Which 5th is best? - RV-Dreams Community Forum

hampton · RV-Dreams Community Member

Which 5th is best?

Workinrvers · RV-Dreams Family Member

We have lived full time in our 3400RL since 2009 and love it. We spent the first 2 years in Indiana year round and it did very well during the cold winters.
We have only had a few minor issues that have been easily corrected. We love the floor plan and have yet to find a different 5th wheel or floorplan we would rather have.

One of the options available on the new models now are hydraulic landing legs and stabilyzers. These are a sweet addition and make unhooking and leveling a breeze. I can add them to ours but that is not really in the budget right now.

There is also the Montana Owners Club where you can get a lot of info and helpful advice by participating in their forum (friendly folks, like here).

Phil (and Rudee too!)

hampton · RV-Dreams Community Member

Hi Phil, Thanks for the feed back. We also like the floor plan and the unit looked well built. What do you tow with?

53 Merc · RV-Dreams Family Member

hampton wrote:
Hi Phil, Thanks for the feed back. We also like the floor plan and the unit looked well built. What do you tow with?

A lot of the time such information can be found in the poster's signature line. Phil has that information in his sig line. You might consider doing a signature yourself. I have found it helps determine a cogent answer to a question posed by someone.

Workinrvers · RV-Dreams Family Member

I tow with a converted semi truck ........ overkill according to a lot of people but ..... wife loved the 3400 and we both love to ride our motorcycle and since we were going fulltime I had to figure out a way to combine the two and my solution was to get the truck so the bike can ride behind it's cab.
Our 3400 tops out just under 14,000 lbs and a 1 ton diesel dually would be my minimum choice to tow it, in my opinion. When we first got ours we had a 3/4 ton diesel (chevy 2500) and it could tow it but was just not enough truck for me. I guess I solved that problem biggrin biggrin biggrin

Phil

hampton · RV-Dreams Community Member

Thanks again for the input. Sounds like you have everything you need.

David

Terry and Jo · RV-Dreams Family Member

David,

There are a number of participants on the forums that have Montana fifth wheels, although I can't say to which models they have. As far as choosing a brand/model/floorplan, it helps to go into the research with a knowledge of what one wants.

When Jo and I were researching both fifth wheels and motorhomes, it was pretty much decided that as far as the floorplan and interior features, she was going to get her say and I would pretty much agree. After all, she would be doing most of the "inside" work and maintenance.

That said, if in my looking at exterior features (outside stuff), certain things like suspension, frames, etc. weren't up to what I thought we ought to have, then I had more say on the choice. After all, if the foundation of the particular brand/model seemed inferior, we both agreed to scrap that brand/model.

Having hydraulic landing gear and leveling systems is great. However, one does have to be on the watch for leaks within the system, both with the hydraulic line fittings and the ram seals.

In doing the research for an RV, especially if one intends to full-time, it is important to look at much more than cosmetics.

Terry

Trabuco · RV-Dreams Family Member

We spent a considerable amount of time researching 5th wheels and MH's. Before we bought our MH we narrowed the 5th wheel down to a Montana 3400RL. It was the price point and quality we wanted to be at. Ended up with the MH, although it was a tough decision.

hampton · RV-Dreams Community Member

Thanks everyone for the imput. We are new members not able to go full time RVing, but making plans for the near future. Imput on all aspects of RVing will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
David/Gilna

rvingft · RV-Dreams Family Member

Our suggestion - ALWAYS is to first review model safety ratings with RV.ORG You will always find owners who love their particular make/model and have stories, but RV.ORG rates their construction & safety first. They do not take advertisements from the manufacturing companies, so their ratings are independent, based on facts.

Most of the full-time RV's are rated 4 star and above. There are even some RV's that RV. ORG won't rate, they are so bad or unsafe, but yet manufacturers are still building AND selling them!

Do check any owner's forums ... sometimes you can get a common thread with a certain model ... like leaks in slideouts, or failure for the manufacturer to stand behind the dealer. Its a good indication of the kind of service you may experience.

Better to spend lots of time reading than learn the hard way AFTER you bought a floorplan or color scheme or sales reps' smile.

kb0zke · RV-Dreams Family Member

Just to add to rvingft's comment about the owners' forums, that's one of our "filters" to help us narrow our choices. I'm looking for an active, hands-on group that isn't stuffy. Our finances are such that I'm going to have to do a fair amount of the maintenance work on the coach myself. I'm capable of doing quite a few things, especially with good instruction, and I do know my limits. One coach with a pretty good reputation may not stay on our list much longer, though, because it looks like most owners seem to run back to the factory for almost everything. I get the impression that their only tool is a credit card with a large limit.

Reading about common issues for a particular brand is not a big negative for me. I understand that all coaches have some problems. I just want to be prepared so I know what to look for when I go to look at coaches.

Ask LOTS of questions. My favorite saying right now is "I'd rather ask a million questions BEFORE I write a big check than ask the same question a million times after I wrote the big check." The only dumb question is the one you thought of but didn't ask.