57 chevy short bus

[pcdreams]

If you're dreaming, might as well dream big right? Anyway been looking at this old bus (way over priced). Love the look but having doubts about feasibility.
It's got a 231 inline 6 in it. From my experience the inlines are great, but probably not for traveling cross country. Anyway, I'm looking for information from others who may have converted one. Specifically I'd like to know if they have dual rears like the newer busses. What I'd be looking at if If I wanted to drop a different drive train in. (I'd want to keep it simple. something that would fit into the engine/bay/transmission. and hopefully not have to change the rear end. Also if anyone knows if these have the removable ceiling/wall panels like the newer ones do (thinking about how to insulate). And maybe most importantly, how to deal with the compound curves the front/back

[Jolly Roger bus 223]

for an idea
search the thread 46 chevy shorty

[BeNimble]

I've always thought a motorhome was a highly practical vehicle with a purpose.
Building one from an old School Bus was because they were cheap to buy and big in size.
Being expensive to fix, just throw it away after it break down, so don't invest a lot in the house build....well look at Skoolies now. Upside down. Now the GOAL is to have a SCHOOL BUS....

[pcdreams]

I think the reality for many of us is that a traditional house is likely out of reach. A typical RV is junk when considering what they are built from. Even though bus prices have doubled over the last few years, a 25k build for something that will last a lifetime is still a far better gamble than a rv for 3x that price that's only good for 3-5 years. And better than a house in some ways, because when you get tired of the nonsense in one place, you just pickup and go.

[peteg59]

The old busses are cool from a vintage lovers eyes however their original, (dated) drivetrains leave a bit to be desired from a performance standpoint.

If the bus body is solid and not rotted through in too many areas, you might look to a more modern chassis to "drop" your vintage body onto.
Several members on here have attempted and accomplished just that.

A modern gas or diesel drivetrain with computer controlled engine management and transmission management makes sense for someone who plans to eventually travel and put copious amounts of miles on their self converted pride and joy.

If your plans are to have a drivable bus to take out on occasion, and travel relatively short distances, keeping the original drivetrain might be the best and more cost effective way to go?

Good luck, and post pics of the 57 "topic" bus if you can...

[ol trunt]

I have a 1935 Chevy shorty that I put on an Isuzu NPR chassis some years ago and have been quite happy with it. I'd offer a word of caution though. Doing a chassis change requires a fairly high skill level so be prepared to run up a big bill if you can't do most of the work yourself.

My original build thread was lost when Skoolie changed hands a few years ago so I have patched together a replacement. If you choose to read through my build pack a lunch as it is 50 odd pages long. Jack

https://www.skoolie.net/forums/f11/h...ory-31871.html.

[BeNimble]

Originally Posted by pcdreams

I think the reality for many of us is that a traditional house is likely out of reach. A typical RV is junk when considering what they are built from. Even though bus prices have doubled over the last few years, a 25k build for something that will last a lifetime is still a far better gamble than a rv for 3x that price that's only good for 3-5 years. And better than a house in some ways, because when you get tired of the nonsense in one place, you just pickup and go.

I am concerned that you are not seeing reality.
What happens when the engine needs $10,000 in repairs?

There were selling houses in Detroit for $1,000 not long ago, maybe still are..
Oh, they have gone up to $10,000: