Looking at 37-38'.  We are planning to buy a "higher end" used 5er to FT in 2016.  I have my "must haves" and "I'd prefer" list made out and one of my "prefers" would be to have the recliners facing the TV.  I've seen a lot of comments about the advantage of having a comfortable "seating/TV/fireplace" arrangement, however when I really started looking at floor plans, it seems that most of them face the couch towards the TV. 

I wasn't sure how feasible it would be to "move the furniture around" to our liking.  I'll keep that in mind!  Thanks for the suggestions!

Jane,

We have a Mobile Suites that is 38.5-feet long and have our recliners facing the TV.  Since you are looking at "higher-end" used fifth wheel, check out Rolling Retreats in Elk City, Oklahoma.  Right at the moment, they do have one unit in stock with the recliners facing the TV that you can see photos on their website.  Their "Used Inventory" tab also shows a number of units as "coming soon," so you might look at the model and floor plan number and research with that information.  If you need an electronic version of a DRV Suite brochure, let me know.  I have a number of years worth of their brochures on my computer.

With respect to "higher-end" fifth wheels, DRV Suites comes in under the truly custom made trailers like New Horizons, Forks International (Continental Coach), and Spacecraft RV.

We've been living in our Mobile Suites (mid-range model) full-time for three years in Oklahoma City and have been comfortable in temperatures ranging between 6 degrees and 115 degrees.  If you have specific questions, you can also get in touch with Alicia at Rolling Retreats.  She is extremely helpful in providing answers to interested people.

Terry

Yes, that's what I call a "galley" kitchen!  BTW, Mobile suites is number one on our short list! 

 

The kitchen layout will net you pros and cons on here for each. You have to get in there and "pretend" what you would do for your cooking style. Some people feel the style like Terry showed works great for them, others don't like the feeling being hemmed in that has been reported.  We are leaning to the island style because the whole living area/dining area/kitchen area feels subjectively larger and more open, but that is us. Your Mileage May Vary as they say.

There are many floorplans that have the TV viewing area with recliners across from the "idiot box" (no sleight to TV watchers intended- we do it too.) We are with you on the recliners in the straight across position.  One thought, don't misread the floorplan and think that what looks like a sofa is actually a sofa. Theatre seating is becoming popular and it can look like a sofa in the diagrams the the Mfrs put out on their websites. 37-38 foot fivers abound with the seating arrangment you seek, DRV, Heartland, Keystone, Excel, Open Range, Trilogy just to name a few, the list is quite extensive and the range of pricing is quite wide. Opinions vary widely on what is or is not a high end unit, you get to decide that. You also get what you pay for. I'd suggest you look into the less glamorous details like the structure, frame size, etc. as "the easy to see stuff" is the lipstick and if the frame isn't solid, it won't matter how good it looks. If you can afford it higher end custom rigs can be built exactly the way you want. You might even find a used one around, though the truly custom rigs tend to be larger than your target size range... but there are exceptions.

Enjoy your search.

-- Edited by biggaRView on Friday 4th of July 2014 11:49:15 AM

Jane,

That style of kitchen counter is also referred to as a "peninsula counter."  While it doesn't show well in that one picture (check my link to my Photobucket account for pictures of our trailer), you can just see the corner of my desk.  With the design in our 38TKSB3 that has the desk, one couldn't use an island anyway because of the desk.

Since you are interested in the Mobile Suites, definitely get in touch with Alicia at Rolling Retreats.  Check with her for sure, but it is even possible that they will even deliver a used unit to you since you live in New York.  Alicia and Slade are the owners and about the only employees of Rolling Retreats.  They have an excellent reputation among those of us that own DRV Suites models.

Terry

Be sure to check out RVSFORLESS in TN for DRV's.

Nice people.. good price..

The 5er in my signature has the recliners across from the TV. That was very important to us, as well. There are many floor plans such as ours. I would have to make daily trips to a Chiropractor if the TV was at the back of the RV. LOL! As far as the kitchen. We have the island and prefer it because we often work together to prepare meals. I bounce from one end of the island to the other on the dining side while my wife works on the kitchen side. If we had the galley or peninsular type arrangement, I would have to periodically get in on the kitchen side and that would be too crowded.
Definitely build that list of needs and wants and stick to your guns when choosing your RV. If you "settle" for less, you will regret it.

I'll just throw in my two cents really quick.. We love our Open Range 3X that we recently purchased. We have the theatre seating facing the tv but the room in the kitchen/living area is immense!! We have the 3X378RLS but I have recently noticed that they have added another floor plan to this model as well that has the "galley" kitchen you are referring to. www.openrangervs.com and check out their 3X products. I believe it measures up to the higher end brands at a better price point....depending on your dealer. Good luck on your search!!

I say check out the Lifestyle RV (most came from Carriage). Kitchens to die for and recliners across from TV. Good luck in your search.

We are in the process of searching ourselves and each time we go back to the Grand Design 379fl it is beautiful. We value living space more than any other space and we loved it. It is #1 on our list.

 

http://www.granddesignrv.com/solitude-379FL-gallery.php#All_Images  

It seems to me that the television is at the root of the problem in many of these posts.

Chip, though I had never paid attention to that floorplan's CCC as published by the good folks at Grand Design, mostly because we ruled out the front living room design for our taste due to lack of basement space, in any event it occurred to me that the 2012lbs number could be a misprint. Compared to the other rigs in their line it(CCC) is substantially lower. Is that normal for FL models of 5ers? or is that brand specific? Of course, a suspension upgrade from 7k axles to 8K axles with GY17.5 "H" tires would go along way to improving the CCC to a more usable number.

-- Edited by biggaRView on Tuesday 8th of July 2014 05:01:34 AM

Sushidog wrote:

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That Grand Design sure is a beautiful rig, but the limited cargo capacity of only 2,000 lbs would be a deal breaker for me. Just the water weight 54 gal + 12gal = 66 gal x 8.34lbs/gal = 550 lbs + 60lbs of propane = 610lbs before adding all the rest of your worldly possessions. That beautiful, big fridge will could hold at least 90 lbs of food and while we're in the kitchen add another 100 lbs of pots, pans, silverware, utensils, plates, bowls, knives, glasses and appliances like your toaster, blender, mixer, crock pot, rice cooker, dish washer, etc. Now were up to 800lbs and we haven't even left the kitchen. Next look at optional features that aren't included in the base weight such as the king bed upgrade, high-boy bedroom dresser, bedroom TV, 12cf fridge, hydraulic leveling system, dual pane windows, generator and prep, and a total of 5 slide-out awnings. Depending on how much of this you add I'm sure its at least another couple hundred pounds, much more if you add a heavy generator. So now we're well over 1,000 lbs, perhaps 1,200 lbs. Do you want to add a Splendide washer/drier combo (you have the hook-ups)? That's another 150lbs, more if you prefer seperate units. A basic 12v battery is 65lbs and most folks want two. At this point we haven't even included any clothes, shoes, toiletries, cleaning supplies, hoses, water filters, surge supressors, etc., let alone our computers, printers, electronic equipment, keep sakes, hobby supplies, sporting equipment, etc. What about all your camping gear? Think you might want to add solar one day, sorry there's no more carrying capacity available for this heavy option or the myrad of other things you'd like to take with you if you only had the capacity.

3,000 lbs is my minimum acceptable CCC for a FT rig - 3,500lbs minimum if you like to boondock and want to add a moderate solar system as batteries are very heavy. And if you had 4,000 lbs of CCC you'd probably quickly make use of it all.

Chip

-- Edited by Sushidog on Monday 7th of July 2014 08:18:19 PM

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 Your forcing me to look into triple towing.. or maybe a second truck the wife can drive behind me.. 

How can I get my lexington to carry 4k?  Air bags on all axles? 

All of the Landmark models have reversible or changeable furniture. You can move the couch to the rear or the recliners and travel with the in this position. It gives you options to change the look and feel of the living area. And of course, if you don't need a couch, it can be replaced by theater seating. 

The Landmark line is now being revamped to become the Landmark 365 which will add many more standards and options for full timers.

We also changed our furniture around. Our sofa was bolted down but that was easy to remove and we put two recliners where it was and put the sofa in the end where the original recliners were. This was due to DH wanting to sit in front of the RV. We later took out the sofa, put recliners back in the end and got theater seating with double power recliners. All our furniture is now residential and we've had no problem moving it around to suit our needs. We have an older 5th wheel which is not as wide as a lot of the newer ones but it hasn't kept us from re-arranging furniture.