| Author | Message | ||
| joe shelton (Littlewind) (67.241.230.118)
Rating: N/A |
I am embarrassed to share with my Bus group what I did to my 4106 this past weekend. Driving S on A-1, a 2 lane hi-way on the New Hampshire coast, I encountered a very sharp right-hand turn with oncoming traffic. There was virtually no right-hand shoulder and a 3 to 4 foot high stone wall. I heard and felt the bus scraping the wall and turned the wheel left. I stopped at the first pull-over and jumped out. Bus contacted wall’s stone cap above aft bay door and rear wheel fender. Resulting damage: 20-inch scrape along hinge line of curbside aft bay door, Popped off 5 rivet heads above center of door, no deformation of structure or door. Deep scrape and deformation of aft wheel fender. I have less than 10K miles driving this or any bus. I was sick for the rest of the day. Mom & 5-year old daughter bought me some ice cream and told me to lighten up. So I need a fender and some rivet equip. And any advice or what ever would be appreciated. Joe Shelton 4106-2119 | ||
| Nick Russell (12.2.88.104)
Rating: N/A |
Joe, Sorry to hear abot your ouch. I'm dreading the day it happens to our bus. 3 years ago when we began fulltiming, we bought a new 36 foot motorhome. Our first week on the road, we maneauvered through miles of narrow one lane road construction with a concrete barrier on the side and semi trucks trying to crawl over our rear bumper. We got lost on a detour and ended up in downtown Denver in rush hour traffic. We made a wrong turn and had to drive through a crowded parking lot with narrow lanes & sharp corners, towing our pickup behind us. Finally we arrived in Wyoming to visit our daughter and parked in an RV camp at the fairgrounds for two weeks. The place was deserted except for us the whole time we were there. 25 RV sites to choose from. Acres of room all around us. The day we left, as I was pulling out of the RV site, I turned the wheel too soon and the rear end swung around and clipped the concrete post the water & electric hookups were attached to. Took a nice chunk out of the fiberglass. If I had pulled forward just another 6 inches we would have cleared it. After miles of highway obstacles, to bang it up like that was terrible! Our next stop was the Life on Wheels RV conference in Idaho. I was feeling sorry for myself until a veteran RVer took me around and showed me the back end of half a dozen RVs that had clipped something along the line somewhere. He said you're not a "real" fulltime RVer until you do it. Cheer up. If it's any comfort, maybe your experince this weekend make you a "real" bus driver? Nick www.gypsyjournal.net | ||
| Gary Stadler (Boogiethecat) (68.7.217.217)
Rating: N/A |
Both stories are not so bad... I spent a year and a half building a wonderful GMC bus conversion back 20 years ago, and when done we logged about 120,000 wonderful miles on it in the following year. Then it got caught in a divorce and the ex got it... three weeks after she took posession she loaned it to her new boyfriend who didn't have a clue how to properly brake down a grade (or ask!!)...at the bottom he chose the mountainside instead of a bunch of cars to hit, he wasnt hurt but the bus was totalled... drat.... Gary Stadler | ||
| Nick Russell (207.140.228.0)
Rating: N/A |
Gary, I've had a couple of ex-wives that were great house keepers. Both divorced me and kept the house. But the bus???? NEVER!!!! Nick www.gypsyjournal.net | ||
| Gary Stadler (Boogiethecat) (68.7.217.217)
Rating: N/A |
Hee hee... I did get the house on that deal which turned out being worth a lot more than the bus...BUT....my current bus stays with ME.....  G | ||
| R Johnstone (Chilebrew) (164.64.178.200)
Rating: N/A |
I've had a quote from Lewis Grizzard pinned on the wall behind my desk for a number of years: "I don't think I'll get married again. I'll just find a woman I don't like and give her a house." | ||
| Peter (Sdibaja) (209.242.148.130)
Rating: N/A |
I thought Johnny Carson got the credit for that, he sure said it often enough. | ||
| Linda 4104 (12.94.2.252) Rating: N/A |
We've got dings and dents (and a couple of bullet holes!!!) in our bus that were there when we bought it from the guy who had the conversion done, but the thing that really made us sick was the time we were driving through a bad area, and some stupid kid at the side of the road threw a brick and hit the side of the bus, between the bays and the windows. In retrospect, I guess we were lucky he didn't hit the side window, but it left a nasty, deep crease in the aluminum and no way to repair it properly. Quick fix was to place a yellow reflector over it, and a matching one on the other side. | ||
| RJ Long (24.127.74.29) Rating: N/A |
Joe (and others) - Sorry to hear about your mishap. Be thankful it wasn't worse! As embarrassing as it was for Joe to post what happened, let's all use it as a learning experience. Not having witnessed his bus kissing the wall, let me speculate a little on what actually happened: Approaching the RH turn, he reacted to the oncoming traffic the way he normally would in a car, yielding somewhat to them, and forgetting to look in his RH mirror as he was turning, until after he got his first kiss. Am I pretty close, Joe? So, what's the defensive driving lessons here? ~ ALWAYS use your mirrors when making turns. ~ Always know where your coach is in relation to the road's edge and white stripes at all times. Don't be afraid to hug the white line if you have to. ~ Know where your rear axle is at all times. We really control the back axle's movement when we're making tight turns (because of the "cheat" created), more so in a bus than in a car, so we have to be cognizant of where it is. ~ Don't be afraid to STOP and let traffic clear if you see the potential for hitting something if you continue. So what if other drivers get impatient? Better to be stopped and avoid hitting something than to keep going and. . . And it's much better to be stopped when the four-wheeler runs into you - see note below about insurance. . . (Side note: I've done enough transit bus accident investigations in my career to know just by looking at the scratch marks whether the bus was moving or stopped when contact was made. . .) ~ Transit drivers are taught to make RH turns by placing their coach parallel to and 18" - 36" from the curb, then making a square turn, even if it means going into the oncoming lane of traffic slightly. And if there are cars there, the TD stops, and lets the four-wheelers figure out how to get around the bus. Don't be afraid to do this too. Even if it's thru a whole signal change! ~ Always try to maintain a 3'- 4' space between you and vehicles parked along the roadside, as well as trees, walls, etc. . . ~ If the RH (or LH) turn is too narrow to use a square turn, then don't be afraid to use ALL the space available, even if it means crossing the center line to set up for the turn. Again, do this defensively (wait at the roadside or other safe spot until traffic clears), and check your mirrors constantly while performing this type of maneuver. ~ Your insurance company will ALWAYS consider you at fault if you hit a fixed object. ~ The BEST thing for Joe to do at this point is to jump back into the driver's seat and take his bus for another run - believe me!! I've trained over 100 transit drivers, and when something like this happens, it shakes their confidence, but getting back behind the wheel helps to build it back up. Go for a ride, Joe!! G'nite, all RJ PD4106-2784 Fresno CA | ||
| joe shelton (Littlewind) (67.241.230.114)
Rating: N/A |
RJ, Thanks allot! That's just what I needed to hear. I found an RV safe driving course conducted by a fellow who was Trailways' safety director. I will try and attend. Thanks again, Joe And yes, it is as you called it. All I've been thinking is "Why did I do that?!!" Your description provides the clarity needed to change my technique. | ||
| R.C.Bishop (128.123.88.39)
Rating: N/A |
G R E A T Post, RJ!. I'm sure all of us who read it will gain at minimum a refreshed perspective in orderly driving procedures. In my mind's eye, I can picture myself in any of the situations mentioned...including Joe's. Thanx, RJ. Here's to that Ice cream, Joe!. Ben and Jery's,RJ RCB | ||
| Scott Whitney (24.205.234.60) Rating: N/A |
Hi RJ, Thanks for the info. Can you clarify what a square turn is? Scott | ||
| RJ Long (24.127.74.29) Rating: N/A |
Scott (and others) - A square turn is when you set your coach up parallel and 18" - 36" from the curb as you approach the corner. You then proceed straight into the intersection until the sight line from the intersecting curb passes a pre-determined point on the side of your coach. (Usually just aft of the front wheel centerline at 5 - 10 mph.) When your coach passes this point, you turn the wheel quickly to full right (or left) lock, and keep one eye on the RH mirror as you watch the duals making the corner. Do it right, and the duals will track right on the edge of the gutter/pavement line all around the turn. Turn too soon, you jump the curb. Turn too late, you go way out into opposing traffic. Doesn't make any difference if the tag is ahead or behind the drive axle, it will still track this way. (Those with Crown ten-wheelers, it will be the front set of duals you'll want to watch.) Best to practice this in an industrial park on the weekend. . . (We used to put new drivers thru this exercise until they could do it in each model bus w/o thinking about it - and we started with the longest wheelbase buses first!) For inspiration, guys, if you're near a city with a transit system running full-sized coaches, find an intersection where several routes intersect or lay over, then make LH and RH turns away from this time point. (Or any corner where there is a lot of bus activity turning.) Watch the way the drivers track the rear wheels around the tight city corners in traffic. That's your goal - to be able to do the same thing confidently. Thanks, RCB, for the kind words, they're appreciated. HTH, RJ PD4106-2784 Fresno CA | ||
| Johnny (63.159.201.156)
Rating: N/A |
RJ: You just described the CDL test's "measured right turn" perfectly--I took the test (CDL-B) yesterday (in a Ford L8000 soda truck) & passed. In that maneuver, the idea is to get as close as possible to the cone without hitting it--a perfect score is <6" away (I was about a foot away). Hitting the cone is an automatic failure. I've found that even in the L8000 (total length of 30', 10' SHORTER than my bus), a right turn on a 2-lane road usually means going into both lanes. According to the CDL study book, the proper procedure is to turn from the correct lane, crossing the center line (if needed) on the road you're turning ONTO (this is so people don't try to pass on the right, according to the book). Is it me, or do people do seriously dumb stuff to not get "stuck" behind your buses, even when you're going 65 on the highway? | ||
| Scott Whitney (24.205.234.60) Rating: N/A |
Some people seem to do anything to not be behind a bus - even when the bus is going the same speed as everything else on the road. They are the same idiots that will zip in front a moving bus, hit the brakes and stop in the middle of the road to make a left turn. Personally, I don't mind being behind a bus cause the car I am driving at the moment isn't any faster! (88 Corrolla seems to have about the same power-to-weight) Scott | ||
| Johnny (63.159.189.7)
Rating: N/A |
My skoolie is VERY slow now (about 1/3 of a mile to get up to 50MPH, top speed ~55-60)--the completely-worn-out 370 gasser is the reason. I don't expect any power problems with the new 460. I have the same thing happen in the wrecker--I once had a guy in a FESTIVA race past me in the left lane, then cut me off, slam on the brakes.....and take the off-ramp! Cutting of an F-550 (empty, going 75!) with an 1800lb tin can--brilliant! (NOT!) | ||
| Richard Bowyer (Drivingmisslazy) (66.190.119.82)
Rating: N/A |
Thats why I am looking for a locomotive air horn!!! Richard | ||
| OAE Palmer (208.164.96.110) Rating: N/A |
YOU too...? | ||
| Tom Caffrey (Pvcces) (64.114.233.210)
Rating: N/A |
Now I know why our bus came with two horns! One air and one electric. They both work and it gives me a chance to use a measured response. I just never thought about it before. I found out that some locomotives use around 30 volts on their spotlights. If they had electric horns, you could probably make them run on 24 volts. I have no idea what they might sound like. Good luck! Tom Caffrey PD4106-2576 | ||
| Jim W. (152.163.197.79)
Rating: N/A |
Joe, don't feel bad. The second day we had our first bus, a 35' 4104, we took it out to go to Sunday breakfast. Since there wasn't room enough to park in Denny's lot, I parked in the lot of a small civic center next door that was not open that day. After breakfast, my wife was feeling brave, and announced she wanted to drive the bus. (I thought this was great 'cause she started out with no desire to try this "huge" (to us) bus that needed a "double clutchin' gear jammer" to operate it. So off we went 'round the parking lot. You know, the modern ones with all of the curbed islands of grass to practice turns, etc. She, getting a little more comfortable with every pass, me slouched down in the passenger seat doing my best to be nonchalant. Then she decided to try some of the access roads into the center. All was O.K. until we got to a corner that was tighter than 90 degrees. She said she couldn't make it. I said she could. She proceded to go for it at about 18 mph, jumped the curb turning too tight and caught a stop sign, scraping it 4' accross the mural on the side, then down the side to the rear wheel moulding, bending the stop sign down to about 45 degrees. I jumped out to survey the damage, and looked around. Nobody in sight! I grabbed the sign, held it away from the bus & had her back back onto the pavement, bent the sign back up & we ran like schoolkids! She was crushed at damaging the paint & mural & resolved never to drive it again. I took her around this 43 year old bus, pointing out all the scrapes & dings from several million miles & pointed out that nobody got hurt & how lucky we were that it had been a stop sign & not the concrete light pole next to it which would have done major damage. She got angry at me & said I was "Too stupid to get mad at her!" That was almost three years ago & we laugh about it now & periodically drive by in the car to see if Public Works has fixed "our" stop sign. (They haven't) She does drive the bus and has stayed off the curb since then. If there are any lessons to this windy story they are: 1. You are gonna scratch it sooner or later. Consider yourself lucky if nobody's hurt & you don't have to file a report! 2. Your wife is right, stop kicking yourself. Just learn from it. 3. Even professional drivers hit stuff from time to time. (I have a friend who drives a transit in Wisconsin. They are allowed two small fender benders per year before major hassles set in.) | ||
| OAE Palmer (208.164.96.122) Rating: N/A |
[b]"I found out that some locomotives use around 30 volts on their spotlights. If they had electric horns, you could probably make them run on 24 volts. I have no idea what they might sound like. Good luck! Tom Caffrey PD4106-2576 " [b] Tom..... those Locomotive horns are AIR driven and will totally drain a 60gal. tank @ 130psi in 10 seconds.... of course in only takes a 5 second blast to send the driver (who just cut you off) on their way to the eternal reward. I see using this type of device as leaving a long-lasting audible impression... leaving the idiot deaf is better than leaving him dead. | ||
| Tom Caffrey (Pvcces) (64.114.233.104)
Rating: N/A |
Yeeaah, I suppose you're right, OAE. Tom Caffrey PD4106-2576 |