quote:

The batteries would have to be vented to the outside, I guess

Michael,

if you use AGMs you do not need to vent.

http://www.lifelinebatteries.com/rv.php

Just to let everyone know that things are proceeding. Finally drove the bus for the first time today! Wheeee! A bus sure is wider than a van....

The engine has a tendency to stall whenever I'm stopped at a light and not giving it gas. Should I get the idle adjusted? Someone suggested this is just new-engine behavior.

I'm having a bit more work done on it to make it easier for me to get in and out of, then I'm going to take it for a spin past all the local RV parks. I want to do a survey of how many of them would let it in. If they nearly all do, then I will make the setup all electric for now. If a lot of them turn me away, I'll put some more thought into propane so I can boondock when I can't find a park that takes the bus.

More soon!

This is great news! How exciting, and can't wait to see how the RV parks take your Bus. I've been reading all the work you are doing and enjoy that. Can't wait to see pictures! Are you doing a webpage that I've missed? Good Luck!

Rain, there are pictures on page 2, and a floorplan on page 3. I guess there's no reason not to repeat them. Comments are welcome!

That is a nice looking bus, don't know why any campground would refuse you. Floor plan looks darn good too. It's exciting for you I'm sure and I like watching it all come together in pictures. What a great time you will have with this home on wheels. Thanks for showing these again to me.

I'm very happy for you, Michael.... this bus is exactly what Ken & I had thought of doing whenever we'd be in one of them heading for a doctor's appt or shopping trip last winter & spring. I like your floor plan, too. Sounds like you've covered just about all the bases, thinking and planning ahead for being able to reach things and turning around in tight spaces. I'll be watching and hoping for more photos, too, as your project progresses. Do you have a web site where you'll be posting photos? If not, may I offer some space on mine, free of any obligation on your part... ? I'd be happy to host your photos, so just holler if you'd be interested. I think this is a great project and wish you the best in getting it all done to your specs and satisfaction. SKP hugs, Lee

What a nice offer, but then I knew you were a Sweetie.

Thanks, I have a site. The photos are just links there. I'd just rather post here where everyone can comment.

.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: geysergazers,

Here's an update for anyone interested.

I've had hand controls and some other accessibility changes done to the bus, but I still have one stumbling block. The lift doors are not designed to be opened from the inside. Instead, the driver is supposed to go around the outside, open them and operate the lift. I've tried three different ways of opening and closing them, and nothing has been satisfactory. I have another really rube-goldberg approach to try this week.

Unfortunately, the van conversion people are off on another project and don't want to do any more work on the bus for awhile. They did say they could spare another brief bit of time once I figured out what to do about the doors, but they've left it to me.

With the doors tied closed from the inside, I did drive the bus last week, through the hills and down to a state park. No problem driving it or parking it, so that's all good! I even drove it back in the dark.

I am missing a bulb on my left turn signal, the mirrors keep slipping out of position, and I'm not sure if this fancy Telma Retarder braking system is actually working. I'll have to find a dealer to check it out. There are four lights on the dash that I assumed would come on when I brake, but nothing does. It brakes OK though.

As soon as I can open and close the lift doors reliably, I'll start checking out RV parks.

.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: geysergazers,

Its unlikely the door will have clear access from the inside, the lift gate acts as a secondary barricade in most of these buses.
I'm thinking an electric solenoid switch will be the most simplistic modification to go with. If you go with a higher quality than what most accessory shops sell, you will have little to any problems with it for years.
If you are dealing with a custom shop, ask them to consider the motorized trunk latch systems on some of the older caddillac cars, they were designed to be a true effortless closure device and to protect the trunk from being slammed shut. When the trunk gets within a few inches of closing, the latch grabs and then powers the trunk down to make contact with the weather stripping seal. This can be easily adapted to your needs of a door in the vertical hinge position.
The best part is, these latches have key releases built into them, so if the power did fail, you could still get the thing open from the outside. Something to consider in favor of this design is, if the power won't unlock the door, it will most likely not operate the lift gate either . This makes the low desire for an electrical latch issue some what small to me, but I'm not the one who will rely on it everyday for access.

You are right that the problem is the lift itself blocks the door. Otherwise, some kind of interior lock would be no big deal.

So to fix this, I need to either reach around the lift (and I can only reach a couple of inches in with the lift in the way), over the top, or have an electric door mechanism.

The van I drive now has an electric sliding door, and it's been reasonably reliable. However, counting the door, the lift and the power seat, there are about a dozen circuits that have to work for me to get in and out of the van. Since I bought it three years ago, the wiring has failed twice, switches have broken three times, and connectors have fallen off three times. The lift controller died once, and the batteries died once. A real nuisance! So although the motors are completely reliable, I'm not keen on having another electric door.

Plus, this would have to have switches inside and out, so there's a bit of wiring, mounting of switches as well as mounting the motors themselves.

My simple-minded solution was cables on the doors that I could just pull to close from the inside. Then I would hook the cables to something inside to keep the doors shut. The problem has been that unless the doors are really tight, they bounce open a bit while driving. Then the wind catches the back door, and pulls it open. With even a bit of slack in the cables, you get a six inch opening of the door. Not exactly unsafe, but 50 mile an hour wind coming in through a 6 inch gap isn't exactly pleasant!

As I said, I have another weird solution. I've put together a pole with a hook on it. With the right kind of lock at the top of the door, I should be able to pull it closed with the hook over the top of the lift, and latch it. I'm just not certain I can find the right kind of latch -- something I can lock and unlock with a hook at the end of a 3-ft pole!

I'll keep you posted.

How about cutting an access hole in the middle of the platform to let you reach a handle on the inside latch? If you think it might grab a wheel as you maneuver in and out, cover it with a hinged plate.

Thanks Lou. I did think of that, but since it's not easy to reverse, it's my last resort!

Also, the van conversion guys are very leery of doing anything to the lift because of liability problems.