New member with "new to me" 06 2955RL

[Gorgeguy]

I have never owned a fifth wheel before. Is there anything I should be looking for or doing to make my 2006 2955RL better or more usable? I am pulling it with a 2004 3500 Dodge 4WD with the 5.9 Cummins. This looks like it will be a great site.
Wayne

[bear]

Wayne,
Welcome , Best site on the web If you want help with anything about your MONTY this is it . Come here first even before you talk to any RV repair place ,Great people, Great ideas.
I just looked at your profile and see you are from the Dalles, real close to our neck of the woods. See you are a wood worker what type? I make writing instruments (turn pens).
Hope to see you at the Oregon rally at 7 feather's resort
Happy camping
David in Beautiful Coeur D Alene,IDAHO

Jesus+nothing=Everying

[CamillaMichael]

Welcome to the MOC and congratulations on your new Montana! Not familiar with your model Montana, but you have definitely come to the right place to address specific questions. As you have said, this is your first fifth wheel...you did not say if you have towed anything before. If you have towed TTs before, you will notice a change in how fifth wheels "back" vs TTs. Practice is about the only thing to deal with that issue. In terms of being "more usable," you will see many posts on this site where MOCers have added upgrades/MODs to their units...you can evaluate these to determine if they might be right for you. Overall, experience will provide some answers...from that point you might address specific questions back to this site. Enjoy!

[DarMar]

Welcome to the MOC family Wayne. You will glean a wealth of friendship and information during your time here, we look forward to your future posts!

[CmdrDewey]

One little thing you might note. There is a dump handle between the drivers side tires. that is for your galley tank.

[Carl n Susan]

quote:Originally posted by CmdrDewey

One little thing you might note. There is a dump handle between the drivers side tires. that is for your galley tank.

Actually, on a 2955, the third dump handle is in front of the driver's side tires.

Welcome to the MOC. There are bunch of us 2955 owners here and lots of ideas for improvement. Does your rig still have the infamous Remote Control Thermostat?

[Gorgeguy]

Wow, what a welcome! I can tell already this is going to be a great site. On woodworking, I like making things like shelving, tables etc. That will slow down as I spend more time in the Monty since I can't carry as many tools. I have towed a 25' TT for a couple of years but am looking forward to the fifth wheel. Don't know about the infamous remote on the thermostat, I pick the unit up Tuesday. And then the learning begins. I am planning on adding a motorcycle carrier in the back of the unit. If anybody has any recommendations or do's or don'ts would be greatly appreciated.

[scattershot]

Welcome from Denver. We bought our 2955 (2006) new, and it's been great. There was a recall on the furnace valve, about a five minute fix (some kind of baffle on the pilot light as I recall), and the first thing we did was change out the Chinese tires, but other than that, no problems. We added safety locks to the drawers to keep them from coming open in flight, too.

[cdaniels]

We have had a 2955 for a couple of years now. It has served us well. We are in the process of moving up to a 4 slide in a few weeks. No fault of the 2955 just want the bigger living room. One of the things we did was put mover slides on the recliners (which we learned from the Moc site) and it made moving the recliners so much easier when breaking down to move from place to place. As far as the tires ours where American made tires and good quality so check them out before thinking of replacing. Ours is a 2005. Not sure when they started putting on the cheaper tires. We did replace our shackles and wet bolts last year. You will love it. Our only complaint is when someone is sleeping on the pull out couch you can not get out the door without crawling over the people in the sofa bed. DH is an early riser so this was an issue for him. Have fun and welcome to the forum. They do not recomend anything on the back over 500lbs FYI.

[klash]

Welcome to the Montana Owners Club, best forum on the internet. When you have nothing to do sign on and just read all the various topics, very interesting.
We have a 2007 Monty 2955RL, and just love it. First thing we did was install the wet bolt suspension system, bronze bushings and grease nipples. Far superior to the cheap teflon bushings and dry bolts. I regrease every 3,000 miles; clean grease going in, pushes dirt out.
I am very anal about ensuring that the U bolts that secure the springs to the axle are re-torqued periodically. Some owners have found them loose almost right from the factory.
Also got rid of the Chinese tires and put Good Year Marathons on.
Again, welcome to the forum, lots of luck with your new toy.

[deadeye]

Welcome to the forum and the ownership of a Montana. You will love it over a TT type trailer. You seem to feel like you have more control when you have a 5er when traveling. Anyway I do. We have a 2002 model 2955. Not much different than yours. We have done a lot of add-ons. I'll give you one in a photo that is quite popular. Pin the step when traveling. A lot of guys/gals use a tarp strap to hold them up as high winds seem to knock them into the down position.... If you have a question, don't be afraid to ask or do a search as we have probably discussed it here plus came up with a fix, pictures, or what to do....JB

[stevemc]

We have an '05 Mountaineer 298RL which is the same floor plan as a 2955. Some of the things we've done is make shelves to go on the walls next to each recliner, extra shelves on each side of the bed, flat screen in the bedroom, digital thermostat, inside elec. water heater switch. Working on putting a flat screen in the living room now and going to put cabinet doors in the stool room to take advantage of the space where the old tv was to put towels, washrags, etc.
Good luck, we've been real happy with ours.