Comments on: What a tangled web we weave

By: Road Guy

Road Guy — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 17:33:13 +0000

Hi Ya’ll….I’ve been away on an extended vacation (not my choice but the Doc’s) and I’ve missed participating in these spirited responses. Hope all is well with you and yours.

Now,….to THIS mess! What in the name of Sam Houston is the RVIA Board think it’s doing by stirring up this nonsense?!?! In my mind, there is, obviously, a political motivation within this type of proposal. (But since I’m not a political scholar, I won’t venture into the ‘why’s and wherefores’ of that side of the matter.) But suffice it to say, that for a prominent industry participant, such as RVIA, to willingly venture into this territory under this premise is inviting a further diminishment of what has been very beneficial mutual arrangement for both consumer and dealers alike. Background investigation by someone or some group more familiar with the inner workings of RVIA into HOW this matter came about is fully warranted now. Otherwise, left unchallenged and unchecked, this matter has the full potential of becoming a donkey-ride-through-Hell scenario before it’s all over with. And that would be a needless blow to an already undervalued and overtaxed industry.

Ya’ll Honk As You Go By……

By: Bob Zagami

Bob Zagami — Sat, 02 Jun 2007 22:35:30 +0000

It may be beneficial for RVIA to start posting shipment statistics that mirror the categories established by these standards. I think it would benefit the industry to know how many units are being shipped in each product category, but further defined by those with seals and those without seals. A quick calculation of those without seals will show how much revenue the association is leaving on the table by not enforcing their seal program on every single RV manufactured by every single member of RVIA.

By: Willie Miller

Willie Miller — Fri, 01 Jun 2007 18:30:48 +0000

Greg
NFPA 1192 there are seperate definitions in the Annex portion of the standards hand book which is revised every 3 years. In the Annex portion Recreational Vehicles are divided into 5 catagories. In the 2005 standard the catagories are;
1. Motor Home which is a self propelled unit as you have indicated.
2. Camping Trailer which is often refered to as a fold down camping trailer with often with canvas type sides.
3. Fifth Wheel Trailer which is permitted to have up to 400 square feet in the set up mode.(All slide outs extended fully)
4. Travel Trailer which is limited to 320 square feet.
5. Truck Camper which is designed to be mounted on a pick up truck.
All of the above units must be of a size that when in the transportation mode (slideouts in the “in” position) are legal on US highways with out a permit (less than 8.5 feet wide).
I think most persons in the general public do not realize that there are two seperate size restrictions for “trailers”. One for the standard type of bumper hitch and the other for the “bed” mounted hitch for a fifth wheel. It seems that is the case for some in the industry.
As an owner of a fifth wheel trailer and an employee of the RV industry I know the variation in construction methods of units. Ther are units that friends have purchased simply because of price. The quality was even lower than the price. I am pleased to say that my unit was not purchased on price alone but on quality. The quality is what endures.