Leaderboard

On the road at Kartcher cavern SP in AZ. Since we are here for a week, I decided to Replace all tires and installed 4 new shocks at 50k miles. At same time checked springs for wear /cracks and re-lubed all Zerks. The tires had simply aged out but one in particular had an odd scalloping wear pattern. (Cause was a slightly loose bearing castle nut on that right/front wheel.) The shocks were getting a bit rusty and I decided to change as prevention. ( All 4 seemed functional upon removal.) Since the original tires were 16” LT Michelin, I stuck with the brand and now run: Michelin Agilis Cross Climate LT225 /75 R16 115R E1 BSW Shock replacement is: Monroe Magnum RV 555001 I was able to get the tires at a local Discount Tire in Sierra Vista. ( took 3 in one day and 2 the next as we had chores in town. ) Ordered shocks online and shipped to my sisters who we visited on the way here. Shocks went on quickly once the unit was jacked up so suspension was hanging. All set for the next stage of our trip where we will meet up with several owners at Ladybird Johnson for the Eclipse.

5 nights in the camper so far. 1 @ mothership 2 @ Falls river - major storm No leaks! But the campground threatened to flood. So back to the mothership. 3 @ mothership 4-5…babbler State Park outside of St. Louis. Just electric. Subfreezing nighttime temps. All systems working as designed comfy, cozy. 😀 only two issues to speak of. 1 we seriously overpacked clothes. Whatever 😂 2 hooking up the Anderson to a ram 1500 with airbags suspension that keeps changing levels. Rereading the owners manual on how to do this. not fun. might lead to a different truck. This is day five of what we hope to be 60-ish for our first trip. Thanks to everyone who help us prepare so thoroughly. Your advice was very valuable. Hope to see you all at the rally.

Nobody was ever sorry they bought a tool that outperformed the job at hand. Superior trailer, bigger truck, stronger axles, beefier hitch and heavier springs. Some folks are minimalists and hope everything will be fine. I contend Hope is not a strategy. Minimalism is just getting by.

(1) None, nothing... after two years of Off the Grid Boondocking and a third year begins next month. Zipidee Do Dah Wonderful! Our 2019 27 foot Airstream took some upgrading of hardware and additional brackets to toughen the Interior. It has sat in the RV Garage since the pruchase nearly three years ago of the Oliver Elite II. The Oliver Elite II has ALL the Upgrades, from the Factory by the original owner purchase. Upgrades, as Solar, four 6 volt Batteries and accessories that would work for Boondockers and RV Parkers. We enjoy both our 2019 Airstream, we upgraded over time... TO the 2019 Factory 'STANDARD' Build Benefits of our Oliver Elite II. I considered selling the Airstream, but it is solid and upgraded to compete with the Oliver. With three Blue Heelers, two pups and a 17 year old, they have their special spots and we lay their 'binky' once set up to camp. What do My Wife, Myself or any of the Heelers dislike about the Oliver? Nothing. The Truma Aqua Go never worked... but we never used the Dometic hot water to Shower in the 2019 Airstream, as well. And the Dometic works. Boondockers benefit from the Tent Camping lessons learned over decades. If YOU are thinking about an Off the Grid Boondocking travel trailer... new or used... we used 2019 technology as our Airstream. We spend most of our time in either trailer... cooking and sleeping. Otherwise outside and sitting on lawn chairs and ahhhhhhhh enjoying the fresh air and views. But... if you buy used... make sure the Truma works. We didn't. Next time... if ever, we will. Some photographs of Western USA Mountain camping. Unlimited, Off the Grid and you pick a spot and it is yours. 🙂

On our Grand Cherokee with the auto leveling system, the manual wants it turned off until you are hooked up and then turned back on. We don’t tow the Oliver EII with it but have towed other trailers with it. Maybe look in your manual to see if it talks about hooking up the trailer with auto leveling. Just a thought. Congrats on your new trailer.

We only color in states after we’ve spent the night in our Oliver there. Have fun! Mike

SO BE IT!! I am declaring victory. Kentucky and Illinois will have to wait.

My rule is only if my Oliver spent the night!

It occurred to me earlier today that unless you have had your Oliver ceramic coated by CGI in Murfreesboro, TN, you would not get the reference to the chickens in the post above. Well, there are a number of these critters on the property used by CGI. As the story goes, Gavin brought home a couple because - well - he likes chickens. Somehow that couple grew to a small flock of all different kinds to include chickens with feathered feet.

Blocks or boards are an important and necessary to reduce wear, damage or destruction of your jacks. The wear part has two components. First, is you don't use them as much every time you change camp sites. Less use = less wear. Secondly having the jacks on some sort of blocking reduces the lever arm of the jack to resist lateral movement and the trailer as a result will feel more steady. But MOST importantly is what happens during an OOPs (Driving off with a jack down). On multiple occasions I have seen owners of all experience levels execute the death of a jack by OOPs. If on concrete, it will kill the jack. On softer ground, the jack plate likely will dig in and kill the jack. Either way the odds are you will have a deceased jack. This can be a real PITA. But, with something between the jack and the ground, preferable at least 5" or more high, another engineering concept comes to the rescue. And that concept is called slip. In engineering, slip is a sliding displacement along a plane of one part of a system relative to the rest of the system under the action of shearing forces—that is, forces acting parallel to that plane. To greatly reduce OOPs damage to our jacks we need to add something between them and the ground to take advantage of the slip plane concept. I call thick ones blocks. Thin ones made of sections of lumber I call boards. Blocks can be purchased in lots of different sizes and materials. If I were going to go with a single block for each jack, I personally like TopGuns! Cheap, strong, and not hard to replace. Not as pretty as the Anderson's, but they are way less expensive. Blocks are also most optimal if all of your camp sites are RV Park level. But, alas we are generally boondockers and our camp sites come in all forms of not level. This is one reason why we carry a milk crate full of 2" X 6" X 11" sections of treated boards for our OE2. Here are some of the operational advantages of boards: Comparatively they are real inexpensive. Lose one and you carry on. Should long term storage bring termite damage to the bottom board of the stack, I toss a single board. The others are still useable. I can toss them around with zero worries. I can use more of less of my board sections as needed to offset unlevel camp sites. For real soft ground, I can stack two flat on the ground (side to side) and another on top 90 degrees perpendicular to them to create a double size footprint. They make great axle spacers should you have two flats or break a spring! For reasonably level camp sites, I stack three of them on top of each other to maximize height and (MOST IMPORTANTLY) to create more slip planes of safety for our jacks from an OOPs. Yes, I am also a member of the OTT Jack Drop Club. Good news is when OOPsing, you hear it thud and stop, With three jack drops in six years I have had no jack damage. So whether you use blocks or board sections either way: Slip Planes Saves Jacks! GJ

We only color in the states we camped overnight in.😊

Make sure that you contact Andersen before taking drastic measures. I'd bet that they have heard of the issue you are experiencing and have a solution for you. Bill

I justed checked my coupler.. 2 inch 7000 lbs, it has the gusset.. we got our LEI in july of 2022 . No problems. I think they are using 7000 lbs bulldog on all the units. I guess if you opt. to get a 2 5/16” with the highter GVWR..

@Galway Girl - Nice looking sneakers! Peace of mind is a precious feeling with running gear....IMO.

Great idea! I always have 3 or 4 of the current year's brochures to hand out. Bill

We’re all thankful that the mystery of the failed Bulldog coupler was (at least apparently) solved and without serious issues. I was beginning to wonder if there was going to be a sudden rash of coupler failures coming our way. Like several others have said, we have never heard of any Bulldog failures. When I purchased my trailer I didn’t select the axles, springs, or coupler at the time of order. Thankfully, I’ve not experienced issues with any major Oliver supplied components. Probably can’t say that for the majority of stick built campers. Although with lack of maintenance I think that I have heard of even a heavy duty axle having bearing failures.

So long as you use at least one (Preferably more) boards on top of wood blocks sort of works. Sort of due to the rough surface of the jack skid plate on the softer board. For other blocks with anti-ski surfaces it is not a reliable slip plane. Here's how I believe the slip interfaces react: (Top To Bottom) The rough jack steel base on top of a board on your block is not reliablek as stated above. Your one really good slip plane is the board bottom surface to the block top surface if it is smooth. If not, it is a gamble. The block to dirt slip plane is also not reliable. In softer grounds it gets pushed into the dirt a bit. On paving, the hard bumps of the paving resist the block from moving. So, as above, this one also is not a reliable slip plane.. So with a block on a single board setup, you have one slip plane of variable reliability. However with three or more boards you have at least 2 reliable slip planes: The jack steel base to the top of board. As above this one does not count. Next you have at least two really good slip planes between the three smooth boards. As above, the board to dirt slip plane is not reliable and does not count. Having at least two good slip planes is very effective. However, if I had already purchased the blocks, I would at least carry three boards to get one effective slip plane. More if I wanted two slip planes per jack...belts and suspenders. GJ

Yes. It is identical to the 2-5/16" Bulldog coupler mounted on our Hull #1291 by Oliver during manufacturing. See photo below. I didn't know it when ordering, but there was little chance that a 2-5/16" coupler would be confused with a 2" coupler rated for only 5K lbs. Another reason I like to overbuild.

Watch out for the chickens!

FYI: We've made arrangements with Colin/CGI to have Casablanca Glidecoated after the Owner's rally in MAY... They're going to apply our new front-end graphic as part of the deal. Can't wait! Posted this before, but some owners may have missed it - temporarily stuck on after removing the OTT graphic: Until we get the CGI treatment - we're running "bald" with no nose art... Cheers!

Got an awesome Glidecoat applied by GCI in Murfreesboro before our trip. Not cheap but looks better than the day I picked it up 6 years ago. I know there is already a lot of posts about them, just wanted to give them another thumbs up! Great job guys. Link: https://www.cgidetailing.com/olivertraveltrailers

Our Oliver needs ceramic coating, but not heading all the way to TN anytime soon! It appears from comments here that Glidecoat must be a top ceramic coating, besides the GCI service. I just went on glidecoat.com and requested a quote for our zip code. Will let you know what I hear. Prior owner had ours ceramic coated in Boulder City NV, using Ecocoat Kenzo: IGL Coatings USA | Eco-Friendly Auto Detailing Products. I have a Jan 2021 receipt, but the top shell, everything in front of the entrance, above the LP tanks, has gotten dull, looking like flat paint in contrast to the lower sides that still shine. Also, ours will be in the AZ sun all year long! Prior owner used a cover some, but what a pain, on and off. How often is ceramic coating recommended? Does the fiberglass need to be buffed, serviced in anyway, to shine prior to ceramic coating? I'm sure the boating crew here would know a lot about this. I can't stand seeing old caulk or wax around the edges, and ours has a lot! OTT replaced our furnace with the Atwood brand in 2018. Our hull went back to OTT during 2021 and one service item was "Recaulk Exterior." There is no need to caulk and re-caulk like this (see pic)! When I hire a detailer, I will request hours of cleaning/stripping/prepping work prior to applying ceramic coating. Re-caulk, after removing all old caulk, with the lightest possible application.

You might consider replacing some of the extra chain links required to connect the Andersen WD hitch to your Oliver with turnbuckles. If the truck changes height on you, you may be able to simply adjust the turnbuckles to compensate. Although I tow with a Tundra that does not have an airbag suspension, I find it easier to attach the Andersen with the turnbuckles loose, then tighten the turnbuckles to make the chain assembly taut. See this thread:

Congratulations. I was a bit overwhelmed during pickup but after a night in their campground I reviewed all my notes and practiced turning things on and off. I had a few questions and found some minor things and it was great to walk over and ask them. Pick up extra Oliver Brochures to hand out to everyone who will want to know about your Oliver at fuel stops and campgrounds on your way back home! Safe travels.

Our 2008 elites priginal had a 5000, which is great margin for our smaller trailer. (Loaded for camping, mine weighs shy of 4k). I don't know what hitch Oliver uses on current elite 1 trailers, 16 years later. The inadequate 5k rating stamped could certainly explain the failure, on your heavier Elite II. I'm forwarding this thread to Oliver. Please open a ticket, and include photos of the hitch stamp, and failure, @rideadeuce.

Arronorange....followed the instructions and all is well now. Thanks again.

Not only that but there are a ton of 2 inch balls out there with 3500 lb capacity… A disaster waiting to happen. I’m guessing that Oliver has always used the 7k coupler with both size trailers. This was probably accidentally included with the proper units when it was shipped to Oliver. @SeaDawg can you confirm which unit yours has? Have to admit after seeing the 12.5k capacity of the larger coupler, I wished I spent the extra money during the build…

I had this problem several times. After I reset the breaker located in the space under the bed near the inverter. I then change the setting in the Xantrex app "Breaker Rating" to 15A . I was plugged into a household 20A receptacle and I think that may have had something to do with it. Good Luck. Check this link https://support.olivertraveltrailers.com/portal/en/kb/articles/xantrex-inverter-error-20

As one might guess - this re-stringing project has not been very high on my "to-do" list over the winter. Unfortunately, it is getting very close to 2024 camping season and that shade has now been taken apart and put back together about 5 times - all without success. I USED to be fairly proud of my ability to follow directions/drawings but Steve's "sharp stick in the eye" must have done me in. Anyway - I contacted the company that makes the shade - Auto-Motion Shades - and they sent me the diagrams below. Certainly @rideandfly 's drawings are good - but - these (at least for me) are better. Hope they help! Bill Note that in the drawing of the cord layout, the screen portion of the window is at the top while the nightshade portion is at the bottom. CordLayout TPS-720 Cord Layout.pdfCordLayout TPS-720 Cord Layout.pdfCordLayout TPS-720 Cord Layout.pdfCordLayout TPS-720 Cord Layout.pdf

Thanks for all the information. This got me to take a closer look at our 2 5/16 BD. Built a bit differently than the 7K. No gusset but more of the tubing inside. Would not rate the welds at "great". Is this similar to other's with 2 5/16?

We were going to, but it would have put us over our GVWR with our golf cart in the rear garage.

Did you guys not get the optional Jacuzzi tub, the crystal chandelier and the other items in the "luxury" package?

Now that we know that the coupler was basically misused (not user error) and repeatedly overloaded by almost 2000 pounds, I’m sure that the Bulldog folks will not provide any sort of warranty replacement. They may however be interested in knowing that their product held up for so long under adverse conditions. This is purely an Oliver oops moment in which everyone is extremely fortunate that nobody was hurt. Oliver may have some input on this issue.

So a 5000# BD hitch was installed where a 7000# BD hitch should have been installed. Sounds like the cause of failure/issue has been identified. I have not heard or read where any 7000# BD hitch has failed on an Oliver LEll. That said, all owners would be wise to periodically inspect their hitches for proper the weight rating and serviceability especially if you purchased an older preowned Oliver. Other than this I will continue towing with 💯 complete confidence in my present 7000# rated BD hitch. I feel sure Oliver will address this issue with any owners IF they have a 5000# BD on their LEll and make it right. Again, glad you and your family are safe.

It appears to me that Oliver owes you reimbursement for your replacement coupler. I recommend you submit a service ticket. Oliver has acted responsibly when advised of manufacturing errors in the past.

And- They are nice guys too! Bill

Tow Vehicles.pdf

Newbies now owners

Given the few times that I've ever needed the extra length, I purchased a 12 gauged 50 foot extension cord. Sure, the two times in 8 years that I've needed it I could only use one electric device at a time (i.e. you can only use the air conditioner OR the microwave but NOT both at the same time). This cord is lighter, smaller and a bunch less expensive. Presently Harbor Freight has one on sale for $30. Bill

I bought this Eley Quick Connect System product for all hose connections in my setups. Think one-handed operation! The components. Water pressure regulator and filter configuration. Eley installed at Oliver water inlets. Protective caps in place, utilized chain hardware from original stock caps Caps purchased.

Cast iron goes in our truck bed when we travel.

The gold dredge is up the Yankee Fork of the Salmon, which joins the Main Salmon at Sunbeam. There is a commercial hot spring pool at Sunbeam. The environmental devastation caused by the dredge has always been disheartening for me to see, so I, too, am now interested to see the results of restoration efforts by Trout Unlimited. The ghost town is Custer, Idaho, named after General George Armstrong Custer. I would not recommend towing your Oliver to Custer, as the last leg of the road to Custer is quite primitive, and it may be tough to find a good turn around. Park your Oliver at a campground and take your tow vehicle on Hwy 75 to and up the Yankee Fork, then continue on to Custer.

Yes - just the trailer (RV). Even some take this to mean just the "box" and NOT from hitch to bumper as we Oliver people measure it. However, the term "always" bothers me in that I'm guessing somewhere out there in the universe there just might be someone that considers the TV into the equation. I've stayed at the Pole Flat campground and there is absolutely no issue with getting in or out with your Ollie. The best campsite is located at the top left of the "circle" in the campground. Since you do not fish then you would also enjoy the ghost town that is located further up the road past the dredge. Some of the repair work on the scar that the dredge left that Trout Unlimited has done in that area is impressive.. Bill

D & M - If you're going to do that then I'd recommend the Forest Service Campground (Pole Flat campground) at 44.30381, -114.71971. The sites in the back of the campground are the best. There is water and pit toilets available and each site has a picnic table. Then, if you camp there (or near there) a stop at the gold dredge is worth it - 44.37747, -114.72261. Fishing along the West Fork of the Yankee Fork can get you a 50 fish day but be prepared for a scramble down the steep bank and then back up that bank - 44.36969, -114.75025. Of course, the fishing in the Salmon River will get you bigger fish but certainly not as many and there will be more people. Also, there are a couple of Hot Springs right along Route 75 if that is your style. Bill

Then plan to spend a few days during July or August in the Stanley Basin near Stanley, Idaho camping at Redfish Lake, or along the Main Salmon River in a Forest Service campground. The views of the Sawtooths are truly "breathtaking".

All Olivers come standard with a surge protector. And all Olivers use a 30 amp electrical connection - not 15/20 amp and not 50 amp. Of course, you do know that if you have a 30 amp connection to shore power you can still use a lower amperage connection. However, you can not run all the things in your Oliver (i.e. microwave and air conditioner) at the same time if you are on the lower amperage supply. With regards to how long a bottle of propane will last (particularly running the air) - that depends. How hot is it outside, how cool do you want it inside? what other things are you using propane for - cooking, hot water, fridge? Perhaps what you are really asking is, "in typical usage, how long does a 20 pound tank last?"?. Or, should I really get the 20 lb tanks or the 30 pound tanks? I can run my fridge on one 20 pound tank for about 6 to 7 weeks. But, during this time I'm usually camped at altitude where the average temps are cooler and I usually camp solo, so, there isn't a bunch of opening and closing the fridge. I also use a solar shower for heating shower water except for those times when its cloudy and I use a Mr. Heater propane heater for taking the chill off those frosty mornings (this saves both propane and electricity - don't run the furnace blower). While I agree with the two comments above relative to learning - don't be discouraged! We all had to start this journey someplace and most of us are still learning. Bill edit addition: I forgot to mention the 20 versus 30 lb tanks. Obviously if you get the 30's then you will not have to get them refilled as often and you have 33% more with you. This 33% really matters if you plan to do a bunch of winter camping in cold weather. However, the downside of the 30lb tanks is that they MUST be refilled at a business that does this sort of thing. With the 20lb tanks you can "swap" them for other tanks at most grocery stores, gas stations, hardware stores, Lowes, Home depot OR you can get them refilled just like you do with the 30's. In addition, the 20's are lighter than the 30's. It should be noted that when you "swap" the 20's, they are generally not filled to the same capacity (i.e. they are not really full) and the cost per gallon or pound of propane is generally more expensive than it would be at a refill facility. But, if you are in an area that simply doesn't have a refill facility, there isn't really much you can do with that empty 30 pound tank.

"Outcast"? I've had two 3.5 liter Ford Ecoboost F-150's and nary an issue with either of them towing my Elite II. Your truck will have zero problems towing it. Bill

FrankC I will have the same combo locks as your set up. You are right, the Proven lock is a boat anchor but IMO the best coupler lock sold. I had one on a previous camper. It’s a very tough lock. I can’t imagine ever loosing the key(s). Most importantly I want my insurer to know I have done my absolute level best to secure our Ollie. As with my last camper I took photos of my security systems and made sure they had photos. Just me. After a very long 36 year career in law enforcement I can honestly say I never took a report of a stolen camper. Not to say it does not ever happen, surely it does. In my experience well run campgrounds are usually pretty safe places to camp.

This is where some of us park our shoes and boots. I usually keep my house shoes there while I am out getting dirty.