New Life!

[Mark B]

My granny never looked like that!

Mark

[Jones'n4chrome]

Ginger,
That bus is in very good condition. Nice score!
It is nice to see you in the photo as well.
As far the seat, it is hard to tell from the pics, but it looks like there might be a pinch bolt in the front.
What I would do is stop by your local school district that has a maintenance yard, ask one of the tech's if they could give you some advice about the seat.
Also you could take a few more pics, but put some white poster paper behind the seat first, than try to get some closeup shots.

Chuck

[Granny]

Thanks Chuck, I already lowered the seat about two inches today. That made a world of difference. I can at least reach the floor now, and the throttle. Imagine that, being able to reach the throttle. You were right, there was a pinch type bolt in the front, that when loosened (along with the one on the side), allowed the seat to move. It originally sprung up, and I had to weight it down and tighten the bolts while holding it down. At least now the seat is fixed. I have half the floor stripping removed, most of the screws out of another 1/4 of it, some of the screws out of the inside walls (I get about an 1/8 of the ones I try), and half of the old school name and Identifying info sanded off. I think I will call it a day, my hands are starting to hurt. Oh, I also got the "stop" arm removed. For a second today, I thought I could fly. Ok, I'll explain that. While standing in the center of the opening of my back door, hanging outside, sanding the "school bus" painting from the top between the child safety lights, I lost my frame of mind and tried flying (I let go of the door frame with the hand that wasn't holding the sander). I think I'm going to end up with bruises, the ground is pretty hard in my driveway.

[Mark R. Obtinario]

That bus seat has a lever on the end of a bolt that will loosen the collar that holds the seat up. Loosen the bolt, press down on another lever on the front of the seat post, and the seat should go down.

The seat should also have an adjustment for fore and aft travel. It should be on the front left side or on the front side of the seat. Pulling or pushing the lever releases the dogs that hold the seat in position. You should then be able to move the seat fore and aft easily. It may take some lubrication to allow the seat to move.

In regards to the tires, I wouldn't worry about them.

Unless you get your bus totally converted and road ready within the next 24-months your tires will most likely need to be replaced at that point anyway, even if they were brand new now.

Are they at least all the same size and type? The left front wheel almost looks like a tube type while the right front wheel looks like a tubeless wheel.

Good luck.

If you have any specific questions feel free to contact me.

[Granny]

Mark, looks like we were posting at the same time. Yes, my front tires match, and are in good to excellent shape. The back tires all match, sizes are the same, etc., but are a little bald. Yes, I will hold off on them for now. I am planning to at least get the bus far enough along to use before summer. I have a couple road trips planned with New Life this summer. Of course, it won't be finished by then, but will be functional and something I can at least "camp" in.

[Mark R. Obtinario]

You are probably doing the smartest thing when converting/building something for the first time.

One can draw on paper something that looks good but when put in place it just doesn't work.

Using cardboard cutouts or masking tape on the floor to similate what your final look will be can save you a lot of tearing out and starting over.

When you are wide in the beam like I am narrow aisles just don't cut it. Small toilet spaces are also a bad idea. All of which are hard to change when it is all nailed/glued/screwed into place.

Putting the water and grey tanks inside rather than under the bus will make it much easier to use the bus all year long in any climate. Keeping tanks from freezing can be difficult when it gets below 20* F.

Good luck and happy trails.

Mark O.
Winlock, WA

[Sharkey]

Putting the water and grey tanks inside rather than under the bus will make it much easier to use the bus all year long in any climate. Keeping tanks from freezing can be difficult when it gets below 20* F.

Heh, ask Rudy about that one...

[Rudy]

Ha Ha, Sharkey. Yes, it is a good idea to have your tanks inside the bus. That way you don't have 75 gallons of frozen turds because your waste tank is under the bus exposed to the elements. I had to be a bear in the woods for a few days. Not a fun thing to do when it is 15 degrees outside.

[Granny]

Thanks guys. I am not even nearly ready to start construction, got alot of de-construction to do first. But I will for sure keep your words of wisdom in mind. I already wanted to put my clean water tanks inside - say under my benches for the table. My old slide in pickup camper had the water tanks that way. I like having lots of "free" clearance under the bus. If anything goes there, it won't hang below the driving gear, and will be mostly storage compartments. I want to be able to take New Life off road on occassion. And, I am sure with each step, I will be asking for lots of input and advice. Thanks everyone.

[Granny]

Chuck, I wasn't able to find an impact driver without spending hundreds, but the proper bit is working great to get those screws out. I am breaking them free by hand, then will use my electric drill to spin them the rest of the way out. So far, I'm hitting 90%, will figure out the other 10% when I get there. However, I could use my ball peen hammer on my "hand driver", and see if that helps. (taking out the inside metal)
Rudy Rudy Rudy, sorry for your problems. I will attempt to learn from them.

[Granny]

I thought about coming in sounding all irate for the "comments" in "my" bus thread , but was concerned some might think I was being serious. Too funny guys.

However.............
I just thought up a terrific plan - for what "I" want. Now, I just need to figure out how to build it (which I think I can do). I want a "trundle" type of bed in my master bedroom. I don't want another bed underneath, I want slide out storage space, kind of like a big drawer that pulls out on rollers. Then, I can put a latch on it to hold it in when we are traveling. Brilliant, just brilliant. There is no egotism in my family, I got it all. I had kind of been thinking of putting my clean water tank under my bed, but decided against that. I will put my clean water storage tank in the bunk bed area, under the bottom bunk. I was just out in the bus, putting masking tape on some of the windows that I think I want to remove. It was too cold out there to stay out too long looking things over (I'm still in my jammies). I also want to take out the back heater, that came in the bus, but leave the front side heater. The back heater, I had thought of leaving because it will be under my bed, but have realized it will need to come out. I will be traveling down the road in my rolling home more than most of the rest of you, so would like to be able to keep the "engine heaters" as much as I can, for the warmth when rolling.
What do you guys think of my ideas so far? Thoughts are accepted, advice appreciated, I'll listen - and make my own decisions.
Rudy, would you please take back your frozen turd talk to your own thread, thank you very much .
Oh, could I replace that back heater with a different style of one, and relocate it just a little?
____________________
Just a little side note here: People thought I might have been serious, and upset over the "turd" talk. I was joking. And, I appreciate the warning. Thanks.

[Rudy]

...two green eyes are rollin' down the street, and I forgot my spoon.

[Granny]

After much consideration and talk with the guys in chat tonight, the back heater will be scrapped all together. So, I will disconnect and remove the lines to it for it's removal. I think I will miss that heater, but don't see much other choice.
Today, I got the child safety lights removed. Oh how clever I was. I had these holes (that I will weld metal into when I get back to Boise with the bus) from where the lights were. I needed something to cover them with temporarily. I took plastic lids from margarine tubs, and screwed them over the holes for now. At least they will keep the water out till I get a chance to fix them right. I put a little caulking on them to help seal. However, I only had two, so must come up with something else for the other 6 holes. It shouldn't be too hard, now that I have it figured out. I was tickled that those amber and red lens covers were the same as the brake and turn light covers. Yep, I'll hang on to them for spares.

[dburt]

You must not be a redneck Ginger, or you would have a complete set of matching breakfast bowls marked "Cool Whip" or "Butter" and have all the lids saved for use as frisbees for the kids and grandkids. You could have taken all those lids, painted them the same color as the bus will be, and with lots of silicone calking. . . . . .

I forgot to add the duct tape, no self respecting redneck would pass on such a chance to use duct tape!

[Granny]

Too funny DB. I guess my cover is blown. And here I thought I was a true redneck.

I will have a few pictures to put up later.

I would like to take a moment here to enlighten everyone on the "true" meaning of an "expert".
ex= has been, past, all washed up.
spirt= drip under pressure.
Now, in light of this definition, please never call me an expert. I don't claim to be one, don't want to be one. Anything I post here, is not done to profess to be the best or only way to do things, just how I did it.
As I can't get pictures up by myself, I will beg of Rudy to post them for me. My chains that came with my bus were soaking wet and rusting. I should have cleaned them up the day I got home with the bus to prevent further damage. I didn't, so today cleaned up a mess in my cargo bay that is going to require rust treatment and re-painting. I have taken my chains out, scrubbed them good (thanks for that tip Chuck), hung them on my chinese laundry, and soaked them in old used motor oil. Once again, they are hanging to allow the excess oil to run off. This may not be the best way to have handled this, but should prevent further rusting for now. I will then store them in a plastic tub inside the compartment. I may not know much and am trying to learn more all the time, but am very adamant that I wanted to take care of my "tools". I might need them chains some day, and want them to be in good order.
For humor purposes, I have included a photo of my little invention called the lid fix.
Then, I took some pictures of my engine (I am not the mechanic), and was hoping for some input as to what engine I have in my bus. I think DB might have told me once upon a time, but the only thing I notice about an engine usually is how it runs. So here is my description for the photos that I will be begging Rudy to post for me later.