Mike and Carol

We looked at the Tab 400 when they came out. The main issue we had was the bath and the fold down sink. Would be interested in how it worked out for you... We liked the dinette and kitchen and the big bed with skylight!

Axis are bigger and stay out of neighborhoods. The white tail are more like roaming pets. Big deer can be found down around Big Bend and up around Guadeloupe Mountains.

I’ve got a dozen white tail deer sleeping in my front yard right now.... ...and they are cute.

We often say the bathroom is the cleanest area of the trailer. We don’t use a curtain and do use soap and shampoo. No issue with creepy residue, we squeegee and wipe with a microfiber. We do rinse remaining suds down the drain. One or two minutes max, not absurd at all.

The Elite II is 23.5’ bumper to hitch. The living space is about 18’ long (someone correct me if I’m wrong) and 7’ wide. The 23’ Airstream is a foot wider and I believe the cabin space is longer.

Welcome to the forum. Lots of information here for you to use... Mike

We started our RV journey thinking we’d be owning an Airstream, particularly a 23FB. Looked at a number of them at dealers here in Texas and at RV shows. I spent a lot of time on AirForums (still do). While we liked the feel of the Airstream, the room inside of the Airstream and the look of the Airstream, there were too many quality complaints from owners. Owners defending Airstream quality were basically saying to buy it and spend a year or so fixing things and then you’re good to go. Someone on AirForums mentioned Oliver and that started the end of my Airstream plans. After a tour of the Oliver factory, meeting and talking with Oliver folks, we made the decision to go with Oliver. No regrets five years later. It is sturdy, tows well, has good storage for its size and has been easy to maintain. It’s cooler than an Airstream in the summer and warmer in the winter. The wet bath has not been an issue at all. Possibly, if you bought a used 23’ AS the previous owner may have all the kinks worked out. More likely, they are selling because they don’t. They still look cool. Mike

You say you want to secure the trailer while it is still hitched to your truck. What you have purchased will do that. The lockable hitch pin ensures someone can‘t easily remove it. The collar lock ensures someone can’t easily open the bulldog hitch and remove your trailer from the ball. I don’t think your nice rep understood your question. The yellow Reese lock is for when you are unhitched to secure the bulldog hitch. You can use the collar you purchased for both situations, both when hitched to your truck and in combination with the yellow Reese lock (or any number of others) when unhitched. Since you already have a lockable hitch pin you don’t need another one. Mike

3M 303 Protectant. Buy it by the jug. Good stuff.

If you need to change a tire just use the onboard jacks. Put some blocks under the jack to limit the travel and go for it. I just got four new tires at Discount Tire and we used my onboard jacks, one side at a time, to get ‘er done. Mike

I agree with JD on tongue weight. I haven’t weighed but figure mine is about 600lbs. It would be a stretch to get to 1050lbs. I’ve towed with a Tacoma, two Ram 1500’s and now a Ram 2500. The first three trucks used the Andersen and I was always close to the payload limit with what we carry. With this 2500, I don’t worry about payload (2000+ lbs of payload). Also, no Andersen hitch. When I drop my trailer on the hitch the back drops down barely 2” compared to over 4” with the half tons. The big diesel doesn’t seem to break a sweat towing. If you have a choice, go big and don’t worry about it. Mike

Glad you are keeping it! The time spent in our Oliver has been some of our best times. Enjoy! Mike

Finished up mounting the batteries this afternoon. Couldn’t have done it without the help of fellow Ollie owner, Ken Cvacho, @mountainoliver.

Welcome. If you have questions you’ll get answers here! Mike

In south Texas our afternoon temps are above 86 for at least 6 months out of 12 and high 90’s for at least 3 months.

I have a 2KW Champion inverter generator and I can start and run my AC (13,500) with it. I do have Easy Start on my AC. I know that Honda and Yamaha make good generators, but this Champion is lightweight, quiet and reliable. $399 at Tractor Supply. Mike

Welcome, Dan and Theresa and congratulations. What a great way to start 2021! Our son and family live in Durango, beautiful state. Also, great parks to start off with. Mike

The only reason to use Oliver fiberglass plugs is to color match. You can see the color through the grill, for me it’s just aesthetics. Like I said, I was looking at other options but if some nice white fiberglass plugs can do the job, why not? I’m not removing the grills and have no intention of replacing the door. As far as insulation, I’m undecided. I might use what I have on hand or get something different, just haven’t had time to look. It’s been a busy few days getting to where I am now. Mike

Welcome to the forum and congrats on your Oliver order! 1. Several owners have replaced the 2” Bulldog with the 2 5/16” Bulldog. It bolts on. 2. The Andersen attaches to the tongue under the fiberglass onto the aluminum frame. No modifications required and the storage basket can be used. 3. I don’t know of any transport services but there have been several that have had their trailers delivered. You should have some recommendations over the next few days. A disadvantage of delivery is missing the orientation and opportunity for quick response to anything that isn’t quite right. But, Oregon is a long way from Tennessee! Good luck - Mike

Steve, plugs would be great. I don’t have any white fiberglass around and have been thinking about how to plug those holes. I do have some of that foam rubber matting with the puzzle sides for joining to other mats that I was going to use to insulate. It’s about 5/8” thick so would need to fit inside the weather stripping. I might stop by Dicks this weekend. I should insulate my basement door too! Mike

The 6AWG wire was definitely damaged from being pinched behind the tray. My grommet had worked itself lose but no damage to the cables. There was a lot of dried battery acid under all four batteries and some wet acid under the back right battery that had the hole from the strap hook. The old AGM batteries are sitting on the floor in my garage for now until I dispose of them. 2 Battle Born lithium’s will arrive on Tuesday and the upgraded PD on Monday. Removed all cables except the two +/- cables from the battery box. I still need to treat the bare metal on my battery tray. Blue Sky controller is reprogrammed waiting for the new batteries.

2020 was a mixed bag. We were happy to welcome a granddaughter, our 4th grandkid. Both of our kids and their families were able to work through the COVID thing and actually do very well. We did have to cancel a couple of our camping trips due to family health issues that kept us close to home and the hospital to assist and support. Then the discovery that my 4 old AGM’s were in worse shape than I thought which is going to delay our January trip a week or so. Bottom line - we’re looking forward to 2021 and getting back on the road! Happy New Year everyone!! Mike and Carol

Yes, that will work. My black tank flush out hose is very similar. They collapse and don’t take a large space and are lightweight. They also don’t last as long as a regular hose!

20 or 30’ would be plenty. I have one of those collapsible hoses, they don’t take up much space but don’t last as long as a normal garden hose.

Our sheets and mattress pads are from AB Lifestyles, very satisfied. For bedspread and blankets we just use twin size.