Hello from new member
 

Hi, I'm James. My wife and I own a 2002 3280RL that we've been slowly refurbishing. New flooring, removing faded/peeling graphics, etc. Our youngest graduates this year and I have a remote job, so we're preparing to hit the road for a while, starting in August.

We've never traveled with this trailer. We bought it in 2020 for my son to live in briefly. We towed it 50 miles home and it's been parked since. I'm sure we'll have to work out a lot of bugs as we go. It's our first trailer, and we have a lot to learn.

Anyhow, I'm glad I found the forum and have already been reading a lot of good info!

We are glad you are here. Hope you enjoy your new to you camper. Sounds like you haven’t pulled it much you will need new tires no matter what they look like.
Enjoy your new life style.
Lynwood

Sounds like you’re handy which comes in handy!

Even my 2024 keeps me somewhat busy fixing little issues here and there, so it’s par for the course.

Enjoy the newfound freedom - lots of good folks here to give tips and tricks.

Welcome to the forum. It's certainly a place to learn.
Have fun with your renos!

Welcome and yes this is a great place for help. I have received plenty of it from members.

Welcome to the MOC family.

Welcome to the MOC family from the Lone Star state! Sounds like you have a real good plan going. Lots of good and knowledgeable folks here should you have questions. Good luck, safe travels and happy camping!

Welcome to the forums and hope you have great success with your camper. See you on the road! Happy camping!

Hello and welcome. Good luck and enjoy the remodelling. We have a 2001 3255rl and have remodelled the living area. We love it! We are currently on our 'shake down' trip with the goal of full-timing. This is the place to lean more about your Montana and tips about travel, etc. Have fun and be safe!
Tod and Laura

Thanks everyone for the welcome!

Welcome to the group. You have the exact same year and model of Montana as we do. Hope yours provide you as much enjoyment as ours has!

Welcome to the Forum. I too revamped our RV, a 2008 Montana Model 3665RE; the Anniversary Model! We love our RV and have made many trips in it to include one trip back east for our first National MOC Rally in Indiana.

A few free thoughts:

#1 - I agree with mlh and have your tires checked. Even though they look good and have tread, those bad boys age out. Mine looked great when I purchased the trailer. Driving it home from AZ, a tire blew and caused a bit of damage. I was none too happy and upset at myself for not checking the tire dates because I knew better. Sometimes the education cost you!

#2 - Weighed your rig; preferably at a CAT Scale. Do this when you are empty then calculate the weight added when loaded with water and LP. From here, you will now what your available weight will be for the contents you want to add. When I first weighed my rig, I realized I was very close to my max weight for hauling. So, I made some changes to tires I use, suspension, etc.

#3 - Find a RV repair shop and technician you can trust. I am on my fourth RV shop, California RV Specialists in Lodi, California. Dustin and his wife Ashley own the shop and are very active in the RV Industry. They even have a webpage with helpful hints on the "How-Tos'" when repairing or updating your RV. Their webpage is https://calrvspecialists.com/. In addition, Dustin will spend time walking you through repairs for DIY!

Have a good time, we really enjoy seeing this great Country of ours from our Montana!

Enjoy

Welcome.

Welcome to the forum. IMHO, i always start from the ground up, my thoughts have always been if it has sat for any period of time. Replace the wheel bearings, brakes and tires before any trip. It's far easier and cheaper to do at a home or base location than on the side of the highway.
I always check the lights and zerk grease fittings, inspect springs and attachments for cracks before we venture onto our highways.

Welcome n enjoy

I don't think this was mentioned above, but you need to grease the wheel bearings every 5000 ? miles. But do NOT use the grease zerk in the wheel, because if you squirt in too much, it can push out the back side and get on the brakes - not good!