New Kid On The Block

jacobszall · 11-12-2015, 04:13 PM

Hey!

My name is Jacob Szall and I suppose I'm the new kid on the block here. I first heard about this website from Reddit. I posted awhile ago about wanted to convert a school bus into an RV and got a relatively good response on the subreddit I was on. I was going to college but I don't think school is for me.. but I'm not 100% sure either way. I was going for a music degree.. I want to make music. I have been making music, writing my own songs, recording them and everything.. I just feel a degree is somewhat useless for that. For most of anything related to the arts. I'm 18 years old and want to explore, adventure and travel before I decide to focus on my job or a career or even possibly going back to school in a year or two.

I recently got a second job and have to pay rent at home. I'm working anywhere from 40 to 65 hours a week and am starting to save up. I already have a few hundred dollars saved up and within a few months I should have enough to buy my first bus! Any tips or pointers for a new kid on the block?

porkchopsandwiches · 11-12-2015, 04:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jacobszall

Hey!

My name is Jacob Szall and I suppose I'm the new kid on the block here. I first heard about this website from Reddit. I posted awhile ago about wanted to convert a school bus into an RV and got a relatively good response on the subreddit I was on. I was going to college but I don't think school is for me.. but I'm not 100% sure either way. I was going for a music degree.. I want to make music. I have been making music, writing my own songs, recording them and everything.. I just feel a degree is somewhat useless for that. For most of anything related to the arts. I'm 18 years old and want to explore, adventure and travel before I decide to focus on my job or a career or even possibly going back to school in a year or two.

I recently got a second job and have to pay rent at home. I'm working anywhere from 40 to 65 hours a week and am starting to save up. I already have a few hundred dollars saved up and within a few months I should have enough to buy my first bus! Any tips or pointers for a new kid on the block?

Yeah. Coming from a 21 year old, 19 when I bought the bus, you need a lot more than a couple hundred dollars

Not to discourage you, but these things can be / are expensive as hell to build out properly, or even improperly.

jacobszall · 11-12-2015, 04:44 PM

My budget is around 10k. I'm saving around $800 a month. Within 4-5 months I'll be able to buy a decent bus.

porkchopsandwiches · 11-12-2015, 04:46 PM

Oh well in that case, rock on! What is your timetable like? The end of the school year (June or so) is the best time to look for buses at auction.

jacobszall · 11-12-2015, 04:51 PM

Oh, thank you! I didn't know that! December should be my first full month that I'm saving up. By around April or May I should have enough to buy a bus. I want to travel throughout most of the U.S. so I should probably go during a summerish time of year, haha. Though I would love to see snow! I'm probably looking to launch maybe 13-14 months from now. I also have to find my crew! ;)

EastCoastCB · 11-12-2015, 10:13 PM

Welcome...
I'm in FL, if you ever want to come check us out we're in the northern reaches of Orlando.
My advice would be to shop a LOT of buses. Lots of folks seem to think our FL buses are worth twice as much as other states.. The local prices are astronomical, IMO, and it gets worse the further south you go in the state.
I went to KY and got my bus for $2150.

I can't even find a decent bus locally for that kind of money, and this bus is pretty sweet. With the prices I've been seeing lately, I'd be ready to spend 5 grand or more just on a bus, or maybe travel a few thousand miles. IF you really want to travel like you say, then you may want a bus from a mountainous area that can handle the steep grades. Colorado buses all have driveline retarders and usually have higher HP engines. The arid climate and well funded education system all make for great buses to build an RV/mobile home from.

Start figuring out where you can keep a bus, then figure out more places. Storing a bus is almost always a HUGE issue that people overlook or just plain ignore till its a huge problem.

jacobszall · 11-12-2015, 10:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EastCoastCB

Welcome...
I'm in FL, if you ever want to come check us out we're in the northern reaches of Orlando.
My advice would be to shop a LOT of buses. Lots of folks seem to think our FL buses are worth twice as much as other states.. The local prices are astronomical, IMO, and it gets worse the further south you go in the state.
I went to KY and got my bus for $2150.

I can't even find a decent bus locally for that kind of money, and this bus is pretty sweet. With the prices I've been seeing lately, I'd be ready to spend 5 grand or more just on a bus, or maybe travel a few thousand miles. IF you really want to travel like you say, then you may want a bus from a mountainous area that can handle the steep grades. Colorado buses all have driveline retarders and usually have higher HP engines. The arid climate and well funded education system all make for great buses to build an RV/mobile home from.

Start figuring out where you can keep a bus, then figure out more places. Storing a bus is almost always a HUGE issue that people overlook or just plain ignore till its a huge problem.

Thank you so much for your advice! I have family in Colorado.. the only thing would be how to title it, the money to insure it, fly out there and drive it down. Can I drive it like it is? With school bus written on the side? I'm down near West Palm Beach. Further south than you haha. I've seen few buses in Craig's list that are 3k or 4k or so. I have a friend in a rural area that has a mechanic shop on his house property. His dad owns it and is a mechanic. If he has time, he can help me learn.. If not, I'll learn it on my own

I can store the bus in his yard or even in another friends yard out in the same area! I've thought most of this through.. but not 100% of it.

EastCoastCB · 11-12-2015, 10:50 PM

You would have the title and BOS mailed to you and you'd get insurance and go get it. They usually have the school bus lettering removed but you may have to provide your own can of spray paint if they dont.
I made it 800 miles back with no tag because ky doesnt issue temp tags. I should have had them mail me the paperwork.
Hit up Charles M. Hes a forum user and has a bus yard in CO. Hell of a guy too.

jacobszall · 11-12-2015, 10:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EastCoastCB

You would have the title and BOS mailed to you and you'd get insurance and go get it. They usually have the school bus lettering removed but you may have to provide your own can of spray paint if they dont.
I made it 800 miles back with no tag because ky doesnt issue temp tags. I should have had them mail me the paperwork.
Hit up Charles M. Hes a forum user and has a bus yard in CO. Hell of a guy too.

Thank you so much! I'll definitely message him! How do I find him? Do I just use the search function?

The last time I used an actual forum website was when I was on the Minecraft Forum all the time, haha. Long time ago.