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Old 10-14-2019, 07:49 PM   #1
Mini-Skoolie
 
Join Date: Sep 2019
Location: Maine
Posts: 47
Year: 2003
Coachwork: Bluebird
Engine: 466DT
Joining the Club

Well, after several years of visiting, and a few months after joining, my lovely bride and I have joined the club by acquiring a 2003 International 3800!

D-466E engine, Allison transmission...166,000 miles.

Cranked today. Got all the seats out and the plywood ripped out. (Whew...I'm sore already). Got a bit of rust to deal with, it looks like, but (hopefully) nothing too serious.

Looking forward to the process. I'm already grateful for the knowledge that people have shared here. It provided a willingness to move forward in this adventure. So thanks to everyone who has shared their experience.

Cheers!
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Old 10-14-2019, 07:54 PM   #2
Bus Geek
 
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Join Date: Dec 2017
Location: Dawsonville, Ga.
Posts: 10,482
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Genesis
Chassis: International
Engine: DT466/3060
Rated Cap: 77
Welcome, complete the joining by going to the UserCP and adding your location and bus info in your profile. It'll make it easier to answer your questions.
Which Allison trans is it? You're starting with a good engine.
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Old 10-15-2019, 02:52 AM   #3
Bus Geek
 
Join Date: Sep 2015
Posts: 3,856
Year: 2002
Coachwork: Thomas Built Bus
Chassis: Freightliner FS65
Engine: Caterpillar 3126E Diesel
Rated Cap: 71 Passenger- 30,000 lbs.
Welcome!


Is that a large horn or a speaker above the driver?
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Old 10-15-2019, 07:09 AM   #4
Skoolie
 
Join Date: Aug 2019
Location: Central missouri
Posts: 128
Chassis: 2000 Int Amtran
Engine: DT466HT
Rated Cap: 84
Can't wait to see what you do and how you do it.
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Old 10-15-2019, 08:12 AM   #5
Bus Crazy
 
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Location: Ashtabula, Ohio
Posts: 1,494
Year: 1996
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: International
Engine: T444E 7.3L
Welcome aboard!
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Old 10-15-2019, 08:59 AM   #6
Skoolie
 
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Join Date: Sep 2018
Location: St. Charles County Missouri
Posts: 181
Year: 1997
Coachwork: Bluebird International
Chassis: 3800
Engine: T444e
Rated Cap: 35
Welcome to the group.
__________________
Michael G.
1997 Bluebird IH 3800 6 window T444e
https://www.skoolie.net/forums/f11/m...ird-28058.html
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Old 10-15-2019, 09:06 AM   #7
Mini-Skoolie
 
Join Date: Sep 2019
Location: Maine
Posts: 47
Year: 2003
Coachwork: Bluebird
Engine: 466DT
Not sure what model transmission. How do I find out?
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Old 10-15-2019, 09:08 AM   #8
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Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Eustis FLORIDA
Posts: 23,762
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: Freighliner FS65
Engine: Cat 3126
Rated Cap: 15
Quote:
Originally Posted by ted@campbycanoe.com View Post
Not sure what model transmission. How do I find out?
Post a pic of the shifter.
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Old 10-15-2019, 09:08 AM   #9
Mini-Skoolie
 
Join Date: Sep 2019
Location: Maine
Posts: 47
Year: 2003
Coachwork: Bluebird
Engine: 466DT
Quote:
Originally Posted by Native View Post
Welcome!


Is that a large horn or a speaker above the driver?
Speaker for communicating with kids outside the bus. Radio system is torn out. Thought about tying it into a sound system for outdoor music, but am willing to bet the sound quality is pretty bad!
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Old 10-15-2019, 09:11 AM   #10
Bus Geek
 
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Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Eustis FLORIDA
Posts: 23,762
Year: 1999
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Chassis: Freighliner FS65
Engine: Cat 3126
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ted@campbycanoe.com View Post
Speaker for communicating with kids outside the bus. Radio system is torn out. Thought about tying it into a sound system for outdoor music, but am willing to bet the sound quality is pretty bad!
The sound quality is atrocious.
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Old 10-15-2019, 06:16 PM   #11
Bus Geek
 
Join Date: Sep 2015
Posts: 3,856
Year: 2002
Coachwork: Thomas Built Bus
Chassis: Freightliner FS65
Engine: Caterpillar 3126E Diesel
Rated Cap: 71 Passenger- 30,000 lbs.
Quote:
Originally Posted by EastCoastCB View Post
The sound quality is atrocious.
If it is bad sound, but loud, perhaps it could serve as a horn.
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Old 10-15-2019, 07:19 PM   #12
Mini-Skoolie
 
Join Date: Sep 2019
Location: Maine
Posts: 47
Year: 2003
Coachwork: Bluebird
Engine: 466DT
Shifter Picture

Thanks for the welcome, everyone!

Busses are dangerous. All I want to do is stay home and make progress. Got the heaters out today.

Here's a picture of the shifter if someone can tell the transmission from it.
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Old 10-15-2019, 07:35 PM   #13
Bus Crazy
 
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Join Date: Oct 2017
Location: Ashtabula, Ohio
Posts: 1,494
Year: 1996
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: International
Engine: T444E 7.3L
Probably an AT545 Allison in there by the looks of the shifter. Same trans I got.
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Old 10-15-2019, 10:09 PM   #14
Skoolie
 
Join Date: Aug 2018
Location: GTA
Posts: 159
Year: 2002
Coachwork: Thomas Built Buses
Chassis: FS-65
Engine: Cat 3126
Rated Cap: 66/44
Quote:
Originally Posted by Johnny Mullet View Post
Probably an AT545 Allison in there by the looks of the shifter. Same trans I got.
Could be a series 2000. I think a 545 would have a "3" below the D position
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Old 10-15-2019, 10:15 PM   #15
Bus Geek
 
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Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Eustis FLORIDA
Posts: 23,762
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: Freighliner FS65
Engine: Cat 3126
Rated Cap: 15
Quote:
Originally Posted by Johnny Mullet View Post
Probably an AT545 Allison in there by the looks of the shifter. Same trans I got.
Theirs has a "4" so I don't think its a 545. Looks to be a 2000. I think by 2003 they had finally used up their supply of 545's.
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Old 10-15-2019, 11:19 PM   #16
Bus Geek
 
Join Date: Sep 2015
Posts: 3,856
Year: 2002
Coachwork: Thomas Built Bus
Chassis: Freightliner FS65
Engine: Caterpillar 3126E Diesel
Rated Cap: 71 Passenger- 30,000 lbs.
Quote:
Originally Posted by EastCoastCB View Post
Theirs has a "4" so I don't think its a 545. Looks to be a 2000. I think by 2003 they had finally used up their supply of 545's.
Our 2000 has a circle around the "D", indicating overdrive.
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Old 10-16-2019, 01:11 AM   #17
Bus Geek
 
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Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Eustis FLORIDA
Posts: 23,762
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: Freighliner FS65
Engine: Cat 3126
Rated Cap: 15
Quote:
Originally Posted by Native View Post
Our 2000 has a circle around the "D", indicating overdrive.
Not all do. Some just have 1,2,4,D.
On a 545 the D is 4th.
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Old 10-16-2019, 06:47 AM   #18
Bus Geek
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Columbus Ohio
Posts: 18,707
Year: 1991
Coachwork: Carpenter
Chassis: International 3800
Engine: DTA360 / MT643
Rated Cap: 7 Row Handicap
allison spec'd about 50 different shifters i think.. the programming of the TCM determines what shifter it got..



a (D) 3-2-1. is a allison 2000 shifter but will drop from 5 to 3 if going slow enough when downshifting.. or will drop to 4 until you reduce speed further then it gfoes to 3..



a D-4-2-1 shifter will drop to 4 when shifted to 4. but will not further drop to 3 when you descrease speed..



the shifter was SPEC'd based on what the district wanted..



a D-4-2-1 shifter was not used on an AT545 or an MT643... only on 1000/2000
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Old 10-16-2019, 09:44 AM   #19
Mini-Skoolie
 
Join Date: Sep 2019
Location: Maine
Posts: 47
Year: 2003
Coachwork: Bluebird
Engine: 466DT
Seat and Plywood Removal

I'm taking the bus to a mechanic on Thursday night to see if there are any significant mechanical issues that need to be addressed. I'll see if he knows what transmission it has. At this point, though, it kind of is what it is. Should I know anything particular about the performance / maintenance of my specific transmission?

Here's a pic of seats out and plywood stripped. Got some rust between the wheel wells and a couple of small holes that I will need to patch.

Took me between 4 and 5 hours. I found a system that I liked: I took out all the seat bottoms, then impact wrenched the side rail bolts. (With a pneumatic impact driver I only had to hold a wrench on the bottom not for a handful of them. The rest came right out.)

Then I took an angle grinder with a grinding wheel and ground a groove into the bolt heads. This also allowed me to get down lower under the head. Without this step I found that I didn't get low enough to clear the head which looked like it was eating up cutoff wheels. Also, when I cut through I had too much of the bolt head remaining to free the seat.

After I had "pre-ground" each bolt, I switched to a cut-off wheel. I finished off the bolts of a seat, lifted the chair rail side first tilting the seat which broke it free from the floor. Then chucked it gleefully out the back of the bus. (Well...gleeful for the first 10 or so...then I got tired.)

Rubber coating was stuck on pretty good. That was tiring.

Plywood, though, wasn't too bad. I found that I would pop up a couple feet, then, instead of trying to wrestle with it, I just took a skill saw and an old blade and cut the loose part off, then continue on. The loss of leverage trying to get a pry bar (even a longer one) 3 feet under just wasn't efficient!
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Old 10-16-2019, 12:49 PM   #20
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Join Date: Nov 2018
Location: south east BC, close to the Canadian/US border
Posts: 2,265
Year: 1975
Coachwork: Chevy
Chassis: 8 window
Engine: 454 LS7
Rated Cap: 24,500
Quote:
Originally Posted by ted@campbycanoe.com View Post
I'm taking the bus to a mechanic on Thursday night to see if there are any significant mechanical issues that need to be addressed. I'll see if he knows what transmission it has. At this point, though, it kind of is what it is. Should I know anything particular about the performance / maintenance of my specific transmission?

Here's a pic of seats out and plywood stripped. Got some rust between the wheel wells and a couple of small holes that I will need to patch.

Took me between 4 and 5 hours. I found a system that I liked: I took out all the seat bottoms, then impact wrenched the side rail bolts. (With a pneumatic impact driver I only had to hold a wrench on the bottom not for a handful of them. The rest came right out.)

Then I took an angle grinder with a grinding wheel and ground a groove into the bolt heads. This also allowed me to get down lower under the head. Without this step I found that I didn't get low enough to clear the head which looked like it was eating up cutoff wheels. Also, when I cut through I had too much of the bolt head remaining to free the seat.

After I had "pre-ground" each bolt, I switched to a cut-off wheel. I finished off the bolts of a seat, lifted the chair rail side first tilting the seat which broke it free from the floor. Then chucked it gleefully out the back of the bus. (Well...gleeful for the first 10 or so...then I got tired.)

Rubber coating was stuck on pretty good. That was tiring.

Plywood, though, wasn't too bad. I found that I would pop up a couple feet, then, instead of trying to wrestle with it, I just took a skill saw and an old blade and cut the loose part off, then continue on. The loss of leverage trying to get a pry bar (even a longer one) 3 feet under just wasn't efficient!


you could always rent one of these to remove the rubber

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