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Old 12-27-2021, 03:18 PM   #1
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Join Date: Dec 2021
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Life long dream starts with a 52 school bus!

Hey all,
Tldr version: I bought a bus on a whim and now it's all I can think about. You can check out the video (5min) as I walk through it as well and intro myself. Here's a link to that video: https://youtu.be/kqIZVAbowNQ

Long version:
Many years ago I had dreamed about buying a bus and converting it into a RV. Well, now I finally get to do that thanks to my inability to control impulse buys. It was a June morning when I saw a COE for sale (not bus, just a cab over truck) and I got looking for others online when I came across this beautiful 52 school bus. It was priced reasonable so I figured, what the hell, I'll bid. Well, turns out I won and that I then had to arrange to pick up a bus that was 1,300 miles away from me. I was able to steal my dads truck and his friends trailer, drove out, picked the bus up and drove it all the way back from southern Missouri to Maine.

My end goal is to make this bus a traveling RV for a family of 5 (holy crap what?) to go hit every national park that I can drive to. In order to do that, it needs a TON of work, and no, I'm not a pro, so I've lined up a company to help me get the basics taken care of. We'll be starting a frame off restoration next August then putting it back together, fixing rust, putting in air suspension, upgraded axels w/upgraded brakes (it was suggested maybe an Isuzu will have axles that can go into this) and dropping a 350 into it. This will take about a year for them to take care of (fine by me) and then I'll start working on the interior to get it to where I want to be.

I'd love to see if anyone else has seen or has photos of what this looks like originally. It's very different than others I've seen because the body is much more straight lines rather than curved. It's a 1 panel door instead of two, etc.

Attached is some photos of it from when I bought it, a video walkthrough to say hello to ya'll and a rendering of what it may look like when I'm done (color undecided).

Looking forward to connecting!
-Jesse
TravelAmerica.blog
Attached Thumbnails
gray-bus.png   2021-06-18 20.09.32.jpg   2021-06-18 20.09.56.jpg   2021-06-18 20.11.02.jpg   2021-06-18 20.12.23.jpg  


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Old 01-03-2022, 11:24 AM   #2
Skoolie
 
Join Date: Oct 2021
Location: Peru. IN
Posts: 184
Year: 1992
Coachwork: Collins
Chassis: NB18FD Oshkosh
Engine: 5.9 Cummins
Rated Cap: 18,500
Well no one has touched this yet. So I will start the show.

In your video you mentioned a SBC for the transplant. Walk away from that thought. To small and under powered. Remember the frontal profile of a bus is the same as a 8' x 10' piece of plywood standing straight up in front of wind. Then add the 10K to 15K pounds your pulling behind that big wall.

You mentioned upgraded brakes and suspension. At that point total replacement of all suspension. It would be faster and cheaper to find a complete donor chassis. Find one with a diesel. Find one with rear air suspension. Find one you can get parts for.

You mentioned dropping the floor. I am afraid you would be opening a massive sized can of worms there. Most chassis on the market are not made for dropped floors. Those are a very special designed frame. A standard chassis will have all crossmembers full depth of the frames. The means a full crossmember replacement with proper designed new crossmembers. Don't forget those crossmembers also have to allow all drive train components to clear when you drop the air out of the system.
I don't think of a body raise an option on a large heavy body.

Look into insurance before doing much in chassis work. Some company's ask about suspension modes when applying for insurance.
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Old 01-03-2022, 04:34 PM   #3
Skoolie
 
Join Date: Aug 2021
Location: Santa Fe
Posts: 134
Year: 2007
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: 31 ft. HDX
Engine: CAT C7 250 hp
Rated Cap: 36,300 GVW
A friend of mine bought a wrecked Isuzu truck with a 6.0 Chevy V8 as a donor for his 57 GMC bus. Complete frame swap, and his Bus is now titled as an Isuzu RV. His bus is a short 5 window so not too much weight involved.
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Old 01-03-2022, 06:25 PM   #4
Bus Crazy
 
Join Date: Apr 2020
Location: Northern California (Sacramento)
Posts: 1,424
Year: 1999
Coachwork: El Dorado Fiberglass
Chassis: Ford E450
Engine: V10 Gas
Quote:
Originally Posted by PhilipE View Post
Well no one has touched this yet. So I will start the show.

In your video you mentioned a SBC for the transplant. Walk away from that thought. To small and under powered. Remember the frontal profile of a bus is the same as a 8' x 10' piece of plywood standing straight up in front of wind. Then add the 10K to 15K pounds your pulling behind that big wall.

You mentioned upgraded brakes and suspension. At that point total replacement of all suspension. It would be faster and cheaper to find a complete donor chassis. Find one with a diesel. Find one with rear air suspension. Find one you can get parts for.

You mentioned dropping the floor. I am afraid you would be opening a massive sized can of worms there. Most chassis on the market are not made for dropped floors. Those are a very special designed frame. A standard chassis will have all crossmembers full depth of the frames. The means a full crossmember replacement with proper designed new crossmembers. Don't forget those crossmembers also have to allow all drive train components to clear when you drop the air out of the system.
I don't think of a body raise an option on a large heavy body.

Look into insurance before doing much in chassis work. Some company's ask about suspension modes when applying for insurance.
This is fantastic advice. Sounds like you've been down this road, literally and figuratively.

My observation is that older vehicles handle like crap, so a full restoration will be more expensive and less comfortable than putting the cool body on a newer chassis.

Also, the twin goals of having a classic skoolie and traveling with a family may be at odds because anything less than a full rebuild and restore will likely put you and your family on the side of the road more often than your family will appreciate.

I also recommend if you have not already done an RV road trip with the family to do one or more before/during the build. Invaluable lessons learned, from my experience.

Looking forward to hearing about this adventure project!
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Old 01-03-2022, 07:04 PM   #5
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Join Date: May 2015
Location: Central Tx.
Posts: 1,949
Year: 1999
Chassis: Amtran / International
Engine: DT466E HT 250HP - Md3060
Quote:
Originally Posted by Oscwebdesign View Post
Hey all,
Tldr version: I bought a bus on a whim and now it's all I can think about. You can check out the video (5min) as I walk through it as well and intro myself. Here's a link to that video: https://youtu.be/kqIZVAbowNQ

Long version:
Many years ago I had dreamed about buying a bus and converting it into a RV. Well, now I finally get to do that thanks to my inability to control impulse buys. It was a June morning when I saw a COE for sale (not bus, just a cab over truck) and I got looking for others online when I came across this beautiful 52 school bus. It was priced reasonable so I figured, what the hell, I'll bid. Well, turns out I won and that I then had to arrange to pick up a bus that was 1,300 miles away from me. I was able to steal my dads truck and his friends trailer, drove out, picked the bus up and drove it all the way back from southern Missouri to Maine.

My end goal is to make this bus a traveling RV for a family of 5 (holy crap what?) to go hit every national park that I can drive to. In order to do that, it needs a TON of work, and no, I'm not a pro, so I've lined up a company to help me get the basics taken care of. We'll be starting a frame off restoration next August then putting it back together, fixing rust, putting in air suspension, upgraded axels w/upgraded brakes (it was suggested maybe an Isuzu will have axles that can go into this) and dropping a 350 into it. This will take about a year for them to take care of (fine by me) and then I'll start working on the interior to get it to where I want to be.

I'd love to see if anyone else has seen or has photos of what this looks like originally. It's very different than others I've seen because the body is much more straight lines rather than curved. It's a 1 panel door instead of two, etc.

Attached is some photos of it from when I bought it, a video walkthrough to say hello to ya'll and a rendering of what it may look like when I'm done (color undecided).

Looking forward to connecting!
-Jesse
TravelAmerica.blog
That is one cool bus body!
A new chassis would be the way to go.
Maybe a Kodiak or topkick chassis?
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Old 01-04-2022, 12:29 PM   #6
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Join Date: Feb 2019
Location: Communist State of New Jersey
Posts: 964
Year: 2004
Coachwork: IC
Chassis: CE200
Engine: T444e
Rated Cap: 27,500
Congrats on your purchase.

I watched your video and noted the shop's suggestion to lower the center of the floor to allow head room, what was it 8". The driveshaft goes right down the middle of the bus and you can't move it. I'd suggest you crawl under your bus with a tape measure and do a critical examination of the drive train asking yourself if the suggestion of dropping the floor 8" makes any sense.

Go slowly with contracting with a builder, make very sure you have a reputable shop. Once they take possession of your bus you'll have no control of the situation.

I agree with those that have advised to swap the body to a modern chassis.
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Old 01-04-2022, 12:56 PM   #7
Skoolie
 
Join Date: Oct 2021
Location: Peru. IN
Posts: 184
Year: 1992
Coachwork: Collins
Chassis: NB18FD Oshkosh
Engine: 5.9 Cummins
Rated Cap: 18,500
Quote:
Originally Posted by jimmythomas View Post
A friend of mine bought a wrecked Isuzu truck with a 6.0 Chevy V8 as a donor for his 57 GMC bus. Complete frame swap, and his Bus is now titled as an Isuzu RV. His bus is a short 5 window so not too much weight involved.
Seeing as how that Isuzu had a 6.0 chevy in it. Chevy called them a W1 models. As a lite box truck, they did all right. With a heavy bus body. I would call it a flat land bus. Once it smelled a big hill coming up. It will start slowing down.

Rucker

I have don't much experience with busses. I do have experience with class 5 to class 8 trucks. Driving and repairing them. The last thing you want is a underpowered vehicle for your travel needs. The best example I can give is I80 threw PA. That road is 300 miles border to border. A good truck can make the run in 6.5 hours. Something underpowered will be 10 hours plus. When I build something I build it to run the speed limit up or down hills/mountains at the speed limits. I am also a firm believer in exhaust or jake brakes.
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Old 01-04-2022, 06:10 PM   #8
Bus Crazy
 
Join Date: Feb 2019
Location: New Hampshire
Posts: 1,349
Year: 1990
Coachwork: Thomas 4 window w/lift
Chassis: G30~Chevy cutaway
Engine: 5.7/350 Chevy Vortec
Rated Cap: Just me and my "stuff"?
I'd be all in as well, with the chassis swap x many already!

Ease of parts access, as well as many times more reliable mechanically that a 50's vehicle brought back to its stock factory supplied drivetrain.
Especially if you plan on taking longer trips than around the block a few times in Summer!

Oh and one last thing, pre 2004 if you go diesel powered as your choice.

Good luck and post pics of the resurrection if you go forward with it...
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Old 01-09-2022, 12:15 PM   #9
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Location: Virginia
Posts: 2,324
Year: 1971
Coachwork: Wayne
Chassis: International Loadstar 1700
Engine: 345 international V-8
I think you have a good plan. A chassis swap I have done before, and have to say unless your frame has real troubles that it gains little if anything to change the frame. you have already mentioned doing axles, and that can be done easily on the existing frame.



as for the 350, they can be built to pretty high horsepower so see no reason it should not be just fine. I have a 345 in my bus and have no trouble pulling a trailer and running 65-70 mph. And can keep up with the big trucks on grades. Run cooler plugs , keep timing reasonable, and do not get too lean on fuel mixture. Many larger Chevy busses did in fact use the 350 as a stock engine. Must say twin turbos on it would be nice, 1000 plus hp. But in all seriousness build it to live. I have had some trouble keeping valves in mine and have had to dial things back a little for durability. Keeping egt's under control gets important when running under a load all the time. Same with diesels, have to keep egt's reasonable.


Automatic trans.... no way, just my personal preferance. A manual gives you better hold back in the mountains, and much less heat going up grades. I have a 5 speed and a 2 speed rear. Great combo for a gas engine, and very typical of many trucks up through the 70's. What I grew up driving. Dad had a couple of Chevy cabovers I drove. They had a 4 speed with 2 speed rear. If an auto is what you really want just make sure you have enough cooling for it.
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Old 01-12-2022, 11:53 AM   #10
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Join Date: Feb 2020
Location: Puyallup, WA
Posts: 2
Year: 1953
Coachwork: Superior -Shorty
Chassis: 1980 Chevy chassis
Engine: 454
Rated Cap: 22
Fun Project. I bought a 1953 shorty. The person I bought it from had already put it on a mid 1980 Chevy chassis to have a up dated running gear and new engine to be able to fit in. I had it sand blasted and working it back up from the ground. Airbag it, new 454 w rocker roller. I am too trying to keep the exterior original. I will love to watch your progress. Oh , by the way. mine has been about going on 15 years trying to finish. lol
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Old 05-05-2022, 11:54 AM   #11
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Oh wow - didn't realize there were replies to this thread - I thought it died. Thanks for all the advice! A couple notes I should have said / updates on the plan:
- The company who will be doing the body/frame work is very high end and actually works with these types of vehicles all the time. I've seen their work and it's quite impressive. It's also been highly recommended by many many people at the car club I'm part of (in fact they even just teamed up and were sort of purchased by the car club). When they say they can drop the floor, I get it - it's a weird thought, but I have confidence in this shop to handle it. I did ask them about - hey, where does the driveshaft go if we do this? They are talking about lowering the engine as well since there's room. Can we really drop it 8? Probably not, but even 4" would give me enough room to not slam my head every time.
- I'm definitely looking at different frames at this time if I can find something to line up. Bringing everything up to date is a goal and if that's the best way to do it (it is, I'll get over losing the old decent one).
- I'm torn on using a 350 and a 502 for an engine in this. I have both at my disposal, that's the only reason I'm looking at them, otherwise diesel would be the way I head. My dad is a car guy and has both laying around to donate towards the project. The 350 is ready to go, the 502 needs about 1k of work and it's otherwise brand new. With the price of fuel... who knows, but if the price of fuel is my deciding factor, then I shouldn't be doing this at all, right?
- What's my overall goal? The reality is to go to car shows and be badass. I will probably do 1 or MAYBE 2 long distance trips per year. I'm all about the RV life, although I'll admit I haven't done a ton of it as of yet. Used to own a tow-behind (36ft) so it's not the same, but I could also live out of my car and be happy.
- Auto transmission, I get it man - I'm all about shifting, however I don't know on the long trips. Maybe... I'm not absolutely set on this as of yet.
- Great question/point on the insurance - I have a couple people looking into this now for me actually (networking groups are great, everyone has an insurance agent in the group). I'll try to find out what the requirements are there.

Thanks for all the responses, I'm sorry I didn't respond earlier, I'll try to make sure notifications are on this time.
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Old 05-05-2022, 05:04 PM   #12
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Don't be torn, do the 502. The bus will be more reliable pulling X amount of HP out of 502 cubes than pulling the same HP from 350 cubes. The 350 will need to be a higher revving engine to make the power, and this increases the chance of breaking something critical. When you get to those levels of power, especially with the weight being moved, the 350 will also no longer be the more efficient choice. And if your intent is to go to car shows, you may decide to trailer a car to said show, and that will make it that much harder for the smaller engine. Think of it this way, you can do the Iditerod with 8 huskies, or with 8 chihuahuas on steroids. I'd go with the huskies.
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Old 05-06-2022, 09:14 AM   #13
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I do have a dream (oh boy, this is reaching!) to pull a car behind this. The car, however, is a 72 Reliant Supervan III, so it weighs all of 900lbs plus the trailer. Yeah, I am 99% sure I'm going to go with the 502, unless I find one of these trucks with a decent diesel engine already in it. Then it's really a body swap project.

Also, I may want 8 huskies for the Iditarod, however I wouldn't mind seeing what 8 chihuahuas on steroids would look like...
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Old 05-06-2022, 03:52 PM   #14
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