Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×


Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
 
Old 02-01-2018, 07:20 PM   #1
Skoolie
 
Dizzyman's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Cleburne, Texasa
Posts: 121
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas MVP
Engine: Cat 3126B
Rated Cap: 20800
Adventures with Thomas the Bus

Today the wife and I drove 2 1/2 hrs south and picked up our bus! We decided to name him Thomas (yeah I know, real original). The drive home was uneventful, he ran fine although for the first 30 minutes I tended to panic when I'm not moving the throttle and he would begin to slow. Then "its the governor, stupid" would echo in my head! I soon became used to it though. We had about a 15 mph headwind and many long mostly gentle hills on our route. It is governed at 60 mph which is 21 RPM. It maintained 60 on all but a few of the steeper hills which it took at 55 mph.

Several questions:
the temperature gauge stayed at 195 or a needles width below which I assume is normal?

The fuel gauge bounced around a lot as the bus swayed, is that normal?

The oil pressure gauge stayed at 25-27 depending on whether the engine was flat out or in town. At an idle at operating temperature it would drop to to what appeared to be about 10 psi. Cause for alarm? From what I read if it were too low the bus would not run at all due to the HEUI pump. Is that correct?

The only gauge that never twitched was the transmission temperature gauge, I will have to check that one out.

As things progress I'm sure I will have lots of questions and I am happy for a place like this to pick the brains of those who know!
Attached Thumbnails
First fill up - ouch!.jpg   Picnic time!.jpg   Thomas at his new home 1.jpg   Home at last 2.jpg  

Dizzyman is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2018, 07:56 PM   #2
Bus Geek
 
Join Date: May 2016
Location: Eastern WA
Posts: 6,401
Year: 2002
Coachwork: Bluebird
Chassis: All American RE (A3RE)
Engine: Cummins ISC (8.3)
Rated Cap: 72
That is a good looking bus!!

Tell us a bit more about it. What engine & transmission? That will make it easier to answer engine/transmission questions.
PNW_Steve is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-01-2018, 08:37 PM   #3
Skoolie
 
Dizzyman's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Cleburne, Texasa
Posts: 121
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas MVP
Engine: Cat 3126B
Rated Cap: 20800
It is a 1999 Thomas MVP
Cat 3126B Diesel rear pusher
Allison automatic transmission with overdrive. I don’t know the model yet, has first, second, third and Drive.
And at 60 mph the rpm was 2100, NOT 21!
Dizzyman is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-02-2018, 07:01 AM   #4
Skoolie
 
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Raleigh, NC
Posts: 102
Year: 1995
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: Saf-T-Liner ER
Engine: Cummins ISC 8.3 Allison MD3060
Nice looking bus! Congrats!

As a new skoolie myself, it will be fun to build my bus but also see the others like yourself build yours.

Welcome to the forums and have fun!!

James
JamieJackson is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-02-2018, 10:06 AM   #5
Bus Geek
 
Join Date: May 2016
Location: Eastern WA
Posts: 6,401
Year: 2002
Coachwork: Bluebird
Chassis: All American RE (A3RE)
Engine: Cummins ISC (8.3)
Rated Cap: 72
My best guess is that a 1999 with overdrive would be an MD3060.

I have the same transmission in my bus. I drove it over 300 miles before I saw the transmission temperature go over 150.

I was using my bus as a moving truck. I packed my household goods in it and drove over Snoqualmie pass. Packed full and pulling 4-5% grades definitely brought transmission temperature up a bit but never enough to be of concern.
PNW_Steve is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-02-2018, 02:06 PM   #6
Bus Geek
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Columbus Ohio
Posts: 18,760
Year: 1991
Coachwork: Carpenter
Chassis: International 3800
Engine: DTA360 / MT643
Rated Cap: 7 Row Handicap
does the transmission handle have Push buttons like a keypad? (thats MD3060) or is it a 'T' handle like in a car, lettered 'R-N-D-3-2-1'(this is MT643 or AT545.. Non Overdriver) or is it lettered 'R-N-D-4-2-1'?(allison 2000 series Overdriver

highly unlikely you have the last optiopn I listed as allison released the 1000/2000 in the late 99 model year.

25-27 on a HEUI engine is a little bit low on oil pressure. . but also the dash gauge is not the way to measure it if you suspect an issue.. get someone to read the ECM for you and that will give you a better reading.. (BEST!! is a mechanical test gauge on the oil pressure test port of the engine).. but the ECM is usually decent.

I would definitely change the oil / fiulter, put it in some nice Rotella T 15W40 T4 oil and drive it around some more..
-Christopher
cadillackid is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-02-2018, 09:08 PM   #7
Skoolie
 
Dizzyman's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Cleburne, Texasa
Posts: 121
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas MVP
Engine: Cat 3126B
Rated Cap: 20800
Thanks James, welcome to you as well! The journey will be fun!
Dizzyman is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-02-2018, 09:21 PM   #8
Skoolie
 
Dizzyman's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Cleburne, Texasa
Posts: 121
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas MVP
Engine: Cat 3126B
Rated Cap: 20800
Quote:
Originally Posted by cadillackid View Post
does the transmission handle have Push buttons like a keypad? (thats MD3060) or is it a 'T' handle like in a car, lettered 'R-N-D-3-2-1'(this is MT643 or AT545.. Non Overdriver) or is it lettered 'R-N-D-4-2-1'?(allison 2000 series Overdriver

highly unlikely you have the last optiopn I listed as allison released the 1000/2000 in the late 99 model year.

25-27 on a HEUI engine is a little bit low on oil pressure. . but also the dash gauge is not the way to measure it if you suspect an issue.. get someone to read the ECM for you and that will give you a better reading.. (BEST!! is a mechanical test gauge on the oil pressure test port of the engine).. but the ECM is usually decent.

I would definitely change the oil / fiulter, put it in some nice Rotella T 15W40 T4 oil and drive it around some more..
-Christopher
It is a T handle with a button on the left side and it is labeled R-N-D-3-2-1. When I’m off work week after next I will get under it and look for a plate of some sort. Thank you for pointing me in the right direction. If it doesn’t run good then it’s a huge paperweight!
Dizzyman is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-03-2018, 04:55 PM   #9
Bus Geek
 
Join Date: May 2016
Location: Eastern WA
Posts: 6,401
Year: 2002
Coachwork: Bluebird
Chassis: All American RE (A3RE)
Engine: Cummins ISC (8.3)
Rated Cap: 72
Somehow I got overdrive stuck in my head. I just reread the OP and I was mistaken.
PNW_Steve is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-06-2018, 07:00 PM   #10
Skoolie
 
Dizzyman's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Cleburne, Texasa
Posts: 121
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas MVP
Engine: Cat 3126B
Rated Cap: 20800
It is frustrating to have the bus home and not be able to get started on it due to something called a JOB. The alarm goes off at 4:30 AM followed by an hour drive each way with 12 hours on my feet in the middle. For some reason since I hit my 60’s a while back I just don’t bounce back like I used to! We planned to get started pulling seats today but babysitting a sick grand child took presidence. It rained hard this afternoon so I was curious to see if the bus leaked and where. No windows leaked to my surprise. The only leaks I found were from the two roof emergency hatches which did not surprise me. I guess I need to see if I can seal them somehow until we decide whether to install roof AC units or powered vents in those two spots.
Does anyone have experience with mini split AC in a skoolie?
Dizzyman is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-06-2018, 07:30 PM   #11
Skoolie
 
Dizzyman's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Cleburne, Texasa
Posts: 121
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas MVP
Engine: Cat 3126B
Rated Cap: 20800
What are these?

What are these teardrop shaped things under each lug nut?
Attached Thumbnails
CE8C31FD-2EB7-4BA7-B4C2-CD6C652BFF5E.jpg  
Dizzyman is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-06-2018, 07:43 PM   #12
Bus Geek
 
Join Date: Sep 2017
Location: Owasso, OK
Posts: 2,627
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: Saf-T-Liner MVP ER
Engine: Cummins 6CTA8.3 Mechanical MD3060
Rated Cap: 46 Coach Seats, 40 foot
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dizzyman View Post
What are these teardrop shaped things under each lug nut?
They are indicators. At a glance you can see if a lug-nut has moved.
__________________
Steve Bracken

Build Thread
Twigg is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-06-2018, 07:53 PM   #13
Skoolie
 
Dizzyman's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Cleburne, Texasa
Posts: 121
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas MVP
Engine: Cat 3126B
Rated Cap: 20800
Common sense

Quote:
Originally Posted by Twigg View Post
They are indicators. At a glance you can see if a lug-nut has moved.
I’ll be switched, how common sense is that! Surely there is some thousand dollar electronic system that would do the same thing!



Desmond
Dizzyman is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 02-27-2018, 04:22 PM   #14
Skoolie
 
Dizzyman's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Cleburne, Texasa
Posts: 121
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas MVP
Engine: Cat 3126B
Rated Cap: 20800
OK, if there are bus gods, I must have angered them somehow! Get the bus home, do the work for a living thing for a couple of weeks, have a few days off - and it rains the whole time! Take an extra day off, sure enough, it is way to soft and wet to move the bus the last 65 feet to where I need it to be to work on it with tools, electricity and air available. Now it's back to the grindstone for two weeks. Hopefully it will dry out in that time. Initially I was pretty hopeful that I would have minimal floor rust, but after seeing how badly the two roof escape hatches leak I'm not so sure any more.
Dizzyman is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-11-2018, 10:24 PM   #15
Skoolie
 
Dizzyman's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Cleburne, Texasa
Posts: 121
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas MVP
Engine: Cat 3126B
Rated Cap: 20800
Started the demolition today

One thing that has worked out wonderful with this project is that my lovely bride (of 41+ years) is in full agreement that I will need to purchase and/or upgrade a number of TOOLS! First out of the gate was a larger air compressor and a high quality impact wrench, I love this!

Our oldest daughter and her family were heading out of town Saturday evening for a few days with his parents but she wanted to be in on the initial demolition so bad that they put off leaving until noon today. Who am I to turn down a helper for under the bus!

OK, so we got a little carried away when we removed the first item, the drivers side crash barrier. Photo credit to our 8 year old grandson.
Attached Thumbnails
10. Demolition (first removal).jpeg  
Dizzyman is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-11-2018, 10:30 PM   #16
Skoolie
 
Dizzyman's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Cleburne, Texasa
Posts: 121
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas MVP
Engine: Cat 3126B
Rated Cap: 20800
More demolition pics

A couple more demo pics. I have no idea how the one came out sideways! I thought the seat "footprints" were cool.
Attached Thumbnails
12. Demolition (we have a wheelwell!).jpg   14. Demolition (footprints!).jpg   13. Grandkids found instant use for seats!.jpg  
Dizzyman is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-11-2018, 10:41 PM   #17
Skoolie
 
Dizzyman's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Cleburne, Texasa
Posts: 121
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas MVP
Engine: Cat 3126B
Rated Cap: 20800
AC question

This bus came with a serious amount of air conditioning. 3 large units, front, middle and rear with brand new compressors in the engine compartment. I presume that is why the roof is not painted white like almost every bus in Texas, perhaps Plano ISD felt they had the heat issue covered! As you can see from the attached photos they are large units and take up quite a bit of space. They do cool very well though.

Here is my dilemma, do I keep two of them (the middle unit is going, I've hit my head on it too may times!) for climate control while on the road as opposed to running a generator for the two roof units we will be installing later? Two units will cool the bus just fine.
Attached Thumbnails
AC units from the the rear.jpg   AC unit rear.jpg   AC unit middle.jpg   AC unit front.jpg   AC controls.jpg  

Dizzyman is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-12-2018, 06:50 AM   #18
Bus Geek
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Columbus Ohio
Posts: 18,760
Year: 1991
Coachwork: Carpenter
Chassis: International 3800
Engine: DTA360 / MT643
Rated Cap: 7 Row Handicap
keep 2 pull the middle.. or if you dont plan on having masny riding ion the back you can pull the read and side and keep the front one for good solid cooling upfront while driving.. if you are planning to insulate than the big one up front will keep the front half of the bus ice cold.. you could even run a duct with vents along the side if you want a little more cooling further back...

love that little one on the side.. i wish i had that up front in my red bus!

I would definitely keep that front one no matter what if it were mine.

-Christopher
cadillackid is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-12-2018, 08:36 AM   #19
Skoolie
 
Dizzyman's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Cleburne, Texasa
Posts: 121
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas MVP
Engine: Cat 3126B
Rated Cap: 20800
Quote:
Originally Posted by cadillackid View Post
keep 2 pull the middle.. or if you dont plan on having masny riding ion the back you can pull the read and side and keep the front one for good solid cooling upfront while driving.. if you are planning to insulate than the big one up front will keep the front half of the bus ice cold.. you could even run a duct with vents along the side if you want a little more cooling further back...

love that little one on the side.. i wish i had that up front in my red bus!

I would definitely keep that front one no matter what if it were mine.

-Christopher
Thanks Christopher. I'll put your name on the head knocker in the middle if you really want It!
Dizzyman is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-12-2018, 09:07 PM   #20
Skoolie
 
Dizzyman's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Cleburne, Texasa
Posts: 121
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas MVP
Engine: Cat 3126B
Rated Cap: 20800
2nd day of seat removal, only 9 seats taken out

Today was the second day of seat removal and the first with my lovely bride assisting. Odd thing, neither of us is as flexible as we used to be! We finished all of the remaining seats that the nuts could be reached from underneath fairly quickly and then things came to a screeching halt. Off to Home Depot for a 4 1/2" angle grinder and a pile of cut off wheels. Sheesh, it took 20 minutes to slash the head of the first bolt up enough to be able to drive it down. Thank you Thomas Built for putting all of the middle aisle seat bolts into sunken areas on the seats "Feet"! By then it was dusk, and I had 14 more seats to go, each with 4 bolts... We called it a night.

None of our bolts have been rusty or weakened so trying to twist them off with the impact wrench didn't work. Tomorrow I may try putting upward pressure on the seat frame while zapping the bolts with the impact wrench. Worth a try, my knees aren't going to handle all that kneeling while grinding well in spite of nice knee pads.

Here is today's cleared spot.
Attached Thumbnails
21. 2nd day of seat removal - only 9 more out.jpg  
Dizzyman is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Powered by vBadvanced CMPS v3.2.3

All times are GMT -5. The time now is 10:47 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.