1935 Chevy school bus

Discussions about all things to do with buses, trucks, and the homes made within them.

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tango
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by tango »

Yea! Can log in again!

Somehow screwed up my whole username/PW thing and had fits trying to get back in. Many thanks to Stuart for all the help provided. I really enjoy this forum and would not want to miss any of the fun.

So Jack...one more question. I have been shopping awnings. Since I can only handle about seven and a half to maybe eight feet, choices are limited. I also want one that has legs that attach to the side of the bus...not the ground.

What brand/type are you using and are you happy with it?
Stealth Camper
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by Stealth Camper »

Grackles, huh....whew! We could supply you with about 2 and a half billion of the things!! They are a pestilence and plague here! Like sparrows!

And chiggers - glad to see someone else gets to experience that thrill !! Lol. Actually, my condolences!! I lived north (Iowa) for a few years when a kid. No one would believe me when I told them about a tiny little red bug that ya can't see, but lives in the grass and eats you if you sit down for more than a few seconds.
ol trunt
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by ol trunt »

Hello All.
I’m slow about posting the happenings of our brief trip in Clarence (toad to Honeysuckle Rose) to retrace the remaining bits of the “Ridge Route” here in So Cal. We headed out on June 13, with clear skies and an expected temp in the low 80’s—we weren’t disappointed.
Because Clarence was loaded to the limit and we were towing the motorcycle tent trailer, I picked a route involving as little freeway as possible. Once we hit the ridge route there were numerous grades of 6% or so that while not being overly long were often accompanied by twisty roads that resulted in having to down shift to keep the rpm’s high enough to provide cooling. That required keeping the little 1.6 l Susuki motor in the Morris Minor at 3000 rpm’s and about ¾ way up the temp gauge from its normal ½ reading at a much lower engine speed during normal driving. A good bit of the roadway was at least 20’ wide but there were still sections of the original concrete road that were only 15’ wide with no shoulder only a low concrete curbing. We stopped frequently going both directions to view and photograph the terrain along the old road. The entire route of this road lies on top of the famous San Andres Fault line so the topography is a twisted mass of layers of rock and dirt nearly beyond description. The campground we chose, Oak Flat primitive campground, is a rarely serviced camp situated on a flat table of ground the result of a mountain top sliding down during an earth quake in the distant past. Except for my recent scouting of the campground in preparation for this trip, it has been over 40 years since I have been there and I’d say nothing has changed. Well, a couple of things –the ranger no longer bothers to collect a camping fee and the handles on the bear proof food storage lockers no longer exist! Still, mid week and before the local schools were out for the summer, Oak Flat is a beautiful example of a California oak woodland.
I’ll share a few pics of the camp and the terrain and recommend the following website where you can enjoy a “Virtual Tour” of the route we followed. It is full of pics of the building and rebuilding of this important central Ca traffic route.
http://socalregion.com/highways/ridge_route/ Just follow the prompts to get started. Jack

So just how bad could a 101 year old roadway be?
Image[b/]



After 4 miles of twisty, steep roadway, Clarence had his tongue hanging out so we stopped to rest.
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I spotted a wrecked truck far down the mountain side. Based on its color I'd guess it was from the 50's.
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The original curbing had four 1/2" runs of rebar for support. It seems to have been placed a bit close to the surface as moisture reached it resulting in rust and blowout.
Image[b/]

After a brief break, we continued up the road. First left--
Image[b/]

Then right---
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Then left etc. etc.
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At one point it is possible to see all three iterations of the route at the same time. Here in the foreground (lower right corner of pic) is the original route with its successors US 99 in the center and I 5 in the background.
Image[b/]


Our camp site is just about set up as I place the electric toaster on the table.
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Wife Lorna enjoying breakfast.
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[b] Me doing what I do best.
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[b] Clarence ready for another day tugging the trailer.
Image[b/]
tango
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by tango »

By Golly Jack...I like your style! --- What a sweet little rig that is. It must be a kick to drive. And many thanks for the tour and inspiration. It is good to know that there are still a few places out there that don't resemble Disneyland or a shopping mall.
Dusty
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by Dusty »

Nice trip Jack , I envy you your sunshine , it is 2deg going to 10deg today and a cold southerly breeze lazing it's way thru.
58 Bedford House
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by Stealth Camper »

Dusty wrote:Nice trip Jack , I envy you your sunshine , it is 2deg going to 10deg today and a cold southerly breeze lazing it's way thru.
Ouch!! I keep forgetting it's winter there. We have 95 and scorching sun. Drought is back with us now, too.

I have a kid in Las Vegas where there a thunderstorm went through yesterday (and another one today) - the temperature went down from 106 to 99 after the storm.

Wanna trade? With either of us...? As much as I hate winter, I would almost welcome 10 deg today!
ol trunt
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by ol trunt »

Hello All.
You no doubt have already read this article, but in case you haven't, I'll provide a link. Dick (somewhereinusa) posted it on another forum. I'd seen it a couple of years ago but then was unable to find it again.

The story is about a two family trip across the US in a '29 Ford school bus back in 1964. While the authors have most likely aged in (out?) I'd be curious to know what became of the kids who were along on the adventure. Feel free to share the story if you wish.

Here goes: http://blog.hemmings.com/index.php/2014 ... -and-puff/ Jack
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somewhereinusa
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by somewhereinusa »

I too wondered about the kids, what an adventure. I don't have any quite so dramatic, but I do have these.

Image

Probably taken in 1954 at a campground in Michigan, It's a Plymouth, I think a 51. Dad got a new Packard in 55. We went camping
for a week every year. They call it primitive camping now. Army tent with no floor, it was a campground, but there weren't really any
sites, you just picked a spot in the woods. There were restrooms, but they were a loooong way away.

Dick
tango
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by tango »

So glad to see this board is up and running again! Great stuff and people here...too good to lose. Thanks for all your hard work!
Mark R. Obtinario
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by Mark R. Obtinario »

Well, I have to eat my words about my awning.

This last summer we went on an epic journey that covered 15 states and almost 7100 miles.

While on the first part of the journey we visited SD which included stops to see Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse Memorial, and the Badlands. While traveling through the Badlands we experienced the edge of a tornado. That has to be the weirdest weather I have ever experienced--high winds and the wind was warmer than the ambient temps.

At one point the wind was blowing in excess of 30 MPH directly 90* from out right going to the left. At the time we were traveling at speeds of 50-55 MPH. Somewhere along the line the wind got up underneath the fabric of our awning and was able to pull material out against the spring roller. Of course, since it wasn't deployed evenly when spring rolled the material up to be stowed it didn't wrap evenly around the roller. I didn't realize I had a problem until we stopped for a picturesque moment and potty break.

When I got out of the rig and started my walkaround I immediately observed I had a large billowing portion of the awning material flapping in the breeze. When I tried to deploy the awning so I could restow the awning properly I couldn't because the uneven movement of the fabric on the roller ended up with fabric twisted around between the end of the roller and rafter arm.

Once my wife realized I was most probably going to hurt myself and the fabric had split along almost every seam she suggested we just cut the material off. So that is what we ended up doing.

So while I do have locks that keep the rafter arms from moving I do not have anything that prevents the roller from moving if the fabric should be pulled out against the spring.

I now have the new material to replace the old. I am just waiting for an appointment with one of the local RV shops to install the new fabric. I have looked at how it all goes on and decided that it was a lot more of a job than I was willing to take on as a DIY project. I didn't want it all to end up in a pile in our driveway and end up having to pay more to have someone who knows what they are doing cleaning up my mess. :)

Zip Dee now has a cover lock that will help prevent the cover from being forced open by the wind. I will be investing in at least one before we take our next trip.

http://awningsbyzipdee.com/media//DIR_1 ... ffd502.pdf
Stealth Camper
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by Stealth Camper »

Mark R. Obtinario wrote:Well, I have to eat my words about my awning.

This last summer we went on an epic journey that covered 15 states and almost 7100 miles.

While on the first part of the journey we visited SD which included stops to see Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse Memorial, and the Badlands. While traveling through the Badlands we experienced the edge of a tornado. That has to be the weirdest weather I have ever experienced--high winds and the wind was warmer than the ambient temps.

At one point the wind was blowing in excess of 30 MPH directly 90* from out right going to the left. At the time we were traveling at speeds of 50-55 MPH. Somewhere along the line the wind got up underneath the fabric of our awning and was able to pull material out against the spring roller. Of course, since it wasn't deployed evenly when spring rolled the material up to be stowed it didn't wrap evenly around the roller. I didn't realize I had a problem until we stopped for a picturesque moment and potty break.

Wonderful place, SD. They have some really great thunderstorms! I have been caught in some of those on my bike with lots of hail ! Kinda takes some of the fun out of it.

That wind doesn't seem to be that big for those storms....definitely not something ya wanna have broadside, though! Do you not get big winds at home? (WA isn't it?)
Mark R. Obtinario
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by Mark R. Obtinario »

We live in Winlock, WA which is about 70 miles north of Portland, OR and about 100 miles south of Seattle.

In other words, we are too far north to get bothered by the winds that come howling down through the Columbia River Gorge. And we are too far south of Puget Sound to be bothered by their weather.

We are in a convergence zone that when we get converged upon we get hammered. But most of the time our wind rarely blows faster than about 10-15 MPH.

About five years ago a house up the road installed, with a lot of hoopla, a windmill in order to generate electricity. The problem they are having is most of the time the blades are not moving.

Our trip this past summer was not nearly as bad as Mary Todd Lincoln's trip to the theater but it had some memorable moments.

In addition to losing our awning on one of our first days out on the road, on one of the last days out (we were 1,100 miles away from home) an engine oil cooler line blew. Which of course spewed all of the life blood out of the engine out onto the ground. We ended up getting $500.00 in trade on our 1993 3/4-ton 4x4 Suburban for a 1995 1/2-ton 4x4 Suburban. Both have the 5.7L/4L80 power package so they both towed about the same. But I am on the hunt for another 3/4-ton Suburban. The bigger axles, bearings, brakes, and tires provide a lot more peace of mind when towing our 7,000+ lbs. Avion tri-axle travel trailer.
Stealth Camper
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by Stealth Camper »

I have been thinking about Suburbans again...came close to buying one with an Airstream a long time ago. Would be nice to get with the Duramax diesel and Allison transmission, I think.
ol trunt
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by ol trunt »

Well, I must travel in good company. I've been a Suburban fan from back in the day when they were called Carryalls. After 40 years of Suburbans I decided to give a little pick up a try and have been driving a GMC Canyon extra cab. A couple of weeks ago I received the license renewal which included nearly $100 in "weight" fees. The little truck will hardly pull itself let alone any weight. Long story longer, I began hunting for a late model Suburban. I rather like the '07-'10 squarish body style so that is what I hunted for.In the end I didn't buy one. It seems that those years came equipped with a fuel saving motor that shuts down a couple of cylinders once the vehicle is moving along at moderate speed. The shutdown is accomplished by monkeying with valve action through the application of a hydraulic lock on the valve. Unfortunately, the system starves the shut down cylinders of oil which leads to engine failure around 100K miles and then again at about 150K miles --on and on. I sure don't need that and I can't afford a newer model soooooooo---I ended up with a very clean Ford Explorer with a 4 l motor. The price was right at about a grand and no weight fees so we'll see how that goes.

Mark, I guess I had better luck with my billowing awning than you did. I hope the fabric was the only thing damaged!

I'm getting Honeysuckle Rose ready for a trip to Yosemite next week. Lube and oil change, water tank flushing, tire inspection and the like. I am also installing a Newmar brand battery isolator so the bus alternator can keep the battery which operates the air compressor charged. I put a Brake Buddy system in the toad modified to use compressed air from the bus rather than from the tiny internal pump the BB had. Since the same battery also serves as the genny start battery I want to be sure it has enough juice to start the genny even after a long day's drive.

Jack
ol trunt
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by ol trunt »

Hello All. Its been a while since I've posted and since we're about to head out the door to attend a bus rally at Lake mead, Nevada this will be short. We've managed to book a brief stay at a 5 guest "hotel" in Nipton, Ca. as a stop over along the way. The place was built in 1905-1910 of adobe construction to service the then new railroad line passing through the area. More and hopefully some pics upon our return. Jack
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