cancel
Showing results forย 
Search instead forย 
Did you mean:ย 

Double recliner vs jackknife sofa - the clear winner is...

myredracer
Explorer II
Explorer II
Well, it's not even close.

Our TT came with the standard Lippert jackknife sofa. *Looks* plush and comfortable at the dealer but that's as good as it gets. It got to be such a PITA to sit in - literally. Not well made either (more like cheap junk). Couple of months ago several of the plastic banding straps underneath that hold the foam cushions in place broke - that was the last straw.

We'd been thinking about upgrading to a double recliner for a long time and finally did it. The floor of our slide out is only 30-1/2" deep which severely limited our choice. The slideout is 74" wide (inside dim.) There is also not a lot of room across from the dinette seating.

We ended up getting a Lambright Harrison double recliner loveseat in a 54" overall width. It's a true wall hugger design and we have it about 1" away from the rear wall. The front feet on it are 33-1/2" away from the rear wall. This is about the shallowest (front-back) double recliner available out there. We checked every corner of the internet and went to a few local furniture stores (incl. Lazyboy). Just not much to choose from that would fit.

The Lambright Harrison is available in a 58" wide version. This would make the inside arm rest to arm rest distance about the same as the Lippert sofa. The 54" width is more than enough for the two of us. Could have made the wider one fit but wouldn't have been able to center it in the opening.

The problem with the Lambright recliner is that the front feet overhang the floor of the slide by about 3". I solved this by making a frame from some angle and flat steel and welded it together. The frame fits around the outer perimeter of the recliner and I bolted the the recliner to it. Had to drill a few holes in the recliner's frame. The outer frame got screwed onto the slide's floor and there's no way it can move or bounce. I also bolted on a pair of 3x3" angle pieces in the center area underneath that also overhang the floor.

The DW (the boss of me) insisted that the recliner be centered between the end walls. As a result, the recliner foot rest is close to the garbage can and wall at one end. Just means retracting it when needed and hasn't been an issue. I wanted to offset the recliner to give some space to walk around the footrest. (happy wife, happy life, sigh...)

I am planning to build a pair of nice side tables from maple and will stain them to match the existing interior finishes. The plywood pieces are just mockups for now.

We ordered the power recliner option. This operates on 120 volts. I installed a new receptacle on a sidewall next to the fridge. Easy to pick up 120 volts there. The recliners come with a 28VDC power pack and need 120 volts to operate the power recline. If the power ever goes out, the slide can be brought in with the footrests fully or partly extended. We never dry camp so not an issue for us but could use a small inverter.

There are many fabric type & color choices. We wanted a breathable fabric and sprayed it with Scotch Guard. Each recliner seat comes in two pieces and the whole thing clips together in seconds. Easily fits through a narrow entry door.

Our slide has a couple of recessed puck lights and the switch was on the ceiling where it couldn't be reached when sitting down. Solved that by installing a 3-way (on/off/on) switch at each end. Not an easy job and had to fish wire through the slide's ceiling, peel away the luan plywood inside the wardrobe closet to get access to the wall cavity and run wiring inside the cavity behind the fridge. DW totally loves the new switches, woohoo!! ๐Ÿ™‚

The Lambright recliners are extremely well made, esp. in comparison to the old Lippert piece of crapola. They have proper steel springs under the seat cushions. The power recline works very smoothly and is quiet. Most importantly, they are soooo comfortable. Just spent 3 weeks in them and they're just so comfortable. In fact, it's hard to get up and go outside. When the TT is at home, now we can just go watch TV in it and it will feel like we're in a CG, lol...

This is a mod/upgrade that is highly recommended. And if your slide isn't quite deep enough, you can make a frame for it so it can overhang a bit. Only downside is the cost - we're in it for over $2K (USD). Definitely worth it!!!!!!

Sold the old jackknife sofa on CL and got a whopping $100 for it. Would rather have thrown it on a bonfire.

Note to self: make sure the dog is not laying under the footrest when you retract it (sorry Dougal).

Photos show the footrests retracted & extended and slide retracted.

19 REPLIES 19

myredracer
Explorer II
Explorer II
Bumpyroad wrote:
CharlesinGA wrote:


Never have figured out the purpose of a recliner, I don't have one at home, and never have liked it when I sat in one.........

Charles


you made me think, I have several recliners around and virtually never recline them. but don't really see the fuss at having one /two in a RV, they are very comfortable just to sit in, not recline.
bumpy


Are they manual or power recline? The power operated ones are great and have infinite adjustment of the leg rest between fully retracted and extended. The manual ones have zero appeal to me and have one or two fixed positions and you have to operate a lever or pull ring.

bartlettj
Explorer
Explorer
clarkster wrote:
I would love to dump my jack knife sofa.......it's just awful.
But the dang thing is in the rear of a rear living trailer and under it is the furnace.

I don't think a pair of recliners would make it......without ditching the entire furnace


Your best bet is to probably find an automotive or marine upholsterer and let them do something custom for you.

Range_Maggot_Bo
Explorer
Explorer
clarkster wrote:
I would love to dump my jack knife sofa.......it's just awful.


Yeah, I'd like to dump mine also. It's on the wish list, but way down. There are lots of other things I need before worrying about that crappy sofa. I'm thinking- hoping really- that a regular love seat sofa will fit where that jack-knife one is. But the good thing is- I don't have to sit in it. I have my own very comfortable leather recliners. Now why wouldn't they make those jack-knifes leather?!?

Bumpyroad
Explorer
Explorer
CharlesinGA wrote:


Never have figured out the purpose of a recliner, I don't have one at home, and never have liked it when I sat in one.........

Charles


you made me think, I have several recliners around and virtually never recline them. but don't really see the fuss at having one /two in a RV, they are very comfortable just to sit in, not recline.
bumpy

CharlesinGA
Explorer
Explorer
Be sure to save the removed components for future re-installation. If you go to sell (to someone like me) I would either walk away when I saw the recliners, or if I liked the RV so much that I couldn't live without it, would be dumping the recliners in your driveway before I left with it.

Never have figured out the purpose of a recliner, I don't have one at home, and never have liked it when I sat in one.........

Charles
'03 Ram 2500 CTD, 5.9HO six speed, PacBrake Exh Brake, std cab, long bed, Leer top and 2008 Bigfoot 25B21RB.. previously (both gone) 2008 Thor/Dutchman Freedom Spirit 180 & 2007 Winnebago View 23H Motorhome.

BarneyS
Explorer III
Explorer III
We purchased our Lafer recliner chair from Brad and Hall RV Furniture to replace the ugly, uncomfortable, too small recliner that came with our trailer. It is now about 10 years old and still looks and works like a new chair. I am sure you could find some comfortable RV furniture there that would work well for you and be comfortable as well. Be aware though that quality does not come cheaply!
Barney
2004 Sunnybrook Titan 30FKS TT
Hensley "Arrow" 1400# hitch (Sold)
Not towing now.
Former tow vehicles were 2016 Ram 2500 CTD, 2002 Ford F250, 7.3 PSD, 1997 Ram 2500 5.9 gas engine

Bumpyroad
Explorer
Explorer
myredracer wrote:


The RV manufacturers love to use bling to attract customers and that's the category jackknife sofas fall into. .


I would say the "bling" they thrust onto unwary buyers is the J sofa. if you want a good couch/bed get a magic sofa bed from bradd and hall.
saw a RV show recently that covered two potential buyers looking at RVs. she sat on the J sofa and kept shifting around and remarked that that was the first thing that they would replace if they bought it.
bumpy

myredracer
Explorer II
Explorer II
rv bill-e wrote:
Thank you for posting this, as we keep looking in vain for an RV with acceptable seating and it does appear that we will have to modify whatever we buy. It seems that comfort is way down on the priority list of most RV manufacturers, which means that it just must not be the make or break deal for most buyers that it is for us.


One thing I wanted those contemplating this to know is that if their slide is shallow like ours, it is possible to make a double recliner work that is somewhat deeper. If shopping for a brand new RV, it might be wise to look for a slide (with sofa in it) that is say 36" min. deep. Some slide floors are also higher off the floor compared to ours which is 1.5" and recliners are normally designed to sit on the same floor level which means if a person has short legs, they'll dangle off the floor.

The RV manufacturers love to use bling to attract customers and that's the category jackknife sofas fall into. They only look soft and comfortable. They sure aren't worth much when you go to sell them. Not sure how much they cost new but perhaps an RV could be ordered less the sofa?

I spent an awful lot of time looking up dimensions of the available products made for RVs and the info. from Lambright wasn't quite 100% clear. For ex., they say 3" is needed behind the recliner but I have it a 1" and it works just fine. Some wall huggers aren't true wall huggers either.

There aren't many manufacturers of RV specific furniture. Others are Flexsteel, Best Home Furnishings (BHF) and shop4seats.com.

myredracer
Explorer II
Explorer II
theoldwizard1 wrote:
Are the sofa in front of Murphy beds any more comfortable ?


Good question but not one I can answer. If it's typical RV furniture like our old Lippert sofa, I would say not. RV furniture is built using the lightest and least substantial methods and materials and the focus just isn't on comfort or longevity. If you were to see a piece of Lambright furniture, you'd likely be amazed at how well they are made.

The RV furniture manufacturers do make a hide-away bed and theater seating too and I suspect it's the same sort of quality as the jackknife sofas.

rv_bill-e
Explorer
Explorer
Thank you for posting this, as we keep looking in vain for an RV with acceptable seating and it does appear that we will have to modify whatever we buy. It seems that comfort is way down on the priority list of most RV manufacturers, which means that it just must not be the make or break deal for most buyers that it is for us.

theoldwizard1
Explorer
Explorer
Are the sofa in front of Murphy beds any more comfortable ?

myredracer
Explorer II
Explorer II
BarneyS wrote:
myredracer wrote:

As an aside, just noticed an odd thing on that Jayco page. The photo at the top shows what appears to be a Lippert frame (top mount coupler) while the photos below the floor plan def. shows a BAL frame.

How can you tell who the builder of the frame is by the location of the coupler? As far as I know, it is the trailer manufacturer who determines where the coupler is located - not the frame builder. I believe all frame manufacturers build all three types - top, middle, and bottom coupler frames.


While I haven't gone and looked at all the different Jayco models, all the ones I've seen at shows and in CGs have had the BAL frame (the big blue BAL sticker is one clue). The BAL A-frame tubing isn't welded to the underside of the I-beams, it's at the same elevation off the ground as the I-beams. I assume the coupler is mounted at the bottom of the A-frame to better match the typical TV and competitor's TTs? Curious though why the Jayco website shows 2 different types of frames on the same model line?

BarneyS
Explorer III
Explorer III
myredracer wrote:

As an aside, just noticed an odd thing on that Jayco page. The photo at the top shows what appears to be a Lippert frame (top mount coupler) while the photos below the floor plan def. shows a BAL frame.

How can you tell who the builder of the frame is by the location of the coupler? As far as I know, it is the trailer manufacturer who determines where the coupler is located - not the frame builder. I believe all frame manufacturers build all three types - top, middle, and bottom coupler frames.
2004 Sunnybrook Titan 30FKS TT
Hensley "Arrow" 1400# hitch (Sold)
Not towing now.
Former tow vehicles were 2016 Ram 2500 CTD, 2002 Ford F250, 7.3 PSD, 1997 Ram 2500 5.9 gas engine

Dusty_R
Explorer
Explorer
I would like to replace our dinette with a pair of recliners like that, but have not figured out how to do a table to eat off of then.

Dusty