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It seems that I just can't leave the Outlaw Oliver alone. This is a mod I did last summer. It is a rear basket to carry some of our stuff, two of the folding Zero Gravity we got at Sam's Club and two of the folding Sports Chairs we got at Harbor Freight and two of the little folding Camp Tables we got at Walmart. The mod was born from the need to get the above mentioned items out of the back of the truck. The are relatively light weight but, due to their bulk, they took up a LOT of room. The basket started life as a Aluminum Cargo Carrier from Harbor Freight that I bought (but never used) for the original Outlaw Oliver many years ago. I removed the single receiver that was attached to the bottom and built a custom frame to set the carrier on. Then I fashioned a steel cage to attach to the top of the carrier. It required moving the tag to the the carrier and I designed a new mount for it. The items are placed inside through a removable "door" in the rear. We had a custom cover made to match to one on the front that covers the generator. Zippers on the rear allow access to the door. The whole affair mounts to two receivers on the rear bumper like the ones that Oliver supplies for their bicycle mount. Empty, the basket and cover weigh 78 pounds. [caption id=attachment_42881" align="alignnone" width="225] Completed cage, basket and custom carrier.[/caption] [caption id=attachment_42882" align="alignnone" width="225] Latch for the "Door"[/caption] [caption id=attachment_42883" align="alignnone" width="225] Milled leg on the custom carrier.[/caption] [caption id=attachment_42884" align="alignnone" width="225] Redesigned tag mount.[/caption] [caption id=attachment_42885" align="alignnone" width="225] Cover closed.[/caption] [caption id=attachment_42880" align="alignnone" width="225] Cover open.[/caption]

Get a 1/2 inch drive, 150 ft lb torque wrench. You will encounter wheels with higher torque values. A torque wrench is most accurate in the middle of its range, so you don't want to use a 100 ft lb wrench on a 95 ft lb nut. Plus the bigger wrenches offer more leverage. You can pick up a smaller 3/8 inch and 1/4 inch one as needed later for small stuff; and maybe a 10 to 50 inch pound torque screwdriver for little screws, especially if you work on firearms or fishing reels or similar delicate things.. NEVER use a torque wrench to remove stuff - you can over-stress it and cause damage. Don't use it to run down the fastener, only to tighten to the final value. Don't ever tighten beyond its maximum limit, and never put a cheater bar on one. You have to hold it in the middle of the grip area for it to work accurately. It is a precision instrument that needs to be used with care. A click type is by far the easiest to use. If you drop it, it may go out of calibration. Store it in a drawer or in the case it comes in. Some shops like aircraft repair stations have requirements that their torque wrenches are recalibrated routinely and often. For a car or trailer, close with an out of calibration wrench is good enough. Any POS Harbor Freight wrench will be way more accurate than your bare hands. People who say that they can correctly tighten a bolt without using a torque wrench are mistaken. When I went through A & P school we had a display of lots of different sized fasteners threaded into a steel plate. We were all told to torque them by hand to "tight". Then we did it again with different torque wrenches. Except for one or two lucky guys, everybody who did not use a wrench either over-tightened or under-tightened all the fasteners. By a lot.... I cringe when I watch a You Tube video of a mechanic working on suspension, drivetrain or engine parts without any sign of a torque wrench, especially when I see him banging the bolts tight with a big impact gun. It is stupid, wrong, unsafe and potentially dangerous to mis-torque critical fasteners. The exception is tire shops that install lug nuts with an impact gun, as long as they use a torque stick (limiter extension) set at a lower torque, then follow up with by hand with a torque wrench to the final value. http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/how-to/a6613/torque-wrench-101-how-to-get-the-right-amount-of-force/ John Davies Spokane WA

I sure hope the spare is alloy, like all the spare wheels in the past have been. Why would they change? http://olivertraveltrailers.com/topic/changing-tires-on-ollie/ I plan to store my cover away and drive with the spare naked and exposed to the world.... John Davies Spokane WA

Canoe 12, On my Elite II (hull #117) the spare tire is 215/70R16. And, even though Randy's tires are Goodrich, my Michelin's are the same - LT225/75R16. And, I have just received an email from Jason confirming that the spare is now the same size as the regular tires (LT225/75R16) with a slightly larger cover to accommodate that size. Bill

Well, like I said, the pro's and con's of air versus Nitrogen could go on and on. John, I agree that if I need air in my Ollie, I will not hesitate to pull over at the closest Discount Tire and get them topped off with air or use my portable air compressor I always carry, without a second thought about Nitrogen. My dad was in the trucking (20 plus rigs) business for 40 years and I grew up in the 50's and 60's changing tires and flats on 18 wheelers daily being the cheapest labor, along with my 5 brothers. Some moisture or signs of rust on a tire rim with 1 million miles on it, who cared. "Fix the flat son and get this rig back on the road." Can still hear him now! Besides, Nitrogen was not invented yet. :) Side note: Nitrogen gas constitutes 78% of the earth's air. This is a fact! OTT is putting Nitrogen in the tires, but that will be your choice after you roll out of their. As I originally stated, I merely was wondering if the new spare will have it too. More to my question was what is the foot pounds of torque recommended in order to purchase a click torque wrench. Looks like, as John stated, will require a phone call or add to the list of questions when I take possession in April and document in my Ollie bible to keep in tow. Good night to all, Malcolm M.

I have this option too. 78% nitrogen instead of 100%. It turns out to be arguably better than filling tires with water, oil, propane or sand. Since Ollie will be operating at ground level, instead of 30,000 ft. elevation and at normal highway speeds, frozen moisture is probably not an issue. I also want to be able to top off or adjust the pressure without looking for a tire shop or buying a nitrogen bottle and regulator to haul around with me. I often adjust the pressure in the desert or mountain snow. Even without those adjustments, I like to check my tires before every trip. In all the tires I've owned, and that's lot, I've never seen any wheel damage or interior tire damage from moisture. This is one of those gimmicks that can be endlessly debated. But one point that seems factual is that tire shops have found a way to help people unload more of their dollars. I wonder how Oliver got all the air out of the tires before they filled them with Nitrogen? http://www.pedrosgarage.com/Site_5/Nitrogen_or_Air.html

I have our tires filled with a special blend of 78% nitrogen and 21% oxygen with a few other mixed gases and farts and so forth.

LT225/75R16 115/112Q M&S Sorry no info on spare.

Wow, Reed and Karen. Busy schedule. Look forward to being able to go-go-go like you two. Malcolm M.

Thanks. We got most of the bells, and a few of the whistles. We got the standard layout as room for a grandchild or two would be available. We have designed and will install our own graphic on the front and back. No extra hatches or propane outlets as we plan to install our own. As we listen to the wise counsel of informed owners we have ordered the upgraded suspension and 30lb propane tanks. Just now we wait, and see where we want to go.

I am on my 5th truck and have gone through a litany of different models and makes from small imports to the larger domestics and others in between. Likewise I have also tried just about every thing available to deal with the truck bed from nothing, to FG topper shells to roll up tonneau's and have come to the conclusion there is no perfect answer and regardless what you decide on there will be some buyers remorse at some point. For my last two trucks I have used the rollup tonneau covers but at times really wish I had a FG topper shell. But we also often load lots of other things into our trucks from landscaping materials to lumber, plywood and other items where not having a topper is a huge benefit. The rollup tonneau allows either one of us to stand up in the truck bed almost instantly, and if need be we can load things that are taller than the truck bed sides with ease. This arrangement also allows us to attach our Thule rack mount system to the side rails which then allows us to carry kayaks on the crossbars, and road bikes below in the truck bed. The down side of course is those items are not weather protected, and their in lies the rub. Good luck with your decision.

I vote for the camper shell. I have a Leer 100XQ which is color matched to the vehicle, has three 12 V outlets, interior lights (LED), gear net on the ceiling for clothes etc, and fully carpet lined. Also has heavy gauge screens plus small gauge screens (can transport dogs if need be with the heavy screens). I have a collapsible cot which fits the length of the bed, thick Thermarest that goes on the cot, a 12 V fan for circulation during the summer months. I find the camper shell very convenient for transporting most anything and keeping them dry. I can even put my mountain bike in there and lock the tail gate and the window latch. It also is set up with Thule rails on top so that I can attach Thule accessories such as one of their rooftop cargo carriers.