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Old 08-26-2014, 01:43 PM   #1
Mini-Skoolie
 
Join Date: Dec 2013
Posts: 38
Year: 2000
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: MVP RE
Engine: Cummins 8.3
The Nomads Bus - Thomas MVP RE

Hi Guys,

We're from Belgium. Almost a year ago now we started developing the idea for The Nomads Bus (Thomas MVP RE 2000). (we tried to realise the project in the US, posted about finding a way to do this, but with your recommendations and no solution to be found we decided to ship the bus to Europe where everything is a lot easier for us to legalize)

What we're doing: Converting a 40ft school bus into a pow/wave-chasing hostel on wheels. (http://www.letsbenomads.com) (https://www.facebook.com/LetsBeNomads?ref=hl)
Private room, dormroom with 2 triple bunkbeds, kitchen, woodstove, compost toilet, shower, washer/dryer, solar panels (goal zero), deck on top of the bus, 8 seats for passenger (only front or rear facing is legal, no sideways).
And to top it off we're doing this in Europe, where it's a bit harder to get the right materials, knowledge and different rules about what lights and so on.
When the bus is finished we're going to chase the best pow and waves in Europe with stoked riders on board.

Right now we're based on a beautiful meadow, sleeping in tents and converting the bus in a very rainy climate.

So far we've stripped the bus from the ceiling, walls and floor. Right now we're trying to get the rust of the floor but wondering how much rust we actually have remove (wire-brushing) ...?

- For the windows we're thinking about using the same system as http://www.hankboughtabus.com/bios/
- We're going for triple bunks, I saw one picture online of someone who did it and it seemed pretty doable + big space saver for us.
- The only place leaking in the bus are the hatches.. anyone experience with replacing these? What are the best to replace them with?
- We need to winterize the bus, as we are going to -20 degrees Celcius weather in winter. Do you have any advice for this.
- Is there really enough space for water tanks underneath the bus? I can't really imagine..

Thanks to all of you for posting your conversion experiences online, which def helped is through seat removel, ceiling, etc.
Hope you can share your experience with us, and if you're ever in Europe feel free to come for a visit!

Here are some pics of the conversion so far:
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skoolie1.JPG   skoolie5.JPG   skoolie6.JPG  

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Old 08-26-2014, 01:51 PM   #2
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Re: The Nomads Bus - Thomas MVP RE

cool, keep the pics coming...how bad was shipping? did you Ro-Ro?
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Old 08-26-2014, 02:04 PM   #3
Mini-Skoolie
 
Join Date: Dec 2013
Posts: 38
Year: 2000
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: MVP RE
Engine: Cummins 8.3
Re: The Nomads Bus - Thomas MVP RE

Yep Ro-Ro.. We had some bad luck with the delivery of the bus. We drove for 1,5 hr to pick up the bus and found him with the tire off the rim (see pic). Took us 10 days before we got it fixed. Now it's still a case of who is responsible.. We've sent a claim to the shipping company but will probably take months before we can solve this.
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Old 08-27-2014, 09:13 AM   #4
Mini-Skoolie
 
Join Date: Dec 2013
Posts: 38
Year: 2000
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: MVP RE
Engine: Cummins 8.3
Re: The Nomads Bus - Thomas MVP RE

We're wondering if we should remove the plywood and rubber in the drivers area (underneath chair and between chair and stairs.) if so, how did you do it? Seem like its all stuck in the front of the bus itself?

thanks
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Old 08-27-2014, 11:48 AM   #5
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Re: The Nomads Bus - Thomas MVP RE

I drive one of these every day in Texas. Remove all your flooring. Underneath is steel in need of proper treatment. The rubber prevents the moisture from escaping and causes rust. Look at some of the other Thomas builds to get an idea about how to overcome the moisture issue. I'm going to replace the roof hatches with regular steel and insulate. Remember, it's becoming an RV, NOT a passenger bus from now on. So you need to think about how to keep the interior climate comfortable and the outside from coming in. Porkchopsandwiches and Mr. Bailey have excellent threads as to how to get this part of the job done. Read up (especially if you plan to do a roof lift and gain a BUNCH of cubic meters), they have excellent ideas and suggestions. Just my 2 cents.... Use it as you wish......
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Old 08-28-2014, 08:38 AM   #6
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Re: The Nomads Bus - Thomas MVP RE

Quote:
Originally Posted by M1031
...do a roof lift and gain a BUNCH of cubic meters
Haha.. As a Canadian I can appreciate what you've done there: used the appropriate measurement standard for the nationality of the thread owner! Or does Belgium measure in cubic ells? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_u...urement#Length
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