Well... I did it.

[cntryby]

Pic from the auction.

 

[musigenesis]

I've heard of silent auctions before but not invisible ones.

 

[Skoolmee]

Was this the public surplus auction bus from New Mexico?

 

[cntryby]

Was this the public surplus auction bus from New Mexico?

Yes, if you were watching you'll understand why I said I paid more than I wanted. I've been trying to get a bus for almost three years. They always seem to go for a couple grand more than I was willing to pay.

 

[cntryby]

I've heard of silent auctions before but not invisible ones.

What do you mean?

 

[Skoolmee]

The picture didn't come through.

No, I wasn't watching the auction. I looked at the bus and I liked it but around here that repair would run me several thousand dollars and I don't have the time or space to do it myself. Even if it went real cheap I wouldn't have trusted it to drive across the country (I'm in NJ).

Are you going to do the work yourself?

 

[cntryby]

Yes I'll be doing all the work myself. I started turning wrenches forty something years ago. By a strange twist of fate ended up servicing robotics and automation in the medical device manufacturing field.


I've built quite a few different toys, always service my own vehicles and even deliberately voided the warranty on a sixty thousand dollar week old truck.



I spent five years inn a machine shop programming and operating CNC's, before my jump to medical devices. I weld, design, fabricate... etc.



Mainly I have trust issues. I took a new motorcycle to have the tires changed and they scratched up the wheels, so I looked on the web, gleaned a few ideas and designed and built my own hydraulic tire changer which only touches the wheels with plastic.



Anyways, yes, I'll do it all myself because it will be myself and the love of my life depending on this thing to get us there and back, for years to come.

 

[musigenesis]

What do you mean?

The auction picture you posted is not visible. Most likely it has been deleted by the auction site - if you're still seeing it, it might be because it was cached by your browser.

 

[cntryby]

Can anyone see the pic? I thought skoolmee could?

 

[Skoolmee]

I cannot, that is what I meant by "the pic didn't come through"

 

[cntryby]

2000 Blue Bird AARE

 

[cntryby]

The auction picture you posted is not visible. Most likely it has been deleted by the auction site - if you're still seeing it, it might be because it was cached by your browser.

Strange... I can see it in my first pic post and in your quote...


Can you see the thumbnail?

 

[john61ct-SKO]

The image links direct to https://www.publicsurplus.com

no longer work, they've been archived or deleted off the site.

If **you** still have them cached, you might be able to save to a known location then upload them to post here again.

 

[cntryby]

The image links direct to https://www.publicsurplus.com

no longer work, they've been archived or deleted off the site.

If **you** still have them cached, you might be able to save to a known location then upload them to post here again.

Can you see the thumbnail a couple of post up? I saved that on my PC and uploaded it as a jpeg file.


I cleared my cache, it may because I am the winning bidder and can still see the auction.

 

[musigenesis]

2000 Blue Bird AARE

I can see this pic. She's purty.

 

[Bon Voyage]

Bring something to charge your phone with, there more than likely isn’t a 12v cigarette plug. On the trip home with both my buses it was a pain for me, especially since I like to keep GPS on the screen while driving.

And what do you mean about Cummins recommending for fuel supply on the CAPS system? I know of after market recommendations for positive fuel pressure to the CAPS pump but not from Cummins.

 

[cntryby]

oops

After reading my notes, the Cummins service bulletin was about cleaning or replacing the plug, and assembling with dielectric grease.


Is there any convenient driver area / inside location to connect a couple of alligator clips for a phone charger?

 

[Bon Voyage]

What plug is it talking about?

I’m not sure about Bluebird but my Thomas buses have a compartment outside under the drivers window you could clip on to in there, then should be able to run wires through a empty switch spot or something so you can access inside.

 

[cntryby]

I think

Fuel pressure sensor. I believe that is for rough idle conditions.


All my notes on the maintain 15 -17 psi pressure to the caps is solutions that seem to be working for people who were having repetitive problems that were cured with this constant pressure.

 

[JackE]

The bus in the pic is a 14 window bus, but your description says capacity of 46. My '99 is the same as your '00, but my capacity is 84. I think you have a number wrong there, or is yours fitted with the coach type seats rather than the bench seats?

The access panel on the outside below the drivers window should have a lug in the bottom left corner that is the power supply for the whole panel. You can clip your alligator clip on that and run the wire to the left behind the wall right into the driver area. Follow the main power wire that is attached to that lug. Are those nice chrome wheels, or simulators? Either way I'm a little jealous of those and that 3rd lower storage bay. I only have 2 on each side.

I'm interested in and planning on having the 6th gear unlocked, but even without it, I can run down the highway with the cruise set at 75 all day long. I haven't run any mountains yet to see how well it'll do climbing, and I don't have any kind of retarder on it yet.

I am also interested in info you have on the fuel system stuff you are talking about. I spent a few years wrenching in the auto industry a long time ago, but I have no experience on large diesel applications.

Nice looking bus. Look forward to seeing what you do with it in the future.