Day 12

It has been a long journey (ok just a few days), but the Magic Bus is driving like it was 1970 again! :) After a long fight with a new but malfunctioning master cylinder and a firefight with ball joints, the results are amazing.

It is a little hard to see but anything shinny in these pics is a new part.

Day 8 Continued....

So here are the tools for removing the ball joints. Notice the fire extinguisher (safety first)! The first attempts at removing the ball joins using a press were unsuccessful. After Tony (my main man on this project) read a few internet posts he decided that the only way to make it work would be to super heat them and knock the crap out of them till they came out.






So then came the torch!











Success!

Day 8

Well I'm going through Magic Bus withdrawals. Here are a couple of pictures of the work being done.

Day 7

Welcome to day 7! After having the Magic Bus for a week we have had to do quite a bit of work on it. The brakes seem to be the big mystery right now. We replaced the master cylinder and thought all was well but it is still leaking brake fluid like crazy. So it's back to the drawing board on that. Tomorrow the tie rods, rocker arm and other parts come in. So I will be without the bus for a few days. Here are a couple of pics of me and the bus.

Observations

As I have been driving the bus now for a few days, I have made a few observations that I would like to share.

The first interesting thing is how other drivers react around me. There seems to be two types of people, those that I piss off and those that I make smile. The angry people swerve around be and give me dirty looks. Why? Well, the bus isn't the fastest thing on the streets. It takes a while to get up to speed and I normally drive the speed limit once I reach it. Hey, I understand being late for work or having a million places to go, but geez people the bus is 38 years old. In 1970 the other vehicles on the road didn't have fuel injection and go 0 to 60 MPH in 15 seconds. I think that I would most likely end up somehow pissing these people off in traffic no matter what I drove or how I drove it.

The second type of person gets a big grin on their face and some even wave at me. I sometimes see them before they see me and you can tell that they are involved with there day (or the planning of) and then they look over and the smile just bursts onto their face. It's a good feeling to think that somehow I bring a smile to someones face.

The more I drive the bus (we should call it the Magic Bus after the song by The Who *1968) the more I realize that the bus and I are very much alike. We were both brand new in 1970. Most of my life it seems like people have reacted to me much in the same way people react to the bus now. I seem to either piss people off or bring a smile to their face.

Another thing about the magic bus is that it has it's own unique mannerisms. It takes a bit to get going in the morning (like me), it has a few problems but is basically in good shape (like me), and I think it's cool :)

Oh, and my kids love it (like me).

As this project progresses, I kind of see it becoming a social experiment. Me and my Magic Bus.

"I said, now I've got my Magic Bus (Too much, the Magic Bus)
I said, now I've got my Magic Bus (Too much, the Magic Bus)
I drive my baby every way (Too much, the Magic Bus)
Each time I go a different way (Too much, the Magic Bus)
I want it, i want it, I want it, I want it ..."
Pete Townshend, The Who

In the begining...

Here are the initial pictures. It needs some work
(leaking from the gear box and needs new ball joints and tie rods).