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Old 04-20-2022, 08:27 PM   #1
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Exclamation split door

any help in splitting the back of bus into two doors. trying to make a toy hauler with my utv inside cover up.. how to cut and seal it to keep it dry and locking it up.. thanks

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Old 04-21-2022, 01:15 PM   #2
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There's a youtube video on hinging the whole back. Just search under 'ridiculously difficult skoolie challenges'.

Kidding about the search term of course. You got some engineering work ahead of you, and that assumes there is no structural rust in the hinge areas.
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Old 04-21-2022, 01:42 PM   #3
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I want to say somebody did that except they completely fabricated the doors from scratch. They looked like carriage doors. Maybe somebody will see this and remember who.

[emoji3522]Dave
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Old 04-21-2022, 04:13 PM   #4
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You can also go look at enclosed trailers to see how they do it. When I finally get around to mine, which is about 10 projects down before I actually buy a bus, I'm looking at duplicating one of those RVs that has a garage large enough to haul a car in the back. I have ideas on how to make this happen, but my welding needs to get a LOT better in the next 2 years.

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Old 04-21-2022, 04:19 PM   #5
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You can also go look at enclosed trailers to see how they do it. When I finally get around to mine, which is about 10 projects down before I actually buy a bus, I'm looking at doing a skoolie version of one of those RVs that has a garage large enough to haul a car in the back. I have ideas on how to make this happen, but my welding needs to get a LOT better in the next 2 years.

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Old 04-21-2022, 07:22 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Veloc View Post
You can also go look at enclosed trailers to see how they do it. When I finally get around to mine, which is about 10 projects down before I actually buy a bus, I'm looking at duplicating one of those RVs that has a garage large enough to haul a car in the back. I have ideas on how to make this happen, but my welding needs to get a LOT better in the next 2 years.
To me, that seems like one of those things where even though I am capable of MIG, TIG, and Stick welding... I'd just as soon find some career welder and pay him the $200 bucks or whatever he asks to do that job. Sure, I could probably manage it myself, but I'd rather find some quasi-retired guy that did Oil- & Gas- field welding or something like that, and just pay them to make it done right.

Because you never know what kind of tricks or whatever they might have in their back pocket to make it better.
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Old 04-21-2022, 09:20 PM   #7
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To me, that seems like one of those things where even though I am capable of MIG, TIG, and Stick welding... I'd just as soon find some career welder and pay him the $200 bucks or whatever he asks to do that job. Sure, I could probably manage it myself, but I'd rather find some quasi-retired guy that did Oil- & Gas- field welding or something like that, and just pay them to make it done right.

Because you never know what kind of tricks or whatever they might have in their back pocket to make it better.
No worries. While I'm a firm believer in doing it yourself, there are some jobs best left to professionals. I seriously doubt my welding will ever be good enough.
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Old 04-21-2022, 10:12 PM   #8
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kodiac jack, mmmmm I have done that, bought another door and cut a foot out of it, took a foot out of each side of the rear, made them frenched so I can get my bagger in the back. Should be a pic or 2 in my sportyrick gallery. Ended up being 58 1/2 wide, 53 tall. Of course I can send you some more pics if need be. I also installed a lift gate instead of driving them up a uhaul ramp like I used to do.
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Old 04-22-2022, 12:39 AM   #9
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Originally Posted by Veloc View Post
You can also go look at enclosed trailers to see how they do it. When I finally get around to mine, which is about 10 projects down before I actually buy a bus, I'm looking at duplicating one of those RVs that has a garage large enough to haul a car in the back. I have ideas on how to make this happen, but my welding needs to get a LOT better in the next 2 years.

I looked at those, my GT1 won't fit on the ramp
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Old 04-22-2022, 10:47 AM   #10
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thanks for your time in replying to me. think i have to go bigger ..l o l want to run my utv in the back. I have to do more measuring.. was thinking of the split to the roof and hinged to the walls of the bus sidewall.. love the lift idea..... jack
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Old 04-22-2022, 03:15 PM   #11
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cutting the rear out of the bus will severely weaken it, no right to left strength. you will have to greatly re-enforce both sides at the back. That's why I left the upper part and welded a 2x2 tube above the opening to re-inforce the opening.
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Old 04-30-2022, 08:39 AM   #12
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Tall Split Doors

Quote:
Originally Posted by kodiak_jack View Post
thanks for your time in replying to me. think i have to go bigger ..l o l want to run my utv in the back. I have to do more measuring.. was thinking of the split to the roof and hinged to the walls of the bus sidewall.. love the lift idea..... jack
‐--------------------

I was viewing Big Dog RV Services Yelp page, mentioned in another thread here:
(https://www.skoolie.net/forums/f13/t...tml#post470594)
and saw a picture of a bus converted similarly to what you have described for your utv.
Sort of look like Maternity or Psych Ward doors.
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Old 04-30-2022, 10:58 AM   #13
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2003, on the rear of our rig, I fabricated a steel wall with a steel door.
This's as burglar-proof as I could make it.
.
I am a semi-retired welder-fabricator; although I am satisfied with my creation, I see no way to weather-seal a double-door wall leading into a living space.
* A series of horizontal hinges -- aircraft hangar -- requires an enormous amount of structure to support that yuge hole in the wall.
* A series of vertical hinges could be easier, but the swing would be invasive.
Either way, how will you lock the multiple flexing flexible sections?
.
For our second-to-latest conversion -- a 40' semi-trailer -- I fussed with a hundred different ways to craft double doors.
My limited imagination could not conjure a satisfactory method to duplicate my burglar-proof entry to the rig, so I went with a yuge single door.
.
A garage going into a living space, the door rattles would drive me whacko.
.
That, plus a vehicle relies on four walls to maintain structure integrity.
By replacing the rear wall with a multi-door system, I question the stability of the rig (I think the same about amateur roof-raisers...).
Of course, with enough time and money, anything can be trans-formed into anything.
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