New to RV and Hummingbird RK

[EddieR]

Hi All,
My wife and I are newbies to RVing and will be taking possession of our new 2018 Hummingbird RK on Friday. We have been sailors for much or our lives, which we love, but we are looking for some new adventures that RVing can provide that a sailboat cannot. We bought the hummingbird because of the warranty, it was local (30 miles), and the floor plan was similar to the other brands we considered. We were looking for a small trailer that gave us flexibility and would not make us feel overwhelmed, given it is our first.

So some questions:

We have our delivery inspection on Friday, so I am wondering what areas we should pay very close attention to in particular?

We will be towing with a 2016 Chevy Colorado, V6 with towing package. I have purchases a Tekonsha Prodigy P3 brake controller, so I am confident of the ability to tow the trailer, but still not sure on the need for a WDH. Dealer is providing a sway control, but says no need for WDH, due the limited weight of the trailer. Plus they said they did not have a WDH to fit the frame of the trailer. Not 100% sure if I believe this, but we will see how much sag there is when we hook up on Friday, with the understanding that weight will change as w load up. Thoughts on this?

What are the must haves we should get for the trailer to begin with (aside from the starter package that comes with the trailer)? I’m not looking to go crazy with accessories, as I want to use it first to determine what is really needed, but I am sure there must be some things that I have not thought about, that will be handy.

I had the dealer include a spare tire in the deal, but they indicated that it can’t be mounted on the rear bumper, as it is not strong enough. I find this odd, as I have seen pictures of the trailer with the spare mounted. Also, the bumper was one of the things I thought set the Hummingbird apart from the others. We are not looking to hang a bunch of bikes off the back (we are thinking the Jack-It rack for the front), but I think a spare should be fine. Thoughts?

Any advice is greatly appreciated.

[tech411]

My 2107 RK has spare tire mounted on bumper and do not have any problems with it. Also added the Jack-It bike rack which works great.

[wiscampsin]

Welcome and congrats on your Hummingbird RK! We've looked at several other brands too and it's high on our shortlist. We've had 4 campers in the past, the last being a 2013 37' 5th wheel with 4 slides so we are definately downsizing. Don't know what you have as far as accessories but start with wheel chocks, leveling blocks, water hose, blue in line water filter, water pressure regulator, good quality sewer hose, disposable gloves and hand sanitizer, extra fuses. One piece of advice is after backing into a site check to make sure shore power cord and water hose will reach hook ups before you unhook camper.

Here's a link to several checklists that might help you and hope your PDI goes well on Friday.

https://www.bing.com/search?q=PDI+ch...BA5E6B422FCBCE

[01tundra]

Ours arrived from the manufacturer with a spare tire and grill swing-arm mounted to the rear bumper....the dealer is full of it -

[Jim Davis]

My RK also came from the manufacturer with the spare mounted on the rear bumper. According to the owner manual it is fine, but nothing more should be back there as the bumper is limited to about 100 pounds.

Like you we are coming from the sailing community and since last fall we have done four short trips and a two month snowbird trip. The transaction hasn't been too rough and definitely opened a lot of new places to go. The people we have met in state and county parks are pretty much the same as you meet in marinas.

[Seabrat]

Originally Posted by wiscampsin

start with rubber wheel chocks, leveling blocks, water hose, blue in line water filter, water pressure regulator, good quality sewer hose, disposable gloves and hand sanitizer, extra fuses.

Our 17RB came with a spare tire. We tow with a Jeep Grand Cherokee with tow package and don’t need a WDH.

[Jim Davis]

Also if you Facebook there is a Jayco Hummingbird group with quite a bit of discussion.

[01tundra]

Originally Posted by Jim Davis

Also if you Facebook there is a Jayco Hummingbird group with quite a bit of discussion.

Never realized this, thanks.

[EddieR]

Thanks everyone for you insight. We are looking forward to our delivery and hopefully in the not too distant future, we can share our experiences, and pay it forward as well.

[Seabrat]

Originally Posted by Seabrat

Our 17RB came with a spare tire. We tow with a Jeep Grand Cherokee with tow package and don’t need a WDH.

Our 17RB also came with a spare tire mounted in the rear from the factory. We also tow with a Jeep Grand Cherokee with tow package. We use a P3 brake controller and do not need a WDH. If there is a lot of traffic and big trucks or wind that can cause sway we slow down to 60-65 and all is good. 13-14 mpg on level ground with no wind and little traffic.