Leaderboard

Update, I don't have Rodney Lomax's direct email so I emailed (see below) support with request to forward it to Rodney. I almost immediately received a response from Jason Essary (I'm impressed)...."I have forwarded this to Rodney. This is something I have brought up in the past and I know it is on engineering's list of items to look at but it hasn't made its way to the top of the list yet" I really appreciate the quick response from Jason, and even if we don't get the keyed version of the Southco lock from Oliver, sounds like at least we are paving the way for future Oliver owners! I will update this thread as I receive info from Rodney. Like I said, I'm pretty new to Oliver, so if someone on this thread has a good connection/relationship with Rodney please feel free to chip in. My email to support....... We have a 2023 LEII with "Lithium Platinum Package". I never realised how easy it would be for someone to break-in and steal these high value batteries, until I read a post on the Oliver forum that the battery and basement door, with Southco latch and stamped key part# M1-545-4 are commonly used in the boat industry (some RVs) and these stamped keys are all the same! As I think about the security and how the 640amp Lithium batteries are probably the most expensive “portable” items of my Oliver, also the easy access to the interior through the basement concerns me. I would be much more comfortable If I could replace these 2 stock/OEM locks with more secure locks. I looked at the Southco website and found that more secure latches are available. Notice the cut-key “lock style 9” (on right), vs the stock/OEM stamped key “lock style 8”. Stock “lock style 8” with stamped key “Lock style 9” with cut key Wondering if a large number of forum members approach Oliver with a collective request to upgrade the battery compartment and basement compression latches, would Oliver be open to sourcing these more secure latches (lock style 9 with cut key) from Southco and offer them to the members? Here’s the spec sheet of the Southco style 8 and 9 locks, from what I could figure out we need part# M1-20-91-78 20 = 2” hole dia. 9 = cut key 1 = 0.25” door thickness 7 = Long cam, offset reversed

My guess he's minus a few rivets on his inside skin...

That's a very beautiful campground. Do be mindful of bear precautions. We've been there several times. One of the few places we've camped with a separate area for tenters, enclosed by electrified fence. Congratulations. You're almost to Alaska! Last time we were there, the road between there and Tok was riddled with frost heaves. Hope it's better this year, but look ahead. The three bears grocery store, and the visitor center in tok, are really nice. Excellent free car/rv wash at Northern energy if you fill up the truck. Outdoor, cold water, bring your own soap. Two lanes only. Free dump station and potable water, too. Truly a great welcome after the long dirty road. And, nice people. We've camped a few times at the state cg just before the bridge, down the hill, on the river. There's another lovely campground (weekdays) south of Tok. Don't know which way you're going from there. Moon something. Weekends very crowded, weekdays, pretty empty. Beautiful views, but if it's busy, you're stacked up like sardines. Gravel. No services. Enjoy!

Made it to Congdon Creek CG on Kluhane Lake -Yukon A beautiful campground. Starlink is working great at our site 7 because the trees are a bit back from the trailer.

I did a quick pop up truck camper trip into Succor Creek and Leslie Gulch on the east side of the Owyhee river in Oregon, and was surprised to see this trailer camped on a pullout between those locations. Not a place I would have picked because of the steep slope behind the truck and trailer. To be honest, until I saw the Bowlus up there, I wouldn’t have considered taking the Oliver on roads like that. They’re bumpy, rocky, with flying gravel and some washboard. BTW, their top model starts at $319,000.😳 Would you take your Oliver on those kinds of roads?

Latest technology. No ac power required. No generator. 😅😅😅 Sheets should smell like sunshine, tonight.

I love it. Here’s mine

View from rear of our trailer at the Crescent Lake RV Park near Robert’s Arm. It’s a very nice private park with the best showers I’ve seen. The Hazelnut Hill hiking trail goes around the Crescent lake approximately 6 miles for the entire loop. It’s very well maintained with lots of signs, benches and viewing spots.

Made it to the Yukon. First problem on trip. At Watson Lake turned on pump and heard splashing sound under bed by pump We had been in bad washboard roads which broke the PEX connection at the T out of the water heater. Thanks to previous posts I knew of this trouble spot and had replacement parts on board. Took 30 mins to fix.

We're saying the same thing, you've stated it much better than I tried to do, however. As new OTT owners, we weren't aware of the need for the neutral-ground bonding plug until reading this thread over the past several weeks. Thanks for your clarification - it will certainly help many others understand the EMS role in the OTT electrical system.

On our July 2017 cross-country trips to take our daughter to college in Seattle, we found the crash site, and then went to Clear Lake and into the Surf Ballroom. Of course we listened to:

Just in from Amazon - our latest "nesting" MAGMA cook-set w/collander fits right above the cooktop: jalapeños stuffed with Pepper Jack and beef chorizo sausage: Dueling grills - meat on the skillet and veggie burgers/brats on the Coleman: Yum! 'Ravel On!...

Only slept in the Cracker Barrel parking lot for the night. I'm presently waiting out a tunder storm at a rest area in Iowa. For those in warmer climates - it is 59 degrees and very wet outside right now. Bill

I’ve had very good success using diamond grit hole saws on the Ollie for making large holes. Available at most hardware stores. A bit pricey but they work very well on fiberglass/gel coat. The diamond grit hole saw makes a very nice clean cut, and doesn’t cause any chipping or cracking of the top gel coat layer. The center pilot bit creates a nice starter hole to keep the hole saw from shifting while drilling.

I think the fixed tank is easier for transport, and transfer. We've had one of those bladders for years. Really useful when the truckbed is empty, but not so simple when the truckbed is full, or partially filled. Really great for campgrounds with only a central source. We've found transferring water from our bladder is easiest with a sanitized bucket in between. Hose to the bucket, pickup hose from the trailer pump from the bucket. Been awhile since we used it, but it can be a lifesaver. Unused, the bladder takes up a shoebox space.

I seem to remember @ScubaRx changing the valve to an electric switch system. Even easier.

jd1923 Chris & John: Instead of rerouting the plumbing under the beds, some people have cut in hatches on the side wall of the bed thereby allowing them to get to the plumbing without moving the mattresses.

And thank you to John, HDRider and MAX Burner, for your kind welcomes! We spent a few nights on top the AZ High Country. Our camp site was at 7580 ft with afternoon high of mid 80s, when home in Prescott was high 90s (Phoenix 112)! Very comfortable in the shade of the pines. We were on the base on Kendrick Mountain, with a short hike we could see the San Francisco peaks and the slopes of the Arizona Snow Bowl. We could only see Kendrick when driving to and from the site, since we camped at the base of the mountain. One picture below is from just north of Parks AZ, looking back at Kendrick Mtn. Our Oliver got quite dirty on the back roads. We drove a good 20 miles of dirt getting to the campsite and she got a good pressure washing when we got home. Our only complaint is the tanks! I thought the % tank readings would be more accurate on the Oliver but found that the readings change drastically when the level of the trailer changes. When can you get a trailer exactly level? Not in Arizona and not on our property when filling the fresh tank. I think we had only 20-25 gallons filled when fresh water came running out of the overflow. Good thing we equipped our TV with a 35-gallon fresh-water tank purchased at TSC. We pumped in another 20 gallons, and all was good! One future project for me is to reroute some plumbing to change these water valves w/o removing the bed! What were they thinking? It would be time to add a water accumulator too like I've seen on a newer EII.

Kate Wolf left us far too soon. Note the great guitar work of Nina Gerber.

I'm keeping a video diary of my travels in the Oliver. This first episode is my trip to Hohenwald to pickup the Oliver and the first few days camping in it.

Hopefully my recent experience will not happen to anyone else - but, if you ever have to re-pair your Voyager system for whatever reason here is how you do it. Over the winter I got in contact with the folks at ASA Electronics - the makers of the Voyager camera system that most of us have on our Ollies. The camera I had developed a weak and got moisture inside the lens. Almost immediately they sent me a replacement (free) but it wasn't until today that I got around to installing it. What I thought would be a fairly simple swap turned out to be a 3/4 or a day job! The old camera had already been removed because I had to send it in for ASA to confirm that it had a "seal" malfunction. So, I thought that all I would have to do is take the electricians tape that was used as a temporary covering the hole in the hull, feed the camera wire through the hull, plug it in and then reseal everything back up. Anyone that has actually taken a look at the "instruction" that comes with these cameras might remember that there are nothing but a few pictures (i.e. nothing is mentioned about re-pairing the camera and monitor). Well, once I plugged the new camera in and powered it up, the monitor would NOT automatically "pair" with it. Over the next two hours I tried everything that I could think of to get it to "pair" to no avail. Of course this meant that I traced all electrical connection to make sure power was getting to the camera which involved starting at the switch by the door, and undoing my nicely bundled wiring all the way back to the camera. Countless times I turned the camera off turned the monitor off - all for no change in the situation. Until I took a 15 minute break for lunch! It just so happened that after the lunch break I turned on the monitor first without powering on the camera. I noted that the screen on the monitor looked different than it had earlier and instructed me to hold down the first two buttons at the top of the monitor for 5 seconds. After doing this another screen popped up that instructed me to power on the camera. Within 10 seconds a picture appeared on the monitor and the "problem" was solved. Of course I then had to replace my nice wiring bundles, re-caulk the hole through the hull and put the "attic" back in order. But at least now I have a new camera that works. As an added bonus, I played around with the setting (access via the "menu" button) and improved the color and crispness of the monitor well beyond what I had with the first camera. Happy camper!😊 Bill

Hull 505 - Galway Girl Made it to mile 0. Updates later.

We're very happy to be new owners and part of this Oliver Community. Just one month ago, we had no idea! What is an Oliver? We started (part-time) RV life about 5 years ago, with hopes to travel the great American West! We started big with a Class A diesel-pusher. Sold that one a year later, then tried a Class C. By the way, RV manufactures have no business mounting a 30' box on an E450 chassis. Sold this one in May, wanting something smaller, likely a travel trailer, that would make it up and down the dirt roads prevalent in Arizona. We were very lucky to find a used Oliver listed locally for sale online, and it was right down the road from us. I wanted to see it, thinking there is NO WAY we would spend that kind of money on a TT! We bought it a few days later. Haven't been out yet, but planning to leave Monday, heading north to Kendricks Peak Wilderness Area for a few days dry camping. We do not usually summer-camp, down here in the SW climate, but hoping up at 8K feet elevation, it will be cool enough without hookups and A/C. So far, I've replaced the old corner TV, with a centered 30" Samsung smart TV, got the Dish Satellite working. Filled, cleaned and drained tanks. Pulled the regulators off our grill and fire-ring and purchased quick-connect LP lines. Thought our 2008 Lexus GX 4.7L v8 might pull it, and it was OK around town, but not climbing steep grades in the Rockies! So, another great find was an older Dodge Ram Cummins, not as powerful as the newer ones, but perfect for this trailer, and there it was in excellent condition, white with gray lowers and black moldings and it looks perfect with the Oli in tow and should pull fine up the mountains (will post pic soon). We're likely have a lot of questions and will post improvements. Glad to see so much info here and with a decent search engine! Thank you, ahead of time for your help!

We tote around both a carbon steel Wok and Skillet we use on both the gas stove and campfire. We season with oil to keep the rust from accumulating after each usage... No biggie.

I'm not big on sets, either. I do have a Magma set, because I got a great deal on a marine site, that stays mostly on the boat. Nesting / little used space makes complete sense there. At home , I have a big variety. "Famous name" brands don't necessarily work better, or make you a better cook, imo. Many of my pots and pans at home are ikea 365, on sale, because they work on my induction range. When I bought the first few, I figured I'd need to replace them with something "better" in a year. Not so. Those "cheap" pans work as well as my expensive but not induction compatible Calphalon did on a radiant range. My fave skillet is a cheap one from tj Maxx or Ross, $20. And, my nordicware wok skillet, probably same price, costco. I have one small pot and one small fry pan from tj Maxx in the trailer, for the last 16 seasons. Small, fit the space, makes enough for 2 to 4 people. A lid from a thrift store. I'm not very brand loyal, I guess, when it comes to cookware. More "functional" loyal. I'm just intrigued by the idea of being able to use the same carbon steel skillet on the fire and the stove. Would be nice.

We do "cheaper" real well....

We've had a couple Airstreams and a Casita (as a placeholder until we bought our Oliver). We carry a Honda EU2000i and it rarely leaves the back of the truck bed - but with our MicroAir Soft Start, it has no problem energizing the Dometic Penguin AC unit. The 340 watts on top plus our Renogy 200W suitcase keeps our 300amp-hr battery storage topped off nicely during good weather, the Honda becomes the battery charger during multiple-day foul weather conditions... In any case, you'll love your Oliver should y'all decide to go that way... Good luck! Cheers!

And, on the same flight was this huge talent. We all know this song. It was his version of a folk song, ticked up to rock n Roll. Rip, Richie.

I love my magma set, @MAX Burner, and use it often on the boat. I use felt separators between the nested pot, and wrap the whole set in a towel, close the bungee, and store it in a cloth shopping bag, wedged in a corner of the galley cupboard (boat), or closet (ollie) . Great set. They'll surely last a coulpe lifetimes. I have extra handles.

I blew up your beautiful photo, looking for wheel chocks. 🙃 Me, no. I wouldn't bother anymore. My husband would probably disagree. He loves the challenges. To drive that type of "scenic " highway, sometimes it's wiser to leave the camper in a secure park, and enjoy the ride from our 4x4 truck windows.

@SeaDawg: YES! 100%... The microwave (which we really never use anyway) will not operate when the Dometic A/C unit is running off the EU2000i. The ground bonding plug was the key to making this a game-changer for us!

We are using T-Mobile cellular service and sometimes the parks have hotspots, we have the cellular booster which helps when the signal is marginal.

Episode 2:

No way, @Shawna and Scott: You can't fool us! Those are Santa's reindeer looking for the North Pole = in fact, that looks remarkably like, "Blitzen"!

Best I can do right now from my chair as I sit outside my trailer with an adult beverage. The Casita left today, the Escape is behind this little Scamp.

Glad to hear you are in the queue! Looking forward to your review! 👍🏻

This is what you need. A neutral - ground bonding plug. It’s a plug that ties the neutral and ground lines together on the generator. This gets plugged into one outlet on the generator and then the trailer gets plugged into the other outlet on the generator. Or, if you are comfortable doing basic electrical wiring you can also make your own using a standard replacement plug and a copper jumper wire as some owners have done. Southwire Company LLC Neutral-Ground Bonding Plug https://a.co/d/gkhoMF0

Yep, plastic scraper with a brand new blade, change frequently. I just did my floor a month ago, it gets nasty where the dirt sticks to that rough surface. This is GREAT: FOSHIO Plastic Razor Blade Scraper Include 2PCS Scraper Tool and 100PCS Blades John Davies Spokane WA

Good on you for having the parts on hand, do you maybe have links of the parts?

Me too in Yukon today after washboard roads. Thanks to everyone who posts fail /fix articles. Because of the sharing I had the right parts and the fix was only 30 mins.

Welcome to the forum! What type of batteries do you have and how many? How are you reading the battery voltage? What is the unloaded battery voltage at rest or about 15 minutes after you have remove it from shore power and without any DC loads drawing the battery down? If you only run the inverter for a short time, like reheating your coffee, what is the voltage after you turn the inverter off? More information included with a question = better answers. Mossey

Having replaced leaky port lights on sailboats, I couldn’t agree more that thorough removal of old sealant, and filling screw holes that are too big with epoxy then re-drilling fresh holes as you did, are essential to keep water from leaking through. Thanks for sharing your work.

Nice work @Wayfinder all good pointers!

I was not able to make the rally, but an Oliver in the wilds of Wisconsin told me there was possible discussion. I would love to join in if I could. Although I can't not lend information on the drive, not having done it. I have been in the interior of the state 11 times hiking and backpacking. It was some years ago, but I might have something of worth. Plus my mother and father did this after they retired telling so many great stories. Let me know... Swamp

This is not campsite cooking but recently we have been camping when it was in the upper 90s and didn't feel like cooking. We have a trip coming up next week so I have been cooking and putting up meals in meal prep containers and freezing them, individual containers. Made meatloaf, pork tenderloin and navy beans so far. I think this will help.

So, tonight we did salmon fillets, on the grill, in a coffee cake tin. I clean and save them. Usually can use several times before recycling. My friend Aubrey's recipe, minus honey, just because I don't have any. Spray the bottom of the pan with canola. Light spray on the filled, followed by a bit of mustard, spread with a knife, heavy shake of dried Dill. Slices of lemon. On our very hot grill fire, covered first with wax paper, then foil, turned twice, moved to the back and turned off while I finished rice and broccoli. Small fillets from Faroe islands, (great memories of our stay there), probably 8 minutes, on high, to show white fat on top, and 140 when temped. Lemon dill sauce... mayo (I love duke's) a bit of sour cream,if you have it, squeeze of lemon juice, heavy shake of Dill. Stir. I do this first, and let rest and develop flavor while everything else cooks.

Yummy. Gumbo is one if my favorites. The lighting makes it look red, but no tomato in my gumbo. Ever. Its really more brown. My recipe is 2nd hand, via an old friend, who got it from a NOLA chef. Simple , but great. The veggies, andouille sausage,, and seafood create the flavors.

This has nothing to do with Olivers, or trailers, but it has everything to do with boondocking in its ultimate meaning. Here is a wonderful article describing the Turtle V expedition vehicle, arguably the finest rig ever built for exploring the most remote regions of the world. Even if you don't care about the technical aspects, the scenery in the pictures is stunning. http://expeditionportal.com/world-nomad-the-turtle-v/ John Davies Spokane WA

Hi Chris n Cherie! Got the kit from US Carburation on the Web. If you can't find it, let me know. Had my local independant propane dealer do the conversion and they did a great job. Propane produces about 8-10% less power than gasoline and less as you go to high altitude 5-6000 ft+ (as does gasoline) but when ya' get that high, who needs Air Conditioning(my thought). As I haven't used it with Ollie, can't give useage but seemed economical. Would order the 9700btu AC though as the cycling is what stresses out the 2000. Had a 13,500 on Casita and it defineatly chugs. See Casita Club for into on a soft start kit that I will prob have installed. Will ONLY power Air by itself or will power all else when air off. Cherie, you can't use your haircurler when Air Conditioning ON!!!!! Feel free to ask any other questions!! regards, Chuck