G Bus Progress - Page 3

kamoo · 07-30-2009, 03:56 PM

I backed my pickup to the back of the bus and had two guys lift it up to me on the roof. Then just slid it into place.

rjz5400 · 07-31-2009, 12:43 PM

that is how i planned it vanguy. it is just that i only weigh about as much as the ac unit itself. i actually have like probably 20 lbs or so on it but i think like you described a "stop" for the sled to get a break while i am lifting it might make it more tolerable. well i guess there is nothing to it but to do it. i picked a location based on my plans to add a window unit or a basement type return in the bedroom i am thinking just beside the E door.
this puts it in front of the exit and directly over the soon to be kitchen counter. so shouldn't interrupt walkway too much (I am going to have a center/side/center isle through the living area)
Anyone on here lifted the roof AFTER getting the whole thing built? i know i am going to leave an extra foot or so in all the wires that go into the roof but just wondering if its been done. I want the head space but i don't have the time money or desire to lift it now as i am really itching to move in!!!!!

Sojakai · 07-31-2009, 09:29 PM

Have you tried talking to your local businesses that have forklifts? Sometimes a manager will loan you a forklift w/ operator for 15 minutes while you lift it to the roof, but you have to have everything ready to just "slide and bolt". Best bets are going to probably be a Wholesale Warehouse like Costco or Sam's Club... They have the Forks to easily lift up to the finished height...

Sojakai · 07-31-2009, 11:32 PM

Never mind, I like Smitty's Idea better!!!

rjz5400 · 08-01-2009, 08:14 AM

well its on and all tightened up.
i am just about to ride my bike for breakfast meeting but i will let you know that i had the sled and ramp all set up, then my buddy, whose moms house i am parked at for free, and who was going to " HELP" me keep it from sliding back, Picked it up on his shoulder!! then he slid the ladder up close till it was straight up the front of the bus, and walked right up to the top with it like it was an eight foot four by four or similar.
he balanced it on the top of the ladder and jumped on the roof, he and my girlfriend set it down and here is a pic of me removing the insulation in preparation of dropping it in. it is in however this is a blackberry pic as i forgot my camera so today ill get some better pics after we paint the inner unit and wire it up. Thanks for the help and if my friend was not so cocked diesel theni am sure it would have worked for me by myself.

rjz5400 · 08-09-2009, 09:29 AM

Well i went on a long non bus related road trip.
I saw many spots in nc i have always wanted to go to and it was a great getaway before i start my masters degree! But why not take the bus you ask? especially after the 12v power center and coleman rooftop are both installed and working great?
Because afetr i drive the bus for 30 min or so it really bogggs down and slows down then if i push it the best i can do is about 10mph. So i have been following the post i started on the doge cummins forum i am a member of, and talking to my mechanic friend who just got laid off.
It is not the fuel or the fuel filter, air filter or timing, valves or transmission. so i think it is the lift pump or the fuel pickup in the tank. i am going to the bus now to pump it off of a gallon on diesel in a bucket and then i am gonna buy a new lift pump probably.
Also my batteries died after the trip so i am charging my camera right now maybe new pics in a few days.
ezembe??? you gotta be making that big drive to AZ soon right? good luck and bring the service manual and tools (If you have them you wont need them) because i know the opposite is usually true>>>>>

swhite832 · 08-09-2009, 09:40 AM

Yep sounds like fuel.

These guys on this forum are first rate. They do stuff to these engines that make engineers cringe. You WILL find your answer here.

http://www.dieseltruckresource.com/dev/index.php

Go to 1st gen and 12valve and drivetrain. These two areas will pertain to your 90 year motor.

Explain to these guys exactly what its doing and they will know how to fix it...the cheapest way possible. Be careful though, these guys can get some significant horse power out of these motors without spending much money at all. Its easy to get sucked in.

S.

rjz5400 · 08-09-2009, 06:26 PM

well thats it i fixed it!!!! i mean WE fixed it hehehehe. what happened was i took off the old fuel line put it in a bucket and pumped with no results for a while like 3 min. then i did it again with the key on after turning the engine over a little with a breaker bar on the alternator.
Again nothing no fuel no bubbles no noise nothing.
I "borrowed" my buddies truck, ran up to the autozone and bought me an eighty dollar first gen style low pressure pump with a one year warranty. After much cursing and rerouting to remove unnecessary fuel lines i emerged, started it up, and watched a waterfall of fuel scream out from under the bus. ( I forgot to tighten the fuel filter at all after i tried to pump fuel with the primer arm) but don't tell anybody.
Once i tightened everything up and clean the crap off me ( i am tan but when i got out from under my 20 year old but it looked as though i was in "Black-face" circa 1925) that bus felt like a ten ton rocket!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i got up to 61mph under my own power(no hill or wind) and it shifted up and down beautifully through all speeds around town and on the bypass and through downtown for around an hour of driving!!! i am so stoked!!! as you can tell from the exclamation points. There wasn't one miss, stumble or stall.
It is great to be rewarded from my own, albeit assisted by fellow enthusitst, deductive reasoning and now i can go further than 30 min at a time.

Thanks again so much to the Cummins forum members who took the time to respond and don't worry i am/will pay it forward>.

also the ac is now a=hardwired into the bus power i don't know if i mentioned that before but it is 12/2 romexed in and so "F"in cold i actually turned it off after like 30 min WWWWhhhhhhhooooooo

Thanks for the cummins power tip ill be sure to check that out once i get tired of my newfound 10mph over when i picked it up.

swhite832 · 08-09-2009, 06:48 PM

schheeeeet........feels good doesn't it?!

That is why I LOVE the twelve valve cummins. Bomb proof and easy to fix by the average....school bus converter.

TygerCub · 08-09-2009, 07:44 PM

Congratulations on the fix. So, as someone completely ignorant of engines, I gotta ask...

What did you do? Did you just add a pressure pump, or did you replace a bad one? Curious minds are trying to learn what's what in the world of engines and things that make all good skoolies go

rjz5400 · 08-09-2009, 10:19 PM

I replaced the original "lift pump" aka "transfer pump" not to be confused with the injection pump. the lift pump uses a mechanical arm (on my engine) to smash a diaphragm which forces fuel one way- into the filter then Injection pump (IP). thish happens by either me pushing the primer arm with my finger to purge air or normally by the engine pushing on the pump arm.
hope this helps.
you can try finding a more readily available application for your engine and getting the maintenance book for that vehicle. For example my bus has a cummins 5.9 turbo deisel in it. this engine is also in dodge pickup trucks so when i ordered that pump today i walked in and said " i need a fuel pump for an '89 dodge w250 diesel" even though it is for my 1990 thomas school bus.
hope this helps

rjz5400 · 08-28-2009, 09:44 AM

well driveability is restored. i replaced the mechanical pump for the lift pump and now she drives like a champ. i been tooling around town and using it to pickup some stuff for my new motorcycle project. i bought an old 1976 cb550 and i have been working on that and going back to school and just went from unemployed to totally employed.
i built a new bench for it, covered the back of the sweet roll up blinds with white fabric, and hung one of those blinds and i cant think of anything else i have done other tan clean it all up and start ordering parts for the wvo conversion.
see updates again soon i just have been taking a break.

TygerCub · 08-28-2009, 06:12 PM

Congrats on scoring the job! And the bike. Looking forward to photos and more updates.

rjz5400 · 09-15-2009, 10:32 AM

my GF and i parked the bus at the fort fisher state park right by the ocean in the gravel lot. it was awesome. we used some of the foam blanks cut out from the back seat to cover the bedroom windows as i haven't spent much time in the back we haven't gotten around to getting the coverings up.
but we had the first overnight in it and got a great idea of how to re-prioritize what the next project is.
it is totally usable for road trips now that it runs well and has tunes and is pretty free from piles of construction but it needs windows covered and countertop space to be more awesome. and a bike rack.
i have been working on my birthday present (1976 honda cb550) and not the bus but slowly its all coming along.
grad school and job are not helping much either!!!

rjz5400 · 11-19-2009, 09:12 PM

the motorcycle has dominated my world of wrenching for a while.
i will post pics at the end.
i took the bus to chapel hill with about 12 friends for a Halloween dance!!! it was great, ran pretty good and even hit 65 mph on a down hill. it dd however get terrible mileage, (around 5 mpg) leak oil... i later found out ti was mostly fuel washing the oil from everywhere under the engine, lose compression in one injector ( cumbustion blows out past the injector and knocks your hat off when you try to check it out) and it has to be shut off with the manual lever (5.9 cummins with bosch ve pump) it sure was fun trip though.
so now i am gathering parts and information to rebuild my IP over christmas break. i bought a car 1983 MBZ 240d and am in the end of my first semester of graduate school. that and my teaching assistant job plus travel and i am in a play 5 shows a week next month so i have been busy.
its good to be back and i dig all the projects going down around here. cool

oh yea i forgot i bought a 20 dollar inverter from harbor freight, ran an extension cord from the engine RE all the way to the front and had a TV/DVD combo showing movies on the ride back home.

Diesel Dan · 11-22-2009, 03:00 PM

Great bike! Old Hondas rock! I had a CB900 custom and a CB650 Silverwing. I hope to get a small bike that I can load into the bus on my wheelchair lift. That's the only reason I'm keeping the lift.

BUSBOZO · 11-22-2009, 06:02 PM

G BUS.. I was wondering about your bench seat. I would like to do the same thing in the front over my wheel well.. But it looks like the seat bottom extends out too far (because of the wheel well) and would not be comfortable.

How is it after the cushions are installed? Can people reach the floor with their legs?

rjz5400 · 11-24-2009, 08:49 AM

thanks for the bike comp. it is meant to live in the bus occasionally i will likely just cut some hole for tie downs in the kitchen area because i have to ride it in the side door. that or pull a small trailer with vegetable oil and motos on it.
yes they touch the floor with their legs.
not sure if the pictures show it but the cushions are (a) on a slight angle outward from the windows (off vertical) and (b) they are realy thick, meaning the back cushion reduces to overall sitting area by a lot like a foot almost.
the big advantage is it gives us a huge storage area right but the front door. ill take another picture if i think about it of the slots in the bottom and overall dimension.
plus i am 6'1" and i dont have to worry about the bench! its the damn airconditioner that gives me a hard time!!!

BUSBOZO · 11-24-2009, 04:47 PM

I was hoping the back cushion would help that. Thats good. I would like to make the most room out of my wheel wells.

rjz5400 · 01-12-2010, 02:34 PM

thats the newest addition,
i got it as a late xmas present for my girlfriend, its going super fast and now i am looking for a little one for me to buy and then we can be mobile when we park the bus at our friends houses or on road trips, weeeeehhhh
i need to rebuild and reseal my IP its a bosh ve and it looks wicked scary but i may try tommorow or at least this week i have the complete reseal kit with all the orings and gaskets and flat washers so lets see??????

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