2008RN

I was little off on my post last night. It was the length that I left a little extra meat. OK here are the dimensions of the shackles I built. 1/2 thick x 1-1/2 wide x 4-1/4 long. The distance of the centers of the holes is 2-5/8 which is 3/8" longer than origianal. As far as materials, I called Alcan and found out what they used, and then got the closest material from my son at the manufacturing place he works. It was a hot rolled steel is all that I remember. Here is my original post: https://olivertraveltrailers.com/forums/topic/9996-made-in-usa-leaf-springs/page/23/?&_rid=4210#findComment-113853 My son is a welder for a company that makes the equipment for the wood mills that turn logs into wood products. He has been a great source of materials: hot rolled, cold rolled, Stainless Steel, and Aluminum, and UHMW. We try to find scrap materials first, if not we get new. We pay for the materials and they get bag of smoked Cheese twice a year for their troubles. Cost me about $100 a year in Cheese. Not a bad deal, no cutting charge, and the prices are at their cost.

I don't know what exact shackle Oliver is using with the Apex with the Alcan springs. What I do know is the reason to use the Alcan Shackles with the LEII with the 5 leaf springs. The only real thing that I know the Shackle difference is the Dexter are galvanized and the Alcan's are painted. As long as Alcan improved their punch quality they should be the same. Note most all of this is cover somewhere in the 38 pages here. As far as quality goes the both Alcan and Dexter shackles are very close to each other. The original Dexter Have 4 leafs and the 3rd leaf is around 4-5 inches away from the eyelet. With the Alcan 5 leaf the 4th leaf is an inch away from the eyelet. With the 4 leaf so close this is what gives the needed support for the 5 leaf so it will not bust. Here is the rub. The addition of that 5 leaf causes interference with the EZ-Flex and does not allow full movement because of the 4 leaf was interfering with the EZ-flex with Dexter Shackles. What Alcan did was lengthen the distance between holes on shackles to help with the clearances between the 4 leaf and the EZ-flex. (My opinion ON.) I still did not like the distance between the 4 leaf and the ez-flex was still not enough less than .060 in resting state. Due the Alcan punch manufacturing shackle problems at the time, I built my own shackles with an extra 1/2 distance and a slightly wider width on a mill. Opinion Off. As far as wet bolts. I tried the Alcan's wet bolt (they had splines at the time) and torqued to their specs. The shackles and hangers were so tight that no grease would go into the wet bolts. I had to loosen the wet bolt to get grease in. I also felt that the tightness of the Alcan wet bolts hindered free movement of the Ez-flex and leafs. I went back to the Dexter shoulder wet bolts and found that there was 0.010 inch clearance using the Dexter Shoulder bolts with Alcan leafs with the lighter torque. I have around 20K miles since installing the Alcan leafs in this fashion and Happy with the results. How I changed my leafs out. I lifted each side and supported with Jack stands. If I had to do it over again I would probably use Jack stand on all 4 corners. I did get 2 light scissor jacks to lift each axel. I could turn the scissor screws by hand to lift the axel just right to align the EZ-flex and the leafs and hangers. Cheers, Bob

Congrats

I do things old school. I create a word type document as I create the trip. With URL's of the places we are going to see/stay, fillup points, milage/hrs to drive, phone numbers costs and amount already paid, and any other needed data. I use several apps, Harvest Host ( I am a member), Campendium (free version), Open roads and gas buddy for diesel stops, and Google maps I add electronic entries into an my calendar with earliest arrival times, URL containing the google map location of the destination and a 24hr reminder so I can keep tomorrows Itinerary in my thoughts. That way I can click on the calendar entry and then hit the google URL and get to that destination from anywhere. All of this info in a document and calendar entry also serves as a digital historical record. I also make hardcopies of reservations and the document for my navigator. I was told the Campendium has a mapping software for members (at a cost), that does some special things such as allowing vehicle requirements, and lends itself to not just using the interstates. I have yet to try it. I like google maps for 80% of the travels with cellular data. There are other mapping software that is easy to load whole states or sections of the US. I used this once when I rented a car in Alaska while doing inland cruise with the ferry with no cell data for very long stretches. Most times when in the continental US when cell data is not available I use a trucker atlas to get to the nearest town along my path so I can get google maps to start. I tried using google maps offline, I just didn't like the way it stored the minimal data to cover the areas you are in. Offline map Apps are great for making last minute changes were cellular data is not available.

Thanks for the input that looks like a great deal on the inverter. I purchased 2 of the 30A DC-DC chargers 1 year before the new 50 amps came out.

I read in one of the other links that you had posted earlier and found that one person at least has had problems with the GFCI breaker in the Xantrex. I’m out on the road right now. When I get back, I will test the microwave with an 20amp extension cord directly from my garage.. At least if that works then most likely the cause is the breaker in the Xantrex and I can replace the switch. I agree with you. It’s weird passing through the 120v through the Xantrex. I guess with the Xantrex passing though 120v at least you wouldn’t have the inverter running 120 at the same time you were hooked up to short power. if the Xantrex would fail, does that mean that the 120v pass-through would also fail?

I moved the Oli out of the RV port and next to the house. Used a non-GFCI breaker in the garage that only feeds the air compressor. I ran the test again. This time I went about 5min 30 seconds when the power went off. I check the non-GFCI in the Garage and it did NOT trip, I checked the built in GFCI breaker in the Xantrex and it did trip. Still took about 5 minutes to be able reset the GFCI. Every time I press the button in it would click and pop the button back out. The EMS still reading 12A. I check the Xantrex setup, the LBCO was 10.5, and LBCO Shutdown delay timer.was 300. I missed these values when updated from AGM to (2) Epoch 300AH batteries (totaling 600AH). I used the custom [USE] setting for the Epoch and set Absorption and Float to Epoch specs. So I will need to update the LBCO and LBCO shutdown delay to suggested setting. (LBCO 12.0 or 12.1, then delay of 10.

It is the Circuit breaker builtin to the Xantrex accessing it through the 6" inspection port below the pantry.

I will give it a shot by hooking the Oli into non GFCI breaker. That will prove if the GFCI breaker to the RV port has problems/ causing problems. FYI: the previous owner never boondocked and always did full hookups. If it works on a Non-GFCI then that would mean that I would not be able to run the oven off of the Xantrex boondocking since the other GFCI outlet is built into the Xantrex.

Since I had never used the Convection Oven side of the Microwave, I thought I would give it a try before we head out on the next adventure. I Place the metal rack in the oven, and put a bowl of water in the oven. I know it is not food, but at least I thought it would work for a test. I started the Convection Oven at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. I had also set the Xantrex Charger to 5amps charging, since I was using a dedicated 20AMP circuit in the RV port. Before starting the test the readout in the rear upper cabinet showed 1 Amp at 122 Volts. After starting the test I was drawing 12Amps At 119Volts. After 1 minute, the GFCI Breaker tripped. I tried resetting the breaker a couple of times and it continued to trip. I thought maybe something shorted out. After About 5 minutes I was able to reset the breaker. I tried the same test only at 300 degrees, and the same thing happened. I decided to try the Xantrex Freedom 2000 inverter and give my new Epoch batteries a small workout. Again after one minute the 120V 20Amp GFCI in the Xantrex tripped. Waited 10 minutes and was able to reset it. At this point I wanted to make sure the Microwave part of the oven still worked. I removeI the metal rack and placed the bowl of water on the glass tray and ran the microwave for 3 minutes and was able to heat up the water. I know I wasn't pulling over 13Amps total in the trailer, so it couldn't have been from a high load. Since it took some time for the breakers to be reset, I think there is dome type of switch automatically reseting in the Convection side of the oven. The previous owners back in 2020 stated that they never used the microwave side, but had used the Convection side on the few trips they had taken. It is not a show stopper, but it would have nice to cook one of my recipes in the the convection oven for the egg rally. Any Ideas?

Over 5 years of owning this Oli and we have never used the Convection Oven function of the microwave. Planing on going to an egg rally and wanting to try one of my dishes that requires an oven. So I have a couple of questions. I was worried about high temps on the stuff inside the microwave. I was planning on using the grill rack with the little rubber ends on it to hold the food in the middle to get even dispersal of heat around food. Do I have to use the grill rack? (The only thing I have used the grill rack is to letting dishes cool down in our house, Never even stored it in the Oli.) Are the following safe at high oven temps? glass tray, turntable ring, turntable shaft, and little rubber feet on the grill rack? The manual talks about preheating the oven and then just putting the food in. If you leave the glass tray in convection mode and place cool cooking dishes on the hot glass tray could it break the glass tray? Sorry about obsessing about this I just want to be safe and successful. Thanks for your input.

Question for the more technical people. Now that I have the Fridge exhaust fans in place, I know to use it when on propane in hotter weather. Would it be beneficial to use it on 120V and/or 12V in hotter weather? Maybe make the fridge more efficient and take a little load of off the compressor from running as much? Would this maybe extend the life of the fridge?

I'm on an MacBook Pro, the original photo was in the correct orientation. When I attached it to my post, it showed upside down. So I edited it in Preview (Mac OS) and rotated the picture 180 degrees. Deleted the original attachment in the post and the reattached the new picture, and it still showed upside down. I read up on trying to crop with preview. I selected the area I wanted and then pressed: command + K at the same time. It cropped it and then attached it, and it worked. I did not do the best job of cropping and thanks mossemi for rotating my picture in the original post. Hopefully I can do it right the next time.

Geoff, Thanks for all the ground worked you did in testing and designing your fan system and such a great writeup. It really made this job a lot easier. I copied the bottom side of the installation pretty much what you had. The only change I made was the order of wires on the terminal Block. I started with the 12V+ on the bottom and then the 12V- on the top of the block, and did the flow up the terminal block just like your electric diagram: 12V+ ->Main switch -> Thermal Switch -> Fans -> 12V-. On the top side I had about 3.5 inches of opening clearance from the bottom of the opening to the fiberglass support for the microwave shelf. I did find a fan that was 92mm (3 5/8") with IP68 waterproof rating. I used a 1/2 aluminum angle stock and screwed downward into the middle of the outer shell and shimmed the aluminum angle up about 7/32" so the #8 Bolts heads would clear the plastic and I would have A little more contact of the fans against the upper section in the back. The top of the fans are not screwed in. They are setting against the upper fiber glass shelf with about 3-5 pounds of pressure. Nice tight fit. Sorry the picture is upside down I can't figure out get it correct. I tried rotating the original but that didn't help. Things I really like about this setup. 1. The terminal block Allows for quick diagnostic with a voltmeter. 2. Nothing is hardwired, All components have connectors so the thermal switch and fans are easily replaceable when there is a failure. 3. The thermal switch is very easily adjustable for height and location. 4. The wiring looks clean. I did a test on it yesterday. It was around 86 degrees outside. Took about 30 minutes for the thermal switch to kick on. Temp was between 120-125 degrees coming out of of the hottest side of the fans . I don't know why but I couldn't find a source for the original switches on the inside control panel without going through Oliver. I wanted to put in a dimmer for the outside porch lights and I was pressed for time to order an original switch from Oliver and to wait 2-4 weeks to get a part from them. So I bought a dimmer for the porch lights and received it in 2 days and moved the original porch light switch to the Street side awning position to use for the fans. Lastly, thanks for the info on removing the microwave, I never would have known about the jack screw. The inside of the microwave cabinet was slightly different. There was a step up in the back sort of like a backstop for the microwave the went clear across the back of the cabinet. So I removed 5 screws holding the bottom panel and backstop, This allowed full access to the back. After feeding the wires and loom through to the back of the fridge area, I resealed the hole with spray foam behind the microwave, and re-taped the Fridge area with aluminum duct tape around the loom and touched up some areas where the original tape was having some problems. It was a good thing I had to remove the microwave. The microwave was coated with fiberglass dust and there were piles of fiber glass dust in the cabinet. Now at least the back of the microwave and the cabinet is clean. I do not know what the air flow is inside and around the microwave, but I would hate to think that fiberglass dust got into the food/drinks.

When I first tried to get one of my track liners out with a small screw driver it also started to crack. I was extremely paranoid to continue on. I tried other things to clean the tracks. Then I final gave it another shot. when I loosen the sides with the picks I do at least 6-8" ahead. Then using the 90 degree pick I place it under the bottom side of the where I am trying to pry that side out. Since I get it out far enough to grab with my fingers I pull it up a little then continue to work it with the picks while slowly rotating the side side out. I still had one side start to crack. I have no idea if those track liners can be purchased to replace the old ones. I did get daring on one window a slide the track liner one way be a few inches. It was snug so I stopped not wanting to any more damage to the fragile track liners. I do agree, these windows suck! What happens when these windows fail completely? Is there a way to salvage this expensive shell to make it back into a usable camper??? I know that components in the camper are going to fail. There are things that will be hard to replace, Like the bathroom door/ handle, the fridge, all of the windows. I know that many Camper Trailers with 22K miles and 6 years old would have started to fall apart already. But these are not a cheap A-- Trailers. I bought Oliver for the quality and longevity and not an Airstream. Sorry for the rant.

On my Oli, I removed the rubber track cover and exposed the end of the felt track insert. I used two picks from my small O'ring pick and hook set to loosen the sides of the track and lifted one side of the track and then gently pull the one side up and rotated the track out of the slot. I was able to exposed the track bottom within about 3-4 inch of the center divider. I was then able to enlarge to drain holes and completely clean the inner track bottom. If you can get the Felt track insert up, then you will have a lot more room to get a small tube of chalk in the area and force it through the hole.

Geoff, How did you mount, suspend the temperature switch above the fins so it could be moved easily. Did you mount on the tube above the condenser fins, or did you hang it off of the fan bracket? Thanks

I think I would remove the stopper, then pump some caulk down the screw hole and the level it off on top so it does not impede the draining of the tracks. What a Pain.

I am on my first repack of my Timken bearings after 13,073 miles and 14 months. I have noticed that the Front Axel bearing show they got a little warm. The rear axel bearings show no discoloration. I used CV2 grease which is a Light or Faded Red color see picture below. The front axel outer bearings are the worst with a darker areas on the bearings surface there is no pitting or galling. The grease in and around the bearing is a light gray color. The grease has not thickened at all. still the same consistency as the original gear. I had repacked the Chinese Dexter bearing every 6,000 miles, and never saw the darkening, but had pitting and galling on those bearings. I'm I over tightening the bearings. My Procedure for setting the bearings. 1. As I'm tightening the bearing I slowly turn the hub for the first 15-20 ft/lbs to make sure everything is seated. After that I no longer turn the hub. I finish by torquing to 50 ft/pounds per Dexter. 2. I then loosen the nut making sure the Hub does rotate at all. 3. I then I hand snug the nut, and then back the nut off about 3/32 of an inch (probably about 1/32 of a full rotation. 4. I lock the nut in place with the retainer. I check the hub and tire temps during and 50% of my stops, and always after coming dow a mountain pass. They are always within about 5-10 degrees of each other. The highest temps have been around 130 degrees and mostly running around 115-120 degrees. I use a bearing packer for the bearing and alway push through about 1/2 of extra grease so I know that there the bearing is full of grease. I putt about 1/8 of an inch of grease around cones and 1/16 in on the axel. I try not to over pack the hub with grease. After pressing the seal in place. I put about a 1/16 inch of grease on the inner surface of the inner bearing and pack a little extra grease between the seal and bearing. I do the same type of procedure for the outer bearing. After making sure the hub and outer bearing is fully seated by hand I add little each grease before placing the washer in place. There is also slight discoloration on the spindles where the bearings ride. This is consistent among all spindles, and there is no pitting or galling. I check the hub and tire temps during and 50% of my stops, and always after coming dow a mountain pass. They are always within about 5-10 degrees of each other. The highest temps have been around 130 degrees and mostly running around 115-120 degrees. Also I had my tires balanced about 18,000 miles ago and I always make sure the weight is still in place on the inner rim when the tires are removed. I have the Cooper Discoverer HT3 LT Tires, and just replaced them with new tires due to age (6.5 years). Lastly I do have the Alcan 5 leaf springs and am using the Dexter Shoulder wet bolts, to insure I can easily grease the bolts and the shackles and Ez-Flex moves without restrictions. Should I be worried about the discoloration. Sorry for the long post, I just wanted to included any information related to the Dexter assembly. This is the worst bearing sets. The other front axel the discoloration faded 1/2 way up the rollers. This is the CV2 grease. Thanks

I totally agree. During my intense cleaning this winter. I removed the bumper and slid the tracks around to get things clean. That was one of the first things I noticed that it was a leak point. Secondly the stopper clamps down enough on the track that it would probably that it would stop the flow of water out the weep holes. I have thought about leaving the stopper out and plugging the hole with chalk.

I don't know if it is going to help but I use a Dremel bit and increase the Drain slot height from about 3/32 to a little over 1/8' on both the inside and outside drain slots. I also put gutter "J" tracks over the windows, mostly to help the street side windows. We did have a couple days of rain in Yosemite in April, and no leaks. They weren't flooding rains though. There are other threads about window leaking, I also cleaned all tracks throughly inside and out. Good luck.

Wow, I have gone 70-80 days on our filters. I have never seen the my filters like that. You did get some bad water. We use two standard 10" x 2.5" cartridges. One is a 5 micron filter like yours, the 2nd filter is a 5 micron carbon. I usually change them out yearly. If we are going to be at home for more than a month. I empty the canister and set out the filters to dry. I did try a 0.5 micron filter but it dropped the pressure at the faucet. taking a shower was tough. The restriction is not as bad with the 5 micron filters.

Just got my Epoch Essential batteries. Been looking through all of the specs on the Epoch I found conflicting information on the torque specs. The Data Sheet shows 8-12N.m or 6-9 ft/lb and the User Manual: 20 to 35Nm or 15-25ft/lbs. Any input on what you guy have torqued bolts?

Interesting, but not interested. Oliver is simple, well designed for the space available. It is not full of gadgetry. KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid). I think I'm showing my age. SkyDream is just the opposite. The only thing they have in Common is they are made out of Fiberglass. Probably half the places I camp the deck would useless due to thing being in the way. Also in the Pacific North West (PNW) I would worry about leaks. Although when I saw the newest walk through video on the new LEII, I had reservations over the awning with the solar panels on top. It is great having that much extra charging power. I don't think the longevity of these flexible panels would come near the useful life span of the solid mounted roof top panels. Replacing the awning I'm sure would be very expensive. I have trouble getting the regular awning clean and dry in the PNW due to the 7-8 months of rain. When I do have the opportunity to roll out awning and clean and let it dry completely the Oliver and Awning ends up blocking the whole driveway. So it has to be a planned project. I do pack a small Stihl blower and a ladder so I try to blow off the pine needle/leaves/twigs off of the top before finally rolling it up for travel.

Or for the Milwaukee for over $152. It takes me 1 year to go through 1 can. Dust off on Amazon has a deal right now for 2 cans for $6.29. I paid $12.38 for the 2 cans in January.