9 November 2016
Well we finally did it. Today we signed the contract to buy our dream RV from New Horizons. In early October we visited the New Horizon’s factory in Junction City and took a tour of the plant and their models. David was impressed with the quality of the frame, the cabinetry and the lamination of the walls. From the exterior fiberglass, aluminum frame members, closed cell foam and then the interior plywood. Extremely strong and lightweight. The frame is made from two 12 inch steel I Beams with cross bracing, everything welded and then painted. Definitely built for the rigor of full timing. It also addressed all the issues we identified in our trip to west Texas in 2011.
We worked with our New Horizons salesman to get the layout we wanted for the RV including taller cabinets, 4 foot garage on the back, full size bathtub, and the options for a price we were comfortable with. After the contract was signed we worked with a New Horizons coordinator on the interior selections (Cabinets, furniture, wall coverings, lights, tile, counter tops, floors, etc). Final selections were not made until we were on the way back from New Orleans following or Niece's, Loren, wedding.
23-26 April 2017
Two weeks ago we received a telephone call informing us our RV was ready! So we set up for this week to live in the RV for 3 days to checkout the RV prior to accepting delivery. The plan was to leave the RV with New Horizon’s until our truck was delivered to tow it. We found the trailer had several issues and certain items had not arrived or had arrived but had to be sent back because they were damaged, the cell phone repeater had not been installed, a gas leak, Ethernet ports not installed, and some minor finish issues. We left them with a two-page punch list to resolve but also talked with them about adding solar to the rig and upgrading the battery pack. In May, we authorized the solar system as well as having them buy and install the Comfort Ride hitch. Everyone was great to work with! Harold gave us a complete tutorial on the fiver and worked to get issues resolved as they were found. Austin was great with working out the issues with the electronics and direct TV. We bought lunch for the entire factory to thank them for our fabulous future home.
21-23 August 2017
Its Done!!! We arrived Sunday and found our trailer set up and waiting for us. Everything was addressed from the punch list. Monday was a slow check of the items on the punch list. But it was cloudy and raining so we missed seeing the big solar eclipse. Tuesday they installed the hitch in the truck. Harold again gave us a thorough walkthrough of all the systems on the trailer and took us for a test drive to verify the trailer integrity and our ability to tow something so long (43 feet) and heavy (22,000lbs). Fortunately, David has towed before, but never anything this long. But we passed Harold’s road test with flying colors. The new truck handled the fiver very well. Took a few try’s to get lined up for the hitch! Biggest issue was getting the cell phone repeater to work. Finally determined the antenna was not a good match for the trailer. Probably too much gain. Austin worked with Wineguard to have them ship a new antenna to the apartment for me to install later. Tuesday evening, Austin installed the display in the truck to allow us to monitor the trailers three cameras as we were driving down the road. Austin also wired it into the turn signals so when a turn signal is activated, it selects that side camera on the fiver. On Wednesday, we signed the final paper work and made the final payment. It was ours!!
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