Hello again, from the mid section of Texas.

A few of us old timers, sitting around enjoying the beautiful evenings we have had these last few days ,talking  RV shop and about the wimmin folk. But we are going to omit the wimmin folk talk and get right down to a very important subject... Who should actually OWN an RV?

Technically anyone who wants one can Own an RV,, But there should be an application form of some sorts. Now don't get me wrong,,, The RV life whether it be part time, full time, etc.. is a great thing.

But there has to be some basic guidelines. The full timers,(myself included), know the routine,, the good times and bad times,, the pro's and cons,, the maintenance etc. What I am getting to is,, some people should not own an RV.. seriously... never ever, ever never ever.

An RV is an investment,,($$$$$$).. Some people have more money to burn then others. We all talked about the Vanity RV'er.   This type will buy the biggest, prettiest, most costliest RV they build.. I call these McMansions. The Vanity RV'er will buy this because his neighbor across the street bought one, and its the I have to keep up with the Jones attitude.. They will take this Mcmansion out for maybe a month the 1st time around,,, then maybe 2 weeks the next time,,, and then maybe a weekend,, and then it sits in a storage facility or along side their garage. So now that Hunert  bazziliion  dollar investment, is now a drive way ornament. The next class of people who should NOT own an RV,, is the spur of the moment, lets sell everything and travel the country side . Wronggggg.  The dream sounds good, but after a week or so, reality sets in. The spur of the moment RV'er, has had NO prior time spent in an RV. They watch a You tube video,, or see an RV show on TV,, and they think, I want to do that. Well,, it all sounds fine and dandy,, But, the best route is to 1st,,, rent an RV, and spend a week in it, down at a local camp ground. You will learn real quick, that your living quarters are not the same as your 11,000 square foot house,, and your kitchen doesn't have the top of the line L/G appliances,, and does not have a dishwasher.. I have personally come across young folks, who decided to go Full time with out looking into the life changes. The young couple soon realized that when an argument arises, one cannot just go storming off to the other end of the house and sulk in their bedroom.. It usually results in them sitting across from each other eye balling each other. If one expects ALONE time,,, this IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN.... unless one of them goes outside .Another subject in that area is Bathroom privacy.. You can giggle now or wait a couple lines. Imagine a 3:00 a/m potty call... Trust me,, no matter how quiet you try to be,,, everything can be heard,, from the casual tinkle to the initial flush.. So if your bashfull,, find a campground with a bathroom close by. If you had chili dogs and asparagus for dinner, and that gas builds up,,, there is no silence in an RV,, You learn to just chuckle and roll with the punches or it just aint going to work.

Another type of RV'er, is the one who says, I can drive anything.

Picture this,, The same guy who has a hard enough time keeping his 2,000 lb car on the road, expects to handle 12 K to 20K on that same narrow road. Or the same guy who has to be important and always have the cell phone to his ear or in his hand texting anything and everything. The same guy who expects his 30 ft, 18,000 motorhome to do zero to 60 in 6.5 seconds,, and handle turns like a Porche.

So to make this story shorter and to the point,,,

Some people can and should own RV's,, some shouldn't.   Just like, Not everyone can be a fire fighter.

So before you decide to sell everything, lock stock and barrel, and just jump into an RV, whether it be a motorhome, truck and trailer, or a cab over, ,Think  it out clearly,, the pro's and cons, And don't just jump in with both feet without checking the waters first. Buy an older rig,, re-do it, personalize it,, take it on weekend excursions,, get the feel of the LIFE,, and if it feels right,, gradually step into it,, and if its something you like and want to continue,, it can be a beautiful thing.. But if it doesn't fit your type of life style,, stick with the vacations and short excursions,, and still have your home stead to spoil your grand kids.

I love and enjoy the Full time RV life,,, I can hook up and go anywhere I want and take my comforts of home with me wherever I go.

And with any type of vacation to get away from the daily grind,, Don't forget to savor the time spent with loved ones,, meeting interesting people and making memories that can be passed down from generation to generation.. You only live once,, you don't get second chances,, so get out there, and enjoy life,,, Be safe and most of all,, Have some fun.

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Comment by Dawn Michelle on March 25, 2017 at 7:42pm

Nodded my head all the way through this, and Ralph's comments. We made all the mistakes 'the first time around'. Including maxxing out our credit cards and struggling to sell our rig when we couldn't afford it anymore. Took us years to rebuild our credit. But once in your blood...? For me, it's the sense of community I can't shake: the feeling that my tribe is 'out there'. And now, I have the joy of fixing up our new rig but at my own time and pace. Went a) as small as we felt we comfortably could with a dog and a cat (we never got comfortable driving our 37+ foot Bounder) and b) have no illusions that we'll be doing this fulltime. We NEED a place to park when things break down, money runs out, when I desperately needed a bath ...and just respite from the constant mental anguish of things falling apart - LOL. And, best of all, this one is paid for.

Comment by Ralph Javins on March 21, 2017 at 1:26am

Good morning, LW; 

Oh, boy.  Yeah.  Yes, there are a lot like that out there.  There are also some pretty good ones out there, and for those who ask, I do not  mind at all answering and helping.  Yes, I have loaned my extra length of sewer drain hose to a fellow who discovered a hole in his, and he did get to stay the entire weekend, and when he brought it back to me (yes, he did), it had been washed remarkably clean and ready to slide back into my extra length drain hose storage underneath.  

 And finding someone who is either truly brand new, or very recently brand new, is also a pretty good experience.  On thing that I have begun to do is to buy multiple copies of MOTOR HOMES MADE EASY WITH BILL BRYANT.  This little 5 by 8 pamphlet sized "book" is just about perfect to hand to a new motor home owner.  It is not so big that it is overwhelming and looks like a chore just to read it, but it does have in it just about everything that a person probably will need to know about how to work just about everything that is in his  motor home.  No, it is not truly exhaustive and fully comprehensive, but again, it is not overwhelming either, and is much more likely to be read. 

It will also serve as a quick reference and reminder for someone who has been using his motor home for a few years.  I find it to be a very useful little book.  Well, as I said, I have been buying them and giving them to new people.  That is an indication of what I think about that book. 

And the book also covers driving a motor home, so almost everything that Lakota Wolf spoke about is included in there.  Well, no, I admit that there is not really anything in there about the afluent motor home buyer and user who may not ever get his motor home up to the end of the warranty period or mileage before it is sold.  But then, I am also no tlikely to be in an RV park or campground where I am likely to meet one of them.  My own motor home no longer meets the "young and beautiful" age requirement for many motor home "up scale RV parks." 

But then, they stopped making Class A motor homes that meet one of my major requirements a long time ago.  However, my older motor home requires only three (3) steps to get up into it, in comparison with the five (5) steps required for all the modern motor homes.  For many people those two extra steps can be significant.  And I am having fun upgrading and modifying my own motor home to make it perform even better than it did when it was sold to the first owner.  And the knowledge that I have found here and on other motor home fora has helped me when finding someone who has a problem with his motor home.  And, yes, I must also admit that I am probably carrying too many tools in my motor home, but I have liked tools and test  equipment for many years.  I am also carrying some fairly sophisticated electronics test equipment so that I can quickly test and evaluate their CB radio system and other things in their motor home, including hunting down and identifying things that may be talking to their radios, television, and other things they have in their motor home. Having training and a few years of experience in electronics does help at times.  


So, for the few people who seem to have more than I do, and they show it, if something happens to their vehicle or the equipment in it, I am not really required to tell them what education and experience I have, nor what equipment I am carrying with me.  And, yes, not saying anything can be one of those ways where I can "have some fun." 

Enjoy; 

Ralph 

Latté Land, Washington 

Comment by Rich Thomas on March 20, 2017 at 9:29pm

Last summer My son and I spent four days in an older Ohio State Park. We hiked, we fished, and canoed for four days and had a blast. We had a sort of cast Iron cook off and enjoyed talking to other campers who most of were traveling through and interestingly enough most of them in vintage or older modern RV's. Most of them seamed to be happy with traveling about and fit the mold of full timing or, at the very least well experienced campers. Across the road from us there was what must of been a father sun or best friends or something like what you mentioned; people that maybe should re-consider there options. They both had brand new trucks and brand new exactly the same bumper pull campers. They spent four days fooling around with a satellite antenna for the older ones 60" TV that never did work. On Day three they gave up and went home. I remember this one Motor home roll through, pretty new and maybe fit the Mc-Mansion mold. The woman passenger gave my old Palace and me the snarky I'm better than you so how dare you acknowledge my presence with a simple wave.....Down on your knees scum kind of look as they went by. Now the palace is not the best looking rig in the lot but it's far from that kind of reaction. Any way, I can relate to your synopsis as I'm sure others can too.   Picture of the Palace attached.  

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