BCM Community

With the advance of technology one thing disappeared (well a lot of things disappeared) but there is this one thing in particular and that was the little bell that dinged every time a gallon of fuel went into the tank.  I kind of miss that.  But then again, I am an old coot, and I miss a lot of things.  It makes me think of that movie, "It's A Wonderful Life" where Jimmy Stewart's tells his little girl, "every time a bell rings an Angel gets his wings."

Now days when I stand there next to my pig iron pony and I watch a gallon go down the chute, I think of that, in my mind I hear the little bell and I think to myself .... "Another Oil Executive just died."


Most of the noise on the boards here lately seems to be about the diesel situation, as usual, everyone is up in arms, desperately seeking a solution to the fuel issue.  Bus Boards are an interesting haunt on a slow day, every conceivable idea or thought in the world can often be found there.  But the bottom line is ... Aint much you can do about it.  My Daddy used to refer to this as "Tilting At Windmills" or in other words, "deal with it."  


Several people have inquired of me, "What does your bus do on fuel (MPG)?"  I just kind of shrug it off.  Why bother to talk about it or figure it, doesn't change anything, you still have to pay them to fill up.  Regardless of what it costs.  

Which brings us to Bio-Fuel ...  Which is a good deal "locally" but I don't do a lot of bus traveling locally.  I like the road.  My hat is off to those resourceful folks who know how to refine it and all that, good for you.  But it isn't going to work for me.  Some of it is pretty off the wall ... I like this "stop along the way and ask restaurants for their used waste oil" so that you can make this magic elixir that is going to get you down the road dirt cheap.

The last thing, the absolute very last thing I want to do on a trip, is cook up some witches brew out of a fifty gallon drum to get me down the road less than 300 miles.  Okies already have a bad reputation, no sense in expanding on that by begging for french-fry residue at a fast food joint.  Fuel might be high, but I certainly do not have the discretionary income available "to hire a tanker to go along with me" on a trip to the frozen tundra.  Just kind of unrealistic in the scope of things.  I have stopped at Willies in Waco, he sells bio-diesel, but I did not buy any.  The food however is exceptional, good place to eat, if you are in the neighborhood.  


I get a kick out of these folks who are going "to install a 100 gallon aux. fuel tank" to make it to the cheaper fuel.  First off, a 100 gallon tank is a pretty good sized item, where you gonna put it?  Secondly, "there is no such thing as cheaper fuel" not anymore there isn't.  You might make it to a different location, but it is not going to be cheaper, lower in price possibly, but it is still going to be expensive.  


For the record, we run about a 65 gallon tank (pulled her washer out to install that awhile back, and then the (ahem) discussion started) it is in the last bay, and we top it off at about 60 gallons, that is all you need.

Our lifestyle will change now, I am sure.  First off.  We are going to adhere to the "half-tank rule."  A long time ago, outside or Birmingham Alabama, I ran out of fuel and it cost us a lot of money to fix all that went wrong with the coach trying to stretch it to a fuel stop (missed by 4 miles is all).  Now we buy it at a half of tank, regardless.

It doesn't seem to hurt as much that way either, just hand them two or three 100's and top it off or try and get as close to the top as you can.  Run another 400 miles, do it all over .... makes you stop at least once per day for fuel somewhere too.  85 gallons opposed to 225 gallons will make a big difference in my attitude let me tell you.


Screw the oil companies!  We are not stopping traveling in this fashion, we love it, and will continue.  We may not do as much as before, but then again, it is time to slow down and enjoy life anyway.

Today finds us a little used up and slowly moving into in our sunset years. The wife and I, like a lot of you, find ourselves basking in the glow of it all, albeit somewhat cranky at times, the senior years.  For now, the most immediate change I can think of is, I am going to cease bitching and complaining about it, just go on with the game plan and take my lumps, like everyone else.  

My bride asked me just yesterday, "What are you going to say to them in Cody, Wyoming next August, when they bring up the topic of fuel?" (and they will ... trust me) I just smiled my toothy smile and said, "I will just tell them this ... If you cannot run with the Big Dogs, best to stay on the porch" and then just leave it there.  

Buy the way, you need to get up there, lot to do and see in Cody, Wyoming.  Neat place.  The Bus Club has a link;  http://www.eaglesinternational.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=2069&sid=cee911814aedf62909dd6c328495b3b5 (http://www.eaglesinternational.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=2069&sid=cee911814aedf62909dd6c328495b3b5)  I could not find one here, but I am sure they might list it here as the date becomes near.


We worked way too hard to build it, get it into roadworthy shape and good condition to just sell it off because of things out of our control.  We don't have a lawn, so making a lawn ornament out of it is not a viable option.  Nope.  We are keeping ours, they can deal with it at the Estate Sale.  

Too much emphasis on the money here lately, most everyone wants to talk about what it costs, the ultimate expense of it all.  It is all relative, just depends on how you look at it.

Fly from New York to Seattle, load up on a Cruise ship, do Alaska for two weeks or so.  Ride the train in Yellow Horse, do the Yukon thing, Dawson the whole nine yards.  Fly back home and show everyone the slides and the trinkets.  Then add it all up ... About the same as fuel, who knows, maybe more?  Works the same way with Hawaii, Miami, just about anywhere else.

No free lunch in this country ...  If you want to dance you have to pay for the band.

See you in the fast lane ... We might not be stylin on the boulevard as much as before ... but we are still going to be out there.

BCO

That's exactly how I feel. The price of diesel is what it is and not going to go down. I have waited all of my life to see this beautiful country in our coach, it might take longer but we will! The overnight stops might turn into weeks at a time, but it's all good!

Paul

Quote from: Dreamscape on March 06, 2011, 04:36:18 AM
That's exactly how I feel. The price of diesel is what it is and not going to go down. I have waited all of my life to see this beautiful country in our coach, it might take longer but we will! The overnight stops might turn into weeks at a time, but it's all good!

Paul

My, my, you are up early this morning Amigo.  Thanks for the comment, I appreciate it.  We are going to keep going and blowing, Chavez and all these speculators "can kiss the part of me that goes over the fence last."

BCO

I agree.  We are presently at a private bluegrass jam about 175 miles from our place. We will be here a total of 2 weeks then back home for 2 weeks before starting our annual trip in our coach (last years trip was a little over 6000 miles and 8 months). This year may or may not be as long and we may spend more time parked and less time on the road, but we will go and have a good time. It's all about attitude, think positive and always make the most of what you have, don't fret about what you don't have.  Jack

Quote from: JackConrad on March 06, 2011, 04:59:38 AM
I agree.  We are presently at a private bluegrass jam about 175 miles from our place. We will be here a total of 2 weeks then back home for 2 weeks before starting our annual trip in our coach (last years trip was a little over 6000 miles and 8 months. This year may or may not be as long and we may spend more time parked and less time on the road, but we will go and have a good time. It's all about attitude, think positive and always make the most of what you have, don't fret about what you don't have.  Jack

Thank you Jack.  That is the name of the game "all about attitude, think positive and always make the most of what you have, don't fret about what you don't have."  (Two of the biggest disappointments in life, wanting what you do not have, and getting what you always wanted)  Good way to look at it.

Perhaps some day our paths will cross and we will meet up in some out of the way place.  Waiting on a payday.  I sure hope it is not in an airport.  Can you imagine what would happen in today's paranoid society if I were to say "Hi Jack" in an airport?

I shudder to think of it.

Thanks for your reply.

BCO

The best mpg question was about a v w rabbit ( just out then)  I don't know  I filled it up when I bought it and so far I haven't had to add any fuel. I've only had it three years."

Quote from: papatony on March 06, 2011, 05:29:05 AM
The best mpg question was about a v w rabbit ( just out then)  I don't know  I filled it up when I bought it and so far I haven't had to add any fuel. I've only had it three years."

We had a guy at work buy a Toyota and every day, when he left the yard, we would sneak over and add one gallon of fuel to his tank.  We did this for several weeks, which of course, lead to some really interesting conversations in the lunch room.

I don't think he ever caught on, come to think of it.

Thanks for your comment.

BCO

 :-\ ;)I look at it this way: I can drive to central Fla. rent a spot stay all winter for less than it would cost to stay home and put up with the weather. Now that is a plan ( A Team)

BCO

Very well said.

Don, you know Jones owns all the copyrights on that model 15 don't you lol wake up Larry I see big bucks here, for diesel  it just takes a little longer to build the travel funds it never stopped us when it went to 5 bucks the last time but there was a lot of tears parting with 900 to 1000 bucks a pop
You guys looking for a bus now is the time buy and pray fuel goes down  

good luck

Quote from: boxcarOkie on March 06, 2011, 04:27:41 AMIf you cannot run with the Big Dogs, best to stay on the porch

One of my philosophies of life.... It would look good painted on the back of my bus!

 Great post, I am still in my mid 50's, retired once as a USPS Postmaster in a small local Post Office but am still working. I drive a truck on a USPS Contract Route and have a shop where I build Cowboy Bits and Spurs and saddle stirrups on the side. One thing I can't do is control what I pay for fuel, one thing I can do is crank up my production in the shop and cover the extra cost of fuel I use in the buses so I consider myself blessed.

I will not let the high cost of fuel stop me from enjoying the buses, there are lots of places I want to go to and see and camp at that are within a couple of hundred miles from me..

Rick

  Re:Aux fuel tanks

 I know you mean well, but please allow other men to think differently. While im more or less with you on the French Fryer Fat Fuel, carrying more capacity aboard is not a bad idea, especially when your heading off on a trip over 12,000 miles, and into very remote areas.

 As far as taking up valuable space, I would far rather have another 100 gallons of fuel when im in the middle of nowhere, than a lot of the more useless crap other people carry along. Washers and dryers? Chest Freezer? 8X12 bathroom with a claw foot tub?

 I mean, if someone wants to start criticizing what anyone else thinks is useful or practical, as useless or unnecessary to drag around in a Bus, something thats pretty much useless and unnecessary to begin with, make sure your own door step is swept clean beforehand.

 When (not if) fuel reaches $6 gallon, a 12000 mile trip (at 8 mpg) would burn approximately 1500 gallons of fuel, and at a cost of more than $9000. If I can top off the tanks before hand, say a month or two before, and hopefully when the price is down ($5.49?), I am starting out with approx 2000 miles of range and $1500 banked, that I dont have to blow before heading out. My first fuel stop may not be until Washington state, or Montana. I may have enough range to cross entirely through Canada without ever buying their fuel, or very little.

 On the back side, coming home, and provided fuel burn estimates hold, I can top off somewhere 1500 miles or so out, and roll home on almost empty tanks. Then I can worry about filling up again at my leisure, and as funds become available.  All told then, I could offset approx $3000, or have that money in reserve if needed, and I only need to provide fuel for an 8,000 mile trip, rather than the full 12,000 miles.

 If long range and aux fuel tanks didnt make sense, coast to coast interstate trucks, and airplanes, wouldnt have them. I can positively assure you, that a Cessna 172 (and any other aircraft) with long range tanks, is much more valuable, and in much higher demand, than thier short range counterparts. At $1 or 2 a gallon none of it really mattered. But as the costs climb, and as fuel economy drops through manipulated fuel chemisty, longer range starts to make much more practical sense.

GMC guys favorite motto every GMC guy in Quartzsite has that some place lol

Quote from: papatony on March 06, 2011, 06:11:30 AM
:-\ ;)I look at it this way: I can drive to central Fla. rent a spot stay all winter for less than it would cost to stay home and put up with the weather. Now that is a plan ( A Team)

This winter it was awfully hard to find a place where it was not cold.  Florida is nice, I have some friends that go there every year and they are much like you, they love it.

BCO

Quote from: redbus on March 06, 2011, 06:14:14 AM
BCO

Very well said.  Giving you our absolute best is the very least we can do.

Thank you,

BCO

Quote from: luvrbus on March 06, 2011, 06:27:06 AM
Don, you know Jones owns all the copyrights on that model 15 don't you lol wake up Larry I see big bucks here, for diesel  it just takes a little longer to build the travel funds it never stopped us when it went to 5 bucks the last time but there was a lot of tears parting with 900 to 1000 bucks a pop
You guys looking for a bus now is the time buy and pray fuel goes down  

good luck

He does?  Oh my gawd, I am in trouble again?  Whadya think it will cost me to buy him off (He loves Oreo cookies).  If you notice, his coach is "always first in the photo's" I took it into consideration (NOT).  He is coming by, we are going to do a couple of windshields in it this spring at my place.

Thanks again,

BCO

Quote from: Depewtee on March 06, 2011, 06:38:58 AM

Quote from: boxcarOkie on March 06, 2011, 04:27:41 AMIf you cannot run with the Big Dogs, best to stay on the porch

One of my philosophies of life.... It would look good painted on the back of my bus!

(https://busconversionmagazine.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi215.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fcc210%2Fdepewtee%2FBigDog.jpg&hash=73dbcaf2cdc13482df57c7c0b96cfbfcc0ca6248)

One of those strange things in life, where you see something and it just sort of resonates with you, hits a common thread.

I think it would look good back there too.

BCO

Quote from: Rick59-4104 on March 06, 2011, 06:43:20 AM
Great post, I am still in my mid 50's, retired once as a USPS Postmaster in a small local Post Office but am still working. I drive a truck on a USPS Contract Route and have a shop where I build Cowboy Bits and Spurs and saddle stirrups on the side. One thing I can't do is control what I pay for fuel, one thing I can do is crank up my production in the shop and cover the extra cost of fuel I use in the buses so I consider myself blessed.

I will not let the high cost of fuel stop me from enjoying the buses, there are lots of places I want to go to and see and camp at that are within a couple of hundred miles from me..

Rick

Good for you Rick that is the spirit ...

BCO

When (not if) fuel reaches 10 bucs a gallon, I'll be tickled pink to pay the 5 dollars we are not paying now lol!  ;D ;D
  great post DS! ;)

Quote from: van on March 06, 2011, 07:09:00 AM
When (not if) fuel reaches 10 bucs a gallon, I'll be tickled pink to pay the 5 dollars we are not paying now lol!  ;D ;D

Now now Bucko, don't make me send Clifford up there.  We don't need no $10 per gallon, that is not positive thinking.  If that happens I will have to go back to my old job of selling flu shots out of the trunk of my car ... and you know how much I try to avoid the subject of gainful employment.

Thanks for checking in,

BCO

  And too, everytime I run up to Minnesota fuel is .25 to.35 higher from Iowa on. I always freak out thinking fuel just spiked, but it always drops coming back home. With enough range I wouldnt ever have to bother buying their high priced watered down always winterised chemically altered crap. (i get better economy on the fuel I buy farther south)

We just had some friends from Germany leave headed for Vegas and I let him read this about the price of fuel his comments were what's is the big deal we paid more than that before fuel went up love those Germans lol when they left home it 7 bucks a gal 2 weeks ago

good luck

Quote from: luvrbus on March 06, 2011, 07:23:56 AM
We just had some friends from Germany leave headed for Vegas and I let him read this about the price of fuel his comments were what's is the big deal we paid more than that before fuel went up love those Germans lol when they left home it 7 bucks a gal 2 weeks ago

good luck

We have had it good for a long time, but like I have said (you have too) ... those days are over.  Okay, now let's talk life jackets for the trip to Belize, bring my own or do you have them onboard?

BCO

Art,

FWIW, My 4905 has two 165 gallon tanks, I think it's a very good option to not have to stop so often to take on fuel and have the choice what part of the country to fuel up. Still have plenty of bay storage space in a GM with an extra tank.

It's hard to get there stopping for 85 gals at a time!

Brandon

The last time fuel  climbed so high it gave me an opportunity to buy my bus and at what I considered a very reasonable price.  I do remember that first fill of diesel!!!  :o My biggest expense at the moment is what I spend to change some things and upgrade some stuff. The cost of the rolling air bag kits turned out to be less than what the curtains came in at! Now I just spent a  grand into redoing stuff in the interior and a lot bigger expense in window and patio awnings. All those expenses were not necessities, as it was fine as is, but things that are what you may call a luxury. Basically that's what these are anyways for most of us. So the price of fuel is really nothing more than an inconvenience and has little to do with keeping food on the table. If such an expense is crippling your food budget then such a purchase may not have been a wise move indeed. If you want to rattle my cage lets start talking health care and insurance premiums instead. I can control how much fuel I want to use.

  My economic indicators tend to be the Sonic Drive-Ins I drive by on my Saturday Night Truck Run. For those not in the know about Sonic Drive-In's they are a drive in hamburger place with carhops....On a normal Saturday night in the past in the small towns I drive thru the Sonic's would be almost or would be full, not unusual to see cars circling looking for a parking spot. Last night (Saturday Night) I passed 2 Sonic's in 2 different small towns between 8:00 and 9:00 and one had 2 cars and one had 1 car in the bays. Most working people in these small towns commute 30 miles or more to work, and their wages have been stagnant for about the last 25 years.

This is with gas in the $3.50 range, diesel about $3.80, I hate to think what $10:00 a gallon fuel will do to our economy.

Rick

I have a aux 125 gal tank from a MCI if you guys need one with todays prices it will only cost 600 bucks to fill lol.
Reading todays local paper I see where they busted a group posing as mobile wash guys using their OK credit card (electric pump and hose) they would watch truckers at Pilot go into eat and shower then pull up to the trucks and pump fuel into a 500 gal tank on a trailer not only do we have high prices now we also have the thief to contend with


good luck

Thanks boxcarOkie!

I'm with Chopper Scott, If the spread between what diesel was a little while ago and now is tipping the balance... How was the preventive maintenance getting done on the coach before?

artvonne, best not leave your tanks empty to accumulate condensation if you have a chance for freezing temperatures sometime in the year. Frozen water in the pick-up or the filters ruins a good day. Overwhelming the water separator? There will be no savings if a slug of water gets through.

Travel is travel.

The coach and the grocery store will be cheaper to run than the car with hotels and restaurants. Pretty steady over the years, for a multi-day trip, you save someplace the equivalent of the fuel for a pick-up truck for the same journey by using the coach.

Either we can go, or we can't, the mode of travel is pretty much irrelevant.

So, maybe best to think of it like this?

Using the coach is like getting the travel for FREE!!!

Don't worry, be..

happy coaching!
buswarrior

  Rick, in the lil bedroom town we lived in, in central Minnesota, when fuel topped $4 gal it killed everything. Car lots closed, restaurants closed, construction stopped, small businesses disappeared, houses forclosed, people went bankrupt. And it hasn't turned around. The car lots are empty, half the stores are empty, 100's ofhouses sit empty with yards growing up in weeds. The rate of decay has slowed almost to a stop, but it has not reversed. We were back there last august and it's just really sad to look at. And as you drive through other small towns, you see the same story.

 $5 fuel will change the landscape of this country in ways none of us can really imagine. Get out and see it while you still can.

  Let me say this just for the sake of consideration. I had the big house, a Ferrari, and a lot of other nice stuff. Due to the economy, financial disasters, stock losses, and plummeting real estate values, weve lost, in real money, over $400K. We got away with our skin, but no longer think frivilously about anything anymore. We think much more about every single dollar and how we spend it. I no longer trust tomorrow, banks, the economy, or anything else. It feels like the brink of disaster to me, and im just not going to run off willie nillie thinking everythings going to be fine. If anyone remembers fuel spiking over $7 gal on 9/11, if it didnt do anything else, it should teach us just how fragile things in our world really are, and how rapidly it can change.

  I still think positive, but its with a far different eye to the horizon.

I enjoy working on the bus and generally Sunday seems to be the big day for me. What's starting to mess things up lately is Don's posts that take me part of the morning to read and enjoy !!!!  :D :D Great stuff by the way!!! I gotta go "relax" and get some work done!!

Some people when they build their buses actually make space and set up equipment on the bus to process vegetable oil on the road. For some it is a financial issue and for others it is environmental, for some it is both. Some even swear their diesel engine runs better with oil then with diesel. To each his own for his own needs and purposes, that is my personal philosophy. The reason I brought it up about running bio diesel on the trip to Alaska is because for some people that may be the only way they can or would do the trip. Maybe their preventive maintenance cash out lay got in the way of spending $9000 for fuel but they would still like to make the trip. This is just another option, of course there are filling stations all along the way too for people who prefer to spend $9000.00 It is a personal issue where people choose to put their money, and not everyone makes or has the same amount of money. The fuel issue in this country is one of the great divides of the classes, especially when running a bus going on a very big trip. I would like a lot of people to go with a lot of buses, in order to do that accommodations for people should be made no matter what class they are in or what they choose to spend their hard earned money on.

Let's compare to real estate ;D
plenty of room 001 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Xk_i6myryk#)

For a multi-vehicle caravan, there might be some savings by fueling them all on the same fuel account, as if you were a fleet.

Call a couple of your local national fuel retailer's fleet fuel account representatives and see what the volume thresholds might be.

happy coaching!
buswarrior

Quote from: buswarrior on March 06, 2011, 09:07:43 AM
For a multi-vehicle caravan, there might be some savings by fueling them all on the same fuel account, as if you were a fleet.

  Do they fix the price per gallon on deals like that, so it wont matter where you buy?

Yes, that's how it works, with some caveats, depending on the volumes being purchased.

A big fleet like Schneider's is going to do better than us.

The fuel pumped at remote northern locations will be higher than southern ones.

Often times at a cardlock, there's no price on the pump at all.

happy coaching!
buswarrior

BCO,
I know that you keep doing this to get me to post. Well you finally got your way! Not going anywhere isn't going to make the price of fuel go down.  Owning a bus doesn't make any sense...


if you don't use it. (Almost got you).
Besides it is all relative. I remember the oil embargo of the '70's. Gas went up 100% overnight and you had to wait in line for it. Plus there were circumstances that you couldn't get it. Was making $3.00/hr then also
You can still fuel where ever you want it and I'm not working for that wage any more, an upside of being in the good old USA.
Sorry to inform you that gasoline is at better than $10.00US/gallon. I just bought SEF 94 octane fuel for one of the old cars. 55 gallon drum=$715.00. Do the math. It's great stuff has a shelf life like the gas we used to get. Runs and smells like the old stuff. Not any of this designer pump gas.
The Stanley runs on kerosene. 5 gallons of kerosene (go in Wallyworld the next time you are camped in their parking lot) is $50.00. Do the math.
If you were to run the bus on Electricity with my rough calculations the equivalent electrical energy in a gallon of diesel (130,000 btu) would cost $4.19 at the $0.11/kWH that we pay at home. I might have to point out that this doesn't include the road tax that would have to be added into the electricity now that you are running your bus on it. Oh! I forgot the extension cord management system that has to be purchased for the operation of the bus now and I won't even go into the copper theft problems and the lost efficiency of a long cord that takes the actual cost of operation higher. It is cleaner burning... not the extension cord that is an EPA air quality violation thingy. You thought that the 6-71N smoked...

Up side to taking the bus;
The cook and dishwasher has a driver to do all her chauffeuring.
I have a cook and dishwasher that I get to drive for.
I can get a bathroom anywhere with out timing the pit stop with the fill up.
I wake up in my own bed every morning.
I don't have to pay property taxes on the Mountain View that I parked at.
I can start as late and stop as early as I want and know what 5 star hotel I am going to be staying that night (inn the bus)
The wife says that 'we travel like a tortoise, with our house on our back'
Don't have to stop at the scale house
Don't have to keep a log book
Don't have to pass a DOT physical
Get to expand my mechanical, electrical, carpentry, public relation skills under actual stressful conditions that would break the common man/woman
Tickles me when the 4 wheeler and even the 18 wheeler is trying to figure out what famous Musical performer is traveling in the bus. You should see me in the red Reba wig! That photo is copyrighted!
Get to meet a lot of other bus nuts that are really, well... nuts.

Down side to taking the bus;
Don't get to do it as much as I want to.

I hope that we all get to do it more and that we are creative in the ways that we can fund our addiction. Maybe it isn't an addiction, it's a way of life.
BCO thanks for stirring it up in such an eloquent manner and helping us 'to keep it in perspective'
By the way 'What does it cost to fill it up?'......'well let's see... the holding tank has a capacity of.... Well I've never thought of it that way...I know what it costs to dump it at the KOA.... Fill it up? Can I get back to you on that?

LJ

 say what Jones

Jones, where in the hell did you come up with the name flatspot you cannot fool me buddy I know that cook and dishwasher his name is Larry lol.
I will let Sonja forward  Judy your post that she is the cook and dishwasher just trying my best to help you out here buddy, you and Judy goings with us and the Smiths this summer 
Back to the fuel I can lock a fuel price in for 30 days at a time with my commercial Chevron/Texaco if I guarantee purchase of over a 1000 a month last time I did that fuel went down and it cost me  


good luck

BCO,

Thank you for the many many laughs.  Others also.

John

Good Coffee! Great Posts! Busnuts, and a great morning! PRICELESS! Some body pinch me! lol!

Clifford,
Flatspot=place on head from calling Judy cook and dishwasher
Flatspot=place that is a good place to park bus and sleep
Flatspot=place on bogy tires from sliding them on asphalt they go thump, thump thump
Flatspot=no place on 40 acres property (rock pile) like that

Where do you want to go this summer. I know you know a few good flatspot to park and play cards or better yet bring along the fishing pole. Now were talking.
Got the upper bushing on the a-frame changed out in Q. It was a bugger. The broken off end stuck in the a-frame. Had to drill and tap it then jacked it out with a bolt. I love it when a plan comes together.
LJ

LuvRbus:  We just had some friends from Germany leave headed for Vegas and I let him read this about the price of fuel his comments were what's is the big deal we paid more than that before fuel went up love those Germans lol when they left home it 7 bucks a gal 2 weeks ago

good luck

I was in Germany briefly during my stint in the service, it is a beautiful country.  Did you give them the address of my website?  It is read all over the world.

BCO

Chopper Scott:  So the price of fuel is really nothing more than an inconvenience and has little to do with keeping food on the table. If such an expense is crippling your food budget then such a purchase may not have been a wise move indeed. If you want to rattle my cage lets start talking health care and insurance premiums instead. I can control how much fuel I want to use.

Well said and to the point.  The biggest outlay of funds we have goes towards insurance, and the amount of power they have over us, is unbelievable.  Thanks for your reply.

BCO

Rick59-4104 I passed 2 Sonic's in 2 different small towns between 8:00 and 9:00 and one had 2 cars and one had 1 car in the bays. Most working people in these small towns commute 30 miles or more to work, and their wages have been stagnant for about the last 25 years.

On our last two trips we were kind of stunned by the absence of automobiles and motor homes on the highways, in some cases, after 5PM on the two-lanes, we had them all to ourselves.  Most of the time during the week, work trucks and that was mainly it.  They keep talking recovery and higher wages but I don't personally see it.

Thanks for your reply

BCO

Buswarrior:  Thanks BoxcarOkie. 

Travel is travel. The coach and the grocery store will be cheaper to run than the car with hotels and restaurants. Pretty steady over the years, for a multi-day trip, you save someplace the equivalent of the fuel for a pick-up truck for the same journey by using the coach.

You are welcome, glad you enjoyed it.  We used to figure a cost of about $125 per day on the road, this would be meals, room, fuel, but that is way off now.  A room in Amarillo, Texas is $103 per night, so you can see where it doesn't doesn't wash now.  I agree with you, it is best to stick with the coach, I have stayed in motels, did not care for it.  It costs a little more to go "first class" and you don't go as often ... but it is usually worth the trip.

BCO

Chopper Scott:  I enjoy working on the bus and generally Sunday seems to be the big day for me. What's starting to mess things up lately is Don's posts that take me part of the morning to read and enjoy !!!!    Great stuff by the way!!! I gotta go "relax" and get some work done!!

Scott I try to do the best I can, some seem to want to take it somewhere else and read junk into it that isn't there, but the majority of folks seemed to like it.  Over 400 hits in one day, and that is good traffic in anyone's' book.  I try to do the house on Monday-Wednesday-Friday and the bus I leave to Tuesday-Thursday-Saturday ... Sunday is open.  I get a lot done because I am retired and I try to stay focused on what it is that I need to do.

Works for me.
Thanks again for your reply

BCO

Happycamperbrat: Some people when they build their buses actually make space and set up equipment on the bus to process vegetable oil on the road. For some it is a financial issue and for others it is environmental, for some it is both. Some even swear their diesel engine runs better with oil then with diesel. To each his own for his own needs and purposes, that is my personal philosophy. The reason I brought it up about running bio diesel on the trip to Alaska is because for some people that may be the only way they can or would do the trip. Maybe their preventive maintenance cash out lay got in the way of spending $9000 for fuel but they would still like to make the trip. This is just another option, of course there are filling stations all along the way too for people who prefer to spend $9000.00 It is a personal issue where people choose to put their money, and not everyone makes or has the same amount of money. The fuel issue in this country is one of the great divides of the classes, especially when running a bus going on a very big trip. I would like a lot of people to go with a lot of buses, in order to do that accommodations for people should be made no matter what class they are in or what they choose to spend their hard earned money on.

Well put, just because it doesn't row my boat doesn't mean it is wrong or not possible.  This summer I am pulling OKC to Seattle and back, that is close to 4,000 miles in one swoop.  I am doing it because I want to do it and if I could not afford it, I would not go, that is my economic reality.   I would not mind doing Alaska with one or two other coaches, but a caravan?  What do you do when one breaks down, everyone sit around and wait for #23 to get it back in running order.  Just isn't my can of worms.  Traveling with a large group of people is a lot of problems, if you have never experienced this, and you do this trip in a large group, you soon will see what it is that I am talking about.

Hiring a tanker and all that, well, jeeze, look at it for what it is. 

Buswarrior had a better idea, he said: "For a multi-vehicle caravan, there might be some savings by fueling them all on the same fuel account, as if you were a fleet.  Call a couple of your local national fuel retailer's fleet fuel account representatives and see what the volume thresholds might be."

Thanks for your reply

BCO

And as usual, I save the best for last:

Flatspot:  Are you kidding me?   Hahahahahahahahahahaha. 
(Hey Van, I need to borrow some smiley faces.)

Van I didn't get any sound out of the Jay Leno video, is the problem on my end?

As for all the other non-related nonsense, well, you can't hit a home-run every time you come to bat, but the important thing is you suit up for the game.  Been a good day for me, I hope yours was the same.

Watch those right-handers.

BCO

Quote from: luvrbus on March 06, 2011, 07:53:29 AM
I have a aux 125 gal tank from a MCI if you guys need one with todays prices it will only cost 600 bucks to fill lol.
Reading todays local paper I see where they busted a group posing as mobile wash guys using their OK credit card (electric pump and hose) they would watch truckers at Pilot go into eat and shower then pull up to the trucks and pump fuel into a 500 gal tank on a trailer not only do we have high prices now we also have the thief to contend with
good luck

That is why we put a lock bar on our fuel cap. At the least, it will, hopefully, make the crook look for an easier target, and if my wife hears them, I think they will change their mind when I stick my head out our bedroom window with my .45 Ruger Blackhawk.  Jack

Quote from: JackConrad on March 06, 2011, 02:58:47 PM

Quote from: luvrbus on March 06, 2011, 07:53:29 AM
I have a aux 125 gal tank from a MCI if you guys need one with todays prices it will only cost 600 bucks to fill lol.
Reading todays local paper I see where they busted a group posing as mobile wash guys using their OK credit card (electric pump and hose) they would watch truckers at Pilot go into eat and shower then pull up to the trucks and pump fuel into a 500 gal tank on a trailer not only do we have high prices now we also have the thief to contend with
good luck

That is why we put a lock bar on our fuel cap. At the least, it will, hopefully, make the crook look for an easier target, and if my wife hears them, I think they will change their mind when I stick my head out our bedroom window with my .45 Ruger Blackhawk.  Jack

Damn!  I sure hope we are not parked next to you!  We have a lock on both of our fill ports, on the door, and on the caps, none on the aux. tank.  But you know what they say ... "Locks are just to keep honest people honest."  If a thief wants it Jack, he is going to get it.  Look at the resourcefulness of pumping it out of a semi into a 500 gallon portable tank as Clifford recently commented on.  They are going to come up with even more resourceful means to obtain what is an expensive commodity.

Lock N Load .....

BCO

   When I first started working it cost me $.25 a gallon to fuel my 57 Chrysler. I made $1.00 an hour. That was 15 minutes of work for a gallon of fuel. When I retired I paid $3.00 a gallon and was making $25.00 an hour. That's about 8 minutes of work (if my poor aging mind is on track today) for a gallon of fuel.
    In my strange little world it seems to have improved. How ever since I've retired and gotten the Gubberment involved I'm sure my income will go down. Fixed income is an illusion.
    The last time I brought this up the room emptied...Cable

Fixed income!! ;D Still sounds broken to me!!

    It won't fix anything I have. If I break anything now I'm done.
    Health care ins., what's that? I chose to live in a house instead...Cable

Oh yea, my income is fixed-- the problem is that everything else is broken. ???

My health insurance premiums blew past my house payments last year for me and the wife. Pretty sad considering I have owned the house for 11 years, the ole lady for 26 years, and haven't been to the doctor for 8 years. I had a ringworm so I am sure I have a rider now for infections, heart ailments and back issues !! My son probably has the same now because of family history!!

BCO  ....

THANKS for the plug on our "Rally in the Rockies" sponsored by Eagles International.  Just to be sure you all know the dates are August 24 thru 26th, 2011.  We are in beautiful Cody WY. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions or need further information.

Tony & Pam Saraceni

Thats ok as long as BCO still has time to post something on Sunday morning!

Well said BCO... wel said.

Rick

Quote from: JackConrad on March 06, 2011, 02:58:47 PM
That is why we put a lock bar on our fuel cap. At the least, it will, hopefully, make the crook look for an easier target, and if my wife hears them, I think they will change their mind when I stick my head out our bedroom window with my .45 Ruger Blackhawk.  Jack

Jack,

Let me know if you ever need and alibi.  I'm your guy.  I love how you reason with the crook. ;D

John doesn't have a 45

Quotebut a caravan?  What do you do when one breaks down, everyone sit around and wait for #23 to get it back in running order.  Just isn't my can of worms.  Traveling with a large group of people is a lot of problems, if you have never experienced this, and you do this trip in a large group, you soon will see what it is that I am talking about.

Hiring a tanker and all that, well, jeeze, look at it for what it is. 

Buswarrior had a better idea, he said: "For a multi-vehicle caravan, there might be some savings by fueling them all on the same fuel account, as if you were a fleet.  Call a couple of your local national fuel retailer's fleet fuel account representatives and see what the volume thresholds might be."

Thanks for your reply

BCO

When one breaks down? Im still at a cross roads on that as well. It kinda depends on how many people want to go. I figure we will travel about 200 to 300 miles per day. Staying on schedual will be critical as other people will be joining at different points in the route. The professional caravans usually a service vehicle with the caravan and sometimes a wrecker too for problems that come up along the way. If it is a minor problem they would be able to rejoin the caravan by catching up, if not then obviously they will have to go to nearest garage to have work done and will be in all probability dropping out of the caravan.

Actually I have gone with caravans before, many times, but it was with a bunch of corvettes. In my experience, caravans are FUN!!!

The tanker was just a thought... that's all. Im sorry you didnt like it. And I agree that I like Bus Warrior's idea too!

Still think you're cute  ;) ;D

Actually I have gone with caravans before, many times, but it was with a bunch of corvettes. In my experience, caravans are FUN!!!

The tanker was just a thought... that's all. Im sorry you didnt like it. And I agree that I like Bus Warrior's idea too!

Still think you're cute  ;) ;D

Then I say "Go for it!"  You seem to have a pretty good idea as to what you want to have happen in the way of things, so do it.  It might turn out to be the trip of a lifetime eh?

BCO

Right on brother... Agree with just about everything you said there... As for the last part comparing any other type of vacation to bus, We took the family, (two daughters, two grandkids, wife and me) on caribian cruise at Christmas, After all was said and done, well over 8 grand. And we live in/near the port city!

So looking forward to getting up and bussin', fuel is what it is - take it or leave it, it's the experience baby!

Quote from: paulrobie on March 07, 2011, 04:25:48 AM
We took the family, (two daughters, two grandkids, wife and me) on caribian cruise at Christmas, After all was said and done, well over 8 grand. And we live in/near the port city!

Thank you for your reply Paul.  I also heard from some folks who tour Europe in the summer and the answer was the same $8 to $12K for the trip.  Traveling (using any kind of mode) is expensive these days.  I was in San Antone last summer and I don't want to see that place again, not any time soon.  Man, I used to think the traffic was bad in Austin?

BCO