Leaderboard

I have given this information to hundreds of Oliver owners over the past 12 years. Don't ever run your jacks all the way down to the ground. Always place a block or pad on the ground and let the jack foot sit on that. We use a 6" piece of treated 4x6 stood on end under each rear jack. This accomplishes two things: # 1 - Depending on the height of the your block/pad, it takes much less time to lower and raise the jack. #2 - When you drive off after forgetting to raise one (or both) the rear jacks it will simply slide off the block/pad without bending the lower leg. Repair will cost you about $500 each and, unless you're pretty handy, a trip to Hohenwald. I made it 10 years before lowering one jack in the rain one night (I have remote jack switches inside) because I was too lazy to go outside and get wet putting the block under it. It was absolutely the one and only time I had failed to heed my own advice and it bit me in the ass the next day when I started to drive off. It is a matter of when, not if. Luckily I was at home when this happened. If I had been on the road when this occurred, I would have been stuck. The leg can not retract when it is bent back at a 45 degree angle and I wouldn't have had a reciprocating saw to cut the bottom off to be able to move on.

Update: Two weeks ago we drove to Plains, GA and took possession of our new OLEII. It is a 2016 and had only 6000 miles on it. It is in pristine condition and we couldn’t be happier. We found it here in the Classified area of this forum. We took it to Roosevelt State Park for it’s maiden voyage this past weekend. We have reservations for a site at the Rally in September and can’t wait to me some fellow Oliver Owners.

Safety and stability when you have a flat tire. I have an Oliver Elite single axle, hull #73. I have traveled near and far in it with no issues, until this year when returning from Quartzsite, AZ. I have often wondered what it would be like if I had a flat tire when I was driving? Yes, I have a TPMS, frequently check air pressure, etc. I hate driving in heavy traffic, especially in a large city pulling a trailer. To go to Quartzsite from home (Alabama) the better route is through Dallas/Fort Worth. I have learned that the best time to go through a large city is early on Sunday morning. Everyone is asleep, getting ready for church or going a short distance to work. I spent the night in Weatherford, Texas, looking down the hill at Fort Worth. I left early watching the sun rise in the East. I traveled I-20 through Fort Worth without incident. As I entered Dallas, there was lots of road construction. Soon the lanes were constricted, winding and heavy concrete barriers on both sides with nowhere to get off. Suddenly, I heard a loud bang and a car came around me waving pointing down at my trailer. In my rearview mirror I could see my trailer was listing heavily to the right. My TPMS was beeping. I knew I had a flat tire but nowhere to stop, concrete barriers / construction on both sides. It was 2 miles to the next exit. At the first exit I pulled into a shopping center. My tire was shredded and the rim was severely damaged, but MY OLIVER HANDLED BEAUTIFULLY! My fear was that a single axle trailer would be unstable at interstate speeds- Not! I was able to change to my spare but later looking in the rearview, the spare is a smaller tire and the trailer was listing to the right. I had a long day to drive and was uncomfortable not having a spare. I stopped at Firestone with the intent of getting a regular sized tire and wheel. No luck, Firestone did not sell wheels, Sunday and nothing open that sold wheels, but MY OLIVER HANDLED BEAUTIFULLY! My fear was that a single axle trailer would be unstable at interstate speeds- Not! I was able to change to my spare but later looking in the rearview, the spare is a smaller tire and the trailer was listing to the right. I had a long day to drive and was uncomfortable not having a spare. I stopped at Firestone with the intent of getting a regular sized tire and wheel. No luck, Firestone did not sell wheels but Firestone was able to put a regular tire on my spare wheel. Firestone told me that they found a piece of rebar in the hub. LESSONS LEARNED: Be careful in heavy construction It is difficult/impossible to find a spare tire/wheel on Sunday. I now carry the small spare in the trailer cover and a regular sized spare in my truck. No spare when your spare is on the ground. Best Lesson- Olivers handle well when you are running on the rim and nowhere to get off the interstate- Travel Safe !! Coy Gayle

Not a busy morning and had my Ollie setting in the driveway. Here you go. Had it up in twenty mph wind but would still not go more than that. Straps seem to hold the awning down well. Not they circle over top of the awing.

I often try and read back through posts of years past on this forum to learn from past experiences and to try and not to post up a question that has been asked. But I am guilty of doing so. That said, there is a wealth of knowledge here and always a pearl to be gained by just reading old posts. On the lighter side this morning I stumbled upon this link posted by DavidS a few years ago and I really got few good laughs. Thank you DavidS. When my wife and I camp our first goal as guests to any campground is to be decent and respectful of other campers in all that we do. It’s just the cloth we are cut from, perfect no. This link pretty much highlights everything we are not. I decided to post this as it certainly made me laugh as I read through it. Certainly it will generate a few interesting funny stories from camping trips past you may choose to share. A dose of humor never hurts. For me the dryer the humor the better. Enjoy the read...maybe share a funny or not so funny obnoxious experience you have witnessed. This article pretty much nails it. http://travellogs.us/Technical Info/Obnoxious Camper.htm

Here is a picture of both fans for reference. The white Caframo fan is 12v and cost $99. The black Lemoistar fan is 5v USB and cost $16. Each fan has a different purpose for me. The Caframo is generally used for cooling or air movement. The Lemoistar replaced the fan below which topgun2 gave me to help reduce false alarms from the Atwood propane/CO sensor under the dinette table. The USB flexible stick fan lasted about 2 weeks for me. So I ordered a 3 pack from Amazon, sent one to topgun2 to replace his. And my new one last 3 weeks. Then I ordered the Lemoistar for mounting on the wall under the table. And it works well for the intended purpose. I ultimately replaced the Atwood sensor which solved the false alarm issue. So we now use the Lemoistar where ever needed. But we never travel with either fan mounted or unsecured. Mossey

So very true! I try to be polite, but at times I will just say come back in half an hour.... If somebody smokes me out and leaves their site with a fire burning, I will go dump a gallon of water on it. Morons....! Maybe a gallon of gas would be more appropriate, while they are next to it. 🤨 Squeaking, worn out trailer suspensions, popping and banging in the middle of the night drive me nuts. That is my worst complaint. I love the relative silence of a well lubed Ollie. If you don’t extend the jacks and don’t unhitch, you can sneak out in the early morning without too much extra noise and mayhem. John Davies Spokane WA

Oh, I think I've met those same late night arrivers. Three of them in 5th wheels, with all the idling diesels, yelling, clanging, etc. We all have to arrive late at times, but for those of us who worry about bothering other campers, you really appreciate how quickly it is to set up an Ollie. Another good rule to remember is that if you arrive at an almost empty campground, be sure to pick a spot right next to the only other person there. They'll appreciate the company. Fortunately, we don't use campgrounds unless we have to, and as quiet as the Ollie is, campground noises don't bother us much anymore. But in our tent camping days, we definitely had plenty of neighbors learning to play bongos at midnight, etc. I've found that most of the bad neighbors just don't realize that they're annoying everyone else, and have had good luck just politely asking people if they'd mind not chopping firewood at 2am.

FYI the clack clack clack sound is the spring loaded override clutch built into the big drive gear on top of the main shaft. It is supposed to make that sound and it hurts nothing. Other than your nerves, maybe. It is a little too loud. I am a believer in blocks, I certainly never want to drive off with a jack touching the ground. I place a red streamer around the gearshift for unusual situations so I will think extra hard before moving it. Like .... “Is my ARB fridge power cable plugged into the trailer?” It has saved my butt once already. John Davies. Spokane WA

This is good advice given to us 4 years ago by Steve. We use legos and blocks to keep jack movement to just a few inches. I also have lines marking the up position so we don’t raise jacks to the click-click-click point. Had a jack come off the track once doing that and had to get the jack handle out to get it going again. This was taken at Gros Ventre Campground at Grand Teton last year. You can see the block on the legos and the jack down just a few inches.

ThomB87, A great looking Ollie, very partial to the silver swooshes. Thanks for posting the support pole picks. -Patriot

Funny article. Funny because there is some truth there. We’ve mostly had good neighbors but have had bad ones too. Other annoying things are folks that want to talk while you’re backing into your site or while you are going through your set up or breakdown routine or when you are dumping. Also, neighbors who build a smoky fire when the breeze brings the smoke into our site, then they leave to go do something. Being a good camper has a lot to do with being considerate of others. Mike

The caframo fans have awesome reviews, for decades. It's all about how much work you want to do, and how much you want to spend. Caframo is not inexpensive. But a known quantity in the boating world.

This is a great way to watch the Thunderbirds airshow... my Other Half in a Cabelas branded Zero Gravity lounger. I agree they are too bulky to always bring along, but I usually miss them if I don’t throw them in the truck.... Sometimes I will open one up in the garage and just sit next to “Mouse”, pretending I am off in the real world instead of quarantined.... how very sad and pathetic is that!? John Davies Spokane WA

Any photos showing these awning poles in use?

While two dogs and two adults is doable, the limiting factor IMHO is floor space. The center isle is very narrow and there is hardly any room under the dinette. If the dogs are calm and well behaved, then maybe it will work OK. For our two 40 lb doodles ..... we and they are MUCH happier when they stay at home. John Davies Spokane WA

Hi Paul and Donna, Like you, our Ollie is our first camper, and we had a lot to learn. Also like you, we delayed our pickup, in our case because of work obligations. During this waiting time I did a lot of research on what was needed for a trailer, as well as where we wanted to camp. The anticipation was lots of fun! There have been many discussions on this and other forums as to what to bring for pickup. Rather than putting my list up here, I am posting the sites that I found most useful in making my list of what to buy and bring for pickup. http://olivertraveltrailers.com/topic/preparing-for-your-oliver-pick-up-day/ http://olivertraveltrailers.com/topic/supplies-for-picking-up-oliver/ http://olivertraveltrailers.com/topic/buzzys-delivery-day/#post-34668 http://www.airforums.com/forums/f48/things-to-get-started-144940.html http://rvroadtrip.us/library/what_do_i_need_in_my_new_camper.php http://www.backroadtravelers.com/outfittingrv.html http://www.rvtechmag.com/tech/45_outfitting.php http://travellogs.us/Technical%20Info/Essential%20equipment.htm http://travellogs.us/Technical%20Info/Check%20list%20RVing%20Things.htm Our tow vehicle was packed to the gills on pickup, and we brought the must-haves, and some nice-to-haves. In our household coffee makings things are must-haves! In the past year and a half, the number of nice-to-haves and decadent-items has certainly increased, but that has been part of the fun. The search functions on this forum are certainly lacking, and hope there are improvements when Jason rolls out the new forum. Try the search to answer your questions, but if that fails ask away on the forum. This is an incredibly knowledgeable and helpful group. Look forward to meeting you at the rally.