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This is in the beautiful US Choctaw Lake NF campground, located in central Mississippi. It is full of songbirds, lush and lovely.

Sold my emotional support tent to an outfitter 🙁🙁🙁 It was painful but the funds can go toward the Alcan upgrade where is everyone? we hiked some Crested Butte and Gothic Colorado trails today and the mountain flowers are just starting to bloom, July is the big blooming season they say Crested Butte is the Saint Moritiz of Colorado

Reset 2.0 (Hull 1364) just spent its first night (with us) in Utah. The Flaming Gorge area is absolutely beautiful. This trips pass list so far includes: Raton Pass (NM) 7,834 ft Monarch Pass (CO) 11,312 ft Douglas Pass (CO) 8,205 ft

June 7th went by and our Oliver has been parked for a few weeks on the corner of our property. The A/C running, set at 80F on battery (😎) since it's getting hot again. We've had a most beautiful Spring that has literally lasted for months. Clear skies every day until some clouds blew in. Just heard some thunder, always hoping for rain. Maybe a monsoon or two will come early this year... I forgot all about her on our third anniversary! We're not traveling again until Labor Day which starts our new travel season and there's nothing big scheduled in mods like our last two summers. She looks and performs a whole lot better than she did 3 years ago! 🤣 The 7th is also Chris' birthday! I certainly did not forget that nor our 32nd wedding anniversary on the 1st! Charley turned 12 yesterday. He got a summer cut and a bone! He loves traveling in our tow vehicle and camping in the Oliver! (see pic above) Thankful to have our Oliver! It's improved our lifestyle, with the ability to leave on moment's notice and glamp (never really liked that word but how true it is). Looking forward to another great year with our Oliver. Even giving some thought to that Rally...

@John Dorrer glad you're OK! Reed used to post here. He made a video about operating a Bulldog hitch, for those that would like to learn more about the Bulldog:

The first picture is a different view from topgun2's. The second picture is of the aluminum support tubes I installed for my Nova Kool refrigerator. The aluminum tubes span the trough noted in the first picture. And if you really have a need to know in order to proceed with your installation, you can follow @jd1923's suggestion above. Or you can remove the drawers below the sink and cut a hole in the cabinet floor and have a look around, like I did. Mossey

Monarch Pass, June 2023. A week later it was sunny and warm!

Reset 2.0 (Hull 1364 ‘23) has new Alcan springs! Even though I got mixed up on the drop off time and was late, the team at Alcan did a great job. Had an incredible breakfast at the Dream Cafe per several suggestions in this thread, then Rebecca and I went up through the Colorado National Monument with Reset 2.0 safely in the hands the Alcan team. Can’t imagine going over that Rim Road with the Ollie 😀 Adding to my list of “designations I never wanted to achieve,” they told me my springs were among the worst they had seen. Bushings completely shot and in terrible shape. That’s the joy of purchasing a used Ollie. At least we have solid records from the day we purchased forward. Now doing the enforced rest breaks under the trailer, a.k.a tightening the shackles and u-bolts.

Where's the snow in CO and where's the gator in MS?

Thanks for the detailed options. @jd1923 - Please rest assured - that was a “before” photo from my “replace the completely trashed factory shocks with bulldog shocks.” I should have cropped that out - I was just trying to get a reference for the axle type and that was the best photo I had in my library of the hub. Will put in some better photos this morning. I was so focused on getting a good clear hub shot that I didn’t see the “gorilla” in the background. Will report back on findings. Am also going to call the folks at Alcan for their thoughts. I just wanted to get the thoughts out of my head and into the forum brain before going to sleep last night.

This could be nothing. Could be something squeaking from the new leaf springs. Alcan torque numbers are high. The springs or a very tight bolt can squeak. But to answer your first question, "should I be worried?" There are things you could look into... First thing you can do in the morning, parked at the campsite, is use your stabilizer jack to lift that side up. Spin both tires one at a time. Hopefully you do not here squeaking running this test because it would mean a Nev-R Lube bearing is failing. However, this is not a conclusive test, since when lifted there is no load on the wheel bearings. These bearings can last many years, warrantied for 5 years, but can fail at any time. A low probability cause since your Oliver is relatively new, unless a whole lot of miles have been towed. Also, with the wheels lifted do the 3 - 9 o'clock position pushing back and forth and 6 - 12 positions to see if there is any free play. If good, you should NOT be able to budge the wheels at all. After you break camp, do some slow towing forward and backing up in an open area where you can take your time. One of you driving, the other with ears close the Oliver wheels on the side it's squeaking. See if you can reproduce the sound and try to pinpoint the location if possible. Your shocks look terrible! The bushings were greatly over-tightened when installed (bushings flat and way too many threads showing above the top washer). Shocks can make squeaking sounds. This would be your best-case scenario as you can drive to Texas and back without shocks on an Oliver without causing harm. In fact, if you believe it is a particular shock, remove it to see if the squeaking goes away. At some point they should be replaced, but they are not critical in your getting home. If it gets worse and you're not too far already from Alcan Springs, it may be a good idea to go back. You're a customer. They have the tools and expertise and would certainly take the time to help you. If it is a bearing failure, they could change it for you, and likely under warranty on a 2023 trailer! They are a Dexter Authorized Reseller. At least call Lew or Tim. Let them know of your situation and get their advice and help if needed. If it doesn't get any worse, you could play it by ear and continue to Wyoming. Keep in mind a return through Grand Junction to Alcan Springs may be necessary if it gets worse. This sure beats being somewhere else in the country, far from home, not knowing where to go for service. Best wishes to you in your travels! JD

Yes. I certainly did. And Yes it is my Oliver. And yes I love my Oliver. I'm trying to take care of her. There was a problem with the truck AND with the trailer. I wish I were an expert mechanic, but I'm not. I wish I had more space for tools, but I don't. I appreciate your posts -- they are usually very informative. I don't own the equipment, but I am trying to learn, and I lean on the forum members who have the expertise and/or experience to help me. I bought a caliper last year, but it wasn't very helpful to me trying to measure the size of that hole in the axle to figure out what size grommet I need, because the wires don't allow me to insert it fully. hahaha -- more wasted money, perhaps. Service Dept couldn't / wouldn't give me a clue. So I ordered a box of 200 grommets off Amazon that are shipping to New Mexico where I hope to make progress on this thing. Unfortunately, that is the way this issue has gone for me. If I knew a lot more about these systems, I might not have been taken advantage of by lazy or incompetent people. What to do? Learn. I'm learning.

I have no idea what gave you the impression that I have dismissed anything. I've done my best, given no space to "work" on my Oliver (not at home and not in storage) and given no tools (very few, I should say, because ALL of them have to be stored in the truck or the trailer, as I have no garage). I take everything here to heart. Please cut me some slack. I'm trying, believe me, to end my nightmare.

In process of getting the 2-5/16

Man this is a real mystery. So glad it ended well and that you and yours are safe! I have been reading all the posts trying to make sense of how this could happen, especially to a Bulldog hitch. If the hitch lever was indeed pinned in place and didn't pop open when you hit that bump, then the options become limited. Some thoughts about this: You didn't show the ball in your pics, but I would have a close look at it for clues, including the possibility that it was out of spec and not the correct size. Or that from lack of lubrication, it was "ground down" to be out of round. This is unlikely but worth checking. If the ball doesn't give up any clues, I would check the pin on the Bulldog that creates the hinge that holds the two clamping pieces together. Do the two halve come together as they should? Did the pin somehow get bent increasing the closed opening of the hitch around the ball? It's just hard to imagine a Bulldog letting go of the ball like that if all was in spec. I assume your hitch setup with your TV is nice and flat, not nose up or down. Just throwing out these ideas to try and figure this out. Hope you will let us know what you find out. Definitely take JD's advice and get a new hitch! Sizing up would be good as you would get a new ball as well. Again, glad everyone is OK, and kudos to you for keeping control of your rig. Cheers, Dave

Okay, thanks. I still can’t imagine the Bulldog popping off of a correctly sized ball. Mine is sort of close fitting. I’d still check the diameter accurately just in case and at least settle that question. Anyway I hope you can figure out what actually happened.

B & W Stow and Go with marked 2" & 2-5/16" on the top of each ball

Don't be so hard on yourself. You have been dealt a bad hand and have done more on your own that most people are able or willing to do! This should not be the case on a 2022 Oliver and 2023 HD truck! Good thing you have a modern diesel truck. I imagine you are running the exhaust brake to compensate for the trailer brakes. Taking another look at this photo, I don't see the large black cable coming from the hitch, but I do see all the wire colors associated with a trailer wiring harness. You can have an issue there, but there is no movement there like at the hitch or at the wheels. Wago connectors covered with electrical tape, good work OTT! Wagos are not reliable. It makes sense the black is fused for the +12V (accessory or charge wire). This should be disconnected anyway. The blue is for brakes. If you have a butt connector and crimp tool where you can reach in there, I would replace the Wago connector. I'd replace them all but not while on the road. So all trailer lights, turn signal lights, etc work except the blue wire? Again low likelyhood. Intermittent loss is more likely either the electronics going bad in the truck brake controller, a loose connection at the 7-blade connector or a wire shorting on-n-off at the wheels. The U-Haul rental is a pain but will give you a truck vs. trailer diagnosis. You may do this and find no error and then think you wasted more time, already thinking it was something wrong in the Oliver. If you are able to test for amperage on the brake lines and found an error this would be easier with tool and testing knowledge. Problem with this option is it can test good when sitting/testing and then a bad wire can touch when moving, hence your intermittent issue. Nothing worse than intermittent issues. I bought a truck NEW once in my life, the other 10 were all purchased USED. It had a bad trans, the torque converter would slip intermittently when hot. I took it to 3 different Dodge dealers for warranty repair. It always worked fine when at the dealer, at least that's what they said! Sound familiar to your experience? It lasted until it was out of warranty and then it failed on an AZ to TX trip. I was lucky to limp along on the final stretch, just barely getting to our Georgetown home. You could stop at Harbor Freight in Little Rock and purchase a clamp-on ammeter. Test for amperage like in the picture I shared above. I've got another idea. Forget about it for a while, use your exhaust brake and enjoy your trip. After you get to New Mexico drive another day to Prescott Arizona. I have an Oliver parking spot with a 30A hookup, good mountain water, free dump station down the street. I have the next 3 weeks off work and would work a couple days on your Oliver! We can tow my Oliver with your truck to see if we get the same error message. I will wire a new 7-blade connecter, new brake wiring at the axles or whatever is needed. I'm not kidding! I enjoy repair work and it's a genuine offer to help you. PM me if you want. If your issue is with the Oliver, I can and will fix it. Best wishes, JD

It's good that you got that taken care of. New or used the factory springs on these trailers are a significant worry. We have a 2023 trailer and one of our springs snapped on our last trip.

Since you had the latch pinned, I would assume that the issue was caused by the wire part that connected from the latch to the collar. I don't see how that collar can slide back allowing the coupler to open without some type of deformation to, or disconnection of, that wire. Let us know what Bulldog tells you.

Yes it is! Great fishing if you are so inclined. And not far away there are some sights to see. https://www.visitutah.com/articles/dinosaur-national-monument-flaming-gorge

No pictures. Trailer is back in storage. After a day processing, we are sure the trailer was secure on the ball. My wife directs me back and when we have the ball where we want it under the hitch, I lower the hitch. Once I know it is seated, I squeeze the lever and slide the slide closed. With it closed, I turn to my wife and we give each other Knucks and she hands me the pin to insert. After the incident and getting the front raised, I pulled the pin and opened the hitch. The bridge joint was a hard impact. It must have shut our dash cam off, or leaving it on when I went to the store and left it on overnight may have errased it. I wonder if this was a combination of bad bridge joint, new Alcan 5-leaf springs, and wear or issue with the 2" Bulldog. I'm not willing to go through that again. Requested pricing from Oliver so I can have them ship the 2-5/16". When I pick up the trailer, I will be taking roads less traveled straight to my Truck Service place to get it replaced. I may ship to Bulldog to have them determine what may have caused the failure.

AND - IF all of this is true (I suspect it is true), we just might get our "classified section" back here on the Forum. Bill

ADK - The first thing I would do is contact Oliver and ask if they can give you any information on how that original floor was constructed. Below is a pic of what I believe is under the floor that you have in your pic. Bill

It's a lesson to all of us to always have a spare set of shorts handy for occasions like this. 😜

I love my wife Chris, and as each year goes by it becomes ever more so apparent! We purchased our Oliver just days short of a year ago and we love being together in our travels, no matter where we camp for the night, good or bad. I share this thought today with my virtual Oliver family. I do my things and she does hers and the best things are the times we spend together. She often asks, “How’s the blog going?” She’s referring to this forum and she is always interested. I tell her stories regarding y’alls antics, often over a drink or two before dinner. She listens and smiles, what a smile. Today is a very special day for us, as it is our 30th wedding anniversary! I have a difficult job every year from June 1st to June 7th. Her birthday being the latter date. Last year, as you can see, it was easy as can be, as to her surprise I brought home an Oliver! 😊 What in the world can I do this year! Good thing we do not need to top the great times we’ve had and will always have together. I write this for my partner in life. Love you, Chrissy.

If this company does what they say they are going to do then I predict that they will soon need a much bigger service building. Good luck to them. Bill

Love you both...Wen and John :)

Boudicca: JD is a outstanding standup guy. Comes across some times a bit gruff (Don't we all?), but is pure of heart and giving to a fault. And Chris can sure cook up a wonderfull mountain of pasta as well. I went thru the same process as you, but had the tools and past knowledge to get to the bottom of it. For grins I would suggest you purchase a new seven pin plug for spare parts or use with JD. More than a few ownes like the one below. With or without the cable. It is one that John Davies suggested. If you have a spare few inches in your existing you could just get the 7-pin end. I had those inches and did just the end. Next time I'll have to get the full cable shown below. Amazon.com or Tractor Supply are both good sources for a lot of what we need. The cable connections are easy, getting the "Right" wire into the proper peg of the cord is complex. Having the same color to color at the box makes life a lot easier. Good luck. GJ

John, if the hitch was closed and locked closed…..maybe a dumb question but are you sure that your hitch ball is in fact 2 inches and not 1 7/8? Accurately measure with calipers.

Probably stock ordered before the decision was made.

John, the 2-5/16 sounds like a safe bet. I doubt you'll have to worry after that.

That would be great! I think Oliver is getting some name recognition, and if this was the place to find a used one, or even a new one sold at the factory, all the better. I say Oliver is getting name recognition because this week two sets of campers knew mine was an Oliver, and I have no decals on my trailer. Both commented on the reputed build quality of Oliver.

You are correct. I know nothing. My original post includes the fact that 3 separate issues were found and corrected by the last mechanic involving both truck and trailer -- and the fact that the warning lights disappeared and my trailer brakes worked for 3 solid days. Maybe you didn't see that part of the post -- or maybe you have concluded that none of those 3 things contributed to the issues? I'm suspecting that the wires behind the vanity may have worked loose again, as I was traveling. I cannot be certain that any of these issues were even partly the cause of the warning lights or partly the cause of the intermittent loss of the trailer brakes. I'm going to remove that vanity panel again, and take a look at the junction box. And when I get to Lake Catherine SP, I will see if I can rent a U-Haul trailer in Hot Springs. It looks like one of them is open on Sunday and Monday. I will let you know the result.

Hello to the Ollie crossing the Knik River bridge on the Glenn Hwy. in Alaska. Our son passed you southbound about 15 minutes ago.

My understanding is that the brake wires come that way from Dexter, Oliver just installs the axles as they receive them. Mike

Wow, glad you and your Ollie are OK! I can't even visualize how this can happen if the latch is locked/pinned unless the wire part that attaches from the latch to the collar is bent or broken. Do you have any pics from the topside?

Wow, so many variables and it's more difficult when you have to count on service technicians, to whom are not all created equal. Yes, all 7-pin cables are the same. And yes, you can replace male head only (OTT is not always right). GJ did his and I did mine, been fine for 2 years. Changing out the whole cable is a bit of work. On my hull it's connected under the front dinette, past the wastewater plumbing (see pic). But who knows on yours since OTT hires random installers year-to year. In the picture you showed of a residential junction box, I don't see the trailer cable, the large black coupler cable, spliced down like you see in my picture. If you want to be absolutely certain whether your issue is the truck or trailer, take your truck to U-Haul and rent the cheapest trailer with a 7-pin connector! There is a lot less liability in doing this than borrowing a friend's truck or trailer, and less money than an hour of labor, shop rate at the Stealership! 🤣 See if you get the error message when towing the U-Haul trailer. The logic is binary. If it still shows the error, then it's the truck. Tow the trailer long enough and if it doesn't display the error code, then you have a wiring problem with your Oliver. So, if it's the Oliver, the next thing I would do is to test the brakes. Pull the pin on the emergency brake switch (the little cable you connect when hitching). Then take a clamp ammeter to the streetside, under the wheel well where you see two wires coming out of the hull, going to the brakes. Clamp onto only one wire, either wire of the pair. The ammeter should read about 6A on both sides (front and back axles). If it does, then all your brake wiring is good, so you can rule that out. (Don't forget to replace the safety brake pin when done.) If this test fails, then you have wiring issues at the axles, but don't waste time there unless you must. If the above test is positive, then connect the 7-pin coupler to your truck and run the same test. If it tests bad, then the brake wiring from the coupler back is bad (open) somewhere. Your next step would be to replace the 7-pin male on the Oliver. This will likely fix any Oliver-side issues. You don't really want to replace the entire cable unless you have too and OTT would likely charge a fortune to do this job. If towing the U-Haul trailer showed an error message, then it's your truck. What a shame 4 GM dealers cannot properly troubleshoot and fix the products they sell. If it was me, in a heartbeat I would disable the factory brake controller. Pull the fuses for it, buy an aftermarket Tekonsha controller and run new wiring to the female 7-pin outlet on your rear bumper (this is what I did from the start, since my older truck does not have a factory controller). This would cost about $200 in parts and likely 2 shop-hours to install, ANY trailer shop can do this, has the parts, maybe even the same U-Haul dealer could do it. I'd rather go to the dentist for a couple extractions than make a service appointment with an auto dealer, OMG! 🤣 And your story certainly shows why. Keep us posted and let me know if you have questions on anything I suggested. Best wishes, JD

Yeah, except it popped off and is no longer fit for highway use (around town OK). I would replace it ASAP with the 12.5K 2 5/16" coupler. Glad I made the upgrade before something like this, and more so since our trailer is much older. The heavier Alcan Springs will keep the Oliver from porpoising. It will be less forgiving, and over a bump could creat force in the opposite direction. Given this failure, it would have happened eventually since the sagging 1750s are more foregiving. Sounds like your back or near home. John, you do not want a repeat episode! Please get it replaced! This is what I purchased which is still reasonably priced today => Bulldog Collar-Lok Trailer Coupler 2-5/16" Ball 12,500 lbs 3" Channel Tongue w/ High Profile Latch | TrailerJacks.com

Yes -- I have a friend at home who actually suggested that, but I didn't find a person available to test it that way. However, once I arrive in NM where I am meeting another Oliver owner, maybe she will be willing to test that out. No matter the cause, those wires being subjected to rubbing at the axles is ... no good. I will look for Mike Thompson (or a post, if he made one here on the forum?) I am not on facebook.

Back to a factory direct sales model. We officially showed ours about 30 times and helped close 12 sales. Maybe they’ll restart the owner referral program again.

Or, three or four! I do know of a person (me) that was leaving VERY early one morning from a campsite in Yellowstone and just had this "funny" feeling that all was not right. I (oops - this person that I know) stopped at the camp entrance just to take a look around and saw that while the bulldog was clamped shut and locked, it was "resting" on the top of the ball - NOT down and clamped around the ball as it should have been. This person has never told me just how he got the bulldog closed and locked without being down on the ball. I've accused him of not being as careful as he should have been and he claims that in the early morning darkness plus being in a hurry may have had something to do with the issue.🥴 Bill

Chilling at Lottis Creek Campground in the Gunnison National Forest listed my canvas wall tent on the FB marketplace in Gunnison, Crested Butte and Buena Vista its my emotional support tent 😢

San Isabel National Forest , Cascade Campground near Buena Vista Colorado Gonna hit the nearby hiking trails, Ghost Town of Saint Elmo, Hot Springs Got the hang of the Ford 10 speed on mountain passes tow haul mode only , select M , 2nd gear off the top

Our Anniversary night ended well. After a few hours watching a local P-ball tournament, and a little rest at home, we went to Papa's Italian in Prescott. It was a great weekend! Her birthday is still to come this Friday. Certainly cannot afford another Oliver, Lol!

From coachnet website “Your Premier membership protects you anywhere you go throughout the U.S., Canada or Mexico.”

I quit AAA after years of membership due to a bad experience. I needed a tow in Hayes, KS on a Saturday early afternoon since a wheel bearing on my SOB RV gave up the ghost on Interstate 70. There I was - stuck - with a ton of traffic wizzing by and AAA told me that they didn't have contracts with anyone in that area that could help me. They didn't even offer to look up the names of ANY local towing outfits and I didn't have a cell phone that could do that either. Lucky for me that a KS State Patrol officer stopped and gave me the name of what turned out to be a great towing company that was located not 5 miles away. The towing bill for that 5 miles was several hundred dollars and once I submitted receipts and waited 6 months I did receive a check from AAA for $75. More than the money - it was the lack of being willing to provide any help. Bill

We've had the good Sam's coverage on the trailer , both insurance and roadside, for over a decade. Have never, fortunately, needed the tug and tow roadside or towing, but I do know others have found it to be good, in years past. The premium coverage also covers us in Canada when we do Alaska deliveries. There is no mileage limit, just closest qualified repair shop. That can be a long ways in the Yukon. Good Sam's gives a credit for layup time. We call in when we store the trailer, and call in again when we get back on the road in the spring. We've used the roadside for the vehicles a number of times. Response time has been good.