How I researched to find the best RV for us.

I wanted to find the travel trailer that best fitted our needs and one that was constructed with quality so that it would last.  I found all the data on the manufacturers websites under the particular model that we had chosen as having a floor plan that we wanted.  We decided that the "Couples Trailer" was what would make us feel more at home and looked thru all the manufactures websites to find models that met that qualification.   We then went to a number of different dealers to examine those models to see if they were actually as represented. 

Our particular needs and wants included the following items.

Lots of storage and a full closet.
Enough counter top space in the kitchen
TV had to face the recliners or theater chairs for easy viewing
Weight near or preferably under 8000 pounds
Comfortable seating
Room in bedroom to change and get around the bed
Possible room to later install a washer dryer combo if desired
And that a outdoor kitchen would take room from inside trailer (although it would be nice)

Some of the construction that I want was a TPO roof which is more durable, warrantied 10-12 years instead of 2-4 and less up keep, slide outs must not be Schwintek which in talking to experienced RV repair techs are not as reliable and some repair centers do not even want to service them.

As we went out and began looking at all the different models we found that we became quickly confused as to which model had what items.   We found that looking on You Tube for each model provided a reminder of what that model had, but it was not a lasting memory of facts.  I then made a document with a floor plan of each model we selected that was cut and pasted onto it with such facts as the weight, length, and any features that we wanted that were on it.
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An example of one entry:

Keystone Premier 34 RIPR

weight 7615 length 38 feet           pantry, walk in closet, kitchen island, soft recliners face TV        TPO roof, steel formed rafters, cable slide out

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Every model that we thought might be the type we wanted got an entry like this and we made hand notes also on them, this made it much easier to remember the models as to their attributes.  I just included one example as I had several pages of two to three models on each and was too big to include in our blog.

Next I went to each manufactures website and collected certain construction features that I thought might be important and listed them as follows:

	Coachmen	Cougar 1/2	Loredo	LaCrosse	Sprinter	Outback	Premier		0pen range
adzel	ADZEL	LUAN	LUAN	LUAN	LUAN	LUAN	LUAN		luan
Pinch or vacuum	VACUUM	Pinch	Pinch	Pinch	Pinch	Pinch	Pinch		Pinch
Double welded	?	DOUBLE	DOUBLE	double	DOUBLE	DOUBLE	DOUBLE		double
Framed window	FRAMED	FRAMED	FRAMED	framed	FRAMED	FRAMED	FRAMED		frame
Floor ply or OSB	LUAN	OSB	OSB	osb	OSB	OSB	POLY VENEER		plywood
TPO or EPDM	EPDM	TPO	ALPHA	TPO	ALPHA	TPO	TPO		pvc
SLIDE TYPE	Schwintek	CABLE	CABLE	cable	CABLE	CABLE	CABLE		cable
ROOF	WOOD	WOOD 16”	STEEL TRUSS		WOOD 16”	ALUM	STEEL TRUSS		wood
Floor Roof	2-5/16 3/8	⅝ 3/8	3/8	⅝ 3/8	⅝ 3/8	⅝ 3/8			⅝ 3/8
R Factor	R14/	R14 R9 R14	R11	R14 R11 R14	R28 R9 R30	R14 R7 R10	R11 R7 R11

With these documents in hand I think I scared sales people.  I also had a notebooks of other items of information on each manufacturer, model, dealerships, sales people, and availability of those models.
On my phone I also had taken photos of; 1st photo the model number by the door, a couple of layout, inventory number and the actual weight.

With all this data Sue and I headed to the Tampa RV Super Show.  We kept in mind that there were thousands of various RV's at this show and kept to the plan of only looking at the finalists units that we had chosen and not getting distracted by the Class A's and Airstreams which as so tempting to look at.  We found that being able to look at all the models we had chosen in a single place made our choice easier and I highly recommend going to a RV show and being able to compare all your choices at one time.

With all the information we had, a map of the Show and where each unit was located, we were able to make a quicker and easier decision.  Our decision at the Show may have been quick, if you don't consider the months of research and fact compilation that we did, but I feel we made an educated decision because we had researched as much as we did.
I highly recommend that when you decide to purchase an RV that you do as much research as you can on the units that meet your needs.  Talk to actual RV repair technicians and the people who deal in the warranties as they will tell you what manufactures, equipment and systems are best.  I was fortunate to have a repair facility that was not a dealer close by and they were an invaluable source of information.  If you research you will know more than the salesmen about your units you focused on, because they have so many to sell they won't be as knowledgeable on that individual unit as you if you've collected the information on a specific unit.