Hello from Chapel Hill, NC...

[Rameses-SKO]

Hi, everybody. My name's John.

First and foremost, thank you all for this amazing resource/wealth of valuable information you have here. It's always nice to find a place this helpful, both in content, and the quality of people that're here. To the forum admin, top-notch job on creating a friendly, welcoming atmosphere that is so pleasantly devoid of the rubbish behavior which seems to find it's way, all too often, into forums on this wasteland we call the internet. Kudos!


My wife and I started kicking around the idea of converting a school bus a while back. It looks like her job could possibly be re-locating us to some yet-to-be-determined region of the country in a few years. So, we're thinking about heading out in a bus when the time comes, and taking our time finding a house after we get there. She's a little more hesitant than I am about diving into projects like this though, so I was very excited when she was the one who suggested we actually pull the trigger on it. (I think watching Captain Fantastic might've helped her decide it was something that was worth doing. haha)

After pouring through seemingly endless listings on Craigslist, eBay, several other auction sites, and bus dealers inventory lists, I've found a couple buses that meet our criteria. I have one more stop to make before deciding which is the right one to go with. I'll be going to look at the surplus offerings of a local school district later this week, but I'm not getting my hopes up. Their online listing offers very little information on the units for sale (they don't even say whether they're conventionals or flat-fronts). Unfortunately, everything I've found so far is a long ways away, but that's the price I pay for being as picky as I am.

I'll post up here with what I find, and once we buy one, I'll start a new thread over in the projects section. I've picked through several build threads here, also, and think I have a pretty good idea of the direction we want to go with our conversion. I'm really eager to get started on it!

Thanks again, everybody!

 

[onenationundergoat]

We bought our bus surplus from Alamance-Burlington county school bus garage. What are your specifics for your search? The Piedmont has some great and cheap buses with no rust, although make sure to get the oil analysis records because the garage director lied to me about my bus and it turned out to have coolant in the oil. If you vet the bus well, though, you should come out with a nice one. Mine had recent retreads on the back and new tires on front, and a full tank of diesel. There are lots of IH DT466 and DT360s in NC, and the pug nose is great for easy repairs. (We even did and in-chassis overhaul.)

 

[Jolly Roger-SKO]

Welcome, make sure you pick one with the motor,tranny and gearing that you need for your intentions?
I bought in my local county and the price was right but ended up with a stop and go bus power wise but in very good condition body wise.
I have been able to salvage 90% of my build but now I need money and time to work on getting above 49 mph? I know my 8.2 can do better without changing factory setting, I know that my at545 can do a little better without adding a fluid cooler but my rear gears were made for pulling tree stumps (6.50) Which was an old reliable gear that the district didn't have to worry about hurting on there normal routes.
My biggest problem is changing the rear gears in an outdated 86 eaton rearend.
Just saying you need to make sure your power train can do what you want it to do?
I mucked that one up and all I can do is spend more money on my power train than I did on my buy and build?

 

[Rameses-SKO]

Yeah, the drivetrain is the biggest reason it's taking me so long to find the right bus for us.

We'll be using it for a lot of long distance travel, so I'm looking for a rear engine setup with either a Cummins 8.3 or a DT466 and an MD3060. It's looking like I'll probably end up flying halfway across the country and driving it back to get that combination. I'll definitely be unlocking 6th gear before I hit the road back home with it.

 

[Jolly Roger-SKO]

I am down on the beach in swansboro and I bought an onslow county bus.
I did and do plan on road time but for now it's back roads only for me which is fine cause the stuff you see and run across on the back roads is the true America and not the interstates that blow by everything and I am quicker than a tractor/combine or whatever some of them are?
Texan by birth,Texan by heart and right now it looks like I am driving 49-45 from NC to HOME. But when we get there we have our bus/home/palace to live in while we build our home?
We tent camp as a family all of the time and am in scouts with my children so backpack rustic style was not an issue but building to live in while building a house and my commercial construction salvage ability were/are our reasons for our build.
I don't know your budget but have you looked into coaches? Or some older wander lodges? Don't know your abilities or expertise.
I have seen a huge bus barn north of you around MEBANE/GRAHAM around I 40/85 exit 145-150 on the left heading out.
I worked weekends around there so never got to talk to them.
Good luck

 

[Rameses-SKO]

I know the place you're talking about. I just assumed it was the Alamance County Schools bus garage, but I'm not 100% sure on that.

As far as a coach or Wanderlodge, I briefly considered those options too, but decided against them.

I've never really had much interest in anything with a Detroit in it, which is what I've seen in almost all of the old coaches I've ever looked at. And as for the Wanderlodges, while they're nice, the inside still looks like a motorhome, which I'm going to try to stay away from. I really like the idea of us designing the interior layout ourselves and making it truly "ours".

 

[onenationundergoat]

I think it would be worth your time to spend a week making phone calls to the school districts that are selling DT466's, and asking if any of them are the white activity buses. If it's an activity bus it will probably have better gearing and transmission. Those are the ones you'll want to check out in person. I visited four or five school bus garages before I picked mine. They keep the for sale buses in the same place as the actual fleet because they use the for sale buses for field trips occasionally.

 

[cadillackid]

We bought our bus surplus from Alamance-Burlington county school bus garage. What are your specifics for your search? The Piedmont has some great and cheap buses with no rust, although make sure to get the oil analysis records because the garage director lied to me about my bus and it turned out to have coolant in the oil. If you vet the bus well, though, you should come out with a nice one. Mine had recent retreads on the back and new tires on front, and a full tank of diesel. There are lots of IH DT466 and DT360s in NC, and the pug nose is great for easy repairs. (We even did and in-chassis overhaul.)

Off the wall question.. is the rear main oil seal on the DT-360 replaceable without removing the flywheel? (I saw where you in-framed yours) mine is starting to leak a bit.. nothing too crazy but I notice some oil in my flywheel area and some drops on the ground when it sits over-night..

howd you get the head off with that pug-nose? seems it would have been tricky to get a hoist in there..

-Christopher

 

[cadillackid]

Yeah, the drivetrain is the biggest reason it's taking me so long to find the right bus for us.

We'll be using it for a lot of long distance travel, so I'm looking for a rear engine setup with either a Cummins 8.3 or a DT466 and an MD3060. It's looking like I'll probably end up flying halfway across the country and driving it back to get that combination. I'll definitely be unlocking 6th gear before I hit the road back home with it.

I have a mechanical DT-360 / AT545 trans.. and ive put 8000 miles on my bus in the 4 months ive owned it....

perhaps not the most "desired" drive-train but I drive it everywhere..

-Christopher

 

[onenationundergoat]

Off the wall question.. is the rear main oil seal on the DT-360 replaceable without removing the flywheel? (I saw where you in-framed yours) mine is starting to leak a bit.. nothing too crazy but I notice some oil in my flywheel area and some drops on the ground when it sits over-night..

howd you get the head off with that pug-nose? seems it would have been tricky to get a hoist in there..

-Christopher

We didn't touch the oil seals, and we actually have a leak on a main seal right now. But it's only a few drops (even when it sits for a few months). I usually go with the "don't worry about it" approach for oil leaks unless it's causing a large problem. Had a Mitsubishi 3000gt with oil leaking onto a belt that would cause smoke. People would stop me all the time to tell me my car was on fire. I just carried an extra quart around and put it in once a month or two. Did that same approach for the bus when the turbo oil pressure pipe was leaking, but that was 1 gallon every 1000 miles and we were going 300-500 miles a day.

As far as the in chassis overhaul on the pug nose, it was super easy because almost all of the work was done from inside the cab. Pulling the head was a little awkward, but with a rope and two people it just took a minute. I'd guess it weighs about 80 lbs, but two people are needed because it's really long and hard to maneuver. Getting it back on was a little tricky for lining up the head gasket, but a third person standing by to eyeball and push the gasket and head pins where it lines up made it easy.

Really the biggest headache was the literal one you get from bending over the engine with your head down while reaching in to work. I think the only thing we had to reach from the front was the bottom of the metal fuel lines going into the injectors.

It also helps to have tiny hands for some parts and someone else with some strength for torquing everything down.

OH YEAH. Since we have the same bus, be aware that the manual is wrong about the torque for the piston rod bolts. (In case you ever change your bearings.) Read back through my thread or Google it to get the right specs. Costly mistake in the manual.

 

[cadillackid]

good tip on the bolt torque... because yeah I wouldve gone by the torque specs in the book... did you have a rod bolt back out on you?

I had that happen on a Chevy 350 i built a long time ago.. I believe I Missed it during the torque sequence.. once I heard the knocking start i shut it down and towed it home.. it was in an old police cruiser I had built.. got lucky i didnt toss the rod and crash the block..


my engine drips a few drops on the ground after I drive it but I dont use much oil..
of course I still think its sounds louder than it should but everyone tells me the "growl" and what I call the "rattle" is normal in a diesel.. I guess it must be since ive run 8000 miles on the bus in 4 months and the sound hasnt changed one bit... my exhaust manifold bolts like to work loose.. I guess I need to get the torque wrench and set them correct.. im probablyt not torqueing them enough.. but thats a minor thing..

when I accidentilly overfilled the oil by 2 quarts i blew a little out the draft tube at highway speeds but that of course rectified itself after a few thousand miles and the oil level back to normal..

the more I drive the DT360/AT545 combo the more iget confident and comfortable with it.. running it at 55 on the highway I turn about 2300-2500 RPM most of the time and get over 11 MPG... I dont think thats too bad for a school bus...

-Christopher

 

[EastCoastCB]

THe rear main on a used bus being a bit leaky is par for the course. No worries unless its pissing oil.

 

[cadillackid]

THe rear main on a used bus being a bit leaky is par for the course. No worries unless its pissing oil.

must be a diesel / truck thing.. since every rest area or truck stop i go to theres huge oil marks in the pavement from many a truck thats leaked...

I tend to over-think this stuff too much.. i should treat it like everything else i do.. if it breaks i fix it.. pure and simple...

-Christopher

 

[onenationundergoat]

good tip on the bolt torque... because yeah I wouldve gone by the torque specs in the book... did you have a rod bolt back out on you?

As Dan was torquing down the bolt it started to stretch instead of tighten. The bolt was turning to the right but the torque wrench was saying it was getting looser. He said "this doesn't feel right!" So we had to do a major hunt to find replacement bolts. International discontinued them. Could only find two places in the country that had them, and one of them wanted me to buy a dozen. I ended up paying $75 for 2 bolts and nuts.

 

[Rameses-SKO]

I had a fuel injected Ford 460 in an old rollback truck that had a nut come loose on a rod cap. Broke my heart. That engine had so much power.

On the topic of buses, I called the Raleigh bus garage yesterday to schedule an appointment to go look at their surplus units. I was surprised to learn that every single one of the 78 passenger flat-fronts they have there is a non-runner. At least it saved me a trip over there.

 

[onenationundergoat]

Usually on the surplus page you'll see a little paperclip beside listings that have notes like "rusted out" or "coolant leak" or "does not run." They're supposed to discount any buses with problems by $500. I would have been happy if they had given be that $500 after the bus guy hid the coolant leak from me, but nooooo. I had already signed the title before they finally gave me the bus records that I had asked for fifteen times. I was actually driving off and tuned around to go get them. If I hadn't done that I would never have known to anticipate that problem.

Make sure to get the oil analysis and maintenance records for whatever bus you pick, and look at them BEFORE you sign anything!

 

[Newbies-SKO]

OMGosh, we are in Chapel Hill and just starting our hunt. Our goals are different and we will be focused on a short bus. But perhaps we could share notes. Between Chapel Hill and Pittsboro.....

 

[cadillackid]

OMGosh, we are in Chapel Hill and just starting our hunt. Our goals are different and we will be focused on a short bus. But perhaps we could share notes. Between Chapel Hill and Pittsboro.....

everyone's goals here are different than each other... some are building homes, some party busses, others campers, mobile vet labs, software DEV busses, workshops, you name it.. welcome aboard and join the fun of having a Bus!!! I too have a short bus and Love it.
-Christopher