| Author | Message | ||
| Johnny (63.159.193.82)
Rating: N/A |
For the newbies (or fellow scatterbrains  ), I'm the skoolie guy here: 1984 Ford/ThomasBuilt, long-nose, 40', gasser/Spicer 5+2. Done so far: Interior stripped except first seat on each side, gutted, insulated with closed-cell foam board. Windows (except for first one on each side) gone & paneled in, RV windows added. Dead 370 engine replaced with rebuilt 460, new clutch, 6 used radials (recaps on the drives), & removed 18 years of crap (what a god-awful mess) from under the hood. Recently done: Passenger wiper fixed--the ground at the motor had corroded. I cleaned it, reconnected it, & coated the actual screw with grease. Wiper now works. Floor plan finalized, I think (don't tell me you guys never changed your minds!). All holding tanks (fresh, gray, black) will be INSIDE the bus, to prevent freezing in the winter. Shower will be sunk 6-7" into the floor, & drain with a pump. All other stuff will have drains above the top of the tanks. Tanks will straddle the wheelhouses in back, with freshwater tanks (2 of them) ON the wheelhouses. Under-chassis bays will be built, due to a friend who: 1) Owes me, big-time, and: 2) Does bodywork for a living, & has for 15+ years. He says he can build bays that run from the outer edge of the body to the framerail, with hinged, locking doors that will blend in perfectly. This sounds good to me--any problems I should look for? I have found a similar bus (1983 Ford/Thomas long-nose, my fuel-tank donor) that I can get extra paneling from. Currently in the "measure, plan, & scratch head" stage. I want to mount the batteries (4 T-105 golf-cart batteries) in the left-front, as far forewards as possible, accessed from outside--will this work (I don't see why it WON'T, but I'm not the conversion expert, here)? I realize they'll be heavy, but a frame-mounted tray should work.....right? Starting battery is, if it matters, mounted low on the right framerail, about even with the RF tire. It looks like my over-the-hood rack is both do-able & legal. My uncle (a MIG, TIG, stick, & gas-welder for 40+ years) says he could put it together from his scrap pile (a misnomer--it isn't junk, just stuff left over from his many projects) in a day or so. As for visibility: I drive a 1972 F-800 flatbed wrecker, & it has a ramp over the cab. The front supports come down in exactly the same place my rack's supports will, & tie to the frame with outriggers. A State Police big-truck inspector said that unless there were major vision problems (like, say, 4" square downbars or the like) it's legal, as long as it has width & clearance lights & is mounted securely. I'm also tossing around easy ways to get up there--maybe a conversion-van type ladder mounted on the left side, behind the driver's window? Also, my bus still has the school-bus lights on it, albeit painted over & non-functional. Would making the rears function as brakelights & turn signals be legal? I asked the cop, & he had no idea--though he thought it was a good idea. | ||
| CoryDaneRTSIIIL (4.17.253.42) Rating: N/A |
Sounds like you have a good plan going already. All I can say about the interior is expect changes until it is built! I wrestled with the interior from day one and am in process of installing electric and walls and am still changing things. I no longer make a change and proclaim, "THIS IS IT!", now I say, "I LIKE THAT TOO!". and move on to the next step. My suggestion to rooftop access is, if possible, gain acces from inside the coach through a hatch. If that is not possible, use a detachable ladder on the outside that you can store under the bus. These days, people are amessin with our stuff like crazy now. No reason to give em any help, is there? I made my storage areas too. RTS have a good space to use, just no floors to build on. You have to add them, but even if you don't move a lot of things around, you still get a good size space for more STUFF. LOL Sorry I don't know more about school bus conversion. In Illinois, you cant drive a school bus if it is still proclaiming "SCHOOL BUS" and the yellow/black color. Changing the arrows to red stop lights should be ok, HERE. You need to ask DMV, I hope you get someone that KNOWS. Good luck, sounds like you are well on your way. - cd | ||
| RJ Long (24.127.74.29) Rating: N/A |
IMHO, only: Frame-mounted tray for batteries should work, provided it's supported properly. Suggest access door have lock mechanism. . . Over-cab rack - be sure to provide for "line-of-sight" visibility of overhead traffic lights. (That's one of the design criteria manufacturers have to deal with, a FMVSS thing. . .) As for using the former loading/unloading red lights as stop/brake lights, look at the rear of some beverage delivery trailers (Pepsi, Coke, Bud Light, etc.) or some of the newer MCI coach models. . . it's already been done! Well, at least conceptually anyway. . . HTH, RJ PD4106-2784 Fresno CA | ||
| Johnny (63.159.193.82)
Rating: N/A |
Actually, I figure I'd reverse the lenses--make the outers yellow & the inners red, for turn signals & brake lights, respectively. My turn signals do not flash the brake lights. I also will make the rear marker light act as a turn signal, as well--being "too visible" to the moron drivers I see daily simply isn't possible. All bay doors (well, maybe not the one with the sewer fittings--theives are welcome to the contents of my wastewater tanks ) will lock, hopefully with the same key. I plan to mock-up the rack (probably with plywood), & will allow vision for traffic lights. However, what the heck is "FMVSS"? The ladder: "rack" is probably a misnomer--it will actually be locking storage boxes. A detatchable ladder is a good plan, or maybe a folding ladder. Hmmmm, good ideas. | ||
| RJ Long (24.127.74.29) Rating: N/A |
FMVSS = Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards The "line-of-sight" is based on the vehicle being the first one behind the limit line or crosswalk and looking straight ahead and up to see the overhead suspended signal light. Or at least that's the approximate English translation of governmentese. . . RJ | ||
| Johnny (63.159.129.127)
Rating: N/A |
OK, now, dump valve stuff: is there any reason I can't put the valves AHEAD on the rear wheel? Also, I've heard conflicting info on dual valves (on both sides)--is it legal? Also, I plan to have 2 gray-water tanks, connected with a simple crossover at the bottom (to prevent uneven filling). Is there something really obvious I'm missing, here? Also, is there anything wrong with plumbing it so that gray-water overflow goes into the black tank? | ||
| George Myers (12.85.14.41)
Rating: N/A |
The code requires a dump on the driver's side. Does not say anything about the passenger side (either way). There were some cases (at least one) many years ago where the police and a court thought that putting the dump along the road edge side was proof of intent to dump along the road. There could have been a lot more to this than appeared in the media. It has been years since I saw an RV park where a right side dump would have come in handy. Seems like a lot of work for little value. | ||
| Dale MC8 (66.52.64.105)
Rating: N/A |
Johnny, there is nothing inherently wrong with plumbing the gray tanks so they overflow into the black tanks, BUT, this would make the gray tanks, in reality (by code) black tanks. Big deal. FWIW Dale | ||
| Richard Bowyer (Drivingmisslazy) (66.190.119.82)
Rating: N/A |
I believe that the idea of separate black and gray water tanks originated due to pollution problems. In the early days, it was not uncommon to only have a black water tank. It was the standard practice to just let the gray water run out on the ground, even in campgrounds. If you were driving, it just run out on the highway. As I recall, Oregon was one of the first states to prohibit this and passed laws requiring gray water tanks and it had to be capped while driving on the highway thru that state. I can recall having a bucket sitting under my gray water discharge to prevent it from making a mess around the camper. As more stringent laws were passed, gray water tanks became standard on all campers and motor homes. The majority of RV’s on the road in the early seventies were pickups with slide in campers. I feel that the gray water tanks are now superfluous and only a single combined gray/black water tank is really needed. Richard | ||
| FAST FRED (209.26.115.55) Rating: N/A |
Most every campsite ONLY will have a dump on the drivers side,(they have some code) the commercials use the Pax side for some historic reason. Locate the valve where it is less likely to get damaged. The pax rear is where you will be climbing curbs , sometimes cause you have to. Combined tanks seem to work a bit better than seperate as the dish & shower water help liquify the waste and you dont get "Standing Soldiers". AT a campsite with full hookups its still best to use the method of alowing the tank to get at least 3/4 full & then releasing. If you are hooked up with clothes washer , dish washer & large bathtub/Jacuzzi , you can dump direct while the laundry is in operation , then resume safer method. The Dupree valves are about $30 . each but are about 10 X better built and long lasting than the RV cheapos. Can be rebuilt in place should that ever be needed. If you don't want a stinky coach use 2in pipe for the roof vent from the tank. Use J traps on EVERYTHING . FAST FRED | ||
| DaveD (207.236.51.60)
Rating: N/A |
Code requirements are for a driver's side dump connection for waste water tanks. Alternately a rear connection is permitted but it must be to the driver's side of the centreline of the vehicle. DaveD |