Why do you Skoolie?

[TheHubbardBus]

What do you love about Skoolies?
Why have you chosen to go this route?
Why not an RV? Why not a van? Why not a hotel, or an airline ticket, or a life at home?

Is it to save money, or a great place to spend every dollar you make?
Is it to get away from it all, or to connect with others who share your vibe?
Is it to rekindle the flames of a bygone era, or to embrace the new tiny house trend?

[HazMatt]

Oh, and here I thought this was going to be a tough question!
It's really quite simple:
I am a masochist.
Who enjoys bloody knuckles!
Unfortunately, I'm also a hemophiliac...

[HazMatt]

*urk, gag, uncontrollable hemorrhaging*

[peteg59]

To eventually have an RV that will suit me to a "T", and be able to withstand heavy winter snow loads.
Had a Winnebago in the early 90's that didn't get snow cleared off the roof due to health concerns one winter, and had to scrap it the following spring due to heavy water damage and mold. Never going back to a crapola factory built RV...

[HazMatt]

Heck, no!
That's why I opted for homegrown crapola!
(Seriously, if I'd not have been up against the timeline wall, I'd've opted for a better OS)

[david.dgeorge07]

It seemed like a fun family project. And seemed like a good challenge for my interests and skill set. Also, I thought it would be a inexpensive way to have a motorhome. Not sure if that is true...

[Danjo]

Originally Posted by david.dgeorge07

Also, I thought it would be a inexpensive way to have a motorhome. Not sure if that is true...

Does anyone understand that at the beginning? Still, I saw the price of those Sprint Winnebagos and now I think it’s a bargain.


Why am I doing it?

I grew up with RVs. My father always took us somewhere in the summer in one. I always loved going on the road.

I always thought factory RVs were built of toothpicks and butt cheese.

I plan to snowbird one day, so I’m building my escape vehicle.

So why not do it myself and do it like I want it? I have the skills, tools, time.

[EastCoastCB]

I just like driving something large and un-practical sometimes. And buses are the easiest way to get a foot in that door so I dig em.

[JustKip]

1. Durability. It's NOT made of "sticks and staples".

2. My horse can't carry much more than a bedroll and a sammich

[Drew Bru]

Originally Posted by TheHubbardBus

What do you love about Skoolies?
Why have you chosen to go this route?
Why not an RV? Why not a van? Why not a hotel, or an airline ticket, or a life at home?

Is it to save money, or a great place to spend every dollar you make?
Is it to get away from it all, or to connect with others who share your vibe?
Is it to rekindle the flames of a bygone era, or to embrace the new tiny house trend?

We knew we didn't want to stay where we were once Drew retired and the kids moved out, but we didn't know where we wanted to be. All of our vacations over the years were camping road trips and we'd talked about traveling more once we had the time. We met a couple on one of those trips that was full timing in their RV and that sounded perfect to us.

About 5 years before Drew was set to retire we started looking at RVs. They all seemed cheaply built, not efficient for how we wanted to live, decorated like a cheap motel room, and expensive as hell. It was discouraging. I remembered seeing pictures of a beautifully done skoolie many years ago and started researching whether it was a viable option. Turns out it was.

We bought a bus a year before he retired, spent that time building it out on the weekends. The first 6 months after his retirement we downsized and got the house sold. We moved into the bus full time on April 26, 2019 and have been incredibly happy with how it's working out.

[o1marc]

I wanted something to see the sights in that could haul my bikes also and not have to pay for hotels. Now the money I save in hotels can be burned up in fuel instead.

[Sleddgracer]

Originally Posted by o1marc

I wanted something to see the sights in that could haul my bikes also and not have to pay for hotels. Now the money I save in hotels can be burned up in fuel instead.

l figure driving a skoolie will save me about $1000+ each time l go to a race - - - no motels for 3 or 4 people for 6 or 7 days per trip, and no restaurant meals for 3 or 4 people for 6 or 7 days per trip - so what if my fuel bill is 3 times what it would be for driving the pickup towing a trailer ?

[ol trunt]

I just spent 3 hours washing my bus. Why do I Skoolie? The devil made me do it!
Jack

[HazMatt]

Yeah, well if I didn't own a commonplace, utterly unremarkable mid-spec bus, I'd do more than rely on the thunderstorm carwash, too!

Originally Posted by ol trunt

I just spent 3 hours washing my bus. Why do I Skoolie? The devil made me do it!
Jack

[Ricko]

You can't be a bus for its heavy, duty built foundation (I've driven school buses for a season and notice at how well built they were.) Commercial RV's are made out of balsa wood and tooth picks plus they look tacky and cheap. I realize some bus look this way too but I plan on building something with excellence and class.
It's been a challenge of my problem solving skills and I'm discovering carpentry skills I didn't know I had.
If you build it, you know the what, where, why and then maybe the when something needs to be fixed, etc.
They are inexpensive to get into financially.
It can be a fun family or couple project that builds communication and unity.
Skoolie's are cool, creative, and challenging.

[bigskypc50]

Why do I skoolie?

Well I love bus conversions and the mobile RV life, but could not afford a prevost.

Walk around a handful of RV dealers, if you have any kind of brain you quickly figure out why skoolie is the way to go

[Sleddgracer]

I want to schoolie to save money on the type of traveling I do - being able to eat and sleep in the skoolie more than makes up for the extra fuel costs

[WanderingLass]

We started looking at used RVs to buy and use to move across the country. We figured we could recoup some of the cost by reselling it vs renting a uhaul or just keep it fir camping. After a short amount of time reading up on them, Hubby said hell no. So we looked at tiny houses. Then he found Skoolies.

Got her cheap enough already converted, got halfway across the country, redid the conversion to fit our lifestyle, and no matter how bad we have it, we're guaranteed a good over our heads.

[M1031A1]

My wife is handicapped, difficult for her to walk. We bought our first bus with a wide handicap door, but found that wasn't the answer.

Fast forward after a few other missteps, and we now have a 40' bus with a 25' trailer capable of transporting our soon-to-be mini truck or van from Japan. It took us over six years and bunches of redesigns before we figured out what would work best both for now and approximately ten years down the road (LOVE puns....).

The typical RV does not take into account any possible handicapped people that want to get out and explore this wonderful land. We were visiting every dealer in Houston, TX about what the costs were to custom order an RV. I about had an M.I. (and ANOTHER handicap) when the salesman presented the quote. We continued our search for our bus. It took us almost three years to find her. So we're now getting to the point where all of our planning and engineering is starting to pay off. It's a good thing we've taken the time (yes, pics will follow soon) to adjust the design to my wife's developing handicaps. It's helped me anticipate how to build something that will outlast us. She has her office, ease of assisted walking from one part of the bus to another without worrying about falling down (especially when we're driving down the highway), or finding a bathroom out in the middle of nowhere. It's not just a labor of love, but also a challenge to think years ahead and anticipate the unknown.

Our bus and trailer will provide us with a very comfortable home, a garage, and a workshop so I can have fun helping others with their builds as time allows. We have quite a ways to go. I've had some help along the way, and I'm grateful for that! But building slowly has allowed me to be a more effective planner and builder.

This is why I Skoolie!

M

[M1031A1]

Originally Posted by ol trunt

The devil made me do it!
Jack

Jack;

Are you referring to the one that knows where you sleep every night?!?!?!?!?



M