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Old 08-21-2013, 09:11 AM   #1
Mini-Skoolie
 
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Has anyone ever turned a bus into a travel trailer?

I have been thinking on what to do with this bus................. I am wondering if I could buy an old travel trailer, get the stuff out of it I can use and then strip it to the frame, put the bus body on it and then build out the inside of the bus body. This would be weird looking I know but that might be kind of cool. I could get some cash for the remainder of the bus in scrap or parts. My biggest concern is how much a bus body weighs. The body is 32' long. I scrapped a 30' aluminum shipping container recently and I think it was around 2500 lbs. without the wood floor. The ends and doors were steel. I am thinking the bus body must be at least 300 lbs. The travel trailer I am towing now is around 4500 lbs. empty but my GMC HD 2500 will tow at least 10,000 lbs. Any thoughts on this idea?

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Old 08-21-2013, 09:12 AM   #2
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Re: Has anyone ever turned a bus into a travel trailer?

Oops I meant to say 3000 lbs.
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Old 08-21-2013, 09:21 AM   #3
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Re: Has anyone ever turned a bus into a travel trailer?

Having worked on a couple older travel trailers, specifically the floors and the supporting structure underneath, I would not want to tear the top off one and put something as heavy as a bus body on. You start pulling the top and sides off, and all you have is a flimsy assortment of braces and plywood. That being said, that is only my experience. Maybe some brands/models have an actual frame capable of supporting that much weight. This does of course beg the question "why?" though, lol...
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Old 08-21-2013, 09:50 AM   #4
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Re: Has anyone ever turned a bus into a travel trailer?

put a hitch on the bus, build it out and tow the GMC to camping spots
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Old 08-21-2013, 10:14 AM   #5
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Re: Has anyone ever turned a bus into a travel trailer?

Quote:
Originally Posted by bansil
put a hitch on the bus, build it out and tow the GMC to camping spots
Ditto!
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Old 08-21-2013, 10:36 AM   #6
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Re: Has anyone ever turned a bus into a travel trailer?

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Old 08-21-2013, 11:02 AM   #7
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Re: Has anyone ever turned a bus into a travel trailer?

^LOL!! Or you could do that! I see you changed directions a little, haha...
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Old 08-21-2013, 11:16 AM   #8
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Re: Has anyone ever turned a bus into a travel trailer?

Motobus had the same idea as me. Why remove the bus body from the chassis? If you want to convert a bus to a trailer, just chop off the front of the bus and make the whole thing into a trailer. Seems like that would be easier than removing the body from the frame and re-attaching it to another trailer. On of our skoolie members, Chadluc, did that to an old RV motorhome, AND pulled it behind his bus! That's the kind of crazy I like to see around here!
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Old 08-21-2013, 11:49 AM   #9
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Re: Has anyone ever turned a bus into a travel trailer?

interesting, and if you hauled it with HDT you could have air brakes that worked
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Old 08-21-2013, 11:58 AM   #10
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Re: Has anyone ever turned a bus into a travel trailer?

Quote:
Originally Posted by JakeC
^LOL!! Or you could do that! I see you changed directions a little, haha...
HAha, I haven't given up on the ole girl.

Not, mine but I can't say I haven't thought of it. It would make a really cheap, really heavy enclosed trailer. I imagine one could get a hydraulic brake controller to work.
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Old 08-21-2013, 03:34 PM   #11
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Re: Has anyone ever turned a bus into a travel trailer?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Motobus
This looks cool but I don't think my truck would handle the tongue load. First thing I need is time to work on the bus It does run I know that much now.
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Old 08-22-2013, 11:03 PM   #12
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Re: Has anyone ever turned a bus into a travel trailer?

I bet the front axle of the bus and the rear of your 2500 pickup are rated pretty close, my money would be on the pickup being a little heavier. You would loose about 1000 lbs on the front of the bus and could locate the hitch forward of where the front axle of the bus would have been, further reducing tongue weight. I think it would be fine with a gooseneck, wouldn't want to do it with a bumper hitch.
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Old 08-23-2013, 06:49 AM   #13
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Re: Has anyone ever turned a bus into a travel trailer?

THEEE Kent Dorfman?

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Old 08-23-2013, 11:52 AM   #14
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Re: Has anyone ever turned a bus into a travel trailer?

Quote:
Originally Posted by sdwarf36
THEEE Kent Dorfman?

I thought the same thing....so your about 45 hugh?
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Old 09-05-2013, 01:59 PM   #15
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Re: Has anyone ever turned a bus into a travel trailer?

Yeah I got the nickname 'flounder' in college.
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Old 09-05-2013, 02:00 PM   #16
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Re: Has anyone ever turned a bus into a travel trailer?

Yeah and bansil I see you are from Mtn. City TN I went to Appalachian State. I drove through your town a bunch when I was there, dated a girl in Bristol.
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