Hello from a new member....

[RJ]

Brad -

I'll echo the others in saying welcome aboard the madness.  Bus Nut Fever is, as of now, incurable - once you've got it, it stays with you forever (I got it when I was 3 years old, myself. . .)!

Seriously, seriously, seriously consider purchasing a unit that's already finished.  There are a LOT of great buys out there right now, due to the depressed economy.  But shop carefully, it's very easy to buy a bus, but much more difficult to sell a mistake!  Did I mention to seriously look for a finished unit?

Buy the newest unit you can stretch to afford, with an automatic transmission.  The cost of converting a manual to an automatic is far greater than the additional upfront cost of buying one already equipped.

You've got one little one on the way right now. . . how many more are you & Mama planning?  That may have some bearing on what you should look for.  My daughter & her family need sleeping accommodations for seven, whereas a lot of busnuts live by the rule "seats eight, feeds four, sleeps two." 

Unless an incredible deal pokes it's head up in your area between now and January, plan on making the trip to Jack Conrad's big bus rally in Arcadia, FL over New Year's.  There will be over 100 coaches in attendance, and every busnut there will gladly share their war stories with a newbie, and frequently give you tours.  Make sure you've got a digital camera along - invaluable for remembering those "neat ideas" that this creative bunch can come up with, especially in terms of space utilization.  Well worth the "investment" of your time for the trip.

Keep doing your homework, too!  Besides the pages and pages of stuff on this BBS, be sure to check out the other major, www.busnut.com  In addition to a huge archive of material, there are also a large number of "Articles of Interest" that cover a multitude of conversion topics you'll find worth reading.  Also, within the Yahoo Groups community, there are also some brand-specific groups (MCI, Eagles, GMC, Prevost, etc.) that have active bbs's, files and photos.  There's a vast amount of material available to help you with your fever.

And don't forget that the only dumb question is the one that hasn't been asked yet! 

(Of course, on this board especially, you'll frequently get humorous dumb answers, too!)   

Again, welcome aboard!

FWIW & HTH. . .

[Dreamscape]

Did anyone say Welcome Yet? 

There is not much left to say after all of the previous replys!

Hope you find the coach that has your name on it!

Happy Trails,

Paul

[Barn Owl]

1. Welcome

2. Buy a nice already done bus so you can spend time with the family.

[PP]

Hi Brad,
   Welcome and ask away.  You will not find a nicer, friendlier, more knowledgeable bunch of busnuts anywhere.  Jack

Diddo from Will and Wife

[turbobrat930]

Thanks for all the welcomes and kind words..!!

I more than likely will be more interested in getting a bus that has already ben converted. So, I can enjoy it now, and modify things when I have time. I just want to make sure that the previous owner(s) did things right...so that would be my only hang up. But, If I end up changing the whole interior out down the road... It might be more cost effective to star from scratch..and do it the right way, the first time.

Like I said, I am new to the bus as a form of RV. I have a friend who has a 84 Wanderlodge, that i ahve driven a time or two. That is what got me hooked instead of buyng a prefab class A RV... like a bounder, etc. it was so quiet up front in the Wanderlodge. Even though it is a relic of the 80's and even still has the close to shag brown carpet...LOL

I will post more once I get more time... In a day or two...

Circusboy90210, Are you referring to the racecar?

[circusboy90210]

  yes i[m making reference to your race car. I love cars even more than busses. ;-) used to hang out in nascar fabrications facility's asa kid. (banjo matthews asheville nc.,) & dave marcus racing shop. they still make alot of race engines for nascar teams @ barnes & reese down the street from my house. not to mentino that there are probably 10 team shops within 50miles of my house.  John finger hillclimbing racer is 6 miles away in greenville. Jammie james motorcycle racer used to work out at the spa lady 2 blocks away, not to mention quite a few other people in my neighborhood.

[Songman]

Welcome to the forum, Brad. Like others have said, there are lots of great deals on already done buses. And if you can find one that is built kinda like what you have in mind you can probably get a great deal on it. But with your credentials, I don't know that you might not enjoy building one just for you, just the way you want it. I looked at a couple of already done buses. I decided to build my own because I don't find many built the way I want mine to be. Yeah, it'll take longer but in the end it will be exactly what I want and I will know every wire, fastener, and circuit in it. There is something rewarding about that.

Have fun and welcome! No matter which bus you pick, it will be much better than any S&S you could have picked up.

[luvrbus]

Brad, welcome 35 is a good age to start you may be finshed by the age of 62 as for bus makes and models they have yet to make one without sins so no matter what you buy be prepeared to deal with it.    good luck

[turbobrat930]

yes i[m making reference to your race car. I love cars even more than busses. ;-) used to hang out in nascar fabrications facility's asa kid. (banjo matthews asheville nc.,) & dave marcus racing shop. they still make alot of race engines for nascar teams @ barnes & reese down the street from my house. not to mentino that there are probably 10 team shops within 50miles of my house.  John finger hillclimbing racer is 6 miles away in greenville. Jammie james motorcycle racer used to work out at the spa lady 2 blocks away, not to mention quite a few other people in my neighborhood.

Well, I am not into Nascar... ( Cant undersatnd how someone can enjoy just taking left turns!! LOL  )... But I can understand how one could get into it. Esp, if as a child, you got to hang out in the fab area of a raceshop.. that would have been awesome.

I am into Formula 1 and have friends that race in the Grand-Am's Rolex series (GT division) and also the SCCA, and PCA club racing.

I turned my racecar back into a streetcar, as racing was just getting to costly and time consuming (gas alone was close to 10 to 15 bucks a gallon!). Here are a few pictures of the car, and the motor that I just got done rebuilding. I have about 160 Hours alone into the crankcase just in polishing! I still have to build the header system for it, nd purchase a few more items and them it will be back on the road. Stock this car had about 300Hp and weighed in at 3200LBS... Now it will have about 700 to 750 HP...and weighs only 2000 LBS... should be a rocket!. Over half the car is C/F (carbon fiber)...

Notice the sfety wire around the case halves..... just a nice added touch....

I also have posted a few pictures of my Jeep rock crawler that I built. I still have it and is one of the toys that I will sell to finance the bus purchase... It took me a little over three years to build the Jeep from the frame up.. To include lengthing the frame one foot, and installing a corvette motor with 330 HP.... enjoy....

[JackConrad]

TurboRat,
   I just have 1 thing to say WOW!!!!   Beautiful work on both vehicles!  Jack

[junkman42]

Brad, run very fast away from the bus disease!  It is not possible for a motor head like You to own a detroit.  There is not time in ones life to clean it to the level that You operate on!  LOL  I once had a engine like Yours, I just could never understand a engine without head gaskets!  And I can assure You that after the cam gear fiasco I never touched it again.  Welcome to the madness,We old people need fresh minds.  John

[turbobrat930]

Brad, run very fast away from the bus disease!  It is not possible for a motor head like You to own a detroit.  There is not time in ones life to clean it to the level that You operate on!  LOL  I once had a engine like Yours, I just could never understand a engine without head gaskets!  And I can assure You that after the cam gear fiasco I never touched it again.  Welcome to the madness,We old people need fresh minds.  John

John, yes... you understand my pain.. I would definitely try to make a DD as clean as the Porsche motor. i keep on reading about how they love to leak oil... how they "sweat" oil..and if one is not leaking...it must be out of oil!..

If I did purchase a bus with a DD... I would "attempt" to make it clean. Question is... Why do they leak so much? Is it just age? Are the parts not machined good enough where there are gaskets? Is it just because most have been neglected over the years?

Is it even possible to make one leak free?

My goal on the vehicles that I have built is to be able to check all the fluids in the engine compartment while wearing a suit and tie. Once I can do that... it is clean enough.

Once again thanks for all the warm welcomes...and for the compliments...

Brad

[zubzub]

welcome, and fear not, somewhere out there there is a guy with a very sharp scenicruiser.  Powder coated suspension bits and all.  Can't find the link right now.  That being said if you can find conversion that is already in good shape you will move along faster.  It is amazing how long it takes to do stuff on a bus compared to a car, just walking back and forth from the engine to the cockpit takes another bite out of the day......

[JackConrad]

If I did purchase a bus with a DD... I would "attempt" to make it clean. Question is... Why do they leak so much? Is it just age? Are the parts not machined good enough where there are gaskets? Is it just because most have been neglected over the years?
Brad

Probably all of the above.  DD uses copper washers on certain bolts for sealing as well as O rings in addtion to gaskets. Some mechanic to not install these properly and some may need retorqued as time passes.  Jack

[circusboy90210]

welcome, and fear not, somewhere out there there is a guy with a very sharp scenicruiser.  Powder coated suspension bits and all.  Can't find the link right now.  That being said if you can find conversion that is already in good shape you will move along faster.  It is amazing how long it takes to do stuff on a bus compared to a car, just walking back and forth from the engine to the cockpit takes another bite out of the day......

my guess is this is why somebody invented "remote"starters & guages.