| Author | Message | ||
| Rob Allen (Rob_allen)
Registered Member Username: Rob_allen Post Number: 7 Registered: 6-2009 Posted From: 194.69.148.1  Rating: N/A |
Hi again everybody, I recieved my Scenicruiser manual in the mail Friday ready to jump in and begin looking into my tranmission linkage ( The only time I have moved it on its own power I could only hit gears 1 and 2, there was no option on 3 or 4), I opened it up and got some real good info on the original 2spd clutch, 3 gear tranny, and I then promptly closed it. Was an addendum ever published after the factory engine/tranny swap? So I left that for the day and began looking for other problems. I knew when it rained hard a few spots in the interior got damp and I was assuming a leak around the several AC units installed on the top. I began ripping down the shag carpet added to the interior, and then it started raining outside, I found the leaks were a lot worse than I thought, and were coming in through the roof skylights which the previous owner painted over outside and covered up inside. So to get to the point, I am wondering what experience anyone has had with these, and what the general population has done with them. I think they are very cool and plan to clean them up and reinstall them, but have many 4501 owners either totally removed them or covered over them to get rid of the maintenance hassle? I've already talked to Luke at US Coach and begun looking into new seals, just trying to figure out how much of a mess I am getting myself into as this will be the first glass work I'll have done. -Rob 1956 PD4501 #853 1966 MC5a | ||
| Kyle Brandt (Kyle4501)
Registered Member Username: Kyle4501 Post Number: 502 Registered: 9-2004 Posted From: 65.23.106.193  Rating: N/A |
Some of mine have an opaque white 'milk glass' installed (single pane), it allows some light without too much heat. Some are clear double pane (pain since they leak internally). Some are single pane & clear. Some are flat plastic with various tint films applied. (The glass should have a compound crown to it if it is original.) If I were to replace mine, I'd use a UV stablized plastic (either opaque white or mirror tinted). The gasket should be a standard, just match it up with the thickness of the frame & 'glass panel' you are using. Temporary quick fix is to clean the gasket, metal & glass & simply use mastic tape over the old rubber seal. . . . The metal (alum) HVAC tape works well too. Be very careful removing the glass - the rubber is really hard & the glass is weak & brittle. There is a high glass mortality rate on these. Hence why I'm planning on using plastic for replacements . . . . | ||
| Clint Hunter (Truthhunter)
Registered Member Username: Truthhunter Post Number: 300 Registered: 1-2009 Posted From: 24.129.232.232  Rating: N/A |
cut the seals away , using a strong box knife ( like those used in the high-jacking scam industry ) and plenty of brake fluid for lube. Don't know which seal you need until the glass is removed, better use tarps & sand bags, low side of bus pointing down hill , until you can get the now identified style of seals. Might work for you. | ||
| Rob Allen (Rob_allen)
Registered Member Username: Rob_allen Post Number: 8 Registered: 6-2009 Posted From: 194.69.148.1 Rating: N/A |
Thanks for the info guys, I went out and bought/put tarps over her yesterday, hopefully it won't be raining tomorrow and i can get one out | ||
| Rob Allen (Rob_allen)
Registered Member Username: Rob_allen Post Number: 9 Registered: 6-2009 Posted From: 194.69.148.1 Rating: N/A |
I cut and chipped a section out of the seal last night, then took it inside and glued the small pieces back together to get the dimensions of the profile. My windows are double pane glass, with the bottom having a stick on white layer to keep out light. The rubber seals are as hard ceramic and about as un-rubber as they can be so I am guessing they are the original seals. At one point someone tried to repair them using copious amounts of silicone and the rubber used on the cargo doors, which has worked out great if they were trying to build a shower. Luke at US Coach has found some single pane rubber seals that should work based on the dimensions we were throwing back and forth, so I'm going to remove one set of glass and try to reinstall it as a unleaking single pane. Now as I wait for the rubber and glass tools to get here I'm going to start ripping out the water damaged bunk beds and shag carpet. | ||
| Kyle Brandt (Kyle4501)
Registered Member Username: Kyle4501 Post Number: 503 Registered: 9-2004 Posted From: 65.23.106.193 Rating: N/A |
Support the double pane with a piece of 3/4 inch thick plywood cut a few inches smaller than the glass & put a piece of foam between the 2. Much easier than getting replacement glass. Check the manual, you're gonna need to replace the dessicant in the spacer between the panes of glass. . . . | ||
| Rob Allen (Rob_allen)
Registered Member Username: Rob_allen Post Number: 10 Registered: 6-2009 Posted From: 194.69.148.1 Rating: N/A |
I had been thinking of pulling the two pieces out and cleaning one up with a razor blade and some solvent to get it back to "kind of new - maybe clear glass" and then installing it like that. Down the road I woud make a blind that could slide out and over the window from the inside, to cover it up. I like the idea of having a clear skylight in it, although I suppose most of the time there won't be a lot to look at straight up. | ||
| john w. roan (Chessie4905)
Registered Member Username: Chessie4905 Post Number: 1589 Registered: 10-2003 Posted From: 71.58.110.9  Rating: N/A |
I suppose they are different, but would the ones the 4905 uses be able to be retrofitted? | ||
| Jack Hart (Jackhartjr)
Registered Member Username: Jackhartjr Post Number: 55 Registered: 8-2007 Posted From: 205.188.116.203 Rating: N/A |
Rob, replace them with the smoked (Dark) plexiglass, there are about thre or four different grades, one is UV Rated really high, is smoked well. We had some trucks with clear glass in the skylights. Way too bright as well as way too hot! I really would not go back with clear. If I remember reading it right Greyhound started with those four skylights clear, then started putting the double pane as well as the ones Kyle talked about witht he white film on them. It was because of the heating issues. Jack | ||
| Kyle Brandt (Kyle4501)
Registered Member Username: Kyle4501 Post Number: 505 Registered: 9-2004 Posted From: 65.23.106.193 Rating: N/A |
PD4501 sky lites are unique & don't share any other application. The nice thing about the plexiglass is the shatter resistance, although the cost & availability is another plus. I have seen skylites broken from a hail storm . . . . I think the lower glass in the double pane may be too thin for use by itself. . . . (Message edited by kyle4501 on August 06, 2009) | ||
| Rob Allen (Rob_allen)
Registered Member Username: Rob_allen Post Number: 11 Registered: 6-2009 Posted From: 194.69.148.1 Rating: N/A |
I've found a few tinted polycarbonates(lexan) and acrylics (plexi) on McMaster and a few other sites. Is there any particular brand or style you have used when replacing windows (not necassarily skylights, just anytype of window). I'm looking for a company who specifically deals in this more than anything so I'm sure I'm getting something that is tough enough. | ||
| Kyle Brandt (Kyle4501)
Registered Member Username: Kyle4501 Post Number: 507 Registered: 9-2004 Posted From: 65.23.106.193 Rating: N/A |
UV stability is a priority (longer service life), then toughness (so it doesn't shatter upon impact) then thickness (so it holds it's shape & isn't easilly pushed out of the frame. |