John E Davies
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Posts posted by John E Davies
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The Christmas F150 television commercial shows a truck with its bed stuffed with wrapped presents. Zoom out and you see the huge flat bed trailer with an enormous Christmas tree lashed on it.
https://www.ispot.tv/ad/dP7l/ford-built-for-the-holidays-sales-event-bring-the-tree-t1#
What they do NOT show is that there is only one person in the truck, which I suspect is a stripped 2wd long bed, and all those pretty boxes are empty.
It is highly deceptive and oh so typical.
And if you read the comments below, nobody cares, they just want to know the name of the song...
John Davies
Spokane WA
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There is no need to purchase a portable unit right away unless you will need it for when the Ollie is in storage. After three years I have not really felt a need for one, as I can run my generator for a short while for charging. I do use the external port often in summer, but it is for a power cable run into my truck for the ARB fridge/ freezer.
Mine has the Furion port, here is some info: .... External power cable from solar port
I would still like to have a panel, but it is now way, way down on my wish list.
John DaviesSpokane WA
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LOL, that upper eyebolt looks a little stretched, I did not see that before.....
John Davies
Spokane WA
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I encountered this stick and staple tandem axle trailer and was impressed with the rear bumper rack. It appears to be attached to the frame and has three steel support bars. I am not sure how much weight is there... the generator with battery is probably about 100 pounds. A couple of full propane bottles, a home sized bbq grill, a big box full of unknown gear.....
Any guesses on how much total weight, and what effect it has on the tongue weight? I especially like the cheap open style hardware store eyebolts ( with a working load of 150 pounds, if that) and the dinky steel cables going up to the trailer corner uprights..... which are probably 2x2” pine. And the small sun rotted straps holding everything down. At least he used a lot of them. Yikes.
John Davies
Spokane WA
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Payload is just one reason I shy away from lots of factory options, like sunroof, additional alternator, running boards etc.... the weight adds up really fast. You can always strip away some of the un-needed equipment, for example rear seats, which are VERY heavy. But who wants to be forced to do that?
I am really surprised at how low that PW load rating is... Does it come with Load D tires?
Remember that a PW payload includes all those cool off-roady bits like winch, skid plates, lockers, etc, which normally would need to be subtracted from the payload of a regular 2500.... if they were added after purchase.
John Davies
Spokane WA
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The difference being.....
Neither the Rebel nor the PW will have a better real world bed capacity. But the PW can be safely loaded past its rated load but the Rebel cannot. Even with Load E tires. Buy the Wagon, and no worries.
John Davies
Spokane WA
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This is huge:
“The Great Public Lands E-Bike Rush of 2019
In a controversial move, the secretary of the interior recently decreed that motorized bikes should be allowed anywhere that standard bikes are permitted. How this will work is still being sorted out, but the world of pedal-assist riding is about to really open up.”
https://www.outsideonline.com/2402117/public-lands-ebikes#close
It will be really important for any ebike rider to read up on exactly which the trails are open. And to not ride where they are off limits....
John Davies
Spokane WA
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Those are very cool and I am sure you will enjoy them a lot. How do those street tires do in gravel or sand?
For those who might not know, any ebike that can be operated without “pedal assist” cannot be ridden on bike-only paths in many states and communities. ... Well, legally at least. Enforcement is not very common. It is always best to research the law before going off the established roads and their bike lanes.
I still don’t have one but I keep looking and thinking. Prices are a big factor, I missed a huge bargain over Thanksgiving on one I would have loved to have.
John Davies
Spokane WA
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That is a nice setup. The only negative I can see is you can’t open up your awning to dry it out. I have the same issue in my RV bay - not enough side clearance.... I can only extend about 6 feet.
Is that your Amish built building? How has that worked out so far?
How much land do you have?
John Davies
Spokane WA
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In my experience a little battery powered fan is mostly useless, unless you are OK with holding it in front of your face. The marine Caframo 12 volt fans are simply wonderful, you can either hard mount one as I and others have done, or add a round 12 volt adapter to an extended wire harness and move it around as needed. You would need to fabricate some sort of weighted base, or even a base with big suction cups.
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B01LDY4TE4/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
John Davies
Spokane WA
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That tow video was very interesting. Thanks for posting.
John Davies
Spokane WA
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You can temporarily bypass your surge suppressor (slide the small switch on the unit itself) to see if the generator connects. If it does and runs normally, then you definitely need the grounding plug. This should not be done normally since it eliminates all the protection features .
John Davies
Spokane WA
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3 hours ago, Landrover said:
Has anyone looked at the Atlas Pickup?
The Atlis (spelled with an "i") looks very cool, but as with so many startups looking for investors, we see many glowing promises and apparently wild claims, like a 15 minute charge time. How many of these will prove to be realistic? The specs do look pretty amazing....
https://www.atlismotorvehicles.com/xp-platform
John Davies
Spokane WA
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I hope folks dreaming of towing on long trips have considered that you most likely will have to find not only a Supercharger station that has an open stall, but ALSO one that has a secure area nearby that will allow you to disconnect and leave your Ollie for possibly a couple of hours..... Every station I have seen, which is admittedly a very small number, has been a drive straight in design, not pull-through. I doubt that this will be possible very often...,
And it would rightfully piss off a lot of Tesla owners if you blocked two or three unused ones.... Has anyone ever seen a pull through?
This kind of extreme refueling/ range anxiety will not make for a relaxed vacation.....
John Davies
Spokane WA
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2 hours ago, Overland said:
A trailer that can not only push its own weight but also connect to the trucks traction control system to improve stability would be my dream. So there’s your challenge, Oliver. 😛
Bwahaha, we can't even get a proper gravel road suspension.....
John Davies
Spokane WA
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I don't want to be an early adopter - the number of stations is way WAY too low. All those huge blanks areas? They are where I like to go and spend days exploring. I can top up my gas truck at any dinky little town pump.
As the number of electric vehicles outpaces the availability of an OPEN spot at a station, you will read many more horror stories about wait times and rationed power (you can't get a full charge).
"I actually found the supercharging infrastructure to be seriously lacking, even in southern California (top Tesla market along with bay area). The entire San Diego urban area rely on a single supercharger station inside a parking garage that charge you crazy parking fee and not to mention it is in a very crappy area with nothing else to do. The other supercharger 25 mins north of San Diego was already packed to full years ago.
As in LA metro area, all the areas from Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Hollywood, LA downtown still relies on a SINGLE supercharger at Culver City with 16 stalls that were completely overwhelmed. The coverage is unchanged from more than 4 years ago in these areas. I think it is completely crazy that Tesla have ignored these areas for so damn long. What the heck is the supercharger team doing? All these happens right in their front yard where Tesla design studio are close by.
Also, what's up with supercharger coverage inside and around all the famous national parks. Forget about going to Grand Canyon with your Tesla unless you rely on destination charger somehow to charge overnight. The closest supercharger is at Flagstaff which is too far for you to go inside the park and back. Yosemite national park is slightly better, but still far from enough. Yellowstone has just one supercharger at one of the park entrances, and that's it, no other supercharger close by.
I am a EV supporter, and despite all the talks and hype about EV taking over the world. The reality is that much faster charging speed, much better supercharger coverage, and longer real world driving range are all needed to improve big time, especially for long distance driving. All these infrastructure and range improvement will probably take another 10 years or longer to be fully competitive and be truly accepted by most car buyer."... https://teslamotorsclub.com/tmc/threads/supercharging-nightmare-begins.137244/
John Davies
Spokane WA
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4 hours ago, Nan said:
should I go ahead and order another heater element?
Nan, it is usually a good practice to use the Quote feature (below the post) when replying, especially with a question. You can shorten the content of the quote if you like, for clarity, just don’t add anything extra to it. Doing it this way makes your post confusion-free for its readers.
IMHO you shouldn't fret about the element until Spring, it may possibly be fine. It isn’t a part that normally wears out, like the anode rod: you should buy a cheap generic spare anode, or two, to have on hand, as well as a rinsing wand if you don’t already have one.
BTW is your knee healed up and working OK?
John Davies
Spokane WA
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4 hours ago, Nan said:
Do you think I should go ahead and order one?
????..... I don’t understand.
John Davies
Spokane WA
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My Suburban water heater has a hard to see black On/Off switch outside, near the bottom. If it is switched OFF then you haven’t hurt anything. If it is switched on, then, maybe it is gone, but maybe not. The heating element will overheat really fast when it isn’t surrounded by water. If it is messed up, it is really easy and cheap to replace.
It is probably wise to put a piece of blue masking tape over the the propane water heater switch, inside the cabin next to the water pump switch.... so that you don’t accidentally turn that on when the tank is empty.
You are not alone..... They call these Senior Moments and they become more frequent as we get more mature. I am resigned to mine, but they really piss me off sometimes.
John Davies
Spokane WA
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Nan, in case you were not aware, you can run your trailer on a 15 amp household circuit using an adapter and a HEAVY extension cord (12 or 10 AWG wires, no more than 25 ft long). You can run your air conditioner by itself off that circuit - be sure to turn off all the other circuit breakers - or everything EXCEPT the AC, but if you want to run everything at once including AC, microwave and converter to charge the batteries, you must use the 30 amp one. The AC is a real power hog, especially when it first starts up.
https://smile.amazon.com/s?k=Adapter+30a+to+15+a+male&ref=nb_sb_noss
John Davies
Spokane WA
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The NH pee tank is 2.2 gallons but you need to empty it before it gets completely full or you will have a real mess. You definitely don't want urine to go into the main composting area. The average adult pees 1 to 2 quarts per day. The average wife pees way more than that.... 😉
I drilled a couple of 1 inch "sight holes" in the enclosure so I could easily see the level as it fills. I also drilled some 3/16" drain holes in that enclosure since it traps shower water otherwise....
John Davies
Spokane WA
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The black tank is indeed black ABS, not poly, which is actually fine for potable water. The main reason the factory cannot do this mod is that their “RV whatever” certification requires that sewer and fresh have to remain completely separate, but there is no reason an owner cannot modify it, as long as you get rid of the connections to the nasty parts.
The pee tank in the Natures Head is fine, you add a few ounces of vinegar to it when empty, and rinse the urine each time with a couple of squirts of vinegar from a spray bottle. Smells are a non issue as long as your toilet vent fan keeps running. You need to keep the filters clean. Removing a full tank is pretty painless. Just be careful about spills. There is a big Natures Head thread here, I can get you a link if you like.
John Davies
Spokane WA
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It would be super easy to convert the 18 gallon black tank to potable water, it can gravity feed into the main fresh tank when that one is depleted, since the black tank sits about thee inches higher.... I am unaware of anyone who has done this yet. The access should be fine, the only tricky part would be blocking the vent pipe where it connects to the main vent under the bathroom sink. After blocking the vent you would have to install a large overflow pipe, going from the top of the tank to the belly. Access is OK since there is a big hole in the floor under the toilet.... And of course you would need a home built adapter with a ball valve at the outlet of the tank, under the front dinette seat.
I personally would not want any urine going into the grey tank. That would make it way more stinky than it already is, and it would not be appropriate to water a sage bush with it.... you could buy a second pee tank and cap ($40), and stash either the empty one, or a full one, behind the toilet, I think it would fit fine but I haven’t tested it there.
John Davies
Spokane WA
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15 hours ago, ahattar said:
Seems strange to me to buy an Oliver only to leave it parked for the winter! So much to do and see and usually you have it all to yourself.
I have never camped in Montana other than in the normal season. Where do you plan to go during the winter? The National Forest campgrounds are either snowed in and/or gated, most dump stations are too. The National Parks are not open to RVs.... though some State Parks are. BLM, BOR at lower elevations etc may be accessible if they are plowed..... and ski access points will be very accessible.
Do you plan to carry chains for your Ollie? Do you have a heated enclosed space where you can frequently wash off the corrosive deicer?
I really hope that you don’t break it, and please post pics of your adventures.
John Davies
Spokane WA
Dual Honda’s in parallel not working
in Mechanical & Technical Tips
Posted
Test the generators individually, and connected, by adding a load that is NOT your trailer, for example an electric heater or an old style 500 watt shop light. That will tell you if it is the trailer at fault, or one of the generators. This is how I load down, test and warm up my generator before I change the oil, it works very well.
I have never used a paired set so I have no specific comments on that part of the situation. Good luck.
John Davies'
Spokane WA