shortbus4x4
Expedition Leader
I don't know if that axle will replace your one currently in Casa, the brakes look different. I'll dispose of it and it's funny brakes at no charge to you sir.
1959 GMC Adventure Bus Build
- Thread starter baipin
- Start date
Deleted Member 183
Well-known member
That is why i like this forum... Everybody is SOOOOO helpful, give give give! 
baipin
Active member
Sweet axle there! Where the hell'd you manage to find a FDS90?! Good idea regarding the second upper kingpin and using it with hydro-assist. Similar to how force is distributed on modern dump truck front axles; much better than sending all that force through only the driverside kingpin and steering arm.
Back to my bus...
With it being covered in snow and ice, I haven't been able to do much work on it. Made the "frame" to attach the doghouse's cover to, inside the bus. Will make a nice beadrolled aluminum cover (insulated, of course). to give engine access to the third of the engine that resides inside the bus, under the dash:
Really need a proper fab table. Everything comes out nice and planar, eventually but it sure does take a while with a wonky piece of scrap. Just have no room when half of your garage is taken up with a all the innards of a bus... not to mention the front bodywork.
Have spent some time playing around with the gauge cluster though: Made an arduino-based gauge set for the ammeter/voltmeter and EGT/engine temp:
Some engine bay wiring as well:
Back to my bus...
With it being covered in snow and ice, I haven't been able to do much work on it. Made the "frame" to attach the doghouse's cover to, inside the bus. Will make a nice beadrolled aluminum cover (insulated, of course). to give engine access to the third of the engine that resides inside the bus, under the dash:
Really need a proper fab table. Everything comes out nice and planar, eventually but it sure does take a while with a wonky piece of scrap. Just have no room when half of your garage is taken up with a all the innards of a bus... not to mention the front bodywork.
Have spent some time playing around with the gauge cluster though: Made an arduino-based gauge set for the ammeter/voltmeter and EGT/engine temp:
Some engine bay wiring as well:
Deleted Member 183
Well-known member
OMG!!!! That is so Cool!
I've owned Casa since 1994 and where "normal" guys might like to visit out of town strip clubs... I like to visit commercial truck junkyards! I have become friends with several of the owners over the years because they all get a kick out of a guy that has had a successful career designing & manufacturing complicated devices that also LOVES "rooting" around their yards of old broken trucks!
If I can help you find "something" to help your project along ... I gladly will!
Last edited:
shortbus4x4
Expedition Leader
That wiring is very very nice. Better than some of the new factory stuff I work on.
baipin
Active member
Thank you, I definitely take pride in my electrical. It's something I do a lot of at work with the buses we have there.
Got some time to work on the electrical side of things. With the snow and ice here, work on the actual bus has been slow, so it's mostly just stuff at home, in the garage
For anyone look for a smaller alternative to 20kA AIC Class T fuses... I've found a few cheaper and smaller alternatives here with massive AIC ratings up to 50kA for certain DC voltages:
Most of my recent work isn't very exciting or worth photographing, but here's some of the better stuff - beadrolled and hammer formed covers for the steering servo and the engine doghouse, respectively:
Proud of how that turned out, and glad I got to reuse the original data tags off the bus!
Got some time to work on the electrical side of things. With the snow and ice here, work on the actual bus has been slow, so it's mostly just stuff at home, in the garage
For anyone look for a smaller alternative to 20kA AIC Class T fuses... I've found a few cheaper and smaller alternatives here with massive AIC ratings up to 50kA for certain DC voltages:
Most of my recent work isn't very exciting or worth photographing, but here's some of the better stuff - beadrolled and hammer formed covers for the steering servo and the engine doghouse, respectively:
Proud of how that turned out, and glad I got to reuse the original data tags off the bus!
Attachments
baipin
Active member
Oh man I hear ya on that... I'll take a day at the truck junkyard any day over a strip club. Hell, my girlfriend joins me looking at vintage Macks and whatnot half the time!
And thank you for the offer. If you ever happen to come across a 55-59 chevy glovebox, or the 55-59 "Viking 40" die-cast emblems that go on the side of my chassis' hood, I'd love to take them off your hands!
Deleted Member 183
Well-known member
I'll see what i can find for you. I'll probably have good luck!
Here's why...I live on the Central Coast of California. This area is quite unique for several reasons. The first being it is incredibly beautiful, second being that it has become incredibly expensive to live here. That is partially because of all the retired wealthy folks that have moved here from So Cal and the bay area and bought ranches. The one good thing about that is that A BUNCH of the old retired guys are "over the top crazy" vintage vehicle collectors! We're not just talking sports cars... EVERYTHING from early 1900's race cars, Porsche's, Ferrari's, muscle cars, military vehicles, to Semi's.
The local high school just up the road from me hosts an annual vintage truck show that brings truck collectors from all over the country every summer.
shortbus4x4
Expedition Leader
Beautiful work on the doghouse. The original tags you put on it is what separates the men from the boys.
baipin
Active member
Thanks man. Going to see that doghouse every day when I wake up in this bus, so figured I'd put a lot of effort into it. Proud of how it turned out.
Oh yeah, sounds like a dream - we have neat old stuff here of course but it's all so rotted and junky, and few things THAT unique. We've got this, and that's about it...
At my current job, I was ostensibly hired to do electrical work on buses, but most of my time at work is now spent in welding/fab; replacing entire floors - lol. My 60+ year old bus from Saskatchewan is in better shape than any of the 7 year old buses that have passed through here...
Made a nice score at the junkyard for $150 buckaroos today:
No leaks, bit shorter than most semi truck tanks (came from a Sterling car hauler) which means more ground clearance for me, and it cleaned up real nice:
Also came plumbed for a diesel heater - nice surprise:
baipin
Active member
Built a large box for the battery; this is the last thing I've got to install before the interior is completely sealed off from the elements:
It'll be mounted under the floor level but attached and accessible from the interior, if that makes sense...
Also finished the firewall with a self-extinguishing heat and sound insulation.
I am also using a spring-loaded air solenoid for fuel shutoff (I'll add a manual pull cable for emergencies). Was a lot easier to route than a bowden cable and I already had it on hand.
Some small parts, including banjo fittings, were DIY nickel-plated, since brass corrodes in biodiesel and creates nasty precipitates. Steel of course, would like the corrosion protection that nickel offers:
Dead-simple and a lot of fun! Basically just white vinegar, salt, and a strip of pure nickel:
It'll be mounted under the floor level but attached and accessible from the interior, if that makes sense...
Also finished the firewall with a self-extinguishing heat and sound insulation.
I am also using a spring-loaded air solenoid for fuel shutoff (I'll add a manual pull cable for emergencies). Was a lot easier to route than a bowden cable and I already had it on hand.
Some small parts, including banjo fittings, were DIY nickel-plated, since brass corrodes in biodiesel and creates nasty precipitates. Steel of course, would like the corrosion protection that nickel offers:
Dead-simple and a lot of fun! Basically just white vinegar, salt, and a strip of pure nickel: