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Old 02-03-2006, 12:40 AM   #1
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Gilligs for sale in Northern California

There are four rear-engine 78-passenger Gilligs coming up for sale in Clearlake, CA. It will be a sealed bid sale direct from school district. I'll post more info when I get it. Post a brief reply if you are interested.

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Old 02-03-2006, 05:08 PM   #2
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sealed bid from a school district is by far the best way to purchase a skoolie if yo uask me
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Old 02-03-2006, 05:39 PM   #3
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Indeed. Most likely I will not be bidding since I need empty space in the back for a cargo-ramp. But I figure somebody else around here might want one. That's what this board is about, right?!
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Old 02-06-2006, 12:38 PM   #4
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I'm curious to find out some more info on these.
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Old 02-06-2006, 01:24 PM   #5
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While we are waiting for the district to announce the sale, make sure it says "Stop watching this topic" in the lower left corner of your screen. That means you ARE watcing it and will receive e-mail when a new post appears. Click on it to switch if it says "You are not watching..." or words to that effect.

Elliot
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Old 03-05-2006, 05:17 PM   #6
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All right, here we go -- four Gilligs for sale:

The Konocti Unified School District published in the Lake County Record-Bee yesterday. Here is the ad, adapted for this forum:

NOTICE TO BIDDERS:
Konocti Unified School District has for sale to highest bidders two 1980 and two 1981 Gillig school busses with diesel engines and automatic transmissions. See at 15850 Dam Road Extension, Clearlake, Ca, between 7 AM and Noon Mon-Fri.
Sealed bid deadline: 4 PM, Monday 13 March 2006. Laurie Altic, Business Manager, Konocti District Office, 9430 Lake Street, Lower Lake, CA 95457.

Here is what I can see from outside the fence. Two busses have louvers on the engine covers; otherwise the four look identical:

Rear engine, longitudinal “backwards” with short drive shaft forward to rear axle.

Single rear axle.

Bodies look good, and not likely to have rust in our climate. Logos have been rattle-canned over. Flashing lamps have been removed. Classic rounded profile of upper rear corners. Very flat fronts. Sorry, no digital camera.

When I talked to the Transportation Director a few weeks ago, he expected that the engines can be started for inspection, but the busses may not be driven.

Clearlake / Lower Lake is in Lake County, Northern California, two hours north/west of Sacramento and same distance north of San Francisco. To get to the bus yard, make your way to the very short State Route 53 between Clearlake and Lower Lake. SR 53 connects SR 20 at the north (by Clearlake Oaks) and SR 29 at the south (at Lower Lake). At the first traffic light north of Lower Lake, turn east. Immediately turn left on Dam Road Extension. If you get lost, ask for Wally World and go back one block.

Barring torrential rain, I shall go and take a look at the busses tomorrow and post what I find -- brand of engine if nothing else.

Full disclosure: I have no financial interest in these busses. I know nothing about these busses. I am a community booster and I personally know one of the School Board Trustees. It is my hope that both seller and buyer will get a “good deal”. I will probably not bid, since I want a front engine bus to make a "toy-garage" in the back.

Most cordially,
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Old 03-06-2006, 01:15 PM   #7
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I went and looked.

All four have Caterpillar 3208 engine and Allison 643 automatic transmission.

More than 200.000 miles, but engines and trannies all fresher to varying degrees.

One bus needs waterpump. Otherwise all should be drivable.

I measured one at around 35 feet long. 13 rows of seats. Headroom in center was around 6'3".

We fired one up and it idled smoothly. Mechanic says they all do.

Air brakes, in case I didn't mention that earlier.

Legal tires.

They seem to be in overall good condition. No body damage. I said the fronts are very flat, and from top to bottom they are. From side to side the fronts curve a bit.

Never buy any vehicle sight unseen! So make your way to Clearlake. Info on previous post.

All my best,
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Old 03-14-2006, 12:25 PM   #8
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.
"Final score" on the four Gilligs: $ 700, 500, 20 (twenty!) and No Bid.
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Old 03-14-2006, 12:30 PM   #9
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Nuts! Should'a put a lower bid! But the upside... I suppose I'll be getting a call about my new $500 bus sometime soon!!
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Old 03-14-2006, 12:51 PM   #10
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$ 500 -- that would be bus number 5. Did you come up and look at them?

As of this morning, they don't know what to do with the last bus. Tends to overheat and has split rims on all six. Wild guess is they would like to get rid of it.

Good luck with your new bus! Keep an eye on the right kingpin -- the wedge tends to come loose. Other than that, they tell me #5 is the best of the bunch.

So this board accomplished something -- matched up a seller and a buyer! Thank you, Skoolie.net!
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Old 03-14-2006, 12:55 PM   #11
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Number 5 - my favorite number! No, I did the foolhardy "sight-unseen", but based on the info received here and the absurdly reasonable bid, I'm not going to be disappointed. Thank you very much for the advice!
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Old 03-14-2006, 01:11 PM   #12
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I'm curious; how did you choose a bus to bid on? How did you word your bid?
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Old 03-14-2006, 02:39 PM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Elliot Naess
I'm curious; how did you choose a bus to bid on? How did you word your bid?
I spoke with Wayde a few times and he was kind enough to give me a quick overview on what was what, and he emailed a few pictures. Choosing #5 was almost a coin toss and a simple preference for the number 5! The bid itself was just a sheet of paper with my name, contact info, bus # and amount of bid.
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Old 03-14-2006, 04:42 PM   #14
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Did you tell him I sent you? We joked about how I ought to get a commission if my internet posting got him a buyer.

Now I can get back to looking for the front engine bus I need.

All my best,
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Old 04-16-2006, 04:33 PM   #15
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Gweedough: Have you picked up your bus? How is it turning out?
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Old 04-16-2006, 07:58 PM   #16
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Yeah! Number 5 and I had a rainy introduction and a soggy drive all the way down to Fresno, where it's going to live until I can scrape together the $$ to get the vegi-conversion done to the fuel system. Looks to be in great shape. Sometimes needed a little throttle help getting into high gear. Topped out at about 57mph on the flats. Engine and transmission replaced a while back and seem to have about 65k on them. I feel quite fortunate with my new toy. Once I get my project going and the website built, I'll start posting updates.

Thanks again for the heads-up!
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Old 04-24-2006, 10:13 AM   #17
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EGAD! At those prices I should have bid, and spent the money driving it home!

That's what I get for snoozing.......
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