topgun2

This is a quote from the Wall Street Journal: The Colonial pipeline runs from Texas to New Jersey and carries about 45% of the fuel consumed on the East Coast, according to the company’s website. The shutdown is particularly worrisome for Southeastern states, including North and South Carolina, Virginia and Georgia; they have fewer sources of fuel compared with states farther up the Atlantic coast. In Raleigh, N.C., area on Tuesday, cars were lined up 30 deep to access a dozen pumps at a BJ’s Wholesale Club. Lines three-cars long waited to fuel up at a Sheetz convenience store near Raleigh-Durham International Airport, one of the rare area stations that still had fuel.

Given that this issue has to due with the pipeline supply coming to the southeast part of the US I'd guess that the further West you go the better off you will be. I'm not exactly sure just how far west this pipeline covers. But, I do know that there has been some reasonably large effect in the Gunthersville area and the three counties surrounding there. Good luck and please be careful. Bill

I just got off the phone from speaking with Patriot who told me that they have cancelled their reservations for this year's Non-rally due to fuel concerns. A "ransomware" attack on the major fuel supplier to much of the southeast has caused fuel shipments to be suspended until possibly Friday. This has caused fuel shortages in Asheville, NC and even as far east as Charlotte. Phone calls to the tri-county area surrounding the Lake Gunthersville area confirmed that many gas stations are already out of gas. So, if you are in route to the Rally be very careful in making sure that you have enough fuel and or have enough supplies of food and drink to last for least a week. Bill

You can also see THIS recent thread for more options. Bill p.s. The Oliver design on the face of these covers is nothing but a decal. If you want that decal then you can get them from Oliver Service or you can simply go without the decal or chose another design from the many available on Amazon.

Be a bit careful with that "monkey wrench" in that you don't want to bugger up either the shaft or the pin or the housing while you're monkeying around down there. The lug wrench that was supplied by Oliver at delivery almost perfectly fits into the whale tail pin hole and can be used to rotate the shaft into the position you need it. Bill

In THIS video by Keep Your Daydream (KYD) at the 27 minute 40 second mark there is an Oliver in the background. Just who might that be looking good out there is AZ? Bill

SNY - Imagine (if you will) what you are looking at in the picture above is the bottom of a shaft. The other end of that shaft is the ball. This shaft rotates inside of the "housing" that is the other silver colored part that then, in turn, is attached to the dark grey/black part that goes into your receiver. This shaft virtually constantly rotates inside this shaft as you go down the road and the Ollie swings one way and the other as you make turns with your tow vehicle. So, there are several ways of "correcting" this issue but the simplest is to re-attach the tow vehicle and the Ollie at the same angle that you detached them. If that is not possible then simply detach the Andersen chain from the Oliver (wrap it around the tongue area for the time being) that will not "stretch" enough to allow you to fit the triangle plate to the bottom of the "shaft". Drive the tow vehicle a short distance turning such that the one chain is now tight and then re-attach the other chain. Or, you can use the "breaker-bar" method you mentioned. HERE is the Andersen You Tube video on this subject. Bill

AND - there is only one "porch light"! Bill edit - that's what I get for being in a rush.😊

Really nice wind socks - but questionable truck (just kidding). Bill

Sure, but, that really looks like a "II" to me. Bill

Gooey - Love the name and welcome. Congrates on the order and now for the wait. It will certainly give you enough time to get through the Oliver University, get all your "stuff" ordered, and ask any questions that come up. It probably doesn't seem like it right now, but, February will be here before you know it - well, maybe not that fast but..... Bill

I've always wanted one of those just sitting on my desk just in the event someone were to ask ....😇 In any case - I'm glad it was you and thanks for both the pic and the instillation manual. Bill

Carl - I do use a wheel boot while I have my Ollie in long term storage but it is not a Proven Industries one. Whether or not it is overkill depends on a bunch of factors that basically all come down to how comfortable you are with where your Oliver is located. In my case, I do not use a wheel boot while I'm "on the road" - it is fairly bulky, heavy and too cumbersome for my taste and if I'm parked in a place that I feel is that sketchy I simply move elsewhere. However, while on the road I do always (both while moving and while stopped/camped) use a hitch lock plus a ball lock when camped in places that where I'm not necessarily around all day/night. Bill

Carl - Does THIS help - see the pictures to the right of the page. Bill

Ouch! 😶

Good eye and nice seeing one on the road to see more. Obviously from Colorado and reasonably "decked out", but, are those "back-up lights hanging off the air conditioner? Bill

Certainly we welcome you and the pup. Please let those questions fly and let us know if we can help in any way. Bill

GregHoke - Back to your original question. Everything that I've read tells me that the safety chain s hooks do not "go" inside the cylinder of that Proven Industries coupler lock. However, I do not have one of those myself. Bill

I just saw that Garmin has released a "small" update for the 890. Apparently this update is for the iOverlander portion and brings it up to date. This might be helpful for those that are soon to be on the road to the "Non-Rally". Bill

Both headed to the Non-Rally?

Certainly there is nothing "wrong" with removing these hub covers/caps and there are many trailers going down the road with the hubs "bare". And, as has been pointed out, the removal does make checking the hub temperature a bit easier particularly if you have a laser guided temperature sensor (better known as a thermometer). However, there have been two occasions where these covers have come in handy for me when the grease cap at the end of the hub came off. When the first one came off I assumed that the shop where I had my bearings repacked simply didn't re-install the cap properly. But when it came off again (after I installed it) plus another one came off, it became apparent that I had received a couple of caps that were not up to specification. Upon getting four new caps I have never had another problem. When these caps came off there is nothing keeping dirt and junk from getting into the grease/bearings. Until I could replace those caps all I did was put some tape over the end of the cover to help keep things in there cleaner. While I did lose the little cap at the end of the cover each time, I didn't lose the actual grease cap given that it was caught by the cover. Bill p.s. Just another reason why a tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS) is a good thing to have - it allows you to keep an eye on tire/wheel assemblies even while driving down the road.

Simple - Re-review the video at the top of this thread. As I recall, there are eight zerks per side for a total of 16. 12 of the 16 are easily seen but the others at the top where the Dexter attach to the frame can be a bit more difficult to see. Wipe off the zerk, attach you grease gun, pump grease until you see new grease coming out from around the bolt, remove grease gun, clean up mess and excess grease from around the Dexter and zerk. If you have them attach a zerk cap to help keep the zerk clean. Complete the first side, have an adult beverage and then complete the other side and call it a day.😃 Bill

GREAT! - I can wait for your return and I assume that the beverages in the fridge are cold? 😂

Since these zerks come in a number of sizes, I've always simply taken out the old one and used it to make sure that I either got the right replacement from the workshop or from the local NAPA dealer (I'm sure that Tractor Supply and others will have them too). Yes, they simply screw out. Other than a general surface cleaning to make sure the threads don't have a bunch of dirt in them I've never gone on a deep dive for cleaning - the new grease should take care of that. Before you throw out that old zerk - give the little ball in the end a light tap with a drift or nail set tool to see if you can get it un-stuck. Perhaps a little brake cleaner or "Liquid Wrench" (after you have taken it out) will loosen it up too. If that works, then you have a spare for the next time. Finally, look at the one you are replacing and think about if an angled zerk would make the job easier. These angled zerks are about the same price as the standard straight ones. Bill

Yes. But, given the amount of room to walk around and the smoothness of the fiberglass it is certainly not all that safe to be walking around up there. I am virtually always on my hands and knees with some sort of pad under my knees. This pad serves two purposes - 1 - makes it a bit more comfortable on the knees and -2- it helps distribute the weight (165 pounds) over a larger area. Bill