| Author |
Message |
califbob
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, January 03, 2005 - 1:17 am: | |
Any one know of an outfit that can build a slide for a Prevost in Or,WA,Ca or Az. There is one in Medford OR that wants $25000.00 That's darn nearmore than the coach is worth. |
RJ Long (Rjlong)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, January 03, 2005 - 2:47 am: | |
Try Morrison's VIP Coach in Sanger, CA. About 15 minutes SE of Fresno off Hiway 180, at the SW corner of Academy.
http://www.morrisonsvipcoach.com
HTH,
RJ
PD4106-2784
Fresno CA |
Pat Bartlett (Muddog16)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, January 03, 2005 - 5:30 am: | |
Good question, i'm converting a prevost. While we are talking about slides, i'm sure not going to pay 25K, does anyone know of a good source of information, pictures, parts, for building a slide out? |
David Dickens (Debdav)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, January 03, 2005 - 5:37 am: | |
Both PrevostCar and Valid Engineering build slides in current Prevost busses. Average cost is $78,000.00 per slide.
$25,000.00 for a Prevost engineered slide using Prevost components is a bargain. (It is'nt cheap!)
Dave Galey has a book on building slides - although he uses Eagle as an example.
Try HB Industries near San Diego. www.hbindustries.com |
David Dickens (Debdav)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, January 03, 2005 - 5:50 am: | |
Sorry, www.hbindustries.ws |
Jack Gregg (Jackinkc)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, January 03, 2005 - 1:14 pm: | |
I know it is not in your part of the country, but here is Premier Coach Services in Kansas City. I do not have any expericence with them.
A slide out room up to 36" deep, carpeting or floor covering in slide out, exterior flange painted one color, electrical modification, and deluxe movement switch.
#1 - Living Room Slide Out......$17,800
#2 - Kitchen/Sofa Slide Out......$25,000
#3 - Closet Slide Out......$13,800
#4 - Sofa Slide Out......$14,800
#5 - Bed Slide Out......$15,300
#6 - Living Room/Dinette Slide Out......$22,800 |
James Maxwell (Jmaxwell)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, January 03, 2005 - 9:41 pm: | |
Talk abt. the little things adding up! I know people who have a complete conversion, incl. the bus, for abt. the same as the closet slide. |
Jon W.
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, January 04, 2005 - 8:44 pm: | |
I'm a firm believer that a person can succeed at doing anything they set their mind to, but the thought of putting slides in a Prevost scare me.
The Prevost "frame" is the trusswork that runs front to rear over the wheel arches. Once that is cut there is nothing to keep the bus from splitting in the middle. The conversions with slides have been highly engineered to handle the loss of structural integrity, and to emphasize the reinforcing necessary one only has to compare the weights of non slide coaches with slide coaches.
This is a case where a shop tour of a converter like Liberty or Vantare would provide invaluable assistance.
Good luck to anybody that tackles such a task. You have my respect. |
Marc Bourget
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, January 04, 2005 - 9:43 pm: | |
Jon W.
It bears repeating for the vast conservative "looker" majority, some of which are new since the last time this point surfaced, that the effort involved in doing a slideout "right" goes far beyond the fabrication effort.
Fred Hobe gave a seminar at Bussin'2005 and spoke more than once on how distorted a frame was on a MCI factory attempt to add a wheelchair lift to a 103A3. (2-3" upward kink just in front of the drive wheels. Fred couldn't pull it all the way out with a porta-power)
When the factory boys can blow it, should we be so arrogant and presumptious to presume we can?
Onward and Upward
Marc Bourget |
Jim H
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, January 04, 2005 - 10:06 pm: | |
Well.. I guess I must be a fool. I am doing two slideouts on a MCI EL3. Of course i hired a structual engineer to both go over the MCI drawings and do a new set for me o follow. And of course am using a welder experienced in welding the 304 SS tubing. So far the bus has not falleninto a heap.
I really think that anyone who wants to apply the correct procedures and practises can do slide outs ... or anything else they can afford.
Just my .02 worth.
Jim |
Jayrjay
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, January 04, 2005 - 10:21 pm: | |
Califbob- e-mail me off board for a chat about your needs. ...JJ jarjaje@wmconnect.com |
Stephen Fessenden (Sffess)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, January 04, 2005 - 10:47 pm: | |
I was told that the early slide outs of a very famous conversion company that I will not name had structural failure problems. Sure it can be done, but there is a risk of not designing for the correct stresses. Some stresses may sneak up on us.
As an extreme example, any design change on a GM monocoque construction bus (4104, 4106, 4107,8, 4905) needs to have enough strength and rigidity but if it has too much strength and rigidity in one area, it simply transfers the stress to another part of the body.
So, Jim, all the correct proceedures may not be known. I'm all for experimentation and I belong to the Experimental Aircraft Association. Keep up the good work, Jim. Many of us are not capable of the kind of modification you are doing. You have my respect. |
Marc Bourget
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, January 05, 2005 - 7:53 am: | |
H3Jim said:
"I really think that anyone who wants to apply the correct procedures and practises can do slide outs ... or anything else they can afford."
Exactly right!
The only other [unmentioned] area of concern, one out of my expertise, is the issue of chassis harmonics.
This was explained to me to be one of the significant concerns to HWH when they granted Morrison VIP Coaches their HWH dealership.
A little amazed that harmonics would be such an issue, I inquired of Bob Sheaves, who is an Automotive Engineer and installed 4 slideouts in his Flx 870. He confirmed the seriousness of the harmonics issue imposing "unexpected loads" on the chassis - Something he had to deal with professionally when he was modifying the RTS while at GM Military Vehicle Operations.
No, Jim, I don't believe you're a fool. because you're not the type to call me an anal sphincter, consumed with FUD [Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt) for simply bringing up the point that others with experience have informed me can be significant.
In general use, it's entirely possible that a slideout that avoids loads that bring in the harmonics issue will last the life of the coach.
It bears in mind that the MCI engineers missed or failed to appreciate the large, "upward",torque reaction from accelleration on the drive axle, through the suspension arms, when they installed the wheelchair lift. The loads on braking are probably more significant and can exceed 36000 #/ft from torque reaction through those same suspension arms.
Your consultant can best evaluate this, as well as what areas, remote from the slideout, would/could be overstressed by their localized loads if you ended up with a 3" deflection in a structural area, associated with the slide, that area lent support to the remote area and now, due to the "lack of assistance" from the slide area the remote area is overstressed and fails.
A bus isn't simply a load box. It's a complex conglomeration of actions and interactions and it's prudent to consider all the competing factors.
Oh! none of the above is meant to say that your conversion is going to split in half while driving down the highway. The mentioned 102A3 wasn't brought to Fred Hobe because of a cracked frame that caused handling problems. At the same time, Fred's telephone estimate at the cost of taking out the wheelchair lift wasn't close to the final cost once you included in the frame straightening and reinforcement.
It would be a shame if someone invested years of work and a huge chunk of their retirement savings to go "fulltiming" only to have a major mechanical problem a year into the change in lifestyle.
It could be a dreamkiller!
Onward and Upward.
Marc Bourget |
Rob King
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, January 06, 2005 - 10:10 pm: | |
I have no experience installing slides so can't speak to that nor am I an structural engineer. I do know a source of used slides from salvaged motorhomes is available by calling James at Colaw RV Salvage, 1-417-548-2125 in Carthage Missouri. Last quoted price to me for complete slide was $100 per running foot, i.e. 20 foot slide was $2000. |
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