Suggestion for sticky

[Dapplecreek]

Suggestion for sticky: http://www.skoolie.net/forums/f9/bre...tml#post144662

[Dapplecreek]

Cadillackid wrote,

Originally Posted by cadillackid

Treat your bus like a semi-truck out on the road.. when you are going to travel a long distance, keep the phone number of some breakdown assistance companies handy.. also keep some names of 24 hour service plaza's available too.. esp general service and for your band of chassis..

Our busses are big trucks under neath the body.. so keep in mind what the chassis is.. "Thomas bus" probably wont get you as far as "International S3800 chassis with DT466" with a thomas body..

Also keep your tire sizes listed and easy to find. even something as simple as getting a flat will rewire a service call.. front tires are called "steer".. rear are called "drive".. often if a service truck knows what tire you have they can come out, sell you a tire and put it on, right along side the road...

None of this will be cheap.. if you are on a shoe-string budget, think of a plan B if your bus does break down...

Each time you stop your bus for a fuel stop or a rest stop. .do a FULL PRE TRIP inspection on it just like you did when you started out...

Open the hood.. visually look for fluid leaks, frayed belts, rubbed hoses, etc.. check your coolant in the bottle (don't open the radiator if you have a cap).. Check the oil level.. measure the temperature with a temperature gun of your hubs.. early signs of bearing failure show up as high temperature...

Check your tires visually and either with a pressure or learn how to use a tire bat (I'm still learning this one)...

Start your bus and check your transmission fluid if there is a stick within reach.. listen for any unusual sounds (squeals, chatters, etc)...

If you discover something that could be an imminent breakdown.. begin to take care of it while safely stopped. don't just take off and "hope it lasts"..

Its also not a bad idea to carry a complete set of belts with you.. most importantly are the Fan / water pump belt and the Air compressor belt...

If one breaks it oftentimes rips the others off their pulleys...

Of course keep a fire extinguisher or two., first aid kit, some tools, and cones or flairs.. ..a lot of this stuff you would likely already have in a camper so make sure its all there and good to go..

-Christopher

[Dapplecreek]

Skoolie_n00bie then added,

Originally Posted by skoolie_n00bie

Definitely great points!
Reminds me of the Army's motor pool days, when checking all equipment for weekly and monthly maintenance....good times!

I'd also add road maps in paper form. You never know; if you run out of "all juices", those garmins and/or smartphones ain't gonna last forever.
On that point, if stranded for a long time, use your cellphones only for emergencies!

...

[Dapplecreek]

Roach711 then contributed,

Originally Posted by roach711

...
Here's a list of the spares & tools I bring along for our 7.3L:

Serpentine belt
Serpentine belt idler wheel
CPS (cam position sensor)
Glow plug relay
3 ton bottle jack
Breaker bar, extension & socket for removing lug nuts
A short pipe to slip over the breaker bar for extra leverage
A decent tool set w/metric & standard sockets
Several leveling boards
Two lengths of 4x4 lumber for wheel chocks
Duct tape
WD40

Two of us on this forum have had idler wheel failures out in the boonies. When that happens you lose power brakes, power steering, cooling, and alternator. The serpentine belt and idler wheel can be replaced at the side of the road if you have a 1/2" breaker bar to un-tension the belt adjuster and some common tools handy to remove the air cleaner cowl.

The CPS had a high failure rate in the early engines.

Glow plug relay failure is only an issue in cold temps.

If you get a flat tire on the rear you just drive slowly to the nearest tire shop. For a front flat I plan to drive a rear inner dually onto a couple of leveling boards so the outer tire is off the ground. Then I will remove the outer dually then use the bottle jack to remove and swap the flat front tire with the good rear tire, bolt everything back up and proceed slowly to the shop.

Duct tape is for things that move but shouldn't. WD40 is for things that should move but don't.

[crazycal]

Originally Posted by roach711
...
Here's a list of the spares & tools I bring along for our 7.3L:

Serpentine belt
Serpentine belt idler wheel
CPS (cam position sensor)
Glow plug relay
3 ton bottle jack
Breaker bar, extension & socket for removing lug nuts
A short pipe to slip over the breaker bar for extra leverage
A decent tool set w/metric & standard sockets
Several leveling boards
Two lengths of 4x4 lumber for wheel chocks
Duct tape
WD40

Three of us on this forum have had idler wheel failures out in the boonies. When that happens you lose power brakes, power steering, cooling, and alternator. The serpentine belt and idler wheel can be replaced at the side of the road if you have a 1/2" breaker bar to un-tension the belt adjuster and some common tools handy to remove the air cleaner cowl.

The CPS had a high failure rate in the early engines.

Glow plug relay failure is only an issue in cold temps.

If you get a flat tire on the rear you just drive slowly to the nearest tire shop. For a front flat I plan to drive a rear inner dually onto a couple of leveling boards so the outer tire is off the ground. Then I will remove the outer dually then use the bottle jack to remove and swap the flat front tire with the good rear tire, bolt everything back up and proceed slowly to the shop.

Duct tape is for things that move but shouldn't. WD40 is for things that should move but don't.

[Dapplecreek]

From another thread started by Elliot Naess:

...
A "teaching moment":
There are four spare components that ought to be carried in a bus, with all the needed tools -- unless they have been replaced recently: Starter, alternator, fuel pump and water pump.
...

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cadillackid added:

add a 5th.. an air governor if you have air brakes.. they are notorious for going out and not allowing the unloaders to trip back into service till your spring brakes start to apply..