Upgrading from FE RKS246 TT to 5th W

[7Iron]

Hello every one,

I am a bit apprehensive wrt asking my first question...as I know it is unanswerable/unknowable, but your input is valuable:

We are mid 60s and have upgraded from pop-up to TT and are planning our
next (and hopefully last) upgrade to a 5th wheel. It will also require an upgrade in our TV. We plan to travel most of the year, for at least one year.

We are currently looking at the Cougar and have just about decided on the 1/2 ton versions (which are not really 1/2 ton TV compatible).

Must haves:

1. quiet AC!
2. comfortable seating

and maybe
3. outside kitchen.(cabinets, stove, refrig...and water?)

We have about 1600 lbs of stuff in our TT and I don't see adding much more and I think we want a max of 10.5-12k ....not sure yet if TV will be gas or diesel 3/4 ton (Ford or GMC), so with gas we are at 12-13k lbs limit.

any and all input will be beneficial....I wish I had ask this question before purchasing the TT a couple years ago....I know someone would have given us a heads up wrt to noisy AC and extremely uncomfortable seating.


What should we consider?

[66joej]

Maybe the high end RVs have the "whisper quiet" ACs but the Cougar level ones we have owned and been in all have noisy ACs.
As for comfortable seating any booth dinette is uncomfortable. The Cougar 5er we had came with free standing table and the chairs were the same as in our house, so OK.YMMV

[cookinwitdiesel]

If you want a 5er, maybe just get the 1 ton TV. Will ride the same and cost about the same as a 3/4 ton but be rated higher. With a SRW 1 Ton you still have a decent amount of capacity for most 5ers, obviously with a DRW you gain a lot more payload and therefore flexibility.

Also that extra payload makes getting the diesel less costly from a capacity standpoint, the extra power is always welcome.

[notanlines]

I agree with the above comments. I also want to add that quiet AC equals DUCTED air conditioning. Let me say it again; DUCTED AC. It will make all the difference in the world.
1. Dinettes are uncomfortable
2. Buy a one ton
3. Ducted AC

[Laredo Tugger]

7Iron,
You are smart to research and ask questions ahead of your purchases (TV and 5er)
I back everything stated on here and will add that the comfort of my 5er far exceeds my TT. We upgraded the TT Sofa?Bed with a side by side theater recliner. Big difference,but still a TT. The 5er you will purchase will more than likely have this option and a comfortable couch (depending on floor plan). I will add that if it is just you and DW, a couples 5er may suit you the best. I have Laredo 350 FB. A different floor plan than the others but suits (the 2 of) us just fine. This model also has a king size bed.We also have no pets. I tow it with a 2018 Ram 3500 HO CC SRW 4x4. This combo serves us well. And as a bonus, you may already know there is a new Keystone RV dealership just west of you. Dixieland RV just opened a new dealership at the Grand Bay exit (#4) near you (I drove by there yesterday). We bought our 5er at their dealership in DeFuniak Springs FL. I was glad to see a new dealership closer to my location and you will be too. Not that they are junk and need constant repair,but when your rig does need a dealer service it will not as much of an inconvenience.
Good Luck
RMc

[7Iron]

our RKS246 is ducted AC but the large return is the noise maker, cant hear the TV

[cookinwitdiesel]

Loud how? Just the sound of air moving? Is something restricting the airflow making it more turbulent and therefore louder? Whistling? Anything that is not a mechanical sound can probably be alleviated with some small adjustment or modification.

[gearhead]

I was hanging out at my favorite RV repair shop recently. Got into a conversation about if I went to a different 5th wheel, what would it be? One of the mechanics said very emphatically "nothing that has LIGHT in the name".
Just me, I would look at higher quality used 5th wheels. Probably come close to the price of a newer lesser quality 5th. There is a lot of used junk out there, but I think if you shopped carefully you could find a good one.
For price comparisons you may look at: https://www.pplmotorhomes.com/

[Phil Saran]

We used to have a MH with two A/C units. The one in the living room was fine, the
one in the bedroom was the noisy one.

Our new Keystone Cougar 5th wheel in my signature has only one A/C unit and I am
fine with that. I did add Air Max vent covers to the 3 vents.

Previous to the MH we had 3 travel trailers over about a 15 year span and they all
only had one A/C unit.

I tow with a Dodge Ram 3500 SRW short bed 4 door 4x4 diesel truck and
I am very happy with it. This past week we came back from South Dakota
and I averaged 9.5 MPG towing. With the MH (a 34 foot gas unit) towing a
small pickup truck I averaged 6 to 7 MPG. Go diesel.

[notanlines]

7Iron, if you click on this link you'll see a photo of a 2019, same model as yours, and it shows what is the centrally located AC supply, possibly a concentric diffuser, I'm not sure. It is located directly below your roof top unit and that's why it is so loud.
https://www.imperialrvcenter.com/--xInventoryDetail?id=5332431&utm_source=www.rvtrader.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=dealer-click&utm_content=view-inventory-link
It may duct some cold air to the bedroom/bath area, I don't know, but that rascal is loud, LOUD!

[travelin texans]

I was hanging out at my favorite RV repair shop recently. Got into a conversation about if I went to a different 5th wheel, what would it be? One of the mechanics said very emphatically "nothing that has LIGHT in the name".
Just me, I would look at higher quality used 5th wheels. Probably come close to the price of a newer lesser quality 5th. There is a lot of used junk out there, but I think if you shopped carefully you could find a good one.
For price comparisons you may look at: https://www.pplmotorhomes.com/

Look in the classifieds on here for exactly some of those, including mine!

[sourdough]

7Iron - Just some thoughts. Get the 1 ton, and, I would get the diesel. I pull 10k with my 6.4 and it does great but it can wind up a bit on long steep grades. It is rated for 12.5k but 10k is all it wants; the other gassers will be the same.

If it is just going to be the two of you and in your 60s, you might do as we did and get a trailer perfect for two people. Never had anyone spend the night with us and won't; works out wonderfully for us.

If it were me I would look at the Cougar, not the extra light. I've looked at lots of them and there are some big differences to us. Go walk thru a few and look at the differences in the interior, the steps, etc. etc. When I first started looking I had to ask a salesman (thinking they were all "Cougars"" what the caused the notable differences - he just pointed up at the top and said "1/2 ton" - they cut back to make it lighter....and cheaper. We decided "1/2 ton" wasn't anything we wanted to buy. The full fledged Cougar's are pretty nice and have some great floorplans as well.


Don't know what you are looking for but the Cougar 315RLS comes with a gvw of about 12.5k. A diesel will take it in stride, a gasser is going to struggle. https://www.keystonerv.com/fifth-wheels/cougar/floorplans/315rls-fifth-wheel/

[Brantlaker]

While I no longer have a Keystone RV when I ordered my Alfa I specified 2 15,000 BTU ac's ducked during the day I use the front one and at night the rear one. I am a Snowbird in SW Florida for 4+ months. My previous RV was Cougar 318 which maxed out at 12,000 lb and towed with a 3/4 ton 3.73 rear and it was a dog going up mountains out west so i upgraded to a 1 ton Diesel but kept the 3.73 rear and while it would tow my new rig at 18,000 lb and 41 ft I up dated to a 350 DRW for stability on the Roads. Just a note if you get a Ford truck order it that way you get what you need/want. I still have a 3.73 rear and I order them with a slide in camper pkg that give you a heaver load in the bed.

[CaptnJohn]

For more than minor weekend use I too would stay away from anything that said 'lite'. Cougars are good IMO. We had a 303rls and sold it to a neighbor. The only reason we sold is we often spend 2 months or more between visits home to regroup and wanted more room. The difference is 4 slides instead of 2 and 43' over '34. Just the 2 of us and a small dog but the space is appreciated.
Get the 1 ton diesel ~ you will be happy you did. I pull 14,000# with a F350 SRW 4x4.

[chubasdad]

I agree with all the above reply’s , Yes the Whisper is a little quiter, but as stated a ceiling ducted air return is a must. One thing that is not mentioned is the bedroom A/C. Occasionally we like to take a nap, on a hot day, no breeze we had to turn on the bedroom A/C, remember you are on the bed 3 ft from the A/C
air vent, it was totally impossible to sleep with that noise so close. So we went to our dealer and requested a FANTASTIC FAN w/remote installed in the ceiling, they were reluctant to make a new hole in the roof and tried to talk us out of it. We insisted and it was installed, what a difference it made, so glad we stuck to
our guns on that. If you are negotiating for a new trailer you are currently in a
buyers market, seriously think about asking for the FF install, make it a must have in you negotiating, bet you get it next to nothing, last thing, a diesel we give you a powerful TV, you will not regret it.

[wiredgeorge]

Maybe the high end RVs have the "whisper quiet" ACs but the Cougar level ones we have owned and been in all have noisy ACs.
As for comfortable seating any booth dinette is uncomfortable. The Cougar 5er we had came with free standing table and the chairs were the same as in our house, so OK.YMMV


Sitting on a booth dinette seat is akin to a poorly designed motorcycle seat. The tailbone starts screaming first then the poorly supported thighs. The seat will slip out in an annoying fashion. We put non-skid under the seats to help with that issue and when we were camping in Camp Wood, went into the Dollar General and I found what is probably a boat cushion EXACTLY the right size to cover my entire dinette seat and it helps a lot. I have considered yanking the current cushion foam out (seat backs ain't the problem) and putting in some top notch foam.



As far as A/C quiet; this ain't gonna happen in any RV I have ever owned or been in. Ducted are more quiet then non-ducted and when you use the "Quick Cool" mode (in a ducted system) by shutting off flow to the A/C registers, it is just as noisy as a non-ducted. From everything I have read, the high end units using "whisper quiet" A/C systems are not all that quiet either. You get used to it. Turn that TV volume up to max is usually required if the A/C is running.



As far as which truck? Get as much truck as the pocket can stand. The 1/2 ton thing is a marketing euphemism BS. The 1/2 ton towable ain't. Reserve towing capacity is a blessing. If you get close to the limits of a truck, then the towing will not be fun. A lot of folks will expound on the virtues of a BIG diesel but a gas truck suits me more because I only use my old 250 for towing and the maintenance and fuel are not big factors in my budget. An old 96 7.3 diesel around here can go for 5 times more than an old 7.5 gas hog and my gas hog can drag my little 5ver anywhere. My fiver would be considered a 1/2 ton towable these days I suppose. Good luck and have your missus read the diesel up-selling in this thread and maybe she will authorize a purchase hehe