Advantages of front dinette seating

[mattvogt7]

Hello - I apologize if I overlooked this in previous posts, I'm looking to do a Hawk shell build and am trying to go minimal as it will be just my girlfriend and I. Thinking about Dinette options, what are people's thoughts regarding the front dinette seating - its seems to me like it opens the camper up a bit in terms of space but most of the camper's I have seen have side dinettes. I'm wondering if I am overlooking something and I'd love to hear peoples thoughts/advice. I don't think I'm going to add in a stove or sink for a minimal/simplistic approach.

Any help would be greatly appreciated and thanks a ton in advance!

- matt

 

[LuckyDan]

First things first, welcome to WTW.

IMO either the front dinette or a side booth dinette is markedly better than the side couch/pedistool table that is the FWC standard. The only advantage I find with the side couch is the "corral effect" storage underneath. Mine's a full camper not a shell, but I can certainly see a front dinette/open back giving a fair bit of open room if that's what your looking for.

Good luck with your decision...

 

[jbahr]

Matt,

The Front Dinette Shell option has only been available for about six months now, hence the reason you may have seen mostly side dinette options. One advantage to the front dinette is that it gives you a larger second bed for the times when you may want to stealth camp.

 

[contento]

You also get a nice swiveling table with the front dinette option(at least I assume it's included in the price?).

 

[jbahr]

You also get a nice swiveling table with the front dinette option(at least I assume it's included in the price?).

The swivel table is available with the side dinette as well.

 

[DanT]

I think this is one of those option selections that many people struggle with. First I'd like to say presently I do not have a FWC, I have had truck campers and my next one will be a FWC. So for what its worth here's my opinion. Each option has its pros and cons, and what would work best with a shell vs. a complete unit may be different. However the thing that I can't get past with the front dinette is the fact that while your eating or sitting at the table you have no ability to see outside (except through the back door). In previous rigs I always enjoyed chillaxing at the table and checking out the ocean or some other form of natural beauty . I'm not sure if I can get past this con. If you were getting a self contained unit maybe then you would have to get the front dinette , but since your in the market for a shell I would rule it out. Unless due to the fact that your ordering a shell they can give you at least one full size side window so the back of the seat does not completely block the view like it does with the standard front dinette units. Also there was a post here about 4 months back that a guy had a shell and installed a couch style seat with its back against the cab wall. The post had some photos and it looked interesting. Also on the Rocky mountain FWC Facebook or Jackson hole Facebook page there is a couple who have a blog / site about there adventures with there FWC. They have quite a few photos of the inside of there rig and its a shell with the side dinette option and it looks pretty doable. I hope my ramblings helped and didn't confuse the issue further. Good Luck.
DanT

 

[DirtyDog]

The front dinette would be better. The stock dinette that FWC has used is pretty much the worst part of the entire camper it's not even worth having. At the center of the problem is the archaic table that needs to be discontinued immediately and replaced with...... well anything else. The two sided dinette with some kind of wall mounted table is a good option. Another custom option I have seen is to use the side bench but have a table either connected somehow to the cabinet or even as a slide out drawer.

 

[ski3pin]

I did our remodel with a side dinette. We'd prefer that to the front because of the view out the open side of the camper and fresh air from the open window. This is kind of a funny answer because it is very rare that we ever sit and eat in the camper, maybe 3 or 4 times over the past several years.

 

[jbahr]

... At the center of the problem is the archaic table that needs to be discontinued immediately and replaced with...... well anything else. ...

We have been using the swivel table in the front dinette and side dinette layouts for nearly a year now.

 

[jbahr]

Shell models still have the large window on the passenger side no matter what the seating configuration is that you choose. So you could potentially order a front dinette with large window on both the passenger and driver side, depending upon what other options you choose, and still have a window view. Or you could do the same with a side dinette.

 

[photohc]

I have the front dinette and enjoy the larger sleeping area it provides. Yes, the one negative is not having a window to look out during your time at the table unless it's only you and the opposite seat is folded down to see out. Otherwise the only outside view is via the back door. I still like the configuration and allows a good amount of storage. Both seats have storage under it's seat bottom plus the slightly elevated floor board opens up for a small storage area that I keep tools and miscellaneous items. Harv

 

[jha6av8r]

I have the front dinette and enjoy the larger sleeping area it provides. Yes, the one negative is not having a window to look out during your time at the table unless it's only you and the opposite seat is folded down to see out. Otherwise the only outside view is via the back door. I still like the configuration and allows a good amount of storage. Both seats have storage under it's seat bottom plus the slightly elevated floor board opens up for a small storage area that I keep tools and miscellaneous items. Harv

x2, We have Grandby with front dinette. IMO, if you are looking to maximize us interior functionality, the front dinetteis the most logical. We don't spend a lot of time sitting in the camper. If we're eating or sitting at the dinette, it's because the weather is too nasty to be outside. In that case there's not too much to look at anyway.

 

[mattvogt7]

Hey thanks a ton everyone for the help and responses and for welcoming to the forum. Its great to have the input and I really appreciate it. I just traded my little Honda Element in yesterday and picked up a lightly used 1st generation Tundra for a good price and am looking forward to start planning for the camper!! Thanks again for everything.

 

[Taku]

I was looking at getting a side dinette since it looks like when the bed is slide out, you can't sit in the front dinette. And having a place to sit whilst the coffee is brewing seems important.

 

[jha6av8r]

I was looking at getting a side dinette since it looks like when the bed is slide out, you can't sit in the front dinette. And having a place to sit whilst the coffee is brewing seems important.

If you have one of the shorter floors for the 6 1/2' and 5 1/2' beds, you won't be able to sit at the front dinette with the slide out. We have a Grandby, 8' floor, and my wife, son (5), and I can sit at the table with the slide out. We actually have morning coffee & hot chocolate sitting on the bed (converted dinette) with the cabover slide out.

 

[Taku]

Thanks, that is what I thought from looking at the picutures and measurements.

 

[imcolej]

Hey thanks a ton everyone for the help and responses and for welcoming to the forum. Its great to have the input and I really appreciate it. I just traded my little Honda Element in yesterday and picked up a lightly used 1st generation Tundra for a good price and am looking forward to start planning for the camper!! Thanks again for everything.

Congrats on the Tundra! You're going to love it. We just picked up a new Hawk shell with the front dinette for our gen 1 tundra. Our truck handles the shell great with e rated bfg ko tires and Firestone ride-rite airbags.

The front dinette gives us tons of space. It's a nice symmetrical layout that just feels right.

My wife is really into "flow". When we are looking at houses,apt etc, she knows almost instantly if she likes a layout or not. This has annoyed me at times when I was just looking for a deal or when we needed to move quickly.

When we looked at all the FWC floor plans at the portland outdoor show, it was the same thing. She immediately wanted the front dinette option. I was in total agreement. It just felt right for what we needed. We were looking for a versatile setup that allowed 2 adults and a small child up top with room for another kid below or room below to sleep abudy on a fishing trip etc. The front dinette turns into a nice second bed as others have mentioned. I will definitely use it for stealth camping somewhere and know ill be comfortable.

You can be sitting at the table out of the way and have a conversation with whoever is cooking. In a pinch you can fit four people in the table area with two of the people sitting on the benches next to the seats (this is for the shell front dinette option).

One issue with the front dinette in the shell is that the seats a very high. I'm 6'2 and my feet dangle off the ground when fully seated at the dinette. We will be building some type of platform storage to solve this but I thought it's worth mentioning.

 

[steelhead]

We thought long and hard about the front dinette versus the side dinette when we ordered our Fleet. As outlined in the previous posts, both have definite advantages and disadvantages. The deciding factor for us was the abilitiy to see out the window with the side dinette. At the time it did not seem like a major factor but the more we have used the Fleet, the happier we are that we chose the side dinette option.

 

[ski3pin]

What's nice in all this discussion is that we do have choices to meet our individual needs or style of camper use.

 

[Connecticut Yankee]

Took delivery of new Hawk with front dinette in June and so far the arrangement is a winner. Only curiosity about the design is that the tabletop can't be moved closer to the Hawk's front window, and as a result it protrudes more than I would like into the space where you stand. I wonder why the mount and the tube support was positioned so that it's impossible to have the tabletop snug up to the window? Instead, there's a seven or eight inch gap over the water tank. Guess I'll turn that into a shelf of some kind.

But the seating is great. On my way home from picking up the camper at Sean Dempsey's in Wisconsin, I slept crosswise in the dinette area with a nice breeze coming in from the windows. Also opened the lower flap doors (that give turnbuckle access) and got additional airflow. Sean tipped me to that approach when it's raining because you can add to airflow without letting water in.

Love the Hawk.