What's wrong with TrailManor?

[countrygirl]

I am 5 ft 2 and 1/2 and I opened and closed a 2720SL this weekend by myself.

[Bill]

Thanks for posting, Countrygirl. We've had quite a bit of discussion about this, but IIRC, no real reported experience. This should help a number of people who are concerned about the same thing.

Bill

We bought our TM after a horrific accident while towing a TT. We feel safe towing this camper and the gas milage is so much better. Now, about the beds...we sleep on a Comfort Select air bed at home and nothing else feels as good, so I always complain about the bed. We put an inch of memory foam on it and cover it with a pillow top mattress pad. It barely makes the allowance, and we do not want to stress the "clamps." I read in this thread about "spacers." Is there really such a thing to extend the "clamps" or is it on a wish list? I do not relish making up the bed each time, but if you do it with the bed slid out part way, it is manageable. We added white wash basins under all the counters (Walmart) and have found them okay. After our accidnet, safety comes first. We will put up with all of the minor inconveniences --- no matter how big or expensive teh rig, I have yet to find that nobody has any complaints. Queeniereads aka Judi

Well, not too much to complain about, I guess I am still young enough to put up with some of the inconveniences:
i.e. having to remove the propane tanks to fill.
Crawling on the floor to find things in the low cabinet. (Need to install slide and tubs)
My biggest complaint would have to be the poorly designed table leg adjusters on the fold down tables on our 2720 SL. Maybe it just me, but I think they are cheap and somewhat unsafe. The clips have a tendency to misalign and become stuck. I worry about getting sliced while making adjustments. I found the easiest way to put them back together is to remove the leg from the table and reassemble and then re-screw back on to the tabletop. Anyone else had trouble with the leg adjustments on the fold down table s on the 2720SL?
Kind regards,
Cowboy Cody

[commodor47]

Originally Posted by Cowboy Cody

. . .Anyone else had trouble with the leg adjustments on the fold down table s on the 2720SL?
Kind regards,
Cowboy Cody

We have experienced a similar issue with one of the table legs. It was corrected without having to remove the leg. The cause seems to be related to collapsing the leg when stowing the table. If you push up too hard on the leg it will get stuck (probably travels just enough beyond the locking tab/button to bind). Usually a little gentle persuasion will get the tab to release the inner leg. However, sometimes the tab breaks free and then it is a real challenge to get things lined up. Then again we've only had few instances where the table leg adjustment has malfunctioned.

[wbmiller3]

I haven't had that problem, but all the screws holding the leg(s) to the table pulled out quite a while ago and would not retighten (i.e. the leg feel off completely). I gorilla glued them in and have had no further issues.

Hello, I just found this site today and it is FABULOUS! I'm sorry if I am repeating questions, but I've spent some time today trying to read what I can and this post seemed to be super informative. I was wondering if the TMs have changed over these past few years and if some of these pros/cons are different now with the new models.

Background: we have owned a pop-up for 3 years now, we are avid campers, 3 small children, and until this summer it has been great. But I have to say, I'm tired of having no room for anything, no bathroom, loud sleeping (I'm a very light sleeper so the outside noises with a pop-up make it very hard for me), I'd like a microwave/oven, and I'm liking the idea of each kid having their own sleeping space (i.e. bunk beds). I know I cannot have it all. I've been trying to research and trying to figure out what are the things I feel I need and what I can do without.

I've started to think the microwave/oven are not as important, the campfire does it all (as does the outside stove and my Coleman camping stove) and the bunk beds aren't absolutely necessary. I like the idea of having a low profile camper (we HAVE to store it on the side of our house out of the view of the neighborhood and a low profile camper is the only one that will hide) and its very windy where we live so a low camper is better.

We rarely hook up it seems, although its nice, most of the places we go to don't have hook-ups.

So, I was just wondering what the TM owners think now. The bathroom is very important, especially for going #2, I'm very tired of the nasty camp bathrooms and my kids seem to have to go all the time. A shower would be GREAT to be able to take, even just a quick rinse. A quiet sleep is nice, but having to crawl over others isn't. Plus I really want something that we don't have to make a bed each morning (need sleeping for 5). I want the kids to be able to have their spot for the whole trip without moving their sleeping bags/stuffed animals etc. each morning and then making it up again at night.

Our pop-up now is one of the biggest of its kind, the Coleman Utah, and there are many benefits to it. But really, its tiring having to take upwards of an hour to set up camp and easily over an hour to break it all down. It takes all morning the day we leave, and we can never plan to cook dinner the night we arrive b/c set-up takes so long.

Are any owners willing to jump back into this thread and start listing their pros-cons again, such as the toilet smell possibility (and along that line, I have no idea what even goes into a bathroom for a camper - how long to clean, how to clean, what the maintenance is etc.), the ease of opening/closing for a 5'3" woman, ... the other issues in this thread. Also, I have read in other posts that bugs can get inside, and the dust can get inside. We usually camp where it is often dusty and there are ALWAYS many bugs. We often drive over dirt/bumpy roads to get to our spot.

Sorry to be convoluted, just hoping to hear more opinions. I've narrowed to either a TM or Hi-Lo, but am still wondering if I would be most happy with what I already have? I'm worried about spending so much more money and finding out that what we had was best already. Any new thoughts/suggestions? Thank you so much.

Originally Posted by tina22

Plus I really want something that we don't have to make a bed each morning (need sleeping for 5). I want the kids to be able to have their spot for the whole trip without moving their sleeping bags/stuffed animals etc. each morning and then making it up again at night.

Tina, the TM will fold down with a thin layer of sheets and blankets, but a sleeping bag might be a bit much. And you would have to remove the stuffed animals off of the bed before traveling.

The missus and I left the beds made with sheets and a thin blanket, but the comforter had to come off before folding down......and that combo still cut the overhead bed light switch on just about every trip (the light switch rubbing the blanket).......thank goodness TM has incorporated a micro switch on the bathroom wall so the light doesn't actually come on during travel.

[Bill]

A couple quick answers - others will chime in with more complete stories.

To my nose, the toilet doesn't stink if you follow the directions. Sometimes you can smell the chemical, but even that is not much. Some people with very sensitive noses say they can smell it - I never do, nor does my wife. You'll have to judge for yourself whether you are in the "sensitve nose" or "no nose" category. But it is nothing like, for example, a pit toilet at a NPS campground - not even close.

If you are a 5'3" woman camping without someone more heavy, then I would advise against one of the slideout models. No matter how I try to deny it, you need a certain amount of physical strength, or weight, to pull the slider out and push it back in. If you have help, of course the story is different - anything goes. The shells, of course, are easy for one person to raise and lower if they are adjusted properly.

Bugs do not get in, any more than they do in your house. In other words, if you leave the door open, they will come in. But that's it.

A bit of dust gets in if you drive dry dusty roads (in the desert, for example). But in that case, it is easily wiped up with a damp cloth.

Cleaning the bathroom is not a chore. Having a dry bathroom (in other words, a real shower enclosure, as opposed to a wet bathroom) is wonderful.

Bunkbeds? Nope. Not going to happen. But the always-made-up front bed in a 2720, for example, is a wonderful thing for kids.

Crawling over the other? Seems to me to be an overblown problem. Since I am a gentleman of a certain age, I have to get up every two hours. So I sleep on the inner side, closest to the bathroom. My wife never gets up, so she sleeps on the outer side. Works fine for us. If you are part of a couple that both have to get up, then that's a different story, I suppose, and I'm pleased that it is not mine. So ask yourself how often you get up during the night at home.

If you often camp without hookups, stay with the standard gas stovetop and oven. They always work, with no hookups, and are a blessing when it's raining and you can't grill outside or have a campfire. If you decide you would like a microwave for the times you are hooked up, then buy an inexpensive one, lightweight, 600 watts or so, from WalMart. Carry it on the dinette seat or on the floor when you travel.

Setup and teardown are much faster than an hour. My wife and I usually figure that from the moment we roll out of bed in the morning, get showered, get dressed, make breakfast, eat breakfast, wash the breakfast dishes, pack up everything we've unpacked the night before, deal with the dog and cat, disconnect the utilities, put away the hoses and cables, dump the tanks, fold down, get rid of the trash, hitch up, check the campsite, and pull out - well, that may take an hour. But we are pretty leisurely when we travel. It can be done much faster.

And setup is faster in the evening when we arrive at a campground, because I know there is a martini waiting for me when it's done. To each his own, of course.

Hope this helps.

Bill

Bill, I resonate with the martini comment...

To expand a little, we've got a big TM, the 3124. At this size, things get a little more difficult since the shells are bigger. It has a slide too. Oddly, I don't have any problem with the slide. I do have to grunt a bit to get it open but it really is just to get it started. Once it starts moving, they come up easily. I have trouble with the back latches only because we put a high density foam mattress topper (2") on the bed. If you can sleep on the stock mattress (I am evidently a princess) the latches aren't an issue either. Keep in mind that opening the shells takes two minutes and has almost nothing to do with pack up time.

Our pack up when we leave is pretty involved because I have a lot of junk and usually a couple of grandkids in tow that have to be entertained while we're trying to close up. I am the former owner of a Class C and it takes the same amount of time. I also cook mostly outside so I still have to put all the cooking stuff away. I probably spend more time reopening the thing because I forgot to put the steps up or something similarly stupid than you would closing yours if you don't make any mistakes (it's not hard- I'm over dramatizing). The one thing I do that no one has yet mentioned is that, when I close the back shell, I always take a brush with a telescopic handle and clean off the top to where the front shell will hit so the stuff doesn't get trapped in there. This takes about 5 minutes and I have no clue if it does anything except make me feel better.

The only things I hated about our TM is that the AC is so loud you can't hear yourself think if you have to turn it on and the Microwave kept jumping out of it's cubbyhole and I had to spend a lot of time figuring out a way to anchor it (you won't have that problem with the gas oven). It was brand new and I really didn't get any sympathy for TM. Lastly, I don't really like the seal system they use between shells but I'm certain that they have tried all kinds of systems and this was the one that a. worked and b. could be maintained to a degree.

The big deal with a TM that someone touched on way back in this thread is simply weight. The folks who designed this really put some thought into the problem they were trying to solve, which I believe was to design a comfortable travel trailer that didn't require a semi to tow it. My prediction is that you're going to see much of the techniques TM uses in other RV designs to improve gas mileage and, for TT, to allow them to be towed by smaller TVs. At $3/gallon and climbing, if they don't they will go by the way of the dodo bird. I do believe that the weight savings can only go so far though until you end up with a softsided pop-up again.

Hope this adds a little perspective.

Phil