DavePhelps

So I've had time to consider this a little more, and make a correction to my earlier post. The Elite 1 has a GVWR of 5000 lbs. The OEM tires it came with are BF Goodrich Commercial LT225/75-16. Please correct me if I'm wrong but tire pressure/load ratings seem to be the same between different manufacturers for the same size and type of tire. So, for the LT225/75-16, its load rating at 70 psi is 2440 lbs. (off the Toyo chart I referenced earlier in this link). This gives a combined load rating of 4880lbs. This is the pressure I have been running these tires with no issue. I misspoke earlier when I said I ran them at 60psi, I do use 70psi, brain fade I guess.... I have not scaled my loaded, ready to travel Oliver, but think that 70psi is a reasonable and safe starting point for highway travel for the Elite 1. I can see why OTT sets them up this way. Once off road, on gravel and traveling at reduced speeds for extended periods, I might lower it down to 60psi. My 2 cents. Dave

Yep, I've been setting my air pressure to 60psi in my Elite1 (stock LT tires) for highway driving with no ill effect. After reading all this, I may air down to 50-55psi for wash-boarded gravel roads where my speed is much slower, maybe even lower? I think ultimate tire pressure used is a decision one makes based on vehicle weight, speed, and road conditions. Certainly, all the pressures listed in the charts are for normal highway driving and that is a safe and reasonable starting point. Dave

This is off Toyo's website. Scroll down to page 23 to start LT metric tires for pressure/load ratings. https://www.toyotires.com/media/pxcjubjs/application_of_load_inflation_tables_20200723.pdf Dave

Thanks but that link is not working. Just a simple payload number would be great. I'm hoping it's over 1700 lbs. Dave

Hey Tallmandan, Would you mind posting a pic of your axle rating/Payload sticker? Or just list them out? It would be appreciated! Thanks Dave

I feel your pain. Trying to get your hand in that small bumper space to attach and detach the sewer hose from the trailer outlet pipe is a real pita. So, like AndrewK, I never detach the hose. Makes life easier and far less fussing around. Never had any issue doing this. Just be sure to cap the end of your sewer hose, which you can only do after you have collapsed most of it into the bumper area. If you cap first, you won't be able to fit the hose in there as you'll be compressing trapped air in the hose with the cap locked in place. I also use one of these, and wouldn't be without it: https://www.amazon.com/Camco-Sidewinder-Support-Lightweight-Plastic/dp/B000BUU5WW/ref=sr_1_2?crid=205BE4AEGCSY8&keywords=rv%2Bsewer%2Bhose%2Bramp&qid=1657242718&sprefix=rv%2Bsewer%2Bhose%2Bramp%2Caps%2C137&sr=8-2&th=1 Very simple and really helps get a continuous slope down to the sewer inlet. Take a little time to set up your hose and all will drain well. Tanks drain best when they are near full. If you have time, drain the black tank, refill to 50% with the black tank flush inlet, then drain again. Then drain your gray tank. And like others have said, tip up your trailer for a better drain! It does get easier! Dave

John, Thanks for the heads up on those Cherry Max rivets. Wicks Aircraft Supply sells them as well. I sure don't see the rivet stems in Galway Girl's pics.... Yea, not the best place to employ pop rivets, especially soft, non structural aluminum ones. That box is heavy loaded up, and on the Elite2, since it is located right over the wheels, I wonder if that area may be subject to more vibration than other parts of the hull, just thinking out loud. The way those rivet heads broke off sure looks like a stress (vibration) related failure to me. Oliver may want to rethink this detail. Dave

Trying to understand just where the rivet failed. Hard to tell from the pic, but it looks like it failed just under the head of the rivet? If this is the case, then I would recommend 3 things. 1.Put a very slight countersink on the battery box rivet holes, just barely enough to break the sharp edge from the drilled hole. That sharp edge could wear away the rivet from vibration, especially if it's aluminum. If you removed the entire battery box, I'd soften that edge on both sides of the hole. 2. Use stainless steel rivets and not aluminum, they are stronger and I don't see issues with galvanic corrosion in this application. 3. Finally, back up your rivet with a washer of like material (if you can get to the back side of the rivet). Just my 2 cents. If I was designing this from scratch, I probably would have gone with rivet nuts (with backup washers), or a thru-bolt design, for a much more secure connection to the hull. But probably not able to use these as an after the fact repair. Looks like you did a good job. Hope it holds up for you! Dave

Thanks for the responses. The leak is definitely from the marker light(s) as I have them all taped off now and no leaking is taking place. I guess I will rebed the loose marker lights into the trim ring on the exterior with RTV Silicone as Oliver originally did. The ones that feel solid I will leave alone. I'll then reseal all of them on the inside with more carefully applied sealant. I'll also try to redirect the wiring so any future leaks will be directed between the hulls and not on to the floor of the attic. Dave

Hey David, Just wanted to say thank you for your contributions to this forum. Your ideas and careful explanations were a great help to me trying to figure out a lot of the details of owning an Oliver. I ended up employing a lot of your suggestions with great success! Take care and all the best with your future endeavors. Great pics of your Ollie as well!! Best, DaveP

Greetings all. Been away from the forum for what has been a tumultuous two and a half years, and that is not including the whole pandemic situation....! Lots of new folks here now I see since we first got our Ollie 107 back in 2015. I have had leaking issues in the rear of my trailer for a while now and finally had the time and energy to get after it. Here in the PNW, we have had nothing but rain so lots of opportunity to diagnose the problem. Of course, the first culprit was the Oliver sign above the rear window, it leaked like a sieve. There has been other posts about this issue so I won't go on about this save to say that after talking to Jason at Oliver, it sounds like they are now bedding the lense with butyl tape (instead of the double sided tape that is not waterproof) and then sealing the perimeter on the outside with whatever is their current sealant of choice. Still wish they would just loose that lense all together and use a surface mounted light. Since we were heading off on a big trip when I discovered the Oliver light was leaking, I taped it off with the thought of repairing it when we got back. Since returning home, and having more rain, I was saddened to find that I was still getting water intrusion into the upper rear cabinet. This leakage was not finding its way down between the hulls, but was spreading out along the floor of the cabinet and dripping out through the overhead street-side speaker, which is right over my head when I am sleeping. Not the best way to be woken up at night! Those of you who have gotten in to this area know that there is a lot of wiring up there, lots of electrical connections, buss-bars, and the like. Not a good place to be saturated with water. After looking at the marker lights carefully, it was pretty clear that this was the second source of water intrusion up there. As can be seen in the picture, there are big gaps in the applied sealant through which water was coming in. Also, since Oliver installed these lights with no drip loops on the supply wires that would direct water between the hulls, water would just run down the wire towards the interior and on to the floor of the cabinet. So my question for anyone who has dealt with these lights is how best to proceed to reseal them. I was able to remove the blob of sealant on the inside and push out the red marker light. The exterior chrome trim ring remained affixed to the trailer. It looks like Oliver ran a bead of silicone around the trim ring and then pushed in the marker light during the install. Any suggestions? I hate silicone but maybe in this case I should reseal the same way? Does anyone have a link to the manufacturer of the marker lights? I may be able to learn more about them there. Then there is the trim ring itself. Not a lot of room to get any sealant in there. Thanks for any help/ideas! Everything else is good! Dave pic1: Gap in sealant where water was coming in (they all had gaps) pic2: Sealant blob removed a few more to go pic3: No drip loop on marker light wire directs water into the trailer right over a buss bar pic4: Marker light pushed out awaiting recommended sealant

csevel, That price of $400.00 from Oliver is really unfortunate, and way too high! Especially since it was their bad design (in this case) causing the problem. They should own up and at least do the job at their cost. Spinwelding a new fitting on the top of your tank, as another option, is not that hard, and tooling up is not as expensive as has been described. You will need a router, the driving tool, the threaded fitting, and the rest of the associated plumbing parts (pex line, a good crimper, etc.). I had most of the tools already except the driving tool. I got my driving tool and fittings here: https://www.spinwelding.com/products.html The driving tool was $67.50 (2017 price). The fittings are cheap, buy several so you can practice on a piece of scrap to get a feel for the process. I went to a local plastic tank manufacturer and they gave me some scraps for free. With all the tools/parts in hand, one person can do the job in a couple hours. There will probably be some prep time as well depending on your tools, skills, and access to materials. There is a great video of Raspy helping out another old Oliver owner Reed Lukens getting his tank retrofitted: https://olivertraveltrailers.com/forums/topic/2006-fresh-water-tank-modification-new-suction-line/page/2/?tab=comments#comment-17879 Scroll down page 2 for videos, hope they still work. You will have to carefully ream out the compression fitting so the pex or copper pickup tube can slide all the way through. It's brass and drills easily. There are a few threads on the forum about this process. Since Oliver would have all these tools and associated parts readily at hand with no fussing about, to charge 400 bucks is quite a bit over the top. A link to my old post on the subject: https://olivertraveltrailers.com/forums/topic/2707-my-water-tank-odyssey/?tab=comments#comment-25446 Personally, I like the pex pickup tube over the copper, but can't say definitively which is better. Both seem to have worked great. Definitely a mod worth doing if you boondock a lot. Good luck. Dave

If the issue is with a sticking gate valve, which is opened and closed by that metal rod, pour some of this down the drain, let it sit for a few minutes, then open and close the valve a few times. It's actually good to add to your black and gray tanks now and again to lube those gate valves as well. https://www.amazon.com/Thetford-Drain-Valve-Lubricant-15843/dp/B000BGK2L0/ref=asc_df_B000BGK2L0/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=312192374842&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=4939187814671232371&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9061081&hvtargid=pla-569810088199&psc=1 Dave

I would never recommend having your trailer shipped. Mainly because you miss the shakedown opportunity at a local CG where problems can be identified and fixed at the factory. Our trailer was also ready to pick up in December but I didn't want to drive out to Tennessee and back in the middle of winter. So Oliver held my trailer for me until I picked it up in late April. Hopefully they would still do this. It's a great trip out there, and especially back with your new Oliver! I'd recommend at least two days in the local CG that Oliver sets you up in and thoroughly go through all the systems. Then you can be on your way. Shipping would be a last resort for me. Dave

The Bulldog hitch is a great hitch! Please don't take a pry bar to it🤯. Something is amiss. It's a very simple, solid design. As soon as you lift the lever and the retaining collar slides back, the hitch should pop open releasing the ball. So I would say what Mike and Carol said about the swing gate not opening fully is a good place to start. Is the spring in place that opens the spring gate when the collar is retracted? When open, is the back of the spring gate pressing against the inside of the retaining collar? The hinge is at the front of the hitch and the retaining collar is what limits how far the swing gate will open. If these are both yes, I'd call Bulldog and see what they say. I can't think of what else it may be other than a faulty hitch if the above questions are both positive. And yes, be sure to keep a light coat of grease on the hitch ball! Good luck. Mine has worked flawlessly for over 5 years. Dave

Hopefully the std. models will look different than the TRD Pro model. Otherwise, this is very disappointing indeed. Toyota's design crew really blew this. Guess I'll be moving on to the HDPP F150 after all.... Dave

Here's a pic right off Oliver's website of a 2022 model Elite. So I don't know what is going on with your trailer Longstride. It does look like the window in the pic was placed higher however. Note no sticker and the shade frame pretty much touches the upper cabinet. That would give just enough room for a continuous belly band. Dave

Hmm. Pics of the 2022 Elite interior show a continuous belly band around the back of the trailer. The window is definitely bigger, which is nice, but everything fits pretty tight and there is no room for error in the layout. Not sure what could be done now. Maybe the shades could be raised and a new belly band installed, but I'd ask Jason what is really going on here. Dave

Here's a pic of my 2015 Elite1. Has Oliver made the rear window larger in later models? Not sure why your trim would be like that. Well, I can think of some reasons but would rather let more informed people speak up first! As for the brackets, mine are a little crooked too. Not so great craftsmanship there but the table still attaches fine. Dave

Here's a pic of my 2015 Elite1. Has Oliver made the rear window larger in later models? Not sure why your trim would be like that. Well, I can think of some reasons but would rather let more informed people speak up first! As for the brackets, mine are a little crooked too. Not so great craftsmanship there but the table still attaches fine. Dave

I haven't taken the motor head apart but recently had to replace both switches on the front jack due to corrosion. I looked all over for the parts and Barker by far had the best prices, plus they threw in 3 extra fuses. So I would recommend dealing directly with them for parts. Oddly the person I spoke with said not to take the motor head off for greasing and other maintenance. Not sure what to make of that. Especially after seeing John's "playdough" grease! Curious to know what gave out. Good luck fixing it! Dave

Should have figured you didn't have it quite yet. I've looked high and low on the internet and haven't found those blinds yet! Hope the new rig works well for you. It sure sounds like it will! Dave

Hey John, It's been a long while. You were of great help to me brainstorming and fixing my fresh water supply issues way back when. No troubles since! 👍 That's quite the new rig you have there. Looks like it will be able to follow anywhere your truck can pull it! One thing that caught my eye when I looked the trailer up were the shades that are used. Since I still love my little Oliver, I am continually upgrading parts that I don't really like. The stock Oliver shades, while somewhat functional, are very bulky, a pita to restring, etc. Do you know the maker of your shades? Do you think they would be a good fit/improvement for the Oliver? And hopefully the X22 shades use a torsion(?) spring mechanism like a regular roller shade with no strings and tension springs to deal with. Cheers! Dave

Here's a link to a Practical Sailors article/review on different sealants that SeaDawg may have been talking about. Our discussion above got me thinking a bit more about sealants in particular applications and I came upon this fine review: https://www.practical-sailor.com/boat-maintenance/marine-sealant-adhesion-tests Education is ever evolving! Dave

Seadawg, Yes, the lense is radiused, but more importantly, the cut out in the fiberglass is square cut, this is not good practice. As for the butyl tape, not all are created equal. Best I've found so far after reading many boating forums and personal use is Bed-it tape from Compass Marine. Here is a link talking about the tape and how fiberglass should be properly worked: https://marinehowto.com/bed-it-tape/ It is of course directed towards marine users, but all the fundamentals still apply for our trailers! The 4200 has stuck to my lense so far. I carefully wiped the edge of the lense with MEK on a Q-tip before installing and sealing. But you may be right about there being better sealants for that particular application. I have 3m 4200 around as it works well for everything else on the trailer. Dave