Mike and Carol

My only issue with the Andersen was a few months of groaning in wet weather during slow turns. It’s been a couple of years with the new sleeve and no issues since. I think it’s a pretty good fit for my Oliver. Mike

Profile pages are back to normal. For those who read the forum on a phone the shorter signatures are appreciated because they don’t have to scroll through 1 or 2 pages of signature data just to get to a post. Mike

The groans were from the sleeve not the ball/bulldog. Andersen sent me a new one a couple of years ago and I haven’t had any issues since. I do wipe off any crud around the ball and sleeve before we go out and apply 2 or 3 drops of Boeshield T-9 on top of the sleeve at Andersen’s recommendation. I’ve never greased my ball. I had about 15K miles on the first sleeve and about 30K on this one. Budgeting for a new ball/sleeve annually is overkill, my second one was provided by Andersen at no charge. It has been trouble free. I’m thinking of forking over $100 for the new model because of John’s pictures. Andersen has excellent customer service. Mike

As in the other discussion about safety chains and cables I don’t think Oliver is producing trailers with marginal safety tolerances. Bigger is usually better. I would rather have the larger ball and hitch and have looked at the larger bulldog at Tractor Supply. I just don’t feel confident doing the drilling - even with the excellent detailed explanation above! So, I hope my 2” ball isn’t putting me in danger. The wear on my ball from the Andersen is noticeable but hasn’t really worsened the last couple of years. No groans after swapping out the original sleeve. I do think I’ll upgrade to the new hitch before we leave for our fall adventure. Mike

I’ve noticed some folks replacing their cables with chains - if they’re more comfortable with chains, why not? I’ve had no issues with the curly cables and I trust that Oliver right sized them to handle the unlikely emergency! Mike

Hull 124 would have been built without the Dexter suspension. Mine wasn’t. When we had the Dexter added Jason showed me some of the old suspension parts and they were totally worn out. That was after about 18 months. I’d check it. Mike

I like my Andersen. We were towing our Elite II with a 2012 Tacoma in the beginning so I got the factory installed Andersen. There was a learning curve, but once I got the hang of it it’s been pretty smooth sailing. When I got the 1500 I decided to just keep using it. We’re just shy of 45K miles with it and unless I get a bigger truck I’ll keep using it. I’ve also been impressed with their customer service. Mike

John, have you shared your analysis with Andersen? It would be interesting to see if they do anything with it. I think I’ll hold off upgrading my old setup to see if this issue develops any further. Mike

Sorry to hear that Steve, disappointing news. I’ve read about the record breaking heat but not the fires. Have a safe trip back. Mike

It does seem obvious now that you mention it, but I hadn’t thought of that. We have 20a at our storage so I keep the fridge on all the time, but will remember the blue ice method next time we shut it off for cleaning or when we take it in for a service. Mike

It should come off easier in this hot Texas weather.

I have the same truck only a 2016. From what I can tell all 8 gears are available in tow/haul mode. I base this on RPMs at various speeds. Cruising at 65mph with or without the trailer results in the same RPM. My non-towing mileage is not as good, averaging a little over 19mpg. Towing mileage varies depending on terrain and conditions. Driving west on I-10 in west Texas I once got 9mpg at 60mph while battling a strong headwind. Another time on the same stretch of I-10 I got 16mpg at 70mph with a similar strength tail wind. I have about 76,000 miles on the odometer. Mike

My pin is over 3 years old and is not bent. Hmmmm, I wonder why yours is getting bent.

You just raise it enough to have a little slack in the chains. I haven’t had an issue with the ball popping out. Maybe the new ones need some time to seat?

You just raise it enough to have a little slack in the chains. I haven’t had an issue with the ball popping out. Maybe the new ones need some time to seat?

Yes, that is how most folks do it. It’s how the service guys at Oliver do it, too. Mike

[postquote quote=181416][/postquote] Tonneau covers are available. I know Bakflip makes one, saw it recently on a Rambox equipped 1500. I don’t think a bed cap is possible.

I don’t have a cap, I have a Bakflip tonneau cover. We don’t carry more than will fit under the tonneau even when we’re out for a month or more. I have a couple of tool boxes in the bed that can be hard to access under other camping stuff. Everything in those boxes will go in the Ramboxes for easy access. Will still use a tonneau cover. Mike

My next truck will probably be a Ram 2500 with Ram Boxes. I will wait until the split tailgate is available, probably the 2020 model. That should make it easier to reach into the bed without stretching over the tailgate. Mike

I’ve wondered about this, it just seems like the AS has a lot more interior space not just because of the extra width. There’s a 23’ AS that is stored next to my Oliver, I’m going to measure next time I’m over there. Mike

[postquote quote=180972][/postquote] Yes, it doesn’t have to be a two person job. It’s just how we like to do it. If I was camping single I would use the valve to stop the flush then go out and dump. It’s quicker as a team. I like to dump, then fill and dump two more times. It’s always clear at the end. Mike

I’m going to try running my AC off the one I just bought. It’s not why I bought it but it would be nice to know, just in case.

I have a Champion 3400 Dual Fuel inverter Generator. It’s quiet but heavy (94lbs). I’ve been carrying it with us a backup for solar and haven’t really needed it. It has less than 10 hours runtime. While at Tractor Supply yesterday I noticed they had the smaller Champion 2000 on sale for $399. It’s gas only, 38lbs, 2000w startup and 1700w running and is quieter than the big one at 53dba. So, I picked one up and put my big one up for sale. As a backup the smaller one makes more sense.

Hey Monica! Glad John found enthusiastic buyers for his trailer - welcome to the family. I’m retired Army. Maybe you could work a deal with Mondavi to use their Opus One logo on the front of your trailer! What a conversation starter! We were at Opus One 3 years ago, did a cellar tour and tasting. We were in Napa earlier this year but did some of the wineries we haven’t visited. We’ll have to talk wine over a glass of Opus or Overture, also very good. Mike

Hey Monica! Glad John found enthusiastic buyers for his trailer - welcome to the family. I’m retired Army. Maybe you could work a deal with Mondavi to use their Opus One logo on the front of your trailer! What a conversation starter! We were at Opus One 3 years ago, did a cellar tour and tasting. We were in Napa earlier this year but did some of the wineries we haven’t visited. We’ll have to talk wine over a glass of Opus or Overture, also very good. Mike