USBUSIN'

Usbusin'

This is our 1960 GM4104 we owned for 16 years; from 1985 to 2001. She was not a "Hound" as you can tell from the drivers side rear view mirror. Greyhounds had the drivers side mirror mounted low. She was originally purchased by a charter company in New Bedford, Massachusetts.

Interior Pictures of Usbusin'

View looking forward.

Dining Table with pull-out leaf and computer desk.

View looking aft.

Kitchen area.

Usbusin' On the Desert

Camping on the desert with the Zip-Dee awning out.

Usbusin's Cousins

We were at a Bluegrass Festival at Rogersville, New Brunswick, Canada (1998?) and met up with some wonderful folks. There were three 4104's, one 4106 and a real custom "Peterbuilt/Schoolie". You meet the nicest people that have busses, especially at Bluegrass Festivals! (Usbusin is on the far right.)

Complete Description of Usbusin (Sold in 2001)

Description:
Our bus has been converted for “full-timing” and is set-up for “dry-camping”. We have owned her for 15+ years and have traveled extensively for the past six years. We just completed our sixth trans-continental trip of 12,000 miles with no problems. When we purchased the bus in October 1985 it reportedly had 457,000 miles. We have since added approximately 150,000 miles.

The original shipping papers are available as well as all maintenance, service and parts manuals for the coach and engine. The body and running gear is in very good/excellent condition with many updates and improvements. We have regularly maintained the mechanicals by professional service personnel. Oil analysis has been done at nearly all oil changes. All service records are available.

The conversion/re-conversion has been done over the past 15 years and is conservative and practical in décor and function. The systems have been installed with serviceability and reliability in mind. There is a minimum of “automatic” and “electronic” devices. The “KIS” (Keep It Simple) principle was used wherever possible.

This bus definitely draws attention and gets compliments from both “bus nuts” and the general public alike!

Mechanical & Equipment

671 Detroit Diesel Engine: 4-valve head, N65 injectors w/ advanced timing, Dual exhaust (new mufflers), Donaldson Dry Air Cleaner with air restriction indicator, Jacobs brake (with two-position control), KBI Diesel Start System – Cold start measured ether injection system
Radiator Spray Cooler – “Desert Spray” water mister, Air Compressor – Tru-Flo 500, Motorola Heavy Duty 130 amp Truck Alternator, Spin-On Oil Filter, Spin-On Fuel Filters (Primary & Secondary).

Spicer 4-Speed Manual Transmission: Re-built Clutch.

Rear End: New 4.125 ring gear and pinion, bearings & rear wheel bearings & seals.

Power Steering: Sheppard Integral power steering.

Breather Tube Drain Can: Walker Engineering breather tube drain can with filter.

Air Throttle: Williams Air Throttle (eliminates 35’ cable). Easy operation – no leg strain on long trips.

Wheels & Tires: Aluminum Wheels (4) Firestone Accuride (inside duals are steel). Front tires are Michelin 12R22.5 XZA. Rear Tires are Michelin 12R22.5 XZ.

Air Suspension: Front Air Bags & block-off plates. Rear Air Bags.

Radius Rod Bushings: All radius rod bushing are polyurethane.

Fuel Tank: 144-gallon capacity diesel fuel tank with locking fuel fill door.

Starting Batteries: Two Trojan Commercial 8D engine starting batteries.

Under floor Storage Compartments: All lockable compartments (4) are keyed alike. All of the compartments have a ¾" plywood floor and the two storage bays have oak strip runners. The front compartment is totally carpet lined. The large compartment doors have gas-spring assist.

Auxiliary Generator: Onan 6.5 KW Propane Generator (940 total hours). Manual Transfer Switch (Shore – Off – Off – Onan).

Solar Panel System: (6) 80 watt, 4.71 amp Solarex solar panels (28.3 Amps / 480 Watts max. solar charging). Trace C40 3-stage, 40-amp controller. (4) Trojan L16 Deep Cycle Batteries (750 amp-hour total capacity). Digital E-Meter (shows voltage, amps charge/discharge, total amps +/-, hours of us remaining). The solar system charges the 12vdc batteries and the refrigerator, lights, and water pump operate on 12vdc. Using the inverter the microwave, TV, toaster, hair dryer, electric heater can be operated on 120vac.

Inverter: Vanner 2200 watt inverter with remote switch/light.

Remote Controlled Mirrors: Ramco electrically operated remote controlled mirrors.

Air Leveling System : Individual adjustment of air pressure at each wheel. Controls and gauges are in driver’s area.

Towing Hitch: 2” Ball tow-car hitch with 6-way light connector.

Auxiliary Air Compressor: Firestone 12vdc air compressor.

Fresh Water System: 90 gallons +/- fresh water. ShurFlo Water pump. Sears Cartridge Filter on water inlet (sediment). Sears Cartridge Filter on kitchen sink faucet (carbon). Atwood 6 gallon hot water heater (propane/electric).

Waste Water System: 90 gallons +/- gray water tank. 60 gallons +/- black water tank. System plumbed with 3” valves for back-flushing black water tank.

Air Conditioners: Front A/C Coleman Mach III 13,500 BTU w/heat strip. Rear A/C Coleman Mach III 13,500 BTU. Pulse-Air Air Conditioner Controller (Front – Rear – Cycle front/rear).

Exterior Paint: Professional paint job by The Paint Department, Chino, California,
Burgundy/Silver two part epoxy PPG paint system.

Awning: Zip-Dee 12’ awning. Burgundy/Silver heavy duty Zip-Dee canvas.

Peninsula Glass Windows: All windows behind driver/copilot are dark tinted and with screens.
Driver/copilot windows are open able, screened and light tinted.

Interior
Interior layout is set-up for two people “full-timing”. We have regularly lived in the bus for up to six months.


Bedroom

The layout has the bedroom at the rear with a double bed. There are bookshelves at the rear of the bed, overhead cabinets above the bed and drawers/shelves next to the bed. Traverse rod curtains cover the large window on one side and a sliding door covers the small window. The ceiling is gray naugahide and the walls are covered in pink textured naugahide. The floor is carpeted. There is a wall mounted fire extinguisher.


Bathroom

Shower: The bathroom has a full size (30” x 35”) shower with custom made cultured marble walls and shower pan. The faucet is a single control Moen fixture with a hand held spray. A three speed Fan-Tastic fan is in the shower ceiling.

Toilet: Sealand Traveler white porcelain.

Vanity: The sink top and bowel are custom fabricated in one piece of cultured marble to match the shower. The vanity cabinet is white Formica with a sliding door covering the storage area below.
There is a mirror and fluorescent light over the sink. The ceiling and custom medicine chest is white Formica and the walls are a light blue textured Naguahide. The flooring is one-piece vinyl. All plumbing is accessible from beneath the sink and from behind a removable panel. There is a clear circular skylight over the sink area for natural light. The bathroom door has a 15” x 58” mirror.


Closets/Hallway

There are three cedar lined clothes closets in the hallway with two shelves above the clothes pole and two shelves below. Also, in the hallway is a cedar lined utility closet with a dirty laundry storage bin.


Kitchen

All kitchen cabinetry is Formica for easy maintenance and all cupboard doors have “European” hinges that are hidden and self-closing. All drawers have oak recessed handles and a positive lock.

Refrigerator: Norcold 6 cu. ft. dual voltage (12vdc/120vac) refrigerator.

Stove Top: 3-burner Magic Chef propane stove with stainless steel cover.

Microwave: Sharp 600 watt output with turntable.

Sink: Swanstone single bowl deep sink with an American Standard single lever white faucet.

Soap Dispenser: Sink mounted “pump” type.

Countertop: Formica with backsplash.

Drawers: There is a special “pan” drawer for with vertical dividers as well as four other drawers.

Overhead Cupboards: Three overhead cupboards for storage.

Exhaust Fan: Three-speed FanTastic exhaust fan ceiling mounted over stove area.

Lighting: Four-bulb fluorescent ceiling fixture with diffuser and (2) two bulb fluorescent lights under the cupboards.

Flooring: One-piece vinyl flooring.

Ceiling: The ceiling is naugahide for easy cleaning.

Coffee Maker: Black & Decker Automatic coffee maker mounted under the cabinets.

Spice Shelf: A spice rack is built in over the stove-top.

Fire Extinguisher: A fire extinguisher is mounted under the sink.

Living Area:

Table & Chairs: The dining table is solid oak with a Formica inlayed top. There is a removable extension leaf so four people may be seated. Two straight back chairs are at the dining table.

Couch: An 78” long upholstered Danish couch is along one wall.

Desk: There is a built-in desk/computer area with a shelf a fluorescent lighting.

Television: RCA 13” TV w/ remote; operates on 120vac (inverter or shore power).

File Cabinet: A lockable oak file cabinet with a storage compartment below is at the end of the couch.

Storage Cabinet: Across from the couch is an oak storage cabinet with a lift-up compartment lid and an open storage area in the front.

Flooring: Heavy-duty carpeting.

Ceiling: Naugahide is used throughout the bus and was installed as one unit and backed with ½” foam.

Lighting: Four bulb fluorescent ceiling fixture with diffuser.

Heaters: A Duo-Therm forced-air propane heater with ducting in the living room and bedroom. Also, there is a gas-cock in the living area for an auxiliary heater as desired.

Chair: The co-pilot chair is a Flexsteel with a swivel base that can be turned into the living area. It is upholstered in fabric matching the driver’s seat.


Drivers Area:

Drivers Seat: Bostrom air-ride seat with an adjustable lumbar support and back angle. Cloth upholstery matches co-pilots seat.

Instrumentation: Electronic speedometer w/odometer, Electronic tachometer, Air pressure, Oil pressure, Fuel pressure, Fuel amount, Water temperature, Voltmeter, engine hour meter, altimeter.

Switches: Headlights, clearance/marker lights, fog lights, emergency flashers, right and left windshield fans, heater/defroster, radiator water spray, auxiliary air compressor, air horn, turn indicators, maxi/spring parking brake, emergency engine shut-down, reverse gear solenoid, Jacobs brake.

Steering Wheel: VIP leather covered two-spoke steering wheel.

Windshield Wipers: Variable speed air-motor operated.

Sun Visor: Rosen Products “The Protector” sun visor on drivers side.

Door Opener: Original bus door-opener handle operable from the drivers seat.

Step well: The entrance step-well is stainless steel and the steps are rubber matted and carpeted. There is a carpeted, hinged and gas spring assisted step-well cover in front of the co-pilots seat.

Radio: Sony FM/AM Cassette Stereo Radio with two 6” x 9” speakers mounted over windshield.

CB: Cobra 25LTD 40 channel CB Radio.

Windshield Fans: Two 12vdc fans are mounted at the top of the windshield on either side.


Spare Parts

Starter, Air-Bags, Throttle Cable, Suspension Bushings, Baggage Door Rubber, Window Screens, Fiberglass Dash (ready for your first project!), Body Panels, Upholstery Material, Air Scoops, Truck Front Door Lock, Custom Bicycle Rack, Fuel Filters, Cruise Control, and more…..