Ollie-Haus

Welcome! You may be like us last year. We picked up #1373 five days before the start of the rally.

I just ran across and decided to follow a web site that's been ongoing for 23 years according to the introduction. It has a wealth of information about everything RV. Numerous articles are posted each week by actual RVers about every topic that's relevant. My reason for posting this here is because the first search I did was simply for "Oliver" and found that four articles they've posted over the past few years popped up. Thought it was worth sharing. https://www.rvtravel.com/?s=Oliver

Additional Info for Hull 1373: Ford CC King Ranch F350 2021 4WD Gas 7.3 4.30 Tremor Fiberglass shell LEII 1373

The Natures head sits right on the black tank so the mod should be pretty straight forward. I could see making this change down the road. At the same time, emptying the urine jug in the local toilet is about as easy as it gets. I have considered getting a second jug and cap for those occasions where emptying isn't immediately possible.

This can also be the case with the Lithionics battery Bluetooth connection and their app. There's suppose to be a safety built into the batteries that once they have been connected to a phone via the app, they cannot be connected to another phone without deleting. I don't know if the batteries are even visible to another phone once they are connected to yours, but regardless setting your own password for that Bluetooth connection would be a wise step to take. Now that I think of it, I may do some experimenting to see if a different phone will indicate the presents of the Lithionics batteries when I pull up the app. Even though the batteries may not be able to be connected to the phone, it would be an easy way for a thief to target a camper for stealing the batteries if they are able to use the app to pinpoint campers that have these batteries. Geesh this all makes my head heart. 🙄

I think your plan is very sound. On the other hand I tried a similar metal box from some other product and it was only marginally effective. If you got right up against the door handle the touch door locks would still unlock. Also even though the fob was in the box, with the box sitting on the console arm rest the truck still started. On the other hand the pouches I got from Amazon are nearly a year old and the truck still will not respond in any way with the fob in the closed pouch regardless of where you put the pouch in the truck, including placing the pouch with the fob right in the tray of the console near the receiver. The fob rolled up in a few layers of aluminum foil is just as effective. I think every item on Amazon has at least a small percentage of negative reviews, no matter how good the product is. As long as an item rates 4 stars or better I pretty much disregard the negative reviews as spurious, or even the competition planting the negative reviews in hopes of bolstering their competing products. Whichever method works to your satisfaction, I think it's well worth the trouble for the added security and peace of mind considering the cost of vehicles and even the difficulty of replacing one these days. I just edited my previous post and added the Amazon link to the pouches I bought. I'm pleased with the overall performance of this pouch to date.

This video was also part of my research that convinced be to also use faraday pouches for our key fobs. Interestingly, rolling a fob up in a piece of aluminum foil is very effective as well in a pinch. Our spare fobs are stored in a metal safe that is very effective in that application. Until I discovered this topic, I had no idea a person with a scanner could walk past you in a parking lot, steal your fob's radio codes and than drive off with your vehicle as soon as you are out of sight. Amazing! Edit - The pouches I bought: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B071KVWTYZ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1

One other item that's easy to implement. Have a local engraver make a VIN plate from stainless or brass with your trailer VIN engraved on it. Install it with a couple pop rivets on the inside of the frame rail under the trailer right below where the VIN sticker is applied by the factory. If a thief peals the VIN sticker off, you still have solid identification you can us on a police report. This was recommended to me when I had my camper inspected by Indiana State Police for title transfer purposes when we brought it home. If you have a set of number stamps, you could stamp the number into the frame in that location yourself. Very inconspicuous to say the least.

We are actually very much cat lovers as well, we just haven't had cats since moving from the farm 19 years ago. Cats are welcome if you have them. 🙄🤣

I listen to Joey and Rory often. Joey was from southern Indiana. Funny you mention this song as I created a Pandora channel after this track just a couple days ago. Their story and the amazing fulfillment of some of their songs can give you chills. BTW, as you probably know by now, the song that plays after the video you attached came true a little over a year after she and Rory produced the video. They had no idea what the song portended for them. The best always leave us early. 😔

Just call the state park directly at their phone number on their web sight. They should be able to identify available sites for the rally if you want to make a change. We did this last winter when we were new to this process.

You guys are true hard core adventurers, very much like the Vikings of old. I've enjoyed reading your posts and following. 🍻

Just arrived at the Mother. Tow vehicle below. 😊

It's better to be young, don't wish your life away. 😏

Steve makes the list on the forum so everyone can copy and save. He will need everyone to post their campsite number so he can compile the list.

F23 is a good spot, pretty level with large tall pines all around. I forgot to mention that we will be in site G34. Can't wait to get back together with many good friends and pick up from there adding to the list.

FYI for those on the fence about attending, the park only blocks out camp sites for the rally so long. At some point about a month or so before the rally, the block is made available to the general public again. This is so they can utilize as many sites as possible once all potential rally attendees have had ample opportunity to commit. Point being, if you wait too long to commit you may lose out. If you have to cancel more than a week out, the cost of canceling is minimal.

Just went onto the Oliver Rally page on the web site and registration is now open. For folks that are new, You must first reserve a camp site. They are still blocked off for the Rally so it's best to call for reservations. The on line reservation system will look like the campground it booked full. That's because the blocked out sites for the rally show as reserved even though many are still available. The second step is to fill out the form on the Oliver site once you have your camp site reserved. The required fees with this part of the registration covers the group activities pavilion fees, including a wonderful catered meal at the conference center, T-shirts and other misc.

I personally like the simplicity of the single battery option. The odds of a single battery failure in a multiple lithium system seems unlikely. If you do something wrong that will destroy a battery, both will be effected the same. Besides as you said, the generator is a satisfactory backup. I like simple when it's possible.

It is a pretty simple modification to add a DC/DC charger to a lithium battery setup, and it can be done any time in the future when it's convenient to do a one day project. It wires directly between the tow vehicle battery and the Lithium battery on the camper via relatively heavy wiring depending on your current settings on the charger. It does add an additional tether connection at the back of the TV from the camper. Many have added this and it provides safe and fast charging of the lithium batteries while driving.

Love this. Growing pains are just that, but I know the folks that run Oliver will not change. Like you point out, they are actually responding to our demands in most of this. And they are doing what it takes to add strength and longevity to the company and brand. Down the road we'll have conversations around the camp fire about the old way and newer owners will tell about their experience. And life will go on.

...... which is exactly what I said in the following sentence. : "Cost is important to us, but value of product and quality of customer experience is more important to us." It's all well and good to like haggling, but most of us chose the Oliver route knowing we would get our money's worth without the haggle, and we're glad for that, as indicated in the previous comment by @Rivernerd. I too am very glad I didn't have to go in to a dealership and haggle for a fair price and hope I was going to get treated in a respectable way. My only hope it that in the process of developing their dealerships, Oliver management puts a heavy emphasis on maintaining that level of honesty and respect for the customer. Honestly I have faith that's been the plan from the beginning. I'm sure customer surveys will follow the purchase process after the dealer experience to help maintain that reputation.

There is another side to this. Part of the dealer pricing game is driven by the customer desire to "work out a bargain deal". This is only a percentage of buyers, but we all know folks that like to brag about the deal they worked on XYZ. Dealers love this mentality also as they love to play the money game to make a buyer feel like they pulled one over on the dealer, and reeling them into to purchase. It's not all just about pulling the wool over on the customer, but also making them feel they are getting a bargain at that moment and locking in the sale. What I'm saying is there's a percentage of folks that prefer the haggle and wheel and deal process over the fixed price, no haggle method. And dealerships are just used to working this way. I think an interesting characteristic about this topic is that before the dealer option, Oliver sales attracted a certain kind of customer base that made us very relatable. We liked the direct factory purchase arrangement, and for many that was a driving force in our attraction to Oliver. We are the kind of folks that have no interest in the haggle game. We are straight shooters and we perceive Oliver as being very honest, straight shooters as well. Cost is important to us, but value of product and quality of customer experience is more important to us. Buyers that prefer the dealer purchase process and working their deal will choose that route for their own reasons. In many ways it is customer driven.

Hey David, I checked out your web journal and it's amazing. Stunning photos and great reviews. This is an awesome tool for folks like us that are really just getting started. Thanks for sharing your great experiences! Hopefully you guys will be back in the fold soon with another Oliver.

Funny you mention getting used to a small bed. We sleep in a king size at home and share it with two dogs 😏. I've been practicing for the Oliver for several years as my portion of the bed is about 1/4th. I'm pretty good with it because I have no problem sharing my compact twin in the Ollie with the same two dogs. 😍