Hey Y'all!

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   Hi everyone! We're from Texas, and new to travel trailers & R-Pods. We purchased our R-Pod 176 5 weeks ago, and have taken it on three full-weekend trips:

- San Luis Pass Beach, Texas (boondocking with Honda EN2500 generator)
- Brazoria County Beach, Texas (boondocking with Predator 3500 generator)
- Baton Rouge KOA, Louisiana (full hookups)

My wife is a city gal, so camping wasn’t her bag. I eased her into the outdoors by building our trucks (4Runner & FJ Cruiser) to handle long days at the beach, and long drives up & down it… We’d been doing beach runs for about 4 years so on July 3rd, I took her & the kids to Matagorda beach for some tent camping. We spent the night getting blown around in the tent, and considered getting a sturdier rooftop tent, but after some serious consideration ($5-7k) I told my wife we should consider a travel trailer. 

We did some research, and found that R-Pods were well-equipped, well-priced, and have many loyal owners & a large fanbase. We looked at a 2020 10th Anniversary 176, and left a deposit the same day, as we were impressed by the features and space for the price.

I have a few decades of experience working on my own vehicles with all of my builds done in my driveway with hand & electric tools. My projects have covered everything from engine swaps, to offload armor, custom cargo solutions, and extensive recovery modifications.

 A lot of this translates to the R-Pod, so I find most of the maintenance, and modifications fairly easy.  Here's what I've done so far: 
- Created documentation including pre/post trip inspection.
- Took photos of all appliances/wiring behind panels, and created spreadsheets to identify everything.
- Cut access panels under dinette "seats" for the rear storage area, so I can access all tools from the comfort of my air conditioned Pod. 
- Purchased a Predator 3500 inverter generator, runs the entire pod without issue. 
- Mounted D-rings on bottom bunk slat to secure our wagon, ice chest, & grill for transport.
- Dual Interstate Marine Deep Cycle Group 24 12V batteries in boxes.
- Easy start capacitor for the Dometic AC unit.
- Mounted SimpleHuman paper towel holder (removed microwave to use stainless nut & bolt
- Fixed a totally BENT stud that was so cross threaded it ate up 5/8” of threads on both lug & stud.
- Hand-packed grease on the fairly dry hubs.
- Converted Coleman Roadtrip grille to use low-pressure propane from the Pod.
- Installed Mac Mini in the entertainment stack with Logitech backlit keyboard/touchpad.
- Replaced 100 screws with #10x1” stainless steel screws, 100 #10x1.25” screws are en route to replace all the longer screws. Made sure to dip each screw in silicone adhesive.
- Added brad nails to underbunk trim & dinette trim
- Added above-dinette shelf
- Added battery-powered tap lights to storage & cabinet areas
- Deleted dinette, in prep to convert the area to an RV Queen. 

Mods planned for this weekend:
- Fill dinette area with 28”x34”x1/2” plywood filler. 
- Install 6” memory foam queen RV mattress in dinette area
- Add spring clips to the storage door to mount manual jack, awning, & slide handles
- Mount 3-D LED Maglite to wall using OEM clips
- Add 12V LED strip lights underneath Pod for camp lighting

Within 3 months:
- 5lb fire extinguisher in the coach, 5-10lb unit on the tongue
- Stromberg Carlson generator mount for Predator 3500
- dual 20lb LP tank mount with hard cover & regulator
- Convert dinette underbed area into a dog kennel with a rustic barn door
- delete wet bath sink

Future (<1Y):
- widen shower track & use a full-length shower curtain
- Propane conversion for Predator 3500
- faux wood flooring
- wallpaper
- paint cabinets 

We, or I, am enjoying the 176 a whole bunch. Our kids love having a trailer, even when it’s docked in our back yard, and they’re just playing while I’m modifying. I find myself making excuses to tow it out of the yard, and hit the road. 

We will be traveling, and our camping will be 50/50 boondocking/full hookups. I also use it as my home office twice a week so I can get some peace while I work, it's nice being able to have a huge yard, and full hookups so I never have to leave my Pod unattended. 

I'm eager to learn more, and to modify this thing to last us a long time. Let us know what work you've done, and what mods were absolutely worth it to you. 

Brazoria County Beach:

2010 4Runner Limited AWD/4WD with a few small mods:

Access panels cut & tap lights installed:

Stainless screws: 

Dealership says it came from Forest River this way, they also said they greased the bearings. One of those things was a lie: 

San Luis Pass - boondocking our first weekend of ownership:

Adding a SimpleHuman paper towel dispenser, matches the one in the 4Runner:

Dealer-installed dual battery system, need to clean up the wiring:

Docked in our backyard with full hookups: 

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beardman Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 09 Aug 2019 Location: Houston, Texas Online Status: Offline Posts: 6	Topic: Hey Y'all! Posted: 12 Sep 2019 at 1:35pm
	Hi everyone! We're from Texas, and new to travel trailers & R-Pods. We purchased our R-Pod 176 5 weeks ago, and have taken it on three full-weekend trips: - San Luis Pass Beach, Texas (boondocking with Honda EN2500 generator) - Brazoria County Beach, Texas (boondocking with Predator 3500 generator) - Baton Rouge KOA, Louisiana (full hookups) My wife is a city gal, so camping wasn’t her bag. I eased her into the outdoors by building our trucks (4Runner & FJ Cruiser) to handle long days at the beach, and long drives up & down it… We’d been doing beach runs for about 4 years so on July 3rd, I took her & the kids to Matagorda beach for some tent camping. We spent the night getting blown around in the tent, and considered getting a sturdier rooftop tent, but after some serious consideration ($5-7k) I told my wife we should consider a travel trailer. We did some research, and found that R-Pods were well-equipped, well-priced, and have many loyal owners & a large fanbase. We looked at a 2020 10th Anniversary 176, and left a deposit the same day, as we were impressed by the features and space for the price. I have a few decades of experience working on my own vehicles with all of my builds done in my driveway with hand & electric tools. My projects have covered everything from engine swaps, to offload armor, custom cargo solutions, and extensive recovery modifications. A lot of this translates to the R-Pod, so I find most of the maintenance, and modifications fairly easy. Here's what I've done so far: - Created documentation including pre/post trip inspection. - Took photos of all appliances/wiring behind panels, and created spreadsheets to identify everything. - Cut access panels under dinette "seats" for the rear storage area, so I can access all tools from the comfort of my air conditioned Pod. - Purchased a Predator 3500 inverter generator, runs the entire pod without issue. - Mounted D-rings on bottom bunk slat to secure our wagon, ice chest, & grill for transport. - Dual Interstate Marine Deep Cycle Group 24 12V batteries in boxes. - Easy start capacitor for the Dometic AC unit. - Mounted SimpleHuman paper towel holder (removed microwave to use stainless nut & bolt - Fixed a totally BENT stud that was so cross threaded it ate up 5/8” of threads on both lug & stud. - Hand-packed grease on the fairly dry hubs. - Converted Coleman Roadtrip grille to use low-pressure propane from the Pod. - Installed Mac Mini in the entertainment stack with Logitech backlit keyboard/touchpad. - Replaced 100 screws with #10x1” stainless steel screws, 100 #10x1.25” screws are en route to replace all the longer screws. Made sure to dip each screw in silicone adhesive. - Added brad nails to underbunk trim & dinette trim - Added above-dinette shelf - Added battery-powered tap lights to storage & cabinet areas - Deleted dinette, in prep to convert the area to an RV Queen. Mods planned for this weekend: - Fill dinette area with 28”x34”x1/2” plywood filler. - Install 6” memory foam queen RV mattress in dinette area - Add spring clips to the storage door to mount manual jack, awning, & slide handles - Mount 3-D LED Maglite to wall using OEM clips - Add 12V LED strip lights underneath Pod for camp lighting Within 3 months: - 5lb fire extinguisher in the coach, 5-10lb unit on the tongue - Stromberg Carlson generator mount for Predator 3500 - dual 20lb LP tank mount with hard cover & regulator - Convert dinette underbed area into a dog kennel with a rustic barn door - delete wet bath sink Future (<1Y): - widen shower track & use a full-length shower curtain - Propane conversion for Predator 3500 - faux wood flooring - wallpaper - paint cabinets We, or I, am enjoying the 176 a whole bunch. Our kids love having a trailer, even when it’s docked in our back yard, and they’re just playing while I’m modifying. I find myself making excuses to tow it out of the yard, and hit the road. We will be traveling, and our camping will be 50/50 boondocking/full hookups. I also use it as my home office twice a week so I can get some peace while I work, it's nice being able to have a huge yard, and full hookups so I never have to leave my Pod unattended. I'm eager to learn more, and to modify this thing to last us a long time. Let us know what work you've done, and what mods were absolutely worth it to you. Brazoria County Beach: 2010 4Runner Limited AWD/4WD with a few small mods: Access panels cut & tap lights installed: Stainless screws: Dealership says it came from Forest River this way, they also said they greased the bearings. One of those things was a lie: San Luis Pass - boondocking our first weekend of ownership: Adding a SimpleHuman paper towel dispenser, matches the one in the 4Runner: Dealer-installed dual battery system, need to clean up the wiring: Docked in our backyard with full hookups:

furpod Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Moderator Group - pHp Joined: 25 Jul 2011 Location: Central KY Online Status: Offline Posts: 6128	Posted: 12 Sep 2019 at 2:28pm
	If they greased the bearings using the zert, it wouldn't be a lie, and they wouldn't have needed to remove the wheel.

beardman Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 09 Aug 2019 Location: Houston, Texas Online Status: Offline Posts: 6	Posted: 12 Sep 2019 at 2:59pm
	Well there were a few parts to this: 1. I called and told them I was taking a 700-mile roundtrip, and asked if they'd greased the bearings or removed the wheels to inspect them for grease. They told me that they did a full axle inspection upon receipt, and greasing was not necessary. 2. There was grease on the races, but not much else. I hand-packed each side with half a tube of Lucas Red N'Tacky. 3. When I arrived at the dealership to get a replacement stud, and ask for a table leg (which they still didn't produce,) I spoke to a tech. I asked him about new trailers, and their procedures, and specifically if they removed the wheel/hub to inspect for grease. He said "No, we normally get them with enough grease from the factory so we leave them alone." So at worst, they lied about the inspection. I don't really give a rat's you know what about it, because we're self-sufficient and can fix things... I just don't enjoy being lied to. Confirm, and provide the customer with the factual answer, not the one that makes your business look better; especially if it's something like dry bearings.