Blocks of wood a good idea?

[Tedsoldbus]

I guess I am lucky that my bus takes about 2 weeks to sag, but with this cold and 3 weeks of not running it I think it is sitting as low as I have seen it. I managed to peak underneath it and the air bags do not look happy. Am I worrying too much (as usual) or do some of you put blocks of wood under the suspension with maybe a 2 inch gap when it is fully aired up so it settles on that and not squash the air bags?
I'll have to remember to let it fully air up and pull those before I move (add to pre taxi checklist...)

[buswarrior]

Are the rubber axle bump stops present?

Otherwise, nothing to worry about.

Missing, plan to replace sometime when it is warmer. Or not...

Many bus conversions are deflated before dinner time...

Happy coaching!
Buswarrior

[Tedsoldbus]

Thanks Buswarrior. Will look harder for front front bump stops or where they used to be. Last time we had it in the air I did not see them or where they should be? I need to have a guy that knows look because it is the front that is sagging. The back bump stops are badly cracked and I have new ones from Luke. They had to come from Prevost, so we will have to stop supporting the nieces as far as that college thing....
Scheduled to change those in a couple of weeks when we change out the HT 740 bolt on with the spin on filter housing. (also from "thank you" Luke) Two things I think it worth putting the bus on the lift again since they are so far into the belly.
Hope you guys up north are ok. Just checked the weather channel because we have a storm passing through. Hey Chessie, got fuel in the snow blower? State College making national news. Hope you can all stay off the road for a bit
Best regards,
Ted

[chessie4905]

Not an issue yet. I don't break out the plow till at least 6" inches. I use a Sunjoe electric for the pathways. Just need to watch the power cord.lol I have a small garbage can full of grit and and a bit of snow melter. Use a grain scoop to coat the steps and paths out front so no falls.
Anymore, ice is a bigger issue than snow.

[Tedsoldbus]

Many of us live vicariously through you since to take your bus all over in the summer and tell us what you see along the way. Please keep that bus off the ice and salt for a while and I hope you wear your gum rubber shoes. Until this ice storm passes, when you venture out make deliberate moves. We are getting brittle.

[buswarrior]

Ice?

Don't fool around. There's the folks who have slipped, and wish they didn't, and then the ones who haven't slipped yet...

Steel bits under the heel seem to be missing from many offered for sale.

Learn vicariously from the old men, or experience it yourself?

Happy coaching!
Buswarrior

[Tedsoldbus]

You are in Canada. You are expected to have lumberjack stuff.
The Spring we left Alaska for assignment in Colorado I was walking from the commissary with arms full of groceries. I was in uniform so I was wearing those shiny black leather boots with the Vibram soles. There was 2 inches of ice and the sun was out and I knew that wet ice is the worst, so I thought I was slowing down enough as I got to my truck. In a split second, the groceries flew out of my arms and I was looking at the tops of my boots. Bad part is the boots were level with my head. I had a very brief moment to think "This is gonna hurt".
The X ray showed a very small crack in one of my vertebrae. Nothing they could do for it. It was not so bad. For about a month it only hurt when I was awake.
I love Georgia......

[dtcerrato]

In earlier years while working in California as a union carpenter we used to scramble to the high mountains on the week ends mainly to get above the smog in clean fresh cold air. Lots of times everything was iced over so improvising we took a handful of drywall screws and sprinkled them onto sticky side up duct tape and wrapped it around our shoes and walked, ran, played being able to stay on our feet. I've got some crampon ice climbing skills and gotta say the drywall screws worked marvelous. It would be great to carry such items if wintering in that kind of risk.

[RJ]

Hope you guys up north are ok.

Ted - 

Just another day in paradise. . .

[Busted Knuckle]

Ted - 

Just another day in paradise. . .

RJ I'm beginning to think you and Dan have been touched by a little too much sunshine from living in CA an FL so long! That doesn't LOOK ANYTHING like my idea of Paradise an Dan wants to winter in AK in his bus! (that'd be fine, but ya have to leave the bus sometime!)
  BK 

[Sebulba]

I guess I am lucky that my bus takes about 2 weeks to sag, but with this cold and 3 weeks of not running it I think it is sitting as low as I have seen it. I managed to peak underneath it and the air bags do not look happy. Am I worrying too much (as usual) or do some of you put blocks of wood under the suspension with maybe a 2 inch gap when it is fully aired up so it settles on that and not squash the air bags?
I'll have to remember to let it fully air up and pull those before I move (add to pre taxi checklist...)

Glad to see this thread.  I felt the same way about mine.  Firstly I figured less stress on the air bags if they go down all the way.  Bu the real motivator was that the rig just looks a little derelict when the bags are down.

What I did was cut 4 2 x 6s about 8 inches long and some 1 x 4 the same and then screwed the 1 x 4 at a 90 degree angle in the middle of the 2 x 6.  The 2 x 4 acts as a little handle and makes it a little easier the reach.

This holds the bus up about 2 1/4 inches and seems to be working.

Seb

[Tedsoldbus]

Wow RJ.
That is a sad bus picture, but I showed it to my bus so it quits sniveling about being out in the weather. Rita and I loved our years in Alaska and Colorado but we don't miss the snow. However, we are about to get 3 inches Saturday night.

In getting back to bus things: This particular snow is keeping me from pouring the slab for my bus barn on Friday. My concrete guy said snow on a new slab is not a good thing. Since I only know two things about concrete (it is grey and it cracks) we will do what he says and wait until next week. It was sunny all this week but the county inspector for the footers took 4 days to sign off because there is so much construction going on. Oh well. Gives me something to do. We postponed out Florida trip since Rita does not want to travel until this Covid spike settles down a bit.
The guy before me tore out the "hip" purple shag carpet and put in that vinal flooring. It kept getting small gaps when it gets in the teens, so I put in a small tower oscillating heater from Wally World.  It keeps the bus about 50 even on cold nights. The flooring is staying snug and I opened the doors under both sinks in case I did not get enough pink in all the pipes.
If I burn my bus to the ground, it was a bad idea....

[chessie4905]

Ah yes, concrete. Guy that did my apron in front of shop a few years ago, screwed around till late November to pour it. Below freezing temps at night. Had to cover with plastic and a foot of old bales of hay. 40x20x6" takes a lot of bales. Left it covered for three months till March.

[Van]

RJ I'm beginning to think you and Dan have been touched by a little too much sunshine from living in CA an FL so long! That doesn't LOOK ANYTHING like my idea of Paradise an Dan wants to winter in AK in his bus! (that'd be fine, but ya have to leave the bus sometime!)
  BK 

[Tedsoldbus]

I thought I was funny,,,,
Van wins the funniest thing of the day!!
Still chuckling about it an hour after I read it.

This darn Covid has she who must be obeyed twitchy about a trip south. After the snow from this weekend melts, looks like the next exciting outing will be the 90 minutes south trip to Costco to get supplies for us and our 4 elderly neighbors. At least I get to hear the DD come to life and air up my poor sagging bus.