Journey Begins - 1988 Crown Conversion

[cowlitzcoach]

I know I am stepping into the conversation a little late but I have some suggestions for you.

Before you start building anything in, take some time with some cardboard and blue masking tape and create your floor plan inside your bus. Then take your bus out for a long weekend.

Many times, something that looks good on paper just doesn't work in real life.

You may find you will make some changes that will in the end give you more space to do certain things.

Since I am built on the large economy size I tend to not like small spaces. My biggest peeve about most RV's, whether factory or home built, is the bathrooms don't give a wide load like me sufficient room to do my business. Both the toilet and the shower/tub spaces usually don't work for me very well.

When I was designing a conversion in a 1979 Crown I had laid out the toilet facing in towards the aisle with the tub/shower on the other side of the aisle. I was then going to have pocket doors to close off the aisle to provide privacy. The bathroom sink was going to be mounted outside of the toilet/tub/showeroom so someone could use the sink while someone else could be using the toilet/sub/shower. By combining the space across the aisle it allowed a lot more elbow/shoulder/knee room without taking up vehicle length. It also afforded a clear space in the aisle to allow for the floor board to come up.

Take my word for it, you do not want to block access to the floor boards on a mid-mount engine Crown or Gillig. There isn't much on top of the engine that ever needs to be serviced but reaching up and around between the block and the frame is no fun if the floor boards can't come up.

[Uglydog56]

Yes, make sure you retain access to those panels. Wait until you need to fix the shifter or adjust the clutch (n/a for you) or change the water pump on your detroit, or check the oil cooler on a cummins. You'll wish you had that access, trust me.

[inkblots84]

Love your bus! I'm happy to see another Crown saved! Sounds like you are making quick work of it too, please keep us posted!

If possible can you post a detail shot of your dash? Ours is very similar (74) but all the labels have worn off. We still haven't figured out what all the buttons do

[gpeck1970]

Good looking Bus Cant wait too see the finished product keep sending pics!!!

[gmarvel]

PROGRESS REPORT ON CROWN CONVERSION

Sorry for not doing any recent posts. Our transportation software business gets really busy during late Summer and early Fall, and our customers must come first. However, I wanted to finally get around to providing a few update photos and a progress report.

As you saw in the last post, all the seats have been removed. We took measurements of the entire bus, including window placements, wheel well locations, etc. We taped up numerous variations of what we thought might work. We are on our sixth draft.

We have located a vendor that is going to do the body repair, sanding and painting of the bus. We are still working on a paint scheme. We did select colors today. All the school bus lettering has been removed. Sanding and body work (minor dings and dents here and there are being fixed) will begin next week. Crowns have floors that have coving at the sides of the interior running the entire length. We determined that the coving had to be removed so that the base cabinets could have more room to go flush against the walls. The coving has been removed.

The interior has been thoroughly cleaned of 25 years of grime. The right windshield has been replaced (it had a crack in it). We are debating dropping the fuel tank and having it thoroughly cleaned out. We are concerned that after 25 years the sludge at the bottom of the tank needs to be removed. We believe doing it now is the best way to help protect the injectors and eliminate future problems.

A school district in Southern California sold us a set of heated exterior mirrors from a Crown that was going to be crushed the next day. We also got a couple of electric horn assemblies for the steering wheel (the one in our bus does not work). We are still looking for a couple of Crown vent hoods for the roof to cover the vent pipe going through the roof to vent the black and grey water tanks.

We have decided on an RV 10 gallon electric water heater from Rheem that has great reviews. Remember, we are not doing propane in our conversion.

We selected a queen size Sleep Number bed designed for RV's. It arrived already and is in storage waiting for when we can install it in the bus.

Several of the side windows show signs of fogging. I am told that this means the safety glass has delaminated. We are getting those windows replaced.

The heater core in the front of the bus is leaky. We are looking for a replacement. I have a vendor that is confident that a replacement can be found.

Below are some pictures of the interior with tape laid out on the floor. We are getting close to final layout. We took many of your suggestions, including playing with the sizes of things like the bathroom and the shower area. By doing this we actually expanded the area where the toilet is going and the size of the shower area. We are also making sure to keep the floor access panel free from obstructions.

[JakeC]

Thanks for the update! Good to see you are still working on it, and getting it in good shape BEFORE you start your build is always a good plan

[Stu & Filo. T]

I'm shopping for a Crown also & have drawn out a few plans so I have one question, for your bed why not build a frame high enough so the bed will be on top of that foot wide ledge then use the rest of the trunk cover for a head board that say you could lean against when reading in bed plus thats one more foot you have to work with

[gmarvel]

Our plans call for the bed frame to be level with that seat ledge at the back. You are right, we want to utilize that space for the bed to provide us with more floor space. And we intend to use the back rest area of the old metal ledge to be part of our headboard.

[gmarvel]

HERE IS OUR CURRENT PLAN DOWN ON PAPER

Below you will find our plans for the bus. This is literally the sixth or seventh edition and I know more will be forthcoming. We are using Adobe Illustrator. We have also enlisted the help of an interior designer to help us figure some stuff out. She has been very helpful and has done numerous RV conversions and remodels in the past. Donna and I want to get this right the first time so we have done numerous revamps and changed our mind numerous times.

I already know that the cabinets above the TV/Monitor area will have to go. The TV/Monitor will be on a riser that comes out of the base cabinet. There will not be enough space above the top of the TV and the bottom of the overhead cabinet. So, right off the plans below are being modified. The Monitor will be a 47" flatscreen and will be on a swivel so people sitting at the sofa and the dinette on the other side of the bus can easily see the screen. This will be used for software demos. We will also be running an HDMI cable from the TV/Monitor to the other side of the coach where I will be using the computer to show the software. We have to find a good way to hide the cable as we run it to the other side.

We are also modifying the dinette area a little because the area for the induction cooktop needs about two to three more inches.

We have also decided to replace the air ride driver's seat. I believe it is original to the bus and is really tired. We have started that research.

The plans below are just that. They are not carved in stone. Any ideas or suggestions would be appreciated.

[wmkbailey]

Originally Posted by gmarvel

I already know that the cabinets above the TV/Monitor area will have to go. The TV/Monitor will be on a riser that comes out of the base cabinet.

Man you are stealing my idea. I wanted to keep it secret until it was done. Mine will be a computer desk by day, that will fold down and with magic a TV will come up. That way I can enjoy the window because the TV will block it.

[PDBreske]

In my bus I wanted to keep all the water use on one side to avoid running any plumbing below the floor or through the frame rails. I also eliminated a second sink in the bathroom since the kitchen sink is only a few feet away. I know almost all RVs have a separate bathroom sink, and I can't for the life of figure out why that is. I can understand if you have ten feet and several spaces to walk through to get from the shower/toilet to the kitchen, but when it's literally on the other side of the door, what's the point?

Anyway, some things to consider.

[Stu & Filo. T]

n my bus I wanted to keep all the water use on one side to avoid running any plumbing below the floor or through the frame rails. I also eliminated a second sink in the bathroom since the kitchen sink is only a few feet away. I know almost all RVs have a separate bathroom sink, and I can't for the life of figure out why that is. I can understand if you have ten feet and several spaces to walk through to get from the shower/toilet to the kitchen, but when it's literally on the other side of the door, what's the point?

I agree, what I really don't understand is the S&S couches putting a sink in the bedroom when just on the other side of the wall is the bathroom with another sink

[PDBreske]

Originally Posted by allwthrrider

I agree, what I really don't understand is the S&S couches putting a sink in the bedroom when just on the other side of the wall is the bathroom with another sink

I think the people who can afford to spend many hundreds of thousands of dollars on a motorhome believe that they should have every single amenity, even if the presence of those amenities doesn't make any sense. "For half a million dollars, I want three sinks. No, four!"

[JakeC]

Yep, just the kitchen sink in mine. I'll put hand sanitizer in the bathroom

[wmkbailey]

Man my bus is so big, I was thinking I need a double sink in the bathroom. Plus a steam shower, a sauna and a soaking tub.

[PDBreske]

Originally Posted by wmkbailey

Man my bus is so big, I was thinking I need a double sink in the bathroom. Plus a steam shower, a sauna and a soaking tub.

Bastard.

[Stu & Filo. T]

[quote]Man my bus is so big, I was thinking I need a double sink in the bathroom. Plus a steam shower, a sauna and a soaking tub. /quote]

Might as well add a bowling alley also

[gmarvel]

GOT SOME OLD CROWN PARTS

A tow truck backed into our bus and dented the front nose panel. We found a school district client that was willing to sell us an undamaged one. Picked it up today. Also, we noticed that there was a dent in the rear two window emergency door. We got an undamaged one as well.

The fuel tank is out and is being reconditioned.

We are still in need of two Crown vent hoods for our vent pipes. If anyone has a source we would love to know.

The bus is about half finished with the sanding. We also selected the color for our headliner covering.

More to come next week with some photos.

[browncrown]

Got two of the vent hoods in stock...$500 each plus shipping


Just kidding my friends , there free to you guy's...they will need paint, but let me know and we will arrange to get them to you

Greg

[Stu & Filo. T]

Nice Bus, I just scored a 1988 Crown pusher from Merced .Ca school district, I'm just north of you in Vacaville.