Bus wieght

[jjrbus]

 I've said I'm going to get my bus wieghted tomorrow for 5 or 6 years now.  But every time I am near a scale I have the toad attached.
I've seen these " all trucks must enter wieght station when open"  all over but was under the impression that they were for trucks only.  I was stopped down the road from one in Florida and decided to stop and ask. The man told me they were not suppose to do motorhomes, but if I brought it in when he was there he had no problem doing it. So I drove down and had it wieghted. The results are      Front 11,060
          Rear 18,620
           Total  29,680
This is with all tanks full.  The bus is a 79 MCI5C Saudi model 6V71 slushbox. The wieght is much higher than I expected. Any comparisons out there?

[larryh]

1974 4905

front 10880

rear 16700 about 95 percent done all main componets in water tank full fuel 2/3 full

LarryH

[RJ]

JJRBus -

My 4106 currently is:

Front = 6980
Rear = 13380
Total = 20360

All glass in place (including the rare, unbroken rear!)
Interior stripped except for driver's and one set of passenger seats on each side.
HVAC components still aboard.
3/4 tank fuel.
Empty bays (when I ran it across the scales).

Lightweight right now, eh?

[Dallas]

I've said I'm going to get my bus wieghted tomorrow for 5 or 6 years now.  But every time I am near a scale I have the toad attached.
I've seen these " all trucks must enter wieght station when open"  all over but was under the impression that they were for trucks only.  I was stopped down the road from one in Florida and decided to stop and ask. The man told me they were not suppose to do motorhomes, but if I brought it in when he was there he had no problem doing it. So I drove down and had it wieghted. The results are      Front 11,060
          Rear 18,620
           Total  29,680
This is with all tanks full.  The bus is a 79 MCI5C Saudi model 6V71 slushbox. The wieght is much higher than I expected. Any comparisons out there?

Just as a point of information,

Many state scale weighmasters don't mind having you enter their weigh station for an axle weight or even a gross weight.

The problem comes if you exceed the allowable gross weights on any axle.

They love having someone come in with over 12K on a steering axle. All of a sudden, it's no longer fun, that will give them probable cause for looking deeper into the possible problems you may have.

By the way (weigh?  ) if you are over on the steering, and Jim you are approaching that magic number, you will be fined. Many states have a basic fee plus so much per pound over.

If it were me, I'd never, ever voluntarily pull into a State operated weigh station.

I once saw a guy in southern Idaho pull into the McCammon scales with his class C S&S. He was towing a closed in tandem axle trailer. As he pulled across the scale he got red lighted and then the fun began. There were DOT guys in the little suits and creepers going all over that poor guys MH.

I don't have any idea if he got any infractions or not, but I am sure he was pooping blood and peeing hairballs.

I just don't want to give them a chance to be interested in me.

IHTH

Dallas

[Buffalo SpaceShip]

Wowsers, that is pretty heavy, JJR. I guess there's a price to pay for all that shiny MCI stainless steel.  My similar, but more-sprightly 35' GMC 4108 (with the non-bling aluminum panels) fully-converted w/ 8V71 and Allison auto tipped the scales recently at 25,500#. I had a lot of fuel but very little water onboard at the time.

But maybe there's some stashed Saudi gold on-board someplace. Hmm... 

I'm told that Russ plans to use helium-filled conversion components... so his coach may actually weigh even less when complete. 

Sorry, I'm feeling pretty goofy right now,
Brian "Still Stuck in Texas" Brown

[TomC]

With my not so dainty 40ft transit, fully loaded with the wife aboard, 10,500lb front, 20,500lb rear which is no where near the 13,000lb front and the 23,000lb rear rating. 
12,000lb fronts apply to commercial trucks.  Buses, motorhomes, don't apply.  At least in Calif, they are more concerned with if you have enough tire rating to support the weight.  That's why some buses are using 365/65-22.5 in front and tags, with 315/80-22.5 on the drivers.  Also, Calif has a 20,000lb per axle rating, front or rear, with no more than 34,000lb on a tandem, and no more than 80,000lb for the complete vehicle.  Other states maybe different (we live in 48 separate countries, not states).   Good Luck, TomC

[H3Jim]

1995 H3-41

Front    10,580
Duals    17,460
tag    10,520
total    38,560

3/4 tank of fuel and 1,000 lbs of desert toys.  I have since installed more cabinets and countertops.  Now that they are in, the bus bus finally drives right.  For a long time I tought there was something th=wrong with it, as it was all over the road, kind of a h andful to keep gonig straight.  Now witha little weight, it finally is stable, straight and smooth.

Max vehicle load   
Front    16,500
Duals    22,500
tag    14,000
   

GVW    52,500

[DMoedave]

Hey Jr, our 35' GM weighed in at 22,000 converted, running lite(tanks empty closets and pantry empty and no gen set) You can go to any truck stop and run the scales for small fee. How does your bus perform with that engine trans setup and do you know your rear end ratio? thanks David

[donnreeves]

35' RTS fully converted, full fuel, empty holding tanks, empty bays-26,200 lbs. Donn

[ChuckMC9]

I haven't posted in a long time but just had to 'weigh-in' on this one.

I strongly suspect the inaccuracy of some scales.

I've had my MC9 weighed three times with results that were, well, impossible.

March 2005 26,980
Aug. 2006 28,340
Oct. 2006 29,280

My conversion is very minimal, weightwise.
All times with empty tanks, without the house batts installed.

A little fuel difference, but not much.

There is *no way* that I have gained 1.5 tons in one year.

This is all at the *same* "Cat Certified" scales. I'm gonna find a different place and see what the result is.

[Ed Hackenbruch]

1968 MCI 5A fully  loaded.  Front axle  10,150 lbs.  Rear axle 17,300 lbs.   Sometimes in Oregon on the secondary roads you can find unmanned weigh stations  where you can weigh....have done this several times.

[H3Jim]

ChuckMC9,

Confucius say man with three watches never know what time it is.  Does taht also apply to weighing your bus?

Unless she's gaining weight from not being used )

[jjrbus]

 Thanks for posting that Chuck. I have a gut feeling that the figures are not right!!! If memory serves me right (it never does) the bus wieght from the factory was 22K. I find it hard to belive that I have added 7,000 lbs to it. Or maybe the bus  wieght was more to start with.
DemoeDave  The bus performs like a slug. I'm always worried about getting a ticket for loitering on hills!!!  My friend Jerry Jenkinson helped me check the rear end, the figure we came up with is  4:10

[TomC]

My empty bus was 28,000lb.  Now at 31,000lb-so added 3,000lb.  When you think about that, its the weight of a medium sized car!  Good Luck, TomC

[eglluvr]

ChuckMC9,

Confucius say man with three watches never know what time it is.  Does taht also apply to weighing your bus?

Unless she's gaining weight from not being used )

Jeez Chuck, I Just told my wife that that was my problem, Ginig weight from not being used, and she told me to "Go Use Urself"   

Jim