new build

I am new to the forum and excited to share our adventures and tips as we go to fellow brothers and sisters on the forum. My wife and I just picked up our new Alaskan 7’ cab over PUC. Really looking forward to getting out! For now, popping it up in the driveway to get the process down and to...

Hello all!, I am extremely new to the scene. With all I've seen doing a conversion seems like a better option for me vs. buying an RV. What would your recommendations be on powerplant and transmission or what video's and guides have key information for me to consider. Currently lining up tools...

I have a bus with no seats and seek to get minimum insurance coverage while I drive it for gas, to charge the battery, etc. I just want some coverage, rather than none. I bought the bus which was already registered in NJ and had an RV title. Earlier I read a suggestion that a Progressive...

Hi! Trying to weigh our options because of urgency. We're selling our house and whether is due to miscalculations in our heads or over confidence, because of how expensive the market is (thus making selling good and buying a bit sucky) the original plan was, sell, buy smaller house with bigger...

Hey, someone suggested this forum to us. We are very inexperienced and have been using YouTube as our guide. We are just starting out our Skoolie build from a 1970 Easten Body Double Decker Bus. It somehow ended up from Britain > Scotland > North Carolina > and now Indiana. My wife and I have...

Greetings all, I just picked up a 2009 International IC FE300 and im looking to start the build process soon!!! Anyone in the local area that may be able to help or have some resources I may use. I would like to have a full solar and definitely want a roof deck. I have a good idea on everything...

This is our reason for choosing a skoolie as our future home. Honestly, I never thought of a 'tiny' home as a viable option for living. My wife even has a bit of a claustrophobic issue (not serious), but when she mentioned building a tiny home here in CA I told her no way, If we're going to live...

Hello, everyone! I just joined the forum. I recently acquired a short bus, a 1986 GMC Vandura G3500. It was sitting in a build for 4-5 years and some vandals got to it and broke the turn signal and the column shift lever. The owner has lost the keys and I had a locksmith install a new ignition...

Hello Everyone My names Dave & my wife Cynthia & i bought a 1990 Wayne international bus last weekend. I started the demo and started recording. We posted a small video just testing waters and learning to edit and stuff pleas help me!!! but please show us some love on YouTube Please any help...

Hello all, I'm new to the community and I've been in love with the nomad life style for some time and I want to do it in the utmost comfort possible. I'm planning my skoolie build and I definitely need to do a roof raise as I'm 6'8. I have a few questions: what did you use/ what will I need...

Hey guys I'm new to the site! Lived in my van for 2 years and finally Found a 2007 Chevy short bus for 8900 as my upgrade. It's got 236k miles. I'm going to be checking it out tomorow in the hopes of driving it back home �� any tips you guys may have would be appreciated! I know...

Hello everyone, I'm new to forums, but have been looking into the nomad life style for a few years. Looking things up on the internet is helpful, but a lot of what I see / learn sounds good on paper put i'm sure putting it into practice will be a entirely different game. I found a bus on the...

Hello, My name is Brad and I just bought a prison bus. My family and I owned a 1993 28ft class C Damon Hornet and drove it everywhere. It broke down on the way to Texas (trans exploded) last year and we have been itching for another RV. I searched and never saw anything that spoke to me and...

Hello from Portland! My name is Dan and my Partner Dria and I are beginning our journey toward life on the road. We have renovated and lived in a 13' canned ham for two years until we hit black ice in WY in 2018. We have novice experience with most fields involved. I want this build to be as...

Since my intended use for my camper will be in the backcountry of Colorado, I am concerned that narrow trails combined with low hanging tree branches and scrub brush pose inevitable contact and possible damage to the siding of my camper both physical and aesthetic. Although I removed the...

Qubelok and Connect-It tube connectors for 1" square aluminum tube are an alternative way of building with aluminum, however, they are Australian products and I have not found and USA distributor. EZ Tube here in the US does make a similar product, but seem to be twice as expensive. Does...

So we are picking up our first bus tomorrow, she's a 2004 international with 156,345 on her clock, a CAT C7 under the hood and a manual 5 speed trans. She is also a 10 window. I'm gonna try and be consistent with my updates to this thread and would love any feedback y'all are willing to give.

Hello everyone. I’m Maj from NJ. I’ve been in construction for the last few years so I’m no stranger to a hammer and a drill. I’ve been on this site browsing forums for ideas for months but tonight I finally decided to sign up. I’m currently on the hunt for my perfect bus. I believe I found it...

Hey Everyone!!!! My husband and I purchased a 2002 Thomas build school bus that has 131,000 with a Cummings engine. we are super excited to build out our bus for a camper and who knows maybe end up living in it and traveling once we retire..... we have a long way to go before we can even camp...

We are trying to figure out this online network so please excuse us. We recently bought a 1999 Chevy Bluebird school bus. We've already have the subflooring in and would like to know if because our subflooring is intact can we just finish and stain them? Has anyone done this? thank you for...

Howdy from Texas! My husband and I just purchased a 1972 Thomas Built Loadstar 1600 35’ bus for conversion. We are musicians and want to have a home we can move to different cities or to use while touring - wherever gigs take us! Timeline goal is about a year - plan to use salvage, secondhand...

Makes, models & years to get as close as I can to my ideal skoolie. Since I've seen people spend years looking for "the perfect rig", and have read people basically saying "I'm looking for a [exact year, make, model with X options in Y color] priced to sell. I won't consider anything close...

My husband and I purchased a bus and are excited to see what you all have done... for inspiration... as we prepare to gut and convert ours! We built a Tiny House in 2017 and lived off grid in it for a year and half. We made the decision that it was too big for us and sold it 2 weeks ago and...

If anyone with electrical knowledge could quickly check this drawing for redundancies, it would be of huge help! Thank you. See attachment

We have been downsizing and planning our next chapter which until recently was to design and build a tiny house. We currently camp year round in our hand-built teardrop trailer. We've recently discovered and decided that our future is best realized with bus conversion. We welcome direction from...