Breakdown Alert

zimmysurprise · April 29, 2019, 10:05:26 AM

Hello all- I think I lost a blower seal in my 8v71 just South of Chattanooga Tennessee. Working on getting it off the road now anybody have any tips on a shop close? Thanks

Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM · April 29, 2019, 10:57:08 AM

Call Don at Choo Choo Express in Rossville, GA. Looks like he is only a few miles from you in Google. He should be able to get you going. 423 645 7456

eagle19952 · April 29, 2019, 12:23:46 PM

Quote from: Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM on April 29, 2019, 10:57:08 AM
Call Don at Choo Choo Express in Rossville, GA. Looks like he is only a few miles from you in Google. He should be able to get you going. 423 645 7456

best bet..what he said...

zimmysurprise · April 29, 2019, 05:24:47 PM

Thanks that's exactly what I did. Now a guest in his yard.

Oonrahnjay · April 29, 2019, 05:38:50 PM

Quote from: zimmysurprise on April 29, 2019, 05:24:47 PMThanks that's exactly what I did. Now a guest in his yard.

Even if you had to drive (or get towed) a ways, it was still the right thing to do.

Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM · April 30, 2019, 12:00:34 PM

Glad you got it towed to a reputable place. Don knows his buses and he will take care of you.

Gary

DoubleEagle · April 30, 2019, 04:45:16 PM

I thought there were postings to the effect that Choo-Choo was closed when someone else broke down this winter.

Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM · April 30, 2019, 07:25:04 PM

Don plans to officially close his shop sometime between March and May. Don is a nice guy. If someone needs help, he will probably either come out himself or let people know who to call. I know a lot of retired mechanics that close down but will help friends and people who treat them right.

I suspect Don will be around and available for a few more months yet but does want to wind down how much work he does.

zimmysurprise · May 03, 2019, 08:22:16 AM

Well Don and his mechanic Joel were a true blessing! Don doesn't get around much and Joel has some medical issues that keep him from doing any physical work, but with their two brains and my two hands we pulled the blower, replaced the spring set, and got me on the road in 48 hours. He let us stay in his yard in the bus and was a great host to my wife and I. The longest wait was getting gaskets, so I spent some time pulling parts off his old scrap GM new look and cut a deal with him.

We spent some time listening to stories and looking at pictures of the Choo Choo Express in hits prime, with 15 buses in a line, Travis Tritt, LeAnn Rhymes and Burt Reynolds (among others) in his yard. He still has a dozen buses, from a barely savable Flxible to a roadworthy MCI ready for conversion with no apparent future. His shop, sheds, and yard are full of cargo doors, blowers, cats (not the engines), transmissions, and you name it. Developers have gobbled up the property around him and are building town houses 15 feet from an American Eagle which is nearly complete.

Heading north was a sad time. If we were full-timers, we would have asked him if we could stay there for a couple months and sort and inventory his parts for him. I know you need something he has, and he could use the money. It would be great to list the parts he has, but he doesn't have much love for the internet, "that Gary don't even print a magazine on paper no more!"

In the end, he took care of us and we took care of him. When I left and shook his hand, I told him (and Joel) that the saddest part was that places like his, and people like them, just won't be around in 50 years. You won't find a spare blower with the part you need in a pile of starters and turbos, or the brains that know how to get you on the road. Not sure how somebody like me will be able to keep the old girl on the road.

Oonrahnjay · May 03, 2019, 10:03:41 AM

Quote from: zimmysurprise on May 03, 2019, 08:22:16 AM(snip) In the end, he took care of us and we took care of him. When I left and shook his hand, I told him (and Joel) that the saddest part was that places like his, and people like them, just won't be around in 50 years. You won't find a spare blower with the part you need in a pile of starters and turbos, or the brains that know how to get you on the road. Not sure how somebody like me will be able to keep the old girl on the road.

I think you're right, and it is sad. Only thing is that I think it's going to be more like 10 years. People don't pay attention to their neighbors any more, and few go to church or join in any other community. I just hope it won't completely go that way before I have to leave.

GnarlyBus · May 03, 2019, 10:36:18 AM

It's amazing how troubles on the road often become the best stories, once they're through! Thanks for sharing!