KZ-RV Sportsman LE 260BHLE trailer

[Bill Lins]

What do y'all know about them? Good, bad, or ugly? I have the opportunity to buy a lightly-used one at an attractive price but have never owned an RV and know nothing about them. Thanks in advance, Bill

 

[mwilson]

Bill,

You will probably get a lot of negative reviews, but there is no shame in owning a lower end trailer. Not all of us need a $100,000 dollar unit.

I have squeezed 11 years out of our lower end Cougar by taking care of it, fixing any leaks, upgrading axles and springs, keeping decent tires on it, etc...I took it to Washington DC and back in April, all systems still work as designed.

So with that being said on this trailer I would carefully look it over for any evidence of leakage, check the roof, the sealant around the vents, skylights, etc. and look down the sides. The siding is stapled to the studs and if it is wavy in certain areas that means it has either leaked and the staples have rusted so they let go OR some of the studs are crappy and the staples have nothing to grab on to in spots. Not a deal breaker but may indicate future work.

I prefer the smooth side aluminum framed trailers like my Cougar after a couple of previous go rounds with siding style trailers.....

Plan on immediately changing the tires, the ones that come on them are terrible as a rule....

If the price is right and it fits your needs do it, I'll put up with just about anything if it is a deal.....

One thing I have noticed lately in any manufacturers RV is a lack of an oven...a stove top and convection microwave does not cut it for us, my wife uses the oven a lot and it would be a deal breaker for us on any future trailer purchase.....

Mike.

 

[jgillott]

The interesting thing about the RV industry right now is that nearly every manufacturer uses the same few vendors to source the major components of the units they build. You look at my Jayco and you will find a Colman Mach air conditioner, an Atwood water heater, Lippert axles, etc. Look at Mike's Cougar or the KZ you are considering and guess what, you will find them there also. Of course there are differences in quality of materials and features that very across the price points, but when it comes down to it, they are all really slightly different versions of each other

So as mike said, when you look at this KZ, make sure that it has been well maintained, no signs of water leaks or damage, no soft floors, water stains around the windows, etc. Get up on the roof and inspect the Dicor around all of the vents and openings, make sure that the roof membrane is in good shape and if there are any patches, that they were done correctly with Eternabond or a similar product.

Make sure that you test each appliance and make sure they work in all modes. Make sure the fridge will work on both gas and electric, same with the water heater if it is dual mode. Use the water system, the pump etc. Run the furnace and make sure it cycles on and off correctly with the thermostat. If it has a slide, run it in and out a couple of times to make sure it operates correctly.

Hook it up to your truck and make sure that all of the lights work, test the brakes, etc. Don't assume that anything works until you test it for yourself.

Remember, there are thousands of used units for sale on the market every day. If you look at the KZ and like the layout, everything works as described, and you find no issues with it. Then by all means buy it if it is in your budget. If not, walk away and search for another one.

 

[Bill Lins]

Thanks for the advice. The unit is only 3 months old- a friend bought it to stay in until his flooded house was repaired & I'm intending to use it for the same purpose.

 

[mwilson]

Oh it will fine for that, no worries.

One thing is that the furnace will be just barely adequate..we use a Pelonis electric heater overnight when cold out, and keep the furnace turned down to 60 or so. Then you are not listening to it cycle all night long. For overnight temps in the mid-twenties we use an electric heated mattress pad...in addition to the Pelonis...

 

[jgillott]

Bill, sorry to hear of the issues with your house. I hope all works out well for you. Did you have storm damage?

 

[Bill Lins]

Lost the roof during the storm & got 14" of water inside during the flooding afterward.

 

[jgillott]

Wow, I had no idea. I hope all goes well with your rebuild.

 

[mpaulson]

One more thing, not that it's going to matter to the OP, but someone else reading this may need to know this. While checking out a used RV, make sure the water system is pressured up and NOT connected to the city water supply, but using the pump, and spend some time in there, like at least 30 minutes while you are looking at it and if the pump cycles at all with no one touching any of the water taps etc., you have a leak somewhere and it could be somewhere that you can't see and very likely water damage/rot due to it. When checking for roof leaks, look inside every cupboard and study the top corners along the roof for wrinkles etc., sign of leakages.
Sorry to hear about your house.

 

[B.G. Smith]

Sorry to hear of your losses Bill. Can sympathize since this area was aldo hard hit by the heavy rains. I looked at KZ 5ers when I bought the 04 Newmar I have. I really liked some of the features such as the flat roof without the high hump in front. I think they are good units and probably would have bought one but a local dealer gave me a pretty good trad in on the Carri Lite I had. Mike I don't think the heater will be an issue for Bill, I think he lives ion South Texas. bg

 

[mwilson]

Bill had snow a few weeks ago when his power steering acted up, so I figured it must get down to the low 30’s on occasion..I have seen snow in Shamrock Texas which is a lot further North I realize but it still shocked me...

Then I had to drive in it....shoulda just stayed in Maine if I wanted to do that...:-laf

 

[Wayne M.]

Tuned in to read about RV evaluation, good advice Mike! Bill, I hope you recover and quickly without too many snags.

 

[Bill Lins]

Thanks for the information & the good wishes- hope y'all have a great Christmas. Mike- I doubt this qualifies as "snow" up where you're from, but it was unusual for us!

 

[mwilson]

This is what it looks like when it snows at 13 degrees and then changes to freezing rain first and then to straight rain. Now it will all freeze back up and snow 6 - 12” on Christmas Day..Woo Hoo!!!

This is the main road...

 

[mwilson]

Had to take the grandkids home, locked the Yukon in 4 High and the slush still tried to put me out of the road several times in 5 miles...I don’t really mind the snow except when it rains on it...the roads will suck for a week now...

 

[Wayne M.]

Snow in Texas? Well I just went to Trecan snow melter training, and the man from Nova Scotia was telling us that the airport in Austin just bought a snow melter because they had to get a snow removal plan in place.

 

[B.G. Smith]

Snow in Texas? Well I just went to Trecan snow melter training, and the man from Nova Scotia was telling us that the airport in Austin just bought a snow melter because they had to get a snow removal plan in place.

Yeah, this global warming is wearing us out bg

 

[GAmes]

Yeah, this global warming is wearing us out bg

On the 21st I went fishing in a t-shirt, temps in the mid 70s, which is normal here in central TX. Tomorrow morning it's supposed to be 25. Today I'm going to drain the water and blow the water lines out in the 5er.

 

[DaveHess]

It was -23 here in Bismarck this morning......... (The Ram stayed home in the heated garage.......) BTW, My Jayco Eagle TT is 13 years old and going strong! I inspect everything in the spring and get her ready for the camping season.

 

[greywolfin]

I had a Sportsmen by KZ 5th wheel and it was very lightweight, which means they did not insulate and things like the slideout were under-engineered, requiring welding when parts started breaking. The overall quality probably rates below average, but mine was built in 2000 so it had solid wood cabinets, which have no toxic outgassing like new ones. The 2006 Heartland I bought new did not have strong odors of outgassing, like others we looked at, but the two ferrets traveling with us went bald within the first 2 months and never recovered, so that was of concern to us, particularly when my ex also got some kind of mysterious illness as well during our full-timing days.