FL to OR to Buy a Bus

[cadillackid]

I don't watch mainstream media for my weather, they always over hype, but avoid talking about extreme damage.

I go straight to the radars and do my own analysis. Currently the strongest wind gusts are 70 mph at the center. That's small area but enough to cause some roof damage, tree fellings, and property damage but most houses with foundations will stand.

I'll be monitoring it closely daily and will report if it gets worse than that speed. 80 mph is when houses can start to come off of foundations and it's close to that currently.

The numbers in my pic represent live windspeeds.

I subscribe to accuweather's professional (we follow weather closely in my business of telecommunications)...


there is nothing accurate about saying surface winds are 70 at the center... the recon missions are reporting much much higher winds.. and the pressure gradient backs it up..


some weakening is likely by landfall as drier air from a canadian air mass working its way down is likely to weaken it before it makes landfall.. it will still be formidable but hopefully comes down a bit from its high before reaching land..


its trending like the eye will pass just south of tampa.. someplace around bradenton area and then the storm tracks east northeast from there.. at a pretty good speed..


even with weakening its still not something i would ride out if anywhere along the tampa bay area!

 

[cadillackid]

Noah isnt dead.... we can fix it..


ive been in hot-rodding for decades.. ive built plenty of engines over the years.. and ive also blown a few... its an almost overwhelming feeling at first to blow an engine, when you drill down into it, its not the end of the relationship...



the aftermarket parts support for the IH SV engines is actually pretty good.. if the block is shot, SV engines can be found fairly readily... finding a 392 might not be easy however finding a 345 is not super difficult...



I would *NOT* diesel swap that frame..


im in a Loadstar facebook group that seems to come up with quite a few parts and also people who are diesel swapping their larger loadstars, leaving the SV available..



this is NOT the end of the road for Noah...


and after-all we have no idea what happened to it... thats the first step, figuring out what is actually wrong... then we can all rally around a plan to fix it

 

[Kentucky Dreaming]

Noah isnt dead.... we can fix it..

And after-all we have no idea what happened to it... thats the first step, figuring out what is actually wrong... then we can all rally around a plan to fix it

Sign me up, dude

 

[ewo1]

I don't watch mainstream media for my weather, they always over hype, but avoid talking about extreme damage.

I go straight to the radars and do my own analysis. Currently the strongest wind gusts are 70 mph at the center. That's small area but enough to cause some roof damage, tree fellings, and property damage but most houses with foundations will stand.

I'll be monitoring it closely daily and will report if it gets worse than that speed. 80 mph is when houses can start to come off of foundations and it's close to that currently.

The numbers in my pic represent live windspeeds.

Ok, but it is also expected to double in size!

For those areas already affected two weeks ago, many weakened structures and alot of soaked soil so not only flooding is a concern but lots of weakened trees, poles and compromised structures are all a high risk.

Then the really big invisible danger of flying debris from all those previously affected who stacked all the debris in a big pile in front of their homes.

It’s gonna be a big mess no matter how you look at it

Here is a pic of a steel pole that impaled a palm tree some 10 years ago. It was never removed and serves as a clear image of the real danger of flying debris.

When hurricane Andrew hit in ‘92, i saw a car that had a 2x4 which speared/impaled thru the windshield, thru the drivers seat back, thru the steel floor of the car-and firmly impaled into the ground.

If you live in a wood frame home, your wall getting speared is not an impossibility !

 

[Ronnie-SKO]

Noah isnt dead.... we can fix it..


ive been in hot-rodding for decades.. ive built plenty of engines over the years.. and ive also blown a few... its an almost overwhelming feeling at first to blow an engine, when you drill down into it, its not the end of the relationship...



the aftermarket parts support for the IH SV engines is actually pretty good.. if the block is shot, SV engines can be found fairly readily... finding a 392 might not be easy however finding a 345 is not super difficult...



I would *NOT* diesel swap that frame..


im in a Loadstar facebook group that seems to come up with quite a few parts and also people who are diesel swapping their larger loadstars, leaving the SV available..



this is NOT the end of the road for Noah...


and after-all we have no idea what happened to it... thats the first step, figuring out what is actually wrong... then we can all rally around a plan to fix it

Yes finding what happened is the first order of business. I will be down that way February/March, and should have a spare engine in hand by then. Maybe some of us could get together then and tear it down.

 

[nikitis]

Yes finding what happened is the first order of business. I will be down that way February/March, and should have a spare engine in hand by then. Maybe some of us could get together then and tear it down.

Sounds like a fun project to do when we come down to see Demac at the end of the month, if he can tow it to his place by then.

 

[ewo1]

Just spoke with demac, he's stuck in La. Until Thursday. No commercial transport/bus service to Fla or Atlanta available due to storm.

Hel told me that the mechanic did get the engine to spin slowly with the starter yesterday but mechanic said motor is toast.

Since it did spin slowly, i shared the thought of removing the spark plugs, dropping a small amount of mystery oil in the cylinders, remove starter and again trying to spin motor with no compression just to see if it turns better or not.

If it does turn, put in a new starter and see if that helps or not.

In any event, he stuck there with nothing to do…

Hopefully that might get him going for another couple hundred miles????

 

[nikitis]

Just spoke with demac, he's stuck in La. Until Thursday. No commercial transport/bus service to Fla or Atlanta available due to storm.

Hel told me that the mechanic did get the engine to spin slowly with the starter yesterday but mechanic said motor is toast.

Since it did spin slowly, i shared the thought of removing the spark plugs, dropping a small amount of mystery oil in the cylinders, remove starter and again trying to spin motor with no compression just to see if it turns better or not.

If it does turn, put in a new starter and see if that helps or not.

In any event, he stuck there with nothing to do…

Hopefully that might get him going for another couple hundred miles????

That mechanic needs to give you a little more than "It's toast". That just sounds like a cop out like he doesn't want to spend his time working on it which for a regular vehicle that may be the correct answer, but Noah is no regular vehicle. Effort must be put into it!

What is the technical reasoning behind his comment? What exactly is broken? Has he torn it down or is he just doing simple flywheel turnover tests?

If the fly wheel moves, it can be saved. I do agree with EWO1, Marvel Mystery Oil, or even ATF down the cylinders, turn the motor by hand a couple of times, refill the cylinders again, and let it sit a day or two. This will only work if it's just a cylinder wall issue.

If it's turning over, the rods should be fine. My money would be on bad/broken rings or piston damage potentially. New pistons/rings could fix that but that's a complete tear down. Cylinder walls can have huge gouges and still function with lower compression and run. Not ideal, and would need to be fixed, by sleeve or bore depending on which type of engine it is. But if it can turn over it's not fused to the walls and not toast!

 

[cadillackid]

wonder if said mechanic watched to see if the balancer was turning but none of the accessories... ive had slow turnover by starter end up being a locked up alternator or power steering or water pump... I think danny tried to spin the fan and it spun and slipped so id think the water ump is fine...


lots of troubleshooting to do before deeming the motor just dead

 

[Kentucky Dreaming]

My concern is the main bearings and crankshaft. If the bearings are trying to seize, the starter has to work harder to spin it. It gets worse on a hot start.

I know this from experience. Eventually the damage gets so bad it can't be turned with the longest breaker bar on earth.

I agree with pulling the spark plugs and trying to crank with no compression, and maybe throwing a starter at it, but it should turn by hand with a breaker bar on the crank or prybar on ring gear.

I would be reluctant to try to go another 700 miles without knowing more about the situation, but it's not my decision to make

 

[Jolly Roger bus 223]

rental car and go welcome that new grandbaby.
engines can be fixed.
tearing into this is the only way to know what happened.
sure some easier things to check before that step.
but without being there to get hands on is just guessing.
GO SEE THAT BABY.
it is going to be cuter than NOAH and give you many more years of joy.

 

[Jolly Roger bus 223]

what about the muffler being plugged and vapor locked the engine.
pull the plugs and see if it free's up and or cut the exhaust loose and try it.

 

[DeMac]

Remote Work Homestead

My concern is the main bearings and crankshaft. If the bearings are trying to seize, the starter has to work harder to spin it. It gets worse on a hot start.

I know this from experience. Eventually the damage gets so bad it can't be turned with the longest breaker bar on earth.

I agree with pulling the spark plugs and trying to crank with no compression, and maybe throwing a starter at it, but it should turn by hand with a breaker bar on the crank or prybar on ring gear.

I would be reluctant to try to go another 700 miles without knowing more about the situation, but it's not my decision to make

---------------------

Your words makes sense, to me.

After eight weeks of being away from my home, you'd think it would be easy to ignore my family & property so that I might dedicate my every waking moment to Noah, who's parked 30 minutes drive from my hotel or any civilization. I had to switch hotels this morning, lodging is filling up around here.

For two weeks I've been trying to outrun the due date. I may already appear selfish to Momma Em, I hope she doesn't resent Noah before he even arrives.

I'm also telephoning and texting hired help to perform my regular maintenance duties, post storm clean-up from a couple weeks ago AND pre-storm clean-up in preparation
for this week's action.

Mobile mechanics frequently do hard work, in the grit, under buses, all day. But I'm not into it for the suffering. I want to savor and enjoy repairing Noah. Its not just the one time ride home, to me. I'm trying to save the bus & enjoy some time to myself. There's no need not push it (or my body). My buses are my hobby, not the penance of Sisyphus.

I still have no oil guages, only the dipstick. There is real danger of destroying the engine unless I'm thorough in my daiganosis. The cam can only be oiled through the weap holes holes in the bearing. I really ought to dedicate significant time into Noah's diagnosis & repair before I set out in another 700 mile trek.

Thanks to this community, I do have several more options than I would have had alone. The most likely outcome will be to flat-tow Noah home. Ewol suggested fabricating a tow hitch & removing the driveshaft.

 

[nikitis]

May be time to rent a U-Haul, put Noah in neutral and hook a tow bar to him and head home, or fly home and get to your witnessing event, and drive back out there later with a pickup and trailer.

What do you plan on doing?

 

[Kentucky Dreaming]

We know you are not selfish. If at all possible get home for the arrival of the granddaughter.

Then we will come up with a solution for Noah. Maybe should build an ark and float him home on the storm surge.

I caution against driving any farther until more is known, and you ain't In a place or properly equipped to do much more than you have done.

There are folks willing to help if we can work out a plan.

 

[ewo1]

May be time to rent a U-Haul, put Noah in neutral and hook a tow bar to him and head home, or fly home and get to your witnessing event, and drive back out there later with a pickup and trailer.

What do you plan on doing?

No flights to Florida at this time!

 

[cadillackid]

May be time to rent a U-Haul, put Noah in neutral and hook a tow bar to him and head home, or fly home and get to your witnessing event, and drive back out there later with a pickup and trailer.

What do you plan on doing?

no flights!! airlines get out early.. most airports im the storm track closed yesterday.. only outbound flights.. airlines fly their airplanes away from the airports.. its the easiest way to protect their planes.. plus when airports re-open all the gates will be available for arrivals as people return... but most of the return flights are liely already full as people will book a day or two after the storm the return trip when they fly out..



this all assumes that airports even have electricity and all their windows...

 

[Kentucky Dreaming]

Zackly, Cristopher. And no car rental company is gonna do a one-way rental into a hurricane zone.

This here is all you can do now:

 

[EastCoastCB]

This storm isn't hype. Its a big, nasty one that's going to hit our area harder than most do.
Hoping anyone in its path gets to proper high ground and shelter.
We may head to my mom's. They have a rare house in FL... it has a basement and the home is brick with steel studs and a steel deck made of 10" tubing anchored to the concrete with giant bolts. You could park a bus on that deck.
The plan so far is to stay put but that may change in the early morning.
Stay safe everyone involved!
I may be without power or internet for a while.

 

[cadillackid]

wow!! thats a first.. a florida house with a basement.. ultimately one of the reasons I have not sold my house and moved to florida at some point was lack of a basement... it seems so natural for me here when we get really bad severe weather or tornado warnings for me to just go to the basement and wait it out... fortunately all my basement runs have just been precautionary and not an actual tornado tearing through the area... we get lots of them up here...