Newest crazy bus lady

[jacqal]

Hello! I'm Jackie, I'm from WA and currently live in GA.

My situation is not ideal...
I found my dream bus on craigslist, but it is located in WA while I am 2000+ miles away. For now, I'm hoping the current owner is ok with holding it for me. If not, I guess I'll have to find another dream bus.

But in the meantime, I am already drawing plans and reading up on everything I need to do for my conversion.

In the future when I am able to get my bus and work on the buildup, I plan to use it for probably 1/4-1/3 of the year traveling. It will not serve as my one and only home, just a home away from home for myself and my two dogs.

I have watched waaayy too many youtube videos and read buckets of blog posts on van/bus conversions, but I always feel like I have more to learn or some question that has yet to be answered. While researching one question, I found this forum, and knew I needed to join. Awesome community, wise brains, cool buses?? yes please. So that's me, i'm very extroverted and not quiet about how little I know, so I welcome any and all to stop and say hello!

 

[Mountain Gnome]

Aloha! and Welcome to the bus world.

If you are looking at a 1965 GM bus, and you say you know very little, plan on spending a heap o' $$$.

I'm in Hotlanta now (for the next couple few months) and if you find something you are interested in and want a mechanical lookover before you buy it, let me know and I'll help you out...

Good luck!

 

[jacqal]

My interests/goals for my bus conversion are to include solar power, complete as much as I possibly can myself (with help and advice where needed), and I would like to focus on making the build as light as I can, in order to save a bit on gas mileage and because it can't hurt, right?

Does anyone have dogs that travel with them? Experience with solar panels or other sustainable energy? is there any sort of "light build" community? What about solo female traveler communities?

 

[jacqal]

Aloha! and Welcome to the bus world.

If you are looking at a 1965 GM bus, and you say you know very little, plan on spending a heap o' $$$.

I'm in Hotlanta now (for the next couple few months) and if you find something you are interested in and want a mechanical lookover before you buy it, let me know and I'll help you out...

Good luck!

I wish the bus was in state! But it's located in WA (where I'm from) but if/when I find a bus down here that sparks my interest as much as the one up north, I'll definitely LOVE for a professional to look it over. But generally as well, why do you say it might cost so much? Engine problems, bad quality, etc?

 

[jacqal]

Aloha! and Welcome to the bus world.

If you are looking at a 1965 GM bus, and you say you know very little, plan on spending a heap o' $$$.

Good luck!

Now you've got me thinking, I absolutely adore the look of my bus, so retro and beautiful... but the age alone might give me problems with the mechanics of it all. So I'm not necessarily giving up on that bus, but i am opening up to other (newer) bus options.

 

[cadillackid]

wow sweet fishbowl!!! im not sure id convert that though... a lot of parts of those are snatched up by collectors.. (surprtised that bus wasnt.. they are a commodity in the bus-geek world... ).. plus if you plan to skin windows etc the unusual shapes and lines of it may majke things more difficult.. the detroit engine (if thats what it is) is still pretty easy to get parts for, and is generally reliable. being over 50 years old and from the NW, how is it for rust? some of those had issues around where the floors and walls meet and wasnt super visible from the inside of the bus.. all depends alot on if its from the dry or wet siode of WA



Gearing is another thing.. those were often city route busses and may not have a top speed much over 50 MPH.. or it may be a great highway cruiser..


-Christopher

 

[HappyInTN]

Hello! I'm Jackie, I'm from WA and currently live in GA.

My situation is not ideal...
I found my dream bus on craigslist, but it is located in WA while I am 2000+ miles away. For now, I'm hoping the current owner is ok with holding it for me. If not, I guess I'll have to find another dream bus.

But in the meantime, I am already drawing plans and reading up on everything I need to do for my conversion.

In the future when I am able to get my bus and work on the buildup, I plan to use it for probably 1/4-1/3 of the year traveling. It will not serve as my one and only home, just a home away from home for myself and my two dogs.

I have watched waaayy too many youtube videos and read buckets of blog posts on van/bus conversions, but I always feel like I have more to learn or some question that has yet to be answered. While researching one question, I found this forum, and knew I needed to join. Awesome community, wise brains, cool buses?? yes please. So that's me, i'm very extroverted and not quiet about how little I know, so I welcome any and all to stop and say hello!

Welcome to the community lots of friendly/helpful folks here to help you along the way. Congrats!

 

[jacqal]

wow sweet fishbowl!!! im not sure id convert that though... a lot of parts of those are snatched up by collectors.. (surprtised that bus wasnt.. they are a commodity in the bus-geek world... ).. plus if you plan to skin windows etc the unusual shapes and lines of it may majke things more difficult.. the detroit engine (if thats what it is) is still pretty easy to get parts for, and is generally reliable. being over 50 years old and from the NW, how is it for rust? some of those had issues around where the floors and walls meet and wasnt super visible from the inside of the bus.. all depends alot on if its from the dry or wet siode of WA

Gearing is another thing.. those were often city route busses and may not have a top speed much over 50 MPH.. or it may be a great highway cruiser..


-Christopher

I looove the windshield. It’s definitely rare too, everything is original, the seats, the ads, the engine. I was thinking I could make an opportunity out of a collector’s market, I hope I could get some money selling parts I don’t need, like the majority of the seats at the least. I don’t want to skin any windows, so no issue there.
You’re right that the engine is a Detroit.
It has some exterior surface rust at first glance, but since I’ve only ever seen pictures, I obviously can’t check too closely. It’s super possible there’s more too. The bus lived the first half of its life in Southern California, then moved to western Washington where its been in storage for a long time.
While it was a city bus, I have no idea whether that means it would not be able to reach highway speeds, or if it would sail.

 

[cadillackid]

im biased i say save the fishbowl as an original. and get a school bus to convert.. esp since its still fully seated, with ads and all.. wow thats a rare beast!.. ill be honest I'll hate to see that one torn apart.. but nevertheless they are built extremely solidly, that bus wont fall apart for a good long time!!
-Christopher

 

[jacqal]

im biased i say save the fishbowl as an original. and get a school bus to convert.. esp since its still fully seated, with ads and all.. wow thats a rare beast!.. ill be honest I'll hate to see that one torn apart.. but nevertheless they are built extremely solidly, that bus wont fall apart for a good long time!!
-Christopher

Today's your lucky day, I just heard back from the current owner of the bus and he is also passionate about keeping it in the original state. So he wasn't willing to sell it to me haha. At least the integrity of the bus will be preserved. But now my search is on again, and I'm looking at a few other options.

 

[EastCoastCB]

Today's your lucky day, I just heard back from the current owner of the bus and he is also passionate about keeping it in the original state. So he wasn't willing to sell it to me haha. At least the integrity of the bus will be preserved. But now my search is on again, and I'm looking at a few other options.

Is the bus owned by a Hawaiian named Brant??

 

[Mountain Gnome]

What I meant about spending a heap on older stuff is that, yea, older stuff needs constant maintenance and repair. Maybe only little stuff here and there, but it adds up if you are paying a pro to do this stuff. Then there is the restoration factor regarding the body.

I traveled with dogs for the better of 15 years, but in my pickup truck or cars. They even went to Mexico with me in 1995 for a month. For them the truck was home. My lab would jump off the back deck over the fence, run around to the front, and either jump in the truck (if the window was open) or sleep underneath it, and wait for me. They came with me everywhere, and I would just leave a window open, and they would cruise the parking lot, often to go dumpster diving, while I shopped or had lunch. Occasionally I had to wait an hour or more for my Aussie sheppard. A few times I had to leave and come back, only to find her waiting where I parked.

When I went on Dead tour (back when Jerry was still playing) they came along....I would let them run free on the lot. Once at a football stadium I saw my lab on the other side of the stadium playing fetch the hackey-sack whistling::greetings with some folks....but they were always at the vehicle ready to rest as the sun began to set and it was time to go in and hear the music.
Once on tour in NC, the Aussie hooked up with a male dog who was hanging around with its caretaker. I gave my ticket to my friend and was outside for the show, and staying in the lot. When the crowds came out, the male dog got leashed and led away; and she disappeared with him.... I looked for her until I was the last one in the lot and they kicked me out. I drove 20 miles down the wrong direction on a 2-lane road in the country, stopped at a corner store at 1:30am that had 20 cars parked there. Came out of the store and she was in the back of my truck....we were just meant to be together...
Lost her once for 2 weeks in 2002 in Portsmouth VA when Phil, Bobby, and Mickey were all touring, and came together there... By that time the pups were old, and just wanted to chill in the truck. She bolted out of the truck while I was inside, probably because of fireworks (that terrified them for some reason). It was mid-summer, 90°F+ every day, and there were no natural water sources in town. 500 filers on every street corner in town, and we were reunited. That was about the worst 2 weeks of my life....and hers....she was never the same happy-go-lucky soul again.

Anyway, I still automatically look for shade to park in when I drive into a parking lot...even though they passed away in 2004/5. I don't know....traveling with dogs, kids, friends, whatever, you just gotta think outside your own little box....

 

[jacqal]

Is the bus owned by a Hawaiian named Brant??

Well i don't know anything about his nationality, but the owner said his name was Steven. Why?? That was oddly specific

 

[jacqal]

What I meant about spending a heap on older stuff is that, yea, older stuff needs constant maintenance and repair. Maybe only little stuff here and there, but it adds up if you are paying a pro to do this stuff. Then there is the restoration factor regarding the body.

I traveled with dogs for the better of 15 years...

That was a concern i had as well, and it turned out that it did have the possibility of some issues to begin with that I wouldn't be able to solve. But either way, the owner didn't want me to have it, so my search continues!

And about your dogs, that's exactly the right kind of bond everyone dreams of! I have two young boys who have been traveling and camping with me in the car, so i'm excited for them to be part of my van life too.

 

[EastCoastCB]

Well i don't know anything about his nationality, but the owner said his name was Steven. Why?? That was oddly specific

A guy named Brant buys up all the cool old classic buses/coaches. He used to be on here. He's real picky about who buys his old buses.:wink1:

 

[EastCoastCB]

What I meant about spending a heap on older stuff is that, yea, older stuff needs constant maintenance and repair. Maybe only little stuff here and there, but it adds up if you are paying a pro to do this stuff. Then there is the restoration factor regarding the body.

I traveled with dogs for the better of 15 years, but in my pickup truck or cars. They even went to Mexico with me in 1995 for a month. For them the truck was home. My lab would jump off the back deck over the fence, run around to the front, and either jump in the truck (if the window was open) or sleep underneath it, and wait for me. They came with me everywhere, and I would just leave a window open, and they would cruise the parking lot, often to go dumpster diving, while I shopped or had lunch. Occasionally I had to wait an hour or more for my Aussie sheppard. A few times I had to leave and come back, only to find her waiting where I parked.

When I went on Dead tour (back when Jerry was still playing) they came along....I would let them run free on the lot. Once at a football stadium I saw my lab on the other side of the stadium playing fetch the hackey-sack whistling::greetings with some folks....but they were always at the vehicle ready to rest as the sun began to set and it was time to go in and hear the music.
Once on tour in NC, the Aussie hooked up with a male dog who was hanging around with its caretaker. I gave my ticket to my friend and was outside for the show, and staying in the lot. When the crowds came out, the male dog got leashed and led away; and she disappeared with him.... I looked for her until I was the last one in the lot and they kicked me out. I drove 20 miles down the wrong direction on a 2-lane road in the country, stopped at a corner store at 1:30am that had 20 cars parked there. Came out of the store and she was in the back of my truck....we were just meant to be together...
Lost her once for 2 weeks in 2002 in Portsmouth VA when Phil, Bobby, and Mickey were all touring, and came together there... By that time the pups were old, and just wanted to chill in the truck. She bolted out of the truck while I was inside, probably because of fireworks (that terrified them for some reason). It was mid-summer, 90°F+ every day, and there were no natural water sources in town. 500 filers on every street corner in town, and we were reunited. That was about the worst 2 weeks of my life....and hers....she was never the same happy-go-lucky soul again.

Anyway, I still automatically look for shade to park in when I drive into a parking lot...even though they passed away in 2004/5. I don't know....traveling with dogs, kids, friends, whatever, you just gotta think outside your own little box....

I got to see Jerry play in 95. After that the scene just wasn't the same.
Furthur 98 was the last for me.

 

[Mountain Gnome]

I got to see Jerry play in 95. After that the scene just wasn't the same.
Furthur 98 was the last for me.

1988 was the year I first got on the bus....it was different then from 95...
No it's not the same...nothing ever is...once you leave home, you can never go back, because everything is different when you do....
I'm sure the folks who toured in the 1970s were saying the same thing in 1995, with Bruce on keys....
The last day in the late afternoon in Chicago for the 50-year reunion thing started to hint at the old feeling.....
But if you can't be with the one(s) you love, honey, love the one(s) you're with...

 

[magnakansas]

crazy bus lady what about this bus?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Old-Look-G...3e563da7:g:JUUAAOSwCsBa6cAt:rk:1:pf:0&vxp=mtr


william

 

[jacqal]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Old-Look-G...3e563da7:g:JUUAAOSwCsBa6cAt:rk:1:pf:0&vxp=mtr


william

That bus is cool, but it’s in no shape for me to be able to restore it

 

[Tanker Pilot]

Hi Jackie,

I’m new here too. I live in southern OR, and I found a guy that has a lot of buses in Wolk Creek, OR. So, if you are out this way and the WA bus does not work out, it may be an option for you. What kind/size of bus are you looking for? Being a mountainous area, he has buses equipped with the more powerful engines and stronger trannies. But he also has others. Let me know if you are interested in his contact information. Cheers!

James