely reduced with an 80 gallon tank and limited need for stops. 

Never say never, but I'm not sure we could go back to towing.  

[LONE-STAR 370]

Glad it's working for you.