1935 Chevy school bus

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tango
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by tango »

A Bungee Cord!? --- Your masking tape must feel jilted! :lol:
tango
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by tango »

Hey Jack --- just came across a '36 Chevy grill that looks good on Epay. Don't know if it would fit your 35 but here is the page...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1936-Chevy-Pick ... e1&vxp=mtr
ol trunt
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by ol trunt »

Thanks Tango. The only difference I can see is that the logo is in a different place. I'm sure the whole thing would fit just fine. I'll probably use what I have but will keep an eye on the '36 grill--a guy can never have too many grills!

I see you are back to playing bus so you must have survived the weekend rum you were looking forward to. Don't forget to take a bunch of pics of your motor and tranny when you go to pick them up--I can hardly wait to see just what that combo looks like.

I got the pneumatics worked out for my air operated door today. I'll next work on the 3 way switching mechanism I plan to use to open and shut the thing. Jack
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by ol trunt »

Hello All. I'm all excited, I finished the electrical for my pneumatic door today and now both the air part and the electrical stuff all work. I tested the operation to see how many door openings and closings I could get between the compressor runs. I can open and close the door (door not built yet so just the actuator) 25 times followed by 6 emergency releases before the pump kicks in again. I left the door in the closed position for the night (closed requires pressure) and will test open and shut cycles in the morning--that should give me an idea how much the system leaks down. While I have lots of pictures in my mind of the door, none of them would be very entertaining to see--sorta had to be there :lol:

Oh well, what good is a post without pics? I wired the door like you would wire a hallway lamp--you can turn it on or off at either end of the hall. I can open or close the door either inside the bus or outside--the only problem was that I couldn't find a 3 way switch for the outside that would release the key in all positions. I did find a couple of switch locks that would allow key removal in either the on or off position but it required two switches to make it work ( I let a bunch of smoke out of a relay trying to get a single switch to work :lol: ) So it looks a bit strange but it works. Jack

Key switches in cowl. Image
ol trunt
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by ol trunt »

Hello All, I usually jump from pillar to post because I have to finisnh something here to allow me to do something else there--not this weekend--I can't say what prompted me to go back to the house wiring but I did. I more or less got the three electrical systems roughed in, inverter, genny and shore (although I still have the 12 volt system to rough in, I have made provisions for it). I decided not to use an automatic switching thingy. I'll just have to settle for manual changing of the plug. I saved some money and I know exactly where my power (and ground) are comming from. I'll be able to access the plug change through a trap door in the front panel of the genny which is being incorporated into the kitchen counter.

Didn't get much sleep last night. I couldnt turn the bus off, but as a result I did figure out how to seal the door I've been working on! Next to the hot shower, dream time seems to be the best time for problem solving----yawn, yawn. Jack

In this pic you can see both the converter and the inverter as well as the 3 RV type plugs. I positioned the inverter in the vertical and then read in the installation directions that it is suposed to be mounted horizontaly. I can only think of two reasons why this night be seeing that the whole thing is PCM and that is that the fan may need to be vertical for some reason or that someone might install the thing with the fan at the top blowing down against rising hot air--any Ideas?Image

I've placed the electrical service directly above the battery box so as to minimize the line loss. The couple of double ott leads should do the trick. The #8 line feeds the genny starter motor and cooling fans and is on it's own circuit to the third battery (only one installed so far). The #8 has a baggie over it because I discovered that the genny has a big fat capaciter that likes to discharge when you touch the lead :shock: Image
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somewhereinusa
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by somewhereinusa »

Hey Jack, looking good.
Surplus Center has a four position key switch that you can remove the key in any position.
It's what I used to actuate my linear actuator door lock.

https://www.surpluscenter.com/item.asp? ... e=electric

Dick
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by tango »

Hey Dick --- thanks for the link bud. Some neat stuff there including the pair of wiper motors I just bought for about half of retail. Thanks again!
ol trunt
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by ol trunt »

Thanks for the tip Somewhere. I'd be interested to see how you set up your door lock--I can invision a LA, a bell crank and a prowl as a locking mechanisn though. With the three position lock I could open/close and lock my door with one key. Jack
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somewhereinusa
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by somewhereinusa »

Here's a short video of the door latch, the micro switches and the linear actuator also came from surplus center.

Image

I'm not sure how to embed a video, but click on the picture and it will take you there.
If you want I can supply better pictures and a wiring diagram. Rod just goes into a hole in the edge of the door.
ol trunt
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by ol trunt »

Thanks Somewhere. If it isn't a lot of effort for you it would be fun to see the wiring you used. I played with a wiring schematic last night but there are several ways to skin a cat. I wish I had better computer skills and while I was able to view your video I was not able to make it go full screen--any ideas? Jack
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somewhereinusa
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by somewhereinusa »

Hey Jack,

Sometimes it's just too hard to get this old brain around putting things on forums.

I've posted a clearer picture and a PDF of the wiring diagram on my website

Wiring page is here

http://www.somewhereinusa.x10.mx/electric.html

Note that somewhere along the line the brown and green wires got switched in the wiring block. I think the wiring diagram is right, haven't studied it. Probably comes from having the wiring to the limit switches backwards in real life. The way it's wired, actuator stops when door is locked or unlocked and will only go the other way. With latching relays it could be done by just a push of the button. The way I did it you have to hold the button until the actuator stops. Inside switch can be added by using a momentary contact on/off/on switch using red,white and yellow wires, red goes to center terminal of switch. When I get more time, I'll add indicator lights, so I know when to let go of the button if I'm not close enough to watch the lock. :(

Dick
ol trunt
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by ol trunt »

Hello all, I've migrated back to working on temp control in my genny box. I can't seem to find a thermocouple that one, reacts anywhere near its advertized specs and two has a recovery rate of less than about thirty degrees. So far i've made quite a collection of thermocouples without luck. I'm now trying to adapt an electric oven thermostat (two actually, one set high and one set low) because I've read that these have a "degree or two" varience from their settings. I've been trying to hook them up to a couple of 5 terminal relays but their temp overlap is making things not work. Any ideas or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. The temp range I'm working with is between 135 and 160 degrees F. Thanks Jack
Last edited by ol trunt on Sat Apr 13, 2013 2:47 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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somewhereinusa
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by somewhereinusa »

Jack,

I haven't tested the accuracy, but I bought a couple of these to control the cooling fans in my electrical cabinets. They won't handle the amps, but can be paired with a relay.
The plus side is you get a temp reading of the area in question, the down side is it's centigrade. I did test to see if there was any problem with long leads for the thermocouple and couldn't really detect any.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Digital-STC-100 ... 20c5c422f6

Just one of the many available on ebay.
ol trunt
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by ol trunt »

Hello All. Dick, thanks for the link on temp controls. I've e-mailed them and am waiting for a response. While waiting I did some more work on the house electric. It seems that shore power is usually hard wired into the RV (at least in S&S) and that works fine if you have room for a locker to store the power cord in. With 10 or eleven feet of space to work with I can't afford the space for an electrical locker in addition to the electrical service area. Sooooo, I made up an "extension cord" that I can roll up and store in unused space somewhere. The problem was that no one makes a male 30 amp plug that is oriented 180 degrees to the line--only 90 degrees which won't fit my system. Finally I located a 90 degree cheater (from 30 amps to 50 amps) that when coupled with a 50 amp male plug gave me the 180 degree set up I need and it was only $11!

With the extension cord problem cleared up my Saws All and I made a trip to the junk yard where I cut out a gas door from which to make a port for the shore power extension cord. I'll still have to do some weatherproofing after I paint but the thing works great.

I'm now back working on the front sheet metal. Once I'm happy with the fit (or resigned to the fact that this is as good as it is going to get) I'll make an "exoskelton" to weld the front end parts to so I can remove the complete front end in one piece to allow me to build an internal tube frame to support a tilt front end--I expect to run a lot of hot water through the shower on this one, Ha :lol: Jack

The gas door I selected is from a mid 90's chevy PU. I liked the round shape and flat serface.Image

The part blended easily into the bus.Image

Here is a pic of the extension cord pluged in.Image

And finally a pic of the electrical port as it will look when not using shore power.Image

Trial run with front sheet metal.Image

Mock up after lowering the radiator and fitting the fender. I'm not happy yet. The red parts are necessary to cover the inter cooler and hopefully moving the headlamp pods farther foreward will help take your eye off of them. I also have to add a little tin to the fenders so the front wheels look centered. Image
tango
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Re: 1935 Chevy school bus

Post by tango »

Hey Jack --- looks like you are really rockin' along! Like the shoreline solution enough to steal it. And that swoopy new front end should be much more aerodynamic. Well...as aerodynamic as a skoolie can get anyway.

I've finally gotten my passenger side ready to lay on some skin. As you well know, you can't finish A until you do B, but that has to wait on C cause D, E, F, G & H all have to be in place before C, and on & on. But in between I did manage to mount the trickier part of my rear bumper extension (for the deck). And while I have gone back & forth on whether to put my genny indoors (like yours) or take the easy way out and just set it on the back deck, I have finally (I think) decided on a compromise. It will go on a slide out built right behind the left rear wheel but will be designed to run only in the open position. That will make it a whole lot easier for me to engineer but will limit run time to only when parked. I think I can keep a small freezer/fridge going over the road with a big alternator and batteries but will rely on a buddy with vastly more electro-saavy than I for guidance in that area.

Keep the pix a'comin'!
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