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Old 11-24-2017, 05:54 PM   #1
Skoolie
 
Join Date: Oct 2017
Location: Texas
Posts: 168
Year: 1992
Coachwork: Ward Senator
Engine: 7.3
Rated Cap: 78
The Derelicte Bus

Just prior to Thanksgiving weekend I purchased EastCoastCB's 1992 Ward Senator and drove it to Del Rio, Texas. 1,300 miles and 24 hrs of driving time with windowless cold wind, despite the fact that the heaters worked quite well! The "Roll Your Own" bus will be indeed well loved and hopefully finished soon.

Inspired by the movie Zoolander, I've decided that I'll call it "The Derelicte Bus." "Blue Steel" was also a contender... might come back to that one.

I'm going to start a blog to continue to document the process and I'll list the link eventually in my signature block. In the meantime, I've gotten to grinding what little rust remains and applying rust reformer to the floor/ceiling. My goal is to have the floor ready to be painted (if not painted) by the end of Sunday.

Wish me luck!

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Old 11-24-2017, 06:21 PM   #2
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Velocipedic View Post
Just prior to Thanksgiving weekend I purchased EastCoastCB's 1992 Ward Senator and drove it to Del Rio, Texas. 1,300 miles and 24 hrs of driving time with windowless cold wind, despite the fact that the heaters worked quite well! The "Roll Your Own" bus will be indeed well loved and hopefully finished soon.

Inspired by the movie Zoolander, I've decided that I'll call it "The Derelicte Bus." "Blue Steel" was also a contender... might come back to that one.

I'm going to start a blog to continue to document the process and I'll list the link eventually in my signature block. In the meantime, I've gotten to grinding what little rust remains and applying rust reformer to the floor/ceiling. My goal is to have the floor ready to be painted (if not painted) by the end of Sunday.

Wish me luck!
... and the saga continues

Might I suggest you link the original RYO thread too, so newcomers can see the entire build?
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Old 11-24-2017, 11:30 PM   #3
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Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Eustis FLORIDA
Posts: 23,762
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: Freighliner FS65
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Old 11-26-2017, 10:00 PM   #4
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Year: 1992
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Rated Cap: 78
Work Progress

While acquiring the sheet metal over the coming week I'm sourcing quotes for some repairs I'll need to make for the truck frame. Replacing the air-ride cushion, seals for the rear wheel axle oil, and troubleshooting the "front axle" warning light that came on periodically through the 1,300 mile drive.

In the meantime, I was able to TSP the inside of the bus in anticipation of ospho'ing the surface as a primer for painting. Working in the evenings is the best in Texas.



Until tomorrow!
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Old 11-27-2017, 03:17 AM   #5
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I still can't find anything about that front axle light.
Someone here is likely to know.
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Old 11-27-2017, 08:24 AM   #6
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Year: 1991
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Chassis: International 3800
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Rated Cap: 7 Row Handicap
more than likel;y the front axle light is a short in your dash, which is about as common as sunshine in florida with that panel.. that light is designed for vehicles with 4x4. (that dash was used in MANY navistar trucks).

those air springs are actually pretty easy to change yourself.. the air ride on these busses is a simple fully mechanical system. most of the springs are made by goodyear and still widely available..

a couple of HEAVY jackstands or cribbing.. (dont use concrete blocks).. under the BODY part of the frame.. (put them under while air suspension is pumped up).. then let the air out.. there is just 2 or 4 bolts holding the spring on and an air line.. you DONT need to raise the bus up.. the springs flatten down when the air is out and will come out... slide the new spring in, put on the air lines.. pump it up and remove the stands..

the ride height is controlled by a simple lever arm connected to an air valve.. these sair valves are known to leak so make sure if you have a leak in the suspension its actually the spring before you replace one... the valves are pretty cheap and easy to get.

your axle seals may be leaking just from the bus not being driven alot... drain the rear end fluid and replace with fresh oil and 1/2 quart of Lucas STOP LEAK.. go drive it around for an hour or so... let it set.. clean up the axle seal areas and drive it again periodically to see if that helps.. it might just get those seals nice and plyable again.

-Christopher
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Old 11-27-2017, 08:28 AM   #7
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That was my thought, too chris. Wonky gauges are pretty much the norm on these things.
The 4x4 thing was ALL I could find on google. There's nothing on the front axle with a wire coming from it, so I figured it was probably fine.
Right rear outer axle seal seeped a tiny bit, it was doing that the whole time.
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Old 11-27-2017, 08:35 AM   #8
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both of my busses have that dash and have wonky gauges.. or had till i fixed em.. redybyrd's gauges are starting to get wonky again.. (but with the digital, I just ignore the panel)

met dead-pirate yesterday and he has a couple wonky gauges on his panel.. same dash panel..

-Christopher
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Old 11-27-2017, 08:36 AM   #9
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what part of texas are you in? if in the houston area I hear all kinds of good things about Chalk's truck, from forum and non forum members..
-Christopher
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Old 11-27-2017, 06:20 PM   #10
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The subtitle for Derelicte should be: The large car for people who like to go places but have too much luggage for air travel.

You should maintain a catwalk down the center of the bus and incorporate a keyboard theme somewhere. A gawdy and loud sound system should be loaded with pop songs of the late 1980s.

The bathroom should have a Korean bidet, Japanese plunge tub, Sweedish sauna, Thai massage table, salon style hair dryer, hair washing sink, tanning bed, spray tan booth, a huge counter with lighted makeup mirrors and a water pick.

There should be seven closets, all walk in, one for each season, hats, shoes and accessories.

Bonus points for making the back convertible like Zoolander's Bronco.
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Old 11-27-2017, 06:26 PM   #11
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Good ot see you and the bus on here! Welcome!
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Old 11-30-2017, 08:41 AM   #12
Skoolie
 
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Floor Paint

I used Rustoleum's Rusty Metal Primer to cover the previously ospho'd floor. What a difference a coat of paint makes! Pictures in a sec!

The plan as of now is to add caulk, another coat of primer, and then an enamel topcoat.

I've started delving into the electrical section of the forum. There's going to be a steep learning curve, I'm sure, but I'm really excited about making a top notch electrical system.
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Old 11-30-2017, 11:07 AM   #13
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Hey, you're painting your inside the same color as my outside.

Good work on the floor.
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Old 11-30-2017, 01:05 PM   #14
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Originally Posted by Robin97396 View Post
Hey, you're painting your inside the same color as my outside.

Good work on the floor.
Thanks!

Here are some pictures from the painting process.





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Old 11-30-2017, 04:16 PM   #15
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I love the way that primer looks!
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Old 11-30-2017, 04:35 PM   #16
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I can't understand why the previous owner never did that work and now you have. It's not like he was very busy with anything else. You should ask for some money back!

John
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Old 11-30-2017, 07:49 PM   #17
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I love the smell of primer in the morning.
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Old 12-02-2017, 08:31 PM   #18
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Looks good! Amazing how good prep plus primer changes the whole feel of the project. If you're using spray foam to insulate you may consider skipping coats of more stuff. That stuff can actually be applied to unprimed metal and will essentially make caulk redundant as well. I am doing foam this week and as I've prepped I've seen places that I put time and money into that just wont matter.

FWIW.
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Old 12-03-2017, 10:27 PM   #19
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Mostly for cost reasons I'm not planning on spray foaming the bus. Thanks for the input though. The second coat of paint went on much quicker than the first (thankfully), and the enamel coating should be quick too.

I had some spare time today so I started opening up compartments on the bus... for instance, where the front defroster/heater is located. This heater has probably never been cleaned. Also, it feels like there's a LOT of wasted space here. I'll have to get creative with a replacement if I decide to proceed.

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Old 12-03-2017, 10:30 PM   #20
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Quote:
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I started opening up compartments on the bus... for instance, where the front defroster/heater is located. This heater has probably never been cleaned
You got a squirrel with your squirrel cage blower !
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