4905 Mud Flap height??

[Rick Brown]

Greetings Friends:
After getting water in my trans oil while driving in heavy rain I decided it was time to replace the rear mud flaps.  All that remains of the existing flap is about one inch at the top where it was protected my the mounting bar.  Does anybody know how far they are supposed to hang down, or the total vertical height including mounting area?  My plan is to have new flaps cut from about 1/4 inch neoprene by the local Gates Rubber house; unless somebody here points out why that is a dumb idea.
Thanks
-RickBrown in Reno, NV

[FloridaCliff]

Rick,

I made my replacements out of 3/8 conveyor belt, they need to be stiff to stay vertical.

I cut them so they are about 2-3 inches above the ground when aired up.

Only down side to the install was that I now have to put the bus on ramps or a pit to get past the flap.

It made a big difference on consistant engine temps in all terrains as well as keeping the engine door and rear of the bus cleaner.

Cliff

[RJ]

Rick -

Not sure if neoprene is the correct material - it's pretty flexible, and most mud flaps are pretty stiff.  Check out some of the truck style at one of the truck stops there in Reno or Sparks.   IIRC, lots of busnuts have used conveyor belt material with good success.

I trust that you're going to be replacing the entire "mud flap" all the way across the coach behind the rear axle, restoring what was OEM? 

Anyway, per the GM Coach Classified Catalog, the "Splash Apron" sizes are as follows (all dimensions are in inches):


Center Section:  3/16 x 9 x 34

Outer Sections:  3/16 x 9 x 25 1/4


Naturally, we want "before 'n after" photos!!!

FWIW & HTH. . .

[JohnEd]

Rick,

I used conveyer belt.  I got it from a shop that builds conveyer belts for the various manufacturing concers around here.  They throw away TONS of that material.  I got 50 feet in 5 pieces.  Could have had longer if I wanted.

You got a passel of great advice from RJ and Clifford.

HTH

John

[Barn Owl]

They throw away TONS of that material.

No kidding! Find anyone that deals with the stuff and you should find more than you would ever need. The stuff makes a killer weed mat, horse mat, work mat, wood pile cover, poor man's pavement, pickup truck bed liner, mud flaps and on and on...... I have it everywhere and I find new uses for it everyday. Don't pay for it! Just save someone a trip to the landfill and haul it off for them....HTH

[Charles in SC]

Hi there, the flap on my S8M 5303 just about touches the ground when the air is down. This flap is pretty important to the correct engine cooling. As I understand it the flap creates a low pressure behind when traveling down the road that sucks air through the radiator. Mine looks like it is 3/8 inch thick.