Adding another Oliver 22 to the West coast!!

[pickleballone]

Hello to all of you that also love to sample these incredible landscapes that we have!! My name is Dave Gibson and my wife is Mary. We live in Walla Walla, WA. We were tent campers for 30 yrs, moved up to an Aliner Expedition 8 yrs ago and just ordered an O 22 to be picked up in Hohenwald in May. We love to hike, mt bike, kayak and play pickleball. We are both recently retired and spend as much time on the road as possible each year.

 

We have been seriously looking at trailers (with a bathroom!!) for the past year. We attended 6 major RV shows, stopped and looked in most trailer parks that we passed, visited showrooms in Spokane, Portland, Seattle and Boise. Everything that we saw was flimsy, lacked character and was built without an eye for detail or longevity. In January of this year we went to the SoCal desert to visit some friends. They said that if we had never experienced the town of Quartzite, AZ in Jan & Feb that we were missing out on an annual gathering that could be likened to the Oklahoma Land Rush. Here again, we saw 100's of poorly constructed rolling homes. As we were pulling out of town, something round and gleaming white caught my eye. There side by side were 2 Oliver 22's. Larry and Betty Harmon gave us a tour of the units and told us the history of the company. We have sailed in the San Juan Islands (near Seattle) many times and the Oliver 22 instantly reminded us of a well built boat!! We fell in love with the product and the company....so we plunked down some cash and we are looking forward to spending lots of time in our new rolling shelter!

 

Any set up tips or hardware suggestions would be much appreciated.

 

Dave Gibson

[Flyrod]

Hi Dave and Mary,

My name is Bob Leighton and my wife is Charlotte. We call St. Helena in the Napa Valley our home. We too went down to Quartzite but specifically to see the Oliver. Not only did we like the trailer we enjoyed Larry and Betty. Our trailer is also on order now and scheduled to be done on May 13th. We are counting the days. Like you we have been long time tent campers. But at our age now it is time to get off the ground. And what a nice way to get off the ground this is going to be.

[SeaDawg]

Welcome to the oliver family. Hope you enjoy your new 22 as much as we have enjoyed our 17.

Sherry

[bugeyedriver]

Dave, Mary, Bob, Charlotte,

 

Welcome to the growing list of Ollie owners. These trailers are built to last a lifetime. After 74,000 miles on my "Wonder Egg", people still can't believe it's not a brand new trailer. You're going to have so much fun exploring this land in comfort and style. Enjoy!!

 

Pete

[Flyrod]

Thanks bugeyedriver! May we meet up on the road someday.

[pickleballone]

Hi Bob and Charlotte,

Congratulations on your new addition, as well!! It sounds like we'll both be back in Tennessee at the same time. We look forward to seeing you, touring the plant and meeting the folks that constructed our Ollies (as Pete would say).

 

My sister lived in Napa for 5 years in the 80's and we visited her on numerous occasions. Loved the hiking in the area and it's mild climate. World class vineyards and an easy drive to San Francisco, too.

 

Our little Toyota 4runner was wonderful to pull our 12' Aliner trailer around the country, but we just upgraded the towing rig to a Tundra truck. I hope it gives us as much trouble free service as the 4runner did.

 

Well, best move my feet instead of just my fingers...

 

Talk Soon,

Dave

[pickleballone]

Hi Pete,

What products do you use on your Ollie to keep it looking so good? Do you keep it indoors during the winter?

 

Dave

[SeaDawg]

Our Ollie sits outside all year, whether camping or languishing in its parking spot at home while waiting to go camping.

 

We use the same 3m ultra marine paste wax on the Ollie that we use on our boats, and we're very happy with the results. It's not cheap ($20 plus per small can), but we feel it's worth it. One of our boats is over thirty years old, the Ollie is over six years now, but all fiberglass hulls gleam with a twice a year clean and wax. I use the same wax inside, once a year, though not on the floors, for obvious slip/fall reasons.

 

The one small can usually will make it thru a season with two boats and the Oliver trailer. Worth the few extra dollars to us to use a product formulated for fiberglass gelcoat.

 

Sherry

[ScubaRx]

I would like to say hello to both Dave and Mary and to Bob and Charlotte. I am thrilled to have both couples on the New and Improved Oliver Forum. It's been so long since we had anyone new to join the forum and be active that it's hard to remember how much fun it used to be here.

 

My wife, Tali and I purchased one of the original 17 footers back in 2008 and dubbed her the Outlaw Oliver. We loved it and managed to put over 20000 miles on it despite both of us still working full time. In March of 2012, Robert called one Sunday afternoon and asked if we would be interested in a 22 footer. Well, the rest is history. We sold the Outlaw Oliver to a nice couple in Virginia this past summer and she was re-christened the Virginia Oliver. We should be picking up the new Outlaw Oliver in the next week or so. I know the excitement all of you are feeling.

 

Tell us about the things you selected for you new Olivers. We all love to hear what your getting.

[bugeyedriver]

Dave, over the six years I've owned Hull #14, several products have been used on The Wonder Egg. All have received good reviews on other fiberglass forums. Poli Glow, NuFinish, Meguaires, and now my go to favorite . . . Wait for it . . . Blue Magic Metal Polish Cream (go figure). It was recommended to me by a guy at Napa. Goes on easy, wipes off easy, and on the back it lists that it is safe for fiberglass.

 

The first three years, it stayed outside in central Texas. I parked it under the shade of some live oaks when they weren't spitting tree sap and stuff in the spring. The last three years, it has lived under an RV /camping equipment structure I had erected on my property. My daughter told me it wouldn't do much good 'cause I'm on the road so much. Hahahahaaaa

 

For general washing while on the road or between trips I use a Blue Coral Foaming Concentrate.

 

Before a trip, I spray the front with 303 Aerospace Protectant to help the dead bugs wipe off easier. I bought it at a local marine dealership. I think the most important thing is to stay ahead of any sun damage. Two times a year waxing would be recommended for a unit that is always exposed to the elements.

 

Have fun waxing your new baby!

[allenpamela]

Looks like our 17' Oliver will be located between two new 22' Oliver's. Nice to have more company on the West coast. Welcome! We are located in Crescent City, CA and unfortunately at this time have been unable to travel due to aging parents and aging non-traveling pets. We put up a very inexpensive carport from Ace Canopy which provides enough protection from the elements for our area. We keep it plugged in all the time and keep a little inexpensive dehumidifier in it year around. The first year we kept the refrigerator on all the time but we stopped doing that. Since we are unable to travel right now we turn on the stove and propane heater once a month, along with the refrigerator, check the batteries, and left it up and spin the tires to a new location. We haven't waxed it in a year because it hasn't been out but it still looks like new; spring wax job coming up.

 

Welcome again to the Oliver family.

 

Pam and Allen

[Flyrod]

It appears there is a very strong support team on this Forum. I will be grateful for that.

There are not too many options you can add to the Oliver but we did add the solar package with 4 batteries. Not sure I really needed it but Larry did such a fine job describing their function to us I decided to do the add on.

Really appreciate the advice on keeping the Oliver gleaming. Good point made not to let it go bad, difficult to recover. I think of what Airstream owners pay to keep theirs polished.

Can hardly wait for May and "Happy Trails" time. Christmas all over!

[bugeyedriver]

Larry's sage advice of good solar energy collection and plenty of energy storage will be oh, so helpful when you spend time camping in a national park, under a beautiful canopy of trees with dappled light hitting the top of your Oliver, needing to run the furnace at night when the temps drop down into the chilly zone. It will give you a lot of flexibility without needing to crank up the generator, which tends to break the silent and peaceful ambiance.

[SeaDawg]

Solar is silent, and oh so wonderful. We have thoroughly enjoyed the addition of the solar panels to our trailer that we did back in 2008.

On Pete's comment, I totally agree. A few years ago we camped for three days at Greenbelt National Park (no hookups) to attend the Solar Decathlon. We chose a campsite with sun part of the day to keep our batteries charged. Unfortunately, just up the hill and across the road from us was an RV with a really loud and smelly generator, which they ran every single day from about 5 till dark. I was really glad when they moved on, as the noise and exhaust traveled our way throughout happy hour and dinner.

We still carry a Honda 1000, which is very quiet and recharges the batteries if we experience rainy or cloudy days, or can't get a campsite with enough sun. We have camped as long as 60 days without ever having to break it out, however. We're usually pretty miserly when it comes to power consumption.

Hope you enjoy your new Oliver, and your solar powered adventures.

Sherry

[ScubaRx]

Since we are unable to travel right now we turn on the stove and propane heater once a month, along with the refrigerator, check the batteries, and left it up and spin the tires to a new location.

 

Pam and Allen

 

 

During the off-season for us, I have always lifted the trailer completely off the tires (with the jacks) and left it that way until we were ready to use it again. It will not hurt the jacks and we don't create a "flat spot" on our tires over the winter.

[allenpamela]

We had thought about jacking it up so the tires were off the ground but were afraid it would hurt the jacks. I'm glad to hear that it how you store yours and won't be afraid to try it now. Thanks, Pam

[ScubaRx]

I am basing that on the fact that the front jack is always supporting weight when it is down and it is the same jack as the other two albeit configured differently. If you wanted to take the stress off the jacks, put a jack stand at each jack and lower the trailer onto them. Viola, no weight on tires or jacks. Anyway, that's how I've done it for a long time. It's good to hear from you guys.

[SeaDawg]

I've read lots of advice on jack or no jack, lack of likelihood of flat spots in modern radial tires... On many forums, it's a topic almost as popular as which tow vehicle, or which tires..... Several schools of thought out there.

We use our side jacks as stabilizers during storage. Meaning, we don't take the entire weight of the trailer off the tires, but use the jacks to take some pressure off the tires, and keep the trailer level side-to-side. We cover the tires with fabric covers from a discount store to help keep the sun off. The trailer doesn't sit all year, but it does usually spend five or six months in the spot by the garage without moving.

Admittedly, it would be harder to notice a flat spot in a trailer, since no one rides in it, than in a car, but we've not noticed a problem. From what I've read, keeping your tires properly inflated at all times, especially during storage, can make a difference.

Trailer tires, unfortunately, tend to expire from time, rather than wear, for many of us. We did manage to "wear out" the first set, but I doubt that will happen with the new set. We haven't made any really long trips for the last few years, sadly.

Sherry

[bugeyedriver]

Steve, I understand the concept of equating the tongue jack use to the rear jacks, since they are the same product. But with the way the trailer's weight is distributed I think the rear ones would have too much of a load for full time wheel off the ground use. The reason I think this is that the tongue weight on my 17' unit is about 360 pounds. This would require the other two ground points to support the rest of the entire weight of the trailer. While I know the rear stabilizers can get the wheels off the ground to help with changing a flat tire I'm not quite sure they would be up to the long term stress of full time wheel up support. What do you think?

 

My foggy brain seems to recall an thread on this topic in the old forum where BuffaloBob may have said the rear stabilizers were not intended to be used that way. I think it was in reply to a user who had developed a problem with a rear jack.

 

Yo BuffaloBob! Do you recall that far back?

[scooter1963]

Dave and Mary Gibson. My name is Scott and I live in Richland, Wa and am a recent owner of a 22' Oliver! I plan to get out on our first voyage the 19th of June. It has been an eye opening experience to begin RV ownership as numerous items have needed to be purchased and my understanding of the unit is limited at this time.

 

Just a shout out from here and a surprise to understand another Oliver owner is so close. I to did much research and found Oliver to be far beyond other trailers quality. I traveled to Eugene Oregon and turned down purchase of an Airstream 19' trailer prior to knowing about Oliver. Half again as expensive, but I know it will last for our retirement which is still 10-12 years out.

 

Very cool. Contact if you get over to the Tri-Cities and we can swap notes... Scott Call

[allenpamela]

I was delighted to see that you have joined the Oliver family, Scott, and decided on the 22' Oliver. They are by far a superior trailer to many on the market. Enjoy many happy trips with your Oliver!

 

Pam