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Old 04-20-2013, 03:36 PM   #21
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I love the Wayback Machine. I still use it when folks here as questions and Google search doesn't help me as much as I wish it would. Have you checked out the Wayback Machine for FiberglassRV. What a hoot! Unfortunately we still can't grab pictures that were lost in the hack...sigh.
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Old 04-20-2013, 03:52 PM   #22
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Ah, maybe, he has heard about the 21' Escape coming out and wanted to get something up on the net? That is what I would do. Well, business is business. I realize the price will be steep but the unit is so elegant looking or can be with the right touches so would appeal to many that could probably afford it and maybe were wanting a bigger unit and looking toward the Escape 21'. Competition between the fiberglass units seems to be on the horizon with so many looking to downsize or just get out there with something not so overwhelmingly big. I am also waiting to see the American Boler introduced. Choices are good because seriously when I look at all the photos of all the shapes and sizes of the older units and look at what is available from the manufacturers now, it is depressing.
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Old 04-20-2013, 06:29 PM   #23
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Spent most of today with Jim Oliver and Robert Partee as they came and inspected my Escape 21 and picked my brain over various improvements that can be made to both the Escape and Oliver. Robert knew I had owned previous trailers and was interested in why I chose the Escape. We then went over to both the 17 and 22 foot Olivers to see where they can make improvements. Mr. Oliver seems interested in making a scaled down version. It seemed that in prior years while trying to meet customer's demands on customizing that caused production over runs. Now, like Escape all choices will be done prior to production or during as long as it does not change the completion date.
They seemed interested in putting the Oliver on a diet and shed some weight.They liked the idea of tankless w/h and electric built in heat, perhaps via in the floor. The 22' has ducts for heat and the furnace is beyond hearing. The walls are double with the tanks inside and heated. The current 17' is at least 4,000 and the 22 is in the 5,000 weight class
All Olivers have springs and dual shocks and hydraulic levelers as well as solar, satellite, power cord reels. All are LED's and the 22's do not have a rear window. The Oliver is only 6'6 wide and more rounded and aerodynamic than Escape which has windows in front and rear necessitating a flatter front area.
More info and pictures to follow, going over to have some ribs with the Olivers.
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Old 04-20-2013, 06:32 PM   #24
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Hoot hoot.
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Old 04-20-2013, 06:34 PM   #25
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Jim and Evon Oliver are nice people. I met them when they came to the Oregon Gathering (pulling an Oliver) a number of years ago. I wish them well.

Competition between the all molded manufacturers is good for ALL buyers.
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Old 04-20-2013, 08:30 PM   #26
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Originally Posted by cpaharley2008 View Post
All Olivers have springs and dual shocks and hydraulic levelers
All trailers have springs - I believe that this is intended to mean leaf springs (in a common leaf spring / beam axle configuration).

In the original 17' Oliver, the clever leveling jacks behind each axle (visible in the underside photo of the "first 22' Oliver" photos linked earlier) is a mechanical screw jack, run by an electric motor, not a hydraulic jack. It is a power tongue jack. Nothing wrong with not being hydraulic (personally, I think avoiding hydraulics is good) - just different. They could have gone hydraulic now, but the smallest hydraulic levelling systems are probably too big to make sense on even the 22'. A better system would be single-leg screw jacks (with motors), which would stabilize laterally as well as lifting.

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The Oliver is only 6'6 wide and more rounded and aerodynamic than Escape which has windows in front and rear necessitating a flatter front area.
The rounder front corners will be better, but the rounder rear corners will be worse. It's anyone's guess which has less drag, and it appears that no one actually tests, so we'll probably never know.
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Old 04-20-2013, 09:50 PM   #27
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It's anyone's guess which has less drag, and it appears that no one actually tests, so we'll probably never know.
The Oliver and the new Escape are approximately the same height, but with about a foot (10") less width and a more rounded cross-section, the Oliver will present about 10-15% less frontal area so should be an easier tow (from a wind resistance perspective) than the Escape. But...that's only a guesstimate. It will be interesting to hear real world reports when this new Oliver and the new Escape come to fruition. It's nice to see Oliver coming back!
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Old 04-20-2013, 11:36 PM   #28
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The Oliver and the new Escape are approximately the same height, but with about a foot (10") less width...
... the Oliver will present about 10-15% less frontal area so should be an easier tow (from a wind resistance perspective) than the Escape.
Good point - just based on frontal area, the Oliver is likely to have less drag. The shape, and therefore coefficient of drag, on the other hand... anyone's guess.
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Old 04-21-2013, 06:18 PM   #29
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Hey Donna D.,
Buffalobob here AKA Robert Partee. Just got back from the egg rally in Townsend Tn at the foot of the smokey mountains.
Met and toured through many of the great fiberglass trailer brands and their owners. First rally I have been to and hope to be hitting at least one rally every other month to meet and make more acquaintances and friends over the next couple of years.
It is a lot of hard work and personnel sacrifice to spend all that time going from state to state, seeing the country, staying in beautiful national and state parks, private campgrounds and all these rally's eating great food and enjoying the outdoors but, I am a dedicated employee and will do whats necessary. lol

Many good questions above and I will address them in more detail soon as I get caught up.
Briefly, the Oliver is a 100% composite dual shell (top and bottom inside shell and a top and bottom outside shell) camper with NO wood or degradable products used in the inner or outer shells. All the tanks and plumbing are encapsulated between these 2 shells.

What rally's are you going to be at? I am hoping to make the "Blue Bonnet" this year.
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Old 04-21-2013, 06:43 PM   #30
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Looks like the Caddy of fiberglass. While I'm more of a VW man, it's fun to see the innovation. What I don't get is why trailer manufacturers (Escape, Casita, and apparently Oliver) don't offer windows that you can leave open in the rain. Raz
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Old 04-21-2013, 06:53 PM   #31
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Hello P. Raz,
I would love to hear/see what you have in windows for the rain. Do you mean while going down the road or parked and camping? Always looking for the latest designs to see what the people want.

Robert
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Old 04-21-2013, 07:05 PM   #32
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A vote here for (I think it was named) the Oliver sport. I can't remember if it ever made it to production or not but it was going to be the entry level price point in the 17 footer.

No wood floor is a huge selling point IMHO
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Old 04-21-2013, 08:02 PM   #33
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I would love to hear/see what you have in windows for the rain. Do you mean while going down the road or parked and camping?
Although there are deflectors for use with sliding windows while moving, this sort of request is usually a reference to jalousie windows, which were used on many moulded fiberglass travel trailers - but especially Trilliums - decades ago. They are in panels hinged at the top, and opening out so that they can be open in the rain... while stationary.

Raz can correct my assumption or clarify as appropriate...
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Old 04-21-2013, 08:08 PM   #34
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What rally's are you going to be at? I am hoping to make the "Blue Bonnet" this year.
Hey Robert! I'm going to 5-6 gatherings here in the Pacific NorthWET this year. If you go to the Rally section and use the state pull-down, I'll be at all the ones in Oregon and Washington

If you're planning on attending the 2013 Texas Bluebonnet Rally ... you better beat feet for Texas. It's starts on Wednesday, April 24!!!

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Old 04-21-2013, 08:48 PM   #35
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Jalousie windows are great in the rain but horrible in the winter, too much air leaks and they are also less secure. I doubt you can get thermal packages also. One of the best windows I have experienced and they are also dual paned, are the Dometic acrylic European style windows. Awning style for rain use, no air leaks, secure and double panes. They also come with the integral sun and night shades and screens.
I had them on the T@da and the Lance 1575.
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Old 04-21-2013, 10:02 PM   #36
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Quote:
Originally Posted by P. Raz View Post
Looks like the Caddy of fiberglass. While I'm more of a VW man, it's fun to see the innovation. What I don't get is why trailer manufacturers (Escape, Casita, and apparently Oliver) don't offer windows that you can leave open in the rain. Raz
On the way to the rally in Townsend this past weekend, we slept in a downpour with 40 mph straight line winds with all our windows open and didn't get a drop in the coach.

We have the MaxxAir louvers on our sliding side windows. The rear window is just the standard swing out kind found on virtually every FGRV out there.

Airxcel | Maxxair | Window/Maxx
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Old 04-21-2013, 10:53 PM   #37
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In regards windows....

Both Hehr and Kinro (and probably many more) make a frameless semi-jalousie window where part of the pane assembly hinges out jalousie style. This may be the best of both worlds and retains the security of the jalousie windows (too small to crawl through).

Many of the van conversions have a flush mount window in which the whole pane hinges out like the euro windows. If I remember correctly, Oliver had their own form of integrated shade which I believe they sourced from a Montreal company (I think). They seemed very classy to me!
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Old 04-22-2013, 03:00 AM   #38
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Although there are deflectors for use with sliding windows while moving, this sort of request is usually a reference to jalousie windows, which were used on many moulded fiberglass travel trailers - but especially Trilliums - decades ago. They are in panels hinged at the top, and opening out so that they can be open in the rain... while stationary.

Jalousie or awning windows. I'm not fussy. On a hot night when boon docking it's nice to be able to leave the window open without getting wet.


Quote:
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Jalousie windows are great in the rain but horrible in the winter, too much air leaks and they are also less secure. I doubt you can get thermal packages also.
Hey Jim, it's 27* here this morning and I just fired up the wood stove. I think you need to move north. Raz
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Old 04-22-2013, 05:38 AM   #39
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Glad to hear about Oliver coming back. Wife and I are looking at the Escape 21 and Will now look at the Oliver 22. But yes, I would like it a bit lighter than the past versions. Our big thing is a queen bed front to back, better floor space, Front storage box or other storage options, insulation, heated tanks, and opportunities to customize during the build.

Looking forward to the updates!

Don and Brenda
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Old 04-22-2013, 07:56 AM   #40
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Here are some pictures of the 2x17's and 2x22' Olivers in attendance @ Tennessee Rally this past weekend. Notice they do not have a front window as they are similar to the Casita with front bath/closet set up. The frame is all aluminum and the one model option had storage drawers underneath the frame. This will add about 500 lbs to your weight. The Olivers are a lot heavier than other fiberglass trailers but they can be "put on a diet" said Jim Oliver. The standard aluminum frame can be extended/retracted to (1) help stabilize/distribute the weight and (2) those with trucks/SUVs rear closing doors/tail gates can be opened. No jacks needed as there is a power stabilizer on each rear and front for leveling and the entire trailer can be raised in the air off the ground to change the tire.
All models here have twin bed aisle set ups, but the website shows single large bed in rear.
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