Forest River Ibex 19MSB - Beast Mode suspension and first-rate solar and battery
Today’s RV review is of the 2024 Forest River Ibex 19MSB, a really good floor plan that might be a great accomplice on adventures a bit past where the road has ended. This couples’ camper features a decent amount of seating for relaxing and dining but the biggest feature might be the solid build and the “Beast Mode” suspension.
In fact Jason and Abbey Epperson from RVMiles specifically chose an Ibex with this suspension for their epic journey to Alaska and, thus far, have reported that it has been a great choice.
The outstanding suspension on the Ibex 19MSB is called Beast Mode
Beast Mode
When Ibex refers to their “Beast Mode” suspension what this is is a fully independent suspension that’s specifically designed to enable driving to places that are barely places. The suspension incorporates coil springs, aggressive bump stops and dual shock absorbers on each wheel.
While I haven’t towed anything with this suspension I have been told that it makes a tremendous difference.
I often criticize the low-end leaf spring suspensions with no provision for oiling or maintenance whatsoever. In every way this is totally the opposite and it incorporates the provision to re-align the suspension easily if the rough roads of life have caused it to get out of alignment.
The components, too, are extremely heavy duty. For all those people who do go to Alaska and report that the roads are lousy, this might be worth considering. In fact this suspension was first available on Ember’s Overland series of campers which I like so much.
Unexpected features
In addition to that suspension there are actually a number of unexpected features in this trailer. Among those are a built-in vacuum cleaner that has a toe kick “dust pan” mode. You could sweep everything into sucking distance of that device and kick it on and watch your dirt disappear.
The vacuum also comes with hoses and heads so you can use it to vacuum the whole trailer if you so choose. We bring a battery-powered portable vacuum with us but this is far more convenient.
The Ibex also incorporates the Shower Miser system which is great for boondocking. Essentially it allows you to divert the water going to the shower back into the fresh water tank while you’re waiting for it to get hot at the shower.
This prevents a lot of the water from just getting wasted in this process which is a good thing.
While we’re in the bathroom let’s all look up and see the pretty high-performance vent fan. A lot of more affordable trailers skimp on this feature…heck, a lot of expensive trailers do as well.
The back of the trailer features both hanging and shelf storage but there’s something else you might not expect - a safe. Yep. You can store those valuable things in the safe in the back of this. I would put my mom’s secret cheesecake recipe which I promised to never share.
There’s also a flat-top griddle that comes with this, which came with my own trailer, and I love this thing. I use it to make bacon!
Another thing standard is a tire pressure monitoring system which is internal to the tires so it can report tire pressure and temperature. Again, I have this as well and I think all towable RVs should have this. All modern vehicles do.
A counter-top bar and plenty of counter space are great features of the Ibex 19MSB travel trailer
What’s inside
The interior of this trailer sports a Murphy bed at the front of the unit which also has a couch when the bed is up for day use.
I know a bunch of you have told me that you don’t like Murphy beds but the different RV brands build these differently. Honestly some of them are great, but some of them are not.
This is in the are not category only in that the mattress has to bend to accomplish the Murphy function. However this is a true 60” X 80” queen-sized mattress so you could put a proper mattress here and just leave the bed down all the time. That would take Murphy out of the picture.
That bed can even remain down when the slide room is in.
There’s also a counter-height bar here with two bar stools for dining or just observing whoever’s cooking. If that’s you I bet you’d certainly get a response if you had those numbers that you hold up to rate the cook like they do in the Olympics.
Finally there’s a couch in the slide room but this wouldn’t be able to be theater seats because of the space taken up by the suspension.
However it does come with a free-range table that you could use with the couch by the Murphy bed, assuming you don’t de-Murphy-ize the trailer, or just as additional prep space.
Kitchen talk
The kitchen in here offers a surprising amount of counter space being an “L” shaped affair.
I really like this counter top that has a fake “live edge” look to the counter top as if it’s hewn from some ancient piece of wood.
There’s a single-bowl sink and a three-burner stove top. In addition there’s a convection microwave but no oven, and I think that this is just fine. In fact I think more companies should consider this configuration.
The fridge is an odd bit because trailers built at Forest River’s midwest facility use a Furrion 12 volt fridge. Those built at the company’s West Coast facility use a propane-electric RV fridge.
Unless you’re willing to travel, there are no swaptions. You get what you get based on where you buy your trailer.
Boondocking and travel access
I was shocked to see that this trailer is fully usable with the slide room in. In fact, as mentioned, the bed can even stay down with the slide room in. That’s surprising.
Boondocking is a strong suit of this trailer which makes sense based on that suspension.
Even the base model features 200 watts of solar along with a 2,000 watt inverter. But this is also available with the Unplugged Package which is the same high-quality Master Volt components as I have in my own trailer.
In the case of this model that includes 600 watts of solar, a 3,000 watt CombiMaster inverter and 400 amp-hours of lithium battery. It’s a great system!
Cold weather camping
While I wouldn’t call this a four-season camper, it is better than many for cold weather camping. The gate valves for the gray and black tank are actually on the tanks themselves so there’s not a vulnerable pipe full of water sticking out.
There are also 12 volt heating pads on all the tanks. I like this feature.
I should also note that the connection point for the tank dumps is mounted pretty high so it’s not as likely to come into contact with things that can damage it. Like armadillos. Or rocks.
Some considerations
There are a few things about this rig that you might not like starting with the radius shower, which is very, very common. In our own trailer we had this shower and removed the glass enclosure and never looked back.
Build materials used is a strong suit here starting with that beefy suspension and accompanying frame. The walls are laminated with Azdel inside and out and the roof is a 3/4 inch decking material, which you don’t often find in travel trailers.
My thoughts
Jason and Abbey are no dummies so the fact that they specifically chose an Ibex for their Alaska itinerary says a lot. The beefy build and great suspension have to be part of why they’re not talking about their trailer falling apart on the trip.
But a great suspension also makes sense on some of the roads we have in this country which I think have potholes so large in them that they may get their own zip code.
For those who don’t like the Murphy bed you’re not forced to use it as such but, for those who do like it, you get a couch by day and a bed by night.
I also really like the map of the USA and Canada on the base of the Murphy bed and, yes, you can get stickers for the states you’ve visited.
There is a lot to like about this whether you’re going on that epic Alaska journey or just around the corner to the local campground.
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