I think I found the one.

[PNW_Steve]

No, somebody wants to pay more than I'm willing to without seeing it. It's probably a good thing though. My plant is in the middle of a turnaround, and so I can't take the time off to go get it. I'll pick up the search after I get back from summer vacation. Taking the kids on our first road trip. I told my wife I'm tired of giving all our vacation money to Disney.

No doubt... I wanted to do something nice for some friends a few years ago si I piled 6 kids in the bus and took them from Detroit to Orlando & Disneyworld.

Two weeks with the kids. One day at Disney. Spent more in that one day than the other thirteen combined.

We all had a blast so it was worth it. I do suspect though that we could have skipped Disney and they would still have had a great time road tripping & camping.

 

[djdalfaro]

No doubt... I wanted to do something nice for some friends a few years ago si I piled 6 kids in the bus and took them from Detroit to Orlando & Disneyworld.

Two weeks with the kids. One day at Disney. Spent more in that one day than the other thirteen combined.

We all had a blast so it was worth it. I do suspect though that we could have skipped Disney and they would still have had a great time road tripping & camping.

Yeah, that is the biggest reason I'm buying a bus. For the family vacations. Me and my wife have been together for 9 years. We've been to Disneyland twice, Disney world once, and been on 2 Disney cruises. Her mom is a Disney nut so we stay in the resort and do all the extra stuff, but I can't handle it anymore.



So in June we're off to see New Orleans, Chattanooga, Monticello, Chiincoteague, Colonial Williamsburg, and a few other stops. It'll be a lot more fun and a lot cheaper once I buy a bus.

 

[PNW_Steve]

So in June we're off to see New Orleans, Chattanooga, Monticello, Chiincoteague, Colonial Williamsburg, and a few other stops. It'll be a lot more fun and a lot cheaper once I buy a bus.

I'm envious. I can't wait to visit those places again. Have you seen Plimoth Plantation? One of my most memorable stop on my last trip East.


http://www.plimoth.org

 

[o1marc]

So in June we're off to see New Orleans, Chattanooga, Monticello, Chiincoteague, Colonial Williamsburg, and a few other stops. It'll be a lot more fun and a lot cheaper once I buy a bus.

On my bucket list I want to check off a pic of my bus coming through one of the giant Redwood trees, sadly, none of the holes are big enough for a Skoolie.

 

[cowlitzcoach]

I think you will be happy you didn't get that Ford chassis bus.

It looked to me as if it had the Girling brakes. They are a good system except finding parts support for them is difficult at best. When Ford sold off their medium duty line to Freightliner Ford stopped supporting all of their medium duty parts. And Freightliner didn't begin supporting something they didn't make.

Keep looking. There are a lot of good buses for sale out there waiting for you and your $$$

 

[djdalfaro]

I'm envious. I can't wait to visit those places again. Have you seen Plimoth Plantation? One of my most memorable stop on my last trip East.


Plimoth Plantation

No, I've never been to MA. I'll have to work that into a trip when we head up that direction.

Thanks,

 

[djdalfaro]

So to close this thread out, I'm happy to say, I BOUGHT A BUS!!!

Well, almost... I won the auction, and I'm heading to the bank now to get the cashiers check and mail it out. It's a 1994 International Thomas 7 window w/ lift and AC. It's got the DT408 and I'm assuming the AT545. I'll be picking it up in 2 weeks after my summer vacation. Looking forward to getting started.

Thanks for all the advice. See my signature thread for the few pictures I do have(so far).

 

[PNW_Steve]

Congratulations!!!

 

[cowlitzcoach]

It sounds as if you got what you wanted to get.

I hope the price was in the range you were wanting to pay.

The DT408 is between the DT360 and DT466. Externally it isn't that much different from the DT466. It is a great engine with HP rating in the 185-210 HP range.

Transmission is more than likely the AT545 but it just might be the MT643.

Good luck and happy trails to you!

 

[djdalfaro]

It sounds as if you got what you wanted to get.

I hope the price was in the range you were wanting to pay.

The DT408 is between the DT360 and DT466. Externally it isn't that much different from the DT466. It is a great engine with HP rating in the 185-210 HP range.

Transmission is more than likely the AT545 but it just might be the MT643.

Good luck and happy trails to you!

Thanks! I got it for $2600. That includes AC and no rust (just north of Dallas).

As far as the transmission is concerned, the gentleman I spoke to wasn't sure which one it had, I'm betting on the AT545, but I may be pleasantly surprised when I crawl under it.

HP is deceptive when considering these vehicles, so I like looking at the torque figures. The torque on the DT408 go from 420-605. So I'm hoping for the MT643 as the AT545 is only good to 475 I believe.

 

[Rovobay]

congrats! get those pics coming!!

 

[EastCoastCB]

Thanks! I got it for $2600. That includes AC and no rust (just north of Dallas).

As far as the transmission is concerned, the gentleman I spoke to wasn't sure which one it had, I'm betting on the AT545, but I may be pleasantly surprised when I crawl under it.

HP is deceptive when considering these vehicles, so I like looking at the torque figures. The torque on the DT408 go from 420-605. So I'm hoping for the MT643 as the AT545 is only good to 475 I believe.

Its almost surely the 545. But that bus was a STEAL!!!! I'd have bought it, too!

Don't worry too much about that 545. They do kinda suck but you can always fix that later on if you can't live with it. The 408 is a nice engine. A rust free shorty with ac and a mechanical DT is worth it ALL DAY.

 

[djdalfaro]

Its almost surely the 545. But that bus was a STEAL!!!! I'd have bought it, too!

Don't worry too much about that 545. They do kinda suck but you can always fix that later on if you can't live with it. The 408 is a nice engine. A rust free shorty with ac and a mechanical DT is worth it ALL DAY.

Thanks! After discussions here, and watching A LOT of auctions go by, I am quite pleased with the price. If it had been on a more popular auction site, I don't think I would have gotten off so cheaply.

 

[Elliot Naess]

http://www.skoolie.net/forums/f33/how-to-tell-at545-from-mt643-w-pix-and-specs-1641.html