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Old 09-18-2009, 05:32 PM   #1
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Will a skoolie ruin my marriage?

I have a chance to pick up a bus locally from our school district. It is a 1992 International 66 passenger with DT360 and AT. It was in service last year and DOT inspected in March of this year. They are asking $750 by the end of next week or they will crush it. It started right up for me, and the mechanic said he wished his whole fleet had that engine. The only repair has been a water pump.

Anyway, there is a rust issue on those black things that are down each side - rusted through in spots - and other nooks and crannies have a dusting of rust. The fiberglass hood is peeling all over. I've thought about offering them $500 bucks for it just cause I don't want to see it junked.

My wife thinks a skoolie is a neat idea for family vacations, but our financial priorities are building a house. She wants me to wait.

So anyway, she's out of town this weekend, so should I offer $500? If they take it I'll be surprised, and my wife would be surprised to see it when she gets home.

BTW... My dream rig would be a Thomas pusher with big Cat engine. Maybe I need 2 skoolies!

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Old 09-18-2009, 05:56 PM   #2
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Re: Will a skoolie ruin my marriage?

The black things are called rub rails.

If you had the bus, you could remove most of the seats, and use it as a really heavy duty pickup truck. Title as a private truck, insure it that way, etc. That would give you a nice heavy duty vehicle to go get supplies for building your house. Then, when y'all need a weekend getaway, just throw in the sleeping bags, coolers, etc and head for the hills.

You might be able to use that as a discussion point with your wife. $750 is a good price assuming things are mechanically sound. If you can get it for $500, so much the better.

Also, if it doesn't leak, you could even use it as a shed for storing house building materials.

BTW, this is coming from a guy with 2 skoolies. One is a thomas pusher with a cat 3208. The other is a conventional dog nose with a 366 gas engine. The gasser is being used as a shed to store conversion materials. I paid $1400 for the gasser, and $2300 or so for the pusher.

hope this helps,
jim
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Old 09-18-2009, 06:04 PM   #3
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Re: Will a skoolie ruin my marriage?

While it's often easier to beg for forgiveness than ask for permission...you've already asked and got your answer.

All hope isn't lost however!

How much would the bus bring as scrap? If it'd bring as much as you'd be paying for it, you can tell her you think it'd be a good idea to go ahead and get it now. If it doesn't work out, you'll just scrap it, and you're not out a lot of dough.

Can it serve double-duty? Perhaps you could use it as a heavy-duty truck to haul supplies for the house you're building, essentially it'd be a dirt cheap work truck. Bonus points if it has a wheelchair lift. Explain that it'd make it much easier to load/unload supplies, heavy appliances, etc. If there's no lift, then just say that the store will have to figure out how to load it, then you'll back up to the front door of the house (once it has a front door) and use a sheet of plywood as a ramp, and there ya go! Think of all the money you'll save on delivery charges!

It can be used as storage. Why let building materials sit outside to get rained on when they can stay inside the bus? Likewise, once you move, you don't need a uhaul (which can run many hundreds of dollars right there).

You can slowly find materials dirt cheap to convert it. If you need an RV in the next three months, you're not gonna get great deals on stuff. This way, there's no rush, and maybe you'll find some awesome deals or even free stuff by the curb. Plus, you have a place to store all this stuff.

Lastly...in this economy it's nice to have a fall-back plan. If all else fails, you can live in the bus. Tell her you plan on doing the bare necessities to make it semi-livable, and will do a proper job later (basically, the bare minimum needed to legally title it as an RV).

Hope that helps...sorry can't give any advice on that particular bus.
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Old 09-18-2009, 06:07 PM   #4
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Re: Will a skoolie ruin my marriage?

I love it!!! Could I really title it as a work / farm truck in Wisconsin? We have been talking about needing a shed to store building materials.
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Old 09-18-2009, 06:10 PM   #5
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Re: Will a skoolie ruin my marriage?

Does the bus need "rub rails"? How likely is it that there will be rust on the body under them?
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Old 09-18-2009, 09:11 PM   #6
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Re: Will a skoolie ruin my marriage?

The quick answer to this question is a resounding YES!!!

However, there are other ramifications one needs to ponder, such as:
Is the ruination permanent? Maybe, but it depends a lot on how good you are at groveling, giving backrubs, and smothering her with praise for ultimately being so patient and understanding with a mere "man".

If it is permanent, is it worth it? Depends on whether your imminent lifestyle includes converting the bus into a rolling bachelor pad, or something like the Jacuzzi Buses.

And last, but not least, what if it just puts you in the "doghouse"? Couldn't get any better my man! After all, now you have a ready-made "man cave" to which you can retreat and work to your heart's content modifying with all those gadgets and oddities that she will NEVER let you put in the house anyway.(like the beer taps on the fridge, the 10,000 watt 7.1 Dolby sound system with the 25 inch woofers that make the neighbors think the San Andreas fault opened under their living room, you get the picture)

Whatever you decide, I wish you the best.
With tongue firmly in cheek,
Lee
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Old 09-19-2009, 12:54 PM   #7
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Re: Will a skoolie ruin my marriage?

Ya want a woman's point of view?

$500 for a mobile storage shed is a sound investment as long as it will not cause trouble with the neighbors (home owner's associations) and/or the law. If you're lucky enough to not have to deal with a HOA, then for heaven's sake, man... GO FOR IT.

Most sheds (worth building) cost much more than $500 and give you a third of the space. The fact the "shed" can also GO TO THE STORE to pick up the building supplies (especially oversized items like floor joists) is just major bonus points. I don't know what size the bus is you're looking at, but mine has +187 sq.ft. of storage space behind the driver's seat. That's a lot of space! The average shed is only 8'x10'... less than half the bus.

If you explain the purchase to your wife in those practical, sound financial terms, I'm sure she'll understand.
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Old 09-19-2009, 08:55 PM   #8
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Re: Will a skoolie ruin my marriage?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Smitty
RUN!!! IT'S A TRAP!!!!!!!
Damnit Smitty! Ya gave it away!
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Old 09-20-2009, 03:38 PM   #9
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Re: Will a skoolie ruin my marriage?

Well, we talked about it, and she seems to think it is a good idea. She also is excited about my suggestion that we plan a 2-week road trip next summer up the western border of Wisconsin from La Crosse to Superior and back down through the middle os the state. We have four young daughters, and it would be a great way to teach them about Wisconsin history and geography.

Sometime this week I'll have a more serious discussion on the issue, and maybe by next weekend I'll have bus number one!
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Old 09-21-2009, 03:15 PM   #10
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Re: Will a skoolie ruin my marriage?

Quote:
Re: Will a skoolie ruin my marriage?
FUNNY you should mention that. we refer to our current skoolie as "homewrecker" because me and my buddy own the bus 50/50 and both our wives hate the bus. Every time we see another bus for sale, we call it "homewrecker II"
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Old 09-21-2009, 03:56 PM   #11
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Re: Will a skoolie ruin my marriage?

Looks impossible now. Bad things happened today to the tune of -$4000, so it looks like this bus is being squished.

Oh well. I really want a Thomas pusher anyway. I still hope to do a road trip with my kids next summer, but it might be with the minivan and a tent.
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