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What would you do with a used School bus?

Geo-TH,In

Geo-TH,In

Well-known Member
A melon farmer modified a school bus to haul his mellons. Cut out the windows and removed the seats. Farm is about 50 south around Vincennes, In.

What would you do with a used school bus?
school bus conversions
 
One here is used to transport chickens/ducks. A friend uses one for tools/welding truck in his gravel pit. Have seen them for campers.
Camper car, four wheeler, whatever hauler. Front is living quarters back is for "whatever".
Neighbor has some for storage, his grandfather cut boughs (birch,pine,luaral)and greens and sold them. The buses were used for sorting and bundleing then.
 
If it's not running, they make a darn good parts annex next to your shop...dry and tight and lots of light.
Ben
 
(quoted from post at 05:10:08 10/14/18) A melon farmer modified a school bus to haul his mellons.
Click to expand...
That's old news. Saw my first "Watermelon Bus" more than 30 years ago.

I've seen them turned into hay trailers, tractor/car/truck haulers, RV's, deer stands, fish camps, etc. I remember one guy used to set engines inside the back door of his bus so he'd have a place to work on them.
 
I've got a friend at work who just bought one and is planning on converting it into an RV. He's a very talented craftsman so I'm sure it will turn out nicely. On the other end of the spectrum I've also seen them being used as a chicken coop.
 
I installed a generator. In one converted to a motor home. A very well thought out unit. Not one just thrown together.
 
Thanks for posting Geo. I have bought 3 retired school busses in the last few years. I bought all because they had 12 valve cummins power. The first was based on an F700 frame. I needed the cummins to put in my 1993 F250 4x4. It has been in the truck 11 trouble free years. It cost me $1700 which was less than I could buy an engine for. A few years later I bought 2 busses that were bluebirds like the logtruck bus. The old guy that usually bought most of the busses went to another auction so I bought one for $550 and one for $650. I pulled one engine and put in a gas 806 which has made an awesome tractor. The other is still sitting there waiting for me to decide what to do with it. As a sidelight, I bought the 2 busses in September that year and the huge fuel tanks had enough diesel in them to run my tractors until mid december lol.
 
I was at a Bus Nuts Rally in Florida once when Dave Lang gave me a personal tour of his bus, the most beautiful bus Ive ever seen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOjlycHcu_E

John T
Flxible Bus Conversion
 
In 2016/2017 I moved from Pensacola to Crystal River, FL.
In order to move my stuff 365 miles it was going to cost over $2500 in truck rentals.
Bought a bus of GovDeals took seats out, sealed up windows.
Saved almost $1000 and I still have it storing the last load.
 
(quoted from post at 07:59:21 10/14/18) Thanks for posting Geo. I have bought 3 retired school busses in the last few years. I bought all because they had 12 valve cummins power. The first was based on an F700 frame. I needed the cummins to put in my 1993 F250 4x4. It has been in the truck 11 trouble free years. It cost me $1700 which was less than I could buy an engine for. A few years later I bought 2 busses that were bluebirds like the logtruck bus. The old guy that usually bought most of the busses went to another auction so I bought one for $550 and one for $650. I pulled one engine and put in a gas 806 which has made an awesome tractor. The other is still sitting there waiting for me to decide what to do with it. As a sidelight, I bought the 2 busses in September that year and the huge fuel tanks had enough diesel in them to run my tractors until mid december lol.
Click to expand...

I have a 12v Cummins out of a bus in my F-450, buses flip up front end on my 93 F-800, power steering, axles, brakes and wheels make good conversion parts for older trucks, bus body used for storage.
 
Take the body off, set it on the ground.

Pull the seats out and sell them.

Build some shelves inside and you now have a greenhouse for your wife to grow tomato and pepper plants.

Sell the engine and transmission.

Add some pipe racks to the frame and put a tow bar on it, use it to haul bales, firewood or whatever.
 

I saw one with the interior gutted and the front and rear cutoff used as a 4 wheeler bridge across a creek.
Elmo
 
That is a rare coach.

GM dominated the coach market, both transit and over the road.

Flxible was unable to viably compete because (until the government strong-armed them) they would not sell their Detroit/V-drive coach power systems which they had invested millions to develop. Flxible was a niche market supplier.

The coach in the photo has been repowered. Though not certain, it was likely gasoline powered when first sold.

My Father was the GMC Truck and Coach field engineer for his approximately three state area from the end of WWII until he retired in July of 1969. He often spoke of converting a 4104 or 4106 to a motor home but never did.

Dean
 
One more thing to fill up with my stuff. Then my kids could just drive it to the dump. Buy one and wait for the next hippy migration to San Francisco, missed the last one in the 60's, too busy working for Uncle Sam. Stan
 
We made a hog house out of one (not visible from the road) and used the chassis for an excessive hay wagon. Jim
 
I think the early Flxibles used straight 8 Buicks and 4 speed manual trannys and I saw later ones with 471 Detroits. They were sort of UNDERpowered To me they are the most beautiful busses ever made. I also love old Mack school busses.



John T
 
My Dad, Uncle, and four of their friends converted an old school bus, and used it for deer hunting. Traveled all over Michigan and the UP back in the 60's. It was really cool with bunk beds, closets, gun racks, eating table that folded down into a double bed, gas lights, sink, stove, refrigerator there was a rack and ladder up the back that contained the deer carcass(s) on top. I was too young to hunt with them, but I remember it well. They used to camp in an old army tent, until it burned down one day while they were out hunting.
 
I've had one for years and have yet to do any thing with it. Had it been that my nephews had not broken all the windows out of it I might have pulled it down form up top and let the boy use it as his house but with the windows gone replacing them is not easy or cheap. It is a 1965 GMC with a V-6 engine
 
When I was a little kid there was a guy with a bunch of donkeys that hauled them in a school bus to donkey basketball games around the area, something like the school teachers against the fire dept. fund raiser.
My favorite neighbor Harry from about 40 years ago had a school bus mounted on some pontoons for a house boat on the Mississippi, his wife always talked about nagging at him to wash the dishes and he just threw them out the back emergency door into the river. pan and all. I miss old Harry, never a dull moment.
 
A local small town volunteer fire department converted a bus into a mobile supply bus. A neighbor of mine converted the interior to make the supplies easily accessible during an emergency. It houses the jaws, generator, emergency lights, firemen’s gear, air tanks, air pump, just about anything they need. It’s a neat and economical setup.
 
...
a282657.jpg
 
I'd likely find someone who likes it more than I do and sell it to them.

Brings to mind the bus that Rosa Parks made her stand in. Saw the actual bus and an audio presentation inside the bus with Rosa Parks' words over the speakers. This was at the Ford museum in Dearborn and the museum guide explained they found the bus in a farmer's field being used for typical storage and so on. The farmer had probably bought it at a sale for about fifty bucks. When word got out that the actual bus had been located, other museums became interested and a bidding war ensued. Final selling price was around $500K if I remember correctly. It was restored to like-new condition.
 
I bought a bus couple years ago for $1500, took out 5.9 cummins out trans, radiator, 20 gal diesel out of tank, hauled rest to junk yard, got about $1700, haven't put the motor in tractor yet
 
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