Tony and Rhonda

The deadbolt is standard equipment from the manufacturer.

I believe the 4WC door was about the same thickness as the Ollie door. Different companies, different approaches, but it is possible.

Our Oliver had the RVLock installed when we purchased it (used). In the 24 or so months we've owned it, I've had to call RVLock three time with issues. First time was when the lock just stopped working. Not too big a deal since we could still lock/unlock the door with the key. They sent replacement parts and I installed. Second time was after we closed the camper door and the key lock (not deadbolt) locked us out of the camper. Of course the keys were inside the camper. Luckily we were at the storage yard where we keep the camper so we just drove home to get the spare set. Inconvenient but not catastrophic. RVLock sent a replacement paddle with lock that I have yet to install. Third time was after the lockout above. I ordered a spare set of two keys with the replacement paddle and RVLock only sent one key. Called them and they sent out another set of two keys at no charge. Now have three spares and never leave the camper without a set in my pocket. Since we are not the original purchasers of the lock, we've had to pay for the replacement parts and shipping. I've thought the costs were very reasonable and RVLock customer service has been very helpful and easy to work with. I'm not sure I would replace a manual door lock with the RVLock but it's installed so we'll use it until/unless it becomes too much trouble. I would prefer the locks like were on our Four Wheel Camper. It had a standard RV style paddle lock and a home style deadbolt. Much more robust than the RV style locks. @jd1923 Have you considered having your white powder coated door lock re-powder coated in gray? You'd have to disassemble it for powder coating but it would be gray.

For those who have been there, how are the bugs in May? We're planning to attend the MOO 2 rally in Duluth mid-May. Thanks, Tony

I've used the personal Thermocells for several years without any issues but they are (probably) first generation models purchased when they first hit the market. Pre-quality fade? They still work after 12-13 years. I've also found Picaridin bug spray to work on repelling mosquitos. Perhaps not as effective as DEET but Picaridin doesn't dissolve your watch band, phone case or camera like DEET will. I also don't taste picaridin after application like I do DEET. Don't know how well it works on deer flies but it does OK with black flies.

I sympathize, I had a deer fly take a chunk out of my forehead 50 years ago and I still remember the pain. Any place in the campground (away from your Ollie) you could set up a fan and a blue tarp covered with the sticky stuff? A deer fly version of the mosquito zappers!. For Mosquitos, I've had good luck with Thermocells. Good luck!

@Patriot Thanks! Tony

This thread caused me to do a little googling on the 2 5/16' coupler. Didn't find any in a quick search, but that made me think of a question about future Olivers (and Oliver upgrades). Bulldog may or may not survive and 2 5/16' couplers are very scarce. What happens if Oliver runs out of the 2" couplers? Does anyone know of alternatives that fit an Oliver? @Patriot Is the small plastic bag in the photo above the coupler repair kit? Are the kits ball size dependent? Part #024200? Thanks. @Patriot and @Townesw We use a Paclock lock (similar to the Proven) and, with the lock in place, the bulldog collar may slide back (never tried) but the coupler arm doesn't open enough to remove the ball cavity insert. I was considering a more robust lever lock (Paclock keyed the same) but I do like the collar lock. I use an Abus 20/70 on our storage unit, does anyone know if they can be keyed to match an existing lock? Thanks, Tony

@Patriot, unfortunately we don't have the rear receiver on our Ollie so no bike rack. As I remember, Oliver wants >$1000 for the receiver mount. For that much money, I'd rather put racks on the TV. Tony

Don, @dhaig thanks for the post. I did read the whole thread and I remember you mentioning using clips to hold drying items on the bars but I must have missed the ring residue part. These new cups seem to attach pretty securely but they're very clean since they are new. Since they were only attached for a few minutes and left rings I was concerned that long term use might make the rings more permanent but I'll get some auto detailer to keep in the Ollie. During my thread reading last night I found a thread mentioning using a solvent to remove plasticizer from new plastic. I may try this on the cups. I set the suction cups on some of the pink rigid foam insulation in my shop and it stuck to the foam. I've used water on suction cups on the TV windshield (TPMS monitor, GPS) but not petroleum jelly because it's hard to reach the base of the windshield to clean off. Shouldn't be a problem on the side of the Ollie. I have also read @John E Davies thread on making an inside clothes line. I liked the idea but didn't want to drill more holes so I took your suction cup idea and applied it to the inside of the Ollie. Harbor Freight sells single suction cup lifters, so I bought two and use them on the ceiling or high on the walls for a drying line inside the Ollie. Must be different material since the single cups haven't left rings. Tony

Resurrecting this old thread from @dhaig with a question for those who used the Harbor Freight suction cup lifters (https://www.harborfreight.com/4-58-in-85-lb-dual-suction-cup-lifter-59689.html). I assembled this towel bar with the HF lifters. I tested it on the side of the Ollie for about 5 minutes, then removed it. The black suction cups left black rings on the gel-coat. The rings wiped off but I'm concerned. Has anyone else seen this? Thanks, Tony

Hello to the Ollie crossing the Knik River bridge on the Glenn Hwy. in Alaska. Our son passed you southbound about 15 minutes ago.

We just registered. FYI: The Oliver on-line registration doesn't accept arrival dates before the 21st. but we're arriving on 20 Oct.

Try Tire Discounters. When I added TPMS sensors I supplied steel stems from Summit Racing and Tire Discounters installed them and rebalanced the tires at no charge. Guess where I'll buy my next tires?

Bumping this @Galway Girlthread from almost a year ago. Various posts about loose wires in the Transfer Switch and EMS prompted me to check Hull 251. Luckily all the wire connections are securely attached. I tried to snug up all the connections, just-in-case, and was surprised when the main power switching board in the EMS moved. It is just laying on the circuit boards. Looks like another chore to add to the list.

Thanks @mountainoliver, that was the problem. My display is in the basement/trunk and I couldn't see the switch until I put a flashlight on it. My switch also is not recessed, it sticks out, so something must have bumped it on the road. Thanks again, Tony

All, I'm plugged into shore power and I think everything's working. I've looked at the EMS manual and found the error codes but didn't see how/where to turn the EMS on. Can someone tell me how to turn the EMS on? Thanks, Tony

@ScubaRx Great idea! I hadn't thought of a trophy shop. I'm anxious to see the results. Do you have or need the original artwork? If so, I think @topgun2 has it or I can send it to you if needed. Thanks, Tony

@topgun2 Yes, you sent me the files. I just can't find anyone to make one plaque at a reasonable price. Hopefully one of the other plaque-less owners has found someone. Tony

Reviving an old thread. Has anyone found a vendor of metal business cards that can produce the hull number plaques? I'm looking for a business card plaque as close to original as I can find. After several inquires, I've found one Etsy vendor who can make a not very close to original looking plaque. Has anyone had more success? Thanks, Tony

Probably depends on the weight of the new shade and amount of contact area but do you think rubber cement would work? Easy to apply, easy to remove and inexpensive.

Hopefully I'm posting in the appropriate thread and it has not already been posted here. Just saw this on Bloomberg via MSN: https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/ford-recalls-4-4-million-vehicles-on-trailer-controller-flaw/ar-AA1X88AR?ocid=hpmsn&cvid=69a1a8ea953d4482be96a7f27cdc157f&ei=145 Bloomberg (subscription required): https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-02-26/ford-recalls-4-4-million-pickups-suvs-on-lighting-system-flaw

We've installed a LevelMate Pro and it seems to work well. I ran into an issue when zeroing it out. Front to back wasn't a problem but our Ollie has a slight crown right to left. I tried to split the difference when calibrating the LevelMate Pro. @Ronbrink's post above about leveling his Norcold has me rethinking this. We had issues with a non-working furnace in another RV when the rig wasn't level. Don't want this to happen with the Ollie. We also have the 3-way Norcold. As @Ronbrink mentions, the top of the frig door should work for front to back. What about right to left? Are the internal shelves 'level' or do they slope in or out? Is there another place that would be better to use for level? Thanks, Tony

Doesn't @jd1923's post from Oct. 2024 solve two possible problems: preventing (or slowing down) theft and locking the tray in position?

Browsers may or may natively not open a text file. Sorry, it looks like I left out the step where you download the file to your device then change the suffix from .txt to .htm. When re-labeled as an .htm file, it will open in your browser. I'll add the .htm version as an attachment to the post. John E Davies -HOW TO threads and Tech articles LINKS.htm This should open directly in a browser. If it doesn't, please let me know. Tony