Video on Oliver trailers and why they are what they are - Fiberglass RV
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Old 05-29-2019, 06:37 AM   #1
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Video on Oliver trailers and why they are what they are

Oliver plant tour,

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Old 05-29-2019, 07:39 AM   #2
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Wanted to watch, but 1:30 long. I don't even watch TV that long.
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Old 05-29-2019, 08:06 AM   #3
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Excellent trailer, no doubt. My #1 complaint, they need more AND larger windows. My Trillium 1300 has more windows in it.
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Old 05-31-2019, 06:54 AM   #4
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Here is a faster video on the Jayco, it's pretty short, pretty much like the trailers life span. The Oliver takes 3 months to build and the Jayco 7 hours, there much be some difference somewhere.

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Old 05-31-2019, 08:53 AM   #5
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Here is a faster video on the Jayco, it's pretty short, pretty much like the trailers life span. The Oliver takes 3 months to build and the Jayco 7 hours, there much be some difference somewhere.

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As a guy that works in construction(residential) I see them cutting so many corners and rushing waaaay too much. I know they’re one a production line but at least give the guys a mask while they handle the fiberglass insulation. I’m guessing this might be an old video before OSHA got involved
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Old 05-31-2019, 09:02 AM   #6
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That video was circulating around here a few months back. Not sure of the production date, but yeah it's scary to watch them work. Not so much for the quality, which is clearly crap, but the safety of the workers.
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Old 05-31-2019, 09:13 AM   #7
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That video was circulating around here a few months back. Not sure of the production date, but yeah it's scary to watch them work. Not so much for the quality, which is clearly crap, but the safety of the workers.
The worker safety doesn’t seem to be a big concearn from what this video shows. Just huge panels sliding by and trailer frames being flipped uncontrolled seems very unsafe. This is a promo video I assume so you’d think they can at least try to make it look like they care in the video.
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Old 05-31-2019, 10:37 AM   #8
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That's the craziest thing about it. How they expected this video to be a selling point! Wonder how they feel about it making the rounds on youtube with the title "pure junk" attached to it.

Same guy a few years older. Looks like they're employing some Amish folk now?

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Old 05-31-2019, 11:43 AM   #9
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In (perhaps misguided...) defense of Jayco, that 7 hour build time is really just final assembly. Many components- cabinetry, wall modules, roof trusses...- are prefabricated in separate workspaces, so many more people are involved, doing separate tasks at the same time.

Might more useful to compare total man-hours per trailer.

Time is not the only variable affecting overall build quality. Accuracy and quality of materials matter, too.
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Old 06-02-2019, 08:32 PM   #10
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Interesting video, despite the length (I skipped through a fair bit.. ). That's one stout frame. Glad to see they use a sacrificial anode as well.

I'm a big fan of the nice neat premade wiring harness. Some of the wiring jobs I've seen in travel trailers is atrocious. Wires strewn all over, crimps wherever they happened to hit the end of a spool, etc. Much easier to avoid mistakes with the harness, too.

I'm a bit disappointed to see that they use radiant barriers rather than something like EPS for the insulation between layers. Looks like it's a closed-cell foam rather than the bubble wrap, which helps a little. Plus it actually does have a small airgap, so the radiant barrier's not totally useless. Still that means the R-16 rating listed in their FAQ is fiction and the reality's probably somewhere in the R-4 to R-6 range.
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Old 06-03-2019, 06:19 AM   #11
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Interesting video, despite the length (I skipped through a fair bit.. ). That's one stout frame. Glad to see they use a sacrificial anode as well.

I'm a big fan of the nice neat premade wiring harness. Some of the wiring jobs I've seen in travel trailers is atrocious. Wires strewn all over, crimps wherever they happened to hit the end of a spool, etc. Much easier to avoid mistakes with the harness, too.

I'm a bit disappointed to see that they use radiant barriers rather than something like EPS for the insulation between layers. Looks like it's a closed-cell foam rather than the bubble wrap, which helps a little. Plus it actually does have a small airgap, so the radiant barrier's not totally useless. Still that means the R-16 rating listed in their FAQ is fiction and the reality's probably somewhere in the R-4 to R-6 range.
One nice thing about the Oliver wiring harness is they make only one harness and it will have all the connections for any accessories that they install, thus any accessory can be added later, you may have to cut a hole, or drill holes, but it will just plugs into the original harness. It's hard to fault there insulation as the trailer it is rated to -20 degrees below O, I hope to never see that when camping.

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Old 06-05-2019, 11:19 AM   #12
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I know one Oliver owner. He LOVES his "egg". Oliver is renowned for their Customer Service too (as well as their build quality). They are truly a high-end boutique RV manufacturer and don't "cut corners". The Oliver brothers are avid campers and, I understand that each brother started with his own Casita travel trailer. The brothers wanted features that Casita didn't and wouldn't offer so, they decided to built their own "eggs" with "eggsactly" what they wanted. One of these years, I will make it to the Oliver Rally. I'd really LOVE to tour the Oliver facility. Oliver trailers cost more but, this is a case where you DO get what you pay for.
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Old 06-05-2019, 07:23 PM   #13
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The Oliver brothers are avid campers and, I understand that each brother started with his own Casita travel trailer. The brothers wanted features that Casita didn't and wouldn't offer so, they decided to built their own "eggs" with "eggsactly" what they wanted.

That sums up the origin story as I heard it during my recent factory tour.


On my maiden voyage across country from TN to CA. Heading for Grand Canyon and UT soon. Oliver has been flawless for several weeks. I'm probably still in the honeymoon but so far I'm very happy with mine.
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Old 06-11-2019, 11:18 PM   #14
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Ollies

WE did the tour of the factory..80 miles from us--in late 2017. The 21 was our favorite, but I just could not see spending what ended up being about $80K+ another 20K on a bigger tow truck...on a really fine 4-season trailer when we are 3 season campers. (WE go to FL in the winter) We decided the Casita Independence Dlx 17' was all the two of us needed and after a year with it, we still feel that way. If I was independently wealthy, instead of retired on a basically fixed income, we probably wd have a 21' Ollie
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Old 06-12-2019, 07:40 AM   #15
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Debbie and I went on an Oliver factory tour during May 2016. The factory tour was impressive. Later that day we drove to MO to see a couple's used 2015 LE2 for sale. Camped on the couple's farm in MO and tested all of Ollie's systems, they had full hookups. Purchased Ollie the next morning for a fair price and towed Ollie back to North Carolina.

We enjoy camping in Ollie with our next long trip planned to eastern CA.

We're very happy to join the Fiberglass camper family and look forward to attending Fiberglass gatherings!
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Old 06-12-2019, 09:01 AM   #16
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Originally Posted by thrifty bill View Post
Excellent trailer, no doubt. My #1 complaint, they need more AND larger windows. My Trillium 1300 has more windows in it.
In order for that to happen the upper cabinets, and the inner upper shell would have to be changed, or the belt line lowered, or the body curves flattened out and the trailer made much more square, or the pantry removed, or a big window placed in the bathroom that would be subject to rock damage. None of those things are as practical as they might seem. All windows are double pane sliders that seal very well and insulate, and the upper cabinets offer a lot of storage.
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Old 06-12-2019, 09:11 AM   #17
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Most trailers have pretty small windows. I love my big windows but they are a disadvantage for heat/cooling loss and theft. But it is one thing I always notice about pretty much all new trailers, fiberglass and otherwise. Tiny little windows, and not many of them.
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Old 06-12-2019, 11:42 AM   #18
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I too am one who loves to have lots of window area in my trailer. Adds natural light and good views. In Escapes there is still storage cabinets above most all the windows.

I guess we all have our preferences.
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Old 06-12-2019, 01:17 PM   #19
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Would absolutely love to have an Ollie, but would have to sell house first to afford the mortgage on it!
Have been seriously researching current RV production methods after our first 'big' camper after many years of popup campers. That was a sticks and staples made 21' which rotted to pieces from MANY leaks. No more of that type for us.
After all this searching, I'm personally convinced that a Casita 17' Independence Deluxe with the 'twin beds' is my choice, because even with that 'new' aluminum framed, vacuum bonded wall construction, you still have the same old companies (Jayco, etc) with the same old standards to deal with.
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Old 06-12-2019, 02:07 PM   #20
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There are two main reasons why people like Olivers. One is the build quality and factory support, the camaraderie of fellow owners. The other is the usefulness of the design and promise of a very long lasting and efficient trailer.

There are very sound reasons for believing they will be around for generations. I've had several junk stickies and the difference is so vast that it's hardly worth mentioning.

The second point about usefulness for a particular individual is subjective. Some find parts of Oliver's design to be bad simply based on personal preferences of appearance, or layout, but not based on whether it can do it's job.

I've never had such a nice little cabin to duck into in a rain storm, or gaze out from on a mountain night, or had one that would follow my truck perfectly for hours as we rolled along across the country. We stop whenever the mood strikes us and find ourselves perfectly comfy.

But having said all of that, I just put down a deposit on a new Black Series HQ19 that is designed to go into the outback and survive the roughest of terrains, while being a fine little luxury apartment inside. It will be the desert runner, the dry wash crosser, the longer term boondocker, and take us a step further toward making any length of trip we choose, in the worst of terrains.

So, our beloved Ollie will soon be someone else's little cabin and companion on many upcoming adventures. We've already started getting it ready to go. I'll always be an advocate for Oliver. I expect we'll even attend the next rally! None of this has anything to do with Oliver being a poor design. Not at all! We just want something for more extreme conditions involving many miles of off-road use. The Black Series also has an outdoor kitchen that Liye went crazy over. She prepares a lot of dishes to share and it will suit her perfectly.

I love my Oliver, but it is not designed to go off road, or explore Jeep trails, in the vast western desert.
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