Journey Begins - 1988 Crown Conversion

[proconsul100]

wow, that upholstery looks great. what kind of material is that?

[gmarvel]

It is a vinyl fabric designed to mimic leather. It looks great and can be easily cleaned.

[gmarvel]

HEADLINER FINISHED

The headliner upholstery job is finished. The back end got finished today. A picture is below.



Next step is to get the floor insulation in. That is starting this afternoon as we speak!!

[gmarvel]

LED DOME LIGHTS

I have been doing lots of research on LED lights for the interior. I also went and looked at a bunch of high end Class A Prevost RV's and Monaco coaches. I wanted to see what they were doing with RV interior lighting. Almost universally, they are using slim LED lighting that has a mushroom cap frosted covering. This keeps the glare of LED lights out of your eyes and creates a diffused light. I found a web site on Ebay that sells these lights. I checked references and reviews and they got good ones. So, I have taken the plunge and bought two sets of these lights, for a total of 20. The total cost was $150. Each one is 120 lumens and has a warm white color, versus a super bright daylight style color. We will connect them to wiring already strung through the ceiling headliner and also place them under our overhead cabinets for more accent and reading lighting. They are very thin. See pictures:

Lens Cover and LED Light


Side View of LED Light

[gmarvel]

I was thinking of putting them on a dimmer. The backside of the light has a metal heat sink that helps dissipate the heat. I had already thought about doing just what you suggested, hooking some up and leaving them on all day to check them out. I will let you know the outcome.

[mjh2901]

Its amazing, My wife digs your choice for the ceiling. I'm a computer guy and was thinking about your issues with your backup camera av setup because the mount point is almost unusable for the drive. Why not see if you unit supports a mirrored or second monitor. You could do just a monitor mount on the dash or off of the back of the dash area and have it be in the perfect spot. Rather than attempting to build a box for it. I think the depth of the unit would make any separate box in the driver area a nightmare.

If it does not have mirroring out of the box on those head units the screens are normally a stock item that can be replaced a custom shop might be able to assist you in getting a harness and mount to remove the screen and place it on the instrument cluster and fabricate a spacer for the front of the original unit.

Otherwise since it has the ipod support a mounted ipad mini could be done at the instrument console but you would be limited to ipad apps for navigation instead of the head unit. I was thinking of going with a more simple head unit and using an ipad mini for the driver info.... As soon as someone markets a backup camera for it. Oh well

[Stu & Filo. T]

Originally Posted by gmarvel

LED DOME LIGHTS

I have been doing lots of research on LED lights for the interior. I also went and looked at a bunch of high end Class A Prevost RV's and Monaco coaches. I wanted to see what they were doing with RV interior lighting. Almost universally, they are using slim LED lighting that has a mushroom cap frosted covering. This keeps the glare of LED lights out of your eyes and creates a diffused light. I found a web site on Ebay that sells these lights. I checked references and reviews and they got good ones. So, I have taken the plunge and bought two sets of these lights, for a total of 20. The total cost was $150. Each one is 120 lumens and has a warm white color, versus a super bright daylight style color. We will connect them to wiring already strung through the ceiling headliner and also place them under our overhead cabinets for more accent and reading lighting. They are very thin. See pictures:

Lens Cover and LED Light


Side View of LED Light

I for one want to thank you for all the research your doing Greg, I'm not ashamed to tell you I'll be incorporating a lot of your idea's .

Stuart

[gmarvel]

LED DOME LIGHTS ARE A GO

It was suggested on this site that we check out the LED lights we purchased to make sure they can handle the heat and do not get too hot. I can happily report that the LED lights we purchased only get slightly warm to the touch after hours and hours turned on. They provide a great warm light (2900 to 3200k) vs. a really daylight type light (some LED are 4000k). The light is warm yet bright with the diffused "mushroom style" cap on the light. They are very thin. They are 12 volt.

I bought two sets of 10 each for $75 a set. They sell via Ebay. Their site is:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/10-PCS-12Volt-3 ... 3ce2e7016e

I suspect they are made in China. So, I wanted to check them out in terms of reliability and quality. They use an American warehouse. When I ordered mine, they were at my door in three days. They have good reviews and my short experience with the lights has been good. Of course, a true test would be to use them for years and see how many fail. I don't have time for a real world test. They also sell 4.5 inch LED's with a similar thin "mushroom cap" style format.

Bottom line for me, is they are going into my bus conversion in the ceiling as well as under the cabinets. When completed, I will provide pictures.

[Tango]

Thanks for sharing the research Greg...I just ordered a set myself. Looks perfect for my application as well.

[gmarvel]

Crown Instrument Panel Renovation Started
25 years of dirt, fingerprints, oxidation, and general crap were all over my Crown's instrument panel. I spent two days in front of my house getting it cleaned up and I am still not finished. Late model Crowns had a instrument panel set up with a painted front covering layer over a metal plate. The covering was a membrane that was put on top and allowed a more "modern" look in terms of messages and warning lights that would appear on the instrument cockpit and then disappear when not needed. However, it appears that no one in 25 years had actually cleaned the darn thing. I could not believe the amount of filth I got off of it. Backlit lettering in the dash was almost impossible to see because it was covered in layers of grime.

Picture of the Instrument Panel Before


Pictures Afterwards - Left Side


Pictures Afterward - Right Side


Close up of the lower Instrument Panel. The air door switch is driving me crazy. The black paint has worn off. I will tackle that another weekend. I can't help it. I want it to look nice. I may be the only one who notices, but the worn off paint just bugs the heck out of me. Notice the difference between the before picture with its faded and obscured lettering and the after picture. When I took it out for a drive that night, the difference in the instrument panel was striking as the backlighting actually looked great and bright.


Next step is to redo all the gauges. My wife has a preference for Stewart Warner Heavy Duty gauges. That is what she always ordered on the Crowns she bought for her school districts when she was a director. My gauges are from difference manufacturers and different styles. I am researching exactly what to get. Of course, once installed, there will be pictures!!

[gmarvel]

NEW FLOORING GOING IN
We are now in the process of putting down a wood laminate flooring. We tried about ten different types of flooring, from solid wood to different laminates. My wife and I really liked the look of real solid wood flooring. However, we also noticed that it got scarred and beat up fairly easily. Also, much of the solid woods we liked (like Brazilian Cherry) can fade fairly easily and quickly when exposed to sunlight. We opted for a high grade wood laminate flooring that complimented the cabinets and side panels going into the bus. We also feel it will stand up to many people coming in and out of the bus since this is going to be our company bus to demo our software and provide a mobile computer training lab.

You will note that the flooring is not going in lengthwise. Donna went online and noted that in narrow and confined spaces, interior designers have the wood flooring going sideways in a narrow room. It gives the elusion of more space in a small area. It seems to work. We tested it out and numerous people voted for the sidewise install.

This flooring is going in over the LizardSkin acoustic and thermal spray that we put on the floor of the bus. After it was put in, we took the bus for a test drive and could not believe the difference in the sound inside the bus. Incredible stuff.

This wood laminate comes with a built in underlayment on the underside of the flooring. Again, in some small way a little more barrier to the road and engine noise.

Pictures are below.




Note the big open hatch in the middle of the bus. This is due to the mid-engine design of the bus. This is the primary way to get to engine components that are on top. The alternative would be to drop the engine. So, we opted not to cover up the hatch permanently. Instead, we are covering the hatch door in the wood laminate. It will then have four latches placed into it so they will be flush with the level of the flooring, but can latch the hatch to the engine compartment. The hatch will also have sound and thermal insulation placed under it to help reduce road and engine noise/heat from penetrating the bus interior. It will also have a rubber gasket placed around the perimeter of the hatch to create a solid seal around the hatch to keep out noise and exhaust fumes from getting into the bus. In addition, the interior of the engine compartment under the bus has been sprayed with the LizardSkin insulation to help dampen noise and heat.


The wheel wheels, the stairwells and the area directly under the driver's accelerator and brake pedals will be covered in G Flooring coin patterned industrial rubber flooring. It can stand up to battery acid, solvents and other nasty things. It is used as flooring in high end mobile mechanic trailers as well as entire garage floors. I got a good deal on a small roll and will also use it in the back trunk of the bus as a flooring.

[NilesSkoolie]

Flooring looks awesome!!!! good job!

[sojourner]

I totally hear you on the gauges!! I have that nasty International dash cluster that has no character at all!! Stewart Warner is the way to go if you can afford them. They're pricey these days. I've been thinking of buying a used semi truck dash and salvage the gauges from that.

[Stu & Filo. T]

Originally Posted by NilesSkoolie

Flooring looks awesome!!!! good job!

X2

[Reymac]

The floor looks great!

What are you using for noise insulation?

[gmarvel]

I used a product called LizardSkin. It is a 2 step process that first puts on a coating for sound insulation. It dries for 24 hours and then a thermal insulation coating is put on. It uses different types of microscopic beads for the different layers. Reviews of the product were excellent and many of the classic car and hot rod websites talked about how good it is.

I sprayed on the floor before putting the wood laminate floor with underlayment over it. I also sprayed it on the wheel wells inside the bus, the tire side of the wheel wells outside the bus, under the stairwell on the outside of the bus, the walls and ceiling of the engine compartment (underfloor mid engine bus), the generator compartment, and the interior floor, walls and ceiling of the giant rear storage area.

We took it out for a spin and the sound difference is incredible. I have not had the bus out in heat yet. I am hoping for equally great results.

This product is a thick paint and rubbery like substance that is sprayed on. This is similar to the roof coating products out there for buses and RV's. The difference is that this also has an acoustical component.

[gmarvel]

ENGINE HATCH ALMOST COMPLETED
We had a tough time deciding on the trim around the engine hatch. We reversed the direction for the wood flooring and then decided to outline it with polished metal trim. This accent goes along with the stainless steel refrigerator/freezer, microwave, and cabinet pulls. Still to come are the recessed pull rings that will lock the hatch in place.

View of the Floor From Behind the Rear Axle


Close Up View


Next week I hope to have the rubber flooring in the step well completed and its trim. More pictures to follow.

[gmarvel]

REAR TRUNK FLOORING PUT IN
The Crown Coach has a mid-ship engine. So, the rear trunk area is freed up for storage. As I said in a previous post, we put LizardSkin on all sides of the trunk area to keep noise and thermal transfer from getting into the interior of the coach. This week we put the same high grade industrial strength rubber flooring that we are using for the step well into the large trunk area. Pictures are below. This rubber is designed for mechanic shops and garages and can withstand grease, solvents and even some acids.

Wide View of Trunk


Close up of Left Side


Close Up of Right Side

[gmarvel]

DRIVER'S PEDAL AREA HAS NEW FLOORING

We finished the flooring under the driver's pedal area. This is the same stuff we are putting in the step well and have already put in the trunk in the rear of the bus. Could not believe the 25 years of crap, dirt, grease and unknown substances that were ground into this area. We kept cleaning and it kept coming up black. More cleaning and more black. Finally, all the gunk was gone. You need a clean foundation for the new floor to adhere properly!!! So, I got anal about it and I think you could eat off of it before the new rubber flooring was laid down. Obviously, this picture has the steering column and pedals disconnected so it was easier to put down one piece of rubber flooring. Plus, it is easier to show it off. Tomorrow, it gets put back together.

[browncrown]

Flooring looks beautiful guys!