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FLOOR-PLAN RECORD · 2027

Cardinal 37GALLEY

The Cardinal with the kitchen in the front cap and the bedroom at the back. Same length as the 36FUN, 910 lb lighter, and the second-highest cargo figure in the family.

Source checked
Cardinal 37GALLEY scale drawing: 42 ft 9 in long, 13 ft 5 in tall Side elevation drawn to scale from the published exterior length of 42 ft 9 in and exterior height of 13 ft 5 in. The outline is a generic fifth-wheel shape, not a profile of this unit. Roof sits 1 in under a 13 ft 6 in limit. Overall length is 2 ft 9 in longer than a 40 ft pad. 13 FT 6 IN CLEARANCE 13 ft 5 in 42 ft 9 in overall 40 FT PAD Roof: 1 in under a 13 ft 6 in limit Length: 2 ft 9 in longer than a 40 ft pad SCALE DRAWING FROM PUBLISHED DIMENSIONS

Drawn to scale from the published 42 ft 9 in length and 13 ft 5 in height, on a generic outline: 1 in under a 13 ft 6 in roof limit and 2 ft 9 in longer than a 40 ft pad.

A kitchen where the bedroom usually goes

Most fifth wheels put the bed over the hitch. The 37GALLEY puts the refrigerator, pantry, microwave, overhead cabinets, and sink up there, with a pair of hi-top chairs, and sends the bedroom to the rear: a 66 by 80 inch king in the rear slide, a dresser with television prep, a wardrobe, and a bath at the very back with shower, linen closet, and toilet. Between them the main level holds theater seating, an entertainment center with fireplace, and two hide-a-beds in facing slides, plus a second bath with a washer and dryer space behind a sliding door. Three slides and a 19-foot awning, the longest single awning drawn on any Cardinal.

The result is a plan that reads like a house with the kitchen at the entry end. The cook works up the steps in the cap; the living room and the guests' beds are in the middle; the owners sleep at the far end behind their own bath.

Forest River's 2027 37GALLEY drawing and figures →

The numbers that separate it from the 36FUN

Two Cardinals are drawn at 42 ft 9 in. They share a length and a rear master bedroom and almost nothing else. The differences below are the 37GALLEY's figures against the 36FUN's.

Dry weight910 lb lighter11,123 lb against 12,033 lb; third lightest of seven against heaviest
Cargo capacity895 lb more2,957 lb, second in the family, against the 36FUN's 2,062 lb
Sleepingone fewerup to 6 against up to 7; RVUSA figures
Pin weight15 lb lighter2,080 lb; GVWR is also 15 lb lower at 14,080 lb
Tanksidentical60 fresh, 76 gray, 76 black on both
Slides3 on bothhere the two hide-a-beds and the king; there the super sofa, a bunk, and the king

What moves when the kitchen moves forward

Pin share on the 37GALLEY is 18.7% of dry weight, fourth of seven, almost exactly the middle of the family. The kitchen appliances over the hitch push it above the rear-kitchen 33CHEF at 17.9%, and the rear bedroom pulls it below the front-living 36FL at 19.8%. That is the layout showing up in a single figure.

The practical question is the cap itself. A kitchen in the front cap sits up a set of steps from the entry and the living room, and on this drawing it holds the refrigerator, so every trip to the fridge from the sofas is a trip up the steps. The washer and dryer prep is on the main level behind the sliding door, next to the mid bath, rather than in the bedroom. And the master bath is at the extreme rear, as far from the entry as a room can be on a 42 ft 9 in trailer.

Specifications

Length42 ft 9 in
Dry weight11,123 lb
GVWR14,080 lb
Hitch / pin weight2,080 lb
Sleeping capacityUp to 6
Slides3
Fresh water60 gal
Gray water76 gal
Black water76 gal
Exterior height161 in
Cargo carrying capacity2,957 lb

Forest River labels UVW and cargo carrying capacity as estimated averages for a standard build.

Four checks that only apply to a front-kitchen plan

  1. Carry a bag of groceries from the entry door up the steps into the cap. That climb is the daily path to the refrigerator and pantry.
  2. Stand at the sink in the cap and check the counter height and the overhead cabinet reach; the cap floor is the raised section of the trailer and the ceiling there is the front-cap roof.
  3. Open both hide-a-beds with the two living-room slides out, then retract the slides and see what the aisle looks like. These two sofas are the guest beds behind the published capacity of six.
  4. Run the washer and dryer prep through its sliding door. It is on the main level between the living room and the rear bedroom, not in the bedroom, and the sliding door is the only interior door drawn on that hallway.

If the front kitchen is the draw, or the problem

Kitchen at the other endCardinal 33CHEF

The rear-kitchen Cardinal. It is 4 ft 6 in shorter and 565 lb lighter, sleeps the same six, carries 195 lb less pin weight, publishes 370 lb more cargo capacity, and clears a 40-foot pad where the 37GALLEY runs 2 ft 9 in past it. The bedroom goes back over the hitch.

Open record →Rear bedroom, front living insteadCardinal 36FL

Keeps the king at the back but fills the cap with sofas, theater seating, and the fireplace. It is 1 ft 8 in longer, 160 lb heavier, sleeps the same six, adds a fourth slide, and carries 155 lb more pin weight with 5 lb less cargo capacity.

Open record →Same length, a bunk room in the capCardinal 36FUN

Identical length and tanks, a rear master with its own bath just like this one, but the cap is a three-bunk bedroom. It weighs 910 lb more, sleeps one more, and publishes 895 lb less cargo capacity.

Open record →
View every Cardinal floor plan →
Sources and model year

Where every figure comes from

Dimensions, weights, GVWR, cargo capacity, tanks, the bed size, the awning length, and the room arrangement are from Forest River's 2027 Cardinal 37GALLEY page and drawing, read on 2026-08-15 and 2026-09-12. Sleeping capacity is from RVUSA's 2027 spec guide. Forest River publishes the Wildcat 37GALLEY with the same figures.