Thread: Progress on the bus . . .

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Originally Posted by rspears

jb,
Let me know ahead of time if I need to pack up my tools and ship them over ahead of time next Spring We can send Susan & Rosie off to see sights while we wrap up the bus!!

She'll be right mate.
I'll have it rolling well before then.
If it moves and it shouldn't I'll duct-tape it.
If it doesn't move and it should I'll squirt it with CRC and hit it with a hammer 'til it does.



And anyway, we used to run diggers (track-hoes I believe you call them,) and bulldozers, so while I have got rid of a lot of tools (my #2 boy is a diesel mechanic, so he's 'borrowed' most of them,) I've still got more than an eight inch Crescent and a screwdriver. . . more than enough for you and me both.

Originally Posted by 40FordDeluxe

JB, sorry to hear it is what it is but at least you can move on and keep at it!

Quite right Ryan.

We've never yet been beat or had failures.

Had a hiding now and then (not always in a physical sense,) but never been beat . . . and yes; there have been mistakes . . .but never failures.
We've always prevailed somehow.
Eventually.

Just love the analogy... there's no doubt in my mind that you'll get'er done!

stinks that these "hurdles" pop up now and then....

Wednesday 4th June.

Picked the Cardiffs up around 9:00 am and headed for Thames, arriving about 2:30 to find it was all go at the Donaldsons’ place.
They’ve had the bus for nine months now, and their progress/performance has been abysmal.
They've installed toilet/shower unit with tanks and water pump, sink, gas stove and bottles, double bed unit, (which can be two singles or seats,) backrests along both sides of the rear of the bus, a fridge, and the floor.

All up it should have been about a month's work.
Perhaps six weeks.

There's no upholstery or floor covering yet, and the ceiling (with insulation,) interior lights, power points, rear seat belts, reversing camera, tv etc. still has to be installed.

And it's still to be painted and signwritten.

Thursday 5th June.

Took it for a Certificate of Fitness in Kopu, and it failed.
The rear riding lights are orange where they should be red . . . the stupid man wanted me to cut the wiring.
Get off!
I'll change the lenses . . . but in the interim I’ll just remove the bulbs.

He also wanted more reflectors on the rear bumper, so while I removed the bulbs in the riding lights I sent Rosie in to Thames to get four strip-type stick-on reflectors from Repco.
She came back with reflective tape.
NO!
Strip-type stick-on reflectors!
Reflective tape is not now regarded as a legal reflector for wof or CoF.
Bryan Creswell, a mate of ours from way back, had shown up to look at it, so sent him in to get the correct thing, which he duly turned up with.
Bunged them on, and took it back to the man.
Whilst waiting for him to finish his coffee, I looked at the 'stuff' VTNZ had for sale in their wee shop . . . and there were the appropriate reflectors . . . $2 cheaper than Repco. He could’ve told me.
Sigh.
They're out there . . . and they're allowed to breed.
And vote.

But he passed it.
And we drove it home.

Meg and Richard Cardiff took the Calais home while we followed.

Bloody hell that thing has some grunt!
Coxy had said its got more pulling power than a schoolboy with a copy of Penthouse and he's right.
More tit than Dolly Parton.

We passed a ute parked on the side of the road at Tongaporutu, and later stopped at the top of Mt. Messenger because Richard wanted to take some photos with the bush as a backdrop, and the ute we'd passed pulled in behind us.
It was Lyn Vincent, a mate from way back.
"I knew it had to be you; because I couldn't bloody catch you!"

So there ya go . . . there are one or two things to sort over the next few days; and then it's off to the paint shop.
Hopefully they can paint and install the ceiling too.
That can be done while we're overseas.

Well I hope it can.
What can go wrong?

LOVE the analogys of the pulling power! I'll try and remember that for another day thank you very much!

So you have the certificate,, you've driven it over the "hill"... and now 2 hurdles left... what can possibly go wrong? Right Mr. Murphy?!?!

Keep your chin up and enjoy your next trip..

Thursday 28th August,

We were in New Plymouth, so drove out to Waitara to check on the progress of the bus.
Yeeha!
The body is painted (in School Bus Yellow,) but the ceiling and rubbing strips have yet to be done. (Rubbing strips in black, which should 'break' the colour a bit.)
Kurt Broker, the fella doing the job, has promised it for next week.

Then . . . into New Plymouth to get the crown wheel and pinion changed to a higher ratio, which shouldn't take more than a couple of days, as we've got the new one sitting waiting.

Then to Okato, where our pet electrician and upholsterer are both based.
The upholstery is not really any great deal, but the wiring may take a bit of time, although we've got everything we can think of that we're going to need sitting ready and waiting.

Fingers crossed!

And eyes.

And toes.

And legs.

I mean; what can go wrong?

Yeeha indeed!! Sounds great, jb!

Originally Posted by 34_40

So you have the certificate,, you've driven it over the "hill"... and now 2 hurdles left... what can possibly go wrong? Right Mr. Murphy?!?!

Sigh.
Twelve weeks to paint it, (if it's finished as promised,) that's what.

(And you're welcome to the analogies, use them wherever you want; I've no copyright on them!)

For those that missed the original thread, here's the link:

Need help on bus origins.

It's about fifteen pages, so ensure you've got a bit of time on your hands when you start!

A pair of "teasers" pirated from a FB post....

BusBack.jpg

BusFront.jpg

Heck yes! It looks awesome! That's got to feel great to see progress JB!

Love the color, but then that's the color I want to paint Large Marge....joe

Thanks for the pics Roger, I take it they were posted initially by lamin8r?

It is good to see progress; if only everything didn't take so long!
A mate informed me the other day that at its present rate of progress I'd be trading it in on a zimmer frame before I got to drive it again.
(Don't you just love friends like that?)

The colour was matched from the inside of the glovebox door, where it hadn't been exposed to weathering and faded.

Ya need CHROME bumpers

Can't afford them Charlie!

After the money I've poured in to this over the last four or five years She Who Must Be Obeyed is getting a bit anti!
So they'll stay black, as Mr Ford built them.