Patriot

After a rather lengthy scouring of the internet and Ford forums I found a small business in Kansas that makes custom locking diesel fuel caps crafted out of billet aluminum. They make them for 2500 Rams as well. I called the phone number on the fuel cap I saw on a members post in a Ford forum and placed my order for a cap and two keys. This company is small and do not advertise on line. They take over the phone orders only or at least they did for me. I am not that concerned about someone stealing diesel fuel, rather the random act of vandalism of fuel contamination which will destroy most engines costing thousands to repair or replace. The machined aluminum cap has heft to it and very well made and seals excellent and locks on strong to the tank lip. If you loose the key, you had better have a backup key. To my knowledge they only produce locking caps for diesel fuel vehicles. The gal that I placed my order with at BEM auto name is Nicole. Very nice and very professional and I would not hesitate to do business with her again. Like anything well made it does come at a cost - 1 cap, 2 keys (I added a spare) $67.00 shipped to my door in NC. I inquired about a locking DEF cap as well and they maybe producing those in the near future for the F250, I am on the list for a DEF cap if and when they produce one. They only ship UPS. If your interested in ordering or have further questions give them a call and naturally have year make and model of your handy. Made in the 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 Happy Camping! Here are a few photos- keys-

Love, love our microwave convection oven, I could not even imagine buying a new or used Ollie without one, not to mention the value it will bring at resale. Of course most options can be added by Oliver Service after the fact, but it’s costly. Just another view point.

I prefer shaken ice cubes in my tank...not stirred!! 🤣

We have not had any issues with emptying either of the tanks. As others have mentioned Ollie nose up and always black first and then gray for the soapy rinse. I don’t see a problem and really like the simplicity of the tank discharge design.

My thought is IF I were interested in this, I would likely wait a year just to see how this set up works out. And I would do a much deeper dive spending some time on the Ford 150 forums to get owners thoughts and feedback that have really used this generator before ordering this option.

Fritz, thank you. If you have any questions later on just shoot me a PM, glad to help.👍🏻

Thank you Mike! 👍🏻

Long install post- I decided it was a gorgeous sunny North Carolina day and just a good day to install the new tinted glass and blind I ordered from Zarcor. I made this a stand alone post as this window install was a bit different from other installs I have read about here. It appears the Lippert now uses a sealant on the exterior window frame which adheres the frame to the door frame opening. They also use a similar sealant on the interior of the exterior frame, which holds the glass FIRMLY in place inside the window. I could not remove the old opaque glass from the old frame. I decided since this really appears to be a one time use sealant that purchasing a new exterior frame would be required. Reusing the old frame and compromised sealant was not an option for me. You will see where the sealant on the old frame came off after removal from the Ollie window door cut out or frame. Some of the old sealant came off on the old opaque window. I was glad I had purchased a new frame through Zarcor to do the install. The new frame was $28 plus shipping. Once I removed the old frame and opaque glass, the install was pretty straightforward. The new window frames use what appears to be a ratchet mechanism which once both frames are sealed together they lock into place. No more rope caulk or screws to tighten down when you sandwich the new window interior and exterior frames together. Zarcor sends (16) little plastic tabs (pics) that release the frames from each other. Without these tabs you cannot remove the frames. Below are a few photos to help describe the process. It’s not terribly difficult; just take your time and read the instructions. We are really happy with this mod and like the idea of seeing who is knock knock knocking on our Ollie’s door. $175.00 for this mod including shipping from Zarcor. The staff at Zarcor made this mod seamless by answering all questions I had before moving forward. Just really great folks to do business with in San Antonio,Texas. This is a fairly easy window mod and I would highly recommend it if you prefer being able to see who is knocking at your door. Take your time and remember be gentle as your working with plastic and glass. link - https://www.zarcor.com/rv_products/rv-door-window-kit/ (16) tabs provided by Zarcor to remove existing frame. You insert equally around slots on the exterior of the interior frame edge. You will see the slots. Ratchet mechanism that holds frames together. Likely to speed up window/door plant assembly production cut costs. After removing the interior frame, a thin bladed puddy knife can be used to separate seal. Old frame and compromised sealant - Another photo of old exterior frame after removal- Throughly clean off old sealant off door frame- Installed new frame, and tinted glass, my bride was a tremendous help with an extra set of hands 🙌 👍🏻. The blind install was again pretty straight forward and it works great! It attaches with several small Velcro tabs. The blind can be operated with the interior screen door closed, just slide screen door plastic opening for access. Finished exterior - we like the way this tinted window matches the rest of our glass. The contrast of the tint vs natural light -

Ray, my local discount tire shop will perform the wheel balancing as mentioned in my earlier post for $10.00 a tire. I find it easier to just take Ollie to the tire store, point out where the lift/jack locations are and have it done right there. They hand torque lugs on every wheel they install to wheel or factory specifications. I will likely purchase their insurance plan which allows mounting and balancing for the life of the tire (at any time) and full replacement if they cannot fix the tire if it goes flat. The plan allows for replacement of the tire with no prorate on mileage. I have always had this on our trucks and cars. I will double check, but feel sure it’s offered on trailer tires as long as they sell the tire. We have done business with DCT for years and our experience has been excellent. Hope this helps. I fully subscribe to DCT Core Values -

Some where on an interstate in Texas....

I do not miss the Andersen WDH at all. It certainly serves a purpose on lighter duty vehicles that may require or need it. I do actually remember smiling as I removed it from our Ollie. Absolutely no tail wagging the dog or “porposing” with our Super Duty. Just another view point.

Wow! Looks like a serious snow storm will pass through Snowhenwald, Tennessee. Be safe everyone!

Wow! I hope this works out and you both are fine. Hang in there and a salute for staying with the Ollie! - Patriot

Great work! Glad it worked out!

Mike, It’s a really nice shade and I really wanted to make it work. I think the adhesive keeping the window sealed to the frame is really strong material. The Zarcor folks were very understanding and great to work with. I would not hesitate to do business with them again. Patriot

Today my Zarcor tinted window arrived and I really looked forward to the install. I used the 16 clips to remove the interior frame which was pretty straight forward. I looked at the interior window and it was really well glued in with a bead all the way around naturally to keep water out. I quickly learned that there was absolutely no way to remove the opaque window as the super strong silicone adhesive would NOT release the glass. There was no way to get the silicone to release from the inner frame and using a razor blade on the exterior of the frame was not and option. It would surely leave tool marks as the frame was really tight against the glass as it should be. I called Zarcor and they suggested maybe using a little mineral spirits to loosen the adhesive. I was not comfortable trying mineral spirits not knowing what kind of effect it could have on the plastic frame and honesty just did not want to take the risk. I finally concluded that it was best to return the window and not take a chance on damaging the existing frame or door.

A very cool video. Thanks for posting it.

A fairly good article on whether to balance or not. The article does point out the challenges to keep trailer wheels balanced. It also talks about tires aging out before the benefit of balancing tires might ever be realized. Before hooking up your Ollie and running out to your local tire shop it might be worth a call to see if they can perform a balance on your particular wheel. There are adapters needed for trailer wheels, some shops carry and some don’t. I did check with my local Discount Tire Store and yes, they will balance a trailer tire @$10 per tire. Likely $40 well spent. An interesting read. https://www.natm.com/blog/trailer-tires-to-balance-or-not-to-balance

@Chukarhunter I have the exact same RV lock that Oliver installs which I ordered direct from RVlock.com and I installed it after we purchased our Oliver. It was much cheaper as RVlocks occasionally run sales of up to 20% off on this locks. It took about 15-20 minutes to install just taking my time. So far the lock and key pad have performed flawlessly both using the keypad, the fob and key. When I installed the lock, I installed a brand new fresh set of double A batteries in the lock as a precaution not knowing how old the factory batteries were. In the several trips we have made with Hull# 634 we have never had a our entry door open while under way or really any concerns about it opening. We lock both the handle lock and ALWAYS dead bolt the entry door and always double check that all exterior doors are locked before take off. We also have a lengthy checklist as to not overlook or forget anything. We keep in mind that when towing our Ollie down the highway there is a mini earth quake going on inside which affirms even more of a reason to double check all doors and do our best to secure everything inside snd outside reflected on our checklist. I hope you get your lock/dead bolt issue corrected. -Patriot

The only down side with the concealing running boards, is when they conceal you loose the parking lot “door ding” protection. The standard running boards in my experience reeeally help prevent door dings from really careless people swinging their doors open. Our running boards protrude out far enough that the only ding will be on the door slung open by someone who is just careless. Just another view point. 😊

Very nice Steve, Congratulations!! I took delivery of my 6.7 Tremor back on Sept 1st and now have a whopping 4440 miles logged. So far we are very happy with the comfort level and highway visibility with the higher lifted Tremor pkg and how extremely quiet our cab interior is. I have since added an ARE Z topper, (5) custom Fuel wheels and (5) Nitto Ridge Grapplers and XPEL paint protection. I have found that the Nitto’s are a much quieter tire than the OE Duratracs. I did my first oil change the other day adding Schaeffer 5W40 full synthetic, yep 13 quarts. Extremely easy the way the oil pan and filter are configured. In the event you decide to do you own oil changes or just want to carry a spare fuel, air or oil filter, here -http://Dieselfiltersonline.com I have an account with Schaeffer oil and they ship a case to my door step within three days. Here is more info about the oil I use. https://www.schaefferoil.com/documents/244-9000-td.pdf Hope this helps! Enjoy that sharp new Super Duty!

Congrats on your OE1 “shorty” and enjoy your time at David Crockett CG!! This is a perfect time to run ALL your systems and really get a good shake down in before your leave the vicinity of the mothership. Torquing wheel lugs, checking tire pressures and going through your safety check list before your long journey home. May your adventures be filled with miles of smiles!

Welcome and enjoy the time you have to read and research all the great information in Oliver University. The more you read and learn the easier it will be in your first few weeks. There have been changes over the years to Ollies, and that up dated info is in Oliver U. The videos are very helpful as well. Dive in! It will greatly assist you on delivery day and beyond. It will be here before you know it! ☕️

Absolutely true. Having moved around and living in different states more than several times in my former career nothing is free. You certainly end up paying somewhere along the line. Sadly with some businesses shuttering do to the pandemic a gap in tax revenue for towns, cities and eventually states is more than likely. It will be interesting to see how this all works out.