wow, so a couple I helped pick out a bus.....

cadillackid said:
somewhere I swear I saw once where someone had built a short convertible bus..

-Christopher
Click to expand...

About the closest thing to a "convertible" bus are the ones I've seen on the Eastern Shore of VA. The farmers take old school buses and cut the entire roof off from the drivers seat all the way back, down to the bottom of the window opening. They load the bus up with watermelons and whatever else has just been picked to take them to the wholesaler. Funny as heck to see it.....the sides are bowed out since a majority of the support structure is gone. They don't care. And they don't even have to have them licensed or inspected since they're for "Farm Use Only".
 
Dear Everyone,
Yes let's stay on topic
I'm like CrazyCal, I am
indifferent to the politics.
We just like Skoolie.net
There sure are plenty of
ads now ain't there.
Sincerely, SCARECROW.
 
As P.C. as i can be...

This was a very interesting read....
I tend to agree with the few comments about tiny homes being the current "fad", but i can't personally attest to the fact this is driving prices up for used buses, as I'm new to the "ecosystem" myself.
What's funny about bansil's story is that....these people are bashing skoolie.net's community for being "poor" and "hippies"...but they are trying to go the same route...just spending more money...and that makes it "better" or "hip"?

Just out of curiosity, what was the age bracket of these couple?

And to (try to) answer your original question...They've seen it on TV to do it that route, so they might think "that's the way to do it!", without doing more research? Once they saw skoolie.net, my gut feeling is they were put off by the amount of work a similar project actually needs, and steered away from it.
If i had to label that, I'd call their reaction "snob-ish", "childish", "narrow-minded" because:
1. snob-ish: well, that's self explanatory
2. childish: not willing to face a challenge
3. narrow-minded: no possible other ways of doing it; "we'll do it our way" attitude.

Maybe i'm reading too much into this....maybe it's the "poor hippie" in me, trying to finish the bus with leftover ikea pieces...
:smile::marshmallow:
 
The thought that this young couple can by themselves do better than what we're doing here as a group is absurd. The builds I've seen on this site are not hippy looking at all and the level of spending on these builds is significant. These skoolies are so far away from the funky paint jobs, pink bead spreads in the windows and stove pipes sticking out the back.
Unless this couple has an uncommon amount of skills to work with I don't see how they could do any better than the tried and tested results that are shared here. My guess is they still troll this site looking for information. Now imagine how embarrassed that makes them feel.
 
TV fanfare is a tough thing to overcome...

a few years ago my Christmas lights display won the all central-ohio contest.. and a 15 minute segment was filmed on it.. and not once did the TV segment lead on to all the crazy hard work that went into programming 32 embedded controllers, building a network, synchronizing the music MANUALLY.... somehow getting 7 servers to all talk to each other.. well you get the idea.. the TV show made it all out to be glamourous and fun... which to me it was fun.. but I got so many emails of (how cool that is I want to do it.. how do you do it??).. and when they found out i worked on it for 2 years and spent 1000s.. the interest level would fade very quickly...

Bus conversions arent all about that "magical 500 dollar perfect barn find bus and 4 dollar wal-mart curtains that look like a million.."..

this stuff takes not only patience but real Skill in a lot of areas.. OR it takes $$$..

or both as is the case on some of these builds...

people get discouraged easily when they see all the glamour and pictures of cool work being done but have no concept of just how hard that work is.. there some builds on this site where people make it look easy.. but look at how long those threads are.. the threads are YEARS old.. and truly only people that have worked on or seen a project like this first hand can understand all that goes into it...

not only the work but the thought and ENGINEERING of the project.. from the layout aesthetics to how that layout fits into the mechanics of a bus..

theres a reason why commercially built RVs cost 100k and up...

theres some great minimalist Low-cost builds on this board that are quite functional and work well... but those arent the builds that make tiny-home TV shows.. nor are they the builds that people look at when they google search...

the eyes gravitate toward the top-notched fancy builds.. and when someone realizes the work and time involved in those they freak out...

not to mention many have not researched the logistics of RVing at all let alone how RVing will (or wont) fit into their own lives...

let this site be a catalyst and a wealth of information for people who are looking into and are enjying their builds.. AND ALSO let it be a wealth of information and a reality-check for those who find that this type of project is not for them after-all...

I DO have a problem with someone who trashes the community though just because it doesnt fit what they want to do...
-Christopher
 
cadillackid said:
I DO have a problem with someone who trashes the community though just because it doesnt fit what they want to do...
-Christopher
Click to expand...

Excellent reply cadillac! I can speak firsthand of the wealth of info that I've gleaned from this site since I joined several years back. I am still in the stage of deciding whether I want to buy a school bus or coach and spend at least 2 years or more converting it, or buying a factory built rv that I can use right away. Since my short term goal is to take my daughter on trips to all the cool out of the way places before she graduates school, I'm 99% sure I'll find a used rv and just remodel it for our needs. After a few years I'll end up buying a bus to convert for my long term goal of retirement and living on the road full time, once she is an adult and has started down her path.
Either way, this site is VERY useful and I learn something every time I log on. Great community on here and I'd pick a skoolie for durability over a factory built rv any day. My 2 cents. :dance:
 
the beauty i find here is that unlike some other vehicle sites.. this site is welcoming of MANY types of builds... we have those that are doing full blown tiny homes... RV's, minimalist builds, toy haulers, band busses, artist studios, even read about someone wanting to make a food truck, in my case a tech-Dev lab and somewhat daily-driver...

now go to a site (I once built a monte carlo) like montecarlo forum and tell them you want to make a luxury V6 automatic with 24" rims and plush seats... youll get laughed out of there because its "expected" you are building a Muscle-car Hot-Rod.. this site isnt like that...

difference? here.. if you got a bus or are thinking about one.. people here will help you out!

-Christopher
 
EastCoastCB said:
I like hippies.
Click to expand...

"Damn Dirty Hippies" :biggrin:
I may still be able to fulfill my skoolie lust short term if I buy an E450 Shuttle Bus and use that to pull an rv. Much cheaper than buying a normal F350 for >$30,000 and I can outfit the E450 as a travel vehicle and weekend getaway camper for when I want to camp solo. So many ideas, so little money!! :banghead:
 

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WOW! I love this thread, can't believe i missed it till now.

I will say, in defense of Tiny-home folks, that is kinda where I started my journey. I became embarrassed at the wasted space I was living in after my divorce(it was only 2,000 sq ft.). Don't get me wrong, I LOVED my full basement and miss it dearly, but the rest of the house was a waste of space, heating and cooling.

When I discovered folks LIVING in buses, I thought - I CAN DO THAT!!

Here I am 8 months later, wondering why I did not start sooner.

I am still fascinated by alternative living - mainly cob houses, earthships, and tree houses. I don't really understand the $80k boxes - what is the point?

Great thread :thumb:
 
Same point as people that want already converted buses.

Some don't want to do all the work and planning necessary to convert a bus themselves but they want a reliable vehicle that's functional to live in now. Since nice low end converted buses sell for about 20k, those that can do. Most of us put in sweat equity to make these buses right because that's the way we can afford it. Some people enjoy learning the skills while others avoid learning the skills. If you build it, it's part of you. If you buy it, it's a possession.
 
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