jd1923

@John Dorrer I would certainly call tech support for your hearing aide co. You have considerable electrical interference, and it may not be safe to have those in your ears.

Yeah, price-point $3k vs. one, would not be in our budget! I wonder why so many want 12v appliances? Perhaps there is something I do not understand on this. We use our inverter whenever needed and alone it only takes an amp, maybe 1.5A.

Nice! I know of that route. I was not sure if it was a road for 4x4s, or instead a road where you could tow your Oliver all the way down. I'm assuming you pulled your Oliver down to the Colorado! Please confirm quality of the road. Is it some paved, all dirt, OK for towing? Ample level boondocking sites at the river? That's a local trip for us, so we should do it soon. BTW, I can't stand I-40 from Flagstaff to Kingman, the trucks at 75 MPH, steep descents, construction always and bad pavement regardless. I found on this trip that we can get from home to Kingman, a trip I do several times a year, only traveling on I-40 for 7 miles. We take US-89 from Prescott to Ash Fork AZ (47 miles from home) and 7 miles west of Ash Fork you can exit on Hwy-66 and take that to Seligman, up to Peach Springs and down to Kingman. It's a beautiful route too and only adds a half hour to the route.

BTW, I would ONLY think of this kind of HD bike rack, mounting a relatively heavy dirt bike, AFTER I do some of the upgrades that @MAX Burner has completed; Alcan Springs and 5200 LB axles with 12" brakes and perhaps Monroe 555025 shocks if it's determined they would be a good upgrade and fit. There's quite a bit of money in doing all this and it makes sense to do this work all at the same time, for me time is TBD.

This is certainly worth taking another look, for those upgrading to the Alcan springs. +3/4" would likely fit well, given the Alcan leaf springs make the trailer sit a little higher and compress less for the same load. I had written to @MAX Burner in an earlier post to measure the before and after in spring height. Not sure if Art or others who have upgraded have made this measurement. @2008RN could you please supply a link to the specs for these shocks? I spent a few minutes searching and all i could find was installation instructions for Monroe shocks by part number. I would also like to hear what @ScubaRx thinks of adding a stiffer shock, 3/4" longer.

And now we know the reason for the Made in USA Leaf Spring thread, now 15 pages and counting! 🤣 Thank you, and I truly mean it.

Yes agreed, and yes pics would be appreciated! I haven't yet touched any exterior lighting. It kills me to see 3-4 screws into the fiberglass to mount something that weighs just ounces! I'm thinking, fill the holes with an epoxy or whatever plays well with fiberglass (to which I have no idea). These trim pieces can simply be mounted with a circle of 3M VHB tape, no holes in the fiberglass required, except for an 1/8" hole for the wiring. OTT should redesign the exterior thinking minimal fiberglass intrusion. Believe it or not, your antennas, solar panels and evening your awning can be mounted to the surface without drilling screw holes. Adhesives today are stronger than screws into fiberglass, certainly.

Love ya buddy, but you're not getting my old a$$ on a Trail 90! 🤣 Two e-bikes are 150+ LBS, more likely closer to 200 with accessories and keep in mind the rack weighs LBS. My '03 Honda CRF230 (bought barely used in VA late '03, totally rebuilt in 2019, new performance springs, new tires, and much more) weighs 238 dry, let's call it 260 LBS with oil and a full tank (1 gallon gasoline). We have ridden dirt in most of the Prescott NF. Chris cruised a Polaris 600 quad for years, though I prefer 2-wheels. I can make this work. Will post a mod at some point. I do need to measure our current tongue weight and front to back balance. OTT has built the frame structure for this with 7-8 crossmembers rear of the wheels. It would be great! Recently, to test I climbed on the back bumper of the Oliver, jumping up and down hard with myself of 225 LBS. It was solid as a rock, though a bike rack would be further back, a longer lever per the center of the trailer wheels.

Let’s do it Art! Your Beemer and my Honda dirt. The trip we just finished, I could have ridden dirt trails for miles! I will do it sooner or later. For now you have a great bike rack too.

I will likely do this upgrade too; this fall or early next year. Tempting when I see this unit at a good price, and I'll bet we can find an even better price online: Amazon.com: Dometic FreshJet 3 Series, RV Standard Mechanical Rooftop Air Conditioner, 13.5K BTU, White : Automotive Mike, it appears this is a plug-n-play install that you and a strong guy (for me that's my son Adam) could do in a comfortable afternoon, a couple beers, ... BTW, when we did a like install on a Class-C, Adam went up on the roof, after I disconnected the mounting bolts from inside. Ours was an old jammed unit, so I told Adam, just throw it off the roof but don't hit anything but the gravel drive. WE hauled the new one up using an extension ladder and a simple pull cable.

Searched for "freshjet" and got this. I remember reading it las year and you have me reading it again! We need to upgrade ours too at some point. has anyone tried the new Dometic fresh jet 2200? - Ollie Modifications - Oliver Owner Forums (olivertraveltrailers.com)

We all do it at times. I like to see that pump LED off when I'm starting to walk down those steps to leave the Oliver, has become habit. I also check my Victron app each time and when leaving for the day or going to sleep (left the fridge on DC one night when boondocking, got down to 63%). Yes, your pump was damaged pumping dry overnight. The new pump fixed that, as you wrote "progress" in the fact that it would draw from the boondocking port. Not sure if your action could also create the leak at the tank. Stuff happens.

Thanks Bill, I'm certain many of us would like to see this. You'll know as soon as you pull one Monroe if they are the same, or something new, hopefully better. Too bad with heavier replacement springs we cannot source a replacement shock with the same ends, same stroke but larger diameter cylinders and pistons. When I replaced mine last year (same Monroes but in black), the old yellow ones where all flat, meaning that when compressed they would not return on their own. Service receipts from prior owners also show mine were replaced once. I guess a few years back they still painted them yellow.

The new leaf springs with higher weight rating may be easier on the shocks. Your axles will also be more solid, keeping squarely on the ground more often. The sway of the body with the lighter springs certainly put more sway and stress on the shocks. There was a suggestion earlier for perhaps a better replacement brand (or they could be the same part rebranded). Anybody getting the new brand should show a side-by-side picture of the two. If the new brand has the same casting marks, it's the same manufacturer.

This may be blasphemy to many of you, but I've been using a pneumatic impact wrench for decades when mounting rims, without manually checking torque. I have a quality impact wrench, very much like this one (wow mine was about $140, 35 years ago): Ingersoll Rand 2146Q1MAX 3/4-Inch Drive, Air Impact Wrench, Quiet, 2,000 ft-lbs Nut-busting torque, Maintenance Duty, Pistol Grip, Standard Anvil , Gray - Amazon.com First the "nut-busting torque" is for pulling nuts. The gun will not produce this torque when in righty-tighty position. Notice the 4 torque settings. I use the lowest setting when first mounting and get all lugs to this level (compressor set at 90 PSI). For automobiles or anything with 1/2" studs, I use the second setting as final torque. For 6-8 lug truck wheels the 3rd setting is good. I would not use the 4th setting for wheel lugs. Did that once by mistake when restoring our GX470 and broke a stud, and a round-trip to Napa to replace it. Torque settings are based on the strength of the steel (Grade 5, Grade 8, etc.), the bolt diameter and whether it's a coarse or fine thread bolt. There is recommended torque for every bolt. Problem is when for example rebuilding a truck suspension, you cannot fit a torque wrench on 2 out of 3 bolts. Maturing into the role of being a mechanic you get used to the feel of how tight is right. Love this Toyota guy! He taught me so much when restoring our GX, changing the CV axles, adding a 2" lift, etc. His catch phrase is "good-n-tight" which he says often, kidding in a German accent: Lexus GX470 Front Brake Upgrade - YouTube After mounting a rim, a few days or few miles later, I check the lugnuts again, this time by hand. Not using a torque wrench, but with a 24" long 3/4" breaker bar, 1/2" reducer with appropriate socket attached. I mount it about 90 degrees to the ground and push down with my foot. If it's a car, I just push down a little. On the 2500-series truck I put a bit of my weight on it. On occasion you find one or some that are somewhat looser and only those need a little more. If they all feel about the same, then you're good. Always recheck recent repair work at least visually. Another check I do on a regular basis is to rock the wheel. When parked flat, put your foot on the top of the wheel and push back and forth to rock the vehicle as hard as possible. Use your eyes and ears to notice anything. This is a simple check of lugs, bearings and other steering or suspension components.

Excellent of you to do the follow-up and to notice something this detailed. Many would not have noticed. A good check to see if they are truly deformed is to take a good nut from the other side (better yet a brand-new nut). If it threads nicely by hand the threads are good, if it gets stuck you know the rest.

A 1" line with connectors becomes 3/4" ID, a great improvement at 2x the current OEM drain. OTT uses 1/2" PEX with 90 connectors that have 3/8" ID. See my picture of the motorized valve installed on the drain. Yes, the 90 fitting is 3/8" ID and if any of you still have the old brass switch valves (for boondocking / winterization modes) they are 1/4 ID. Motorized valves I used in all 3 locations have 12mm ID, one mm short of 1/2" ID. It drains a little faster and the boondocking fill is now twice as fast.

Heck no, getting home from our trip, we are knee-high in weeds, weedwhackers going. Art, whenever you visit, yes that is your spot. I'd move ours to a less level spot w/o shore power. Not much in level land here. Here is a picture take just now from the other direction, our living room window. Five years ago, Adam and I hand-excavated the 10x20' yard area to allow the shed to be level, with pickaxes, shovels and rakes.

For sure, good plan @rideadeuce if you are able to do so, on your property. I pulled a Class-A into this spot several times, but after the shed that maneuver may not work. Found a used 10x20' Tuff-Shed 4-5 years ago for $4K and only $400 to bring it home (tipped the guy another C-note and these cost ~$12K today). We ran 125' of 8 AWG (correct gauge for 30A at this length) direct burial cable. Added a sub-panel for lights and power in the shed as well. LOVE doing electrical work, residential or automotive 12VDC! Have shore power, when we need (mostly in the summer for A/C) and when we return from a trip, everything in the bed of the TV goes into the shed on commercial pallet racking. We are coded for gray water into a gravel bed, but it's on the edge of our 3/4 acre within the city of Prescott. Not going to have our own dump, but very happy as-is. Love when a project is done! Pretty pic to follow...

Well maybe then... We need to head east for the 2025 Oliver Trailer Rally. I could make that service appointment well ahead of time, swing by CGI to get our gelcoat back in shape and meet so many of you great eastern members! Being old-school as I am, I try not to leave the property until I lined up 3-4 errands to do in series. Hoping that would rub off on wife and son for years, still hoping. So now I have at least 3 reasons for making that very long mile trip! I'd be OK in the meantime using our 35-gal backup water in the TV which in the current state of our FWT refills it twice. We get about 55 gallons total. I could not do it without the motorized water valve mod (not lifting beds). With TV detached, you only need a 10' hose. I use a 10' plus a 25' when attached.

Wow, only 10%! What is your rooftop solar wattage? Perhaps a third panel in your future. I dislike the idea of portable, but many here do that. You are based in N Ohio. I wonder if your same package was camping out here in the SW, would 10% increase to 20% or some better number?

What many do not realize is that Motorola only dabbled in consumer electronics (10-20% of sales), through the years, and yes often failed from poor marketing. Motorola was an engineering company, manufacturing backend systems for commercial use and government, along with semiconductor manufacturing used by Apple, HP and so many others. The point I was making was the useful application of technology. First point, I certainly do not need a TT that is so heavy, I would need a 550-grade commercial truck to pull it! Many locations we camp, a rig >24FT would not go. I see the 3-axles Air Streams and fifth wheels everywhere and wonder. They may soon downsize as we have. Honestly, you want these features, flat roof with 10+ solar panels, buy a Class-A RV. We also don't need a balcony on our TT, OMG! 🤣 If you can't walk down 2-3 steps and plant your feet on the ground, why are you camping? Sure it's cool, but is it useful application of technology? I think not. I also see aluminum and rivets in their builds. They offer 100-gal FWT which is another 800+ LBS when full. I could not find a spec sheet without filling out a form and wonder re actual GTWR. Should OTT improve their design? Of course. Flat roof? Not for me. It will create more wind drag and take away from the elemental beauty of the OTT. All the tech in that Living Vehicle and they offer the same 2000W Inverter that we have? I was amazed how our old 340W solar and 450AH lead-acid kept us dry-camping 2 1/2 weeks and battery charge never got below 80% (we do live in the sunny dry SW). I will upgrade to LI and 3000W inverter, only to run a new efficient AC to be fully self-contained. We can do all that in our old hull for just a few thousand dollars. All those bells and whistles have their cost, upfront and down the road. The $300K base package (their 24' model) is approx. 3x the cost of an Oliver. I imagine some of you have that money, but we only had enough discretionary, for this purpose, for our used Oliver. The Oliver cannot be considered a hybrid, as it cannot be driven down the road on its own accord. An EV Truck for camping? 🤣 What are you going to charge first? Your house batteries or the EV TV? How much extra solar wattage would be required for the EV TV? Living Vehicle advertises their product can charge the EV. Problem is when the EV TV needs recharging is when the sun is setting... LI batteries do weigh less, but batteries in an EV TV and enough batteries in the TT to recharge the TV add up to 1000s of LBS in batteries. Some of us worry about 50 LBS of water in the HWH. Wonder when Living Vehicle will get up to over 1500 units sold?

Air-lift would be nice! Without it I bring ramps. At this location, I started at 7" down (reading on the LevelMate) to 3"+. Surprised to get 10" net, but you can see it in resulting the TV angle, since the drive was lower at the front wheels of the TV. We had a free dump station just down the street from home. What was for decades, our local "Affinity RV" became "Blue Compass RV" last year and they charge $10 to use the dump station.

Got to love the flat tank design of the Oliver! The Sunoco at Cedar City UT offers free dump station plus potable water with any fill-up. You have to back in slightly uphill to the facilities.

Thanks @rich.dev Wow! and I hate plumbing. I can see why @MAX Burner is asking OTT Service to do it. Do they still retrofit this at their cost?