| Author | Message | ||
| Gary Stadler (Boogiethecat) (68.7.217.217)
Rating: N/A |
Hmmmm all these busnuts named "Fred" seem to have a lot of good suggestions!! I wanted to thank Fred Hobe for a GREAT tip he gave me about 6 months ago.. I was emailing him on a different subject about my conversion, and in the conversation he told me to forget the fancy Captain's chairs and instead just go to a junkyard and fetch two seats from a late-80's/ early 90's Chrysler New Yorker. He told me that I would probably end up with a pair of wonderful leather seats, fully electric because all the guts and controls are contained right in the seat; that they would be a heckofa lot more comfortable than almost anything out there, and they's cost me less than a hundred bucks! Ok I thought.... and off to the junkyard I went... it turned out that the problem at the yard was not finding them- instead it was making the choice of which color, which style, and which material to take home- there were tons of them and they were all pristine!! End of story- I have now logged about 7000 miles on my absoutely wonderrrrful electric blue leather seats that cost me a whopping $65 for the PAIR, and I have to report that they are hands-down the most comfortable seats I've ever driven in. My wife agrees with her seat too. Besides the fact that they are nice looking and comfy as can be, the ability to make small adjustments via the electrics every half-hour or so make them exceedlingly easy to drive in and I never get fatigued like I did in my first bus. http://www.heartmagic.com/00busseat.jpg THANKS FRED!! what a great tip!!! Cheers Gary Stadler | ||
| Bill (216.128.133.185) Rating: N/A |
That is only one of maney tip that he has answered for me. He also raised the roof and did a lot of other work on my MCI 9. I had called 4 other places to get cost to raise roof and he was by far the cheapest and did more bracing that I expected. He has been saying for the last 6 years that he was going to retire. Still going strong but I don't no for how long. He seldom answers on the boards. TOOO bad. Best information that you can get on MCIs. Bill | ||
| FAST FRED (209.26.115.194) Rating: N/A |
The only problem with car seats is, sometimes there too deep to use the clutch with out lots of hassles. On a slushpump tranny everything works just dandy. Are these seats at work in a shift or slushpump transmissoned coach? FAST FRED | ||
| Gary Stadler (Boogiethecat) (68.7.217.217)
Rating: N/A |
10 speed stick. The Roadranger shift handle is shown there in the photo. I installed a dual plate clutch made by Lipe- it's one of those "ez-push" ceramic puck types, and the darn thing is easier to push than my Honda Accord! The seats are a bit deep, yes, but with a little thought put towards the position and angle that they were mounted, so's to get the range of movement in just the right place and the angle just right, there's no problem with the clutch at all. And of course it really doesn't matter 'cause we're supposed to be good enough that we don't use the clutch except for starting and stopping, right ? (haha)  Dang they're comfy!! Cheers Gary | ||
| Greg Roberts (Gregeagle20) (172.144.27.61)
Rating: N/A |
I really like the Seats Fred Hobe has suggested but there is just one drawback that I can't get past; Each seat is missing an arm rest. Saves a ton of money but I jsut have to have the arm rests for those comfortable drives, which is why I am building a bus in the first place. | ||
| Gary Stadler (Boogiethecat) (68.7.217.217)
Rating: N/A |
Greg- look at the photo again. There's an arm rest- a BIG one on the drivers' right hand side. It's retracted in the up position. There's one on the passenger seat too. I havn't found a need for one on the other side because my window, and steering wheel always keep my arm busy there. The one that's there is really quite adaquate. And the difference in price mooooooore than makes up for lack of an arm rest I don't even need... hee hee I'm making quite a case for these, aren't I? Truthfully, I have sat in quite a lot of motorhome seats, bus seats, and van seats, and never been as comfortable as these. solid 8 hour driving stints just don't bug me. Never been able to do that before.... Cheers Gary | ||
| David Anderson (66.90.196.215) Rating: N/A |
Gary, Did you fabricate and add those armrests? What about the seat belts? The seat really looks good. Did you have it recovered after you bought it? David Anderson | ||
| Gary Stadler (Boogiethecat) (68.7.217.217)
Rating: N/A |
Nope Dave, the armrests came with the seats. And I didn't have them recovered- they were in pristine condition "as found"! When I was at the junkyard, I was amazed at the variety and quality of selection. Evidently New Yorker was a "stylin'" car, and Chrysler used quality materials in the seats at least. There were choices of beige, maroon, and these blue seats (all leather), as well as 2-3 varieties of cloth covered ones in various colors. All had the arm rest, and all had a three motor mechanism with the switches built into the seat. The only thing I had to do was give each seat a 12 volt wire and ground and weld its tracks to the original bus seat mount. I scored a second driver's seat base and post from the Crown Bus junkyard I've mentioned in earlier posts, so both seats match. The wife's seat swivels 180 so when we're boonin', we rotate that one to point to the rear and now it's a nice social seat. I chose not to make the driver's seat rotate for safety reasons, so it's locked down aiming forward. The factory seatbelts that came with the seats aren't workable, but there were already mounts and belts on the bus for the old seat so I just used them. For the wife's side I stuck in some giant eyebolts in the floor and put in new belts. Cheers Gary | ||
| David Anderson (66.90.195.121) Rating: N/A |
Gary, I went "salvage yard shopping" and found a set for $100/pair. I'd have to recover and I really want an armrest on the left side. I assume I could fabricate such a gizmo. Before I jump in I need to find an upholstry shop to see if it can be done. I was planning on a flexsteel recliner with step for my wife (copilot seat) so it may be real hard to give that up even with the big $$avings. I can buy the material to match the Flexsteel recliner, then use the power seat for pilot, and the other seat for lounge, but I want them to match. Anyone else gone this route? If so, how did it turn out? David Anderson | ||
| Greg Roberts (Gregeagle20) (172.137.72.24)
Rating: N/A |
Gary, Well that is what I meant. It is missing an arm rest. I did see the one on each seat but I really want two on each seat. I suppose one could be added, huh? Your point is taken though because I know those seats are really comfortable otherwise. | ||
| RJ Long (24.127.74.29) Rating: N/A |
Greg - I'm only thinking out loud at the keyboard, but it is possible that the seatback frames, which the armrests attach to, might have the mounting hardware for a second armrest already attached to the frame. A visit to a good auto upholstry shop may help you figure out if this is the case. FYI, three very common driver's seats found in today's buses, (those made by Isringhausen, Recaro and USSC Group, Inc.) have dual armrests available as options on many models. As does Bostrom, which is popular with the 18-wheeler set. These aren't cheap, however, and they certainly don't look like living room furniture! HTH, RJ PD4106-2784 Fresno CA |