Mike and Carol

That is a fine looking group of Oliver campers! Is this the start of a NM/AZ rally?

We’ve also been using Zero-G for years. Both at home and while camping.

I think we’ve been there.

George Strait is also doing a benefit concert here in our hill country town of Boerne (“BER-nee” for out of staters!). It also sold out in a day or so. George lives here and does a lot of local charity work with his buisiness partner Tom Cusick who is a local business owner. Great folks. George Strait Hill Country Benefit Concert Mike

You can access Black Canyon from the north side of the canyon. We stayed at Crawford State Park for a few days some years ago and it’s only about a 15 minute drive to the canyon. There’s a small tent camping area there and you can hike along the canyon without ever entering the National Park. It gives a different perspective than you get from the NP side. Recommend doing the National Park before though! Mike

Bill, I think I may have started the SL diversion! We also got the router so we should be set. Some of our stops next trip will not have cell coverage so we’re looking forward to this new (to us) technology. Mike

We’re anxious to use our Starlink Mini for the first time during our Aug/Sept trip coming up. It works great in the driveway! Mike

We’ve got the round jack feet. Like Patriot, I have a regular routine of cleaning up and painting the feet and the bulldog hitch. Mike

We’ll see you at the Texas Rally. We look pretty good after two and a half years, might need a refresh,though!

Oliver service will send parts, I’ve asked them for various parts over the years. If you submit a trouble ticket asking about whatever you are planning on doing you will likely get a helpful answer from the service guys. Most owners that do upgrades get their parts from Amazon, RV supply places or elsewhere. There is a lot of experience and expertise on this forum. If you plan on doing an upgrade chances are someone has already done it and can provide lots of guidance and advice. Mike

I bent the charging wire on the trailer plug back when we installed the Battle Born lithiums. There are a bunch of diagrams available, just google 7 pin trailer wiring and you’ll get a lot of hits. The cover comes off the plug pretty easily, bend the wire back and put it back on. Here’s one from e-trailer. Some diagrams number each wire.

I agree that the back and forth on the merits/drawbacks of the ALCANS has run its course so lets just let that horse head out to pasture. There may be owners who still have genuine questions and to serve them best I think we should keep this open. Mike

We’ve had to figure out quite a bit over the years. I’m glad documentation is now more complete.

Yes they are. Thankfully the squabbles are congenial and so will probably continue. I’m over it… I have the Alcan springs (installed by Oliver) and am very happy with their performance. Mike

These days it is. When we ordered our trailer it was a selling point. There were legal considerations for Oliver to change their policy on the onboard jack use. I’ve used the back jacks numerous times to remove wheels for various reasons. I even used them at Discount Tire when they were putting on new tires. If you do use the onboard jacks, keep the trailer hitched to the truck. Keep the front jack down. If it’s for any lengthy work, use an additional jack to increase the margin of safety. Common sense goes a long way. Mike

I’m sure everyone is aware of the flash flood we experienced here over the weekend. We’re soggy but okay. Our neighbors north in Comfort, Kerrville and Hunt didn’t fare as well. You’ve heard about the children’s camps along the Guadalupe River that were affected, there were also homes and a couple of RV Parks. I’ve learned that one RV park had all RV’s washed away, some campers got to higher ground, some didn’t. July 4 weekend, everything was full and the river came up so fast there was little time to react. There is a huge first responder turn out, church’s, and private companies also. Our local grocery store chain, HEB, was one of the first on site with disaster recovery products, supplies and food. HEB was founded in Kerrville. I know some fellow Oliver owners have camped at Guadalupe River State Park just 9 miles from our house. I don’t have a status on the park. Please keep this area in your thoughts and prayers. There are still a lot of missing people so the death toll will continue to rise. Mike

When I bought our Ram 2500 diesel my son bought a Ram 2500 6.4 Hemi. They live in Durango and pull a travel trailer a little longer but about the same weight as our Oliver, mostly around Colorado and Utah. He’s very happy with the towing performance of the 6.4 V8. While I like the diesel I think I could be happy with the big V8. Mike

Lots to celebrate today. Having lived in other countries it is clear to me that there’s no place like the US of A!

We ordered our trailer in September 2015. I had a 2012 Tacoma which was just inside towing specs for the Oliver. A neighbor, who is an original Oliver owner, was hosting three Oliver owners passing through San Antonio in Jan 2016 for dinner. He invited us over. All of them told me my Tacoma was not a good TV and I should upgrade to a half ton. I resisted. We picked up our trailer in May 2016 and by July I was towing with a Ram 1500. They were right, I was stubborn and had to learn first hand why a correctly sized TV is important. I find myself now being one who gives advice and I always remember my stubbornness and that some folks learn best by doing not by just accepting advice from others. Mike

Good info. My router arrives this afternoon and I’ll be testing it out. Thanks!

I share your disappointment when owners get into personal comments. Truck discussions, unfortunately, can be contentious leaving no room for alternate viewpoints. I am aware of a number of owners towing with a half ton and no Andersen. I’m interested in the experiences one of our new members will have towing with an EV. I’ve towed our Oliver well over 100K miles. About half of that was with a 2500 (no WDH)and half with 1500’s/Tacoma (with WDH). Only 5K on the Tacoma, it was adequate but very limiting (payload, range without refueling, braking/acceleration, etc). The half tons (both Ram 1500 5.7L) towed the Oliver with ease. Mountain towing proved more challenging for both braking and having the high RPM’s going uphill. I still needed to be concerned with payload. The 2500 with the 6.7L Cummins is an entirely different experience. Level towing is effortless with the engine barely above idle RPMs. Mountain towing is much better, very little braking going downhill (exhaust brake is wonderful) and uphill it may downshift to get RPMs up to 2500, but nowhere near the 4500+ of the half ton V8. I get the about the same mileage in the 2500 as I did in the 1500s. The bed is bigger, interior is bigger, and it feels much more stable. We were camping in AZ and went by a Mesquite lumber store south of Tucson. I bought a fair amount of mesquite planks for some projects. Loaded them up in the 2500 along with our camping stuff and didn’t have to worry about the extra weight. Not possible with the 1500s, we were always near our cargo limit. Diesels are more expensive to buy and maintain but for us and the amount of towing we do it is worth it. As the title of this thread states, you don’t need a 3/4 ton truck to tow your Oliver. You might not even need a WDH on your half ton depending on how it is configured. It comes down to personal choice. Mike

Everything is bigger in Texas.

So, jumping out of airplanes isn’t on the agenda either? It’s been a few years since my last jumps but I still think I could do it, even as I’m in my 70’s! I think Highway 550 is a scenic and exhilarating drive from Ouray down through Silverton. Traffic generally moves slow and the drive doesn’t have to be white knuckle. The drive around by Telluride is much tamer but also very scenic. You can’t go wrong either way. Stay in your comfort zone!! Mike

We drive up and down 550 towing from Ouray to Durango frequently. It is easier with our 2500 but we also used to make the drive towing with a half ton. We’ve done the drive around by Telluride and Cortez, it’s also a very scenic trip that you’ll enjoy! Mike

We like to stay at Ridgway State Park which is in the same area. Great location to explore Ouray, Telluride and even Silverton (nice drive down 550). We’ll be back in Colorado in August! Mike