Warren our bus

[proconsul100]

yes, my bus was rubber on metal,and it was a pain getting the rubber up.

[jkronmiller]

Not sure what it was glued down with but it's tough to get off!

[jkronmiller]

Since the weather has been a bit nicer I have been able to spend a couple days working on the bus. I now have all the outside lettering off and just need to get the residue off. I purchased some "Goo Gone" and hope that will remove as easily as it says it will.

Next I have been working on the floor, and have taken the driver seat out which was the last of the seats. Now I am using a flapper sanding disc to get the rust off and prep the surface by the wheel wells for some sheet metal hole covering. I was considering putting fiberglass/bondo in the holes first then pop riveting the sheet metal over that for a more permanent repair. Any thoughts on that? Overkill?

Once I have the holes covered I will silicone each and every bolt hole then cover that with aluminum metal tape before putting rosin paper down followed by insulation and T&G 3/4 " plywood. I think that should give me a good solid base to build on. Suggestions?

[jkronmiller]

I have 3 major holes at the edges of the wheel wells. I can see the tires and ground. I was considering putting fiberglass/bondo in the holes first then pop riveting the sheet metal over that for a more permanent repair. Any thoughts on that? Overkill? Suggestions?

[Tango]

Cut out bad...weld in good.

[bansil]

cut holes to make them neater...paint.....then silicone a pc of clear plexi-glass over the hole...then you can have a clear bottom bus
ugh...oh....the wheels on the bus go 'round and round............
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.cut and weld in new is the best route to take(altho not as neat as my first idea)

[jkronmiller]

I am looking for some insight as to the best way to replace the standard mechanical entry/exit doors on a school bus. I know from talking to the local contractor store that I need a 30" pre-hung which will give me a half inch on both sides to trim it out. However the doors are all too short. What have others of you that have replaced the original with a house type door done? Any ideas would be appreciated! Thanks!

[roach711]

I replaced my folding doors with an Anderson 4000 series storm door and had to build up my bottom step since the door was about 4" too short to fill the doorway. I used layers of plywood to build up the bottom step but slathered up the boards with fiberglass resin to seal out the inevitable water leaks. I had planned to use rot proof PVC boards to build it up but I also had to extend the lower step about 1 1/2" past the edge of the existing step and the PVC isn't as rigid as plywood. The Anderson 4000 doors have a three point latch with a key lock and laminated glass. I'm real happy with ours so far.

I briefly thought about dropping the door down and trimming out the top of the opening, but we would have to duck our heads to avoid hitting the top of the frame.

This picture shows the door hung in the opening but the bottom step unfinished.

[jkronmiller]

That looks really nice. I had wondered how the gap could be filled and knew I didn't want to have to keep ducking every time we went in or out.
I had wondered if there was a "clean" way to extend the door bottom itself. Nice job!

[roach711]

Here's the finished stairwell. The 4" difference in the first step has never been an issue. I did spend a fair amount of time making sure water couldn't get in below the step or if it did, it wouldn't do any damage.

[Sam]

WOW!!! that door looks great!

[jkronmiller]

Great job! Thanks for the tip!

[jkronmiller]

Yet another question - this time about mounting propane tanks. I have been reading (trolling ) this forum for about a year and I remember seeing one conversion where they showed up close how they made a box to hold two 20lb tanks under neath that was easy to remove the tanks for filling. I have just spent the last week trying to find that conversion so I could refresh myself and start building one for my bus. Does anyone know which conversion that might be or if you have a design yourself that you would be willing to share that would be great! Thanks!

[jkronmiller]

Hopefully this link will work. /i have removed all 8 of the flashing lights and temp mounted some metal circle covers I had a guy made. Looking forward to getting this bus painted and I'm sure ALL my neighbors are as well. hopefully having the two different metals screwed together won't cause any problems!

[Six Four]

Welcome, looks like your off to a good start..

[Tango]

Hey JK --- Welcome to the madness! if the two metals are steel & aluminum they don't play well together and need to be isolated with something non-conductive like a thin rubber gasket. Basically, attaching them to one another creates a battery and corrosion will quickly become an issue. Sometimes you can get away with using a sealer like silicone but any "dissimilar metal" issue always needs to be addressed.

[jkronmiller]

Hello Everyone! Been off line and out of commission for quite a while. Managed to have a heart attack and no sooner recuperated from that to having a stoke. Kind of had to put Warren on the back burner for about a year. But today finally had a warm sunny day and needed to burn off some cabin fever. So borrowed a power washer and cleaned about a years worth of dirt and bird droppings off of the bus. Once I managed to get all the gunk off and it dried nicely we put a coat of paint mixed with the heat beads on the roof. We rolled it on and it looks pretty good. Need to get the brushes out and do some trimming in and then on to the main body! It is so good to actually do something on it instead of laying around frustrated. I plan on working on it a minimum of two days a week right now as long as things go well. Hope to post pictures soon!

[jazty]

Originally Posted by jkronmiller

Rust around the left rear wheel-well

Hmm.. This is probably a common rust area for these Thomas's. Mine had the same rust holes.

I "cured" it by cutting out the bad stuff and welding in some new, slightly thicker metal and painting it. I figured the thicker metal should buy me some extra time before it happens again.

[Kirk]

jkronmiller glad to see you haven't given up on the bus. Keep on building. I am just starting my conversion. I am currently working on taking up the old plywood floor. Bring on the pics!!

[Tango]

Hope yer feelin' better. And remember...bus building is good therapy for whatever ails ya'!