Hi there everyone... I have been reading and lurking in the shadows for some time now. But the time has come to reveal myself to all, and humbly ask for guidance and direction. You see, I have just taken delivery of a 1982 MC-9. It was take out of service buy a bus line here in Alaska, and has been sitting in the weeds for the last year. I come before you all now and ask for your sage advice. If you had it to do all over... What would you do... or try to avoid the most? What is the best place to start and how do I get there? I have noticed that everyone bus journey is a personal one, and no one can judge another until he has driven a mile in the other mans pilot seat. (hehe) I would like to just avoid and many speed bump as possible.
AKThom
P.S. I must be on the right track... My wife thinks I have lost my mind!
I converted a transit since I didn't have the money to buy a highway bus. It was a hard conversion since I spent the first year on my back building the mountings for the generator, tanks, batteries, propane tank, and storage compartment. I've spent a good chunk of money to get the engine to perform right.
If I were buying another bus, I'd buy a 35ft x 102"wide highway bus with under storage, with little or no rust, and the exact power plant you want. Then you'd be able to do a much faster conversion than the 6 years it took me. Good Luck, TomC
Welcome to our crazy world.
When I bought our Eagle I did not know anything about buses. Since that time just over three years ago I have learned much. A lot on this board. Looking back I should have taken the time to study more and glean from others experiences before I dove in.
I bought manuals, read as much as I could and started a plan of attack. Since our coach was already converted I had a good start. It was an older conversion and was not up to date. Asking lots of questions and gathering feedback.
Learn as much as you can about your new coach, electrical, mechanical and pneumatic.
If you plan on doing most of the work yourself, plan ahead and DO IT YOUR WAY. It will take time, you will make changes and probably make mistakes. That is the fun part, understanding how you want it to turn out. If you are pretty handy with your hands you won't have any troubles. Be patient, take your time and most of all BE SAFE.
Happy Trails and Good Luck,
Paul
Dreamscape
Congrads on the new bus. My 2 cents, work backworks... at least in your mind. How much time and money do you want to invest. "Knowing what you want at the end, helps you do it right at the start." (Darn, that sounds profound, has someone already coined that phrase?) Buses are fun, keep it that way.
mak
We cheated by purchasing a "finished" coach. We spent 5 years looking off and on, the last 2 getting pretty serious. When we finally bought we probably got a little lucky - in hindsight we should have gone to physically inspect the unit before picking it up. As it turned out we got a superb coach in pristine condition and we have loved it ever since. The work never ends though. Busses are complex collections of used parts travelling in close formation. They are definitely not a project with a start and end date. The advantage of doing it our way is that we have been able to use ours from day 1 starting with the trip home. The advantage of doing it from scratch is that you will know the systems intimately and everything will be done the way you decided to do it.
Three years on I am still learning how our coach is put together. I just finished changing out the tach and sender. That involved tracing the spaghetti behind the dash back to the sender on the engine just to figure out where the signal was coming from (which turned out to be a cleverly disguised speedo sender mounted on the end of the cam shaft buried at the back of the engine). That sort of adventure could be avoided on your own coach - presumably you will know what you have done to your own bus. My advice though is to make copious notes and drawings. If your memory is anything like mine some of the details will get fuzzy with time. I'm starting to accumulate a collection of drawings and records but still having new adventures in wrench pulling. You do get to meet some of the neatest people along the way - not all of them here either. A local tractor mechanic stopped in one night to help me solve the problem of how to get an AC signal out of my alternator to replace the mechanical signal that the old tach used.
Welcome Thom,
Have a ton of fun with your bus........... and Do it Your Way!
We are here to answer your questions....Fire away!
Happy Trails!
Nick-
I'm pretty new too but have gootten lots of help here so don't be afraid to ask questions good luck on the pproject Jerry
Heck,
I don't even have a bus yet and they answer my questions. :) You have found a great resource and more answers than the law allows. Good luck on your new adventure.
Frank
Quote from: mak on April 29, 2007, 07:12:34 AM
"Knowing what you want at the end, helps you do it right at the start." (Darn, that sounds profound, has someone already coined that phrase?)
Yes, Mike, you right up there with the top-shelf self-help gurus with that statement...
"Begin with the end in mind." -- Stephen Covey, "The Seven Habits of Highly Successful People"
Oh, and welcome to the insanity, Thom!
Quote BTW how do I insert pics?
Thom
Here is one link on the Help board to get you started. There are a few more hints also in some other posts in Help regarding re-sizing photos if necessary. Good luck.
Richard
http://www.busconversions.com/bbs/index.php?topic=298.0
AKThom, you might get something useful if you go to the bus line that took your coach out of service and ask them if they can tell you why they did it. They usually have a good reason for doing it.
Aside of that, I found that getting the manuals early on, and going on a reading jag saved me a lot of wasted effort because of finding out what the coach designers had in mind when they designed your coach.
I recently learned that our coach was designed to signal the driver if a stop light burned out. I had never seen a circuit like that in a motor vehicle.
We're planning a trip to the interior and expect to be in North Pole in early June.
For what it's worth.
Tom Caffrey
The reason the the bus was taken out of service was because the owners, (husband and wife team) were in a car accident and she broke both leg's. While out of service she studied for her realtor's license and started selling homes. It was paying better than the bus gig so after 21 years they sold off the 2 MC9s and the J4500 they sold to a charter co in FL. Thats the story they told me???
Thom
Quote from: AKThom on April 28, 2007, 10:37:18 PM
If you had it to do all over... What would you do...
AKThom
P.S. I must be on the right track... My wife thinks I have lost my mind!
I'd have bought TAMMY WYNETTE'S MCI Custom Coach Bus off ebay & have a COOL bus to start with!
(opening bid of $55,000 & no bids on a very nice & tastefully done 1986 Custom Coach MCI Bus)
But, If I had done that, I wouldn't have a scenicruiser! (Not to mention all the great friends I've met here)
Welcome to the nut house.... The best nut house on the web. These guys will figure out any problems you may have.
For my two cents, find a bus rally and GO TO IT... Let me say that again. Find a bus rally and GO TO IT.
I went to my first in Arcadia, Florida this past Christmas. It was like a two day class on busing 101. These guys will take the time to show you anything and everything you want to know. If they don't have it on their bus, they will take you down the long row of motor coaches until they find someone that does.
Ask away,,,, I do,,, some days I swim :) some days I drown.... :( But the board always helps me see the light.
Welcome,,,, and thanks guys,
Bill
84 MCI-9
Currently in Phoenix
Quote from: kyle4501 on April 30, 2007, 09:47:25 AM
I'd have bought TAMMY WYNETTE'S MCI Custom Coach Bus off ebay & have a COOL bus to start with!
(opening bid of $55,000 & no bids on a very nice & tastefully done 1986 Custom Coach MCI Bus)
But, If I had done that, I wouldn't have a scenicruiser! (Not to mention all the great friends I've met here)
Hey Kyle you couldn't go wrong buying Tammy's old bus! I personally know that bus as a very good friend of mine (who I have learned tons about MCI's from, as he eat, sleeps, thinks, & breathes MCI's) had that bus at his place for a while and she had him go through everything on it. I mean every thing! They went through it with a fine tooth comb, from front bumper to the trailer hitch ball & from the bottoms of the tires to the top of the satelite dome! Then she died just before it was to be picked up from his shop, and it sat for another yr before the BIL who is selling it on ebay finally came paid the bill & picked it up! Whoever buys that coach will be getting a fine piece of equipment, as well as a piece of country music history memorabilia! I'd love love to have it, but then I'd love to have a brand new Setra S417 shell with no payments too! BK ;D
PS. WOW this is just too cool! My spelling has been sooo bad, that somehow Phil has it so that a spell check bar pops up at the bottom before I send the post! Ain't that cooler than a cocktail waitress in a Dolly Partin WIG?
AKThom,
If you had it to do all over... What would you do... or try to avoid the most?
I would search a little harder & possibly spend a bit more to get newer engine/mechanical technology. Despite my efforts of having the engine inspected prior to purchasing, I am still fighting engine problems with this old 2-stroke 6V92T.....wish I had a 4-stroke with more effecient & reliable technology. :( So make sure your bus is mechanically sound & reliable before throwing alot of $$ at the cosmetic stuff.