Wandering bus, or should the 500 lb. generator be slung in front of the rear axel?

[juliol]

Originally Posted by Sp6saz

I hope this isn't a problem for you because i put a lift on the back of my bus to haul my Harley on back there up in the air and that weighs 800 lbs dry and the lift itself weighs 300 lbs. And i see motorhomes carrying harleys like this all the time. What would be the difference.

Hey Sp6saz, do you have pics of that lift for the Harley?

J

[Bon Voyage]

Seems to me you have a problem somewhere else. Unless you have everything behind your rear axle and nothing in front it’s not going to effect the handling of the bus. If it was a trailer that’s a different story. Not a few thousand pounds in a 35 foot bus that’s probably built to hold what, 70 people?

Things I’d check: Poor quality tires, are your steer tires made in China and what brand? Tire pressure, I’d drive without the Jeep attached and see if it handles differently. Also check sway bars and bushings, shocks, wheel alignment. Is there any play in the steering wheel? Check all the front steering components.

[Sundowner]

I have a 1958 Kenworth Pacific pusher.
With original engine and tranny, rear weight 16,100 Lbs. Front weight 6,650 Lbs.
After installing 855ci 350 Cummins with 9 speed Roadranger, rear weight 18,240 Lbs. Front weight 6,440 Lbs.
Engine and tranny swap 2004, I could feel no difference in handling.
some roads have ruts wore in from big trucks and then my bus will wander a little.

[Jolly Roger bus 223]

Originally Posted by David914

Hello again! Hope I am not wearing out my welcome with all my quesions.

I have noticed that our Blue Bird TC2000 haa a tendency to weave from side to side. I had the outer tie rods replaced which corrected part of the problem. I suspected that the prolem lied in pulling our 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee. But I have been told that the problem was having too much weight in the bus BEHIND the drive axle. Here's the probloem- we have not had the Onan Diesel generator installed yet. The place doing the work want to place it .... yes, you guessed it, BEHIND the drive axle. I am wondering if this will make the problem worse. Woulde ballast infront of the axle improvfe or at least stableize the ride? The bus & toad total weight is 20,400. I am open to any and all imput about this situation.

you are getting input you asked for. so get your thoughts together about your situation.
opinions are just that? advice you have to pick and choose who you accept it from but in the end you get to your answer.
everyone here has an opinion and some sort of experience?
when/if you respond to our responses we might be able to help you a little more?

[Don Lobo]

Forgive me , but we need to get off carbon based fuels as much as possible. The money you’re spending on a seemingly huge generator plus install could go into solar and you’d be way ahead of the game. No fuel expense, no repair bills on the genset, etc.

We’re all burning enough fuel getting around

Let’s all try to really get off the grid as much as possible

Go solar! No generator!
I’ve been doing it for years
You can too

Thanks for reading

[Dirtdoctor]

Your bus has some other front end issues. First, take it to a semi truck frame shopTo ensure that the axles are not miss aligned - front end issues start with shocks, king pins, tires, and alignment. If the bus has been in a accident that could mess up the alignments. No 500 pound generator would cause it to wander along the road.
Cheers

[demoman]

After you have done all the other thing that people have suggested to check or repair it won't cost much to buy 10 60 pound bags of sand at the depot and place them where you think your weight would be and drive around for a while in different situations to see how it handles.this way if there is a difference you will know and can move them around easily to test other locations.

[powderskier]

Hi my 40 ft. EF Thomas had a similar problem along with front tire wear. I was told to check wheelbase length side to side. The leaf springs can be adj. With shims. My wheelbase was different by 3/4 inch. Very easy adj. and solved the problem. Hope that helps

[Sp6saz]

Originally Posted by juliol

Hey Sp6saz, do you have pics of that lift for the Harley?

J

tried attaching photo hope it worked

[Sp6saz]

My brother and i removed and cut up the wheel chair lift and welded it up to create a Harley lift

[Sp6saz]

There's a pic below

[Sp6saz]

https://youtu.be/oRG-TLBWAMo
Here's a link that contains a video of our lift operating but we didn't have ther bike with us we were meeting a fellow skoolie for lunch and he did a video interview of our bus

[Oscar1]

Originally Posted by Sp6saz

https://youtu.be/oRG-TLBWAMo
Here's a link that contains a video of our lift operating but we didn't have ther bike with us we were meeting a fellow skoolie for lunch and he did a video interview of our bus

Wow that is a fantastic engineering job.
Well done