ScottyGS

You can run.... but you can't HIDE! We plan to stay Campfire Lodgings north of Asheville NC on the way down to Lake Guntersville AL. So... I did a bit of internet cruising to see what that campground was like. I found a youtube video with a drivethrough including the road up to the campsite. And in the video.... I noticed an OLIVER! Look at the screenshots taken from the video and see if you can identify the Oliver! Video was taken around August of 2016. I have a pretty good idea of who this is but I will let the forum detectives have first shot. EDIT... on second thought... I might be wrong. "The games afoot Watson!" Scotty

Ahhhh... OK... got it. Click on the link just below Chris's name. NOT on the attachment list below the map.

I still can't figure out how to download an attachment on the forum. Thought it was my version of word but can't get this to download either. I have tried double clicking on it. Right click and save as doesn't work. Anyone know how to do this? Instructions? Thanks in advance and thanks Chris for adding info. Scotty

2018 Oliver Rally Camper List Names Forum Name Spot # Home State Hull # Brandi & Winn Shaffer Bshaffer B-06 TX 10 Yvonne & Doug Hikegsm B-11 TN 223 Laura & Dean (casita) DeanCHS1980 D-04 KY Casita Gary & Jona Muckle GaryJona D-05 FL 81 Lee & Terri Slusher ? D-06 NC 82 Leslie & Sharon Hoffman ? D-07 FL ? ? trumpetguy D-08 FL Airstream David Stillman DavidS D-10 UT 164 Steve & Betty STEVEnBETTY D-15 IL 2013 Lee sure light Kathy & Andy KathyandAndy D-17 ? ? ?? Cash E-01 TX 242 Malcolm and Ursula M. Monlezun E-06 CO 204 Steve & Tali ScubaRX E-09 MS 50 Mike & Carol Thompson Mike and Carol E-10 TX 135 Clair & Kathy Reed Kayrae51 E-12 TN 245 Grayson & Ann dharmardr E-13 CT 112 Gregg & Donna Scott ScottyGS E-17 NJ/NC 145 David & Jane Droll dedrol E-21 OH 238 Mike & Gerri MikeandGerri E-22 ? 189 Ray & Betty Jo Bayless MrBig1 E-27 ? ? Duke & Chris Chadwell ShallowGal E-29 FL TBD ? SupersizeLIFE E-31 AK 249 Tom and Debrah Mohan mgbtom E-32 TX 71 Darrell & Kathy Waters wdw0528 E-38 GA 319 Don Thompson donthompson E-39 IA 126 Greg & Janet Gato Greg & Janet Gato F-42 FL 122 Bill Topgun2 G-13 NC 117 Foy & Mirna Foy_Mirna G-24 FL 227 Carol & Stan Commanche G-25 VA 63

Hi Everyone..... We are getting short on time before the rally. Here is the rally list I have been compiling. Please note that I had some private communication with Oliver about getting info from them as to who is coming so we could have a complete list. They chose not to collaborate on this due to privacy concerns and I fully understand their position. This list is compiled from replies to this forum topic and only contains information which was shared or is available on members profile. I will be pretty busy getting ready for the rally and work and other stuff... so I won't be updating this after today. Looking forward to meeting everyone. Safe Travels to AL! Scotty I pasted the text into a post because of download issues. It is a work .doc file but something on the site does not like that. Formatting is snafu... sorry about that. But at least you can paste into word or whatever and correct the format and print. 2018-Oliver-Rally-CAMPER-LIST.doc

I will play at least one day. Gregg

Mary, Are you referring to the Anderson weight distributing hitch? Scotty

Carole, Try unplugging the back of the blue sky box. You will need to unscrew the panel and then unplug a telephone wire from the back. Leave it like that for about a minute and then plug it back in and re-install. I had my display go blank and that's what blue sky advised. It did fix the problem. Good Luck Scotty

Happy Christmas and New Years! Looking forward to seeing a bunch of you at the Rally in May. Safe Travels, Gregg & Donna Scott & Piper the Westie

The time will go fast. Have a Happy Holiday and New Year and spring will be here before you know it. Don't be afraid to sleep at Wal Mart or Cracker Barrel on the way home. That will let you get more miles on a travel day. Look into the All Stays camping app for ipad or iphone (maybe others). It's very helpful on the road to find the resources you will need. Welcome to the family. Scotty

You guys are absolutely fantastic at doing two things: A.) Alleviating my fears about something that is / might happen to my beloved Oliver Trailer B.) Creating new fears about something that is / might happen to my beloved Oliver Trailler All kidding aside I love this forum and that we are kind of in this together instead of alone so please take my attempt at humor with a grain of salt. Last year was the first winter our trailer was stored and we had no issues with the panels or batteries whatsoever. So, I thought it would be the same this year. We store the trailer with the nose down as far as it will go, so there should be some slant to the panels. It's stored in the open in northern NJ so they will get snow covered, but I am not overly concerned about damage to the panels themselves. The snow, ice, whatever won't be there more than a few days and will probably melt from the Sun even in cold temps. What does concern me is the AGM batteries. How many days without recharge from the panels will they stay charged? I would think that 4-5 days with minimal draw would be fine. It was last year. But you never know. I remember a post about this where the batteries stay charged up even with cold temps etc. but as always everyone's mileage will be slightly different. So, what do you think? Do I need to drive an hour (one way) to check and brush? Thanks everyone.... Hope for a short winter so we can get back out there. And, hope to see many of you in May at the Rally. Scotty

Reed, We checked just about everything on the disconnect issue. I traced all the wires and everything was hooked up the way it was supposed to be. It drove us crazy and that's why I started the disconnect thread. David S. suggested the Towready and I owe him a cold one ... or TWO.. at the May rally. Curious as to where you found the bad ground with the trailer. Did you trace the white wire to the ground block? That's what I did. Reluctant to dig into it again unless there is a reason. It really caused a lot of headaches and using the Towready is cake. The other thing I really like about our TV is the 36 gallon gas tank. It's nice to have 400 mile range while towing. Thanks and travel safe, Scotty

I am with Pete on this one. Even if it is cold out the Sun will melt away a lot of snow on the panels. Our trailer is in storage over the winter and we can't clean the snow off. When we pick up in spring.. Full Charge! Scotty

We drove e.v.e.r.y.t.h.i.n.g.... really EVERYTHING before choosing the F-150. The silverado was by far the most comfortable. Even over the large SUV's like the Tahoe and Suburban. In the end the choice came down to the F-150 and the Silverado. We went Ford because of the pro backup assist. Things I like about the F-150: Power (ecoboost engine), pretty comfortable, looks, Pro back up assist and the gas mileage (avg 12 mpg with premium) Things I am not so thrilled about: trans is not as smooth as others - have had issues with the sync screen - and the dreaded trailer disconnect message (but the Towready fixed that so no more bells ringing) I too am not thrilled about the square look of the Chevy, but when you drive the damn thing you have to admit it is a solid tow vehicle. Reed, Best of Luck with it. Travel safe and thanks for all your posts and knowledge. Scotty

I was at Hohenwald a few weeks ago to get some work done and had a chance to meet Scott Oliver. We talked about that series of videos for delivery day. That is definitely on their radar. My thoughts were that it would simplify and shorten the time needed to launch / deliver a trailer. This is something that was a concern in the past. (talked to Tommy Staggs about it) The videos would pay benefit both ways. For Oliver, it shortens the delivery time and saves man hours there and for future calls. For owners, it would be a ready source of information on how systems work and how to correctly perform maintenance like winterizing. Hopefully they move this project up the list. Anyways..... Welcome to the family. Hope you have many enjoyable trips in your Ollie and that our paths cross sometime ... somewhere in the future. Scotty

Perfect time to update the List! I have started a list of attendees for the 2018 rally a will update as information comes available. The list is in progress and contains basic info such as, Names, forum name, Spot #, home state, and hull#. We also have a GOLF list in progress with just 4 people who are planning to play. I thought that this basic info will help everyone get to know each other but won't be intrusive as the info is available on the forum. I have attached the word file and will also paste it in below my signature. If you want to be added or correct / add any info please either post to this thread or PM me. Let me know if you want to play GOLF as well. Quick Question for Matt Duncan: Matt, would you be comfortable sharing your list with either me (to add to this list) or with the group directly. Happy to be the main point of contact on this but your info would help make sure we reach everyone. Thanks, Scotty 2018 Oliver Rally Camper List Names Forum Name Spot # Lives at Hull # Brandi & Winn Shaffer Bshaffer B 06 TX 10 Laura & Dean (casita) DeanCHS1980 D-4 KY Casita David and Carol Kemp trumpetguy D 8 FL Airstream David Stillman DavidS D-10 UT 164 Gregg & Donna Scott ScottyGS E-17 NJ 145 Steve & Tali ScubaRx E-9 MS 50 Mike & Carol Thompson Mike and Carol E-10 TX 135 Grayson & Ann dharmardr E 13 CT 112 Mike & Gerri MikeandGerri E 22 ? 189 ? SupersizeLIFE E 31 AK 249 David & Jane Droll dedrol E 21 OH 238 Don Thompson donthompson E-39 IA? 126 Tom and Debrah Mohan mgbtom E32 TX 71 Clair & Kathy Reed Kayrae51 E12 TN 245 Greg & Janet Gato Greg & Janet Gato F 42 FL 122 Foy & Mirna Foy_Mirna G-24 FL 227 Dennis & Pat G 15 NY 153 Bill Topgun2 G13 NC 117 Malcolm and Ursula M. Monlezun ?? CO 204 Coy Gayle hardrock ?? AL 73 Darrell & Kathy Waters wdw0528 E38 GA TBD 2018-Oliver-Rally-CAMPER-LIST.doc

Update on the heater repair! .... And big thanks to Jason Essary for getting all our work done in one day. Just got back from a two week trip down south. Left Donna in Asheville to hunt the real estate monster while Piper and I headed over I 40 to the Mothership. Got a bunch of work done in one day including a heating unit replacement. Suburban didn't give Oliver any trouble at all about warranty and authorized a new replacement unit. Oliver installed the access door and we were good to go. Nice quiet heat. On the way down we used the Mr. Buddy and a small ceramic Braun heater ( when we had power ). They both worked fine with two cautions. Mr. Heater Buddy - it does put out some moisture and in our circumstance that accumulated near the seams at the bunk area. When I pulled the mattress's to have the work done, the bottoms were damp. So, if you use a propane heater pay a bit of attention to that. Might want to get some damprids. Braun Ceramic - small noise level and a bit of vibration, but nothing too bad. That is until it vibrated off the counter. It took the fall like a champ but Donna saw it getting ready to go and let out a scream that would have made Jamie Curtis proud. I damn near had a heart attack from the scream followed up by the bang of the heater hitting the floor. No damage to anything though. So that's that. The Suburban would be our heat source of choice plugged or unplugged, but having back ups is a good thing. Scotty

Darrell, No worries... We know how the decision making kabuki dance goes. happy to help where we can. So far I have you, Kathy, Matt Duncan and me for golf. I will make a push after the holidays to see if we have others for the outing. Looking forward to meeting you and happy to show off the glide and stuff. Scotty

Bill, Thanks but you obviously have more confidence in MY ability NOT to loose stuff than I do. :-) Thanks again for the tip about I-40. No issues but I was extra alert thanks to you. Looking forward to meeting you in person at the Rally. I will have the Yeti full of brew so let's make sure we get together. Scotty

Darrell & Kathy, Sorry for not replying sooner but wanted to take a few pictures.... We have a full cab with the short bed in our F-150. To that we added the GL-1000 cargo glide and an ARE cap. When unhitched the cargo glide extends enough to allow me to reach back to things that are loaded in the nose. We use totes to store and organize the stuff we store in the bed. It really saves the knees. You will loose some storage area on the sides and nose but imho... totally worth it. The CG ran about $1k and we debated spending that money... but now am very glad we did. Second part of our storage system was just put in for a recent two week trip. It's a bit rough still but we added some 1 x 3's and peg board to create a shelf above what is stored on the glide. This gives us an area to store the Clam screen room, chairs, golf clubs, and other bulky stuff. We can slide the cargo glide out without that stuff being disturbed. In the past we would just pile it on top of the totes but then it has to be moved around to get into the totes, and that got to be a pain pretty quickly. We are still refining the shelf area. We want to get some "thinner" boards and add another sheet of peg board. That way it will still be easily removable but still functional. Any ideas that anyone has regarding this would be much appreciated. Not much to say about the ARE cap except that it works well. Keeps things dry and has a light built in to make dealing with things at night easy. Also gives some security by being lockable but a determined thief will always find a way in. Finally back to the hitch hitting the gate issue. There is a few inches of space between the ball and gate when unhitched. See pics. But when hitched the top of the gate does hit. I could remedy the situation by getting air cans on the rear shocks of the truck but wonder if that is really worth it. The truck / trailer combo rides pretty level now and I can still get what I need while hitched up. We usually keep a Yeti cooler tail loaded and have easy access to that as well as the portable compressor and some tools. If i need more access I use a towel over the hitch and can get the glide out about half way. Final Tip! Put a small plastic bag ( we use Pipers poop bags ) over your hitch ball when not hooked up and secure with a rubber band. This will prevent all those nasty grease stains on your jeans and shorts. It only took me a year to figure this out.. :-) So that's it... If you have any other questions please let me know. And, if you have suggestions on the shelf, I would love to hear them. Best of Luck everyone, Scotty

You might have an issue. I have a 2016 F-150 and the Anderson hitch. Had to adjust the hitch to its highest level to get the trailer and truck combo to be level. The tailgate does hit the top of the hitch latch. I get around this by draping a towel over the bulldog hitch and can open the tailgate that way. Still have restricted access because we also have a cargo glide. But I can get to most of what we have stored in the bed. Still, you have to pay attention to it. On getting the Anderson hitch.... Check all the small print on your 250's owner manual. On most half ton pick ups the small print will advise that the towing weight limit is HALF the stated capacity IF you are not using a weight distributing hitch. I don't know if that will be different for you but it's worth checking. Will the Oliver tow just fine without a WD hitch? Yep, it will. BUT... who wants to open that liability door. Here is an interesting article on the topic. https://www.totallandscapecare.com/green-industry-news/how-to-tow-trailers-equipment-properly-to-avoid-costly-lawsuits/ Best of Luck.... Let us know how things go when you pick up. Scotty

Nice addition Karen! one more thing for the reflectex trick......... it will keep you warmer. Spent last night at the Petersburg VA Wal Mart. Felt a cool breeze coming through the windows. Had my back up against so it was to be expected. Reflectex up and no more breeze. Think it might have cut down on the noise from the TT's too. Scotty

Stan, I had the same issue a while back. Turned out that the power cord went bad. I called Weboost and they sent one out pretty quickly. I wired it in and then it worked fine. 'Good Luck, Scotty

That is too funny! If they ever remake "The Long Long Trailer" they need to add that scene. Glad to hear you are dry and hope you can find the nearest Wal Mart quick to replace Karen's hair dryer. I think she deserves the deluxe model. :-). scotty

I am at the Mothership today and waiting to pick up the FST. So...... I thought I would share a photo of some Ollies waiting to met their new owners. It's nice to see the company doing so well and the family of owners growing. It should be a heck of a rally in May 2018.