Gravel roads & protecting the front of the Oliver

[dstr8]

Starting to shop for a trailer and discovered the Oliver difference! I have a couple initial questions related to how we use our trailers.

 

Anyone here towing their Oliver on gravel roads?

 

I don't see a factory option to protect the front of the trailer from gravel/grit spray from the tow vehicle: Is there a solution?

 

Thanks,

 

Dan

[ScubaRx]

There is not a factory option for this. I have entertained the idea of Line-X on the front. We are retiring soon and will be traveling much more. I've put about 30,000 miles on the two Olivers we've owned and have never found a great need for protection. But, we've not traveled extensively on non-paved roads.

 

One former owner used a guard on the back of the tow to catch debris thrown up. If I do something, it most likely will be spraying the front with Line-X.

[marsharini]

We're planning a trip to Alaska one month after we pick up, so this topic is of interest to us. We just ordered mud flaps/splash guards for our truck; hopefully that will help.

 

We do travel quite extensively on gravel roads so we have some dings in the gel coat on our Casita, but nothing you would notice unless you were washing/waxing. Kinda like your car/truck.

[bugeyedriver]

I use RockTamers

They do a good job at preventing strikes from debris my Tacoma might kick up on gravel roads. I do, however, see a few dings on the street side that are likely from passing vehicles. Overall I'm happy with their performance.

[dstr8]

The Rocktamer style of mudflaps seem to capture/divert about 75% of the gravel road spray from getting to trailers in tow. Coating the front of the Oliver with matching color bedliner would probably be, in combination with the Rocktamer flaps, the best for containing any pitting damage.

 

I've owned a couple off-road trailers and towed them extensively over gravel and dirt trails. The Kimberely Kamper, the last trailer we owned, had a fiberglass nose box that featured, from the factory, a bedliner coating that effectively protected the leading edge of same.

 

Just curious to hear from those that have pulled their Oliver trailers over gravel roads...for more than a few miles.

 

Thank you to all for your replies so far!

 

Dan

[SeaDawg]

Camping in the mountains on a regular basis, and also two very long trips in Canada, we've done quite a few gravel roads. I'm sure you also drive slow on the gravel, but still, chips can happen.

We picked up a thick coat of red clay, and a few small chips in the gelcoat, on one long stretch in Canada, even with the RockTamers.

I don't really care for the idea of bedliner on my trailer, though. I think if we were planning on heavy gravel road travel (like the Denali highway?), I'd look at a removable heavy film used on vehicles and boats for protection while being transported, or possibly applying the new 3M product, 3M9000 Paint Defender.

Paint Defender is a spray-on, removable clear plastic shield for the automotive world. I don't know if it's recommended for fiberglass gelcoat, so a call or email to the manufacturer would be in order. It's applied over a coat of special wax to aid in removal.http://3mauto.com/paint-defender-spray-film.html

Anyone ever tried it?

Sherry

[routlaw]

Sherry you can get bed liner material applied in white. Saw an Escape trailer like this once and it didn't look too bad. The 3M product by be just as effective though and apparently removable.

[marsharini]

Sherry - after you posted the information about the 3M product we decided to look into it for our trip to Alaska. We contacted 3M and were told it wasn't recommended for use on fiberglass, but rather auto paint finishes.

 

We're currently looking for alternatives.

 

Marsha

[SeaDawg]

Thanks for that information. I'll keep looking, too.

Sherry

[John E Davies]

I've used Rock Tamers while towing my little utility trailer and they are certainly a solid first line of defense, but they let an awful lot of debris past them, and they can drag on the road surface if you hit a dip, and that will kick up a huge rooster tail for a moment. Depending on your tire tread, you might significantly reduce thrown rocks by trying mud tire with large voids. They don't grab and release stones the way All Terrain and street tires do.

 

The very best solution isn't sold in the USA and I don't know if they will ship here. I intend to email and ask.

 

The material protects not only the front of the trailer cabin, but the entire A-frame and everything attached to it. It also keeps road muck like tar off the trailer, including the sides. It is tested and proven in the Outback. I think you could make a clone from the pictures if they won't ship here or it costs too much. At Australian $600 shipped within that country, it is a major investment.

 

Considering the cost of the Oliver and its beauty, I think it would be a great piece of equipment.

 

http://www.stonestomper.com.au

 

I travel a lot of unpaved roads. Places like southern Idaho offer choices such as, take paved county roads and make a huge detour, 225 miles and five hrs driving, or take the direct route via gravel, 125 miles and as fast as you dare. I travel 50 mph on smooth straight gravel towing my little trailer. I know I can't drive like a maniac with an Ollie in tow, but I sure am not going to drive 25.... I would never get anywhere.

 

EDIT: I just checked the exchange rate and the Australian dollar is quite low now - US$0.70. So the cost of the guard is US$420 in Australia. I dunno how much shipping would cost to get one here....

 

John Davies

Spokane WA USA

[bugeyedriver]

John,

 

Something like that would be fantastic. I'd give up my Rock Tamers in a heartbeat for one of those. There is a similar product here in the US used to protect a towed vehicle behind motor homes. I wonder if it could be modified to go under the A-Frame.

 

Pete

[marsharini]

Camping in the mountains on a regular basis, and also two very long trips in Canada, we've done quite a few gravel roads. I'm sure you also drive slow on the gravel, but still, chips can happen.

We picked up a thick coat of red clay, and a few small chips in the gelcoat, on one long stretch in Canada, even with the RockTamers.

I don't really care for the idea of bedliner on my trailer, though. I think if we were planning on heavy gravel road travel (like the Denali highway?), I'd look at a removable heavy film used on vehicles and boats for protection while being transported, or possibly applying the new 3M product, 3M9000 Paint Defender.

Paint Defender is a spray-on, removable clear plastic shield for the automotive world. I don't know if it's recommended for fiberglass gelcoat, so a call or email to the manufacturer would be in order. It's applied over a coat of special wax to aid in removal.

http://3mauto.com/paint-defender-spray-film.html

Anyone ever tried it?

Sherry

 

 

I revisited this topic a few months after this post by sending an email to 3M. The first contact, when I was told it could not be used on fiberglass, was by phone.

 

Here was the email response I received:

 

[John E Davies]

In regards to the 3M film, read these reviews then forget about this product. It is just too easy to screw up the application.

 

http://www.amazon.com/3M-90000-Paint-Defender-Spray/product-reviews/B00BSKYM82/ref=cm_cr_pr_hist_1?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=0&sortBy=recent&filterByStar=one_star&pageNumber=1#R1M2JCO0EEHPKK

 

I notice that Amazon says it is Currently Unavailable and it no longer appears on the 3M website. I wonder why?

 

Regular 3M films are wonderful for cars but very expensive and hard for an owner to apply correctly. Pro shops can do it right. I think that they would be problematic on a trailer since they are continually bombarded by road debris. The film is just not intended for that kind of continuous attack.

 

A thick truck bedliner job would work better, but I still believe that stopping the gravel from ever reaching the trailer is the ideal solution.

 

John Davies

Spokane WA USA

[Overland]

John,

 

Something like that would be fantastic. I'd give up my Rock Tamers in a heartbeat for one of those. There is a similar product here in the US used to protect a towed vehicle behind motor homes. I wonder if it could be modified to go under the A-Frame.

 

 

Pete

Seems like you could just flip it over and attach the rear attachment bolts somewhere on the bottom of the frame. The only issue I could see is that it looks a bit small. Someone lists the dimensions on Amazon as 73" wide by 35" deep. Might work.

[Overland]

What about something like Xpel - http://www.xpel.com

[John E Davies]

John,

Something like that would be fantastic. I'd give up my Rock Tamers in a heartbeat for one of those.

Pete

Check your Private Messages please.

 

John

[SeaDawg]

I wonder if this one from Roadmaster would fit? It might be worth a call...

 

[SeaDawg]

or something like this?

http://www.pplmotorhomes.com/parts/towing/accessories/rock-guards/kargard-rock-deflector.htm

 

Or, maybe a group of us need to go on Shark Tank with the idea... made specifically for travel trailers

[John E Davies]

I found out that Stone Stomper will ship a gravel shield to the USA for about US$580. Bugeyedriver has told me by PM that he will be ordering one, so I will leave it to Pete to give us the Full Monty about the Stone Stomper.

 

John Davies

Spokane WA

[John E Davies]

or something like this?

http://www.pplmotorhomes.com/parts/towing/accessories/rock-guards/kargard-rock-deflector.htm

 

Or, maybe a group of us need to go on Shark Tank with the idea... made specifically for travel trailers

 

That guard is a poor design. Any vertical wall will send rocks zinging straight back at the tow vehicle, risking a broken rear glass. Snowmobile trailers, and offroad campers in OZ use angled deflectors that send the stones down and to the side.

 

BTW, those of you with Rock Tamers. ... They are supposed to be adjusted so that they fly at an angle to the road, say 30 to 45 degrees, NOT straight down. The idea is that rocks hit the rubber flap and shoot downward. If the flaps are vertical, the rocks bounce back onto the tow vehicle. The 2 inch gap between the bars and bumper is where they come through. I built barrier strips to help seal those gaps, but the rocks still get everywhere during a long trip on gravel.

 

This is how they should look at rest, not vertical like in all the ads.

 

 

They are also too long, those will drag in dips or ruts and kick up huge amounts of debris. They should have at least four or five inches of road clearance.

 

I wish Oliver would offer a fabric guard as an option.

 

John Davies

Spokane WA

.

[bugeyedriver]

Here is another, less expensive option. It is built to protect 8' wide trailers. Perhaps a minor modification would make it suitable for us. Elite II owners may even choose to it as is . . . What do you think?

 

http://protectatow.tripod.com/trailers.htm

[SeaDawg]

Pete, that looks like a great find.

Have you emailed them?

Sherry

[topgun2]

I agree - anyone interested in a group order?

 

Bill

[bugeyedriver]

E-mail sent. Asked if they could be narrowed and about group discount. Will let you know.

[SeaDawg]

Interesting item you posted on the RockTamers, John. I did find that info on the Australian RockTamer website. Haven't seen it in any of the installation material and vids on the US version, but I could have missed it. Here's the AU link: http://rvtowingsolutions.com.au/faq

I see that the OZ version also has an optional mesh guard for between the flaps. I haven't seen that here, either.

 

We loved camping in Australia (both times), and look forward to more adventures there. A very interesting array of campervans, caravans, tents, and totally amazing fold-out tent/trailer combos. The Australians love to camp, and are quite ingenious in their gear.

 

Sherry