Bought 5 more buses, wife says they must go

[plfking]

Thanks - I figured it was mostly regurgitated information from a variety of sources about a variety of things.

Regurgitation is all he's got, considering his first-hand bus knowledge consists of driving through flowerbeds, knocking over lampposts, and paying someone to remove his seats.

 

[o1marc]

I don't see the OP complaining. I probably helped him in situation.

 

[CH777]

Regurgitation is all he's got, considering his first-hand bus knowledge consists of driving through flowerbeds, knocking over lampposts, and paying someone to remove his seats.

OK....
1st...This IS NOT a direct reply to the above quote or it's poster... I use that quote ONLY as an EXAMPLE to help illustrate my following point------

2nd-- notice I type IMHO ( in my honest opinion) a few times in this post.
3nd...notice I attack nobody "PERSONALLY" in this post.
4th.... see how you can have a differing opinion without unneeded personal insults.

Now on with my post.......


MAN OH MAN!..........
Why does this forum have so much hostility in it???

Personal attacks are not a green light for others to pile on with more personal attacks ya know. Seems very juvenile and lacking honor to join in on a group insult gang bang in a forum.

Even if certain members are kinda getting payback for their participation in similar unfriendly behavior. 2 wrongs never make a right.

The moderators IMHO need to start cracking down on this crap before this entire forum degrades into an insult ridden circle jerk of grouchy old guys. And it has been heading that way for a while IMHO. SAD!

WITH THAT SAID.......... (and back on subject)

IMHO....... this tiny home FAD crapola, fueled mainly by left coast, wanna-be hipster types, has made "some" believe that old buses are somehow worth more than they actually are.

I see it every day in various adverts.

Not to mention the fact that an advertised price is not an actual selling price. So you can not go by asking price to ascertain actual "WORTH PRICE".

I too get tired of seeing old buses offered for far more than they are worth. ( and I ALWAYS buy them for far less than some imagine they are worth)

I most eagerly look forward to the demise of the "tiny home FAD" which "IS COMING" far sooner than one may think.

Then there will once again, be a glut in the bus market.

Will be amusing to see all these imagined $10 to $20K buses selling for $1500. Especially the ones that consist of a few 2x4s screwed in sloppy framing fashion with some old discarded house furniture thrown in and called a bus conversion.....LMAO!

Most of them will end up as backyard or farm storage buildings again like they were in the past.

Prices will once again "regularly" be within reason, the skoolie camper crowd will once again be back to how it once was and all will be well.

And there you have REALITY CHECK 101...... from a guy who has been using school buses for various purposes ( living-traveling-camping-business) since the 70's.
( BTW--- My first bus was a 1959 Ford with a 312 V8 ( groovy external oil lines) 4 speed manual with a gnarly hand operated driveshaft drum E-brake-- psychedelic paint job...the police just LOVED US!!! .

DISCLAIMER = Take it how ya may.......I'm just the messenger and it never benefits one to kill the messenger. :wink1:

 

[brokedown-SKO]

I've been surprised how much some buses have sold for.. BUT those were all sold by posting them to Skoolie groups on Facebook. This forum is a different place, and we even have a thread almost dedicated to making fun of overpriced buses.

With that said, I try (and mostly succeed!) to approach things nicely, and give constructive advice. These 5 buses may have sold for twice what he originally posted, if he posted them on Facebook instead.

When I go to sell the Sport Bus later this year, I'll be posting it on Facebook.

 

[Fyrsail]

thanks for the heads up

I've been surprised how much some buses have sold for.. BUT those were all sold by posting them to Skoolie groups on Facebook. This forum is a different place, and we even have a thread almost dedicated to making fun of overpriced buses.

With that said, I try (and mostly succeed!) to approach things nicely, and give constructive advice. These 5 buses may have sold for twice what he originally posted, if he posted them on Facebook instead.

When I go to sell the Sport Bus later this year, I'll be posting it on Facebook.

thanks for letting me know that there are groups on fb I will post them at that site today.

 

[cadillackid]

$4k is not unreasonable - just because a bus can be obtained for less - does not mean buses priced at $3k - $5k are not worth it.
I paid $4,500 for my bus that I was able to test drive. The bus I bought sold for $2,200 at an auction in Georgia to the person I bought it from. I was willing to pay the extra to have it checked out and delivered to my area. Saved me travel up and back - and a lot of unknown.
Auctions seem great - but they are an auction and not a fair priced market. Value is all in the eye of the beholder. I have seen buses similar to mine sell for 2 to 3 times the amount.

As for the transmission - again, to each their own. I know people who live full time in a bus and travel all over and are happy with their transmission.
Some complain - some love it. I hear a lot of negative remarks about my t444e engine - but driving from Utah back to Montana, I averaged 13.23 mpg doing about 57mph - towing my Subaru.

I have no power issues - but I am not trying to go 75 mph uphill.

Be happy with your journey - otherwise the destination is meaningless.

View attachment 24794

ha!! yes! its all about **VALUE** value doesnt always mean a cheap porice.. it means feeling comfortable with your purchase and getting a bus that works for you at a price that works for you..



im sure people will tell me paying 2K for a Gasser / AT540 40 year old rust-free bus in Oregon is too much.. buit I just trekked 2300 miles in it across the rockies... and beyond...



some people are mechanics and dont mind a bus that hasnt been checked out.. if these busses are checked out, oil changed, and run good.. **PLUS** you can go drive them. rather than be at odds with an auction where you show up and the bus wont run.. is that worth 2K? maybe not but I know when i sell something I also start high.. ask 4k and expect to be negotiated down.. but lets say these busses have great running engines, all the tires are good, and transmissions work as they should.. bodies arent rust buckets.. and you plan to not trek the rockies all the time then 3k or so would be a great deal....



the worlkd doesnt revolve around the $1500 suoer great deal bus.. those are great unicorns when they happen but its not the norm..



I have no idea about these busses.. I do know that i live 3 hours from Indy and could be convinced to look at them for any Seriously interested parties.. (funny that im sitting in Fort wayne as we speak...)


-Christopher

 

[EastCoastCB]

ha!! yes! its all about **VALUE** value doesnt always mean a cheap porice.. it means feeling comfortable with your purchase and getting a bus that works for you at a price that works for you..



im sure people will tell me paying 2K for a Gasser / AT540 40 year old rust-free bus in Oregon is too much.. buit I just trekked 2300 miles in it across the rockies... and beyond...



some people are mechanics and dont mind a bus that hasnt been checked out.. if these busses are checked out, oil changed, and run good.. **PLUS** you can go drive them. rather than be at odds with an auction where you show up and the bus wont run.. is that worth 2K? maybe not but I know when i sell something I also start high.. ask 4k and expect to be negotiated down.. but lets say these busses have great running engines, all the tires are good, and transmissions work as they should.. bodies arent rust buckets.. and you plan to not trek the rockies all the time then 3k or so would be a great deal....



the worlkd doesnt revolve around the $1500 suoer great deal bus.. those are great unicorns when they happen but its not the norm..



I have no idea about these busses.. I do know that i live 3 hours from Indy and could be convinced to look at them for any Seriously interested parties.. (funny that im sitting in Fort wayne as we speak...)


-Christopher

I agree. Although to be quite honest the two folks I've talked to who bought their buses at the place Roger did had to make immediate repairs. So I don't really think most dealer buses have been "gone through". I think they get pressure washed and listed immediately.:hide:

My best two buses were $1700 each +/-. I know that not everyone is gonna get lucky like I do. But a bit of patience and persistence can make for some real bargains.

But once someone has made the gamble and bought a bus, I think its fair to make money selling it. 4K for a nice drivable bus isn't a terrible deal these days.
Due to the market here, I would ask at least 5 grand for ANY bus.

 

[cadillackid]

I dont say its not fair to make money.. sales is all about what you can. get for something.. we all know about the other florida bus dealer that sells his busser for 5X what he gets them for at auction.. and people buy them, they go through theirs mechanically, however they get a lot of northern rust buckets..



the other thing too is that you take your time to learn how to buy busses.. you get great deals now as you know what to look for, the areas to look in and the districts best to buy from.. most. come here, excited to get started on a project and dont want to take a year to learn the best way to get a a great $1700 bus..



and admittedly too even busses that have no known defects at the school can still break.. look at your amtran, it made it 1200 miles flawlessly from texas before it started leaking coolant.. that mechanic had no way to know that it was gonna break ..



now if a dealer sends an unsuspecting buyer down the road knowingly with chewing gum over a radiator leak then that is total scheister-ism and should be illegal.. but alas we know some dealers that do just that..

-Christopher

 

[dgorila1-SKO]

I would be interested in the Bluebird but I've talked with multiple insurance agents and it's pretty much impossible to get insurance on a former school bus in Va, at least for a reasonable price. Luckily I looked into it before I bid on buses that came up for auction in the local school districts. I could have gotten them for a decent price but then I would have a huge vehicle sitting in the back yard that I was unable to legally drive. Frustrating that the insurance companies are so tight in Va. I've pretty much resigned myself to buying a Wanderlodge since they're titled as rv's from the factory, or some other type of fiberglass rv. Va won't retitle a vehicle as an rv. I haven't found out how they look at a bus that has been retitle as an rv from another state. My guess is that, like the insurance companies, when they run the VIN and it shows that it was manufactured as a school bus from the factory, they wouldn't allow it to be titled as an rv in Va.

 

[ThePimentals]

Ha. 4K is cheap?

 

[o1marc]

I would be interested in the Bluebird but I've talked with multiple insurance agents and it's pretty much impossible to get insurance on a former school bus in Va, at least for a reasonable price. Luckily I looked into it before I bid on buses that came up for auction in the local school districts. I could have gotten them for a decent price but then I would have a huge vehicle sitting in the back yard that I was unable to legally drive. Frustrating that the insurance companies are so tight in Va. I've pretty much resigned myself to buying a Wanderlodge since they're titled as rv's from the factory, or some other type of fiberglass rv. Va won't retitle a vehicle as an rv. I haven't found out how they look at a bus that has been retitle as an rv from another state. My guess is that, like the insurance companies, when they run the VIN and it shows that it was manufactured as a school bus from the factory, they wouldn't allow it to be titled as an rv in Va.

Some in Va. have had success titling it as a Private Bus

 

[dgorila1-SKO]

Some in Va. have had success titling it as a Private Bus

Yeah but the insurance companies still regard it as a commercial bus due to the VIN and charge $$$$ to insure, if you can get insurance at all.

 

[Aurora1212]

Have you sold them?

 

[Fyrsail]

time to blow out the last two

I have left the international with the dt466
and a new addition of a micro buss v8 chevy gas powered 4 window runs great they are at blow out price 1500 each message for pics or any other info.
those of you looking for a spare engine or other parts this is a great time to get it.

 

[Smokey's pipe dream]

what is wrong with that transmission?

 

[Fyrsail]

what is wrong with that transmission?

There is nothing wrong with either bus or transmission, they run and drive great, I would drive it to California in a minute.