Sorry for the late response guys but failing at trying to get adequate pictures posted but in the meantime i will run down what i can.
Ali and I decided that a roof raise was something we didn't want to tackle on our own. We had watched all the videos, read all the posts, etc. We knew what we would be getting into. After much vigilance we found Troy Spackman at Legacy Innovations (
http://legacyinnovations.com/) located in York, PA (where we live). His shop mostly deals with hot/street rods, custom vettes, and classic cars. But he also had experience in building trailers as well. We were blessed to have found him. It took me 3 months of weekend work to fully gut the 39 ft. monster, stripped it right to the ribs. It then took 2 guys 2 weeks to the cut and raise the roof.
It is indeed a 12in roof raise. Our heights are 5' 10" and 5' 4" so we are not very tall people. We also live in the north east and were worried about low bridges, and we also discussed that it may be too top heavy for travel. In the end i think its perfect. And that's Gavalume (
http://www.galvalume.com/product_info.htm) riveted in and covering the windows. i believe its 16g to match the bus's and its beaded as well for aesthetics. You can see that the metal is cut to the match the same lengths as the bus's. That was actually the goal of the project. to kind of keep a stock bus look. We also looked into getting the additional black side bumpers but they were over $1k each new, or if i could find another 39fter that i could spend all day at pulling then there's a possibility. But otherwise its not that noticeable. All the Gavalume came cut from the metal shop. They couldn't find rivets that matched exactly in size, so we went with slightly bigger ones. Should be barely noticeable once painted.
As for the back, the door no longer fits since we raised the roof below the windows. So it has been removed along with the rear windows. We decided for now to leave the back open so that we can have better access to getting some larger items in the bus. Once we are ready the back end will be sealed up and will look like no door was ever there. The sides of the bus were cut with an angle grinder, and they did jack the roof up to weld it in place. You can see the hatch channels on the inside and also every other one has a steel bar welded inside for added strength. The most impressive work is around the drivers seat and the front all the way around to the door. I will have to post pictures up so that you can see the weld work on the inside. I still have to seam seal the outside but will wait til before painting. We are currently welding up the holes in the floor so that we can seal the inside in.
Im sure there is something i forgot, please ask me and ill do my best! And hopefully next time it wont take so long.
Aaron & Ali
39ft Flat Nose 1999 International Amtran DT466e
Linear Mode
