Hello from West of the Mississippi

[TheCog]

Came across this site when searching what others have done their folding doors up front. Looks like a great place to tap into others ideas and creativity when it comes to converting spaces...so I'm in.

Wife and I have been married just short of 25 years and our kids are grown so we have some new found freedom we are happily dealing with. I've been in the construction biz for about as long and am fortunate to be able to cherry pick jobs now days. Love riding motorcycles (mostly street) and visiting the beach as often as possible...the latter requires a road trip or plane tickets though.

I have recently acquired a 1990 Ford E350 Shuttle Bus that will become a multipurpose vehicle that will serve as shelter, cargo van and sometimes as a retail space. Any modifications need to be modular so transformation to a different use can be fairly easy. It would be nice if I can figure out a way to put the bed over the front cab so that it is always out of the way of other transformations. The challenge there is providing structure to hold it up...particularly in the front of the bubble.

At this point I have decided to go with a clean slate so I have gutted the rear seating, wheelchair lift and removed the inner fiberglass shell. With a little sanding and prep work the outer, structural fiberglass shell should paint up nicely on the inside.

Looking forward to seeing and reading about others peoples rigs.

 

[Carytowncat]

Welcome, gkad you are here

 

[EastCoastCB]

Hello! From east of the Mississippi.

 

[cadillackid]

cool lookin bus!! I had an old 460 club wagon once.. !!

I would want to re-structuralize that fiberglass shell.. I think the inner shell on alo of those shuttles was structural in nature.. but I may be wrong...
-Christopher

 

[TheCog]

Thanks for the welcomes.

The main shell or outer shell (not sure what to call it) is structural...it has a steel frame with insulation in between the members then its all cocooned together with fiberglass. The inner shell was thin fiberglass and just for cosmetics and to provide a gap for another layer of insulation in the drivers area.

460 does suck gas but also has nice pickup when you hammer it. Just got back from doing a emissions test and it passed with flying colors. Also the first trip since taking out the wheelchair lift and diggin how much quieter it is now that that rattle box is out.

 

[Carytowncat]

Nice news it passed emissions. I was just reminded that emissions is good evidence of how the engine is running. I needed that reminder because i am sour to engineers covering these beautiful motors in extra stuff.

Oh i bet that 460 gets up nicely. I suggest glasspacks
DRAGBUS!

 

[milkmania]

cool lookin bus!! I had an old 460 club wagon once.. !!

-Christopher

That reminded me of when I was a kid... We loaded up in the old Clark Griswold looking station wagon and headed to Tulsa, via Muskogee Turnpike

We're stopped in a toll booth, cruise control malfunctions and we're spinning tires and slamming left and right against the barricades. Tire smoke just rolling from power-braking. Scratched the fake wood vinyl decals all to ****.
I don't remember how POS step-dad shut it down, but it lasted long enough that several of the toll booth attendants gathered around.