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World debut - Rockwood Signature R372 fifth wheel

Tony Barthel

Today’s RV review is another world premier, this time of the 2024 Rockwood Signature R372RL fifth wheel with the Power Package. I have written that many fifth wheel builders make a similar floor plan and I love to see how individual decisions are made by companies. This is also a way to showcase how different RVs are built as not all companies do the same thing when it comes to making these.

How they make these

There are a lot of similarities within the Rockwood (and Flagstaff - same products, different stickers) from the most affordable models through to the fanciest offerings. So I encourage you go to back to my review of the Rockwood Mini Lite 2517s for highlights of some of Rockwood’s build features.

For the most part the qualitative things that set the company’s travel trailers apart are also things that put their fifth wheel line in a higher class.

But in going up the model range there are some other things you get here including a mattress that you actually won’t want to donate to charity after one night. These are much upgraded mattresses in this rig and my brief test of them made me feel that these are a good product.

Obviously mattresses are so subjective what works for one person doesn’t necessarily work for everybody but at least these seem to be a quality product.

I always like that Rockwood uses an oven that you can actually use for baking but these go one step further with an even larger RV oven that almost seems Thanksgiving-certified.

These also go up a notch in their microwaves and refrigerators but, unlike some fifth wheels, Rockwood still uses 12 volt refrigerators so you can run them while shuttling down the road without concern. No inverter necessary for this.

That’s also true of the television, which is a 12 volt model. These are things that make sense to me as an RVer.

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More features

As mentioned these relatively common floor plans are a good basis for comparison with other models of a similar layout.

Some of what I like here include the way the dinette is configured with an ottoman against the forward wall that also has a cushioned back rest. It can be a bench seat, the basis for the bed or moved around as a foot rest or additional seating if you’re having a gathering. I’m a big fan of stuff that can do other stuff, as you may know.

This can also be additional storage and there’s no such thing as too much storage in an RV.

Speaking of storage the entire front bulkhead in the main living space is storage with cabinets and drawers along with a bit of counter space for your margarita machine. Or whatever suits you.

But, interestingly, I saw this at the 2023 FROG International Rally and there were two couples in the rig. The ladies were commenting that the shelves were too far apart and wanted more shelves.

I’m so grateful for Peggy who can see something where there may be some need and then create the solution. Need more shelves? Peggy will figure out a way to accomplish that rather than completely write-off a floor plan because the shelves are a bit too far apart.

In fact we did a whole podcast episode about storage solutions for small RVs and, of course, this is no small RV.

I also want to point out the outdoor kitchen in here which has a fairly large bar-sized refrigerator. There are also powder coated metal drawers so you can put hot stuff on them - I much prefer this to wooden cabinets in outdoor kitchens.

There is also a drop-down arm where you could mount the included griddle. It’s a nifty way of handling this.

There’s also a swing-out mount for an included propane barbecue so you really can get a lot cooking out here. But something to note, some of these outdoor kitchens in fifth wheels are mounted so high they’re almost unusable whereas the things you’ll need are at a height that average people can take advantage of.

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Boondocking and travel access

This is the most exciting part of this rig based on how I enjoy camping. We often talk about our own Power Package-equipped RV with the Mastervolt system from ABC Upfitters but this takes that system and kicks it up a notch.

Even the basic package in this includes a single 200 watt solar panel but the optional Power Package absolutely is game changing with 920 amp hours of battery reserves. That is controlled by the Combimaster 3000 watt inverter/charge controller and the sun is harnessed by 1200 watts of GoPower solar panels. Wow.

So you really could run one of the air conditioners (there are two in this 50 amp RV) for probably 10-12 hours based on my own experience with just one of these batteries. With double the power comes more potential.

Of course this is an option and not everybody who buys this is going to go boondocking, of course.

As for travel access this floor plan typically means you’re blocked off from the lower deck when the opposing slides are in.

You can get to the bathroom without opening any slide rooms but the upstairs bedroom, too, might be tight if you want to access those closets in the nose. But I also suspect that fewer people who buy this are going to want to accomplish mid-journey stops, though I also suspect you won’t be getting into the fridge.

My thoughts

There are a lot of little details that Rockwood got right in this fifth wheel. For example, little things like the magnetic door stop for the upper deck door are those kinds of things that go from being a minor frustration to just something you don’t think about over time and there’s a lot of value in that.

The fans in the upper bath and at the lower deck are the high-performance fans and the company vacuum laminates their own walls Azdel inside and out. This is also one of the only fifth wheels you can buy that incorporates a torsion axle suspension which I think is a big plus. The smoother any RV rides, the less jarring and jiggling there is of the RV itself.

While I don’t have pricing on this rig the expectation is that it will be very competitive in the market place while offering some distinct qualitative advantages. I don’t think as many people are aware of Rockwood (and Flagstaff) fifth wheels and the company does a great job.

And, don’t worry, if there aren’t enough shelves there are certainly ways to resolve that. It’s interesting to listen to prospects and I don’t get enough of that lately.

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