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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Posted: Wed Aug 02, 2017 2:55 am
by Stealth Camper
Photobucket finally got around to me - they sent a note saying I could not use or do 3rd party hosting with the account. So, I was able to still see pics this morning, but now there is now doubt I have to get the pics changed over to another place. Smugmug still looks pretty good, so may just be going there...if they will let me 3rd party host.

Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Posted: Thu Aug 03, 2017 1:48 pm
by ol trunt
Photobucket--WHA!, WHA!, I'm taking my marbles and going home. Along those same lines, I discovered that Isuzu (motive force in my bus) has a proprietary code scanner requiring a special Isuzu dealer only tool. Big bucks to have the dealer do a scan etc. Today I found and bought a used Isuzu IDII 2 dealer scanner which provides licensed info and all the hook ups for my bus. Without it if The bus were to break down in the boonies I'd have to have it towed to a metropolitan area to find a dealer to do diagnostics as no other scanner can read the Isuzu codes. The little darling didn't come cheap though at $1500.

Oh well, at least now that I have it I can rest assured I'll never need it!?! Jack :lol:

Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Posted: Mon Aug 14, 2017 2:11 pm
by ol trunt
Hello All.

Thanks to the paint shaker 4 cyl diesel and the beat up roads. I am constantly finding stress fatigued brackets and such on my little skoolie. My sharp eyed wife spotted one of the under the front fender driving lamps hanging by its wiring when we pulled into our camp site Thursday evening. Since the original 11" head lamps (despite the halogen bulbs) barely light the way 5' in front of the bus, the long range driving lamps are really a very necessary part of the equipment. Fortunately, moving the brackets to a bit more centralized location and re-welding them wasn't very difficult--but I'll keep an eye on them now.

By the way, the camp ground was at Lake Cachuma, Ca about 14 miles from Solvang, Ca. The weather was beautiful and the lake was nearly full. 'Twas the first time out for more than an overnight since Yosemite in May--I really need to get out more often. Jack

Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Posted: Thu Aug 17, 2017 5:50 am
by tango
Sounds like a most excellent outing Jack --- And great that you caught the fracture before something fell off. But...you know the rules...no pix = it didn't happen. And screw the PhotoSuckit extortionists! I have been with Flickr for years and have zero complaints.

Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Posted: Fri Aug 18, 2017 12:55 am
by somewhereinusa
Jack,
You really should make the trip to Indiana for the bus boys rally. You would fit right in. I think your neighbor is coming.

Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Posted: Sun Aug 27, 2017 3:23 pm
by ol trunt
Got Milk?

Nope--but I've got a dealer level scanner for my little Isuzu powered bus! After discovering that the Isuzu dealers charge $200 per scan per code I freaked out and began looking for a dealer level scanner. After several false starts and a return of a non working scanner I now have a complete scan and diagnostic system with a lap top computer setup. I felt it was necessary to go this route since all the info Isuzu has on it's vehicles is proprietary. I could just see myself stuck in BF nowhere at Bubba's garage and no hope of figuring out what was wrong.

I like all the snazzy new computer stuff and multiplex wiring but I don't like not having a clue how to fix my bus--now I do. Jack

P.S. Not cheap at $1500 but -----

Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Posted: Wed Sep 27, 2017 1:05 pm
by ol trunt
Hello All.
From the "its always easier to to do it right the first time" file-----
I spent the day on my back under my bus draining the gas tank for the genny and modifying the fuel pick up line. Had I known 5 yrs ago what I now know about gasoline additives and their effect on non EPA approved rubber hoses I wouldn't have had all the fun. My buddy Tom and I both had our custom built aluminum gas tanks made at the same time. The welder provided a couple of "threaded bungs" on the side of the tanks near the bottom. He also fabricated filler necks and a large port on the top of the tanks for insertion of the fuel sender unit--a beautiful job. We'd both planned to use external electric fuel pumps and simply set a barbed connector into one of the bungs and went from there to the pump using flexible rubber fuel line (both from the same length of Gates Made in USA fuel line). About 3 weeks ago, Tom's fuel line gave up the ghost and puked the better part of 20 gallons of gasoline on his garage floor and out the drive. Long story longer, I was able to staunch the flow, clean up the spill and safely drain the remaining gas without burning Tom's condo complex down.

It didn't take me long to see the error in our design. If we'd have simply installed a
"straw" in the top of our tanks making sure none of the rest of the fuel line fell below the top of the tank we'd have been golden. Its that straw (though external) that burned up my day and back. All's well that ends well---ARRG!
Jack

Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Posted: Wed Dec 06, 2017 2:50 pm
by ol trunt
Hello All.

I'm feeling all smug. I've had a check engine lamp glowing on my little bus for a year now. I talked to the local Isuzu dealer about it as soon as it came on and was told that it would cost $200 to scan for the problem and then we would go from there. The bus seemed to drive just fine though the fuel economy took a nose dive. Down from 17 mpg to a bit over 14. A little while ago I bought a dealer level scan tool that covers the engine, trans, ABS brakes, wiring and troubleshooting. I decided to wait until there was a lull in the camping activities before I risked tearing into the problem. I plugged in and immediately was told that the mas air flow/ air temp sensor was showing low voltage. It took me longer to open the hood than it did for me to spot the MAF sensor and about a second longer to find the broken in the insulation 12v power wire. A big Isuzu parts house in Santa Ana, Ca was able to ship me a 3" long wire patch that slipped right into the 5 wire plug at the MAF sensor. The wire cost $8, the shipping $12. A half hour later the wire was installed, the code cleared and the check engine light out--whooppie

As I read through the diagnostics I saw that the computer automatically resets the fuel management to whatever reading it was at just as the wire went open. Though I wasn't seeing smoke, I'll bet the wire broke at cold idle which would account for the poor fuel economy.

Though I know wish full thinking when I engage in it, a buddy who has had his trucks worked on at the same dealership assured me that he had never gotten out of the shop after an electrical problem for less than $1500. Since the scanner cost me $1500 that news made me feel good (better?)--still, $200 savings leaves $1300 cost--Oh Well. Jack

Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Posted: Thu Dec 07, 2017 1:36 am
by somewhereinusa
Well done Jack. I seem to be at a point in my life that I'll be darned if I'll pay some one some exorbitant amount of money to fix things. If I can't figure it out myself it probably won't get fixed. Besides most of my stuff is so old their electronic gadgets wont tell them anything about it so they are lost.

Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Posted: Thu Dec 07, 2017 12:55 pm
by Dusty
Take that as a win Jack , a couple more of those and the tool will be free :) :)

Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Posted: Sat Dec 09, 2017 11:13 am
by ol trunt
Hello All. I've been busy rebuilding the old Duo Therm heater in my bus. I wrote it up on Tapatalk (phone app) but it won't post here so I've done a cut and paste job hoping I can get that to post. I haven't figured how to increase the font size at my end so it probably will require the reader to enlarge his copy. Anyway, here goes! Jack

P.S. Weird result!?! Font's fine but it looks like a ---poem :banghead:

P.S. ditto I back spaced then re-spaced after each "stanza". Almost readable now though I still can't post pics.:thumbup:

This is an ode to an old school RV heater. About the time I began building my'35 Chevy Skoolie, I was gifted a '76 fifth wheel trailer. Being the chea--thrifty lad that I am, I made a Herculean effort to use all the free stuff I could. Long story longer, I ended up keeping the 4 burner stove with oven and the Duo Therm 12,0OO BTU gravity heater and little else. The stove works great-the heater not so much. The heater lights and stays lit but only operates full blast or off. The thermostat unit just didn't work and in my tiny bus things got hot way too fast. I searched for a replacement gas regulator for 5 years and only just now found a suitable replacement.

I had looked at replacing the heater with one of the catalytic heaters but was concerned about the water vapor they produce as well as the fact they use cabin air for combustion. The thing I liked about the Duo Therm gravity heater is that it uses outside air for combustion and exhausts to the outside, hence no water vapor in the bus.
These Duo Therm heaters were installed in thousands of trailers and motor homes in the 1970's and '80's and then were replaced by various "forced ail, units after that. The internet palaver about these heaters drops off completely after 1989-about the time the last so equipped sticks and staples RVs gave up the ghost. Nevertheless, there are still many of these heaters wasting away in RV scrap yards and often available for next to nothing. Of course here in sunny Ca, where land costs preclude saving anything old, I couldn't find a replacement-but they are out there-they just have to be.

At any rate, if you find one they are great little heaters and now that I found a brand new gas control valve substitute I love mine all over again. The substitute valve is a Robertshaw 710-205 with a t75L- 013 propane conversion module. The valve is a direct fit replacement (as direct as anything replacing a 40 year old apparatus could be) and cost about $120 delivered.

Once I found the correct style valve I considered upgrading to the remote thermostat configuration and adding a pilot light igniter as well. lt wouldn't have involved a whole lot more work but would have about doubled the repair cost. After giving it some thought and since I use an electric cube heater when I have electricity (which is most of the time), I decided that l'd just stick with the original configuration

Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Posted: Wed Dec 20, 2017 2:54 pm
by tango
Have to wonder since Googling has not brought up anything...

...does anyone make a modern version of those old gravity heaters?

Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Posted: Thu Dec 21, 2017 10:26 am
by ol trunt

Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Posted: Fri Dec 22, 2017 4:34 am
by tango
Looked them up...Holy Moly!!! A Grand for that one and $900 for the 7K. I may just have to stay South for the winter. I hear Ecuador is nice this time of year.

Thanks, and BTW...Hope all the flames steer clear of you Jack. Are you breathing any smoke in your area?

Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Posted: Fri Dec 22, 2017 8:31 am
by ol trunt
Test for photo post using photoimage.org.
Image.

Image

Seems to work. Jack