What should I bring when picking up my bus for the first time?

[buslivesmatter]

I’m going to pick up my sight unseen bus for the first time and driving it home about 3.5-4hrs. What should I bring with me on the trip?

It’s a 5-6 window shorty if that matters. Seats are still in it. It’s from a school board retiring it.

[rossvtaylor]

Are you flying or driving there? If I'm flying, I travel light and plan to purchase some basic tools at a Home Depot. I get one of those multi-bit Husky screwdrivers and a 2-pack of Milwaukee water pump pliers (one big and one small). With these, I can change batteries, tighten mirrors, tighten hose clamps. I just did exactly that earlier this week, for a 6.5 hour trip home.

If it's a longer trip, like the ones I've done from WA to AZ, I buy a cigarette lighter and a cheap wire crimper and terminal set...then I connect a lighter for phone charging and navigation.

And I always take a suction cup window phone mount.

If the bus is new enough, I also take a tablet and a BlueFire adapter so I can read engine data...but that's not a necessity.

[Bert06840]

I drove 700 miles to pick it up and a 1000 back. Beyond obvious tools, water, clothes and travel accessories, I brought an LFP battery, an inverter, a clip lamp, a J1939 scanner, a multimeter, some lengths of wire, electricians tape, a smartphone on Verizon and T-Mobile, a laptop, a printer (which was unnecessary), a sleeping bag, two packs of ratchet straps, a fluid pump, cable ties and my bicycle. Locally I got a oil, coolant, a mini fridge, collapsible table, inflatable mattress and a microwave (for “RV conversion” purposes).

[ol trunt]

All the above and an insurance policy with towing, a fat credit card, and a roll of benjamines. Also food and plenty of water.

Your trip sounds like fun. Good luck!
Jack

[Bert06840]

Originally Posted by ol trunt

...a fat credit card, and a roll of benjamines.

You ain’t kidding there. It was terrifying in the beginning. It didn’t have a fuel gauge...

[Bert06840]

I found some pictures...



So, with a microwave you don’t have to settle for gas station food! You can have college kid dorm room food instead!

[Bert06840]

Screw that. Make it gas station food.

[Bert06840]

Uh oh. Crossed the Connecticut border! I better get my sh/t together!

[Bert06840]

Okay. That’s how we roll here!

[Bert06840]

When in Rome...

[Bert06840]

Table, bicycle, sleeping arrangement. I tried the New York City hobo method on the seats, too. It’s... well. It’s not the four seasons.

[buslivesmatter]

Originally Posted by rossvtaylor

Are you flying or driving there? If I'm flying, I travel light and plan to purchase some basic tools at a Home Depot. I get one of those multi-bit Husky screwdrivers and a 2-pack of Milwaukee water pump pliers (one big and one small). With these, I can change batteries, tighten mirrors, tighten hose clamps. I just did exactly that earlier this week, for a 6.5 hour trip home.

If it's a longer trip, like the ones I've done from WA to AZ, I buy a cigarette lighter and a cheap wire crimper and terminal set...then I connect a lighter for phone charging and navigation.

And I always take a suction cup window phone mount.

If the bus is new enough, I also take a tablet and a BlueFire adapter so I can read engine data...but that's not a necessity.

Attachment 58147

Wow thank you this is helpful. It’s about 3-3.5hrs away so I’ll be driving there and back. Good to know. Any power tools I should take with me?

[buslivesmatter]

Originally Posted by ol trunt

All the above and an insurance policy with towing, a fat credit card, and a roll of benjamines. Also food and plenty of water.

Your trip sounds like fun. Good luck!
Jack

Is my car auto insurance policy enough? Or should I call AAA for a special one? I already paid for it. Do you still think a lot of cash is necessary? I will probably bring some sort of cooler since we’ll have the kids with us.

[Bert06840]

Well if it IS just three hours... that gets you across Brooklyn if traffic isn’t too bad. So perhaps we’re overthinking it here

[buslivesmatter]

Originally Posted by Bert06840

Well if it IS just three hours... that gets you across Brooklyn if traffic isn’t too bad. So perhaps we’re overthinking it here

Lol. Thankfully I get to stop short of NYC. I’m just going from North Jersey to the DC area. It’s the traffic I’m not looking forward to. [emoji28]

[ol trunt]

Bring all the stuff.
Jack

[rossvtaylor]

Originally Posted by buslivesmatter

Wow thank you this is helpful. It’s about 3-3.5hrs away so I’ll be driving there and back. Good to know. Any power tools I should take with me?

If you need power tools for the pick-up and drive home, you're in for a challenge! No, you won't need those. I don't even think you'd need a cordless screwgun or anything like that.

If you're driving and you don't know the condition of the batteries, it wouldn't hurt to bring heavy jumper cables. If the batteries have sat dead for a long time, they may not charge and you might want to be prepared to buy new batteries and swap them. But the tools I mentioned will get that done. Having a multimeter is a good idea for checking voltage.

I do take an infrared thermometer with me, when I'm not flying, so I can check hub and drum temps on the road. In a new-to-me bus, I stop after 10-15 minutes of driving to check temps. This will tell you if you have a brake dragging or a bearing issue in a hub. After that, I'll check at every stop.

One thing I forgot to mention...you must have a tire pressure gauge capable of checking dually tires. You won't normally find that at a regular auto parts store, but every truck stop will have them. The have two tips, one angled back towards you for the outer wheel and one straight for the inner wheel. Here's what that looks like. You don't need the dial gauge type like this photo, but the straight tip on the end is essential.



Oh, and bring a flashlight for finding the inner wheel valve stem. It's usually...but not always...about 180 degrees from the outer wheel valve stem...in other words, through one of the hand holes on the other side of the wheel.

One more thing. What if your tire pressure is low? No auto air fill station has a fitting which will reach dually tire valve stems. So, drive around to the back of the truck stop where the semis fill up and you'll find suitable air stations back there...and they're usually free, so you don't have to feed it quarters.

There are next level tools for changing tires or bigger items, but I bet you won't need those for this trip.

[buslivesmatter]

Originally Posted by rossvtaylor

Are you flying or driving there? If I'm flying, I travel light and plan to purchase some basic tools at a Home Depot. I get one of those multi-bit Husky screwdrivers and a 2-pack of Milwaukee water pump pliers (one big and one small). With these, I can change batteries, tighten mirrors, tighten hose clamps. I just did exactly that earlier this week, for a 6.5 hour trip home.

If it's a longer trip, like the ones I've done from WA to AZ, I buy a cigarette lighter and a cheap wire crimper and terminal set...then I connect a lighter for phone charging and navigation.

And I always take a suction cup window phone mount.

If the bus is new enough, I also take a tablet and a BlueFire adapter so I can read engine data...but that's not a necessity.

Attachment 58147

Would the bluefire be a good investment? Does it work on a 2006 Chevy gas shorty?

[musigenesis]

Originally Posted by buslivesmatter

Would the bluefire be a good investment? Does it work on a 2006 Chevy gas shorty?

I shudder to think of how much driving I did before I got a Bluefire - my transmission temp gauge on my dash turned out to be nonfunctional. It should work on a 2006 - it's good for the electronic versions of engines that started being manufactured in the '90s.

[buslivesmatter]

Originally Posted by musigenesis

I shudder to think of how much driving I did before I got a Bluefire - my transmission temp gauge on my dash turned out to be nonfunctional. It should work on a 2006 - it's good for the electronic versions of engines that started being manufactured in the '90s.

Ok thanks. I didn’t totally understand. You think a bluefire is a good investment?