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There have been some changes in Oliver's service structure as of this week. Effective immediately, the number for scheduling service or ordering parts is 866-205-2621. This number will be answered and/or monitored by Jason Essary. All calls placed to this number will go to Jason's desk. After five rings it will transfer to his cell phone. If he is unable to answer immediately, leave a message and he will return your call. These changes are due, in part, to a recent problem with their VoIP system which resulted in calls to the service department going to an inoperative number thus not being answered. The outage occurred without Oliver having knowledge of it for a few days. They wish to apologize for all inconveniences that were incurred by the owners. Please do not call Richie Carroll's cell phone any longer to request service. The goal here is to have service requests responded to in a more efficient manner.

Thanks Angela. Yes there is a story. Our mom passed away in December 2014 (at 80). She had always dreamed of traveling in an RV after retirement but that never worked out for her. She had a thing for ladybugs (and moose). This is our way of bringing her along on our travels. One thing I have learned (as a breast cancer survivor) is you have to live your dreams while you can. My sister is retiring in May and our longer travels will start then. But in the meantime we will learn the Ladybug's systems and camp on the weekends all around the Atlanta area. Hope to see you on the road. Robin

My sister and I picked up our Ladybug Oliver, Oct 12th and camped overnight at at Thousand Trails Natchez Trace to check out all the systems. Then we drove back to Sugar Hill, Ga and camped for the next week at two campgrounds on Lake Lanier. So far we are extremely happy with our choice and look forward to many camping adventures ahead. Ladybug Sisters, Robin and Susan

Personally, if I leave someone a message and they've not returned my call in two hours, they're getting a return call. After two weeks, surely you've realized it has slipped between the cracks. Perhaps I was not clear earlier, Oliver had a breakdown in their phone system and NO MESSAGES were getting through. They disappeared into the ozone. For about 10 days. None. Now call back on the provided number. If they don't return your call in a timely manner, call me. 662-255-0181

Nice looking rig - I'm jealous. Since our plant tour in August we have been looking and are getting very close to placing an order. I visit the forum almost daily to read and learn what I can about options and camping in an Oliver so we an make the best choices for us. We just returned from a trip out west in our 5th wheel and plan to put it up for sale as soon as the slide out is fixed AGAIN! Our normal routine is camp for a month and work on it for a month.....hoping for better quality from Oliver and we are really looking forward to not having slides :-( Enjoy and maybe we'll see you on the road soon. Darrell & Kathy

Ann and I overlaped with Don for our Service visit and had very much the same experience. Great Hospitality, good service, and a feeling afterward that we had made the right decision in purchasing our Oliver Trailer. Our second Factory Tour was enlightening and educational, thanks Brent.

It's a bit windy here on the west coast and I bought these really nice paracord adjusters on Amazon and thought that I would pass them on because they really work great :) https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B013FOVIGC/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s03?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Then I bought these stakes and they came with the 4 pieces of paracord that made the perfect combo for securing our awning in the wind with the Awning Deflapper Max https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01AT2L34A/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s03?ie=UTF8&psc=1 I'm using rocks to hold the cords down here at the Pacific Ocean but the stakes work when used. A week on the ocean :) Reed

I called Ritchie Carroll a couple of months ago to schedule service for my Oliver Elite II. I made the appointment for 1 p.m. on Tuesday, October 17. When I arrived, I sat down with Richie and reviewed the work order that he had prepared based on a couple of telephone conversations and a few email exchanges. Oliver is using a new system to create and update work orders. I was able to view the work order on Richie's monitor and approved what he had prepared. Service included installing a composting toilet, installing the new bike rack (mount only--I plan to rig it with Thule components that will work with my fat tire bike), a new cable for the basement door, repair the chain to cap connection on the fresh water inlet, fixing a leak in the hot water heater at the anode, installation of the water accumulator, the fresh water tank fix to allow it to be filled completely, and installation of the new window blind clips (they now use 6 clips per blind). The work was completed by 5 p.m. on Wednesday. The work was done professionally and the camper was thoroughly cleaned inside after they completed the work. While in Hohenwald, I spent quite a bit of time at the sales office. Highlights included meeting and talking to both new Oliver owners picking up and owners in town for service. It's so nice to actually meet and get to know people you've communicated with on the forum. Oliver owners are the best. I also can report that Anita and Heather are as sweet and welcoming as they have been since I met them. Anita even brought food to the office and offered lunch to all of the office employees and the customers who were there for service and pickup. The food was delicious! I met and spend quite a bit of time talking to Brent Robinson, the new Business Development Director and Kelly Robinson, the new Sales Manager. They have significant experience in the industry and I believe they were great hires by the Oliver family. Brent gave me a factory tour yesterday. I toured the factory in October 2015 when I ordered my Elite II, but I learned much more during the tour Brent gave. He has dug deep into the manufacturing process and shared so much knowledge. For any current owner or prospective purchaser who wants to know more about how these campers are built and why they cost as much as they do, a tour led by Brent is a must. These campers are built on a philosophy that is the opposite of what drives most of the rest of the industry. Decisions are made on what components/processes will create the best, long-lasting product, not on what will be the least expensive. Kudos to Oliver for being committed to building by far the highest quality camper in the U.S. As most of the forum members know, Oliver has grown substantially in terms of the number of campers sold. They are having growing pains, but my two days at the office and plant convinced me that they are working very hard to ramp up and to provide the same high-quality sales and service that marks the quality of their product. I don't think the people at Oliver would argue that they are there yet, but rather than making excuses, the comments I heard from employees focused on their high goals and efforts to reach them. For those of you who have asked for a higher degree of customization as your Oliver is being built, it's clear that Oliver is moving away from offering the degree of customization that characterized their approach in the early days. They've made the most popular options standard equipment and avoid customization to keep the campers moving down the line more efficiently. I think the result will be an increase in the already high build quality and an ability to deliver more campers to more customers on a timely basis. So, my service visit was positive, productive and very educational. It reinforced my opinion that purchasing my Oliver was a great decision!

How do people feel about creating an “America the Beautiful” photo section so members can post beautiful & interesting photos of areas they have visited while traveling in their Ollies? We could post a brief description & location so others could see what we are finding and possibly add the site to their list of “places to visit” during their Ollie travels. The reason I ask; I recently posted some awesome photos on my “Clever Beast travels” topic and don’t think many saw them. I know that I have found photos in various topics that have made me want to travel to those areas. I would love to be able to share and see what others are seeing while out on the road. Would anybody else be interested in doing this? Comments & opinions appreciated. Smiles....Kathy

Bill, I’ve been using the Where’s Ollie thread too. In fact I was just getting ready to post some pics from our trip to Colorado and Utah last month. Folks need to post there to bring it out of the past! Mike

Posted photos in the "Where's Ollie" thread, but it's not always seen on the home front page. We need a section always seen on the front page. While camping with our Ollies, it's so easy to see beautiful scenes. Most are not planned, that's why I keep a point & shoot camera in my pocket while camping. Here's an example, walking on the beach in SC one morning while camping: Here's another one on the Blue Ridge Parkway: Bill

Congrats on the LadyBug. When you hit the open road, in or around May, be sure to get off the Interstate. You will find that your Oliver has such nice road manners that you will find country roads are a pleasure. If you got solar you won't even have to plug in anywhere. You will find those country diners, yes the ones with the purple vinyl seats, serve some of the best meals and company. We have to assume you are going to head north to introduce the LadyBug to some moose, if so we may see you in passing or around the campfire. You might even be able to watch them pull your lobster direct from the sea. Think Spring...

What a wonderful tribute! And how awesome to be able to travel with your sister.. My mom’s diagnosis of metastatic cancer this year made my husband and I do a double take and realize everything we’ve been putting off. We stopped talking about getting an Ollie and jumped in! Cheers on being a survivor!! So wonderful! Will look for you on the road! Happy trails!!!!! -Angela

I think it would be a wonderful idea! I love looking at the pictures of where everyone camps. I love the videos made...and I always learn something from them. In fact, I was introduced to OTT with Buzzy's videos. As a wannabe, pictures give me so many ideas. My vote is: Do it!!

I can’t recommend a specific unit because mine is a pretty old cube heater. I can suggest that two small heaters are better than one bigger one. Look for ones with 500, 1000 and 1500 watt settings. Set them up at opposite ends on the cabin and leave all the access panels open, including the Service Only ones. Make sure the bath door is wide open. Having two heaters running on lower settings will give better coverage and provide some redundancy if one should quit. Unless it fails and pops the circuit breaker. Don’t exceed 1500 watts total for the circuit. If you can run a seperate cord from another outlet (on a different house breaker), you will have a failsafe system, and you can turn them to higher power settings. Unless there is a prolonged power outage: if you are not able to visit the trailer after a day with no power, then you had better make sure you do a complete winterization, then you won’t need heaters or worry about it. I think heaters are OK but they should not be the only means for protecting the trailer. Do you live in a humid climate? If so you might want to get a good medium capacity residential dehumidifier. That will be of more benefit than just circulating slightly warm moist air around. If you live where the humidity is low, it isn’t needed.... John Davies Spokane WA

Kathy, Agree, would like to see an "America the Beautiful" forum section for photos and location descriptions while camping with our Ollies. Thanks for the idea, Bill

Congratulations Robin & Susan! Ladybug is perfect & I love your decal. My mom & dad (both gone now) loved CB radios & my mom’s handle was ‘Ladybug’. Happy travels!

You may want to take a look at Cloudland Canyon State Park in North Georgia near the Tennessee border. We camped there last year on our way out to Alaska...spent a couple days and did some hiking. We also like State parks - while we didn't do any biking there, they advertise a lot of bike trails ad the scenery is nice. It is only 25 miles from Chattanooga.

I think that's a terrific idea, kathy. Sherry

What a wonderful tribute to your mother! My parents retired in their late 50's. They purchased a used Airstream before they retired, but didn't travel with it very much. Once they retired, they moved to a house in the mountains in Eastern Arizona at 8200 feet. They left in late October or early November each year in a series of riveted trailers (another Airstream, an Avion, and a Streamline. They traveled with their trailers until the snow melted--usually in May. I took one of their Airstreams on a trip from Nebraska to the Canadian Rockies when I was 20 years old and didn't camp with an RV of any type until I purchased my Oliver in 2016. I think about my parents everytime I hitch up and hit the road. I hope your Oliver gives you as much pleasure as mine has given me and that you continue to have fond memories of your mother as you go camping.

Hi Robin and Susan!!! Congratulations and wishing you many many safe a memorable journeys!! We saw your ladybug Oliver when we were at Hohenwald for warranty work!! Love it!!!

Thanks for comments/opinions...it was just food for thought. In honesty, I've never been to the western states so I find the photos everybody shares delightful! I can dream of seeing them in person some day.....Kathy

Maybe if they put the # of views in the header, you could see right away how many times people have seen it. We have voices & posts on there now and I've always liked seeing the number of topic views because that's normal in many forums and it lets you know for sure how many times a topic has been looked at. Maybe just rename Campgrounds and Parks or add them all together. Also, I think location for many of us is an issue... I've read your thread a couple times and seen the pics, but alas I'm stuck right now on the west coast :) Reed

Kathy - I'd say "go for it". That's really the only way to see if others are interested. Perhaps GPS coordinates would also help others find the spot. Bill

I like your graphics! Congratulations..... Mike

Robin & Susan - Welcome to the adventure! By now the two of you are pro's at the Oliver style. Bill

Nice looking set up ladies :) We have a lot of the same options, luv the Truma :)

Looking good, ladies.

I encourage anyone visiting the factory to arrange a factory tour with Brent. I can't pass on all of the new things I learned about how an Oliver is built, but a few of things stand out. The first is the material they use to reinforce the fiberglass where it needs extra strength. I don't recall what the material is called, but it has a tight honeycomb construction and is relatively thin and very strong. Oliver uses it where other manufacturers of fiberglass products (especially boats) use wood. Brent showed me an area where pieces of this material cut in various sizes and shapes are stored. The second thing is that Oliver employees use small rollers to hand roll the fiberglass to remove air from the fiberglass. The rollers are very small and I watched two employees use these rollers going over a small area of fiberglass many, many times to remove the air. Brent said it is very unusual to do this by hand, but it's very important to make the fiberglass strong. A third thing I was struck by is the fact that Oliver makes all of the wiring harnesses in the campers in-house rather than having them made overseas with cheap labor. They think it's really important to ensure quality. These are expensive campers, but I'm convinced that Oliver is driven to employ methods and materials to endure high quality, longevity and low maintenance rather than finding less expensive alternatives. You get what you pay for!

While preparing Twist to be put away for the winter I thought that I'd give "Semi-chrome" metal polish a try on that rear bumper. It works nicely! I really didn't take a bunch of time - since the bumper will only get water spotted again while in storage over the winter, but, all the existing water spots came off along with road tar and the general dull appearance. If you can't find "semi-chrome" then I would think that "Flitz" or "Mother's" metal polish would work as well. Note that this is only for those that have the polished bumpers. Bill

I'll join the group on the wash and wax thing- sure is pretty! Exterior detailer works well for quick touch-ups. Particularly for those fresh bugs on the nose. Assuming that one has the polished bumper - I've used a product called "never dull". But, it is a bunch of work with less than what I would call perfect results. Next I'll probably go to a metal polish with a mild abrasive like "semi-chrome". Bill

By coincidence, we just finished washing and waxing Ollie. And, yes, it is a good feeling having Stan (our Tundra) and Ollie gleaming and ready to head out to CA. I, too, would like to know how to get that bumper as shiny as possible. We have had good results with these products on the gelcoat: Gel-Gloss RV Wash and Wax - 128 oz. Turtle Wax T-477R ICE Spray Wax - 20 oz.