[cdbMidland]

We own a Bighorn 3655RD as of 2 1/2 weeks ago and have taken two trips in it already - camping a total of 9 nights so far.

Is it perfect - no, but as close to what I wanted as possible. We have nearly every option offered by Heartland and our scale ticket shows a weight of 12,800# with tanks (except for propane) empty, which is the way we prefer to travel.

This is the fourth unit we have owned since 1975, starting with a 1975 Coachmen Cadet TT, then a 1992 Fleetwood Prowler Regal TT, a 2001 Carriage Cameo LXI FW and now the 2006 Big Horn FW. The first three were on dealer lots and we bought without researching them prior to purchase. Maybe it was "dumb luck" or whatever, but we have never had a bad unit.

Before we purchased the Big Horn, we visited seven factories in the Elkhart, Goshen, Middlebury areas and looked close into the engineering and construction of the units. We wanted a rear den, fireplace, king bed and something that we could tow with the present TV. Bighorn was one of the three finalists and the dealer lined up all three so we could look at them side-by-side. I thought the Big Horn had more advanced engineering than the other two.

We managed to put everything that we carried in the Cameo into the Big Horn and still have plenty of space left over. Pots and pans do not fit in the drawer under the stove, but do nicely in the drawer under the refrigerator. The slide out pantry is a bit smaller in the Big Horn, but there still was room for everything we normally carry.

Don't give up on Big Horn. I think it is a remarkable unit. Our serial number is 794, so a lot of features have been improved upon since the first Landmarks and Big Horns have been produced.

Chuck