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Old 05-18-2010, 02:51 PM   #1
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Year: 1990
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Chassis: Super Coach II, 36 Ft. RE
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Use current RV as donor, or sell?

I'm very close to buying a school bus. Just waiting for the right one from Public Surplus or a local school district to become available. Looking at typical P.S. sales I figure I can get a decent 40' early '90's diesel pusher for around $2000-$2500.

I have a 31' 1987 Georgie Boy Encounter, with top of the line interior appointments for the model year. I've put about $8000 plus into it, about 40% of which I sunk into the power train. If I tried to sell, I'd be lucky to get $6000 or even $5000 out of it.

So I'm wondering if I should sell it and use the money to buy stuff piecemeal for the bus, some new and some used, or just use the RV as a donor and scrap the hulk after stripping everything useful. Everything works well inside, but it IS a stick'n'staple rolling deathtrap, hence the desire to convert a bus. If I sell the RV, the big ticket items I'd have to buy because of selling include fridge, stove, microwave, cabinets and counters, toilet, furniture, furnace, water heater, A/C, genset, sound system, lighting, TV, windows, power heated mirrors, two new Interstate deep cycle 12V batteries. I'm planning on bigger tanks so I'll have to buy those in either case.

What do you all think? Any and all feedback is appreciated.

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Old 05-18-2010, 04:37 PM   #2
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Re: Use current RV as donor, or sell?

your right, u would probley get 5000 for it, its a hard choice to make, how old is the stuff that you would be takening out? if the applances are all ready 20 years old how much longer will they last?? things like that you have to consider., and would it be that right "decor" for your bus?

What I would do is put it up for sale till you get your bus, and are ready for the build, then if it doesnt sale use it as a donor.

it would be nice to have all those little parts and dodaads parked beside your conversion

best of luck to you
gbstewart
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Old 05-18-2010, 05:52 PM   #3
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Re: Use current RV as donor, or sell?

In my opinion, it would be better to sell the RV and get what you can back out, and use that to buy quality items for your bus conversion.

I parted out my RV, and got perhaps 10% of what I had in it back out of it.

Good luck with your decision,
Jim
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Old 05-18-2010, 05:53 PM   #4
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Re: Use current RV as donor, or sell?

if the appliances are working fine, that would be donor material to me.

whats this thing got for a drive train? with that much money into it we gotta know to make a judgement.
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Old 05-18-2010, 06:35 PM   #5
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Re: Use current RV as donor, or sell?

Sell it. $5000 would go a long way towards buying stuff for your bus.
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Old 05-18-2010, 11:10 PM   #6
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Year: 1990
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Chassis: Super Coach II, 36 Ft. RE
Engine: Cat 3208T, MT643
Re: Use current RV as donor, or sell?

Thanks for all your responses. Food for thought. I'll probably sell it due to it's age, but the appliances are pretty nice.

To answer the question on the drivetrain, it's a GM (Chevy?) 454 and Turbo 400 transmission with 68000 miles on both. I had the tranny checked by a top rated shop and it got a clean bill of health. I had the carburator rebuilt, also by a top rated shop. The house batteries are new also. I wonder how much the shell would be worth if it included the drivetrain and was driveable?
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(Latin) loquor loqui locutus dep. [to speak (in conversation); to tell , say, declare, talk of].

Children drink kOOlaid, adults drink T.E.A.


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Old 05-20-2010, 01:41 PM   #7
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Year: 1990
Coachwork: Crown
Chassis: Super Coach II, 36 Ft. RE
Engine: Cat 3208T, MT643
Re: Use current RV as donor, or sell?

Well, the four Thomas Saf-T-Liners I was watching on Public Surplus (WA) all sold for just over $3000. I was planning to bid but getting down to Auburn to look at them up close didn't work out, as I had schedule conflicts. Also I sorta chickened out for two reasons. First, I didn't want to bid on one sight unseen, and secondly, I'm still working on getting a parking spot ready. Just need to fill in a little more crushed rock to make it level and then landscape around it. The fellow running the bus auctions at PS in Auburn told me he has sold over 150 buses in the past year, so I figure the right bus will come up for auction before long. I just gotta be patient.
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(Latin) loquor loqui locutus dep. [to speak (in conversation); to tell , say, declare, talk of].

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Old 05-21-2010, 09:34 PM   #8
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Re: Use current RV as donor, or sell?

While selling the RV for enough cash to buy the bus and buy "some" of the parts would be helpful, I found it more helpful when I built my bus to have a donor vehicle for all kinds of things. I got lucky and found a used Prowler 5th wheel sitting at a farm with the roof caved in. The farmer let me strip it for everything I wanted.

I wound up getting a 2-way refridge, stove-oven combo, jackknife sofa, kitchen sink (with all the plumbing), rooftop a/c unit, water heater, furnace, toilet, cabnet doors, 12v power converter, circuit panel for both 12v & 120v, holding tanks, bathtub, bathroom sink, (I wound up using different sink and installed a shower instead of the bathtub), batwing antenna, antenna booster, 12v thermostat, 2 roof vents, dinette cushions, rv windows, 12v ceiling light fixtures, ducted heat vents, range hood with tank display, indoor & outdoor shower heads, storage compartment doors, and a host of other little odds & ends. All this were things I would have had to go out and buy anyway. Oh, and just wait until you price out a motor home style propane tank, those puppies will cost you somemajor scratch... but not so if you take one out of the RV...

Providing all the stuff is in good usable condition, If you strip the RV down, keep all those items, perhaps keep the genset too, then remove & sell off the engine & tranny in separate sales, scrap the body and sell the chassis & running gear to a scrap yard for what it's worth, you'll problably come out ahead money wise, and save yourself a lotta hassle & time finding and buying all this stuff all over again.

That's my 2 cents worth...
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