Yet another new menber checking in!

[Jim Ray]

I have been lurking for several months, just getting the feel for the board. I built a schoolie in San Diego in 198x and enjoyed it in the desert. Lost all the photos in the divorce and move to the East. It was a Dodge Superior, raised roof with a slant 6. I swapped a 413 and a loadflight into it from a burned motorhome, and added a cab-over out to the front bumper for the bedroom. Lots more stuff, but will post that in the appropriate thread. I am a tech, and have been a motor home repairman in another life. Getting ready to retire now, and the wanderlust has attacked again.

I hope this won't disquallify me, I have bought a very old Bluebird Wanderlodge which needs a complete makeover. I know there are forums for those vehicles, but I am not restoring it, I am going to make it work for my purpose, with available low cost parts. I joined a Wanderlodge forum and when it bacame obvious that I was not doing a factory restore, the group cooled in a hurry. The first thing that upset them was when I posted that I found a good deal on some Chinese steel radials to replace the dry rotted rubber. Nice folks, but operating on a different budget than the wife and I are. Same thing when I said that I had bought some paint and had started sanding the exterior. "Hey, the factory will paint that for you for $12,000"! Nice people, but it was not going to work running in that circle.

The wife and I are form follows function type people, and are shopping thrift stores, junk yards and eBay for the items we need. I scored a damaged roof air from ebay, and a older flathead Kohler genset from a hotel in the mountains in North Carolina. Really a cool little boat anchor, only 69 hours on the meter, covered in dust bunnies and kitchen grease, but turned over, and has no rust anywere. It was installed in the hotel kitchen, and cooking grease is a great rust preventer.

Paint is coming soon, and some wrecking yard seating. I am keeping it as simple as I can, ie, low cost. The travel that we want to do is more important than how posh the vehicle is.

I would like to have a chance to share techniques here, have lots of tips on converting, and boondocking. And lots of driving in the desert sand!

Thanks guys. Your conversions look great, and I have stolen several ideas already...

[Griff]

Welcome aboard, leave yer sanity at the door, and post on! You're not likely to find any of that attitude here, this board has a great membership from all walks and income levels, and I'd bet that you could get 'em all together & not know the "independently wealthy" from the "frayed shoestrings" when it comes to "talkin' Skoolie"!
By the way, I didn't mean to slight anyone, there have been a few new members climbed aboard the BIG SKOOLIE recently, and I would like to extend the same welcome to them!