Update from Doug with the PD4106

[zubzub]

wow, $7.5 K, that really sucks.  Having never seen the bus it's hard to say what it's worth, seems some 4106 are thought to be worth way more than that, others much less (Note I said "thought", it's all perspective).  Before I bought my bus I went around and even travelled a bit to look at buses I knew I probably wouldn't get, this was just to get a feel for them, and how good or bad the condition could be.  This advice is not too late for you even now.  If there are a few buses in your area even if they aren't 4106s it will help give you an idea of what you have down in El Paso (BTW I've been to El Paso a couple of  times and it's true it doesn't leave the best 1st or 2nd impression).  
          Sorry to hear you have the bug, I have it as well, and it's an expensive disease that I can't really afford right now. After putting $7.5 plus fuel in there it's going to be hard to walk away as if you nurse it home it will gain in value. OTOH I discovered that the extra costs of going out twice to pick up my bus would have bought a better bus closer to home (without the fun though).  I know after a failed pick up it doesn't feel fun, but if you do ever get that rig home it'll feel good.  
I am going to restate what I said in an earlier thread....I suggest you read the entire archives here and at BNO, fairly amusing reading and lots to learn.  Some of my favorite threads were the Dutch threads, man he had some drama.
     Well I'm sure there will be other well wishers out there, good luck, Patrick.

[BigDougInOregon]

After talking with Doug a few days ago, while they were still in El Paso, I recommended they get the bus away from the Freightliner dealer as quickly as possible. I've had dealings with that place where they wanted to charge one of my drivers over $1100 for a rebuilt 135A Leece-Neville alternator including installation. The installation was remove 3 bolts, remove belt,remove alternator, remove pulley, install pulley on new alternator, install alternator, install belt, install bolts... an hour worth of labor on my IH9670.

I also figured they were going to try to sell him an engine, which as far as I can tell, it shouldn't be needing. At most it sounds like it may need a head gasket kit and a real engine driven fan, not those funky little electrics.

Doug and family are going through some difficult times right now, although I'm not at liberty to say what exactly.

SO here's my plan if he happens to go for it, and since it's worth about scrap price as it sits, where it sits, it may be a good plan.

First, I'm looking around for a free or cheap used 8V71 that runs in the El Paso, Albuquerque, Midland, Yuma area. (If anybody knows where one is, let Doug or me know, preferably Doug.
Second, As has been said, it may not need an engine, but instead a head gasket kit, of which I have one. I would need another one to do both heads.
It will also need to have the fan replaced on the torus and the Rube Goldberg stuff removed, and possibly a shroud built for it.

Now for my part.....

I don't have a lot of money and can't afford to finance the whole trip from where we are to El Paso... 700 miles one way, plus camping and food.
But, I will donate what parts I have, and all my labor, along with some extra oil and filter and coolant I have handy.

If anyone wants to chip in, maybe we can all work together and Get Doug and Family back up and running again.

Oh, one other thing that is needed.... a volunteer to administer the funds if and when they come in.... Who's it gonna be? Not me! That's for sure, I'm not good with money.

So there you have it, I'll help as I can, maybe someone else can help too.

Dallas

Dallas,

  What an incredibly kind and generous offer.  I can't allow you guys (and gals?) to do this for us though.  There could be many other things wrong with her that I don't know about and this could turn into a money pit for anyone close enough to her to get sucked in.  Did I want to own a bus and travel and live in her?  Absolutely.  Did her leaving me in El Paso put is in one hell of a pickle?  Without a doubt.  But I can't allow good folks to donate their time and/or money or parts to us when we don't know if other things could be wrong with her, and this could happen to us again somewhere else and we find ourselves in another pickle later down the road.  I would love to have had someone look her over for us though so we could have known beyond a shadow of a doubt what needs fixing on her (engine wise). 

So, although I am touched beyond what I can describe in words with your offer, I just can't allow this to happen.  This event, like many others in our lives, will serve as a teaching tool and *hopefully* we will learn whatever lesson God wants us to learn from this unfortunate series of events.

If anyone is passing through El Paso and wants to look her over for us, that would be very appreciated.  Beyond that, I think our best option is to sell her and try to get something back.  There was positive that happened out of this whole trip (we met incredibly kind people both on this board and around the towns we passed through) and now that I am removed from the drama, I am starting to count my blessings and see that all is not lost.  The money we spent was all we had saved (minus a trip back cushion), and that is hard to recover from, but in the end, it's just money and I will make more eventually.  So, for now, we are concentrating on where we want to move to and wrapping our minds around more pressing issues at hand (since it looks like living on the bus for a year and traveling while I work are not in the cards).

Thank you again for all of your generosity and I hope to continue to learn and glean from the bus nuts here.

God Bless you all,

Doug

[BigDougInOregon]

just curious, was the seller an individual or a dealer?  Jack

It was an individual in Princeton,TX.  A gospel singer of all things.

[BigDougInOregon]

Doug that doesn't sound like quote Edmond would give for a inframe did he check the bus for you a fiend of mine blew his 8v92 and the repair bill on his with 2 new heads was around 13 grand.If you have a left hand engine I see a lot of transit buses setting in El Paso maybe a used engine would be the to go   

David

Yes, it was Edmond.  I think the quote was for other stuff (rebuilding the blower is something I vaguely remember him mentioning) as well, but not anything off the engine (brakes, air suspension, etc.).

[johns4104]

As it is now the bus is only worth scrap price.
So you might as well have it checked out by a knowlegable  busnut or bus mechanic just to see what you have.
IF you want to show the kids the county the bus is probably the most economical way to do it.

Good luck
John, building a bus with four young boys

[Dallas]

I typed this under my other persona, but will try to copy and paste it here:

Doug,

Of COURSE other stuff is gonna break when you don't want it to.... It's the nature of the beast.

What you have is a 40+ year old used car that was taken out of revenue service because it was costing too much money to maintain. Then someone else bought it and did this and that to it and obviously didn't do it well, or with any knowledge of the skills needed.
It's also probably not had much in the way of maintenance since it was in revenue service... Many Churches and Gospel Groups depend entirely on the Big Mechanic in the Sky to take care of them.
(I'm sorry to say it, but after working at a few car and truck lots that displayed the Christian FISH insignia [IXOYE], I run anytime I see that displayed on a used car that I consider buying).



This bus is going to cost you a LOT of Money. It's going to cost you a LOT of heartache. It's going to cost you a LOT of pain.

But it will pay back every bit by giving you and the family a new outlook on the world, You will learn skills that you never thought you could learn and you will be amongst some of the BPOE.. (Not the Elks...) THE BEST PEOPLE ON EARTH!

The offer is still open, think long and hard before you turn it down. We are all here and have all been in the same boat at one time or another in our lives. The problem is, we are an independent bunch, and don't fit in with the rest of the world.
You might say we kind of roll to the beat of a different brake drum.

What ever your decision, don't give up the dream, you may not think so, but you are now in a very good position as far as the worst that can happen to a newby. It's happened, now we deal with it, fix it and go on our merry way.

Dallas Farnworth
Moderator,
Bus Conversions Magazine and Forum

[zubzub]

Yeah, he is pre-disastered.

[Lin]

Among the other things mentioned like getting it checked out by a competent, honest bus mechanic so you can know the total situation before you finalize your plan, I would say that you should definitely contact the seller and tell him what has happened and what you have learned about the bus.  I would not accuse him of deception, but just make it clear that the bus, and therefore its value, was not as you were led to believe.  I do not see where they will be willing to take it back, but if they are honest and honorable, they should be able come to some agreement of what the real value was and refund the difference.

[Don Fairchild]

Doug,

Before you sell the coach call luke at U.S.Coach and see what he wants for all the parts to return it back to original.

If you need an engine I can rebuild one for a lot less than you were quoted but from the sound of it you don't need one. You can pull the radiator and fix the problems so you can drive it homr.

Don in Bakersfield, ca

[busshawg]

What an offer Dallas, hats off to you! and I'll second what Lin said. Possibly just a simple communication thing might help with the seller?? Worth a try.

[BigDougInOregon]

I typed this under my other persona, but will try to copy and paste it here:

Doug,

Of COURSE other stuff is gonna break when you don't want it to.... It's the nature of the beast.

What you have is a 40+ year old used car that was taken out of revenue service because it was costing too much money to maintain. Then someone else bought it and did this and that to it and obviously didn't do it well, or with any knowledge of the skills needed.
It's also probably not had much in the way of maintenance since it was in revenue service... Many Churches and Gospel Groups depend entirely on the Big Mechanic in the Sky to take care of them.
(I'm sorry to say it, but after working at a few car and truck lots that displayed the Christian FISH insignia [IXOYE], I run anytime I see that displayed on a used car that I consider buying).



This bus is going to cost you a LOT of Money. It's going to cost you a LOT of heartache. It's going to cost you a LOT of pain.

But it will pay back every bit by giving you and the family a new outlook on the world, You will learn skills that you never thought you could learn and you will be amongst some of the BPOE.. (Not the Elks...) THE BEST PEOPLE ON EARTH!

The offer is still open, think long and hard before you turn it down. We are all here and have all been in the same boat at one time or another in our lives. The problem is, we are an independent bunch, and don't fit in with the rest of the world.
You might say we kind of roll to the beat of a different brake drum.

What ever your decision, don't give up the dream, you may not think so, but you are now in a very good position as far as the worst that can happen to a newby. It's happened, now we deal with it, fix it and go on our merry way.

Dallas Farnworth
Moderator,
Bus Conversions Magazine and Forum

Dallas,

  You are right and maybe I am being rash about turning the offer down.  I DO want to own this bus and use her like we had originally intended.  My wife is talking in my ear and making a lot of sense.  She knows that I really wanted this and maybe I leaped before I looked but the leaping is done and now what I need to do is make the best of the situation.  I guess where I need to start is to have someone who actually knows buses take a look at her and let me know what the deal is.  Once I know what it will take to fix her, I can make an informed decision about if I can afford to fix her.  Does that sound fair?  We are moving due to me losing my job, that is a given fact that won't change.  It would be nice to be able to use this old bus to live in while I work in different cities until we can decide where to settle.  I am going to contact the seller and let them know what happened and see if they feel any sympathy for our plight (to the tune of dollars not pity).  If they do feel bad annd want to offer some of a refund, maybe there will be some cash to help get her right again.

Doug

[BigDougInOregon]

What an offer Dallas, hats off to you! and I'll second what Lin said. Possibly just a simple communication thing might help with the seller?? Worth a try.

Definitely worth some effort.  I'll let you all know what transpires.

Thanks for your input.

Doug

[John316]

Right on guys.

Doug, check it out thoroughly before you decide to sell. How much is storage right now? Anybody on this board live nearby that has space?

Really, you might be able to get it going for less than you think. Just don't make hasty decisions...And whatever you do, leave Dallas's offer open. DON'T turn him down, right now. Maybe you will be able to afford his trip out there...

God bless,

John

[busshawg]

Is it costing you anything to keep the bus where it is? If not , or even if it is affordable, take a step back let it all settle for a few weeks. It will probably take a few weeks of running around and getting all worked up with either way you make your desion. If your anything like me your emotions probably have been on quite a trip themselves. Sometimes time has a way. Just food for thought. During this time other opportunities might come up , whether it's a good deal on parts or a good dollar for the bus.

[busshawg]

well I guess we are on the same page John, LOL, posted at the same time.