Wood Cabinet Doors

[aggie79]

I am disappointed to hear about the wood cabinets.  My wife and I were hoping to order a CL in the spring. We were going to custom order cabinets with aluminum faces instead of the Azdel.

While I prefer the look of the aluminum cabinets my concern with wood cabinets is not with the appearance but with how the cabinets will be anchored. I fear the answer is that wood blocking will be inserted in the aluminum sidewall framing.  With the composite Azdel interior wall panels - hopefully that isn't another "value" change - any moisture from infiltration or condensation has nowhere to go making any wood blocking susceptible to rot.

[peislander]

The original comment by Brothernumpsy was that the cabinet doors would be wood. That does not necessarily mean that the cabinets won't still be framed in aluminum. The current cabinets can have framed wood doors attached to their fronts quite easily. In this scenario the sides & soffits of cabinets might continue to be azdel on aluminum.

I find it funny that wood doors is supposedly customer driven. Besides current owners the main feedback Livin'Lite would get is from dealers. I have no doubt that dealers might think potential buyers might like real wood better. That's what the majority of their rv inventory has and what most buyers are familiar with -- a predominantly homogenized rv industry. That certainly doesn't make it better. I think the real issue is most dealers don't really sell up the non-wood aspect very effectively. Currently Livin'Lite's market is the people who do recognize & appreciate the difference --- and changing to wood cabinets might alienate some of us without really expanding the market any.

For anyone interested in custom ordering -- here's what I did. I had the trailer interior walls done in aluminum rather than azdel. All the cabinets (and the wet bath's outside faces) are done in the wood-grain azdel. It looks fantastic. Far better than the standard boring & plain-looking azdel walls. The aluminum walls are very functional in that they are easy to clean and easy to screw to if needed. The look brand spanking new after a few years of use. Importantly to me at least, the interior of my trailer doesn't look like a typical generic rv. It looks 1000-times better!

[charliem]

[font size="3" face="arial"]LL has two main selling points to the general public: weight and durability. Wood cabinet doors detract from the former but not the latter. IMHO wood doors may counter the no wood slogan, but aside from weight they do not detract from the functional goals. Exposed doors are not likely to rot. The real problem would be concealed wood framing members in walls, ceiling and floor that are exposed to undetected leaks. As PEIslander points out, totally wood cabinets are not an absolute given. We will have to see. [/font]

[djsamuel]

[quote source="/post/14229/thread" timestamp="1439735677" author="@charliem"][font face="arial" size="3"]LL has two main selling points to the general public: weight and durability. Wood cabinet doors detract from the former but not the latter. IMHO wood doors may counter the no wood slogan, but aside from weight they do not detract from the functional goals. Exposed doors are not likely to rot. The real problem would be concealed wood framing members in walls, ceiling and floor that are exposed to undetected leaks. As PEIslander points out, totally wood cabinets are not an absolute given. We will have to see. [/font][/quote]My assumption is the cabinet doors will be like they were in the fifth wheels; aluminum framed cabinets with just wood faces.  To me. the biggest plus to the current Camplite doors are the latches.  They are much more secure, and I know several people with other brand campers who after traveling, open their camper to find the contents of a cabinet dumped on the floor because the standard clip door retainer did not hold the door closed in a sharp turn.  

[charliem]

[quote source="/post/14230/thread" timestamp="1439736127" author="@djsamuel"]To me. the biggest plus to the current Camplite doors are the latches.  They are much more secure, and I know several people with other brand campers who after traveling, open their camper to find the contents of a cabinet dumped on the floor because the standard clip door retainer did not hold the door closed in a sharp turn.  [/quote][font face="arial" size="3"]
Doug,

I agree as I've stated before. [/font][font face="arial" size="3"]LL got[/font][font face="arial" size="3"] the aircraft type locking latches right. That said, there are ways to accomplish similar results with wood doors. We'll see. [/font]

[shovelhead]

I was "no wood" before it was cool.
Ignore the photographer, and observe the door and cabinetry... look familiar ? lol....



[img style="" style="max-width:100%;" src="http://photolib.ssbn634.com/Hottinger/stoneyj_pic1.jpg"]

[djsamuel]

[quote source="/post/14234/thread" timestamp="1439743200" author="@charliem"][quote source="/post/14230/thread" timestamp="1439736127" author="@djsamuel"]To me. the biggest plus to the current Camplite doors are the latches.  They are much more secure, and I know several people with other brand campers who after traveling, open their camper to find the contents of a cabinet dumped on the floor because the standard clip door retainer did not hold the door closed in a sharp turn.  [/quote][font face="arial" size="3"]
Doug,

I agree as I've stated before. [/font][font face="arial" size="3"]LL got[/font][font face="arial" size="3"] the aircraft type locking latches right. That said, there are ways to accomplish similar results with wood doors. We'll see. [/font]
[/quote]Agree 100%.  However, the Alumalite 5th Wheel campers do not appear to retain this type of latch with the wood doors.  If the latch is good however, doesn't matter.  Certainly more than one way to skin a latch.

You can look at the interior pictures at the link below to see how they did it for the 5th wheels.

[a href="http://livinlite.com/alumalite28rls-gallery.php"]Alumalite Gallery[/a]

[leslie]

I am disappointed to hear about the wood cabinets.  My wife and I were hoping to order a CL in the spring. We were going to custom order cabinets with aluminum faces instead of the Azdel.

While I prefer the look of the aluminum cabinets my concern with wood cabinets is not with the appearance but with how the cabinets will be anchored. I fear the answer is that wood blocking will be inserted in the aluminum sidewall framing.  With the composite Azdel interior wall panels - hopefully that isn't another "value" change - any moisture from infiltration or condensation has nowhere to go making any wood blocking susceptible to rot.

Thus far, LL has been very accommodating with regard to customizing, although they do charge extra. I ordered my Camplite with the Azdel maple wood for the walls, and aluminum for the cabinets. People have commented that it looks like a cabin inside. My husband and I have been very happy with it.

Go ahead and order your Camplite customized, and see if the factory will do it.

[quote timestamp="1439731349" source="/post/14226/thread" author="@peislander"]The original comment by Brothernumpsy was that the cabinet doors would be wood. That does not necessarily mean that the cabinets won't still be framed in aluminum. The current cabinets can have framed wood doors attached to their fronts quite easily. In this scenario the sides & soffits of cabinets might continue to be azdel on aluminum.

I find it funny that wood doors is supposedly customer driven. Besides current owners the main feedback Livin'Lite would get is from dealers. I have no doubt that dealers might think potential buyers might like real wood better. That's what the majority of their rv inventory has and what most buyers are familiar with -- a predominantly homogenized rv industry. That certainly doesn't make it better. I think the real issue is most dealers don't really sell up the non-wood aspect very effectively. Currently Livin'Lite's market is the people who do recognize & appreciate the difference --- and changing to wood cabinets might alienate some of us without really expanding the market any.

For anyone interested in custom ordering -- here's what I did. I had the trailer interior walls done in aluminum rather than azdel. All the cabinets (and the wet bath's outside faces) are done in the wood-grain azdel. It looks fantastic. Far better than the standard boring & plain-looking azdel walls. The aluminum walls are very functional in that they are easy to clean and easy to screw to if needed. The look brand spanking new after a few years of use. Importantly to me at least, the interior of my trailer doesn't look like a typical generic rv. It looks 1000-times better![/quote]To clarify, I was told that only the cabinet doors would be wood with an aluminum frame cabinet structure as before.

[ammobob]

The original comment by Brothernumpsy was that the cabinet doors would be wood. That does not necessarily mean that the cabinets won't still be framed in aluminum. The current cabinets can have framed wood doors attached to their fronts quite easily. In this scenario the sides & soffits of cabinets might continue to be azdel on aluminum.

I find it funny that wood doors is supposedly customer driven. Besides current owners the main feedback Livin'Lite would get is from dealers. I have no doubt that dealers might think potential buyers might like real wood better. That's what the majority of their rv inventory has and what most buyers are familiar with -- a predominantly homogenized rv industry. That certainly doesn't make it better. I think the real issue is most dealers don't really sell up the non-wood aspect very effectively. Currently Livin'Lite's market is the people who do recognize & appreciate the difference --- and changing to wood cabinets might alienate some of us without really expanding the market any.

For anyone interested in custom ordering -- here's what I did. I had the trailer interior walls done in aluminum rather than azdel. All the cabinets (and the wet bath's outside faces) are done in the wood-grain azdel. It looks fantastic. Far better than the standard boring & plain-looking azdel walls. The aluminum walls are very functional in that they are easy to clean and easy to screw to if needed. The look brand spanking new after a few years of use. Importantly to me at least, the interior of my trailer doesn't look like a typical generic rv. It looks 1000-times better!

I agree with PEIslander on the look of the interior with aluminum skins  and we went with white cabinet aluminum door skins for the Retro look Livinlite started with.



Leslie is right order what you want and hopefully LL will still build you your custom camper the way you want it.

[aggie79]

As they say "upon further review" the Livin Lite Fifth Wheel trailer specs say that LL is retaining the aluminum cabinet framing and applying hardwood doors to the frames.  In this picture from the fifth wheel gallery, you can see the doors in an upper cabinet.  The doors appear to be cope and stick construction so that would make them hardwood construction.  The wood species is not evident.  They did a pretty good job of color matching the door stain to the Azdel (?) facing.  It appears that the aluminum frame is also wrapped with a similar material.  The doors appear to use 3/8" offset cabinet hinges with the hinges screwed into the aluminum.  There may be internal catches.



From what I can tell from the pictures, the construction seems to be pretty good. To me, though, the look is like any other generic travel trailer.
  If we decide to purchase, hopefully LL will still allow customization.

[djsamuel]

[quote timestamp="1439731349" source="/post/14226/thread" author="@peislander"]The original comment by Brothernumpsy was that the cabinet doors would be wood. That does not necessarily mean that the cabinets won't still be framed in aluminum. The current cabinets can have framed wood doors attached to their fronts quite easily. In this scenario the sides & soffits of cabinets might continue to be azdel on aluminum.

I find it funny that wood doors is supposedly customer driven. Besides current owners the main feedback Livin'Lite would get is from dealers. I have no doubt that dealers might think potential buyers might like real wood better. That's what the majority of their rv inventory has and what most buyers are familiar with -- a predominantly homogenized rv industry. That certainly doesn't make it better. I think the real issue is most dealers don't really sell up the non-wood aspect very effectively. Currently Livin'Lite's market is the people who do recognize & appreciate the difference --- and changing to wood cabinets might alienate some of us without really expanding the market any.

For anyone interested in custom ordering -- here's what I did. I had the trailer interior walls done in aluminum rather than azdel. All the cabinets (and the wet bath's outside faces) are done in the wood-grain azdel. It looks fantastic. Far better than the standard boring & plain-looking azdel walls. The aluminum walls are very functional in that they are easy to clean and easy to screw to if needed. The look brand spanking new after a few years of use. Importantly to me at least, the interior of my trailer doesn't look like a typical generic rv. It looks 1000-times better!

I agree with PEIslander on the look of the interior with aluminum skins  and we went with white cabinet aluminum door skins for the Retro look Livinlite started with.


[img src="http://i304.photobucket.com/albums/nn197/bvabob1/Our%20New%20Camper/image.jpg2_zpsqiqpsql0.jpg"]

Leslie is right order what you want and hopefully LL will still build you your custom camper the way you want it.[/quote]
I REALLY like that countertop.  Sure beats the laminate (or de-laminate) counter installed on mine.  At least I get good use out of the can of contact cement I have.  Works great, but don't get it on the foam.  It will dissolve it like melting butter.  

[peislander]

[quote source="/post/14269/thread" timestamp="1439841730" author="@aggie79"]As they say "upon further review" the Livin Lite Fifth Wheel trailer specs say that LL is retaining the aluminum cabinet framing and applying hardwood doors to the frames.  In this picture from the fifth wheel gallery, you can see the doors in an upper cabinet.  The doors appear to be cope and stick construction so that would make them hardwood construction.  The wood species is not evident.  They did a pretty good job of color matching the door stain to the Azdel (?) facing.  It appears that the aluminum frame is also wrapped with a similar material.  The doors appear to use 3/8" offset cabinet hinges with the hinges screwed into the aluminum.  There may be internal catches.



Also notice the pic shows windows with conventional pleated blinds --- not the cassette ones that have been used in Camplites to date. Seeing those blinds makes me think they were really trying to show they could build a conventional looking RV just like every other manufacturer. I really hope they don't go that direction. Seems to me they need to talk more with the people who have already bought Camplites and try to understand what made them buy --- then use that info to market to others who will be attracted to those same qualities. 

[livinlitepaul]

Just to clarify, yes there will be changes down the road involving cabinetry.  The cabinet frames will still be all aluminum tubing, just the cabinet fronts and stiles will be wood.  pr

[furpod]

The main reason we want a CL is to get away from wood.. If I wanted wood and aluminum, I wouldn't be selling the Airstream. Depending on when CL decides to implement this.. I guess we will be looking on the secondary market.