John and Debbie

We had the five leaf Alcan springs installed in Grand Junction last May. They're a bit stiff for the first 1000 miles or so judging by what fell onto the floor of the trailer, but after that, they work great. Lew at Alcan can maybe assure you of what to expect with them. We kept the tire pressure the same at about 50 psi before and after. He said the four leaf springs are designed to fail at the shear point about three inches from the eye. We now have about 2500 miles on these springs and it tows like it's on rails and is very stable. I have no regrets. John

"Looking at the relationship between the window frame and the window shade, a square “U” clip could do the job - if I could find one the perfect size and shape. Guess I’ll look." We had issues with the dinette window shade frame falling off too. We ordered six new clips from Oliver that are more rectangular and fit in the channel much better. The original ones had a bit of outer flare and didn't seem as well designed for the channel. The steel is very stout and I couldn't spread the gap enough to get the screw and screwdriver to fit so I took a Dremel and used the tapered stone grinding wheel to just create a big enough opening for both screw and screwdriver. The attachment now is very snug. The original clips looked like they would push the window off. John

I noticed less bounce after about 1000 miles too with the Alcan springs confirmed with less movement of items in the trailer. I did tighten the U bolts as recommended by Alcan at the intervals they recommended. Very important to do. John

I thought of getting extra sensors, but went with the ViAir compressor to just air up those spares if needed. Since there's a tpms system built into the tv, I could just move one from the tv and put it on the trailer. Maybe overkill to have duplicate tpms on the tv, but if that happens, I could then buy an extra sensor to replace what I used from the tv. John

The TST system was the first purchase I made before we picked up our Elite2 in Tennessee in 2022. I wouldn't consider towing a trailer without some tpms on the wheels of the trailer. I have eight sensors and extra batteries. Four on the tv and four on the trailer. I carry a ViAir air compressor also to air up as needed. John

Mike, Alcan is a great company to work with. The downtown area is very nice for looking at their art, having breakfast and poking around in a shop or two. John

I admit it looks like that from my comment. I was answering Rivernerd as he has #1291 and lives in Idaho. We have #1290 and live in Oregon. We got the last of the 2022 production run and we're both fortunate to have gotten the Truma package of A/C, heater and water heater. #1292 might still be in the 2022 production run or it could be the first of the 2023 run. Not sure, but thanks for your question. John

Earlier in the thread someone posted that the sliders aren't available now, so Oliver had to go with the awning style windows. Personally I like what we got in our hulls #1290 and 1291. John

Bill, our halogen cooktop in the house finally went kaputt a couple years ago and we put in a five burner induction cooktop which works great. We did have to get new pans as we had copper clad Revereware from when we got married in 1976. The old pans went into the trailer. I do love the induction cooktop! It's incredibly fast and can be adjusted down or up instantly. John

How did it get pitted? We have hull#1290 and our sink looks fine. I do wonder if water can get under the flange of the sink where it sits on the counter top. I am very careful with not letting water sit next to the sink flange. At least that concern wouldn't be there with a sink and countertop that are one piece. John

We did the same. Grand Junction has a few nice restaurants. John

No. I have thought of the possibility, but we drain the tank after each trip and sanitize once a year. John

I turn the FWT valve to empty as I drive from the campground dump station. I figure that it's mostly empty by the time we get home. It probably gets a bit of sloshing around as it empties. John

I like cold water too to drink so I freeze ice cubes in the freezer and pop out a few in my glass then add the room temperature water from our jugs. I will pop out the rest of the ice cubes and put them in a quart freezer bag. I then make more ice for later. It's worked for me. Jihn

Welcome from #1290. I have seen a few cases where people had to sell due to health issues. I wish the previous owners well. The forum is a good source of information. Look at all the videos in the Oliver University too. They can answer many questions too. John

Ours does have D52 so we have the 5200 pound axles on our 2022 hull #1290

Hi all, I notice that my power outlet in the dinette area under the cushion next to the bathroom is loose. There's no backing plate inside. Can someone take a picture of yours from inside to see how the power outlet box is secured or advise me in how to secure that? Thanks in advance.

I did buy a Gorilla RV hose for the black tank flush a couple months ago. I found that at some dump stations, the hose they have isn't long enough. I have another one in case the Camco 25' hose won't reach the city water inlet. I have only used that once at a KOA that had the water faucet past the hitch! John

You were the first to get the Alcan springs. Lew also said his wet bolts are specially made and have more space for the grease with no taper inside. Something like that. John

I just didn't want to risk them failing. It might be overkill, but after talking to Lew at Alcan Springs, he said the four leaf springs are designed to break. Three inches out from the eye is the sheer point he explained. In looking at what we have and what he makes, it reassured me that we made the right decision. If the roads we travel never had potholes and we were always on great roads, then I might have chosen to not replace them. John

If memory serves me, our Alcan springs were about $1700 for the five leaf springs, new shackles, wet bolts and labor. Lew at Alcan Springs can give you a quote very quickly as he has done about 100 Oliver's so far. When we talked to him he wanted about six weeks to build the sets and put us on the schedule. John

That's a big accomplishment. I always said that the people who say it's flat are vehicle drivers.

We saw one in 4000 miles of towing from Portland, Oregon to Denver, Colorado.

I use the 90° LockNLube attachment for those Zerk fittings that won't take a straight on attachment. Be very careful with attaching the 90° to the Zerk and also unattaching so you don't loosen too much and lose the three small pieces. I did that and had to buy a new 90°. I torqued my wheel lug nuts to 90ft pounds. I thought I read that somewhere. I use the rear stabilizer jack and a bottle jack with chocking the opposite tires. Attaching to the tow vehicle sounds good too. I have done that before and chocked the TV also along with the trailer wheels. John

I rode my bicycle twice from the Pacific Coast to the Atlantic Coast. Sea level to sea level, but the equivalent of about eight or nine Mt. Everest's between. I have heard that RAGBRAI is a tough one. Congratulations. John