jd1923

Look closely at the final picture above and you will see a strap at the top step of the ladder. Old, but not yet too weak, I yanked on this thing hard. Way more grounded than this engineer would have thought. As you may remember, I'm not often complimentary to many design engineers. This would be easier if I lived where boat service shops are frequent, like where @SeaDawg lives. We do live in the desert...

We just received our MetalTech scaffolding today. Got it setup in 90 minutes (on the 70-year old-fart plan, yep just taking my time). In another 90 minutes (working hard this time), I removed EVERYTHING up top-up front on our OLD Hull #113! Boy-oh-boy, do I have a lot of fiberglass repair to do! This scaffolding is awesome and reasonable. I'm 6' 2" and weigh 225 lbs on a good day! This platform did NOT waiver, did not sway, not a blink! I'm also weary of heights and ladders yet felt great on this platform and even forgot I was up there after working a while. Strapped the ladder into place as shown. I climbed up and down 5x while working this first job. A young guy would just climb the scaffolding! 🤣 Pictures to follow are first the scaffolding setup. Then the demolition. Pulling parts is always fun and easier than the final restoration. 🤣 Posts to follow will cover the complete repair of the front roof. Today was easy. I see many hours of repair in my future.

I bought two of these for stocking stuffers! 🤣 Black Friday price, OMG only $8!!! I’ve used these ever since my first automotive job in 1975. This one is good quality, alligator clips a bit too tight, though end point is certainly sharp enough to pierce wire insulation. This is the reason why a simple test light works where a multimeter will not. Grab a ground and poke on fuse ends and more. One is for my son, the other I just placed under the rear dinette seat where I have rerouted all our fuses and breakers.

Ron, you generally are well-equipped to say the least! 🤣 Your 36” Bakers Pride puts our 16” model to shame! But for $189 and at a weight that can be carried, the Advantco is really nice. Check the reviews from small restaurant owners. btw, you know I’m one for a deal… when our grilled was shipped they dropped it, bent the upper left corner. Webstaurant, to whom we have bought from often, offered me a 20% refund or 40% in store credit. We took the credit! You cannot get a better grill for under $200. The next grill up in price is near $500. All you need is a 110V outlet.

Hard to believe submitting a web order with Home Depot on a Sunday morning and receiving the scaffolding Monday by 1PM! Wow, the accessories should be here by Thanksgiving. Just need one level working on the front where the driveway is a foot or more higher, hitch tongue near the ground, so as you can see I added two additional for support. Notice the side view, adding a 1” block to level and a large pool noodle to steady the platform and protect the Oliver. Was worried about the wheels rolling but they lock nicely. I have some adjustable scaffold levelers and might get these. If you do you want the 1 3/8” inserts for this model: https://a.co/d/00HCoxT

Good point! The 22” model was what I was referring to, has a centered rear grease trap. Pics of your 17” looks much better with front grease trap.

We cook anything inside or out, and more inside now with our new Emeril Air Fryer installed! The MaxxFan clears up any cooking smoke/smells nicely. Most trips we like to have a meal ready for our first night that only needs reheating. This way I don't have to do the full campsite setup after a long day. Love to be outside more, though during our 2023 spring trip to Moab UT and points between, we had more days windy than not. So windy, the Weber Q grill would not stay fired. Can't sit by the fire ring either!

Our feelings too. We bought the larger Blackstone model and returned it without trying it. The connection of the top seemed loose, and I did not like the grease trap. Chris, Adam and I all have restaurant experience, using commercial equipment and we wanted something better. Must be stainless steel, not Teflon or aluminum. We bought this electric countertop griddle, thinking of using it for camping when on shore power or adequate battery/inverter capacity. It's amazing, yet it’s really toooo heavy to load and unload when camping. What a deal on the commercial grade griddle! We kept it for home use. Avantco EG16N 16" Electric Countertop Griddle - 120V, 1750W Found a cabinet on Craigs so it could sit on our deck at home. We get morning sun on the deck and given our climate we use it outside year-round. With a piece of plexiglass I had on hand, I created a splash guard and installed an overhead light. Chris cooks breakfast on the grill almost every morning. Cleaning takes some work as it is stainless, not coated. Picture shows Adam and Chris cooking Egg Foo Young, one late June night! It's generally hard to cook a dinner like this with big eaters like us in a normal home kitchen! We still do not have a flattop grill for camping! 🤣 Might just get a flat griddle iron that fits the kitchen cooktop.

They must have changed the recipe on the nasty pink stuff since it's producing CO when it had not previously. Just winterized our Oliver for the first time this winter using compressed air as always. Since we travel over the winter, I do this 2-3 times every winter. Our CO monitor will be fine and our plumbing will stay free of chemicals.

So, you also installed the MP2? Have an installation post or pictures. I knew of 3 prior to our installation but your name is new to me. Thanks. Like Steve wrote, no venting issues. I installed our MP@ under the streetside bed, so no room under there. Without detail measurements, If I was to desire more than 600AH in the battery bay, I would look under the pantry!

I'm thinking of stacking them even for Oliver rooftop work. Having the extra cross members, I can put one beam low for stability and a second up high at say 10' for a rear safety railing. I can mount the platform about 6 or 7' and store the second platform for later use. Having the double height frame the tool shelf can be mounted up high at waist height. Outriggers not only necessary when stacking these but we have very little level land here. Our driveway is as level as it gets here and from the picture you can see what I mean. I love that every item can be mounted up or down every couple of inches. I will post a picture next week after I get it setup. I also have a trades professional Hyde safety belt set with safety hook leads I purchased back in 1990 when I was restoring attic dormers on the first home we bought. It's been hanging from the rafters of my garage for decades with some occasional use since. She will look a lot better without the tall Winegard Dish!

Derek, looks like you’re going to Make that decision this week. They did 15% last year too for Black Friday. Buy from renewable to save sales tax also.

Ron, I believe it was you who first made me aware of this product. Instead of the safety upper, I bought two scaffolds at this price which are stackable or put them in tandem for a 12’ walkway. This will help with house painting too outside and above stairwells. Got the tool shelf too and 14” outriggers for greater stability. Nice set and with a 10% OFF coupon in my email, everything was under $500 plus tax. If you don’t have one, apply for a Depot card for the same 10%. I have two weeks off now. This will all be delivered for free by end of next week. The following week I will finally wash the Oliver after two roadtrips and then will replace the bathroom exhaust fan and remove the large Winegard Dish bug-catcher up top!

Some of you have the Metaltech scaffolding. If not, now's the time! I'm glad I did not pull the trigger before. Check out the sale at Depot. At this price, I may get two to stack since the 39" extension and other accessories are double this price point! MetalTech Safeclimb 6 ft. Baker Scaffold with Platform and Included Trap Door, 1250 lbs. Load Capacity I-CISCH1 - The Home Depot

When you read the attached post, almost everybody is suggesting the cracks come from wind causing the door to bang, my belief too. Most who have these cracks do not have the friction hinges. Also, the cracks that @Steve-Gwenne, @Mike and Carol and I and several others have are NOT the same that @Galway Girl is showing where the laminate has pulled out of the frame. It appears that @mossemi may also have the more extreme issue but we have not seen a picture. Our cracks are minor, most are straight horizontal lines that look like stress cracks that follow the structure of the surface. Like Mike wrote, we will be living with ours. The cracks in our door have likely been there for years, and after 9 months use of the Lippert product they have not gotten worse. I've had RV doors almost pull my arm out of its shoulder socket, gotten several bruises, heard too many LOUD bangs, not anymore! Yes, it takes a little push, but I do love how the door stays open exactly to the angle I've opened it.

One thing I noted at the Texas Rally is that every hull in our loop had MUCH brighter outside courtesy lights, likely twice as bright. Glad ours are dim in comparison and after 9 years all are still working, hope not to have to replace them. Anybody know the replacement part for the two entrance lights? There is also a pair on the streetside. I would like to install one on the rear, over the window just as the side lights are mounted above the window. I would also like one in front over the doghouse, both on separate switches that I can access from outdoors.

Yeah, I see now that your picture is with the door open screen closed and mine with the screen open with the door. We have the hairline cracks like many, and were present before the friction hinges were added and have not changed. The door on ours is 9 years old now. You can see the cracks behind the screen in my photo. If anything, friction hinges should help the door since it does not fly open and bang the hull in the wind like it used to. I installed ours in February, the day they arrived, a 15-minute install. The pair of friction hinges fill the gaps between the original hinges so that there is a hinge mount every 3-4" down the entire door frame. It adds reinforcement. Best $15 spent on our Oliver! We traveled 7 weeks since then and all the work I did this summer I opened the door and closed the door so many times since. The friction hinges cannot be the issue. The damage on Craig's door shows the laminate pulling out of the frame for likely some other reason.

BTW, love our friction hinges. Travel to Texas and back heavy winds at many locations and the door did not bang once, usually would not move an inch!

See this post (end of page 2) for probable cause -

Maybe you installed the wrong kit for your door or installed it in the wrong orientation. The one extra-large hinge bracket with the two screws sticking more than a 1/4" into the door jamb area is likely the cause of your door failure. Note the Lippert Friction Hinge installed in our Oliver entrance door. The rivets show the original hinges, and the screws are on the friction hinges. Nothing in the door jamb like yours right at the point of door failure.

If you feel 460AH is enough for your camping lifestyle then yes. Glad we have the 600AH for less worry, though we would have been fine with 460 during our recent 3 1/2 week trip to Texas using more LP at times, less battery. When we upgrade our A/C to an efficient system and desire to run more hours A/C on inverter, I may add that good deal Epoch 460AH battery, installed under the pantry to get to 1060AH total!!! (Maybe 2026?)

Wow, the season is just starting! Are you really going to hang there for 2-3 months? (I do understand you are escaping the winter of the great north.) Highs in Prescott will be in the 60s this week, lows close to freezing. Quartzsite forecast is highs in the mid 70s, lows in the mid 40s. It's a bit colder than usual now after being abnormally high many times since summer. Hoping some 80s temps for you soon which should be coming. Best wishes!

Ran across this today. Too bad he did not compare the Epoch Essentails (vs. the high end model with Victron comms) which is more basic like the LiTime battery. He does a good objective comparison:

@Tideline77 btw congrats on your lightly-used 2022. June of 2023, we found a 2016 obviously a bit more used. Of course, you'll need a small Weber or other brand grill. We love our LP fire ring. I never want to start a real fire anymore and you rarely can in the SW. We add a cooking grate on our fire ring to cook bake potatoes or veggies, anything but animal fats. Why not keep yourself warm while cooking! We keep ours in the front generator basket: Heininger Portable Propane Gas Fire Pit 5995 - The Home Depot You must remove the regulators on LP devices to run off the Oliver tanks. I purchased an extra 12' LP line and a Y-connector to attach both grill and fire ring. Strongly suggest these Anderson products. I use two 8" rounds for the rear levelers but use the stackable 1" blocks for the front since to level sometimes I need 3" and sometimes up to 15". And the dual wheel ramps will nicely add 4" to the low side in a minute! Andersen Hitches Trailer Jack Block (3608) with Magnets, Red, 1 per Pack, Plastic - Walmart.com Andersen Hitches Camper Leveler (3604) | up to 30,000 lbs | Red | 1 per Pack - Walmart.com MUST HAVE ITEM! I get level most times without leaving the driver's seat. Chris places the Anderson levelers while I'm backing up, reading heights from the app: Amazon.com: LevelMatePRO LogicBlue Technology - Wireless RV Leveling System, Bluetooth Leveler for Campers, Must-have Accessory for Travel Trailers, Effortless Setup for Phones with App : Automotive There also is a similar product made by Beech Lane of North Carolina, though I prefer the LevelMate App.

Thanks Robert & Ying! I have seen that video before. Like that guy. You can learn a lot about engines and engine care by watching his videos. He is soooo good at tear down which I have done on some old cars, but much more slowly! Yes, we have the 2nd Gen Cummins 5.9, only 165K miles now which is only a baby for the Cummins (especially one that is 24 years old). We have extra available GVWR since ours is a 2WD which weighs less and a long bed which takes more weight. My numbers show a 1/2 ton truck is adequate if careful with your extras. It appears you are well versed in GVWR and trailer capacity. Re the comment above on extra pedestal mount EMS... When you find the previous thread, you'll see I'm against that, yet most Oliver Owners are in favor. The onboard PI EMS is all you need. Ours and the older hulls did not have one, so I installed the OEM model. I put the display in the Oliver trunk where I keep the shore power cord. If present, I can read an error code immediately and disconnect if needed. It will not get damaged but just do its job and send an error code (rare occasion). If you use a redundant EMS, you're just wasting money spent on the internal EMS. It's not just the few pounds of weight for me, it's the hassle of extra electric devices, water filters, antennas, and so much more that others carry. One of the fun parts of campsites (prefer boondocking) is watching all the rigmarole that RV'ers go through in their campsite setup! 🤣