Jacuzzi Bus IV - Page 5

reprobate · 01-16-2008, 06:34 PM

Had to get a different browser to look at your videos. Very nice! Your bus looks great! Love all the tile and the paint. Late Feb or March sounds good. Hope to be done with my bus about then. Bring Phil and we'll go find some fun.

lapeer20m · 01-16-2008, 10:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by the_experience03

Hey Jason-

How do you have that alternator tensioned? I see it has the pivot bolt. Is that all it is is a friction hold or is there a jam bolt like a lot of OEM applications? Also, does it just run off a free pulley or does that belt drive something else? I'm thinking that mount was part of the engine cradle. Does it move with the old Detroit? I liked the setup. It was cool the way you put it over to the side next to the other one and out of the way a little.

spent about 14 hours on the bus today.....uggg i'm tired.

it's tensioned just like the oem alternator. there are a pair of bolts at the bottom that allow it to pivot, and one on the top that holds it in place....i'll try to shoot a photo tomorrow. there is a pretty good shot of it in the video i thought. to tension, you put a little pressure on the alt with a prybar or 2x4 until adequate belt tension is achieved, then you tighten the bolt on top. ......anyhow. the bottom pivot point of the alternator is not connected to the engine it'self which is something i thought about when i was fabricating the setup, but the arm that keeps tension on the alternator is bolted to the motor. The motor isn't allowed much movement, but having the tension arm connected to the motor seems like a good setup. I have a label maker and want to make it easy for the next owner. Both alternator bodies are identical, but one is 24 volt, the other is 12.

this is not my setup, but is very similar.

the guy i bought the bus from is a liar and a cheat. he claimed the bus had all new airbags, and that he replaced the ride hight valves. i spent most of the day today under the bus, after i drove it up on blocks. Air bags are obviously not new. they don't leak, but by looking at them it's very apparent they are not new. There are a total of 4 ride height valves. only 1 of them is new. I figured out why the bus doesn't sit level.....there is only 1 valve in the front, the other one was disconnected. He tried to have both the left and right side work off of the same valve, which was a good money saving idea, except the bus weighs more on the right side so the bus sits unlevel all the time.

i wish it was easier to pursue legal action against a person that lives 2K miles away. Along with his claim of 80-85 mph and 10.4 mpg...........

buyer beware. next time i'll actually inspect the bus thoroughly before i drive it away.

photos are on the way...but i gotta get some sleep.

lapeer20m · 01-17-2008, 05:38 PM

here is a photo of hte front steps pretty much finished. Still have a bit of trim left to do inside the bus.

made a few more videos.....

http://youtube.com/watch?v=ZK91zVI43Co

http://youtube.com/watch?v=TCgFm2PGNpI

\

http://youtube.com/watch?v=gpPTcbS9_gM

i've spent entirely too many hours over the past couple days crawling around under the bus fixing air leaks and trying to get the front air ride working correctly. The guy that owned the bus before me sure did muck things up.

behappystupi · 01-17-2008, 07:16 PM

any fresh excu-ahem- e-mails from the buyer? Hows that legal action going for ya?

lapeer20m · 01-17-2008, 07:52 PM

i decided not to pursue legal action at this time. even though the bus isn't what i paid for, it's still a nice bus. there are a lot of things i need to spend money on to fix that were either things that he didn't mention, or were bold faced lies, but any sort of civil suit might require me to give the bus back and that just doesn't work. Not only is it 2K miles from here which translates to well over $1K in fuel, but before i could even have my case heard i can finish building the bus and have it sold. Although i think that he did me wrong, fighting it out in court doesn't seem to be worth my time or money or effort at this point.

lapeer20m · 01-18-2008, 09:45 AM

i bought the bus off ebay. the seller and i e-mailed back and forth a few times in the beginning. he swore up and down that he drove the bus at least 70-75 on the flats as indicated by the speedo in the e-mails, and told me that he's certain that i didn't have the automatic transmission in top gear and that's why it got such poor fuel economy and had a top speed of 60 or below. he also tried to tell me that the bus has larger than stock tires which made the speedo not read accurately. ie: 70 on the speedo was actually 85. Too bad for him i have a gps that says the speedo is pretty much right on....and the oversized tires??? there is a plate riveted inside the bus that states the tires on the bus are the stock size. I told him that he made a mistake and the bus does not have oversized tires, and the speedo is not really off, and also looked at the transmission and rear end gear ratio, researched them on the internet and it's not possible for the bus to travel much faster than 60. At 63 the engine is at or above redline.

i am angry that the guy lied to me so many times, but at the same time, i am the one responsible to inspect a vehicle thoroughly before i pay for it. it's a good life lesson for me to learn. There are bad people in the world who just can't be trusted. I will scrutinize the next bus very carefully before i buy it.

lapeer20m · 01-25-2008, 10:42 AM

bus is 98% finished!

new video here:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Jwwb9fJFOs4

lapeer20m · 01-25-2008, 11:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ShortBus

Looking great! One question though: what happens when the lights underneath the floor burn out, do you have to take all of those glass blocks out?

the lights aren't under the floor. they are mounded to the bottom side of the little table that's in the middle of the glass block and are very easy to get too. The paint is "invisible UV paint" from wildfirefx. it's white under regular light, but brilliant blue under blacklight (UV light)

it's impossible to capture on video just how cool that glass block floor is with the paint underneath!

lapeer20m · 01-26-2008, 02:55 PM

scratch another major project off the list! i got the kneeling feature working today for all 4 wheels. the bus only kneeled in the front from the factory. had to buy some expensive solenoid valves and do more plumbing while crawling/sliding around under the bus. I hate working under the bus! glad that project is done. A new video is in the works....

i installed a new fuel guage and sending unit the other day......note to self, pay attention when connecting the 12v+ wire to the guage. If you connect it to the wrong terminal like i did you too can buy another new fuel gauge...still waiting for the second one to arrive in the mail.

one of the only major projects to finish is the rear door controls. the previous owner (jackass!) removed the air cylinders and all the related hardware for the rear doors. I bought new pneumatic cylinders, tubing, and other related plumbing accessories to get that project working. Perhaps tomorrow i can dig into that project. It seems very straightforward in my head, but might become more complicated than i realize.

Also have to add a rear heater from one of my old buses, but the coolant lines are very easy to get too.

after that, it's pretty much just cleaning, and a visit to the vinyl graphic's shop to see about adding some pizzas (not pizza's) to the exterior of the bus.

KC10Chief · 01-29-2008, 04:37 PM

Do you think the glass blocks will be slippery with wet feet?

lapeer20m · 01-29-2008, 05:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KC10Chief

Do you think the glass blocks will be slippery with wet feet?

probably. the glass block is not in the jacuzzi area. the ceramic tile will probably we slippery when wet too.

the_experience03 · 01-29-2008, 06:18 PM

I think your next bus needs a Twister board on the floor made out of tiles or something. Put it nice and close to the jacuzzi and invite as many women aboard as you can.

KC10Chief · 02-01-2008, 10:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by the_experience03

I think your next bus needs a Twister board on the floor made out of tiles or something. Put it nice and close to the jacuzzi and invite as many women aboard as you can.

I second this idea! It doesn't get much better than wet, scantily clad women wrestling around on your bus!

lapeer20m · 02-09-2008, 04:36 PM

BROUGHT HER HOME TODAY

finally! a little behind schedule and almost 30% over budget eek! but i brought her home from the shop today. There are still a few things to do, but she's so close to finished i can taste it.

new photos/video's coming soon!

sportyrick · 02-11-2008, 11:24 AM

looks like your origional bus #1 is on Ebay and the guy isn't happy with what happened to the engine. Someone could get it cheap, how about buying it and fixing it up again and selling it and making money? sportyrick

Steve · 02-11-2008, 12:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sportyrick

looks like your origional bus #1 is on Ebay and the guy isn't happy with what happened to the engine. Someone could get it cheap, how about buying it and fixing it up again and selling it and making money? sportyrick

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1991-...em270210619118

lapeer20m · 02-11-2008, 01:53 PM

that bus was re-sold on ebay at the exact same time my previous bus was listed. How often do you find 2 jacuzzi buses for sale on ebay at the same time? The seller stated it had a brand new engine/trans. I was curious about that and e-mailed the seller (who is not the person who bought the bus from me) to ask why the bus had a new engine/trans. She told me that her plan was to use the bus as a cross country traveling vehicle for their band and they decided to spend the money on a new powertrain to guarantee it was reliable.

we had a thread on that auction somewhere......i'll see if i can go dig it out

and where do they get that it's a 35 passenger??? There is only seating for 12, plus 8 more in the jacuzzi if you're feeling frisky.

just found the link......it's from back in october and the photos don't work now....also noticed that the auction ended early due to the item being sold locally. Too bad they didn't finish the deal on ebay or the new owner would have qualified for the vehicle protection program and most likely gotten a new engine for free. I think a new Ford 6.6 liter is like $10K. If i was gonna replace it, i'd definately put the 7.8 in it.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Custo...em130165014787

lapeer20m · 02-11-2008, 08:53 PM

i e-mailed him a link to my bus photos....i see he posted them on the ad now.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1991-For ... 0210619118

here is the e-mail he sent me:

"Thanks so much, it is having a new engine put in it right now. We bought it and the engine went within 2 hours of ownership. We got screwed by the people we bought it from and are only looking to get back the money we've invested in it. Can you give me any information about the bus? Anything that may help us in selling or using if we don't make up for the loss. It still looks like that on the outside, and it has some standard black bench seating now instead of the couches and the rack was removed from the top. It seems like a great money maker, but didn't have it long enough in my possession to really get a good idea of the potential. What do you think? Thanks for the pics as well, they are exactly what I needed."

lapeer20m · 02-13-2008, 01:14 AM

putting the finishing touches on the bus......drove her home from the shop the other day and ended up not having any heat. Fixed that today. This next one is a biggie.....my air ride suspension deflated when i was just down the street from the house. The suspension is engineered to allow the bus to be driven when the air suspension system fails so it wasn't a problem getting home.

It was dark, and near zero degrees F. I looked under the bus with a flashlight and didn't like what i saw. The rear air ride solenoid valves, hoses, and wires were all wrapped several times around the driveshaft. Just then i remembered that i forgot to crawl under there and zip tie the wires and air lines securely in place and away from the spinny parts.

Today was much warmer, near 20 degrees. I spent at least an hour laying in the snow under the bus in a confined area that makes it difficult to use both hands at one time. Yeah, that was fun! This is the coldest i've been in a long long time. After i replaced all the hoses and wires i was attempting to attach zip ties one-handed and just didn't have the dexterity in my numb fingers. I forced myself to stay under there and finish the job.

Having the bus kneel with remote keyless sure is cool........

bought the 20" flat panel lcd with built in dvd player today. i'll work at mounting that tomorrow.

photos are coming soon!!!

lapeer20m · 02-14-2008, 09:40 PM

it was warm out today, near freezing. If you live in texas you might think that sounds cold, but it's 30 degrees warmer than the high temp just a couple days ago.

tv's all mounted to the back wall......the $30 flat screen tv mounting bracket was worth every penny!

air ride is working properly

heat has been giving me a difficult time, but i'm pretty sure i finally got that figured out today.

hopefully this weekend i can start shooting pictures of girlies.

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