Joining the RW community this week

[Frankv]

Hi,

Made the "mistake" of looking at a Redwood while on a rally with another manufacturer a couple of weeks ago, were planning to buy from our old manufacturer again but had always liked the RW and the dealer carries both. Well, taking delivery of a 2014 36RL this weekend!

Ours still has the old paint scheme which we love (though the front cap LEDs on the new design are cool). Interior seems to be updated.

Any common issues that we should be looking out for during the PDI? We noticed that both our fender skirts were cracked, found a thread re: that being an issue.

Ours also still has the E-rated Marathon tires, we are strongly considering upgrading to the 17.5 G114. Wondering if that would help fuel consumption (215 vs 235, less rolling resistance), and how much we could sell the Marathon tires/wheels for and where (craigslist, ebay)?

No disc brakes as delivered either, and would like to get independent suspension in the hopes of the coach holding up better over time. Thinking of doing tires/wheels immediately, then possibly IS if MOR/ryde can fit us in before/after the August rally, and possibly add disc brakes next year. Truck is GMC dually. Wife wants better tires, so that's probably a given, but wondering if IS and disc brakes make a $3k (each) difference.

[piper guy]

Hi to both of you !! A large YES to all of the above. Definitely do the G Goodyears first. You may or may not need to change wheels, look for a thread where others have done it. You need to check the codes on the back of the wheels and see what pressure they are rated for. Oh, and btw, rim size is the same. The 17.5 size are the H rated Goodyears.

I just did the Mor/Ryde. IS and Kodiaks on mine about a month ago. Going to stop at their facility just before the Rally and probably switch to a slightly softer spring but other than that it is incredible. Difference in handling with the trailer is tremendous and the difference in braking is HUGE. We were in the mountains of PA and up into central NY last weekend and never felt any kind of issue with the brakes or any concern. Whole rig stops as well as the truck does with no drama. Best money I've spent.

As for things to look at specific to the RL, if it has a WD or you are going to put one in, make sure to pull the bed frame up and the panels under it and check the drain hoses and water feed lines. A lot of us have found loose fittings and badly routed hoses there. I would also have the dealer pull the back wall of the basement and check the furnace runs to the bedroom. Most of us have had that fall down too. Easily fixed with some screws and zip ties but a pain on a cold night when there's no heat ........

Welcome to the forum and you're gonna love the redwood

[atom ant]

Welcome Frank and Pam!

And congratulations on the 36RL! Old paint scheme but what color?

Agree with Vaughan - ditch the Marathon tires. You may be good with just replacing the tires with G614 Goodyears IF you have these wheels:



If you have the wheels below, they won't handle the G614, so you might as well go for the full monty and get the 17.5 and new wheels:



We have the disk brakes and love them. Vaughan can attest to retrofitting the drum brake type with IS suspension and disk.

My fender is cracked and still resolving the paint on the fender issue with the Dealer.

I also has some issue with the bedroom door frame spreading too wide after I put the W/D in (weight). It took some shims in the frame to bring the door back close enough to latch. The Dealer fixed that.

Other than that, it has been great!

[0nTheRoad]

Frank & Pam, welcome to the Redwood family!!!!

Vaughn and Brad have covered the BIG RL issues so there is no sense regurgitating what they have already said.

I hope you enjoy our RW as much as we have, been in our rig for about 18 months fulltime, we have been blessed with a wonderful coach with very few issues, all of which have been minor.

[Dave&Ginny]

Welcome to our growing family!

[TNTBaker]

Welcome to the happiest place on earth! This forum is OUTSTANDING! Collectively, these people know more about Redwoods than REDWOOD DOES!! It's great and makes owning one a great pleasure. It truly is a family! Congratulations guys! You will LOVEEEE your new Redwood. Been in ours a couple of weeks and could NOT be happier!!!

[Oriana]

Frank & Pam,

Welcome to the forum and our growing Redwood family.

Agree with Vaughan & Brad re ditching the Marathons ASAP. For Goodyear G614 I bought a set locally, just North of Seattle from a chap on the Montana forum. Cost me $800 for tires and rims that only had about 2,000 mls more than the new RW tires. I then sold the Marathons on Craigslist for $500. Sweet deal, I thought.

[0nTheRoad]

FYI Frank & Pam, we're having a Redwood Rally in Indiana, August 8-10. If interested look here on the Redwood website for details.
Come join us for a VERY intense learning session on your Redwood and meet some of us!!

[Frankv]

Originally Posted by piper guy

Hi to both of you !! A large YES to all of the above. Definitely do the G Goodyears first. You may or may not need to change wheels, look for a thread where others have done it. You need to check the codes on the back of the wheels and see what pressure they are rated for. Oh, and btw, rim size is the same. The 17.5 size are the H rated Goodyears.

I just did the Mor/Ryde. IS and Kodiaks on mine about a month ago. Going to stop at their facility just before the Rally and probably switch to a slightly softer spring but other than that it is incredible. Difference in handling with the trailer is tremendous and the difference in braking is HUGE. We were in the mountains of PA and up into central NY last weekend and never felt any kind of issue with the brakes or any concern. Whole rig stops as well as the truck does with no drama. Best money I've spent.

As for things to look at specific to the RL, if it has a WD or you are going to put one in, make sure to pull the bed frame up and the panels under it and check the drain hoses and water feed lines. A lot of us have found loose fittings and badly routed hoses there. I would also have the dealer pull the back wall of the basement and check the furnace runs to the bedroom. Most of us have had that fall down too. Easily fixed with some screws and zip ties but a pain on a cold night when there's no heat ........

Welcome to the forum and you're gonna love the redwood

Thanks! Can you elaborate on the handling differences between fixed axles vs IS? Would it also make for a shorter turning radius? My current 5th wheel is 2 feet shorter and I can barely make the turn to our driveway.

Re: basement walls, has anybody made modifications to provide easier access to the area behind the rear wall?

[Frankv]

Originally Posted by atom ant

Welcome Frank and Pam!

And congratulations on the 36RL! Old paint scheme but what color?

Same colors as yours it appears (black/maroon), love them! Thanks for the heads-up on W/D, now I have a good argument why not to get them (on wife's wish list).

[travelin' texans]

're: basement wall, I removed all the screws from center & drivers side section & stapled industrial strength Velcro to the edges, I not tiny so now can remove 2/3 of the wall with a hefty tug, better than contorting under with drill driver.

[0nTheRoad]

Originally Posted by travelin' texans

're: basement wall, I removed all the screws from center & drivers side section & stapled industrial strength Velcro to the edges, I not tiny so now can remove 2/3 of the wall with a hefty tug, better than contorting under with drill driver.

Good idea!!!

[piper guy]

Frank - if you decide to do WD, send me a note and I'll send you the pictures and what I used. I used Compact apartment appliances, not RV ones. So far so good. They are quiet, clean well, and the total for both units was under $900.00 We travel with a couple of cats so it also allowed me to make a raised platform for the Dryer and put the litter box under the dryer and out of the way in the coach.

as for the IS - well, let's just say that after towing for almost 1500 miles now since it was put in, I can't imagine having another fifth wheel without it. Doesn't change the turning radius as the wheels are in the same position. it does make backing up and cramping the rig hard a much less "nail biter" as each wheel floats over anything independently. Also, stuff doesn't move much inside the coach (and I expect that to be even less after we change springs - we went a little too hard initially).
The folks at Mor/Ryde are just incredible to deal with and can't be nicer or more professional.

[Frankv]

Thanks everybody for the warm welcomes! Got some great info as well.

We will try to make the rally in August, especially if Mor/ryde can fit us in for the IS. Our original plans call for a trip early Aug to Colorado but haven't booked the campgrounds yet, we may just end up in Walmart parking lots if we wait much longer.

[Blue Dogs]

Welcome to the Redwood world. I'm really new to them too and not a full timer so this forum has been a real learning tool. So far so good, these trailers are awesome. Sure there has been a few little things but you will get that with any make IMO. Enjoy!

[spindrift]

Welcome Frank and Pam.

[Steve & Linda]

Welcome to the Redwood family and the Forum. Redwood owners on this forum are very helpful and know these Redwoods! We are in day 2 of our "Maiden Voyage" with our coach. Others on here suggest you camp close your first time out, to learn and about your rig and not be too far away if something major turns up (we are 40 miles from home now). Good luck,

[Ramblin Roadrunners]

Frank, welcome to the forum. How about more info on your bio. LOL Great Choice.