bugeyedriver

June QST magazine is out, with THe Wonder Egg on the cover! This was my setup during field day last year.

When I met Jim Oliver on Christmas day in 2007, near my home, he spent two hours showing me a trailer while telling me about his family, the company, and its loyalty to their employees. I was not only sold on the Oliver Elite but on the entire culture at OTI and OTT. At that time they not only matched employee's 401K donations, but if a young worker with a new and growing family was unable to contribute on their own, Oliver Travel Trailers still made a deposit on their behalf. Needless to say, I was sold the trailer, the Oliver family, and the Company. I committed to purchasing The Wonder Egg on Christmas day, 2007! The Wonder Egg still maintains its original beauty. Here's how it looks now, fifteen years after bringing it home.

The IC-7300 is not permanently mounted in the trailer. Going down the road it is nestled inside its Pelican case in the truck and while setting up camp I bring it inside where it sits on the dinette table. This works for me because I am a solo traveler with a small dog, so using the table as a ham station is fine. The DXE-TW-2010-P has a control cable which enables me to change bands remotely. I feed the cable into the trailer through a small hatch where the power cable enters the trailer on an electric the wind-up reel (an early model feature). The antenna control box is powered by a 10AH battery.

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DdDd DDdD DdDd DDdD Ddd d DdD ddDDD dDDd dDdd DD DdD ddDDD dDDd dDdd DD Great thread, thanks for starting it! I always envisioned The Wonder Egg being a rolling ham shack. During the build (in the early days) I asked Oliver to wire the trailer for ham radio operations with an so239 connector outside, running the coax between the shells to the dinette area with another so239. But for many years, I was so busy traveling around the country making new friends and seeing new sights that I never sat still long enough to study for the FCC license and get on the air . . . until COVID, that is. It was the best social distancing hobby I could have ever participated in during the dreaded lock down. Now my home shack has an FTdx101D joined to a Palstar HF Auto and Palstar LA1k for my primary tranceiver. HTs abound as well. The antenna farm includes an EFHV stretched across the back yard for 133 ft, a Xeigu VG4 vertical up at 29 ft, and my go-to for DX is a HexBeam on a tower at 35ft. I also have a dual band Comet GP-1 mounted on a flagpole at 25 ft. My F150 is fully bonded together with 15 wide brass straps and my Diamondback aluminum tonneau is a great platform for my HF ATAS-120A and for my dual band CA-2X4SR. I tend to hear a lot of crickets on VHF and UHF, but on HF I communicate all over the world while driving down the highway. Inside the F150 I have an FT857D and FTM 400XDR/DE. Inside The Wonder Egg I'll have an ICOM IC-7300 and a Yaesu FT5D HT. I have too many choices of antennas to bring them all with me as I travel. This year I'll be bringing a portable BuddiHEX from Buddipole, a TW2010 with 40M and 80M options from DX Engineering, and a CHA LEFS Lightweight End Fed Sloper from Chameleon Antennas. There is a dual band VHF/UHF antenna mounted on The Wonder Egg. It will be great to meet fellow enthusiasts at the rally and down the road. 73, Pete, K2PLM P.S. Folks, sorry for the NERDing out thing here . . . it's an unfortunate condition of ham radio operators. Thanks for understanding . . . .

Bosker and Dolly have not met yet, but it appears they are kindred compact companions, like Liv.

Bosker is a rare breed MIKI, and at 9.5 Lbs, he is a perfect fit inside my 2008 Elite. I often tell fellow travelers that for me, "It's all about the dog". Just ask him and Bosker will proudly tell you he's the center of the universe. His picture adorns the front of The Wonder Egg. We'll be at the rally this year, Stop by and meet Bosker, but look out, you may sucked into his orbit!

Position Light / Oliver Advertisement Light

There will be rust formed on the anode and water heater. Brush off, but don't be too OCD about it. Put some plumber's water tape (the white kind) on the anode screw. Start it with your hand, like Mike & Carol says, supporting the bottom as you attempt to maintaining "level" on the anode as you initially thread it. You will NOT be able to screw it in with the large socket wrench as far as it was when brand new. That's OK. Snug it up nicely but don't CRANK on it. While it was out, I'm assuming you sprayed out the inside of the water tank with something like this before closing it up. Thiose wands can flush out a lot of deposits and extend the life of the water heater.

The swinging pill bottle plinking got me laughing. What a hoot! Instead of a 3 sided CLAM with a heater for warmth, you could always move to Texas, where it very seldom cold enough to need it. Ha!

I just had a nice long conversation with John about this hobby. The average distance used for pinpoint accuracy competition is 11 yards, about 33 ft. Some folks who live alone may even set up an indoor range within their home! Even though Bosker is a tiny short fella, my main concern would be his great big radar ears picking up too much noise, even with the suppressor that comes mounted on the airgun. (Guess I could always keep him downstairs as I plinked.) The "deer blind" he uses is for keeping him warm in the unheated shop. A small ceramic heater keeps him cozy as he hones his skill, mid winter in Washington state. As with any hobby, it is a potential money sink if you opt for some of the higher end equipment. What a fun looking hobby. I'm always looking for new ways to spend my kids inheritance! Don't worry Bosker, I'll get you ear muffs.

Wow John! That's quite a target range setup you have there in your shop. Those thirty tiny aiming circles in front of your safety barrel (ie: sand bucket) sure are close together. Do you enter club competitions in your area or is it all for self improvement? Is the gizmo strapped to the front something for measuring the specific velocity of the projectile? Lots of discipline must be involved to make it all come together for the win . . . What are the normal distances you use for target shooting? General comment: Folks, this discussion about John's hobby does not need to take a political turn. Let's keep it focused on the hobby.

A reminder to all: In our Guidelines, it mentions the forum is: a great place for Oliver Travel Trailer owners and future owners to interact, share knowledge, solve problems, and most importantly, to develop friendships. Respectful and considerate responses help build this community. It also says: Some inflammatory topics to avoid include religion and politics Generalized Christmas or Easter greetings to fellow forum members could be considered a way to develop friendships amongst owners. May we please remember to always be respectful and considerate to all and do our best to avoid the topics of religion and politics. Thanks, and see you at the rally, Pete & Bosker

You'll be very pleased with the outcome. The Wonder Egg's owner isn't nearly as old as Twist's owner, and he looks much better. 🙂

I concur! CGI is currently in Texas and yesterday they applied 2 ceramic coatings to The Wonder Egg after a very impressive prep. I've maintained #14 rather well over the last 15 years, with a semiannual wash and wax / polish. It stays in its protective barn when not out traveling. Seeing the CGI 4 man crew work over the exterior for 5 hours with their professional detailing tools was a sight to behold. And all of that was simply to prepare The Wonder Egg for meticulously applying 2 complete coatings of Glidecoat Marine Ceramic Coating specifically formulated for gelcoat surfaces. CGI members have a passion for creating a perfect mirror finish and the results are phenomenal. A high quality work and product for a high quality trailer is a great way to go. CGI Detailing will be at the 2023 Oliver rally. I recommend you stop by and check them out and take a look at all attending Olivers which have received their services. My 15 year old "Wonder Egg" looks better than its first day out of the factory and into the wild. Thanks, guys!

Several years ago, I visited a fabricator Talmage, NM and he created a strong 2" aluminum receiver for my eBike. Rob designed and created an elegant hitch which allows enough space for the bumper to fold down, with significant structural hardening where it fastens to The Wonder Egg's frame. It holds the 1UP rack close enough to eliminate a large armature and far enough to keep the bike off the trailer. Was it expensive? Yes, and in this instance I got what I paid for and am very pleased. This was a number of years ago. You could contact Rob at 8 0 one, six 3 three, 4 two seven 7 and see if he still offers this service and inquire about current pricing. He is often away from the shop on jobs, so scheduling the job ahead of time is important.

You'll find ScubaRX's disk brake project down on page 2 of this thread, with a April 18, 2017 entry date. Good Luck!

Very interesting product. With that petite 5 Ft tall salesperson it looks absolutely HUGE on the inside!

Many new Olivers have the pristine appearance of their beautiful white gelcoat while exploring this wonderful nation. They are truly pieces of modern art to behold as they roll across the highways and byways. During WWII, it was fashionable for American bomber aircraft or fighters to be decorated with intriguing pieces of artwork (Nose Art) which provided an emotional connection for the aircrews as they "went about their business" during their wartime missions. Some of us have chosen to add a personal, meaningful touch to our Ollies as we carry out our "mission" of exploring this land and have chosen to place some sort of art, or motif on the front of our beloved Ollie which helps guide us along the nation's highway, byways, and back roads displaying a bit of our character, history, or interests to others who come across our paths. This thread is a place for us to show our frontal artwork to our Ollie family and perhaps say a few words about it. I'll go first. I'm on my second piece of art, the first one developed cracks after 12 years and 111,000 miles. My companion dog , Bosker, now graces the front of my trailer . . . eyes gazing into new horizons wondering what adventures are around the next corner. Those of you who have placed a bit of your personalty "up front" please share it with us. Tell us how it is meaningful to you . . .

Brian & Brandelyne, Congratulations on you first of thousands of wonderful camping experiences with #23-1351! Your white Super Duty /topper combo with your Oliver looks fantastic. See you at the rally. Pete

It's not so important exactly which device you use. As you've gathered it is more important to be in the habit of ALWAYS checking prior to plugging in your trailer. There are numerous devices available, from the tiny little yellow plug with three lights on the end that only checks the electrical connections to more complex surge protectors with indicator lights for detected problems and an internal surge protector. The latter sort will give you a double surge protection - one at the pole and the one internal to your Oliver. Also, you should follow the advice from ScubaRx and contact Progressive Industries about your unit, to confirm it is well or not.

I never plug The Wonder Egg into a campground power pole without checking it with an external surge protector first, to check for electrical anomalies. Over the years, I've found several reverse polarity or no-ground situations. These can result in damage to your electrical devices or a shock hazard to yourself. I always contact the park manager and either have it repaired on the spot or I move to another location. (and check again, of course) One of my long time camping friends had $800 electrical damage to his Bigfoot trailer due to a faulty outlet. I will aways remember the night I watched an Airstream arrive in camp and the owner immediately connected directly to the box without testing the pole first. The sparks that flew out of the box were spectacular! Don't be him . . . check the pole and trust your readings.

Yikes!!!!!!!! And Whew . . .

"Aww, you asked for it! She was my late mother-in-law’s dog first, then my wife took her and now it’s just me and her. She is my special buddy for sure. 8 year old toy poodle and she weighs 8 pounds 😂" She looks perfect for traveling with you in your Oliver . . . cute as a button . . . compact size . . . non shedding . . . and those EARS!! If you don't have one already, you'll need a nice doggy bed for her to ride along in. There are lots of types to chose from for her size and your F150. I have two types for Bosker, one clips into the seatbelt on the passenger's side and the other straps to the console. Bosker seems to prefer riding on the console so he is closer to me and can clean the earwax out of my right ear whenever he wants. (eeeewww) So, what's her name?

So glad your Ollie has been found. Yaaay for MUD! Looks like they wanted to paint her silver and disguise her as an Airstream. Haha. Fiberglass is a remarkably resilient product and with a lot of TLC, she'll be heading out to the fishing holes again, just like new.