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Enjoying our last what we thought was going to be a nice quiet evening here at Fishing Bridge CG in Yellowstone, we had an unexpected Oliver visit and showing. Where does a 2000# Bison graze? Anywhere he wants!! I kept real quiet, he had no questions, but he loved our Oliver. What a last night at YS send off! 😂 The Beast head to head with our Beast of Burden. So glad he did not munch our SL mini cable. He tugged on it a few times as he ripped grass out of the soil. Glad we decided to enjoy dinner inside.

This big fella was out munching this morning not far from our site here at Fishing Bridge. We have a large herd of Buffalo being farmed not far from our home in Western NC. It’s still pretty neat to see them in the wild. The guy that owns the fiver you see had eyes the size of teacups. 😄 His expression was priceless. Onward with a short drive to Cody in the morning! We will be there a few days and longer if we really like it! IMG_2130.mov

Ever since Oliver went to the compressor fridge I have been envious of the integrated table where the lower fridge vent used to be. Here is what I came up with for when I dont drag a bike along. It was built with what I had on hand, including a old bike rack, fishing cutting board, boat stern transducer mounting board and a broken dock leg. Plan is to add a lagun mount on the lower rear so I have additional counter space. Since the propane quick connect is in the rear this will be where I set-up the outdoor kitchen. Will circle back to provide update on how it works out.

Beautiful sunrise at Pancho Villa SP, Columbus, NM this AM - headed to Old Mexico for lunch today... Magnus guarding the perimeter with D and Oscar inside enjoying their BRCC morning Joe (note our newly minted wooden signage made for us by our friend, Coy): @Patriot - FYI: we stayed at Norris CG and loved it there... We felt it was closer to the sights and hikes we wanted to explore. We've also stayed at Fishing Bridge and Madison and thought they were just as awesome. Enjoy, Explor, and Experience it all, brother! Cheers... IMG_2848.HEIC

This could be your new mascot...

I hope @DavePhelps doesn't mind me hijacking his thread but reading through these excellent and informative post has me asking yet more questions which hopefully some of you will provide answers. Like Dave I am also on the verge of upgrading to LifePo batteries after 9 years with my 4 lead acid batteries that are showing weakness. 1. If never plugging into shore power upgrading to a Power Dynamics charger capable of lithium charging becomes unimportant, correct? 2. Why the need to upgrade to a more powerful PD charger just for Lithium batteries? If a 30 A charger worked for lead acid or AGM's why would it not provide enough current for LifePO? 3. My direct battery measurement is different than what my Blue Sky IPN Remote indicates, or stated more precisely a direct battery measurement with my multi meter at the terminals indicates 13.89 volts, while the IPN remote is reading 13.4 volts which is almost a half volt difference. Is it possible I have another issue rather than dying batteries? 4. I don't use an inverter, other than occasionally a small unit rated at 400 watts that directly plugs into the 12 volt ports. Probably will not add anything more in the future either. Put another way we tend to be lightweight campers requiring only lights, water pump etc. Am I missing something else worth considering? Like Dave I am considering the Epoch 300 amp but also looking at the SOK lineup too. Will Prowse and a few others have given high praise for all of the SOK batteries. Great price points too. Thanks

Thank you Mossemi. Perfect, just what I needed.

I installed an Air Lift LoadLifter 5000 air suspension kit on my TV soon after purchasing my OLEll. This system compensates for side-to-side weight distribution and cargo shifting, and is very useful in adjusting the rear height to level the trailer when towing. I also find it helpful in dumping the waste tanks by lifting the tongue high for improved discharge.

Just inside the outside rear storage/basement door which should be above the fresh and city water inlets. You will have to remove the floor to access the water pipes and check valves. There should be 1 each blue PEX pipes from the fresh and city water inlets. There will also a red and blue pipe going to the outside shower. Double check the check valves for leaks. Mossey

Yes, they "can". But, I'm not aware of any OTT reported frame, mounts or jack tubes from use on reasonably level ground. However, I can certainly envisonate situtations where it could occur when unwisely used on sloping ground and well extended. But I have not yet heard of such damage actually happening within the OTT community. I believe that it is very important that we use blocking under all three jack plates every time. They reduce the lever arm and will prevent jack damage when moved while extended. But this is a topic of a previous post.... A bit off topic, but important. I recently lost on the highway one of my jack foot plates. Recommend checking their single bolt tightness occasionally. Anybody know how to do so and to what torque? My concern is that one could damage the jack tube if it is not restrained during tightening. GJ

Thanks for everyone’s suggestions. I tightened up the fittings again under the curbside bed and the pump quit running after pressurizing the system. Eventually I’ll check under the kitchen sink, and if necessary, the bathroom sink. I wanted to check the inlet pipes and fittings for the fresh and city water inlets, and the winterization port; what is the easiest way to access these fittings? Thanks again. David

Does this mean you'll be doing all the cooking at Quartzsite? Also, are you now calling the trailer Oli Leg?

@ScottyGS FYI My previous 2018 RAM 1500 Rebel had air shocks and towed the Ollie pretty nice and was very stable going over bumps. I upgraded to a 2024 RAM 1500 Laramie and when connected to the Ollie, I found that the suspension was a lot looser and the truck bounced excessively when hitting bumps. I went to a place to get pricing for adding air suspension system to the rear of the truck and the owner of the store, suggested instead to add a TIMBREN spring (bumper stop) system which he uses on his own 1500 truck when halling his 8500 lb trailer instead of installing a air suspension system. The TIMBREN system replaces the existing rear bumper stops and is installed in the existing bumper stop cup. The price is a lot lower than air shocks and you do not have to worry about the air system loosening air. With the TIMBREN system installed, when I connected the Ollie, the rear end of the Laramie only went down about 1" instead of 2" or 3" before the TIMBREN install. This necessitated the readjustment of the Anderson hitch height. When traveling now with the Ollie connected, the Laramie ride is now a lot more stable and does not bounce excessively when going over road bumps.

It's my understanding the general consensus is the RAS is much better than air bags, but not having tried air bags can't make any claim for this. Can't recommend it enough as well as the Bilstein shocks but also hear the Fox shocks are awesome to but the investment on those can be as high as $2-$3K ± . My gut feeling is most if not all new trucks have at best mediocre shocks from the factory.

Maybe under the galley sink, and then the bathroom? I would check for leaks under the galley sink first, as water there can cause major issues. If the connections under that sink looks good, I would carefully examine the bath faucet and toilet supply line connections. Good luck! And, please report your results.

HF transceiver is SGC-2000. I employed the SGC-200 antenna turner in the Ham Shack and functioned well into the back stay on the boat. I also have the ICOM IC-2730A Dual Band VHF/UHF 50W in the F-150. I have had my Ham ticket since 1957. I still fire up the Heath Kit SB-301 and SB-401 from time to time . I built the two in the mid 60's. They were considered the poor mans Collins Rig. 73 de W8CB

Checked our weather forecast and we decided to add two more days to our stay here at Fishing Bridge here in YS. This will give us a full week to enjoy as much of this gorgeous park as we can. We are staying put in our site! The staff here has been just really good to us. New Loop E is making a perfect base camp for us and I highly recommend it. The bath house and laundry facilities are huge and brand new and kept spotless. Fired up our trusty Weber and got busy grilling to carry us over for a few days. We have visited 5 NPs on this trip so far. Between a week at Grand Tetons and a week here at YS, Kathy and I both agree YS is our favorite NP. Truly a magical place to visit. Happy & Safe Travels! IMG_2005.mov

@DavePhelps thanks for asking the question and I hope your project is going well. And Geoff, you got me thinking of the possibility of a device or wiring failure that could occur either side of a breaker. I have the direction reversed on the breakers, as I first suggested (see they're upside down in the picture, yellow levers up) protecting charge voltage from two MPPT SCs. Looking at the bigger picture, I added a 75A fuse (far right in picture) safeguarding the batteries and wiring for everything external to the Victron MP2 inverter where they spec'd a 400A fuse to the batteries. The additional 75A fuse will protect our two 30A solar chargers and the 40A breaker that feeds all 12VDC devices/wiring. Another way to word this is if anything fails/shorts to ground in ANY Oliver 12VDC circuit, this fuse will blow, the last stop prior to the 4/0 wiring, the Victron MP2 and the Epoch batteries. I used this style fuse but instead of the designed holder, I made my own with 1/4 x 1" copper stock and a 5/16" SAE automotive bolt (torque lightly due to the glass fuse housing). Now that it has tested positive, I should buy a spare: Amazon.com: South Bend Components Fuse only Marine Rated Battery Fuse (MRBF), 58V DC Max, IP66, Ignition Protected (1-Pack) : Automotive

Did I say ordered? I did! That is incorrect. We put down money on one of the showroom demos. We are/will be owners of #1550. And going back to lessons learned: We were insured with Safeco for replacement cost. But, we only get the replacement cost IF we purchase a NEW "similar" unit. And that money goes straight to the dealer. If we never buy, we only get the valuation. That's why the valuation was so important. I believe another consideration for everyone is that with ~ 2000 units out there and with more on the market, a good first cut valuation is much easier for the insurance companies. Finally - on the long 6 hour drive home after the accident, the traumatic events settled on us and became real. We had lost a central part of our retirement plan in just a few seconds! The "what next?" question finally came up. I won't lie - we talked about the options of more room or a fridge that you can access without sitting on the floor. We quickly came to our senses and realized that if we were ever in a similar situation again - we wanted to be in an Oliver. By the time we got half way home we were dreaming of the quiet Truma A/C!

I'm so sorry that you have had to go through this ordeal but I'm glad to hear that no human was hurt in the accident. Its also nice to hear (but not surprising) that Oliver was a great help to you. I keep telling people that I've never dealt with a finer group of people/company. For me, they are really what makes the Oliver Travel Trailer so special. From your picture above, it appears as though the Oliver basically remained in tact. Were there any cracks in the exterior or other signs or major structural damage - of course I'm assuming that the exterior was roughed up a bit and I noticed the odd angle of that axle. Additional pictures would be of interest if you can share them since there have been relatively few Ollies involved in major accidents. Bill

We acquired hull 752 this spring and I’ll follow this thread. I’ve been thinking to use it portable but I’m not willing to put any holes in for antennas. I think that until I resolve this quandary , I’ll feed it in thought the bathroom window. One of my intentions is to (finally) set up Winlink AC0DH

I recently spent 12 days boondocking in the Kaibab NF, near Marble Canyon, overlooking the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. FS 611 (Forest Service Road) is a combination of washboard, loose rock over sand, and some pits, but slow and steady got me there — about 5 miles up FS611 there are a few dispersed camping sites that are spectacular.

Our spot on Sigsbee Island (Naval Air Station Key West). Not a bad place to hang out for a few months. BL

We are making our way down to Key West. We will be staying at the Navy Base there for the month of December. On our way down, we stopped at a nice campground in the Chattanooga area and in the crisp autumn evening, I caught these pics. Cheers, Brian

It’s a must see for sure! 👍🏻 A few more photos taken today while touring the Million Dollar Highway…amazing. My Bride, Navigator and Copilot shot a few beauties! Sept and October is the only time we will visit Colorado for many reasons. We had the road to ourselves in the Beast. Tomorrow we will tour Black Canyon of the Gunnison. Then Friday morning we take off and move our base camp to Cortez, CO. ⭐️ A link worth a read if you decide to drive the million dollar highway aka Highway 550. https://www.durangoherald.com/articles/million-dollar-highway-named-to-list-of-most-dangerous-roads-in-the-u-s/ Onward!🇺🇸🇺🇸

Great thread! Thanks to all for all the grilling/cooking perspectives - we love this exchange of information. We're on a road-trip this week (ABQ - DEN) and trying out our new custom "Disk-it" for the first time. Made and patented by a friend who owns a fabrication shop in Albuquerque. Comes with either a griddle or wok (we ended up getting both). The custom "piece" comes in when one orders their laser-cut "symbol" on the Disk-it stand and on the griddle handles. D opted for a "tree-of-life" symbol and our names on the handles. Oops, sorry - probably quasi TMI; but this kit rocks! The piezo-light 2-stage burner pumps out north of 75k BTUs. The rig connects to the OTT front LPG port, folds-up and stows nicely in the truck bed. Griddled spicy shrimp, stuffed jalapeños, and mixed stir-fry last night - yum! "Ravel-On!" Cheers...

Our beloved 686, one of the last 2020's and one of the first with solar+lithium, was involved in an accident 3 weeks ago. It was deemed a total loss. First, we are very thankful that no one was injured. Second, I'm posting this to as a reminder to review your current insurance position! And, so others can learn from our experiences. The needed facts: our Oliver was struck on the curb side then rolled to the street side. The TV was a F250 and suffered a bruised hitch and a hole in the tailgate. Things we learned: Be acutely aware that your lives can change in a matter of seconds. Keep digital copies of insurance info in your phone wallet or shared drive. Go download their app now and make sure you can login! Even at the accident scene, we were naive enough to think "we will just step inside and get it from the cabinet". That's just not going to happen in a roll over. Know and understand your coverage. Go way beyond the declarations and read the policy. We had "Replacement cost" but there were caveats and rules that we did not know! Know if you can use a repair facility of your choice. If you can, are there penalties for going over on parts or labor? Our accident occurred 6 hours from our home. After grabbing a few things, we drove straight home. Then 4 days later, accepting the reality that it might be totaled, we drove the 12 hour round trip to gather and salvage anything we could. None of that trip was covered on our insurance! I had always assumed the things inside were covered; on our policy they were not! Get a dashcam! Understand and know that in today's insurance world, no one is coming to appraise, touch, or review your damage. You are going to use an app and take 9 pictures (one being the odometer. Yep, they will want you to photo your odometer on your trailer). You will probably not have an advocate. We purchased our insurance through Roamly (listed as our agent). They had a message that said "call your insurance company, not us". That being said, OTT was our ONLY advocate. On our return trip to the impoundment lot, we took over 170 detailed, labeled and scaled pictures and shared those with Mike in service. In less than 2 hours we had an estimate of the damage from him ($77,000). Oddly enough, after about 6 days, we got a repair estimate (from the 9 pictures) from the insurance company that was $1000 more. Keep a record of every penny you spend on the Oliver from the original bill of sale down to the rug in front of the door and the command hooks on the wall. With the help of Oliver and our own record keeping, we raised our valuation by $10,000 from the original insurance valuation. Take lots of pictures. First at the accident scene and then of the damage. Get every angle and multiple zoom levels. Again, please set aside some time and review your insurance! Over all, our story ends well - we have ordered a new Oliver!