Mike and Carol

Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms out there! Happy camping!! Mike

Great install job!!

Wow, sounds like a piece of junk and potentially a dangerous piece of junk. Thanks for posting your experience, we can all learn from it. Mike

I’ll add Obey River COE to my TN list. Looks like a nice campground. Mike

It’s a messy job! A creeper is an essential tool for us elderly mechanics. I need to check my lug nuts when I pick up the trailer for the rally next week. Mike

Our TPMS lives in the center of the dash in the cubby there. The Garmin took up too much windshield real estate when mounted on the dash. This is a nice, clean solution that puts it below the windshield and within easy reach of our navigator. Mike

So, I have a solution for the mounting of my RV890 in my Ram 2500. I went back to the ProClip web site and did a search for RV890 and, lo and behold, they have a specific mount for the 890 that attaches to the magnetic charging Garmin mount. Since the diesel 2500s have a column shift, the normal Ram mount won’t work, but they make one that attaches to the other side of the dash on the passenger side. This is a great solution for us since Carol is the navigator. We both can see it fine and with it on her side she can easily remove it to do searches or whatever. I have a 12V on the dash so charging is easy. Just the mount without the RV890. With the RV890 mounted.

Did you check the breaker on the charger under the dinette seat? I agree that it should be working if you got 12.6V when plugged in. I’d replace the batteries, too. MIke

Agree with Sherry, check the web site every week or so. When I got my third Battle Born I had been checking their web site weekly for a couple of months. Mike

I don’t know what comes with new trailers but ours with the 3-way Dometic had a vent fan with on/off switch installed at the factory. Mike

Having an off-season can have advantages. Draining and storing with dry tanks appears to extend the life of tanks and components. We camp any time of the year so there is no off season. I do drain the fresh tank if it’s going to sit for more than 4 weeks and clean out the hot water tank annually, otherwise everything is full and ready to go. Mike

Great pictures! I’m motivated for a return trip to Utah. Our Olivers give us a lot of flexibility on where we can go and where we can camp. Mike

I agree with the advice given here. If you’ve never pulled the anode from your hot water tank and cleaned out the deposits now is a great time to do it. Inspect your anode to see how much life is left. Get one of those Camco hose attachments that you can stick in the anode hole and flush out the deposits. I don’t sanitize the hot water tank. I generally pour a half cup or so of bleach into my fill hose and then hook up to the water source and fill the fresh tank. I run the cold water until I can smell the bleach. Then let it sit a while before emptying and filling a couple of times. Mike

I’ve always just used the wash product I was using on the trailer with a good rinse. So far, so good. I like Griots products and will try their synthetic clay bar. I’ve done cars before with real clay but not my trailer. It’s probably time, but… it’s a lot of surface area! Mike

We’ve been hauling our Oliver around now for 6 years without one and have done fine. Since we like many of the public campgrounds (National and State Parks, COE, BLM, FS, etc) we often have to manage our black tank use. We’ve had to unhook and go dump and then return a number of times. Seems like a tote would be handier in those cases. They do take up space. Just something I’m considering. Mike

We don’t have one but I’ve thought about it since we more often than not do not have full hook ups. Since the black tank is 18 gallons it seems that this size would be just right to empty into when the level gets to around 70 or 80 percent, and at 15 gallons should not be too difficult to handle. Mike

That’s probably the nicest Trillium I’ve seen. They do great work! Mike

The only time we wish we had more room is when we camp during periods of lengthy bad weather and can’t spend time outside. We spend a lot of time outside. If the weather is cold we set up the Clam and fire pit and have a nice outdoor living area. Otherwise, we’re out under the awning enjoying the weather. Mike

I used your verbal instructions on doing this (not sure where we discussed it, probably in a desert in Arizona somewhere) and it made a big difference with how smooth our cables worked. It’s been a few years so I probably need to do it again. Mike

In the past (2016), an owners manual was provided in an “Oliver” notebook. Not sure how many pages, but it was about 1.5” thick. It has a good number of pages about the Oliver and then has all the specific component manuals photo copied. We carry it in the under-the-pantry storage and I’ve referred to it often. I have bookmarks and pages folded down for reference. Other add on things that we’ve done have their instructions/manuals inserted into the pockets at the front and back of the notebook. Mike

A big difference between the 5.7L V8 gas engine in the Ram 1500 and the 6.7L I6 Diesel engine in the Ram 2500 is running on the interstate with RPMs below 2,000. Even uphill, when the 5.7 downshifts and RPMs go up to 3,000 or more the Cummins just purrs along at 1,800 or 1,900. Only on steep inclines does the diesel downshift to over 2,000 RPM. Mike

I towed over 60K miles with two different Ram 1500s. 5.7L, 3.92 rear, 8 speed. Both did a fine job towing my Elite II. Both had a comfortable ride. However, there is a marked difference between them and my Ram 2500, 6.7L diesel. Also, the new Ram heavy duty trucks have a very nice ride, comparable to the 1500s. A 2003 one ton will have a rougher ride for sure, but will pull markedly better than the Tundra (even though the Tundra does a fine job towing!).

What routlaw said. There is a world of difference between an Elite II and a 27’ Airstream, size wise. If the AS seemed right to you, the Oliver will seem small. If you frequent Airforums, you will see that Airstream does have quality control issues. It seems that it takes about a year of fixes and repairs and maybe a trip to the factory in Ohio before things are right. Most AS owners don’t seem to mind because of the “cool” factor, nice interior appointments and size. We also looked at AS and really liked them when sitting in the showroom or on the lot. As far as a bigger Oliver, I bet they are currently at the drawing board looking at how it might be implemented. I don’t think it will happen in the near future, though. A trip to the factory is a good idea. You’ll be able to experience the size and learn about Oliver’s manufacturing process and QC. Mike

We also have business cards that the place that did our logo made for us. They have our names, email, cell # and Hull # plus our Star Logo. It’s not something I thought about but when they offered to make them we said why not? Mike

Amazing work - really adds some warmth to the fiberglass interior. Oliver should offer a full “Foy” package as an option! Mike