This is my first blog, so everyone will have to suck it up and grow with me as I develop the site and my writing style.
The purpose of this blog is to act as a journal, of sorts, for the adventures of “The Scholl Bus” (the name we affectionately gave our bus/soon to be RV). I will add more pages relating to our personal history as time allows, but for now we are going to focus on the bus…
The Scholl Bus was purchased through a Craigslist ad in the spring of 2010, it was used by Ft. Brag Schools. Through several transactions, it ended up with a gentleman that removed all the seats and used it as a construction vehicle (hauling tools, materials to job sites).
Okay, here is the scoop for the info junkies out there:
- 1991 Chevrolet C-60 Chassis
- Detroit 8.2 Naturally Aspirated Diesel Engine
- Allison Automatic Transmission
- 40′ overall length
- Interior Height (about 3″ too short, I have to duck to walk through it)
- Roughly 42,000 original miles
- Very little body damage, only thing of note is the crumpled side in front of the RH rear tires
- Tires, like new
- Averages a little over 9 MPG highway or city
- Max speed 55 mph
We used the bus as a “Tent on Wheels” all summer, adding another 1,500 miles to it. We camped at Roan Mountain State Park in TN on several different occasions, Blue Heron State Park in KY, and at an antique engine show in Boone, NC.
- Roan Mountain State Park
I wanted to test the waters and get a good feel for the basic vehicle before we made any major changes. It handles great, does not use oil (other than the slobbering that the 8.2 is known for, it drips but it doesn’t burn oil in other words), does not smoke, starts great, runs smooth, and is overall a great platform to start out with for a conversion.
We plan to tow our 1984 Mercedes Benz 300TDT station wagon (aka… Blondie, pictured below) behind the bus once we start traveling, so we needed a vehicle that is capable of pulling the extra weight. A little explaination of the picture, we purchased Blondie on Ebay this spring, it was located in San Diego so we dropped the girls off for a few days with their Grammy. Chas and I flew to San Diego and drove Blondie home, it was a rushed trip but it fueled the traveling fire more than ever.
Up to this point, the only repairs/upgrades made to the bus have been:
- Wiper Blades
- Oil and Filter Change
- Fuel Filter Change
- Transmission Filter Change
- Addition of a Hitch Reciever
Now that winter has arrived in the North Carolina mountains, I have begun the process of the RV conversion. My first step was to remove the rubber bus floor and the plywood underneath. This was completed on November 10th, the next task on my agenda is to wire brush the steel decking so it can be painted before the new floor is installed…
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