John E Davies

That is depressing news. I bet they are not cheap, for a full set. OTH the yellow ones will not show the dust and fingerprints like snow white ones. LOL. I can live with mine. I would rather spend the money on something really cool like mudflaps or a Stone Stomper. John Davies Spokane WA

Nashville has some very cool places to visit, including a nice zoo, but it isn't at all on the way to Hohenwald from Oklahoma... be aware that traffic is fast and vicious, especially if you are towing. If you want to camp close in to the city of Nashville after collecting your trailer, the Anderson Road COE campground is simply stellar. And dirt cheap with a Senior Pass. Reservations are highly recommended!!! Any of the waterfront sites along the west side are great, we had # 22. https://www.recreation.gov/camping/anderson-road/r/campgroundDetails.do?contractCode=NRSO&parkId=71009 Any of the TN state parks are good choices but they are very costly compared to Corps facilities... Henry Horton east of Columbia (due south of Nashville) is very nice. http://tnstateparks.com/parks/about/henry-horton The weather shoul be nice for you, it gets pretty nasty in mid summer. John Davies Spokane WA

This weekend my daughter and I boondocked in Kennewick (Tri Cities) WA. She is a member of a jousting club that performs at medieval faires. She does not ride, thankfully, she is a "squire" who assists on the ground, handing up new lances and picking up broken shards after the knights impact each other with a splintering crash. This is the spot I picked at Columbia Park, where the hydro races are held each summer: Here is the view out the back window, most unusual for a boondocking site! The List was about 200 feet away. Here is her group, they will be performing in Spokane in two weeks. https://www.facebook.com/joustalliance/ If anybody is in the area Oct 7 or 8, consider stopping by for a visit. It's a little silly but lots of fun. Look for my Ollie in the Actors camping area, near the horse paddocks and field. https://www.spokanerenfaire.com She also participates in another group called Combat Corps. She does sword fighting displays, Hollywood style. https://www.facebook.com/combatcorpsspokane/?ref=py_c Mouse is a wonderful help to her. Previously she was sleeping in the back of my Ram pickup or her Outback. John Davies Spokane WA

No seal: We haven't been rained on yet but I still like it. If it rains really hard we will just stay indoors. My wife has no opinion on the seal.... John Davies Spokane WA

The blind are not secure and you may find one lying on the bed or floor, and it is due to improper installation of the steel brackets. On my trailer, in many cases the bracket did not sit flush and parallel with the others. This is due to the hole in the hard spacer being drilled too small. The hole must be bigger than the screw diameter, so that the screw will pull everything into position. You need to remove all the brackets and open up the spacer holes. Removing the blind frame is simple, grab at the top and bottom and pull hard toward you. When reinstalling, center the frame in the window (left to right), align the bottom brackets with the slot in the plastic, and smack the area at each bracket with your fist. Then do the top side. When the brackets are parallel and aligned, the frame will go on easily and it should stay in place. You can tweek a bracket by bending the two ears, if you find a loose one. Before: After: SAFETY NOTE: when removing a bracket with a power driver, keep your fingers away from the part since it will spin and might slice your fingers! If you want to make your blinds more functional, flip them 180 degrees, so that the dark section is on the bottom. As postioned by the factory: Rotated, now you can tow with the blinds down and the lighter shades will let lots of light into the interior: And you can raise the lower section a few inches for privacy when camping: It's easy to try this configuration and switch back if you don't like it. Now we can talk about the ugly frame color..... John Davies Spokane WA

You don't say where you are coming from! If from the west, avoid Jackson TN like the plague, although it has tons of hotels since it straddles I40, the area is a cesspool... to put it mildly. Savannah TN is very nice, is on the Tennessee River, has lots of parks and lodging, and is an hour from Hohenwald by very twisty backroads. I can't comment on a dog friendly motel since we left ours at home. If from the east, Columbia would be a good choice. John Davies Spokane WA

Can you please post a source or make and part number of the handle? thanks John Davies Spokane WA

That is pretty off topic, so I started a new thread here.... http://olivertraveltrailers.com/topic/towing-in-winter-chains-etc/ John Davies Spokane WA

There seems to be some interest in this idea, so I thought it would be best to start a new thread here. In regards to cables on the trailer, it is _super_ risky to tow in those kinds of conditions, I would never willingly attempt it, never ever, with a heavy trailer. The chance of jack knifing your trailer goes way up, and that might total both vehicles and hurt you, or worse. If I were stranded back on some forest road I would drive out solo and hire a wrecker to retrieve my Ollie. But if you want to have some so you can try to get down off a snowy mountain or off an iced up road in a true unexpected emergency, I have always liked the Z cables that zig zag across the tread, so there is always one part of a cable contacting the road. For vehicles with ABS they are recommended over conventional styles since they do not constantly "break traction". They call them Z-Chains for no reason that I can understand, but they are lightweight cables and very easy to store. https://www.amazon.com/Security-Chain-SZ335-Passenger-Traction/dp/B000BR8UAE I don't know which size would be needed for an Ollie. You should put on two sets and back way off on the brake setting to avoid lockup. They will certainly help with stopping but they will also provide lateral grip to keep the trailer from sliding sideways in turns and on off-camber roads, and into the ditch or snow berm. In winter I always carry two pairs of heavy duty truck chains in my tow vehicle. I have rarely needed them since I run snow tires, but they are there in case I get truly bogged down in snow or mud when I am far from help. If I had to tow on snow, I would also put the chains on all four tires of the truck, for sure! John Davies Spokane WA

The tee handles are held onto the threaded part of the inner cable by a single 1/6" steel roll pin. The lock nut does not really have any function. My black tank pin sheared off, which is really wierd because I do not ever use it. Maybe it was damaged at the factory? No, that could never happen, LOL..... I plan to (carefully) drive out the pins on both handles and replace them with stainless steel cotter pins. Something to check while you are messing around with yours.... I would have thought the handles would thread onto the inner cables, it would be a more secure setup. John Davies Spokane WS !

LOL, this isn't really a mod, but I wanted to post this somewhere. It never occurred to me to see if my Cabelas recliner would fit inside the cabin. It measures 24 inches at its widest point, so I gave it a try. It blocks the beds but the rest of the interior is still fairly accessible. It will make a great place for me to hang out on a cold dreary day if I am by myself. There are no other choices that don't force you to be bolt upright or flat on your back. It obviously will not be good with more than one body inside Mouse. Has anyone else tried this? John Davies Spokane WA

You really need to open up that plug for a look, WD40 is a bandaid fix. Rain water is non-conducting. What most likely caused your problem was corrosive crud building up on the terminals, like the white flowers you see forming on a neglected battery's terminals. You need to clean all the crud out, degrease the connections and then coat them with a product that waterproofs them. I really like liquid electrical tape, but there are a bunch of choices. Also seal the opening where the cable enters, even if it has a good rubber grommet. When the plug is allowed to hang straight down, water can't get into the pins, but it sure can trickle down the cable and seep into the interior. In the bad old days there were plated steel female connectors for the tow vehicle. When those got water into the front side, they caused all sorts of problems when the growing rust from the housing spread to the live wires... fortunately they are now made with a nonconductive liner. I wonder who ever thought steel was an appropriate material for this application...? John Davies Spokane WA

How many kids? If only a couple, consider a used Land Cruiser 200, they are luscious, capable and tow very well. The 2014s coming off lease are selling for about $40k. Here's mine with Mouse, about an hour ago. https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/towing-with-a-200-series-toyota-land-cruiser.932343/ But since you live at 8400 feet you REALLY need a turbo diesel or gas engine. Unless you want to add a supercharger to a Cruiser.... which is not a problem. Add me to the No Maintenance AGM Battery Club - until the lithium iron batteries get more affordable, these are the best choice. John Davies Spokane WA

Don, ask them to cap off the now-unused fresh water line, they can do that out of sight under the sink, I think. That way you won't have to mess around with winterizing that segment every fall. Make sure to pre-purchase your consumables, and maybe some spares like an extra pee bottle and/or cap. Oliver doesn't give you any. http://store.natureshead.net Make sure they use a large enough fuse, and have them label it! Since it will be a retrofit, they will probably use an inline one, and pick up power close by, maybe under the sink. Make sure it is readily accessible. The fan uses less than an amp running, but the fuse must be 2.5 to 5 amps as per Natures Head support. Ask for a small led light so you can see if the fan is operating. It is audible if your tinnitus isn't too bad, but it is very quiet. Get a 3 inch sewer to male garden hose adapter, so you can dump your gray water with a 3/4 inch hose. It's slow but very convenient if time is not a factor. Post your thoughts here after having used it a while. I hope you like it. I am sure you will love being able to pass by dump stations and laugh at the lines. For off season and especially off-the-grid camping, it is a revelation. John Davies Spokane WA

Yep. Here's the front showing my busted slide fitting: Here's the back... The notch is for the slide. Except for the slide screw issues (too short from the factory) they seem to be well made. John Davies Spokane WA

Cool, please post pics of the rear drawer strap! I was going to install a locking stainless latch in mine, like outside for the battery compartment, but had not got around to it yet. Then I found my drawer completely busted, lying on the floor near the bath; the too short screws ripped out and wrecked it. So now I am waiting on a replacement and I will secure it before towing with the new one.... that will be a new thread. John Davies Spokane WA

I had not seen those. That is a lot of neat features and they look well made. It looks as if they specialize in emrgency/ rescue equipment, so I suspect they are top quality. Warranty? Prices? If the smallest one is over $250 I would rather just keep buying replacemen Viking units every few years.... Thanks. John Davies Spokane WA

http://olivertraveltrailers.com/topic/how-to-fix-your-overhead-cabinet-latches-wrong-hardware/ It makes me mad every time I think about this..., ;( John Davies Spokane WA

The AG units are very nicely packaged junk if you are looking for something to keep in a vehicle. Like all the others they cannot tolerate high temperatures. Early on, the company was claiming that they could be stored at high temps (60C) but the latest specs have been lowered to 45 degrees C, if I remember correctly, which is 113 degrees F. Their warranty is a joke and their customer service painful. The XP10 is great when it works, but these are made to keep in your garage, not the car. The HF unit is truly an exception. It is not a store brand, but actually is made by Viking and sold elsewhere for lots more $$. Don't buy one off eBay for $125! HF gets a very bad rap but my local store has treated me well, and I do research their stuff well before buying, which is not very often. Usually it's in an emergency when I really need a left handed orbital franistan and all I can find in my tool box is the right handed one .... LOL. I am actually a little embarrassed to own an electronic tool from HF, most of mine come from HD (Home Depot), and I am a huge fan of DeWalt. Finally, I added a big nylon tie at the two big wires coming off the jump start plug, for strain relief. John Davies Spokane

So I bought one of the Harbor Freight ones today for $80. I declined both the 12 and 24 month extended warranty for $15 and $30. I figure if it is going to fail it will probably be in the first few months, so I am gambling on the 90 day warranty. I will try to find some poor soul with a dead battery so I can try out the jump start mode. All the other functions work well and the quality looks good, but not great. The soft rubber cladding is a great feature. The flashlight is pretty average, but will be fine for emergency illumination under the hood. EDIT: the specs say 250 lumens, no way, it is dim. It feels pretty much like a soft brick - a little clumsy and awkward to hold. The shape of that Car Rover A9 would feel much better in the hand, but I am not sure you should buy one of these for how it looks or feels.... I am REALLY pleased that the HF one has the lithium iron phosphate cells. They are a better technology for this sort of tool. I mis-spoke before, this has 8AWG cables, not 10. John Davies Spokane WA

Hi Malcolm, I used stainless panhead sheet metal screws (not wood screws) at the top and at the bottom. They don't need nuts on the back. The load on those screws is really really low. Unless you plan to fill the drawers with horse shoes or ammo.... Drill a pilot hole the size of the minor diameter (unthreaded part), or slightly larger, and then countersink lightly. The gel coat will not chip and the screws bite down really hard. I swapped the supplied plated screws for stainless, from Ace. I think they are 10 x 3/4", basically whatever is a snug fit in the holes. I have been using these straps for a few trips now and they work great. No issues at all, other than remembering to install them before towing. John Davies Spokane WA

If the rack is indeed held in place with self tapping screws into aluminum, then I have to comment that it is a really poor method for securing a VERY heavily loaded tray. Simply put, it's bad engineering. There should be self locking nuts and large area steel washers. If the area is not accessible easily, there should be heavy threaded steel nutserts in the aluminum plate. I hope you will post pictures of what you find during your repair. John Davies Spokane WA

Lots of possibly bad and very expensive problems, no septic system is designed for sudden large volumes of water. If you are really careful, and lucky, you can get away with it. But why risk screwing up your system, killing off beneficial bacteria from your toilet chemicals and maybe forcing solids into the perforated pipes of the leach field? Google "dump rv tank into septic" for lots of reading. It's risky and nobody wants to have to dig up the back yard to fix the system, and maybe install a new leach field! John Davies Spokane WA

Check local code, I was not allowed to have an RV sewer connection inside or outside of the house. I live inside the city boundaries. If the house was in the county, then it would be fine....OTH there is no reason you cannot ask for an additional sewer "cleanout" in your garage wall or floor. Don't hook up an RV sewer dump to a septic sysyem, it can be bad for it if used often. Or you could swap your regular toilet for a composting one and not worry about it at all. The urine tank gets carried into the house to empty into a toilet. I empty my gray water tank into the gravel beside my driveway. Installing a Natures Head might even be cheaper that the addtional plumbing cost and permit fees for the dump station, I don't know. If the builder has to excavate and install below ground sewer pipes, then it definitely would be way cheaper. And more "eco".... LOL. John Davies Spokane WA

Sherry, the clamps are weak, but they could be replaced easily. What cannot easily be replaced are the 10 AWG wires... those are slightly marginal in size for high current, and the better units have 8 AWG. Not a huge deal... I will probably just go by HF tomorrow and buy one. I do have jumper cables, but my concern is being alone, no trailer, thirty miles back on some ranch or forest road and not being able to restart the engine if the battery should decide to fail. I usually have a generator in the back in the hot weather, but that is not a given, and it would take hours to recharge the battery with it, enough for a start. If it had a shorted cell, that might not even work. If I didn't get the HF one, this is my next choice, but it has regular temperature sensitive lithium ion cells. https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B01JFSYUWG/_encoding=UTF8?coliid=I1WYJL5KUIEMKC&colid=26R5Z0L5VZEWU Edit: one of the perils of buying a product made in China that has no USA website.... I asked the seller of the above unit, "Has anyone found a wall mount bracket that fits?" The shape is long and skinny like a flashlight, 2x2x8, it has a very nice built in 100 lumen light, so maybe I would like to mount it like a flashlight, to use at night when leaving Mouse. They answered "What do you mean by wall mount bracket?" Amazon deleted their comment. At least HF has stores every where so I could walk in and return a bad one or buy another. And sometimes English is the native language. John Davies Spokane WA