1983 International DT466

[NewSkewlHauler]

Tom,

Welcome! We certainly love pictures. This is a great place to be. Best of luck to you. No idea is too crazy or weird. Looks like a pretty solid foundation to start with there!

Ben.

[RazorCityDen]

Welcome aboard your definitely in the right spot!

You'll find the mild to the wild here and lots of knowledgeable folks that have been there and done that!

[madpsalmer]

Welcome, It appears we have the same bus!!! OK mines not orange anymore but hey you get the picture. It sound like your up for adventure and you have found the right crowd. Enjoy your build and yes details are an essential keep us updated...

[dburt]

The DT466 is THE engine of choice if you have a choice. Most of the school bus folks and mechanics I know at the different school districts I check in with would prefer the DT466 above anything CAT or even Cummins, not to mention the Detroits and MB diesels! 2000 bucks for the bus is about right, hopefully the tires are really nice, and it has air brakes! The ideal auto transmission would be the Allison MT643, but if you can row thru your own gears, the 5-spd would be ok too. 200K on the clock is not bad, it could be closing in on time to do an injecter pump and injectors depending on the quality of the fuel used so far, and the degree of good maintance it hopefully has had. If it came from the mountains, a top cruising speed of 55-60 might be max due to the lower gearing for power on the hills. Keep us posted on how the trip goes, we will look forward to more updates!

[NewSkewlHauler]

Sweet ride. Good score. Welcome to the madness once more!!! Good luck with that baby!

[browncrown]

I have to agree with Smitty on the insulation part of it. Those tin roofs heat up very quickly in direct sunlight and can turn the bus into an oven.

[Sojakai]

The Best thing to do would be to put furring strips on the ribs, put hard foam insulation in, then put some sort of wood on top and use screws that dont go all the way through the strips. The strips keep heat from flowing through the metal to the inside through the ribs and screws, and also allow you a little more space to fit insulation in. Only problem with it is that it eats up some of your inside space.

[Duckf00t]

Looking back on it I wished I'd had taken the time to strip mine all the way down. I did scrap the seats, and any other metal I got out of it. All said and done was a $100 return.

[RazorCityDen]

Looking good!

Take care,
Den

[Seeria]

For the tool impaired... wth is a BFH?

[Seeria]

lol
Mind posting a pic of the one you used? I can't picture how a hammer removed stripped bolts sunk into rubber flooring.

[busdriver_phil]

The back-up alarm should be wired to the reverse light circuit. Sometimes they tap near the lights (I've seen some retrofit jobs where the beeper is on the outside, 2" from the light, with the wire going under the lens), other times they run a separate wire from the front of the bus. The easiest way is to just locate the actual alarm (should be somewhere on the frame under the rear) and cut the wires (make sure you tape them off). If you can trace the positive wire and disconnect it that's even better, but I'd recommend leaving the lights alone and just disconnecting the beeper.

[Sojakai]

You could do that. But it would be a huge amount of cuts to get it to conform without gaps between it and the roof.

[jkindt]

What about using Reflectix or whatever that silver colored 'bubble wrap' is called? How well does that stuff work? You may be able to slide it between the two layers of metal in the roof.

[paul iossi]

use a real sharp knife and a straight edve and either cut a series of V's or cut the whole way thru at an angle and then flip every other piece to conform with the curve and then fill the gaps with spray foam. I like to use a 10 or 12 inch chef's knife, the long thin blade seems to follow a straight line best,

[Wannabe]

Hi, cedar is certainly a beautiful wood. My sister and brother-in-law redid their bathroom in cedar. It came out beautiful!

[Doodlebug]

Thought I would jump in here since we are talking about insulation....Closed cell foam can be bought wholesale by anyone with a business license. I buy mine from IR Carl Havens in Fife Washington. Comes in lengths and is priced by how dense it is, I used two pound in my business, it is about 1/2 inch thick, I also have some that is a quarter inch thick that is heat resistant that I will use around the dog house. For a big bus it might be worth finding an upholsterer to order for you, or a body shop perhaps if you know any one in those businesses.... Just a thought, it is great stuff. Leslie

[Sojakai]

Are you referring to the normal home insulation? If so, you don't pack it. If you pack fiberglass insulation, it looses any insulative properties that it has.

[CAMO-MONSTER]

Well the PNW is nice IF your on the EASTSIDE of WA or OR the westside SUCKS

Love the dry heat that we have on the EASTSIDE

[Seeria]

BAH suck it up, boys! Love that rain, love that fog! I miss the west side. Hell, if I had a finished skoolie I'd trade you that for that lovely cabin you have there.