Show us what you tow.

4700lb

 

500lb at the tongue

 

Moved some household items couple months ago. Trailer was packed and I pushed the ride on mower in the bed.
I was just returning the trailer there.

 

Right about 5500# when fully loaded with gear, ice and fuel.

 

The whole purpose we purchased the truck, to tow this trailer.

A trip from last year.

 

Details...?

My wife and I want to upgrade to something a bit bigger.

This is our current rig. It is getting kind of small for our growing family.

 

There are a lot of trailers out there, sometimes too many, but I will let you know what we have and why we bought it. Its a 2016 Rockwood Mini-Lite 2306 made by Forest River. It fits us well. Not too small and it has everything we need.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=lOdGPrj122g

This is a video of one almost exactly equipped, actually most of them I found are equipped this way. It brings the price in around $22-$23k. We purchased in late August 2015. We have a 2013 Toyota Highlander. It has a 5000lb towing capacity. So we searched for a dry weight under 4000lbs and a Gross under 5000lbs. We looked at Jaycos and a few other brands, but my wife found the Rockwood Mini Lite because it has the bunk beds the kids really liked and a fully sized Murphy Bed. The biggest part was the 3925 dry weight. We wanted that weight but in a 22-23' foot trailer. Under 20 seemed too small.



That was our first trip and it scared the crap out of me. I thought towing was crazy and insane. Then I thought I really had the wrong car because we also have two boats that both weigh under 3200lbs each and the Highlander does fine. Our second trip just weeks later and I thought to go to the dealer to see if they would give me a fantastic price on the last of the 2015 Tacomas. They did. 4 days old with a bare bone stock, no plates, we set of on trip #2 with the new Tacoma in October 2015. This truck was just right for towing this trailer. At times I didn't feel the trailer behind me unlike the Highlander were the trailer was constantly fighting to control the car.



This is where the problems really started to happen. I like driving the Tacoma more than the Highlander. Then I got onto TW and got bit by the mod bug. Hard to modify a Highlander. The Tacoma, which was only supposed to be a tow vehicle became my daily driver.
Back to the trailer. My friend runs the booth at the recycle center, so I asked if I could bring my loaded trailer there and put it on the truck scale. That's how I got the full trailer weight of 4435lbs. It has a tongue weight at about 550lbs. We love our trailer, we travel in it 4-6 times a year. We have done 8 trips total now.
All the space, layout, size and thought to how everything works on Rockwood was great. The only trailer we think that would be better would be the Airstream, but at quadruple the cost, we'd rather have the Rockwood.



Any other questions, feel free to ask.

 

Thanks for the detailed post. I did a little bit of research and found this exact trailer locally on a dealers lot for $21,9xx. My wife has today and tomorrow off, so we might go take a look! Possibly trade the Starcraft for it if she likes it. I am just tired of the canvas bunk ends. You hear everything, and have no insulation value during the early or late season trips when it gets cold at night.

 

WOW! Nice! You found the Mini Lite 2306? Is it a 2016 or 2017? That's a great price for a 2017 if it's new. Our dealer also threw in the balance hitch ( I highly recommend, or actually demand it) and a brake controller. I just had to buy the $12 wire from the truck to the controller.

Let me know how it goes.

 

It is a 2017 Minilite 2306. I agree on the WDH and brake controller. I have an Equal-i-zer 10k lb hitch and prodigy p3 controller already.

http://www.parrisrv.com/default.asp?page=xInventoryDetail&id=2900055&p=1&s=Year&d=D&sq=Minilite 2306&fr=xallinventory

They were closed before we could get there today...maybe tomorrow morning.

 

@airwhen, you mentioned Airstream. Unfortunately, they are basing their price on the name, not the quality. I've looked at a few models of them to get ideas for the '75 LandYacht I'm working on. It is ridiculous how they are built. A $10k entry level trailer possibly has better fit & finish of most the new Airstreams. After working on the '75, I saw some places to look for leaks. Sure enough, the '16s had poor joint seals and would provide a warm welcome to water intrusion.
After much consideration, I've decided against a Micro Minnie 2106DS and will be getting a Forrest River Sonoma Freedom Edition 167RB or 201RD for myself.

 

Fantastic. Looks almost like mine, just some very minor differences. That would be so awesome if you got it. I like the addition on the rear view camera. I have a camera suction cupped to the bathroom window that is hard wired all the way to my truck. With the tow mirrors and rear view camera, nothing sneaks up on me.

We financed our trailer with as little down as possible to take advantage of the tax deductible interest claiming the trailer as a second home. We also have done this with our Sundancer 340, basically a camping car on the water. Take advantage of this on your taxes.

Keep me updated!

 

Airstreams no doubt are expensive. I have not seen too many have concerns of their quality. I was using Airstream as a 'bang-for-the-buck" comparison to the Rockwood Mini Lite that I own. For the price, I much prefer the Rockwood.

 

Picked her up yesterday. Rear end doesn't look too bad but the bed is empty and normally wouldn't be going camping. I do think I need a bigger drop on my hitch though, currently have a 2". Haven't measured but probably need a 4 at minimum to get it more level.

 

Just picked up this Forest River Flagstaff Micro Lite 21FBRS. 10k# EZ-lift weight distribution and sway control with a Prodigy P3 brake controller. First run towed 75 miles and the truck did pretty well. I definitely would not try to tow anything heavier than this. Most of my trips are going to be within 2 hours from home. All though I may even drag it down to the Keys. Really need to get a few more trips under my belt and see how it goes first.

 

Nice TT...I like the window in the front of the TT...adds more light inside...be adventurace, I tow my TT 800+ mile trips, 13 hrs, to Canada, my TT is 25' @ 5600#'s, the truck will handle it just fine...Have faith...

 

Nice Travel Trailer. Your trailer looks so similar to mine, a Rockwood Mini Lite 2306.

 

Thanks! I believe I looked at a the Rockwood. I was looking for about 3 years and decided to finally pull the trigger and get one.

 

This was taken near White Pocket in Arizona two years ago.

The teardrop is made by Little Guy. It is a Silver Shadow on a Rough Rider frame.

Oh, I have since swapped the shell for a Snug-Top...

 

Are those FJ wheels on the teardrop? If so, that is friggin awesome!