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 10-11-2009, 10:34 PM   #41
Skoolie
 
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Portland OR area
Posts: 180
Year: 1983
Coachwork: International
Chassis: Carpenter
Engine: 8.3
Re: Bike For The Light Skoolie

I have always loved the skill saw or the saw's all. Especially if your talking curves or anything other than a straight line. My 2 cents...

__________________
seth
"grease buddy" and all around nice guy
madpsalmer is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-11-2009, 10:43 PM   #42
Bus Nut
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: California, Just NorthEast of San Fransisco
Posts: 539
Re: Bike For The Light Skoolie

Skill saws are good, but I find that I have to have a straight edge to run it along. Too easy to make wobbly cuts.
Sojakai is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-12-2009, 08:11 AM   #43
Bus Nut
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: California, Just NorthEast of San Fransisco
Posts: 539
Re: Bike For The Light Skoolie

In general, when cutting through finished paint, tape the area that you are cutting.

I have heard some say to score along where you will cut to limit any paint chipping as you cut alot the inside of the score. I have no idea if it works, as I haven't seen anything to indicate that its widely done. Can anyone back it or kill it?
Sojakai is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-12-2009, 09:57 AM   #44
Skoolie
 
bikeforthelight's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Lakeland, Florida
Posts: 232
Year: 85
Coachwork: Blue Bird
Chassis: Ford
Engine: Gas
Rated Cap: 66
Re: Bike For The Light Skoolie

the door has a 3/4 inch trim surround, so the edge doesnt have to be perfect, just close. i will prime and paint the edge i cut before installing the door just to protect it from the rust and element. thanks guys. i guess i will just use the jig saw and skill saw. one for curves, one for straight lines.
__________________
Im Johnny. I Bike For The Light. I love missions. I think students rock. I make my mark.
https://www.bikeforthelight.com
bikeforthelight is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-12-2009, 05:12 PM   #45
Skoolie
 
bikeforthelight's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Lakeland, Florida
Posts: 232
Year: 85
Coachwork: Blue Bird
Chassis: Ford
Engine: Gas
Rated Cap: 66
Re: Bike For The Light Skoolie

thats a good idea too. i probably will do it. just a good silicone caulk or something like that. got my cash in today, so tomorrow i order the roof a/c and start laying my floor in. i am getting a ducted a/c roof assembly and building my own duct work into the bedrooms and living room. should work great.
__________________
Im Johnny. I Bike For The Light. I love missions. I think students rock. I make my mark.
https://www.bikeforthelight.com
bikeforthelight is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-13-2009, 03:21 AM   #46
Bus Nut
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Posts: 758
Re: Bike For The Light Skoolie

Polyurethane based caulk is 100 times better for use on metal then silicone. You can find it at Lowe's for about $5.00 per tube.
Abbott is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-13-2009, 08:38 AM   #47
Skoolie
 
bikeforthelight's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Lakeland, Florida
Posts: 232
Year: 85
Coachwork: Blue Bird
Chassis: Ford
Engine: Gas
Rated Cap: 66
Re: Bike For The Light Skoolie

Quote:
Originally Posted by Abbott
Polyurethane based caulk is 100 times better for use on metal then silicone. You can find it at Lowe's for about $5.00 per tube.
thanks for the tip. ive seen it there. thats what ill go with then.
__________________
Im Johnny. I Bike For The Light. I love missions. I think students rock. I make my mark.
https://www.bikeforthelight.com
bikeforthelight is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-13-2009, 03:43 PM   #48
Bus Nut
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: California, Just NorthEast of San Fransisco
Posts: 539
Re: Bike For The Light Skoolie

Make an insulated plug about an inch bigger than the plate, so if you ever have to get to the sensor, just pull out the plug. I figure make the hole around the plug half an inch bigger than the plate, and the flooring on top about half an inch bigger than the hole.

My idea for longevity is to put a piece of thin board on the bottom, some dowels at the corners and fill with insulation and screws to sandwich it all together. Add one of those little "One Finger" Pull Rings for lifting out. This way the plug should hold up to being pulled out and pushed back in without worry of damaging it. But then again, It could just be me over building.
Sojakai is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-14-2009, 01:17 AM   #49
Skoolie
 
bikeforthelight's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Lakeland, Florida
Posts: 232
Year: 85
Coachwork: Blue Bird
Chassis: Ford
Engine: Gas
Rated Cap: 66
Re: Bike For The Light Skoolie

Wow...thanks guys. Had no clue what that was for. I will definitely make sure I have access to it then. I am just laying carpet over my subfloor, so that is easy to make an access panel under the carpet and still have my insulated subfloor. I will just have the plug attached with shorter screws or something. I am gonna be working on all that stuff the next few days, so thank you a ton for letting me know before it was too late. I appreciate it a ton.

Today didn't get a ton done. I started working on tinting the windows. Took a couple tries to get the hang of it, but after pulling off failed attempts the first couple of times I finally started getting it done. Here is my tint work table and my giant roll of tint from ebay. Great buy. $60 got me enough for the whole bus.



I got 4 panes done before I had to cut out. Its 5% limo tint, so it should help quite a bit with the heat in the bus. In the end, only 7 of the 22 windows will be exposed on the inside. The other 15 will be covered from the inside and insulated, but I want the tint for the outside look and to keep as much sun out as possible. Here are a couple pics of what I got done. Its insane how much light they really cut out.





Tomorrow I am building the other wheel well box, and starting to lay subfloor I think. Or maybe more tint. I dunno. So much to do I have my pick. Haha.
__________________
Im Johnny. I Bike For The Light. I love missions. I think students rock. I make my mark.
https://www.bikeforthelight.com
bikeforthelight is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-14-2009, 10:38 AM   #50
Skoolie
 
bikeforthelight's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Lakeland, Florida
Posts: 232
Year: 85
Coachwork: Blue Bird
Chassis: Ford
Engine: Gas
Rated Cap: 66
Re: Bike For The Light Skoolie

Quote:
Originally Posted by mightybus
Great post! So are you happy with the 5% tint? Is that what you would recommend? Or 10% if you had to do over or what?
So far I am all about the 5%. Its gonna keep it cooler, and it also means that if the shade isnt closed completely people aren't just starting at the family jewels when I am changing. Haha. I like the 5%. I actually almost went 2%, but switched it at the last minute and am glad. I wouldn't want it any darker, also don't think I would want it any brighter either.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Smitty
Tint look great Jonathan! I was reading (over on School Bus Central I think) a question between drivers who haul kids for a living. It was basically which seemed to help against the heat, white roof VS tinted windows. Many said they felt tinted windows helped more to keep the interior cooler.

Smitty
Yeah, you posted that link, or someone did. I read through the whole thing, and a lot of them who had driven both felt that the tint did more. So hopefully it works that way for me. Im taking off for the Lowes, then onto the bus with subfloor. Wish me luck.
__________________
Im Johnny. I Bike For The Light. I love missions. I think students rock. I make my mark.
https://www.bikeforthelight.com
bikeforthelight is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-14-2009, 11:30 AM   #51
Bus Nut
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Posts: 758
Re: Bike For The Light Skoolie

Quote:
Its 5% limo tint, so it should help quite a bit with the heat in the bus.
Another real nice heat reduction inside a bus can be had with 3M glass bubbles used as a paint additive. I was able to reduce the daytime temp inside my bus by 10 degrees with the additive and some extremely bright white paint.

Here is a write-up about it from my bus conversion log;

US Composites http://www.shopmaninc.com/fillers.html

Quote:
I chose Sherman Williams brand paint Steel Master 9500 in “Extra White” color for the roof at $45.00 per gallon. To this I added 3M glass beads and some mineral spirits. I then sprayed the bus's roof with two coats of the insulating paint.

As an insulating paint additive I ordered 5 quarts of 3M Glass Beads from U.S. Composites for $9.75. With shipping the order was under $20.00 and it arrived in about 3 or 4 day's time.

I mixed 10-ounces of powder and a half-cup of Mineral Spirits per gallon of paint. The glass bubbles are a very, very fine powder and I highly recommend wearing a mask when working with them.

I ordered Product number FL-3M050 3M Glass bubbles paint additive for my bus but larger or smaller containers are available.

I sprayed the roof with an Airless paint sprayer. An Airless pumps pure paint (material) without mixing it with air so it is not made for applying paint to metal surfaces. One has to be extremely careful of applying to much paint to quickly thus creating runs. Using this method I was able to get two heavy coats of material on the roof of the bus. I also had to sand out some runs between coats and I now have a couple more runs that need to be addressed before I can call the roof "finished".

The 3M Glass Bead paint additive leaves a fine suede like finish on the painted surface. I am very pleased with it. Not only does it look good but it will also aid in hiding a few minor sheet metal blemishes underneath the paint.

The bright white paint and 3M glass bead additive has made a noticeable difference in the interior temperature of the bus. When the bus was the original yellow color during the warm part of the day the roof metal was hot to the touch. Now the roof metal stays cool to the touch all day long.

I have also been monitoring the interior temperature of the bus and I have noticed about a 10-degree drop in temperature during the hottest part of the day.
Abbott is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-14-2009, 11:35 PM   #52
Skoolie
 
bikeforthelight's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Lakeland, Florida
Posts: 232
Year: 85
Coachwork: Blue Bird
Chassis: Ford
Engine: Gas
Rated Cap: 66
Re: Bike For The Light Skoolie

Quote:
Originally Posted by Abbott
Another real nice heat reduction inside a bus can be had with 3M glass bubbles used as a paint additive. I was able to reduce the daytime temp inside my bus by 10 degrees with the additive and some extremely bright white paint.
Well my bus is going to be used for a very specific reason, so the paint job is gonna be pretty wild. So I will not be painting the roof white. I would like to, it just wont work with what I am doing. So I am trying to keep the temp down as much as possible without that. I will talk to my painter friend and see if the glass beads would work with auto paint though. I like the idea.

Today went well. Started with a trip to Lowes, then to Home Depot, then back to Lowes. Forgot things and needed stuff the other didnt have. Finally got to bus with my floor plywood and foam. My pickup is a short bed, but she works pretty well still.



First I finished the second wheel well box. Started cutting the insulation to fit. I was originally gonna get 1/2" but the 3/4" steps the R-Factor up by 2 points, only cost about $2 more a sheet, and only makes me loose 1/4" in height. Seemed like the smart move, so I did it. Used a razor and it worked pretty well. The rear piece was the hardest. Had to fit with the door and rear corner curves. Then went in between the pieces and all the edges with some foil tape. Went pretty well.





Only got the rear half foam laid before I got way to excited. i had to lay some plywood and see how it looked. Cutting the rear piece for that sucked. But I got it done pretty well. I used two drills. One drilled pilot holes, the second sunk the wood to metal screws. Went in really well, and is solid. No squeaking, and it feels really solid.





Got dark when I had 3 sheets laid. So I didn't get to finish it all. The rear half is done. Tomorrow I finish the front half. Then finish tinting the windows and start framing out the walls. Gotta order the roof ac too. Way too much to do.
__________________
Im Johnny. I Bike For The Light. I love missions. I think students rock. I make my mark.
https://www.bikeforthelight.com
bikeforthelight is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-16-2009, 08:36 PM   #53
Bus Nut
 
ezbme's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Datil, New Mexico
Posts: 642
Year: 1989
Coachwork: Thomas Transit Liner
Chassis: Freightliner
Engine: CAT 3208 Turbo
Re: Bike For The Light Skoolie

Read thru all your posts since we last talked, making great progress Johnny!!

FINALLY got DSL hooked up today so we are back online!

Jonathan
ezbme is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-17-2009, 03:34 PM   #54
Skoolie
 
bikeforthelight's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Lakeland, Florida
Posts: 232
Year: 85
Coachwork: Blue Bird
Chassis: Ford
Engine: Gas
Rated Cap: 66
Re: Bike For The Light Skoolie

Jonathan!!! Your back....nice. Well get your work done so I can hear all about your NM adventures so far.
__________________
Im Johnny. I Bike For The Light. I love missions. I think students rock. I make my mark.
https://www.bikeforthelight.com
bikeforthelight is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-21-2009, 11:51 PM   #55
Skoolie
 
bikeforthelight's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Lakeland, Florida
Posts: 232
Year: 85
Coachwork: Blue Bird
Chassis: Ford
Engine: Gas
Rated Cap: 66
Re: Bike For The Light Skoolie

Quote:
Originally Posted by Smitty
Lookin' good Johnny! Looks like ya got a nice shady spot to work in. Wished I was insulating & sheeting mine.
Can't recall if you mentioned what you're laying as your finished floor, and it's hard to see in the pics, but if you have divets from knots, you may want to mix-up some body-filler to smooth them out so they don't show-up in the finished floor.
Smitty
Thanks man. Yeah, I have a great spot to work on it. Shade is definitely needed here in Florida I am gonna be throwing some body filler in just a couple of the knots. Mostly it just looks like there are a lot of them. I am doing the carpet for right now. Will eventually go with wood floor, but on this first tour the carpet is the best way to go. Once it becomes a normal camping skoolie it will get the wood floor.

So bear with me today I have a ton of pics. I know some of you hate ebay, but I have always had a great experience, and it came through once again. These are pics of some of my new goodies that all came in today. And a couple pics of the new chest freezer bought at Target. Would have more pics of the bus, but havent been there in a couple days because my truck broke down. Got fixed today, so tomorrow I am back at work in the bus. Oh, she will have a name by next Wednesday too. If you want to vote on the name we are gonna go with just go to www.bikeforthelight.com and vote. All the names were submitted in a contest over the past month. There were even a couple of you guys that submitted names. Anyways, on to the hoards of pics.

Here are pics of my new Elixir Power Converter/Charger. Picked this bad boy up on ebay for $109 with free shipping. Gotta love it. Its a 45 amp unit, which is plenty for what I am planning. Its a brand new unit and came in original packaging with manual and everything.





Here are pics of my new Elixir Automatic Line/Generator Switch. Ebay again for only $49 with free shipping. Its a 30 amp unit. Plenty for the use I am using it for. It is not going to be going in between the shore/genny and power converter. Instead it is going in between my wall outlets and the power converter/external inverter. That way when I am boondocking I can run my wall outlets without having to move plugs around. All I have to do is turn on the inverter and the switch makes my outlets receive power from the inverter instead of the non-existent shore powered converter. If you look back to my wiring diagram earlier you will see what I mean.




This was my favorite buy because it was the best deal. This was a lot of 10 ceiling 12 volt lights. I bought 3 of these new last year for about $15 a piece for my rv. I got all 10 of these for $50 with shipping. Great deal. They are bright, work great, and I can replace bulbs with led's if I want. I will do that incrementally because they aren't cheap.




Ok, here is the last thing. If you have followed the discussion on the other page about chest freezers, here is the new purchase. Still need to run my tests on it. Haven't been able to find my thermometer to run a proper test. I will be running this with a thermostat power switch so it runs like a fridge. It was a great buy for me. I was gonna get a 5 cu ft unit, but was sacrificing my layout for it because it was just 4 inches too wide. I think this slightly smaller unit will be the perfect fit now for me to put in my original layout. The loss of space is fine for me. My old rv fridge was only 3 cu ft and it was plenty. This was bought at Target for $160. $20 less than the 5 cu ft one too. Saved cash. Gotta love that.





So there are my new toys. Tomorrow I am back to building. Too bad all these new toys have to just sit there till I get more building done. Gives me motivation to finish up quicker I guess.
__________________
Im Johnny. I Bike For The Light. I love missions. I think students rock. I make my mark.
https://www.bikeforthelight.com
bikeforthelight is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-22-2009, 11:39 AM   #56
Bus Nut
 
ezbme's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Datil, New Mexico
Posts: 642
Year: 1989
Coachwork: Thomas Transit Liner
Chassis: Freightliner
Engine: CAT 3208 Turbo
Re: Bike For The Light Skoolie

Wow Johnny good scores on the new goodies! See you did decide to get the lights... Let me know how they are once you hook them up...Thinking of using something simliar for the 12V side of the cabin. Making good progress!
ezbme is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-22-2009, 10:58 PM   #57
Skoolie
 
bikeforthelight's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Lakeland, Florida
Posts: 232
Year: 85
Coachwork: Blue Bird
Chassis: Ford
Engine: Gas
Rated Cap: 66
Re: Bike For The Light Skoolie

Quote:
Originally Posted by ezbme
Wow Johnny good scores on the new goodies! See you did decide to get the lights... Let me know how they are once you hook them up...Thinking of using something simliar for the 12V side of the cabin. Making good progress!
Thanks man. They are the same lights I used in my RV last year, and they work great. Lots of light coming from them. Nice and bright, and less than a 1 amp draw. Gotta love that. String em all together. Glad I got them. All because we found em that day in the bus. Gotta love that.

Today was a productive one. Although I wish I would have gotten more done. I finished all the insulation on the floor up through the driver area and the stairwell.




Got most of the plywood down too. Looks like its all done in the pic, but it isn't. I was gonna finish it all, but broke my drill bit for pilot holes. Had others, but they were too big or small, so I called it a day a little early. Went to the HD and picked up some more so I can finish it tomorrow. I did get the access door for the fuel sensor all done though.




While at the Depot, I picked up my 2x3 studs for the walls. I cant wait to start throwing them up. But before I can, I need to finish the window tint. Really not looking forward to finishing that. No reason, just not that fun I guess. I'd rather be cutting wood and getting blisters I guess.
__________________
Im Johnny. I Bike For The Light. I love missions. I think students rock. I make my mark.
https://www.bikeforthelight.com
bikeforthelight is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-23-2009, 11:54 AM   #58
Bus Nut
 
TygerCub's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2009
Posts: 784
Year: 1995
Coachwork: Genesis
Engine: Detroit
Rated Cap: 14
Re: Bike For The Light Skoolie

How thick is that R Max? Is it the kind with foil on one side? Or just regular blue foam?

P.S. ~ GREAT work so far!
TygerCub is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-25-2009, 02:14 PM   #59
Skoolie
 
bikeforthelight's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Lakeland, Florida
Posts: 232
Year: 85
Coachwork: Blue Bird
Chassis: Ford
Engine: Gas
Rated Cap: 66
Re: Bike For The Light Skoolie

Quote:
Originally Posted by TygerCub
How thick is that R Max? Is it the kind with foil on one side? Or just regular blue foam?
P.S. ~ GREAT work so far!
Its 3/4 inch. Has foil on both sides. Printed sticker on top of the foil on one side though. Has an R Factor of 5. I was gonna go with 1/2, but the 3/4 was only $2 more a sheet, so it was worth it. Thanks man.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Smitty
Looks great Johnny! I wish I were at the same point, ready to start building You've got alot of the worst part done.....let the fun begin!
Smitty
Thanks man. Don't worry, with how quick your going you will pass me up soon. Haha.

So this week was productive. I was hoping to finish up the floor on Friday, but all the odd cuts up front and my desire to use whole sheets of ply rather than piece mealing it meant a lot of measuring and taking my time. But I finished up the floor on Saturday. I also ended up building a box over the engine cover. I wasn't sure what I was gonna do till I got to that point. It is cut oddly for the gas pedal, but I am gonna be putting a faux wall there and you wont see it except from the driver seat. The box is gonna help keep the noise and heat down in the front, and it gives a nice flat space to put speakers on for the sound system I am putting in. I am happy with it. Here are some pics of the last few days:







And finally, the sub floor is done. I am so happy. That was a bear of a job.



So now I am gonna have to spend a day or two tinting the rest of the windows. Then I get started framing the walls. I have to build my A/C duct too. Lots to do. More pics coming up soon.
__________________
Im Johnny. I Bike For The Light. I love missions. I think students rock. I make my mark.
https://www.bikeforthelight.com
bikeforthelight is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-25-2009, 02:37 PM   #60
Bus Nut
 
ezbme's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Datil, New Mexico
Posts: 642
Year: 1989
Coachwork: Thomas Transit Liner
Chassis: Freightliner
Engine: CAT 3208 Turbo
Re: Bike For The Light Skoolie

Hey that looks good! Did you lose some of the top step? Looks shallow, like about half yer foot would fit on it...juss wondering
ezbme 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


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
light flashers Soundman1 Classifieds | Buy, Sell, Swap 6 07-20-2012 10:00 AM
1990 Carpenter Cadet- bike hauler camper Boudreaux Short-Bus Conversion Projects 10 02-14-2012 06:11 AM
Bike For The Light Bus bikeforthelight Classifieds | Buy, Sell, Swap 0 01-04-2011 09:53 PM
busses with bike storage room...??? Ireland Everything Else | General Skoolie Discussions 10 02-08-2010 05:25 PM
bike rack on a shorty? lapeer20m Short-Bus Conversion Projects 1 07-19-2009 08:46 PM

» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Powered by vBadvanced CMPS v3.2.3

All times are GMT -5. The time now is 12:44 AM.


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