Ollie-Haus

Congratulations Steve and Deb! Now the fun begins in earnest. Sounds like you have a well thought out plan. That brings up a couple questions for me. We have a delivery date of April 18 based on the original invoice information. How accurate is that date and can we expect more of a window as far as pick up date? And with that question I wonder how late we can wait to make reservation at David Crocket not knowing the exact schedule at this point being three weeks out? Thanks for you help and most of all, enjoy and safe travels!

Dang Brian, you and I could be brothers! 😃I just got my Mopeka propane monitors, and have been looking for the perfect tank security method. Love what you have here. And I have the Gastops in my Oliver shopping list on Amazon for a purchase after we get back home. Glad to see they fit together in the assembly and still fit with the tank cover installed. Thanks a million for the suggestions! BTW 3 weeks until delivery day!

Thanks Pete. I found one link in a thread and it said the page did not exist. I save these kind of thinks in my "useful thread" folder. 😁

@bugeyedriver hey Pete, can you point me to the thread you spoke of where @ScubaRx detailed their upgrade to disc brakes. can't seem to locate it with the search system. I would love to have as much info as possible if I choose to upgrade to discs myself. Thanks!

How are folks doing with the Never-lube bearings on the new trailers? Curious if it's worth having a set of backups in hand with these kind of bearings on our Oliver.

Just checked and the Outland firebowl on Amazon is back on discount again. Not as cheap as last time but still very much discounted. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KY4S388/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

I'm sure it's total photoshop. Just wanted to lighten up the conversation. Struck me as funny. That front wheel drive car isn't going anywhere with that camper.

That would look like a big angry white whale going down the road! 🤣🤣🤣

Not to open a wider topic, but this is why many of us are so adamant about understanding your vehicle's capacities and capabilities, and staying well within a safety margin. Too many think they can get by, but don't know if they can get by. I just don't like rolling the dice with my life and the lives of those around me. Plus it can be a whole lot of trouble and really ruin your travel plans at the least. In this case the other Geico customers are going to foot the bill for his negligence. Stay safe out there friends.

Hello @Rolind and welcome to the forum. We are scheduled to pick up our LE2 in April. I too have a Ford Tremor and I asked salesman Josh White that question. He said the ball should be adjusted to approx. 24" from the ground to the top of the ball. I have the WeighSafe 6" adjustable drop hitch and with the ball adjusted to 24", the ball mount is about in the middle of the adjustment range. https://www.weigh-safe.com/product/steel-weigh-safe-drop-hitch/

Beautiful. He looks like he was well cared for. Our two are age 6 and 7. They're a real dynamic duo. 😆

Well I think you nailed it. I was so caught up in the silhouette that I forgot to even read your story below. It's fun when there's a story and a connection behind a picture. We love our borders. Most people have no idea what they are and have never seen one. Edit: don't know if it will be nose art, but the borders will be featured on Ollie-Haus somewhere.

As I mentioned in my first response, we love the doggies. What breed are you displaying on your trailer? We are connoisseurs of the Border Terrier breed and this looks very much like a Border Terrier profile to me. We may end up with a similar decal for our front end as well.

Your hitch should have a data tag on it from the factory that states it's capacities. You will need to remain within the capacities listed regardless of the cargo capacity of the vehicle. If it allows for a weight distribution system to be used with a trailer, it will state that capacity as a separate number as opposed to a non-weight distribution capacity. If it doesn't have a WD capacity listed, it may have a statement indicating WD is not allow. If your vehicle is a uni-body design, it may not be designed for using a WD hitching system. Some uni-bodies do allow. Again I'm not familiar with your vehicle. Here's a recent article in cars.com that addresses your questions regarding towing with your vehicle. In the section titled "Picking a trailer hitch" it states: "Many body-on-frame SUVs, including the Ford Expedition and Chevrolet Tahoe, will require a weight-distribution hitch in order to reach their maximum rated capacity. Some vehicles, generally SUVs with unibody frames, clearly state that a weight-distribution hitch should not be used as frame damage can occur. Check the vehicle owner’s manual for use of a weight-distribution hitch". https://www.cars.com/articles/what-you-need-to-know-before-towing-with-an-suv-423759/

I did not say WD hitches "reduce" tongue weight. I said "mitigate", as in mitigate the effect by transferring downward force back to the front axle of the tow vehicle. This is only if the vehicle is designed to withstand the forces exerted by a weight distribution hitch. My point is that some vehicles specifically do not allow the use of a weight distribution hitch (uni-body design). I'm not familiar with the OP's vehicle so I'm posing the question they need to establish an answer to. I'm also pointing out the cargo capacity and tongue weight are two different capacities designed into that vehicle and that you can be within the cargo capacity and still exceed the tongue weight capacity of the hitch. Most hitches have information on them stating tongue weight capacity, without WD hitch, and with WD hitch. If a WD hitch is not approved it should say so on the hitch or in the owner's manual.

I've got a real soft spot for the pooches. Bosker looks quite contented displayed front and center.

I'll leave any on line research to the owner, but I will pose a question that will need to be answered. What does Toyota and the owner's manual say about using a weight distribution hitch on that particular vehicle. It sounds like it's within the tow rating, but payload does not define tongue weight capacity. Some vehicles don't allow WD hitches to mitigate tongue weight. Just saying this is another limit that must be considered.

This is reassuring with the comparison to AS in particular. Early on we were considering the other brand and others before we settled on Oliver. Again, I'm not terribly worried about Oliver quality. After two factory tours and the many positive reviews and experiences, I've got a pretty good picture of what to expect. But I'm a stickler for details and so it's always in the back of my mind. Again congratulations and many well wishes for fun and trouble free camping.

Wow Brian, that's exciting. Nice looking rig you guys have there. Looking forward to joining the club soon and meeting you guys and everyone at the rally.

I'm starting to have dreams and getting sleepless at times. Something big is getting ready to happen! Dreamed the other night that I was having trouble backing into our driveway. I hope this isn't a sign!😆

Now y'all have started something. I've got three of those locks so this may be my first mod to the camper once it arrives. 😉

Thanks for the reassuring words. I'm confident that Oliver is trying to bring their standards up when and where they see the need. I'm not as worried as I may have come across but I'm realistic when it comes to quality control. I've worked in industrial manufacturing for over 40 years and know first hand that people have bad days, and some will take short cuts when the bosses aren't looking. People are people. Besides, compared to most RVs on the market the Olivers are better by far in every way. I am a trouble shooter by birth I think, guilty of taking my toys apart when I was a kid just to see how they worked. "Fixed" my first small engine when I was about 12 years old. After replacing a broken connecting rod, valves and bearings, dad's rototiller went on to several more years of summer gardening. I'm actually looking forward to digging into the hidden areas of the Oliver to learn my way around and make an improvement here or there when I see the need. My goal will be to become very familiar with where everything is, and prevent those situations that happen on the road when trouble shooting and repairs are much more difficult. Entering week two of construction on Monday and counting down the days. No worries, just excitement.

At least it didn't have this problem............🙄

John, I like what you did with this particular upgrade and the other electrical improvements you've shared in previous posts. This is the exact junction box I was referring to in my comment above, that I would have expected Oliver to use as a distribution point for the trailer plug harness to branch to the other areas of the trailer. To say the least, I'm a little disappointed at some of the low quality connections used in the wire harness as is being reveled in these threads. And I'm even a little concerned that these connections are randomly buried throughout the trailer in loomed harnesses that would be very difficult to troubleshoot should there be a bad connection. With the potential for exposure to moisture due to condensation, I would have expected these connections to be made with heat shrink sealed type connectors. I see some improvement projects in my future I'm afraid. At least I know what to expect. I'm already working on a number of electrical upgrades/additions anyway so it will all be part of the project.

Just from a general trouble shooting approach, the running lights feed directly from the same pin on the trailer plug as the tail lights, all one circuit. If you have good tail lights both sides and running lights operating on the rest of the trailer, the problem is probably at the point where the wire going to that side of the trailer connects to the main branch. Not having our Ollie yet I would only be able to guess that this connection would be near the tongue of the trailer, possibly a covered distribution block. Others that are familiar with the Oliver wiring harness could add clarity to this hopefully. It's unlikely the that multiple bulbs would burn out, especially since they are LEDs.