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09-30-2016, 01:13 PM
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#1
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New Member
Join Date: Sep 2016
Posts: 5
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Looking for a large bus
Hi guys,
I'm new here and looking to get my conversion started but have a couple questions while looking for the right bus. I previously saw a bus in this thread and I'm thinking that this is exactly what I'm looking for. http://www.skoolie.net/forums/f14/20...gon-14560.html
I'm located in Montreal Quebec, but am willing to travel far and wide for the right bus. On this note, are there any Canadians on here that have experience importing a bus from the US?
My criteria for the bus:
As long as possible, I've heard 40 feet is the max? Does that end up with about 35' usable internal space?
Flat nose and preferably front engine but willing to consider rear engine.
As much under storage as possible
Generally good condition with minimal rust repair require on body
I'm not sure what engine or transmission to look for, any suggestions or info would be nice!
I plan on using the bus to travel across North America and living in it for extensive periods of time.
Any help is appreciated!
Thanks
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09-30-2016, 03:22 PM
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#2
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Bus Geek
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Eustis FLORIDA
Posts: 23,826
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: Freighliner FS65
Engine: Cat 3126
Rated Cap: 15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Domane
Hi guys,
I'm new here and looking to get my conversion started but have a couple questions while looking for the right bus. I previously saw a bus in this thread and I'm thinking that this is exactly what I'm looking for. http://www.skoolie.net/forums/f14/20...gon-14560.html
I'm located in Montreal Quebec, but am willing to travel far and wide for the right bus. On this note, are there any Canadians on here that have experience importing a bus from the US?
My criteria for the bus:
As long as possible, I've heard 40 feet is the max? Does that end up with about 35' usable internal space?
Flat nose and preferably front engine but willing to consider rear engine.
As much under storage as possible
Generally good condition with minimal rust repair require on body
I'm not sure what engine or transmission to look for, any suggestions or info would be nice!
I plan on using the bus to travel across North America and living in it for extensive periods of time.
Any help is appreciated!
Thanks
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What you're looking for sounds a lot like my bus!
Check out Amtran Genesis. Or if you get an early one like my 92, they were called "Ward Senator". Excellent buses.
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09-30-2016, 06:11 PM
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#3
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: Billings, MT
Posts: 1,269
Year: 2003
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: HDX
Engine: Cat C7
Rated Cap: 84 passenger
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Actually, a RE transit-style bus will provide more interior room than a FE. Plus, the balance isn't really offset.
I have an 03 Thomas HDX with 240' (approx) of interior floor space (30' long). I've left the E-door on the driver side intact and use that area of the bus for kitchen/bath purposes. I've just received my potable/grey tanks (50 gal each) for about $1K. A local shop will do the installation. The shower/kitchen sink will be done about the same time, product cost about $400. I've already gotten a 15.5 cu ft fridge. Carpeting front & rear, lino in the middle (about 10 ft).
I still have to replace the fuel filter/water separator for the engine and electricity. I've wintered over once WITHOUT heaters (not this year!) and summered with a 10K AC. But it sure beats the snot out of the obscenely high rent in this area.
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09-30-2016, 09:31 PM
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#4
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Bus Geek
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Eustis FLORIDA
Posts: 23,826
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: Freighliner FS65
Engine: Cat 3126
Rated Cap: 15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by CaptSquid
Actually, a RE transit-style bus will provide more interior room than a FE. Plus, the balance isn't really offset.
I have an 03 Thomas HDX with 240' (approx) of interior floor space (30' long). I've left the E-door on the driver side intact and use that area of the bus for kitchen/bath purposes. I've just received my potable/grey tanks (50 gal each) for about $1K. A local shop will do the installation. The shower/kitchen sink will be done about the same time, product cost about $400. I've already gotten a 15.5 cu ft fridge. Carpeting front & rear, lino in the middle (about 10 ft).
I still have to replace the fuel filter/water separator for the engine and electricity. I've wintered over once WITHOUT heaters (not this year!) and summered with a 10K AC. But it sure beats the snot out of the obscenely high rent in this area.
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I've never understood how RE's have "more" room. They have an engine hump in the rear, no rear door, and getting appliances and furniture in and out can be a bit more tricky. My 40' FE has all the "business end" in the front, so the driver compartment and drivers area are all in the same space leaving everything behind the front 5 feet completely open and usable.
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09-30-2016, 10:00 PM
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#5
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: May 2015
Location: Oklahoma aka "God's blind spot"
Posts: 2,447
Year: 1989
Coachwork: 1853FC International/Navistar
Chassis: 35' Retired Air Force Ambulance
Engine: DT466, MT643
Rated Cap: 6 souls and a driver
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Quote:
Originally Posted by EastCoastCB
I've never understood how RE's have "more" room. They have an engine hump in the rear, no rear door, and getting appliances and furniture in and out can be a bit more tricky. My 40' FE has all the "business end" in the front, so the driver compartment and drivers area are all in the same space leaving everything behind the front 5 feet completely open and usable.
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My 35' FE has 28' of usable space while leaving walkway room around my tall doghouse. My driver's seat actually has 2 sets slide rails... Forward and back, and left to right. Looks like they even used the same style rails.
__________________
I once complained I had no shoes....
Until I met a man with no feet
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10-01-2016, 09:40 AM
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#6
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Bus Geek
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Columbus Ohio
Posts: 19,736
Year: 1991
Coachwork: Carpenter
Chassis: International 3800
Engine: DTA360 / MT643
Rated Cap: 7 Row Handicap
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since many are either decommissioning or never installing road A/C, a BIG plus for an RE is you dont have engine heat filling up your bus and they are quieter for long highway drives.. from what ive seen of an RE you can make use of that front end and that rear hump both... im guessing an FE is easier to work on as you have full access to the motor when you open the doghouse.. and can fix stuff indoors out of the weather...
-Christopher
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10-01-2016, 09:55 AM
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#7
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Skoolie
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Texas
Posts: 218
Year: 1997
Coachwork: AmTran
Chassis: Genesis
Engine: DT466
Rated Cap: 84
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Actually, FE appears to be the most difficult to work on from what I understand.
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10-01-2016, 10:24 AM
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#8
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Bus Geek
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Houston, Texas
Posts: 8,462
Year: 1946
Coachwork: Chevrolet/Wayne
Chassis: 1- 1/2 ton
Engine: Cummins 4BT
Rated Cap: 15
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To me, the biggest single space advantage an RE has is in the underbelly. With no exhaust, tranny or driveshaft taking up most of its' length you can create some humongous storage areas.
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10-06-2016, 12:52 PM
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#9
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Skoolie
Join Date: May 2014
Location: North Georgia Mountains
Posts: 106
Year: 96
Coachwork: AmTran
Chassis: International
Engine: DT466
Rated Cap: 75
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I've actually just decided to sell my bus, finances and time have not gone the way I was hoping when I started the project. I'm in the Georgia mountains, near Cleveland.
Specs: 38ft AmTran Genesis, DT466 diesel engine with a 545 Allison Trans. Model year is 1996, the last year of the mechanical injection models, so it will work with WVO or BioDiesel. I've removed all the seats, all the windows are still in, but one is broken. It has the emergency door in the back, as well as two on the roof and 4 pop out windows exits. It is all disc brakes, hydraulic, so lower repair cost and less to go wrong. Steering tires will need replacing in the near future, but are good to run on for now. Plenty of under belly storage. Batteries need replacing, they only hold a charge for a couple of days, but it will jump off and runs great. It's been parked in my back yard near trees for the last two years, so it needs a bath, but there is no rust and the paint is good. Asking $3000.00, which is a little less than what I have in it, but it's just taking up space right now. I'll start again when my finances allow.
This image has been resized. Click this bar to view the full image.
Let me know what you think, I was going to start listing it, but figured I'd check here first.
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10-07-2016, 12:59 PM
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#10
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New Member
Join Date: Sep 2016
Posts: 5
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Hey Outcast, do you have any more pictures of the bus?
And thanks everyone for all the info!
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10-10-2016, 06:38 AM
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#11
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Skoolie
Join Date: May 2014
Location: North Georgia Mountains
Posts: 106
Year: 96
Coachwork: AmTran
Chassis: International
Engine: DT466
Rated Cap: 75
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I have a few, I'll link you to my FB page.
https://www.facebook.com/mark.pruitt...5251181&type=3
That should take you to the bus pictures.
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10-21-2016, 09:21 AM
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#12
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New Member
Join Date: Sep 2016
Posts: 5
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10-21-2016, 03:17 PM
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#13
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Bus Nut
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: Music City USA
Posts: 737
Year: 2005
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: Freightliner
Engine: Detroit MBE906
Rated Cap: 72
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She "looks" all right... the big question is how does she run and drive? Is it close enough you could go up and inspect her, maybe take her for a little test run? Make sure there's no little quirks that you won't like?
Reason I say this.... I found the perfect bus (or so I thought) on GovDeals a few months back... it was close enough that I went to check it out. Fired her up, she sounded great, drove good too. But the thing that soured it for me was the (digital) odometer did not work, thus I had no idea how many miles was on it. Wasn't gonna get involved with something with unknown mileage.
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10-21-2016, 10:29 PM
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#14
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: Vacaville, Ca
Posts: 1,634
Year: 1988
Coachwork: Crown / Pusher
Engine: 8.3 Cummins
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Outcast
I've actually just decided to sell my bus, finances and time have not gone the way I was hoping when I started the project. I'm in the Georgia mountains, near Cleveland.
Specs: 38ft AmTran Genesis, DT466 diesel engine with a 545 Allison Trans. Model year is 1996, the last year of the mechanical injection models, so it will work with WVO or BioDiesel. I've removed all the seats, all the windows are still in, but one is broken. It has the emergency door in the back, as well as two on the roof and 4 pop out windows exits. It is all disc brakes, hydraulic, so lower repair cost and less to go wrong. Steering tires will need replacing in the near future, but are good to run on for now. Plenty of under belly storage. Batteries need replacing, they only hold a charge for a couple of days, but it will jump off and runs great. It's been parked in my back yard near trees for the last two years, so it needs a bath, but there is no rust and the paint is good. Asking $3000.00, which is a little less than what I have in it, but it's just taking up space right now. I'll start again when my finances allow.
This image has been resized. Click this bar to view the full image.
Let me know what you think, I was going to start listing it, but figured I'd check here first.
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What program do you use to post pics??
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10-21-2016, 10:38 PM
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#15
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Bus Nut
Join Date: May 2016
Location: Richmond Virginia
Posts: 932
Year: 1984
Engine: 366 Big block Chevy! :) w/ Stick shift
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Wow i am seeing some great buys from public surplus. Good luck!
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10-22-2016, 12:16 AM
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#16
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Bus Geek
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Clearlake, Northern California
Posts: 2,530
Year: 1992
Coachwork: Blue Bird
Chassis: TC-2000 Frt Eng, Tranny:MT643
Engine: 5,9 Cummins
Rated Cap: 84
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Domane... that bus has the Cummins 8.3 liter engine (ISC), which is a big plus.
About posting photos... I put my photos on Photobucket, which is free if you can tolerate ads on the screen. Me, I pay a trivial amount to be free of ads.
Once the photo is "in your bucket", you copy a link to it and paste that link into the Skoolie post. Nothing to it.
__________________
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10-22-2016, 06:12 AM
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#17
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Bus Geek
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Columbus Ohio
Posts: 19,736
Year: 1991
Coachwork: Carpenter
Chassis: International 3800
Engine: DTA360 / MT643
Rated Cap: 7 Row Handicap
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a note to an earlier post... I would say that probably 1/3 to 1/2 of the Busses out there are TMU (true mileage unknown).. commercial vehicles arent required in a lot of states to maintain meticulous odometer readings like cars to have any value...
if its an international built between 1990 and 2004 chances are its dashboard has been replaced at least once... when tyou order a new one fro mthe dealer it is sent with odometer 0 and hour meter 0, if you send one to a repair service they will try and return yours back to you, however theres a chance it is defunct and then it must be replaced.. sometimes the odometer and hoiur meter gauges are moved over to a new cluster but many times not..
the service records likely wouldve shown the replacement and mileage.. but most of us dont get the luxury of obtaining those form the school...
if its a an 'E' engine bus like a DT-466E or a T-444E, you can look at the date code on the PCM computer.. if the computer is still original, you can connect the bus to a laptop and read the mileage from the computer... and see if the VIN on the computer matches... if it does you have a decently close idea to the true mileage on your bus...
if the computer was replaced by a dealer it will be updated with VIN and mileage from the old one.. if it was ordered by a sahool online and shoved in then the VIN wont match and the mileage will not be correct..
diesel engines are less about miles and hours and are more about how they were cared for... sure nice rebuilt or low mileage engines give you a possible leg-up on longevity, 200,000 milers taken well care of have a good chance at being 300,000+ milers..
in my own opinion an engine that has made it to 150-200k and still runs and drives solid tells me the engine probably had good care for a lot of its life and is likely going to go another 100+ with good care.. an abused and beat-up engine is likely to show signs of it by the time it is at 150k.. ie smoking, rough idling, excessive oil-burn, etc..
-Christopher
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10-22-2016, 08:51 AM
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#18
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Bus Nut
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: KANSAS CITY
Posts: 751
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I would pass. Too much wear by description of FAIR Condition. Read everything you can in the drivetrain sections on each engine and transmissions. Learn whether the AT545 Tranny will be ok for your needs or will you need the MT545. You can buy a bus with great tires for the same money another will ask for his bus with old tires.
__________________
Former owner of a 1969 F600 Skoolie.
1998 Ford B700 Thomas body 65 passenger. 5.9 Cummins 12 valve with MT643 Transmission 123,000 miles.
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10-26-2016, 02:00 PM
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#19
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Bus Nut
Join Date: Sep 2016
Location: Chapel Hill, NC
Posts: 855
Year: 2002
Coachwork: Blue Bird
Chassis: All American
Engine: Cummins 8.3/Allison MD3060
Rated Cap: 84
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Domane
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Anybody else notice what that thing sold for?
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10-26-2016, 05:01 PM
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#20
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Bus Geek
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Eustis FLORIDA
Posts: 23,826
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: Freighliner FS65
Engine: Cat 3126
Rated Cap: 15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Rameses
Anybody else notice what that thing sold for?
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Not TOO bad for a clean, straight RE bus that looks rust free and has an 8.3.
At a dealer it would (or will) be 8-12 grand.
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