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Old 02-16-2020, 03:52 PM   #1
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Hummingbird 17rk

Looking at 2019 hummingbird 17rk. Does anyone have experience good or bad? It is the size we are looking for. But would like opinions of current users. Thanks in advance!
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Old 02-16-2020, 07:06 PM   #2
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We have had our 17RK for about 2 1/2 years and 20,000 miles. We are on our third snowbird and have done.Nova Scotia/PEI and a.trip through Wisconsin and Michigan.

The Bird does well and is easy to tow and park. It has reasonable stowage and is fairly comfortable ft two adults and a Siberian Husky.
The biggest negative would be the small wet bath. It is very tight for showering. My wife and I simply use campground facilities (our shower hasn't been used yet).
I tow it with a Toyota Highlander and while I haven't tried the Rockies, I'm satisfied with the ability.

There is a Facebook group of Hummingbird owners that is quite active and friendly.
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Old 02-17-2020, 11:58 AM   #3
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We've had our 17RK for 2 years and like it alot. We downsized from a 37' 5th wheel and enjoy the easier towing and access to state parks much better. Sure we gave up some amenities in the downsize like much smaller bathroom, smaller bed and basement storage, fireplace, recliners, etc. But the 17RK has everything we need to spend a week at a campground and not feel too cramped. We use the campground bathroom facilities too except for late night needs. DW's 2018 Tacoma double cab tows it with ease. Honestly if the R-pod RP-195 or 196 was available in 2018 we would probably considered looking at those too due to the walk around bed and larger bath but they weren't. We've had zero problems with our Bird. Good luck with your decision.
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Old 03-09-2020, 05:15 PM   #4
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We have a '17 17RK one of the first ones built, we got it in 2016. We tow with a Nissan Frontier Crew Cab with V6 and have no issues towing. We have around 11,500 miles on it mainly weekends and vacations. Problems with the trailer are few but I fixed them. Big problem is the refrigerator was not installed correctly. Jayco has a piece of wood inside the void for the refrigerator to fit into that is too tall, so when the crew installs the refrigerator this piece of wood gets pushed up and covers the cooling fins on the evaporator (I thinks that what it is called) this causes the refrigerator not to cool as the air can't flow by the cooling fins. The wood piece is to separate the top of the refrigerator and back of the unit. I also installed a 5" computer fan and switch in the space to force the air out. Last year the water heater tank collapsed onto itself, like it had a vacuum inside, through the winter. There no water in it, don't know why it did this, I've been around campers for 45 years and never saw this failure. I had to replace it, I just bought a replacement tank and swapped the parts, that was a all day nightmare, to save $150. I found some spots on the underside that weren't sealed so they got a healthly dose of 3M 5200 sealant (marine below waterline sealant). The power jack died, just after 3 years, installed a manual jack. Bathroom LED light burned out, but it was too bright anyway. The USB port was replaced twice as it fell apart. The thermostat I replaced as the one that came with it wouldn't shut off the heater when the power was turned on. I installed a AA battery powered digital one and it works great. Oh Jayco replace the sides seal, I installed a side topper.
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Old 03-09-2020, 05:23 PM   #5
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I would buy the grill option, its a SIDE KICK and is IMO junk. Buy a Weber 1000 or a 100 like ours and one can still use the hose to connect just have the local propane dealer put screw on fitting on the end of the hose. Don't worry about the regulator on the weber it hasn't caused us any issues. I did try our Blackstone 17" on this but there wasn't enough propane flow to get good heat, but it did light. The bike rack IMO isn't worth it either, unless you have kids bikes. I have one if anybody wants it.
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Old 03-10-2020, 03:34 PM   #6
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We have had our 2018 17RK Baja for almost 2 years. Tow with a Honda Pilot. Usually tow it dry and fill with water on arrival at the campground. Helps with tow and tongue weight. Baja option is well worth it. Ours came with all the options, but we have never used the swing out BBQ or bike rack. The provided BBQ is fairly cheap. I'd buy a better one. We added a 2" mattress topper for better comfort. We have had a handful of minor issues all fixed by the dealer under warranty. I think the 2019 has a shelf over the bed? I would love that extra storage. We use an 80 watt solar panel to top off the battery when camping and a Honda EU3000 Handi generator when needed for AC, etc. I am happy with the 17RK and would buy it again!
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Old 03-11-2020, 03:23 AM   #7
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We also travel dry, and fill when we get to are campsite. We do go to places that only have well water (no electricity) and there we use a 6 gallon jug to fill the camper's tank. I wanted the Baja option, I do have the Baja axle part number for a future axle swap. We removed the sidekick grill, mount, bike rack, and other parts to reduce the weight. Since there is a curtain on the bathroom, the door has been removed (just the 2 of us), the heavy table is also gone (don't miss stubbing my toes). We only have things in the camper we actually use. We did install a new mattress from Amazon I think its Zimus RV queen, came in a box. We don't have a generator but looking for one. We do have a 30 amp MPPT based solar system with (3) 100 watt suitcase panels wired in series (63 volts) which keeps the GC2 batterie full and we can use the drip coffee makes and our 9" electric skillet (not at the same time) for cooking breakfast, (this uses about 20% of the batteries capacity).
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