A promise not a threat....

JeffD2u · 05-07-2010, 07:53 PM

During many trips in the family Taurus, I swore if my kids didn't stop bickering (or whining, punching, kicking etc.) I was going to buy a bus and make one sit in front and the other sit in back. My wife would have to fend for herself somewhere in the middle. I would create a nice soundproof "fortress of solitude" around the driver's seat.
My wife would say, "Uh huh. Sure you will."
Tween daughter would say, "You'd better not!"
Younger son would say, "Ha ha ha! Put a TOILET in it!"
Behold!

I warned 'em.

jkindt · 05-07-2010, 07:55 PM

Good job!!! Now go put a toilet in it!

I am sure you will have lots of fun with the new bus. And I am also sure the kids will learn to love it too.

Russell · 05-09-2010, 10:37 PM

Finally a parent that does what he tells his kids he's gonna do, maybe now they are gonna listen when you tell them som'tin.

gbstewart · 05-11-2010, 01:11 PM

NICE!!!

lol

Diesel Dan · 05-11-2010, 04:02 PM

I have seriously considered the "fortress of solitude" around the driver area, but don't want to obstruct the forward view of the passengers and cut myself off from other potential passengers (adult friends) with whom I might actually want to have contact when driving. So I have compromised with the idea of thick curtains I can draw, plus headphones that seal around my ears!

JeffD2u · 06-30-2010, 11:25 PM

Wow! Those stickers are hard to remove!
The black lettering comes right off with a little shot of heat gun, but the surrounding sticker? It must be designed to survive orbital re-entry. Heat gun, Oops!(tm), Klean Strip Decal Remover, more heat gun, Astro decal eraser wheel, elbow grease...flamethrower....
Here is some (unsolicited advice):
Heat gun ($14 from Harbor Freight): Good for loosening the sticker, worked best for me with metal putty knife. Be careful not to gouge the paint, the gun softens it. Left a LOT of adhesive residue.

Oops! spray ($6): Good for softening residue. It dries quickly, be ready with the scraper. I sort of rolled it off and wiped the mucous-like goo onto a paper towel. Spray and repeat.

Klean Strip Decal Remover ($13) Worked a bit quicker than the Oops!, and stays wet longer. I tried using this to soften the top layer of the sticker, but it didn't really work until I scored it with a wallpaper removal tool (one of those turtle shell looking things with the little spur wheels underneath). Not an effective use for this spray. It worked better at getting off the adhesive, but it's expensive.

Astro Decal Eraser ($15) I bought this at an auto paint place, they don't sell it at the local hardware store. It looks similar to a grinding wheel and works like a giant eraser. I put it on my drill (3k rpm max). It did NOT take off the sticker. It does a pretty good job of taking off the residue. You end up with bunch of rubber dust all over, but you don't get the contact buzz from the chemicals. I wasted a third of the wheel trying to take off the whole sticker. I guess it's worth it if I had used it on the adhesive from the beginning.

What's bad on my bus is that the decals on the sides were painted over and I think some of the paint migrated through the top layer into the adhesive. So there are still some areas with this nasty hardened paint/adhesive mutant.

Still working on it....

Was that a good update?
I'm not sure if I should have posted it here or started a thread about sticker removal.

Next, I will tell you the story of the Trans/Air A/C unit.

(That's not a threat)

Diesel Dan · 07-01-2010, 08:23 AM

I've found that Acetone plus 000 size steel wool does a good job of removing adhesive without taking off too much paint. It evaporates quickly, so you have to do one small area at a time, but it works. I usually do an initial pass, and then come back a second time to clean up any remaining residue. The fumes are pretty harsh though.

Stuff · 07-18-2010, 11:44 AM

I used a razor and a heat gun. not too much heat and it starts to come off and when you get it started it will keep on coming off.

JeffD2u · 03-13-2011, 01:56 PM

Thanks for your input!
I worked on the bus as much as time and money allowed over the summer and fall. Once the frost hit, for the sake of marital security, I had to store the bus at a friend's (who is now in trouble with HIS wife). I did make some progress. Not as much as some of you, but some. I'm not going to make excuses but, my excuses are as follows: 1. I ran out of money.
2. I spent money that I didn't have. 3. I ran out of time. 4. The kids wanted to go swimming (and be fed...and clothed..and sheltered...talk about needy.
With that in mind, I present my work in progress:

JeffD2u · 03-13-2011, 01:57 PM

JeffD2u · 03-13-2011, 01:59 PM

JeffD2u · 03-13-2011, 02:02 PM

Some of those stickers were tough to remove. The letters were easy, the surrounding decal, not so much.

JeffD2u · 03-13-2011, 02:07 PM

Prime time. I used that textured fiberglass tub backing stuff to cover the holes where the flashers were.

JeffD2u · 03-13-2011, 02:10 PM

Many shaker cans gave their lives.

JeffD2u · 03-13-2011, 02:18 PM

A coat of ACE brand "high hiding" white.
Applied with a $15 airless sprayer and a roller. (sprayer sucked. I got what I paid for) Left a glossy, slightly textured finish, which is okay with me since the surface is so irregular anyway.

JeffD2u · 03-13-2011, 02:20 PM

Not the final color scheme, but I wanted a white base to reflect heat for summer travel.

JeffD2u · 03-13-2011, 02:22 PM

Exterior so far.

JeffD2u · 03-13-2011, 02:26 PM

I intend to replace the original crusty marker lights with LED ones. Removed the cross mirrors but left the wiring for now. Doesn't it look aerodynamic now? A cinder block hurtling through space! Final paint scheme not sure yet. I'm thinking some sort of graphics over the white rather that monolithic stripes. What do you think? Flames? Skulls? Unicorns? Flaming skulls? Flaming Unicorns? The mind reels...

JeffD2u · 03-13-2011, 02:33 PM

I also gutted the interior. I'll show you that later.

Stuff · 03-13-2011, 04:31 PM

looking good!

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