It's always interesting picking up a vehicle that hasn't been driven in a while. I once spent the better part of 2 days getting an old Dodge M400 base motorhome home. It was an adventure just like yours. Keep the good stuff coming.
I think this is the fourth video of yours that I've seen, beginning with the insulation tutorial, and I'm hooked! SO much information packed into every one of them. I worked on imports decades ago and mechanical things have always fascinated me. Now I find I want to live in a school bus. I wouldn't hesitate to live in a bus that you've built out!
One of my Bluebird buses has an AT545, I'm putting a 6x6 drive train under it with 4 speed brownie. I'm pulling the 12 valve cummins and putting in 400 big cam cummins.
Cummins 5.9l 12v is one of my all time favorite diesel engines. They can be turned up via the usual p-pump, injectors, compressor, tuning, exhaust, etc and make A LOT of reliable power when done right. The fact that they have none of the emissions B.S. is a HUGE plus. Hard to go wrong with a boosted I6 anything really, especially at those super low miles you've got. Check out Power Driven Diesel, they're just one of the many great diesel performance shops that are out there. They have a channel as well if you are interested. Lubro/ Liqui Moly has some good stuff. I use the Jectron and Ventil Sauber (injector/ valve cleaner,) and it works quite well. Berryman's B12 is also another more readily available cleaner as well. Thanks for sharing, I enjoy your videos bro, and appreciate your work, I am a 25+ tech who'll turn a wrench on nearly anything and everything, and I recognize good work done correctly when I see it👍😎
You two make that adventure seem so easy! Diagnosing the problem is super important. I’d still be parked outside 7/11. Fun video. Next time I pick up a bus I’m bringing you two with me!!
Add to that bag of tricks a true 6 in 1 screwdriver, they are, 2 sizes of Phillips, 2 sizes of regular, and a 1/4" and 5/16 nut drivers, Hose clamps are 1/4" and 5/16ths" BTW. very handy- minimal space.
I was looking at essentially this same bus this very morning. There were two for sale in my neck of the woods, an ADA lift equipped bus, and the regular bus. We've been spitballing with a neighbor who is of the local Native tribe the possibility of converting a bus into a mini supermarket, since a lot of Elders, both tribe and non-tribe in the community just can't get to town whenever. The other would make sense as a base camp for me and the family for camping. When I was a kid, when I spent my summers with my grandparents who used to live rural in another country, a converted bus rolled in at 2pm on Fridays and we got to go get ice cream with our pocket money while my grandma did her grocery shopping. Just daydreaming for now, though. Got a lot of other stuff to worry about, and a skoolie must wait.
Loved this video. I have had my bus for a little over a year. It was a 6 hour drive home and it handled great. Driven it around a little bit. Took it on another 6 hour drive (each way) for a trip to the in laws for some free quartz countertops. We have our first fun trip planned for just under a month away up to the Tetons. (Roughly a 4-5 hour drive). I know my tires are a little on the older side, but I don't have any signs of cracking on any of them. I think the front tires are 5 years old, back are 7 ish, but still don't have any signs of dry rot/sun damage. I know I want to do a full service before we go. Our ABS light was flashing the last time I ran the bus. I know our coolant is slightly low. Who knows when the oil was changed last, though I know we have enough. The list goes on... I want to make sure that it is all the way good to go for this first trip. I have a 36 ft dog nose with the Mercedes MBE 906 and Allison 2500 transmission. I notice that when I push the bus to get up to 70 mph, that the RPMs are around 2500 and the temperatures seem to rise. They never get all the way up to any danger zones, but definitely above standard operating temperature when I'm going 63 mph ish. I was curious if you had any experience with my engine and transmission combo. I have heard that finding a mechanic that knows their stuff about the Mercedes engines is a little tougher... Ideally I want to learn how to do it all myself, but obviously I have no experience yet. I was just wondering if you had any advice on how to make sure that our bus is all good and safe to take on another trip. Anyways, this video was super helpful. Thanks!
That's a fantastic combo. The first and most important thing to do is change the oil, flush and fill with the proper type of coolant, and make sure the transmission fluid is full and bright red. If nit, change that asap. More buses are ruined to low or improper coolant than anything else. Don't mess around! Good luck!
I have owned that filter strap/wrench for probably 15 years when my family at the time owned 3 different makes of cars, (made oil changes a lot easier). Still my go-to tool and i'm not even skookiein' (is that a word) yet...
So Chuck Cassidy gotta? For ya 😊 are you still going to build buses for people like me ,who have no clue what to do 😮 😂 I have been watching 👀 a lot of your videos and I even subscribed 😊 just to make sure I don't miss any of your amazing awesomeness videos 😊 As I need to learn as much as possible from you and other awesome skoolie peeps out there ,if your not going to build anymore could you please point me in the right direction to someone who cares as much as you do and uses all the right products ECT please 😊❤ thank you so much for your wisdom and god bless you for all you do 😊
Yippie Chuck, I'm glad I know you and follow you. And the diesel sound is music to this Iowa country boy. And now the pickup trucks so many drive on Oregon sing my song too. I also wonder about the slide addition mentioned here.
I really thought y'all were moving outta the shop. How much longer r u keeping the shop? You always seem to keep us on our toes with surprises. Yer fuggin awesome!
What a great score ! man, I need a (better newer) bus. Sure wish I was closer, or you were closer, or something. Love from Canada. Keep doing cool things.
Pass the savings on to me! I might like to have it. I won an auction but didn't meet the reserve last week, and maybe it's because this bus was destined for me. I had a truck with that engine, so I know them well. I broke the transmission because I could get horsepower with a grinder and screwdriver, so be careful.
A little water in the bottom of the fuel tank will give occasional problems as it sloshes as the bus moves, will idle great. a drop of water won't go thru the engine well.
Great video of what can go wrong driving a new purchase home. Question, what would you do with a 2006 c7 cat in a FL short bus that hasn't driven 100 miles in 6 years? It starts up like new, great oil pressure but cannot test drive it. Your thoughts? Thanks
Nice score! That's the beauty of building, you gotta work on it! So I know it's sold, what about the other beside it? And you are not doing full builds anymore?
Be very careful. You want a fuel filter to prevent significant engine damage. I mean if sediment gets in the tank and gets pumped through the system, it could damage the bladders on your fuel pumps, then go through and damage the engine cylinders. It doesn't take much diesel to run a diesel engine as it atomizes the diesel to combust. So a filter won't harm its efficiency. Also, I'm thinking that a broken pump bladder will cause engine runaway. I could be wrong, but it stands to reason that if the pump can't vary the speed of the fuel based on the engine timing, then it'll cause it to get too much fuel.
This bus still has a fuel filter. They added a second one that we removed. There are no fuel bladders on this system, I've never heard of fuel bladders on a diesel.
Clogged fuel filters are the #1 cause of poor engine performance on a diesel in my 16 years of experience with diesels of all kinds. Adding extra filters is fine, but when they are cheap and small, they will not help performance
Yeah l know... I am way behind on videos. Bought a new house and have been so busy. Trying not to cripple myself here and to boot l have had limited access to internet. They finally came to out the internet in last week so watching my favorite feeds in order so l don't miss any special gems!! Love the purple wire ideology... I totally agree purple is so underated for its magical powers! Hahahaha!!!
I can build the interior, I can do the electrical and plumbing, I can do a lot of things, but I have two three-fingered left hands when it comes to engines. I'm completely inept mechanically. I could live in a bus if it weren't for that. Thanks for the video!
Theory: The aftermarket “pre-filter” was because the owner, a construction company, uses “off road diesel” which is a slightly lower grade of fuel, needing more filtration. If you’re only going to burn retail grade fuel, the pre-filter is unnecessary.
Actually it is the exact same fuel with red dye in it. The modern construction equipment requires ultra low sulfur fuel, they have after treatment and use DEF.
Purple as the royal color started with ancient monarchies. The color was difficult to produce, which made it expensive and available only to upper society. Rulers wore purple robes and used purple ink to sign their edicts. Some Roman emperors penalized their citizens by death for wearing purple garments.
I have the same bus, with chunks of polymerized veggie oil/diesel film garbage in the fuel tank. I'm trying to drop the 100-gal tank to boil it out. NEVER PUT VEG OIL IN YOUR DIESEL TANK!!!!
Yippie Chuck, I'm glad I know you and follow you. And the diesel sound is music to this Iowa country boy. And now the pickup trucks so many drive on Oregon sing my song too. I also wonder about the slide addition mentioned here.
