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Old 03-09-2012, 10:31 PM   #1
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Hello everyone,

We have been campers for many years, starting initially tent camping, moved up to a popup and then to a hybrid. It is time for us to now make the move to a Travel Trailer. We have been to many shows, spent countless hours researching on the web and have spoken to fellow campers at our campground. The best bang for the buck right now is the Zinger 31SB which will satisfy all of our needs in a TT. I am reaching out to all of you (my fellow camping enthusiasts) for your assistance and especially feedback on the 31SB and Crossroads as well. What do i need to know about this unit, what to watch out for and your level of satisfaction with both your Zingers and Crossroads.

I thank you in advance for your valuable contributions to an important and major decision for our family...
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Old 03-09-2012, 11:29 PM   #2
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Since we have a 5th wheel I can't comment about the 31SB. I can say that the 335SS is our second CrossRoads product and we have been very happy with both. In my opinion extremely good products and unsurpassed warranty service.
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Old 03-09-2012, 11:32 PM   #3
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Bigmac-

We picked up our '12 31SB in May of last year and we spent around 30 nights in it through September. We absolutely love it, and thus far have not had any issues with it. Ours has the Chestnut interior which works great with kids.



As far as space, you will have plenty. We have 3 kids and a black lab and even on rainy days when stuck inside there is enough room to give everyone a little space and not get at each other's throats!



The outside kitchen is a absolute must. We do the majority of our cooking outside unless it is really cruddy outside. With the outside kitchen and the outside door to the bathroom you cut down a ton on dirt and sand being tracked into the camper. It is especially nice with the kids- don't have them tromping in everytime they have to go to the bathroom or get something to drink. And with the twins being 5 and the other one being 3 is all the time!



The only drawback in my opinion is that there isn't a huge amount of outside storage like there is in some TT's. You have the front pass-thru and then there is a storage area in the living room slide under the U-dinette. That and we have to install some cross braces yet to eliminate some of the rocking but that is nothing specific to this camper.



All in all I think you would love this camper. We did the same progression from tenting to TT's, and we are so glad we did. As I am sure you will see from other posts, just make sure you have enough tow vehicle. We were initially told that our '08 Ram 1500 Quad cab would tow it, and while it does, it is marginal. Most of the time we tow it now with an '05 F350 Crew cab dually, and it's like it's not even there.



Good luck, and I'm sure you will find tons of advice and help on here!
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Old 03-10-2012, 12:08 AM   #4
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Hello Jason & Tracie,

Thank-you very much for responding so quickly. I hope you will bear with me, but, I have a few more questions that my wife has asked me to ask you...

1) How does the 'leather' hold up on the couches with the kids ? Does it scratch easily ?
2) Do you have the pull out sofa bed or jack knife couch ? How many can you sleep on it ?
3) What did you put in the outdoor kitchen seeing as it only comes with the fridge and sink ? Were you able to get the two burner stove ? If so, where, asapparentlyit is no longer available.
4) How do you find the mattress in the master bedroom ?
5) What optional features did you take and why ?

Thanx again for your help and support..

Rich and Stephanie....
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Old 03-10-2012, 12:39 AM   #5
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hello and welcome. I have the 26BL not the 31SB but I can tell you that we bought ours a year ago and just love it. It has been perfect for our family of 3. Ours isn't lacking in the outdoor storage because instead of an outdoor kitchen we have a pack and play area that we use a lot. Our zinger has had a couple of minor problems but they were fixed under warranty at the dealer. While our dealer has been a little slow on service, crossroads has always approved the repairs without delay. I know this because I require frequent updates from my dealer while they have my unit. You will find service to be dealer dependant and if your dealer gives you problems you can call Randy Mischler at crossroads (do a search for his #), and your problem will usually be resolved pretty quickly. Crossroads is great at customer service and I have been very pleased with them. Also, after owning my TT for 1 yr, we went to an RV show and saw nothing we had a desire to trade ours in for.

That said, the only vehicle I see in your signature is a santa fe which can't tow that trailer. Are you shopping for a new TV? If so what are you looking to get? Make sure you pay attention to a tow vehicles gross tow capacity, hitch rating and payload. Remember to subtract from the payload sticker on the door of the vehicle the weight of anything and everyone in that tow vehicle (150lb driver was included in original figures by manufacturer). This will give you the real payload.You will find most vehicles are limited by payload. Also remember to ignore dry weights and dry tongue weights as they are not accurate towing numbers. Best bet isto use trailer GVWR and base a 15% tongue weight on thatGVWR so you know you won't go over the vehicles max. Best of luck and enjoy that new trailer what ever you end up buying!!!!
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Old 03-10-2012, 10:22 AM   #6
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Hello! We bought our 12' 31 SB in July of 2011 and slept in it about 30 nights all the way through October. We had a Rockwood prior, and before thata pop-up. We absolutely love it!The leather holds up fine, we also have 3 kids, ages 4,6 and 7. I haven't noticed any scratches, in fact when we winterized it looked as new as the day we bought it. The outside kitchen only has a fridge, sink and shelves but we set up our grill right next to it and it works great. I also love the door to the bathroom!! The mattress, however, is horrible!!!I added a 3 inch foam cover to it I got on overstock and it sleeps like a dream. The couch is a jackknife, not a pull out, but its fine. Great, great camper. Easily sleeps 8-10. Good luck and safe travels. This is a great camper. We pull with a F350 Diesel.....While the Toyota Tunda towed it fine, my husband wanted a Diesel
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Old 03-10-2012, 10:39 AM   #7
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x2 on the memory foam mattress cover. We got a 2" queen memory foam from walmart and set it on top of the mattress. It went from horrible to more comfortable than home. We have a pull out sofa, it is kinda an odd size. Too small for a double and too big for a twin. You would need to put 2 very small people (kids probably) on it. We have a U dinette and that folds down into a queen. My mom's biggest complaint about that was the cushions moving. We are trying to figure out a solution to that. Maybe velcro to each other or find something to slide on the end that will keep them pushed together. Otherwise the dinette is very comfortable.
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Old 03-10-2012, 12:32 PM   #8
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We have a '11 SB31. We have spent about 75 nites and few problems. The only warranty service was for a stuck slide out. The bell housing had to be adjusted.The bunkroomworks great for us as wehave the earlyand late risers.We have a jack-knife sofa in the bunkroom, which we had to add some supports to the middle to handle some heavier campers. the other sofa is a pull out and to me much more comfortable, but it is in the way when used. Like the other posters, the queen bed mattress is less than desirable. We added 2" foam on top. The outside kitchen really comes in handy with the fridge and sink. We have not used the stove, as we use the grill for most cooking. Go for the larger A/C unit as we have the 1350 and it struggles in the hot southern summer. We have ours stored at the beach and do not pull it, so I cant help you with towing. As someone else said, we have been to some shows but havent found anything that accomodates us better than theoursin this size/price range. Hope this help.
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Old 03-11-2012, 11:17 PM   #9
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Thanx for your feedback. As for my TV, we are seasonal campers, so, I will have it delivered right to the campground and not have to worry about that issue. I will look at adding some of the options that you had suggested. Do you think that the insulation upgrade is something that I should be looking at ?
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Old 03-12-2012, 11:44 AM   #10
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Being in montreal, it probably wouldn't hurt but are looking to use it in cold weather? If not, I would think winterizing it really well should be ok....I am not expert on this as I have had my TT for 1 year and that is in a warmer climate, so you may want to ask someone w/ a little more knowledge. Enjoy your TT!
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Old 03-12-2012, 11:58 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bigmac
Thanx for your feedback. As for my TV, we are seasonal campers, so, I will have it delivered right to the campground and not have to worry about that issue. I will look at adding some of the options that you had suggested. Do you think that the insulation upgrade is something that I should be looking at ?
I would highly recommend the insulation upgrade, and thermo pane windows. Plus anything else that helps hold the heat in and the cold out.
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Old 03-12-2012, 12:24 PM   #12
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I agree with Old Farmer, ensure it has an enclosed underbelly, the upgraded insulation, and get the 15K AC upgrade.
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Old 03-13-2012, 09:15 PM   #13
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So here is my next question... This will be the first time that we will have a trailer with two doors. How long did it take you to get used of keeping the opposite door locked when going into the bathroom ? How many times were you walked in on ? Any tips to help avaoid anyembarrassingmoments ?
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Old 03-13-2012, 09:23 PM   #14
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Our Zinger 31 SB isa 2010 model. It has something I don't think I have ever seen before..a door on the rear of the unit. We call it the back door..how appropriate, eh? We love it. It opens into the kids room.The kids can go in and out and not track through the main part of the unit. I don't believe that is an option in the 2012 models and it is the only reason we haven't upgraded to a new one. Once you have the back door, it's impossible to live without if you have kids. We were not fans of the side door to the bathroom like you spoke of. Good luck searching. The 31sb is an awesome camper.
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Old 03-16-2012, 10:01 PM   #15
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Sorry for the late reply, don't get on here as often as I'd like!



As far as the leather, we haven't noticed any scratches or anything yet, it seems to be holding up well. And it is SO nice for when the kids spill something, it cleans up very easy.



We have the hide-a-bed in the living room, and the jack knife in the bunkroom. 2 kids could fit on the hide-a-bed, I wouldn't want to sleep on it as an adult. And as far as the jack knife we usually use the trundle bed slide out underneath it for our 3 year old.



In the outside kitchen we got the bumper mounted grill, and we also use an electric griddle.



X2 on the comments about the factory mattress, they really suck! We have to get a mattress topper yet, that's on our spring "buy list".



As far as options we got about eveything we could, mainly because we plan on keeping this TT for awhile. We have been very happy with everything so far, and haven't had any issues.



The only problem right now is the weather being right on the bubble for getting the TT out and going camping!! I'm afraid mother nature might have some cold in store yet so don't want to get the Zinger out of the barn yet... These high 60s/low 70s in March sure are nice though!



Good luck, and if you go with a 31sb I think you will be very happy!
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Old 03-16-2012, 10:04 PM   #16
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Oh, and as far as forgetting to lock the 2nd bathroom door, it shouldn't be too bad. We found the biggest problem so far is our twin 5 year olds and 3 year old boysremembering to close the outside door when using it! They don't seem to care about mooning neighbors when peeing so far...
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Old 05-07-2012, 02:00 PM   #17
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We also have the 2010 model with the back door. The kids love it plus provides air flow throughout the whole camper. Crossroads, you need to offer this option on your new units or I might not upgrade again.

My old TT was a 28' with one slide. My Zinger is only a bit longer but the layout makes it feel a lot bigger inside especially on those rainy days.

Buy the 31SB....you won't regret it




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Old 05-09-2012, 08:31 AM   #18
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Well? Are we dragging the Zinger around yet?



Another late-comer to the party here with the 31SB and wanted to chime in with my thoughts.....



Quote:
Originally Posted by Bigmac



Thank-you very much for responding so quickly. I hope you will bear with me, but, I have a few more questions that my wife has asked me to ask you...




1) How does the 'leather' hold up on the couches with the kids ? Does it scratch easily ?Sorry, no leather here on our love seat. Wish it was a tad longer to stretch out on (stowed) while watching tv. It's a hide a bed but folded out it almost touches the cabinets. Imagine trying to head for the bathroom while crawling over it? 2 "married" adults could sleep on it. You know how wide std. loveseats are.

2) Do you have the pull out sofa bed or jack knife couch ? How many can you sleep on it ?

3) What did you put in the outdoor kitchen seeing as it only comes with the fridge and sink ?Right now using it for space to store while parked. Anything in that vacantspace not secured is going to bang into the walls. No stove, I will usemy coleman grillor griddle on a table I use for that area. I do wish I had some type of slide out table or countertop for that area.Were you able to get the two burner stove ? If so, where, asapparentlyit is no longer available.

4) How do you find the mattress in the master bedroom ?

5) What optional features did you take and why ?




Thanx again for your help and support..




Rich and Stephanie....


I was impressed that I got the rear grill mount on the rear bumper of our TT. I also got the owners manual for the grill....just didnt get the grill. It is going to work for my Coleman grill once I make a couple of changes to the grill.



I really like that I don't have a hard time hunting for my utilities. If there is something that needs to be accessed you can look close at it and it will have screws to take out. No screws means nothing is there.



We went with the 15,000 BTU AC. Its #^@% hot here in summer time.



Very sturdy construction, nice clean, slightly arched roof means no puddles.Roof and wall seam are below the roof line instead of on top. Good sealing job with a couple of spots where someone put silicone on it. (dealer I guess, it was a new unit)



Kids can use the second entry for bathroom access instead of running through TT.



I use the screw type jacks in front of and behind the wheels instead of X Chocks. I do still chock the tires.



Did some research on Zinger and nothing but good reviews by owners.



I like the rear bedroom not only for the kids when the go with us but for additional storage.



With all the research I did I wanted the big bunkroom and outdoor kitchen so I assumed everyone knew about the kitchen. Its a great converstaion starter. They always tell us they were sitting in their campsite next door trying to figure out what that big door was for. On a side note about the kitchen is the gas struts that hold the door open. I like the door as an overhead cover but you know for as long as gas struts have been around they tend to wear out fast. I see a concussion in my guture as my head meets the side of that thing.



I love the electric awning. Seconds in and out and I treat it like the water supply. If we are going somewhere the water is turned off and the awning is retracted or overnight.



I did have a small leak in the seal around the outside kitchen door. Dicor cured that.



I'm not a big fan of the rv graphics that are around. I do like the blue and gold color combo on the Zinger so it does help the graphics not be so dramatic.



I have not done it yet but I like that the outdoor shower (yes, use it for this and that occasionally) is in between the slides. If I get the urge i am going to make a shower curtain hanger to hang from slide to slide.



Ok, thats enough for now.....the TT is pulled up in the driveway and its begging to be taken camping tomorrow.....gotta run!
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