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Old 05-30-2019, 06:22 PM   #1
Mini-Skoolie
 
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Where y'at?

That's how we say hello in New Orleans. wife was a long time lurker and got me somehow hornswaggled , horn swagled....wrangled into wanting one of these now. i'm a classic car guy who has a bit of experience on turning wrenches and now taking welding so i can restore a few more i own that need it.
Not sure what to look for, but i like older equipment with a minimum of electronics and modules/ computer issues.

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Old 05-30-2019, 06:33 PM   #2
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Welcome, and to your point of less electronical gizmos look at pre 2004 for sure and even late 90's and earlier.
Your old car wrench turning experience will come in handy for something, if you pursue a skoolie to camper conversion project...
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Old 05-30-2019, 10:15 PM   #3
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that.s the idea. we got back into camping, thought about a pop up, etc. The wife is a interior designer ( with emphasis on everything other than what color throw pillows). i am a starving artist, unemployed machinist apprentice and we would definitely like to build a home-away-from home to travel in for short spurts.

I have been looking, but haven't been able to find any any threads on the pros and cons of rear engines, doghouses, which engine, etc.

i do know i don't want to drive anything really over 35 feet. any guidance is appreciated.
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Old 05-30-2019, 10:31 PM   #4
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Whether dog nose or FE flat nose, you'll have ingress/egress from the rear. Rear engine will have more build room than a dognose, a FEFF will also.
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Old 06-01-2019, 02:55 PM   #5
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Originally Posted by o1marc View Post
Whether dog nose or FE flat nose, you'll have ingress/egress from the rear. Rear engine will have more build room than a dognose, a FEFF will also.
"FEFF"? lol i don't know the lingo yet. i guess i'm looking for a 14 window to make it around 30-32 feet? Any particular brand fits that description? Engine-wise, any diesels to stay away from?
Any that are particularly roomy and mechanically friendly with ease of access and simplistic repairs (as opposed to more cpu and electrically-based builds)?

I see most say a RE has more room to get in there and others say the opposite.
What gives?
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Old 06-01-2019, 03:12 PM   #6
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Originally Posted by GumdropNBoogieFat View Post
"FEFF"? lol i don't know the lingo yet. i guess i'm looking for a 14 window to make it around 30-32 feet? Any particular brand fits that description? Engine-wise, any diesels to stay away from?
Any that are particularly roomy and mechanically friendly with ease of access and simplistic repairs (as opposed to more cpu and electrically-based builds)?

I see most say a RE has more room to get in there and others say the opposite.
What gives?
Front Engine Flat face. 14 windows is going to be 37', 15 window, 40'. General consensus is to stay at pre 2004 units, before the EPA stuff took over. Try and stay away from the AT545 tranny and you should have a decent drivetrain.
The rear engine takes up a good bit of space in the back, most build a bed over it. RE has less build room than an FE. The FE engine sits next to the drivers seat, so everything from there back is buildable.
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Old 06-01-2019, 03:55 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GumdropNBoogieFat View Post
that.s the idea. we got back into camping, thought about a pop up, etc. The wife is a interior designer ( with emphasis on everything other than what color throw pillows). i am a starving artist, unemployed machinist apprentice and we would definitely like to build a home-away-from home to travel in for short spurts.

I have been looking, but haven't been able to find any any threads on the pros and cons of rear engines, doghouses, which engine, etc.

i do know i don't want to drive anything really over 35 feet. any guidance is appreciated.
it seems that a 10 window bus is 35 - 36 feet long +/-
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Old 06-01-2019, 04:01 PM   #8
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it seems that a 10 window bus is 35 - 36 feet long +/-
Maybe on a dognose. I'm so use to measurements from a FF.
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Old 06-01-2019, 04:19 PM   #9
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Maybe on a dognose. I'm so use to measurements from a FF.
yes, l should have said dognose - thanks for pointing that out
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Old 06-01-2019, 04:19 PM   #10
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"FF" - Commonly known as a type D or a Transit.
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Old 06-01-2019, 04:31 PM   #11
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"FF" - Commonly known as a type D or a Transit.
Or vise versa actually. I didn't realize till checking the title that mine is a Transit bus, thus the awesome drivetrain.
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Old 06-02-2019, 02:12 PM   #12
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we were considering building a bed a RE. Is the engine accessible from inside as well as out back? If so, i suppose a murphy bed would be a better thought to work on the engine.
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Old 06-02-2019, 03:31 PM   #13
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we were considering building a bed a RE. Is the engine accessible from inside as well as out back? If so, i suppose a murphy bed would be a better thought to work on the engine.
No, I don't believe there is engine access from the interior.
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Old 06-02-2019, 03:57 PM   #14
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In mine there is a small access panel in the rear above the engine and I have seen it in several other REs .

It can help you depending on what brand engine you have.
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Old 06-02-2019, 04:32 PM   #15
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I Suppose i can cut a large hatch an fab up a frame for strength for easier access?
Another question, should i be posting in another thread instead of this one? I knowi will have a hundred other noob questions and perhaps it will get more views .I am also aware som e may be rather persnickety about using the search function, but i have always felt the opposite because it takes away from the back and forth of convos, which make it easy to get to know people. Besides, on other forums where i was staff i always felt that argument was akin to creating a library instead of a community.
ALso, a big thanks to those who have pmed me!
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Old 06-02-2019, 06:14 PM   #16
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Welcome! Here's a great article on bus sizes with diagrams.

Choosing the best bus body style for your build — Buslandia
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Old 06-03-2019, 12:10 AM   #17
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excellent information on that site!
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Old 06-03-2019, 06:28 AM   #18
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Quote:
No, I don't believe there is engine access from the interior.
Depending on what engine, bus manufacturer and what you are doing. Most if not all, rear engine buses have some sort of access panels on the inside. Do not make them so you can't get to them. At some point you will regret it if you do. The only thing so far that I have needed to do from the inside, in 9 years, was adjust the valves on the rear (of engine) two cylinders.

Generally, I think, a RE is easier to do any kind of maintenance to. You don't have to climb over tires, and the engine is much lower, no radiator/fan in the way. The front of engine is right there when you open the hood.
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Old 06-03-2019, 07:02 AM   #19
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Originally Posted by PNW_Steve View Post
"FF" - Commonly known as a type D or a Transit.
I'm not familiar with "FF" but buses officially are CE, FE, and RE.
CE= conventional engine
FE= front engine
RE= rear engine
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Old 06-03-2019, 07:04 AM   #20
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Originally Posted by o1marc View Post
Or vise versa actually. I didn't realize till checking the title that mine is a Transit bus, thus the awesome drivetrain.
FE and RE are both considered "transit style" buses. That's the "flat front". Drivetrain can be anything available and still be a transit style bus.
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