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Opinion on Weekend Warrior Trailers

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Bilstein/Rancho/OEM replacement shock questions

3/4 ton's must be great

I've been searching this topic for a wile and found alot of negitive comments on the Weekend Warriors. Many stateing there just plain junk. But why??? Do they actually own one??



They seem really nice, and are very versitle.



Are there better haulers out there, in the same price range if not better???



Plese be honest.



Thanks

BigDan
 
I owned a Thor "Wanderer Wagon" 25-footer and lived in it for 2 years. I sold it to fellow TDR member KKaiser after I bought a house. It has a 10,500lb GVWR, and I used it as a hauler to move furniture from Calif. to WA. It tracked just fine behind the truck, and I really liked the floorplan, lots of kitchen counter space compared to most RV's. It served its purpose just fine, with the exception of being poorly insulated for living in the foothills of the Cascades. It would work fine for desert/summer use, but if you're into snowmobiling or winter camping, I'd look elsewhere. Also, the bed was uncomfortable (thin foam), but that could have been modified, I just never bothered. Mine was a model 257TB, which isn't on their website anymore, so they must have discontinued it.

The Nash/Arctic Fox/Desert Fox trailers seem to be highly rated, you might want to check them out. I have read some reviews on this site by owners who really like them.

Andy
 
I have Nash travel trailer love it. I would buy a artic fox 5ver. I have been though the factory to see how they were built well made. Eric
 
i have compared Ragen,Weekend Warrior,and Tahoe. they are very similar. i ended up getting the Ragen. a better price,service center is a lot closer. it is loaded even has a fuel station and gen. and was 4000. 00 less than Warrior. ken
 
I have a 2002 Weekend Warrior FS2600. I purchased it 2 years ago new. Weekend Warrior is a little ridiculous with their model years. My friend bought a 2004 model about 1 1/2 months ago.



The Weekend Warrior is considered the standard for which all others are judged by with regards to the "Toy Hauler" market. They're built very sturdy, using a Zeiman trailer frame (which was a selling feature for me). They have 120gallon fresh water capacity, 7100 lb brakes on 2 very stout axles. They are 102" wide which is a real plus, have an optional built in Onan Marquis Gold 5. 5 Generator with 36 gallon fuel tank/pump station.



Weekend Warrior started it out, and as I said they're still the standard and preferred trailer. The majority of toy haulers at the dunes are Weekend Warrior. The only trailers that are considered premium to these are the Alfa Toybox and possibly the KIT Patio Haulers... . although these may be nicer, they're not true toy haulers as they only have a relatively small "garage" in the back for the toys but are pretty much a standard RV from the garage forward.



The downfall with the Weekend Warrior in my opinion is the load range D tires. On the double axle models, there have been a large percentage of blowouts... especially with the FS2600 like I have. The problem is the trailer's dry weight is rated at about (if my memory serves me) 5,800lbs. When you start loading it down you very quickly can see around the 11,000lb range. Remember, these trailers hold about 1,150 lbs of water, start loading in 3 ATVs around 500lbs/ea, gear, 300lb generator, 2 120lb A/C units, 70lbs of propane, etc. I've lost 4 tires within a year. In defense of the Carlisle tires (in '04 they've changed to Continental), I haven't replaced any of my replacement tires so I think my originals were made on a Friday or something. :p If I were to do it again, however I would upgrade to 16" rims so I could run at least load range E or I would get the triple axle model. The triple axle model is less than 1,000 lbs heavier but has an additional axle to support the weight.



Another downfall of the Weekend Warrior is the sales guys don't take into account the "real" weight of these trailers and they allow guys with 1/2 ton trucks purchase them. These trailers have very very heavy tongue weights. The dry tongue weight for my trailer is almost 900lbs. Add 70lbs for propane, 80lbs/ea for my golf cart batteries, 300lbs for the generator (which is towards the front about 5 ft back), etc and the tongue weight easily adds up to the 1,200lb range. That's heavy for a tag-a-long! To put it into perspective, when I was between trucks, I pulled my trailer to the dunes 1 time with a friend of mine and his '02 F250 Super Doody :D (with overloads) My trailer was just *barely* off his bump stops without the weight distribution bars... It still sagged several inches with the 1,000lb weight distribution bars. Anyone in Phoenix ever want to see the difference between the stiffness of a Ford vs. Dodge suspension (I have a 3500), look me up and I'll show you the difference in suspension sag with my trailer. Many gus add air bags to their trucks (not necessary with Dodge trucks) others add 1500lb weight distribution bars. In my opinion, 1,500lb bars are probably very likely the cause for the relative few that have had problems with bending their frames.



Finally, let me reiterate that Weekend Warrior is the standard for Toy Trailers... With this in mind, let me also point out that although the physical trailer is made extremely stout (it has to be, considering the cargo it's designed to carry), the interior "comforts" although quite good by Toy Hauler standards, are sub par compared to traditional RVs. If you're comparing a Weekend Warrior to a Nu Wa you're going to be disappointed (I had a Hitchhiker II so I know). If you're comparing it to a Wildwood, Wanderer, etc you'll be very pleased... . although Weekend Warrior is about twice as much as these other brands which is also something to seriously consider.



Mike Ingoglia

'01 Ram 3500 4X4 5sp

'01 Alba Raptor

'01 Alba Banshee

'02 Weekend Warrior FS2600 (Front Sleeper)
 
If you can afford to make the trip... (you'll save much more than fuel or flight costs) I'd check out the prices/brands in Indiana. (Indiana has the largest concentration of RV manufacturers in the U. S. ) A prevalent brand on this end of the country is Forest River's "All-American" series of toy haulers. You can find pics at www.walnutridgerv.com

"Psychostroker" over at www.diesel-central.com has a Weekend Warrior, you ought to post over there to ask him his opinion, likes/dislikes, etc.

We're starting to see a lot of race car type trailers with the front section converted to living quarters, they just came out with a gooseneck version. I lost the website address, if I find it, I'll post it here.
 
I have a 30' Forest River Sierra, paid ~$15k for it new in '99. I'm very happy with the quality and accommodations of the trailer (including 100/100/40 gal tanks). I had a lot of problems with blowouts on the Carlisle load range D tires (ST225/75-15) with 10,200 lbs on the axles, but after the first two-blowout trip, the dealer said I shouldn't run it at 75MPH at max gross weight. :--) (why not--My V-10 didn't mind?)



Even limiting myself to 65MPH :( I had more problems. When I changed the "toy" it hauls from a Samurai to a Jeep, I upgraded to 16" wheels and load range E LT tires. Last time I weighed with that configuration, I had 12,000 lbs on the axles, and was at 21,500 lbs GCW. :eek:



The V-10 never had any problem pulling it over the mountains in Utah & Colorado where I play, but I'm still looking forward to what the new HO Cummins will do :D
 
Whoops, forgot to mention one other really important change I made when I upgraded the tires & wheels--I added a SmartTire telemetry system, which allows me to continuously monitor the pressure and temperature of each tire (closer monitoring/maintenance of proper inflation pressure probably would have prevented my earlier problems).



I've got a new second generation SmartTire system sitting on the bench in the garage, waiting to be added to the new truck (I didn't put them on the truck tires on the old one) as soon as I can take the time to break the tires down, along with four more transmitters for my flatbed trailer. I'm hoping the old transmitters on the fiver will be compatible with the new receiver's display unit.
 
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