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Old 05-16-2021, 07:26 PM   #1
Mini-Skoolie
 
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Bus finding expertise wanted

Hello everyone out there. I'm starting my search for a bus for my family of 4 (two young kids). We are looking for a 40' bus to build from scratch over the next 2 years while my wife finishes school. I'm located in the Raleigh-Durham area, and have seen a number of places within a few hours that have a lot of buses for sale. The thing is, I'm a total novice and am not confident I'll know why one bus might be better than another when I'm looking at dozens of them at once.
I'm wondering if there's any suggestions on finding someone out there who I might be able to hire on to help in the hunt? Has anyone done this before? Local bus mechanics or maybe even a skoolie member?

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Old 05-16-2021, 07:34 PM   #2
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Hello,
Family of 4 here too, living full time in our 40ft bus. Just the right size for us.
You'll receive many PM offering help. Stay focus on what you want, what you like and what you are ready to pay for. YOU are buying YOUR bus
2 years is a nice timeframe to perform a conversion.
Happy hunting!
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Old 05-16-2021, 07:46 PM   #3
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You're probably going to be much better off doing lots of research and making your own decisions (you can of course consult with the experts here and elsewhere). There isn't exactly unanimity among people here about what constitutes a good bus (except for the Holy Grail of the 40' Blue Bird with an MD3060 trans and underbody storage), so if you hired someone you'd be committing yourself to their view of things without knowing whether that view is compatible with yours.
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Old 05-16-2021, 07:54 PM   #4
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I definitely plan on doing my research when it comes to make/model, engine, drivetrain, etc. so I can target a bus that suits my intended lifestyle and where I expect to be traveling mostly. My real concerns are more targeted around mechanical conditions vs. cost, i.e. is a specific flaw going to be reasonably easy to fix, is the tire life good, etc.
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Old 05-16-2021, 07:57 PM   #5
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Originally Posted by cwbrett View Post
I definitely plan on doing my research when it comes to make/model, engine, drivetrain, etc. so I can target a bus that suits my intended lifestyle and where I expect to be traveling mostly. My real concerns are more targeted around mechanical conditions vs. cost, i.e. is a specific flaw going to be reasonably easy to fix, is the tire life good, etc.
Sure, post your finds here and knowledgeable people will comment. One of the big problems with hiring somebody to look at buses for you is that you should look at a lot of them and that will get expensive fast.
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Old 05-17-2021, 06:58 AM   #6
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Originally Posted by musigenesis View Post
You're probably going to be much better off doing lots of research and making your own decisions (you can of course consult with the experts here and elsewhere). There isn't exactly unanimity among people here about what constitutes a good bus (except for the Holy Grail of the 40' Blue Bird with an MD3060 trans and underbody storage), so if you hired someone you'd be committing yourself to their view of things without knowing whether that view is compatible with yours.
No man the holy grail is that Crown 855/roadranger combo. With tandems.
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Old 05-17-2021, 09:42 AM   #7
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No man the holy grail is that Crown 855/roadranger combo. With tandems.
I don't think I could find any mechanics in my part of the country that would have any idea what an 855 Cummins is. Most of those have been gone from Wisconsin roads for 20-30 years now.

8.3 and 5.9 Cummins are still very common and I see them in every heavy diesel shop I drive by on my way to work every morning.
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Old 05-17-2021, 10:13 AM   #8
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I don't think I could find any mechanics in my part of the country that would have any idea what an 855 Cummins is. Most of those have been gone from Wisconsin roads for 20-30 years now.

8.3 and 5.9 Cummins are still very common and I see them in every heavy diesel shop I drive by on my way to work every morning.
Pshhh... we're talkin Holy Grail here! lol
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