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Gallery Skoolies Lady Franklin
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1. Jacuzzi Bus ... 194. The... 195. playabus 196. redneckz 197. Lady Franklin 198. Crazy Man... 199. merbachs_bus 200. AIR FORCE... ... 337. Bus Conversion

Lady Franklin

My wife and I after backpacking in BC for a summer decided to travel across Canada over many years. After ruling out mainstream RVs on the basis of garbage materials and high costs we began tackling a Skoolie conversion. We started with a 72 passenger bus fit for child transport and have cut the roof off and lifted it to several different heights, installed in floor radiant heat and are continually trying to make the bus fit as a home in Canada all year round (this requires some special building methods). Enjoy our trials and tribulations.

Date: 08/04/2008
Owner: Eric Penner de Waal
Size: 29 items
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100_1552

100_1552

King Transportation where we purchased our bus. When I asked if they had buses for sale they laughed at me and told me to follow them through the yard.

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 747
100_1561

100_1561

There she is. Waiting to be plucked.

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 698
100_1574

100_1574

Driving our new home to the in-laws farm where work would commence.

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 683
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100_1618

Accident scene, got into a fight with the grinder...it may have won the battle but the war is far from over.

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 695
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100_1624

While cutting the drivers seat bolts off the zip cut blade shattered grabbing the bolt and sending the grinder with spinning blade directly into my unprotected leg...I learned some things about safety.

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 798
100_1716

100_1716

I cut the back wall right out because it seemed to be starting to rust and I have other plans for the back wall.

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 742
100_1608

100_1608

Of course removing the seats. The bolts were a little rusty and I was working by myself so cutting the bolts off worked very quickly...until of course the grinder attacked me.

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 723
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100_1890

I cut the roof into two sections and lifted them independantly.

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 659
100_1962

100_1962

We raised the roof with my father-in-laws John Deere. I don't recommend this method it was both dangerous and sloppy in the end it took way more time to line everything up properly again.

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 707
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100_2174

Finally got the roof over the driver removed. This is where the slanted transition will be welded in later.

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 709
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100_2193

Raising the front section of the roof. I lifted the roof off, clamped in the pre-cut extensions then aligned the roof back up with the body.

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 661
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100_2199

She is starting to shape up.

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 785
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100_2238

The transition is welded to the top of the cap and to the front most frame member of the forward section of roof.

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 689
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100_2258

Scribing the sheet metal to fit the curve of the existing roof.

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 733
100_2273

100_2273

Because I have two stories in the back, if I wanted to be able to stand in the lower level, which is the shop, I needed about another 14" of height. I cut out the floor between the frames and dropped it to the bottom of the frame. But because I cut t

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 705
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100_2329

The finished floor with fold down stair I built.

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 823
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100_3576

Slide out opening cut and ready to be welded to finish the opening.

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 817
100_2361

100_2361

Here is the in-floor radiant heat system I am working on. I ripped 5/8 plywood in strips and sheathed over the original bus plywood (I stripped all the old vinyl out). I left spaces between the plywood that would snugly fit the 5/8 OD oxygen inhibiting Pe

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 793
100_2436

100_2436

Here is a shot of the system as I am putting the final covering of 3/8 ply over the tubing and the foil. This job had to be done very carefully to keep the area clean and to be sure I didn't his the pipe with the screws I was using to attach the top layer

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 744
100_2494

100_2494

The finished product. Who would know that under that floor was a state of the art heating system. I plan to run the water with a 12VDC pump and heat the water with a propane heater, possibly on demand, all controlled with an automatic thermostat that read

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 722
100_3274

100_3274

Trying to be a good hippie I am attempting to use as much recycled material as possible, so I scammed a bunch of wood pallets from one of my jobs and have broken them down into boards. I lost about 35% of the pallet from breakage but they were headed to t

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 686
100_3275

100_3275

Once I got all the nails out I ran them through the thickness planer to smooth them down and get them all down to uniform thickness. They wil wait this way until I am ready to join them edge to edge to make panels, then finally I will build my cabinetry w

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 682
100_2784

100_2784

Lady Franklin as she looked in February. Not a whole lot has happened since but hopefully after the this house I am building I will take a month off or so and go hard.

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 995
100_2790

100_2790

The interior taking some form. I will have to re-build the curved wall on the right as we have since decided to add two slide outs and that wall now needs to be structural.

Date: 08/04/2008
Views: 840
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