BCM Community

Flying down to there today to help a friend look over a bus in Winter Springs any busnuts close to there? (sorry about short notice just came up last night an I of course agreed to go with!)

I won't have internet access from the time I leave until I get somewhere w/wifi and can use my laptop. (I gave up the smart phone when it took a dump on me & went back to a good ol' $40 go phone!)
;D  BK  ;D

I will have my cell phone with me. 2 seven 0-seven 0 five-1139 leave a msg. I'll return the call!

UPDATE we missed our flight (Ronnie didn't believe me that your supposed to be at the airport early!)

So we'll be going tomorrow (Weds 7/23/14) AM early and arriving in Orlando around noon!
Got an appointment @ ABC in Winter Garden for 2-3 PM for a "Pre-delivery" inspection for 2-3 PM. If it checks out we'll be driving it home.
If not we'll book plane tickets and fly back!
;D  BK  ;D

Well the Winter Springs trip was a BUST! That bus was in terrible shape!

I could have called an asked my sister to put Kross on the speaker phone and asked him his opinion of it and he would have told me "RUFF" without even seeing it! (seller had no sense of humor when I told him & my buddy that!)

My goodness I don't understand why people try to shyster folks when selling something!
Ronnie was told "the bus is ready to take home and put in service, might even make some extra $ on the way home w/it if you had a way to pick up a load on the way home!"

Was also told the tires were 90%, but he forgot the add that was 90% BALD! (my dad has more hair on his head than those tires had tread! An at least when I sold Dave the Setra I told him it had "sure pops" on it! and on top of that dad told him "I know they had air in them when you left, I could see it in them!")

Wow the bus was filthy nasty & dirty everywhere I was looking (I started checking compartments and such right away) when the sellers mechanic came up an told me "man this is one clean bus"
I looked at him and said "IT IS? WHERE?!?!?!?"

Then on top of that we'd been told it was a series 60 Detroit but I knew by the sound it wasn't!
So again the mechanic showed me up on my knowledge and told me "it's an N14 Cummins just like all the big trucks use and it's a great engine you can get 'm w/jake brakes and all that but this one doesn't have it though!"

I don't know my cummins that well but it could have been an N14 it was black w/red valve cover.
I was loosing more oil than an old non-maintained 2 stroke! (Ronnie had been told "NO LEAKS!")

Bus was in high ride position and nothing I did would return it to normal!
(the front compartment under the drivers seat had the cover off the box that housed the valves, solenoids, and switches. and there were a bunch of clipped hose ends and fitting laying around not to mention several new bypass hoses that were obviously recently put it and the way they were routed wouldn't allow the cover to be put back on without pinching them!)

A/C system was on "FULL A/C Overide" on a solenoid switch in the luggage bay! (when I told them that they went back and turned it off ! Then told me "try it now, should be working normally" except now it did nothing!)

The owner {or guy selling it} got real pissed when I told them look the A/C & suspension systems could be something as simple as a $20-50 relay, valve or solenoid. Or could be as major as a $5000 computer board for each! He told Ronnie "Look this guy is just nit picking and pointing out all the little stuff!"
I stopped him there and told him "Oh no I'm just pointing out several of the major things I ain't started on the little things yet!"

He got disgusted and asked Ronnie do we have a deal or not? Ronnie said "I don't know we ain't even test drove it yet!"

So the guy climbs in, tells his mechanic "come on let's go for a ride" to which the mechanic replied "no I ain't going I'll stay here in case you need me to come get ya! (lot's of confidence there I'll tell ya)

So we pull out and go down the road and the guy tells me "go ahead Bryce floor it, this road is 55 mph so we can do 60-65 OK!"
I replied I wasn't sure the bus or tires would hold up to that speed!
I tried the trans retarder and it did nothing that I could feel and the brakes were real weak!
So I pulled into a turn around spot an told Ronnie yer turn!
When we pulled in to the church lot we had started from the mechanic came running over an said "I didn't know it but that thing has a jake brake!" (yeah see above remarks about the engine)
I told him I didn't know if it had one or not because you could hear for feel it when driving it!
He insisted "yeah it's got one I could hear it as you rumbled in here!"
I again told him "It might have one but you can't tell it by feeling it or hearing it from in here!"

Anyway the guy selling it acted like he was going to leave Ronnie an I stranded out in Winter Springs w/no way to get back to the airport! Finally his mechanic told him "Look just go down 417 it'll run you straight to the airport!"
An he finally said yeah get in I'll run back there and drop ya off!

On the way there I had to scramble and find us a return flight home as Ronnie had only booked one way tickets! (and had not packed an overnight bag or anything! I mentioned staying the night and going to check out other bus sales places but Ronnie had to be home in the MA to take his handicapped daughter to a Dr appointment!)

So all in all we left home @ 5 AM drove 2 hrs to Nashville flew to Charlotte, NC to Orlando spent less than 2 hrs in Orlando and had to scramble to make a flight to Miami and then back to Nashville. Got back to Nashville @ 10:45 PM and home @ 1 AM!

Ye Ha when we going again!
;D  BK  ;D