Using Existing Bus Seats

[Trail Fairy]

Hi!
Brainstorming over here! I'm trying to use some of my existing bus seats since the bus company I bought mine from had just replaced some seats within the last few months. (new seats! woot!)

I know some of you have kept them. Want to show off your seats?? I'd love to see how/where you used them!!

Plan is to get seats removed this weekend. Rusted bolts is making my bus stubborn!

Thanks!

[brokedown]

Bus seats are easy if you have 2 people and an impact drill. Friend with impact drill on top, and you get the dirty job underneath with a wrench. I can knock out a full length bus in about 15 minutes.

[Trail Fairy]

Whoa! I'll look into the impact drill idea. We're short on time so that would be great! Thanks for the tip!

[brokedown]

I bought this set: https://amzn.to/2uGYStZ

Honestly the impact drill is the most useful tool I didn't know I needed. I use it for everything. It's surprisingly powerful.

[o1marc]

The problem with most bus seats are they are not free standing on 4 legs. They only have legs on one end, making them useless as bench seating outside the bus.

[Trail Fairy]

Thanks brokedown!!

marc, yes, true. I would like to use them maybe in the dining area and make a table to go with them. Haven't thought outside, but...

[o1marc]

Originally Posted by Trail Fairy

Thanks brokedown!!

marc, yes, true. I would like to use them maybe in the dining area and make a table to go with them. Haven't thought outside, but...

If you utilize the old seat rail you can use a left side seat on the right side backwards. Mounted that way you could have a table booth that way.

Have them reupholstered to something nice. I'll have to look at that option on my build.

[o1marc]

Originally Posted by brokedown

Bus seats are easy if you have 2 people and an impact drill. Friend with impact drill on top, and you get the dirty job underneath with a wrench. I can knock out a full length bus in about 15 minutes.

Doesn't even need to be an impact drill, a standard drill should do. I was quite surprised to find how loose the nuts were on my 19 yo bus. Just put a box end on the nut, turn it to break it free and have upstairs spin it off with the drill. I started with impact thinking I could tighten and snap the heads off like someone else here got away with. Impact alone did nothing more than make the bolt spin in it's hole because they aren't that tight.

[joeblack5]

Yes, we did exactly that for the dining on both our small and our transit bus. With the table lowered it becomes a be for the youngest in the small bus. In the transit we made the dining area a lot wider so that it could function as bed for the not so tall people.




later J

[Trail Fairy]

I was thinking of turning a seat and thus utilizing 2 for dining, but I'm interested in seeing how folks did this. And versions of a collapsible wall table. The problem with our seat bolts is they are rusted to the nuts on the underside of the bus. Spinning with a drill. Hard to grasp from top because they are so tight to the floor. Tight, but spin. Ugh.

[djdalfaro]

Originally Posted by joeblack5

Yes, we did exactly that for the dining on both our small and our transit bus. With the table lowered it becomes a be for the youngest in the small bus. In the transit we made the dining area a lot wider so that it could function as bed for the not so tall people.




later J

This is exactly what I was planning. Would you mind snapping a few pictures of your short bus dinette? My youngest is 4 and this was my plan for him until my oldest leaves(15).

[cadillackid]

there are bus seats with 4 legs.. a guy gave me a few from a thomas Van Cutaway bus... some of those style busses seem to have 4 legged seats rather than the chair rail style like the big busses.. I see them show up on craigslist for free or cheap from time to time.
-Christopher

[joeblack5]

Here you go.




You can see more detail images of the Elfbus aka Elfie at School Bus Conversion Resources - joeblack5's Album: Elf Bus E350 Corbeil - Picture



Good luck J

[Blueman]

You can look at my album and see how i reused a few of my original seats. They work great for the dinette or even leaving a couple in so if you bring younger kids along you can seatbelt them in

[WLDNWALT]

I used a cutting torch to cut the heads off the bolts.
The blue flame Speed Wrench works very fast and you only need one person to do this.

[tobeamiss]

I used a metal cutting disc and cut the heads off from upstairs. Had the whole bus done in 15 mins.

[Trail Fairy]

Thank you all very much! This is really helpful. So my husband had already tried an impact drill on those seats with no luck. They were that $#%&$ stuck. The nuts were tightened well and very rusted to the bolt where it was basically one solid piece. It was a fight, but we won and now the seats we need out are on the floor of his man cave. We did keep some rows of seats in for an outing we're doing the first weekend in August, and we flipped on seat around for the dining area. So I'm thinking the floors will have to wait until after the outing when we take a few more rows out...

[1olfart]

Tight nuts have been a problem for many of us)-: