Toy Hauler input. 1/2 ton towable bumper pull variety

3500 was plenty of weight. I wouldn't pull over 4,000. I think Toyota is a little ambitious at 6,500; I could a short distance but no long pulls for sure.

 

I am looking at campers but not toy haulers. Figure for the track my bike will fit in the truck and the rest can go in the camper. Much nicer living quarters in non-toy haulers, generally cheaper and some are lighter in comparable size. to keep the little lady happy. I can fit two bikes in my truck. Bed is a little short on some 1/2 tons may cause an issue but I only have one bike for now.

 

I have had a small "single box with a separate bathroom"-type toyhauler for a while now. A Weekend Warrior FB1900. They are just like anything, what works for you depends on what you want to do with it. I bought my truck knowing I was going to get something in this range, and ended up with a 5.7 Tundra. It has had no trouble pulling this (and more importantly stopping!) with two bikes and full load of water. Gas hog if you don't keep the speed down (well a bit less of a gas hog if you keep the speed down is a better description).

The one thing I wish I wasn't stuck with is the hinged/lever down bunk bed. Nearly all newer models have "happi jack" beds which are electrically lowered and can be brought down lower. Climbing out of that bunk in the middle of the night for a bathroom break is no fun.

My wife and I use ours for track days, race spectating and some "just vacationing". It worked well in all cases. If you are using it longer than say a week, have kids, going to multiple races one after the other, etc., etc. it probably isn't big or equipped enough.

I like less built-ins. Mine is setup for a generator, but doesn't have one installed. I prefer to use my quiet Honda generator, and then I don't have to carry them (I use two wired together) when going on a trip using a campground that has hookups. Same with fuel. I don't use race fuel, so can stop near the track and fill up cans, so don't have to carry the fuel and any smells around that much.

I have truly enjoyed every trip I used it on. Track days, Barber Races (up on the hill), Daytona (in the infield campground for bike week) and even Ft. Wilderness in Disney. Wished I had one when I was racing.

That said, particularly for uses that involve a bike (like a track day), the preparation factor gets a bit overwhelming. The usual big list of bike-related stuff (gear, gas, tools, tires, that special thing not to forget, etc.) gets expanded by the amount of stuff that needs to be done for the RV (water tank flushed, fridge cooling down, generators operational, toilet prepped, electronics working, clean towels, sheets, etc.). For a "weekend warrior" (that's me, not the trailer) who has a day job, it seems a little like preparing for the Dakar sometimes.

So, there are trade-offs. Throw your bike in the back of a box trailer and heading out with just a cooler and credit card for food and lodging can be done much more spur of the moment. I guess you could do the same with a Toyhauler if you had it on "quick prep standby", but I don't use it often enough to do that.

In fact, it has been sitting longer than I would like. I've had a couple of personal issues (house fire) and current job environment doesn't leave much time to use it. I was thinking of putting mine on the classifieds here and maybe find a racer or track day-er who wants something inexpensive to dab a toe into the whole camping thing.

 

my suggestion? get the toyhauler, put the generator in the truck bed with a big ol' lock on it. i just can't see leaving race bikes out in the elements of an open truck bed.. let alone the hassle of having to load and unload bikes while not hooked up to the TH. but hey, that's me

 

I had a tundra, there is just poor gas milage and worse gas milage with that thing. Loved the truck but MPG made me go back to GMC. The elements is what's killing me now. I have a tent and open trailer. all my tools and stuff I don't want to get wet goes in the back seat of the truck...it's annoying! I don't mind the toy hauler, I am kind of a minimalist, bathroom shower, stove and I am more than good. My wife wants the other stuff for in the future for just camping.

 

That's actually something I hadn't contemplated. The Fuel station would help with genny refills.

 

and if you have ANY possibility of wanting an on-board genny, get it gen prepped. it' really can't be done after the fact, and you will always need a stand alone gen.

 

My 2006 toy hauler hasn't ever burned out a fuel station pump. Maybe that brand of pump is bad.

 

i think if you use it a lot, it's less prone to failure. Many rigs sit for a long time.. ethanol blended gas is horrible stuff, even with stabilizers, and is often the cause of issues.

 

http://chilhoweerv.rvusa.com/2017-starcraft-ar-one-maxx-26hr-new-toy-hauler-tn-i1874966

Is this thing any good? 15" wheels, gen prepped 15,000 btu ac, Electric tongue jack, Exterior speakers (2),Outside shower, Black tank flush

$19,900. I worry more about towing it with a 1/2 ton truck, figure it will be good for about 8mpg when towing that camper fully loaded

 

that looks like a forest river product.. so likely decent overall, many of the feautres of the xlr line. But i'm not a fan of the corrugated sides.. hard to clean

 

A bunch. My sound company bought the one I use to haul a PA system, so between that and the track it's being used at least every other week.

Jayco subsidiary according to their website. Been VERY happy with my Jayco.

 

Yep. That's what I was told too.
I'm also on my 3rd carb in my genny in the same amount of time. Guess what they're blaming that on...

 

I would always recommend getting a used RV even if just 1-3 years old it gives you the op to find all the crap that may have went wrong with the last owner.

 

I've always run my generators dry when I'm done with them. If I have to use fuel with ethanol I add treatment.

Knocks a third of the price out, too.

 

not as easy to do with 30gal of fuel on board , and the gas will stay better if the tank is full vs. partly empty (more potential for condensation collecting) but obviously catch 22 since if not using a lot, the gas can get stale (ethanol "phase separation"). If you use it a lot, this isn't as big a problem. I do think it's a really good idea to run the thing for an hour every week or 2 no matter how long ya store them. stabilizer for sure will help, but not work miracles.

 

Oklahomas gas is E0

 

I use a fuel shut off valve, add one inline if it doesn't have one. I have had no fuel related problems with anything that I have used like this with the exception of 4 stroke honda dirt bikes, the petcocks in those are evidently quite susceptible to ethanol even with treated gas (I have had to replace 3 so far). Nothing but ethanol free goes in those now.

 

In the garage area of something like the XLR - can things be mounted to the walls, like Nice Raxx for pitbull stands, tires, etc? The separated garage space takes care of half my dislike about most toyhaulers, but I make use of most of the wall space in my 7x16 for strap hangars, the nice raxx, mounts for wheels/tires, etc... (I hate crap all over the floor)

 

That is my biggest complaint about the raptor. The walls are crap.