Skylark in Missouri

avitech10 · 10-11-2010, 01:43 PM

We picked up our Skylark FBV in Des Moines on Friday. They filled our fresh water tank for the walk-around demonstration which made for a heavy sloshy trip home. Just have to zip tie a few dangling wires underneath and swap the AV cables for the DVD player.
We camped at Knob Knoster State Park this weekend for our maiden voyage. The leaves are just starting to change colors and the weather was perfect.
We are very happy to be new campers.
I've gotten a lot of useful tips from this forum, Thanks!

Denise · 10-11-2010, 04:21 PM

Welcome to the Jayco Owners Forum avitech10 and congrats on the new tt. Glad to hear you can find helpful advice here. Lotsa neat people that interact here

BigSky · 10-11-2010, 04:53 PM

avitech10, congratulations on your new Skylark. We love ours. Glad to hear that your maiden trip was successful.

kipper · 10-11-2010, 06:07 PM

Hope you like your new trailer , I was in Hershey Pa a few weeks back at the nations largest rv show , and no Skylark , that was one of the reasons I wanted to go . good luc with your new trailer ,

Hondopatrick · 10-12-2010, 08:23 PM

Avitech, welcome to the forum and congrats on the new tt!

Gone Camping · 10-13-2010, 04:57 AM

Welcome to the forum avitech10. Thats a nice TT you have.

roaddog · 01-05-2011, 11:14 AM

Big Sky,
Hey, roaddog here, new member and just about to purchase the FKV! Do you use a weight distribution hitch, if so, what kind. Is it the combination that includes sway control?
Thanks for you reply in advance,
roaddog

avitech10 · 01-06-2011, 10:07 AM

I bought the Reese 350 Mini-lite Weight distribution and sway control system for my Skylark, but it does not fit. The bars are supposed to press down on the trailer a-frame but are too long for the Skylarks v-nose. Right now I do not have a WD/Anti-sway system installed.
I just pulled it from Kansas City To Baton Rouge for the Holidays and had no major sway problems but I would still like to find a system for my trailer.

SunCruzin · 01-24-2011, 08:33 PM

RoadDog, we picked up our Skylark a couple of months ago and the Weight distribution was a bit puzzling but we ended up with the Reese SC Hitch Kit #66153. It's working out great & so easy to put on & take off, I can do it my self!

Take care,
Cyndi

rog4kneer · 01-25-2011, 09:42 AM

Am on the verge of buying a jayco skylark with front kitchen. Would be pulling it with a 2010 Toyota 4-runner with v6. Would love to hear your impression of the skylark, how it tows, any problems you might have encountered. Also, did you find a weight distribution hitch and if so, who makes it.
Did you get the Cool Cat heat pump, or opt for the roof a/c with furnace. If you have the heat pump how well does it work. Am in NH, so some of the camping nights in New England get a little cool. Since you now have owned it for awhile would be happy to hear your total impression of the trailer.

BigSky · 01-25-2011, 06:15 PM

When we picker up our Skylark last summer, we opt'd for the Reese Friction Sway Control. A WD hitch was not necessary. I pulled the trailer a couple weekends with out the sway control and notice some slight movement of the trailer. After the sway control was install, the trailer tows great. I have had no issues with just using this simpler set up.

SunCruzin · 01-25-2011, 10:20 PM

Rog4kneer, Right now we are pulling the Skylark with a Dodge Caravan and it pulls really well, sometimes I forget its there! We have taken it on dirt, gavel & a washboard road and it did really well, nothing moved out of place.

As for dislikes, there isn’t much to not like about this trailer!
We had a few things that needed attention when we did our walk thru, the dealer made a list and had no problem oking them to be serviced. The biggest issue was the windows, at the dealer (I assume) they must have buffed the windows, I noticed it at our walk thru and they are replacing all the windows for us, the windows are actually in but we haven’t been home long enough to take it back for the repairs.

Here are the suggestions that I sent to Jayco,
1.) The Rod in the clothes closet needs to be moved up about 3” so the clothes hang properly. (Dealer is moving it up for me)
2.) Radio/DVD/Sound system, I would suggest making a small cabinet under the galley area cabinets next to where the cables are for the TV, currently the radio/DVD system is next to the door and the remote doesn’t work so well.

The one suggestion that I didn’t send them yet is the cushions on the dinette side seems to slip when driving, I would suggest putting just a small lip around the outside of the base to secure them in place. I’m going to try the non slip material under them on our next trip.

OK so here are my personal dislikes if you call them that….
1.) Outside step is only 1 step; I might change to be two steps or at least a wider step.
2.) Thermostat has lines to indicate the temperature; I wish it showed the temp as a number so I would know what temp I'm setting it at.
3.) Stove, I cook a lot and usually I have at least two things on the stove at a time, it’s a little cramped on the stove for two pan/pots. In the summer I’ll cook outside but winter camping I usually cook indoors.

LIKES…..
• LOVE the cabinets being rounded
• LOVE all the storage
• LOVE the space, it feel so roomy without the weight of a slide, we had 8 adults inside playing games when it was cold & rainy.
• LOVE the big giant windows!
• LOVE the new style of blinds, once they are down no one can see inside.
• LOVE that the table turns so you can have it close to the door side and if you flip it around it’s in the center of the space!
• Like not having carpeting inside, we just put down a couple of rugs that can be washed.
• LOVE the clean look on the outside with the propane tanks being in the back in their own compartment!
• LOVE how well insulated it is, if your talking inside you have to open a window if you want the person on the outside to hear you.
• LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the unique shape of the outside, so many people take a 2nd look because it’s so different, it’s not like your friends trailers that all have the box front end!

The A/C….
It was already upgraded with the roof a/c & furnace, which would be an upgraded that I would have asked to be done so it was perfect.

Just a FYI we dry camped for 4 days in the cold we ran the heat, refrigerator & hot water tank on propane and used about 2 gallons, it was very efficient!

Ok I think that’s it, hope you wanted an honest replay because that’s what you got!

cpaharley2008 · 04-26-2011, 07:49 PM

where is the fresh water tank located? what is the btu for the roof a/c? thanx

BigSky · 04-26-2011, 08:55 PM

The a/c is a 13,000 btu unit. The tanks are on the side opposite the door. The grey tank is in front of the axil and the black just behind it. The water, electrical and outside shower are on the same side as the tanks.

roaddog · 07-24-2011, 08:55 PM

Hey Yall,
I joined the forum sometime ago and for whatever reason or another such as computer crashin' and so on haven't been back.
I to have purchased a Skylark and can pretty much echo the above comments.
This can happen with any other, but I have three water leaks, behind toliet, fitting under the kitchen sink, and the kitchen faucet it self. After finding a Jayco dealer that would work on it(this is another story) they discovered the kitchen faucet was bad. It's leaking where the tubes go into the faucet, so nothing to do but order a new faucet. I was advised that it will take a month or longer to get. This is not good for camping trips already planned with reservations!!
I attempted to contact Jayco and in six seconds recieved the automated email, but have heard no more from them.
I chose the Cool Cat in the side wall where I could get my Skylark in my basement for storage, works great.....got about three inches clearance on the tv antenna.
The two things I would change on the Skylark is go to a tandem axle, although it pulls smoother than any other single axle I have pulled. Must be due to the near gvwr on the axle. The other is a walk around bed, but you have to give up stuff to go small and lite.
I tow with a 2005 Toyata Tacoma(V6 with tow rating or 6500) and the friction sway and weight distribution hitch by Reese. It does a good job, but I get 11 to 12 mpg and think there are full size pickups that will do as well or better.
Thanks
roaddog

Zombied · 07-24-2011, 10:34 PM

We have had our skylark out half dozen times or so. The farthest trip as of now about 70 miles. We really like it. Sometimes we wish we would have seen one with he bath up front, but we like the layout.

My wife has to sleep on one of the single beds, she has shoulder and neck problems that are aggravated by the full bed for some reason.

I hate the little red lights on the LED switches. I like it dark to sleep.

Speaking of dark, I too like the blinds as mentioned above. I wish they slid down to close instead of sliding up.

We have sway issues, but I am installing a friction sway control this week.

THe interior is very nice. It looks very modern.

We have the roof top AC. It works very well, even in the heat and humidity of Nebraska.

A nice feature is the gutters. The ac drips and gets directed to them. They pour off and doesn't run down the side of the trailer.

The electric awning is very cool. (Just remember to remove the metal hooks for lights before you start to roll it up, lol. Wife forgot once and we have a little hole now)

Oh, one more thing... we leave friday for our longest trip yet. Heading out to Colorado for a week in estes park! We can't wait!

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