Camper worked great!!

[JLehman]

Been back couple of weeks, 7,000 miles, east coast and back, trouble free except my refer went out. camper was nice but very small, looking for fifth wheel now lol. some real nice ones out there. Camper for sale!!!!

 

[Grizzly]

What was the size of your camper? My wife and I took a trip to Alaska last summer. For a two month, 11,000 mile trip our 11' 3" Lance was a bit small at times, but for only two people, it worked.

 

[jeepit]

Our Lance is an 8 footer so not alot of room but we only sleep in it. We spend most of the time outside anyways. An occasional meal inside if it is really cold outside and a game of cribbage is about all we do inside. . :-laf

 

[Grizzly]

Our Lance is an 8 footer so not alot of room but we only sleep in it. We spend most of the time outside anyways. An occasional meal inside if it is really cold outside and a game of cribbage is about all we do inside. . :-laf

I hear what your saying, but when you make an RV trip to Alaska, it rains a lot, which means you will stay indoors a lot. We did get a little claustrophobic at times. Still no regrets, the Lance was great, the trip was great and the Dodge was great.

 

[JLehman]

Mine is a 9. 5 foot Western Wilderness, nice size for my truck, biggest thing was climbing over each other to get in and outa bed!! Got about 14 mpg at 65 to 70 so i was real happy with that. wanted to get the Smarty before the trip for better milage but finances prevented that. Still probly gonna keep for short trips, but longer than a week think i want bigger. had a real good time for sure

 

[ralbert]

we own 945 lance that we bought new in 1995. Retired and did the 13000 mile three month Alaska trip in 2003 and throught about selling the lance once we got home. On the way home my wife stated that we can not sell the TC in case we want to go back to Alaska again. We now have it and a 32' 5th. i enjoy the tc more than the 5th for traveling. The 5th is good for the five months in the sunny south. Thinking about a 40' tag axle DP but know that is really a stupid idea. What we have is great and they are both kept in my 30 x 45 Morton blg. Good luck looking for a nice 5th. Rob

 

[Grizzly]

we own 945 lance that we bought new in 1995. Retired and did the 13000 mile three month Alaska trip in 2003 and throught about selling the lance once we got home. On the way home my wife stated that we can not sell the TC in case we want to go back to Alaska again. We now have it and a 32' 5th. i enjoy the tc more than the 5th for traveling. The 5th is good for the five months in the sunny south. Thinking about a 40' tag axle DP but know that is really a stupid idea. What we have is great and they are both kept in my 30 x 45 Morton blg. Good luck looking for a nice 5th. Rob

I also had a Lance 945, It was a great camper. I ordered it new in 98. When on many long trips and many many short trips. The biggest problem I had with it was loading and unloading it. I usually loaded it in May every year and it would stay on the truck till October. When loaded it meant that I couldn't use the truck for anything else. I've decided that a small 5er has to be better. We just want a well built small 5er that can make it to Alaska, such as an Arctic Fox with good 16" tires, such as Michelin XPS Rib, LT.

 

[ralbert]

grizzly, I like having only two axles to think about. I have blown two goodyears on the the 5th. I did buy a tire pressure monitouring system and it works great. Even when you know that you have a bad tire it is not that much fun even with two 8 ton bottle jacks. We have the loading of the TC down pretty well. Wife drives and I bark the oders. Have been looking at used DP's in the 40 to 43' range. If we do buy one I will probably sell both campers. If I do not sell the Lance I would want to use it instead of the coach on short trips in the summer. Will not sell the 3500 so if I want to go to Alaska or Newfoundland I can rent a TC from my local dealer and make the trip. Those 400 or 500 HP coachs do not get the milage that my 3500 gets. I get 11. 5 towing now and a DP gets from 7 to 10mpg. I know the wife and granddaughters would enjoy the DP more than the TC. I have to say that my wife thinks spending $200,000 on a DP is crazzy. Heck, I been told that we only travel this road once, so what the heck. Love my TC, Rob

 

[Grizzly]

grizzly, I like having only two axles to think about. I have blown two goodyears on the the 5th. I did buy a tire pressure monitouring system and it works great. Even when you know that you have a bad tire it is not that much fun even with two 8 ton bottle jacks. We have the loading of the TC down pretty well. Wife drives and I bark the oders. Have been looking at used DP's in the 40 to 43' range. If we do buy one I will probably sell both campers. If I do not sell the Lance I would want to use it instead of the coach on short trips in the summer. Will not sell the 3500 so if I want to go to Alaska or Newfoundland I can rent a TC from my local dealer and make the trip. Those 400 or 500 HP coachs do not get the milage that my 3500 gets. I get 11. 5 towing now and a DP gets from 7 to 10mpg. I know the wife and granddaughters would enjoy the DP more than the TC. I have to say that my wife thinks spending $200,000 on a DP is crazzy. Heck, I been told that we only travel this road once, so what the heck. Love my TC, Rob

Rob, I have gone back and forth on this issue. In 1973 I bought a 1968 Travel Queen TC for my 71 F250 (sorriest vehicle I had ever owned), which we used abundantly. In 1988 as my 4 kids were getting bigger, I bought a new 29' Holiday Rambler 5er, which went to Alaska and many other long trips. I had problems with both axles and all tires. I was strongly advised to get a good TC to eliminate extra axle and tire problems. In 1998 I bought the Lance 945, since I already had the 95 Dodge/Cummins DRW. On last years trip to Alaska we found out what I had been told, that the Alcan and Cassier Hwy are much more improved and a good 5er with good tires can make the trip without too much difficulty.



We would like a 27' Arctic Fox 5er with 16" wheels. Getting a fair price on one has gotten to be very difficult. I may look for other brands or for a good used AF. By a fair price, I would like 25% discount from MSRP as I got on my other new RV's. I'm in no hurry.

 

[ralbert]

Grizzly, I tried to get my wife to buy a AF 5th but the interior designer did not pick good colors. they were too dark. I also can state that all the AF owners that I have talked to can not say enough good things about the product. They now have a plant in Winchester VA. We stopped to take a tour. Good luck Rob

 

[DonTX]

I just found this forum, and got a kick out of this thread. I suppose I have tried everything a time or two, so far we travelled for months in a truck camper (12ft Weekender) on the 3500. Sold that and picked up a 31 foot Hi Lo for some more travel, did not like that so just bought a fifth wheel and am ready to go for months in that around the USA, maybe Alaska next summer. Of course that is AFTER deciding that the diesel pusher in my signature was not right for us either. It is going on EBay next week I think, anybody want a luxury diesel pusher, cummins TD powered, of course, let me know (12mpg too). Going for a price in the mid $20k range

 

[Grizzly]

I just found this forum, and got a kick out of this thread. I suppose I have tried everything a time or two, so far we travelled for months in a truck camper (12ft Weekender) on the 3500. Sold that and picked up a 31 foot Hi Lo for some more travel, did not like that so just bought a fifth wheel and am ready to go for months in that around the USA, maybe Alaska next summer. Of course that is AFTER deciding that the diesel pusher in my signature was not right for us either. It is going on EBay next week I think, anybody want a luxury diesel pusher, cummins TD powered, of course, let me know (12mpg too). Going for a price in the mid $20k range

Welcome to the Forum Don. Lot of happy travelers and haulers here. Let me know before you go to Alaska. Myself and a lot of people who have made the trip more then once can share much information with you. We may be making the trip again next year.

 

[DonTX]

Thanks, I will surely bug experienced ones for knowledge! My only question right now, is if a 5th wheel is a smart choice for the trip. Although I have lots of RV experience with everything from motorcycle trailers up, this summer will be my very first experience with a fifth wheel. So far I have pulled it a total of about 12 miles, sure seemed like a nice way to go.

 

[Grizzly]

Don, read my Post #9. I have gone full circle with that issue. The roads to Alaska are so much improved that I feel a well built small 5th wheel with good 16", Load Range E tires will make the trip just fine. You still have to slow down through the frost heaves. Sometimes 15 mph. Good tires and good axles are a must.