Heavy Fuel

[Jacob]

Originally Posted by M1031A1

I'll have some pics in the next few days. Right now I'm planning a trip to Topeka tomorrow evening to get my teacher license application jump-started on Friday. I'm hoping to have my Kansas license by Thanksgiving.....

M

Sounds like a long process, my wife is a nurse and had to get her license moved to Kansas if I remember right she was able to start working not long after her application but didn't get her "license" for quite some time.

I won't be doing anything with my coolant lines soon I'll probably just remove them and the heaters and then decide if I will put the middle heaters back in or just run the lines for the driver area after I get my floor plan figured out. I would really like to meet you and check out your bus when you get moved.

[Greatestrr]

It was $1700 for ring and pinion swap?

[M1031A1]

Originally Posted by Jacob

Sounds like a long process, my wife is a nurse and had to get her license moved to Kansas if I remember right she was able to start working not long after her application but didn't get her "license" for quite some time.

I won't be doing anything with my coolant lines soon I'll probably just remove them and the heaters and then decide if I will put the middle heaters back in or just run the lines for the driver area after I get my floor plan figured out. I would really like to meet you and check out your bus when you get moved.

Once the dust settles and we're up there I'd enjoy having some new company! We're looking forward to it!

M

[M1031A1]

Originally Posted by Greatestrr

It was $1700 for ring and pinion swap?

Just under from Chalk's Bus Parts and Randy's Transmissions in Houston (same company, different departments). Now mind you that's when we delivered the diff to them. Shipping is extra......

M

[cadillackid]

kickass!!!! on HF.. lovin it!!!

its really amazing what changing the gear ratios does to a bus... ie my Redbyrd with its OD allison turned it into a whole different rig! that engine can cruise at 60-65 or so right inits power band! oyu'll get better MPG too!!
-Christopher

[M1031A1]

Ok Christopher, here's one atcha!:

This evening after getting back from a trip to Topeka, Kansas here's a couple of pics from earlier this evening..... YES she's going almost 70 @ 2400 rpm!!!! WoHOO and YAY for Chalk's and Rush!!!!!

I got the opportunity to see a for-real hot-rod-Lincoln (think Commander Cody's song) coming back from Topeka on I35W in Fort Worth doing all of 75!!!! HAD to take a couple of pics! That guy was INSANE for driving a cherry Model A in that stupid traffic.......

Also as I was heading into Topeka early Friday morning I was STUNNED to see a north-bound skoolie!!!!! Were my eyes deceiving me??? YUP - RATS!!!! Just a tricked out college activity bus...... Well, I AM looking for y'all in my travels!!!!!!!

Here's the synopsis of why I went to Topeka: It's always better to show up in person to apply for something - ESPECIALLY when it's so far away. I wanted the Kansas Education Department to know just how serious I am about becoming a teacher in Kansas. THAT paid off BIG TIME for me. Not only did I get the inside story on a time table (less than six weeks - WoHOO!!!!!), but there are three exams I can pass to teach at the high school level - where I really want to be - AND I can get those exams done at the same time Kansas is processing me to save me time and effort with a bunch of endorsements to get everything done at ONCE!!!!! What awesome people!!!! They knew me when I introduced myself, paid attention to my questions, gave me direct answers, and helped me to navigate around the bureaucracy to help me get where I want to go efficiently. Now THAT is how to run a government operation!!!! I left Topeka before 11:30 in the morning confident and optimistic. I have NEVER had that with Texas - EVER. WHAT a difference..... My family is fully supporting our move and with Hurricane Harvey making us basically homeless, it's time to move to Kansas - hopefully before Christmas Break. Time will tell.

Enjoy the pics:

M

[Tango]

Hey M...Congrats on all fronts! Great to hear the gear swap is a winner. Should make for a lot of easy miles on less (heavy) fuel. But are you sure you want to trade hurricanes for tornadoes? At least with hurricanes, you get plenty of time to go to the liquor store.

[M1031A1]

Originally Posted by Tango

Hey M...Congrats on all fronts! Great to hear the gear swap is a winner. Should make for a lot of easy miles on less (heavy) fuel. But are you sure you want to trade hurricanes for tornadoes? At least with hurricanes, you get plenty of time to go to the liquor store.

Tango,

Where we are looking to live in Kansas - Katy has TWICE the chance for tornados than Russell, Kansas does..... That's the difference between eastern Kansas and western Kansas. Plus, considering Evansville, Indiana was in the bulls-eye of tornado alley - I'm very used to it. But thanks for the concern - it means alot!!!

Now onto cleaning the interior for spray-foam!!!!! HF is VERY echo-ie without anything inside her....... I have vacuum cleaners, pine-sol, rags, paper towels, et. al. ready to get going today!!!!

M

[Tango]

Not sure if PineSol will leave a residue or not but a final wipe-down with something like paint-prep or thinner might make for a better bond. But, that said, I have no idea what the foam "pros" recommend.

[M1031A1]

Originally Posted by Tango

Not sure if PineSol will leave a residue or not but a final wipe-down with something like paint-prep or thinner might make for a better bond. But, that said, I have no idea what the foam "pros" recommend.

They said to final wipe with Windex, so Windex it is......

JUST got these in last night and into the dash just now!!!!! WoHOO!!!!

All there is to do now is go to Rush to weld a fitting into the exhaust, tap a hole for the transmission sensor, install the ends, and PRESTO gauges (working I hope....)

M

[Rusty]

Originally Posted by M1031A1

JUST got these in last night and into the dash just now!!!!! WoHOO!!!!


M

Dash is lookin' good ! Too bad you couldn't slip the word "heavy" inside the fuel gauge.

[M1031A1]

Originally Posted by Rusty

Dash is lookin' good ! Too bad you couldn't slip the word "heavy" inside the fuel gauge.

Now THAT is an AWESOME idea.......

[M1031A1]

Spray-foaming is now DONE!!!!!!!!! WoHOO!!!!! It took an afternoon and evening to do, I'm exhausted from it today, but it's DONE!!!!

It took 3 & 1/2 hours to prep., and 90 minutes to spray. WHAT a difference in how she sounds - er - doesn't sound..... Even with the windows down she's much quieter than before. Now the shaving starts, a little off the top here, a bit of a trim there, you know how it goes....

Anyway, here are the pics from yesterday/last night:

[M1031A1]

Also my rear blank is now firmly fixed. I like the way it turned out. Couldn't fit the bottom rain rail in, but I don't care. It still looks like a real blank.....

HF had a bit of a spray leak, y'all can see it in the above pic. There were four small leaks from the spray foam. And, by the way, when these guys used the spray foam, it got the metal HOT! Plus the glue in the foam is more than enough to get someone HIG-er than a kite! WOW!!!!

M

[cadillackid]

Wow looks good! That will sure help with the Texas sun too!
So what do you do shave it down to where you can fasten interior finishes directly to ribs? Or do you make it slightly below so airspace exists between it and finishes

[M1031A1]

Originally Posted by cadillackid

Wow looks good! That will sure help with the Texas sun too!
So what do you do shave it down to where you can fasten interior finishes directly to ribs? Or do you make it slightly below so airspace exists between it and finishes

I'll shave the foam even for structural reasons. I'm putting the sheet metal skin from the original factory build back on and then putting 2X4's on the inside of that as runners, then hard foam boards between the 2X4s and then a 1/8th inch birchwood plywood to finish the insulation, then BUILDING!!!! YAY!!!!

M

[tobeamiss]

That looks fantastic! WTG!!

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk

[Jacob]

Your foam job looks great. What product did you use and how much of it?

[Rusty]

Originally Posted by M1031A1

I'll shave the foam even for structural reasons. I'm putting the sheet metal skin from the original factory build back on and then putting 2X4's on the inside of that as runners, then hard foam boards between the 2X4s and then a 1/8th inch birchwood plywood to finish the insulation, then BUILDING!!!! YAY!!!!

M

Good choice. That's how my build is headed. 1/8" might be thin.

[M1031A1]

Originally Posted by Jacob

Your foam job looks great. What product did you use and how much of it?

If you look at the third photo from the top HF is parked in front of the spray foam shop where they did the work. I have no idea what the exact type of mixture they used, but they told me it's compatible to the spray foam in the bottle from Lowes or Home Depot, just a bit more refined for commercial use (if that helps).

I got my first real good look at the finished job this afternoon. The white color really makes the bus look bigger inside. I closed the windows and it's so QUIET inside it's amazing!!!! However, if I move around, any sound I make it's like being in an echo chamber..... TOO FUNNY!!!!

I'm also told by the spray foam guy it took about 150 pounds of the foam to do the job. However, keep in mind he intentionally over sprayed in some areas to nearly 4 inches to help me out with using the shavings to fill voids in the interior walls to help deaden sound - namely road sound - not engine sounds but steel creaking and such from driving down the road. I'll have some pics next week of how much in foam shavings I have generated. This is going to be amazing!!!!!

Rusty,

I'm using 1/8th inch birch wood to cover the second layer of insulation, not as a structural part of the bus. The 2X4s behind the birch will provide the anchor points. I have wiring and plumbing to run before then. I'm SOOOOO pumped about this!!!!!!

Wife says when I get verification of my Kansas teaching license we're moving no matter where we are in the build. I'm a bit more cautious. However, I figure we'll be home in Kansas before Christmas Break begins.... Stay tuned......

Jacob, if you want to come out and visit you're more than welcome. We're planning on being in either Russell or Hays toward the end of November or beginning of December. I'll be happy to show you what we've done to that date.... The plan is to have three ceramic space heaters in the bus providing more than enough warmth for the winter.

M