Leaderboard

We have a 2019 F-150 Lariat, 3.5 EcoBoost, FX4, Max Trailer Package, Anderson WDH. Have about 17,000 trailer miles mostly out west in the Mountains where we para-glide. My truck performance stat's mirror McMac's above so no need to repeat them. I must haul Ollie up steep grades, but not even close to John D's 18%. Generally mine are remote not paved, and 13% grade is what I see as a max grade on the truck computer. With a 6,000 Oliver EII, it is no problem going slow using the "Crawl" mode and 4wd. I have one section of 12 - 13% grade that I do 3 times a summer and I have no issues with this rocky, sometimes slick mountain road. However, last summer I had to come down this road after rain, lots of rain. I knew it was going to be a sloppy run and set up the F-150 using all the tools it had. Low range and locked the transmission into 2nd gear, locked the rear axle, 4X4, and set the crawl mode to about 6 MPH. At several really slick sections I manually lightly worked the trailer brakes to keep the speed to the set point and also to keep Ollie behind the truck and going the same direction. All the engineering worked better than expected. If I were to find myself in the same situation again, I would have: Waited a day if I could have. Dumped fresh and gray water tanks Loaded more stuff from Ollie into the truck and especially its bed Reduced air pressure in all tires by 10 to 12 PSI My grades are: For cross country running A+ For mountain paved roads A For sometimes graded mountain fire roads B+ If I were looking to purchase a new TV, I would get the same rig again. Geronimo John

Oh, I thought it was just me.

It looks like the only superintendents talking about that are Teton and Yellowstone, which are two extremely political positions, so they may just be trying to keep the locals happy. It’s possible, but there’d be a ton of work to do at this point to get seasonal help back, for both the parks and for ARA/Xanterra. Perhaps they could open the gates but with limited amenities? I don’t know, I could see something like backcountry access at parks like Big Bend reopening pretty safely, but it seems reckless to me at this point to think about opening major parks - Yellowstone is basically Disney with bison in terms of the crowds it attracts.

We are headed out to a Georgia state park this coming Monday for 3 days. I don’t see where camping in ones RV is a big deal. I can see issues with groups, etc. My one comment would be that a one size fits all set of restrictions is not necessarily appropriate. It is easier to communicate and “implement” so probably is why officials do it. We have a daughter in health care and told her we were going camping. She had much more of an issue with me going to Lowe’s for house projects than camping.

Like many Oliver owners, and forum lurkers - I repack my own wheel bearings, grease the chassis, and anything else that needs doing. Recently I did my wheel bearings, Dexter has a decent video on the topic if your so inclined, and I ended up replacing both sets on the left side of my Oliver. Once I clean them really well - I do a close inspection to ensure they are good to go back on. I found some indication of damage - these are the bigger inside bearings. If you look opposite the black dot- between the black lines you can see what I'm referring to. You cant see it, but where the indention is on the top side between the rollers is a polished spot, indicating it rubbed on the bearing race. I'm not sure if they were manufactured this way, or if damaged during assembly. I put new Timken's in their place. So perhaps some of the failings we have read about may have come about from this sort of longer term wear. These had 13K miles on them, the bearing cups/races looked fine. Hope this is of interest to ya'll. RB

With the rumblings of park openings, and perhaps campgrounds and boondocking reopening as the Covid 19 restrictions are relaxed in many areas, I have begun to wonder about the possibilities - during next 3 - 4 months for RV travel and places to go - regulations permitting. I don't want to rehash the whole topic of personal isolation, risk, politics, and such, just the thought that the opportunities may exist to actually take my Ollie out west - and do some exploring - 6 ft. at a time. As we usually shy away from the populated spots, I am hoping enough areas and rules are relaxed enough to permit camping with or without hookups. I don't need anything but a spot, the rest - we have.....its an Ollie after all, Solar, etc. I would head to Moab, but even the BLM type areas have been closed. Other than the commercial RV places, it appears slim Pickens. Right now - today - it doesn't appear we have many, if any, options. I am hopeful - come Mid may - that changes. I would like to head to elevation, west of Texas, north of NM, and will have until about mid July open. So wishful thinking, constrained by the current situation. has me stymied. Your thoughts?

John D. Very well said. Mahalo!

I've heard that most KOA's and other private CGs are open, which probably isn't of interest except that they could provide a night's stop along the way or a place to refill and dump tanks. If I were headed out, I'd probably look to USFS and BLM dispersed camping as my primary/only option, but perhaps like Mike said, some of the state and even national parks may start to open in the next few months. I have to admit that the thought of Yellowstone without tour busses is appealing, but then I know I'm only one of about 6 million having the same thought.

With the other end of the curve in sight ??? I would like to talk about the travel and camping possibilities for the future - it seems a new thread is in order - so I'll start one, if this is ok, if not- the moderators will adjust I'm sure.

I pull an E2 with a 2016 tundra and have done so comfortably for about 10,000 mi. I have pulled multiple trips to the CO mountains without issue. I carry a generator, fuel cans, a loaded cooler, and tools in the truck bed. I fill up my water tank and don’t use an Anderson hitch. I occasionally do 70-75mph on the interstate and so far have never experienced trailer sway on this rig. The current incentives are causing me to toy with the idea of getting a new truck. Even though Fords and Chevys have a few more whistles and bells, At this point I will probably replace my tundra with a newer one just because of how well the truck pulls the trailer.

We heard some positive news this morning that our National Parks are in the process of opening back up. Hopefully this is accurate. -Patriot

There is no guidance on a replacement interval. It is a judgement call by the tech or owner who does the job. I personally would want to trash the original cheaply made bearings by 15,000 miles. Mine are OEM and have been repacked once, and in my mind are are due now (12,000 miles). I have Timkens and good seals ready to go. Once you have high quality parts installed, I would let them go indefinitely with regular visual inspection and lubing at about a 10k interval. I think it is really important to watch for signs of distress - play and overheating, grease leakage, funny noises - and be ready to act right away in case there is trouble. Having a seal leak and screw up one brake will ruin a trip. The brake may lock up, making it impossible to tow the trailer without adjusting the controller really low. Which makes it dangerous if your TV has marginal brakes. Disc brakes have huge advantages over drum brakes in so many ways. The biggest one IMHO is that a failed seal will just dump grease outside the hub, not all over the brake mechanism. Once you contaminate one drum brake, they must be replaced in pairs. What a stupid design..... John Davies Spokane WA

Last fall we had a condensation issue with the fan that caused the lid drive motor to open and close on it’s own without use doing anything. I pulled the fuse and after we returned home I removed the circuit board and took care of any water issues with all electrical parts. The fan has been working correctly since then until last weekend. After removing the circuit board, I ran a bench test on all of it's functions, I discovered the lid drive motor circuit was putting out a constant close signal. Because of this constant close signal that is why the motors gear assembly broke, it just kept trying to close the lid. Since we have had the trailer almost 5 years I just order a complete new unit from Camping World. I will salvage all of the old parts that are worth keeping.

I enlarged the weep holes and added rain gutters above the windows, so I will just have see what happens once we get back to actually using Ollie. My back up are towels inside - to wick up the water......... those sideways, wind driven, rains are going to drive water inside - regardless. Its the design - stupid (me) . Of course I'm looking for a source for "Artisanal" towels, not to be out coutured by Overland. 😉

The LEII meets our requirements, would not purchase a larger unit.

I thought the gallon freezer bags were clear....