Crappy quality control.. The new Shasta's

I had the interesting experience of seeing two of the 16-footers yesterday. One was open, so I stopped and decided to take a look. The J-rail, while not perfect, looked a lot better than the yellow one here. I guess it's a fine unit, but honestly, why go to all the trouble of making one that long (and the 19 foot is pretty much the same)where you don't have either a full-time bed or an easily convertible gaucho. In the 16-footer, there is NO way an adult can sleep on the gaucho, and in the 19-footer, it's pretty convoluted. If they were going to do a re-issue, they should have done a Deluxe or an SCS. At least those made sense. The 16-footer has NO closet space, and I think the 19 foot only has about 8 inches. Dumb dumb dumb. But it has a lot as far as "cute" factor goes.

I'm still a beginner at this hobby - so I went to an RV show here in Wisconsin just to see how things "should" be done. I'm both happy and sad to say that even I could see how badly these new "vintage" trailers were done.  It made me feel a bit better about my own work on my Gran Dee.  Not expert work perhaps but certainly not as bad as "professional factory work".  I just couldn't believe it.

Bill,

I completely agree. I saw the one at the RV Museum in Indiana and I was really disappointed. Most of the windows didn't open -- and there was no air conditioner.

It was parked next to an original 60s model, which I thought was a huge mistake. The old one really made the new one look like junk.

B

Me and the wife went to look at one of the new ones to purchase.
After 20 minutes of looking at it, I was very disappointed in the fit and finish.
The upholstery was thin and cheap looking
The roof overlap detail was horrible, and the wife couldn't get over the wet toilet setup.
Cabinetry was typical new RV crap
Just my 2 cents...
Oh and by the way ,, I'm a new member !!!!!!

That is my goal with my old SC...and it sure isn't costing me five-figures to do it!

We had the chance to look at a pair of 19 foot models over the Memorial Day weekend, both were owned by an RV park in Galveston. While they do have 'the look' of a vintage Shasta, the interior fitments and QC were hugely disappointing! The upholstery (so called) was non connected 3 or 4 inch thick foam panels covered with thin and low quality vinyl. NOT something to stand up to years of use. The cabinets were typical particle board/MDF crap. Another fail. The gaucho layout was just totally unacceptable. The tires were Coker auto tires, NOT trailer ST tires. No jalousie windows, but current 'replacement' types. I am certain that many folks were happy with the electronic geegaws...Bluetooth capability, Dometic 3-way fridge --not even set up to drain correctly!?--and just don't know better, but if we were to plunk down almost 20K on a new camper, retro or not, we would expect a heck of a lot better build quality. Oh, and lest I forget, the infamous A/C problem and too low ride height, BOTH known issues by Forest River and BOTH needing dealer aftermarket fixes. After reading page after page of these stories from new owners, it makes the sweat, blood and $$$ we put into Tallulah Belle seem almost a bargain!