You did it! Look awesome. I like your new method of using the guides. The all thread method provides easy fine tuning at each corner though. Can't wait to see the next update!
I had to watch this a bunch of times, finally slowed it down -- to see that the channel piece you add is bolted above the cut! Takes a while sometimes. Hey, we might wanna do this. Seems easier and less scary looking than some of the other methods. :)
Great video! I just bought a ‘91 Chevy I am converting and I am going to raise the roof 18”, would love to see how you reattach yours to give me a road map! Thanks for the upload!
Good afternoon! I was wondering about what type of square tubing you used and sheeting you used? I’d love to chat in general about your raise and if you have any pointers on raising my roof in my Tomas? Thank you in advance!
Well I'm sure glad to help.. Julie you're a lucky girl ,you now have a man who can sing, who can play the piano ,who can drive a bus ,who can fly a drone, a guy who is a great dad ,and now a super welder... what more can a girl ask for LOL... weld on Mighty Man Weld on..
So glad I won't have to do this with my uk coach as it has loads on headroom. Also has double glazed windows as well so just rip out those I don't want and replace with metal and insulation.
I just looked the welder up on the Harbor Freight website and look at item number 63583 that's the one I personally have just make sure you buy a fairly heavy gauge extension cord even though it's a hundred and twenty volts ..good luck
so there are channels every few window section? I was looking for the bars at each vertical point. I am not mechanically inclined, yet i am willing to learn.
Question? Why couldn’t you cut above the window line? That way you keep all the windows and the back door still fits? Just bought a bus and trying to consider all my options. Great video!!
Shane responding to your comment.. absolutely you can do your own welding even though you've never welded before quite easy actually... go down to Harbor Freight and buy the small MIG welder I believe it's $99 usually on sale its black, it runs on 110 volts comes with some wire and extra tips I personally have one and I've used it for all kinds of stuff very very impressed... it will work fine for what you're doing you're dealing with, all thin gauge stuff there any way more than adequate I suggest that you buy yourself a decent welding hood at Harbor Freight because the welder comes with the tiny little handheld welding shield a piece of junk don't use it... this way when you're done with the project you'll have you a nice little portable unit to haul around with you to repair your bus it's a must-have and you should have that experience anyway.... it will be just one more step into achieving Superior manhood
About two weeks ago we raised ours, going back afterwards to do the layout with masking tape and realized that we needed to go up some more for our oldest daughters bunk. We have six kids to house, two married. So question, are you guys keeping with your black tank or are you going to do composting?
Awww, good old American ingenuity... the good old floor jack works every time... did you come up with that idea yourself with the square tubing and the bolts to act as a guide with a floor jack or did you read about it somewhere else.... seems like a pretty safe and simple idea, I liked it..... the bus looks great it took on a whole new appearance
The Bus Life I would also weld it it just because I love welding, but remember these buses are held together with screws and glue from the factory. So not a necessity!
TERRORoftheLORD using a MIG welder is 10 times as fast as putting in a bunch of screws and a whole lot safer there are a lot of videos on RUclips roof raises on school list and they use a MIG welder when they build buses that use a lot of rivets lots of themselves I iWork on a race car will use a chop saw and welder and rivets you can put pieces anywhere they took them out measurement using chop saw and weld it with a mig
Any help you I am close to jumping in with both feet to buy a Blue Bird All American RE OR a Thomas HDX RE as you just bought. My biggest concern is INSURANCE... How and with which companies are you insured for the three stages: 1) When you purchased as a school bus 2) While converting the bus and 3) Once converted. Do you get it re-titled as a motor home, or leave it as a school bus? And what should one expect to pay for these policies with a good driving and credit record? I am anticipating liability only? Any guidance you can provide would be MOST HELPFUL. With gratitude! - Larry
It will totally depend on the state. If you are insuring in Florida I can point you to a good insurance company that will insure it as an RV once the conversion is done. We have no insurance while we are doing the conversion. No point.
I am assuming that you had some kind of liability insurance to drive it from the lot to the location where you're converting it (unless that was covered as a test drive on the dealer's policy?). What type of insurance product do you buy to legally drive it while it is still a school bus and conversion is not yet started? I plan to buy mine in the deep south or southwest where rust is not an issue, and drive it to the northeast for conversion. Also, please do let me know the company or companies you use to insure in both stages, and a budgetary guesstimate monthly rate for a 40 footer (exactly like your new bus). They may also cover my state. THANKS!
The issuance company said that they only insure in the state of Florida. We had temporary insurance to move the bus. They quoted under $200.00 a year after the conversion was completed. I believe their name is Budget Right. If you are looking to buy a bus from Florida, Avery Bus is a great place to buy from.
Re: bus door comment, "This isn't going to be like one thousand pounds is it?" - bwaaahh ha ha ha haaaaaa Seriously though, that was funny to hear…only because I probably would have asked the same thing. 😁 Anyway, great job on making a loud noise by clapping, singing and shouting … uh, I mean, raising the roof. 😃 BTW, I listened to The First Time on your other channel. Great job on that worship song.
14” is actually a lot of difference in ceiling hight. Raising the roof just makes it feel bigger and we also needed a little extra room for the bunk room.
What time is it there, It's 3:35 am here in Ireland. I am thinking of converting a bus to travel Europe. Big undertaking. I can buy the Bus cheap enough, about €2,000 about $2,500, and would have a budget of €10k to build, not looking for anything to luxurious. Just wondering if I should raise the roof as the buses I am looking at are low in height.
Look at flux core welder no gas they work look at them on RUclips ya get a a lot of smoke normal for flux mig you to get argon for what you doing flux be fine look at some vids not that hard there is a chart under the lid for feed /heat 😘
I helped a friend with a show Phil Keaggy and Randy Stonehill on RT 50 I had a friend went to college there 20 years ago nice ppl there like you to meet Carlos and Emily ORLANDO HOUSE OF PRAYER check them out on Facebook 😁 we did two hours sets there I played with drums with friends almost all spontaneous they streamed it they moved into a smaller facility Ocoee Florida
Can I hire you to do mine since you have the know how? I will need mine as high as legal height can be. I am in the ministry and want to help the poor and needy, mainly homeless, to give them the showers and meet other needs. I have a GREAT mission God gave me to do for Him. I am 1 of 10 children, I know what it means to live like that. I remember my Dad ("Jack of all trades, master of none") bought a school bus and converted it, we all helped, but that was when I was like 5yo. I am 62 now.
![BLACK BAG - Official Trailer [HD] - Only in Theaters March 14](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Du0Xp8WX_7I/mqdefault.jpg)
Good tip with bolting the square stock in place!
You guys make it look easy! LOL love watching you guys. Learn stuff everyday.
+ah N thanks! We are glad your enjoying our channel.
Exciting stuff!!! I am anxiously waiting to see the floor plan.
+Frieda Schmidt soon
You did it! Look awesome. I like your new method of using the guides. The all thread method provides easy fine tuning at each corner though. Can't wait to see the next update!
+j jones thanks! It seems to be coming together great.
Great Job!!!!!! Prayer answered!!!!
+Cristina Thiessen thanks!
Excellent work! That deserves 2 thumbs up! 👍🏽👍🏽
Great job and teaching your children some valuable information they may use in their futures.
+Linda Mayoh thanks! It's been a lot of fun so far.
Wahoo! You guys are doing an amazing job! Love watching the steps to your new bus :)
+Jo Lynn Schlegel thanks! We can't wait to be finished with the metal work.
I love the calm demeanor you guys have, great aspect for parents to have...
Looking good! Great technique
I SALUTE you for a well executed , safe & successful plan .
+Ken Lynch thanks! Shane thought it out a lot before hand.
Nice. Wondering if I need to watch it again for details on the steel bars used. Hopefully on there.
Great job! Love how your whole family pitches in to lend a hand or a foot.
You inspired me to go through with the raise. Great videos.
It is amazing to watch the bus build.
Wow looks good.
So excited for you guys for your new home.
It must have been so nerve-wracking raising the roof?
Love the videos. God bless
+darren wm it was a little nerve-wracking when the sun went down. We wanted it secure before we finished for the day.
Totally Awesome !!!!
I had to watch this a bunch of times, finally slowed it down -- to see that the channel piece you add is bolted above the cut! Takes a while sometimes. Hey, we might wanna do this. Seems easier and less scary looking than some of the other methods. :)
Very cool looks like it went well happy for you guys I ordered my buslife t-shirt
Awesome! I think you were our first sale.
Awesome happy to do it
Cool! I wondered how that was done.
I love your channel I wish you all the best of luck with the new bus and when will you go out of North America
+Matilda’s crib who knows where the wind will blow us next. Are you from South America?
Very cool!! Easier than I thought it would be.
+Judy Flynn thanks!
Great video! I just bought a ‘91 Chevy I am converting and I am going to raise the roof 18”, would love to see how you reattach yours to give me a road map! Thanks for the upload!
Heyyyy Bus Life!! Man y'alls skills are amazing!
+Johnita Campbell thanks! Shane never ceases to amaze me.
Wow. That is a big process of rising the roof.
+Adrian Adrian Mainar sure is.
Great job. Like your video's. God bless.
Good afternoon! I was wondering about what type of square tubing you used and sheeting you used? I’d love to chat in general about your raise and if you have any pointers on raising my roof in my Tomas? Thank you in advance!
Well I'm sure glad to help.. Julie you're a lucky girl ,you now have a man who can sing, who can play the piano ,who can drive a bus ,who can fly a drone, a guy who is a great dad ,and now a super welder... what more can a girl ask for LOL... weld on Mighty Man Weld on..
I’ll make sure she reads this...😜
Great job! Watching this is making us want to get our bus now!!! We still have at least 3 months before we will be getting it tho :(
Great job.....
So glad I won't have to do this with my uk coach as it has loads on headroom. Also has double glazed windows as well so just rip out those I don't want and replace with metal and insulation.
Well done man ,reat inspiration to get my roof raise done ! What dimensions of square steel tubing did you use for the Thomas ?
I just looked the welder up on the Harbor Freight website and look at item number 63583 that's the one I personally have just make sure you buy a fairly heavy gauge extension cord even though it's a hundred and twenty volts ..good luck
Ok...cool! I will go get it in a day or so.
Wow, good job!
Wondered how you raised the roof. Using a jack and 2x4's for the lift shows how you make full use of the KISS principle!!
😆
Awesome Love watching
so there are channels every few window section? I was looking for the bars at each vertical point. I am not mechanically inclined, yet i am willing to learn.
+Barbara Changes we have supports/guides every few "window sections". We will be welding in permanent bars for proper support.
This is amazing. We will be buying our bus soon!! If you don’t mind me asking how much did it cost to raise the roof? Thank you for your time.
Question? Why couldn’t you cut above the window line? That way you keep all the windows and the back door still fits? Just bought a bus and trying to consider all my options. Great video!!
I think cutting the middle will give you more structural support.
Shane responding to your comment.. absolutely you can do your own welding even though you've never welded before quite easy actually... go down to Harbor Freight and buy the small MIG welder I believe it's $99 usually on sale its black, it runs on 110 volts comes with some wire and extra tips I personally have one and I've used it for all kinds of stuff very very impressed... it will work fine for what you're doing you're dealing with, all thin gauge stuff there any way more than adequate I suggest that you buy yourself a decent welding hood at Harbor Freight because the welder comes with the tiny little handheld welding shield a piece of junk don't use it... this way when you're done with the project you'll have you a nice little portable unit to haul around with you to repair your bus it's a must-have and you should have that experience anyway.... it will be just one more step into achieving Superior manhood
lol...I think I will do it.
Mike Knutson you are correct get the heat & feed right he needs a chop saw a little practice on a test piece you can rent one too
The Bus Life get chop saw maybe rent one maybe someone at the church has mig & chop saw 😁
+Mike Knutson Shane has stepped into Superior Manhood, is a natural at welding it appears. Thanks for the advice and encouragement.
The Bus Life mig you have to have Argon ,mig is clean , look at vids on flux welder ,watched great school instructor on RUclips good look 😁
I wondered how to raise a roof on a bus, and now I know;)
Wendy Dale some use thread bolts
Awesome
How were you able to reattach the front of the bus though?
When I buy my bus where is a great place to get the roof raised
How many inches did you raise it? How tall will the inside height be when finished?? Great job too!!
+Maggie we raised it 14". 7'3" total height inside.
About two weeks ago we raised ours, going back afterwards to do the layout with masking tape and realized that we needed to go up some more for our oldest daughters bunk. We have six kids to house, two married. So question, are you guys keeping with your black tank or are you going to do composting?
I have not researched composting yet but I can’t imagine it being able to keep up with our family.
Awww, good old American ingenuity... the good old floor jack works every time... did you come up with that idea yourself with the square tubing and the bolts to act as a guide with a floor jack or did you read about it somewhere else.... seems like a pretty safe and simple idea, I liked it..... the bus looks great it took on a whole new appearance
I came up with that myself...😉
The Bus Life you going to use a mig welder hope so ! It's better than bolts my man 😁
The bolts are to just hold it temporarily until it’s all welded.
The Bus Life I would also weld it it just because I love welding, but remember these buses are held together with screws and glue from the factory. So not a necessity!
TERRORoftheLORD using a MIG welder is 10 times as fast as putting in a bunch of screws and a whole lot safer there are a lot of videos on RUclips roof raises on school list and they use a MIG welder when they build buses that use a lot of rivets lots of themselves I iWork on a race car will use a chop saw and welder and rivets you can put pieces anywhere they took them out measurement using chop saw and weld it with a mig
What is the height of the metal you used to support the bus?
Hey guys, How much is from outside ground to top of roof, and total height inside the bus from floor to ceiling .. need to know. thanks ?
she’s adorable.
How long is thesquare tube? I'm about to do mine
It’s 1/8” thick
How long what the pieces 4ft?
It depends on your bus. As long as possible.
The Bus Life ty so much
Different method than Jim Gadberry (Life Is A Joy), Transcend Existence, and Chris used for their roofs. How many inches did you raise it?
14"
Good - you want it sufficient enough to matter & be worth the trouble of doing it! 14 inches does both.
Any help you I am close to jumping in with both feet to buy a Blue Bird All American RE OR a Thomas HDX RE as you just bought. My biggest concern is INSURANCE... How and with which companies are you insured for the three stages: 1) When you purchased as a school bus 2) While converting the bus and 3) Once converted. Do you get it re-titled as a motor home, or leave it as a school bus? And what should one expect to pay for these policies with a good driving and credit record? I am anticipating liability only? Any guidance you can provide would be MOST HELPFUL. With gratitude! - Larry
It will totally depend on the state. If you are insuring in Florida I can point you to a good insurance company that will insure it as an RV once the conversion is done. We have no insurance while we are doing the conversion. No point.
I am assuming that you had some kind of liability insurance to drive it from the lot to the location where you're converting it (unless that was covered as a test drive on the dealer's policy?). What type of insurance product do you buy to legally drive it while it is still a school bus and conversion is not yet started? I plan to buy mine in the deep south or southwest where rust is not an issue, and drive it to the northeast for conversion. Also, please do let me know the company or companies you use to insure in both stages, and a budgetary guesstimate monthly rate for a 40 footer (exactly like your new bus). They may also cover my state. THANKS!
The issuance company said that they only insure in the state of Florida. We had temporary insurance to move the bus. They quoted under $200.00 a year after the conversion was completed. I believe their name is Budget Right.
If you are looking to buy a bus from Florida, Avery Bus is a great place to buy from.
how many metal sheets did you use?
Re: bus door comment, "This isn't going to be like one thousand pounds is it?"
- bwaaahh ha ha ha haaaaaa
Seriously though, that was funny to hear…only because I probably would have asked the same thing. 😁
Anyway, great job on making a loud noise by clapping, singing and shouting … uh, I mean, raising the roof. 😃 BTW, I listened to The First Time on your other channel. Great job on that worship song.
+Jonathan Southwick thanks, "The First Time" is one of my favorite songs of Shane's.
I can see why you did the roof your head barely clears the old one lol
Looks like he raised it 10 inchs some people in or doing bus conversions raising them 36 inchs I don't know why
We raised it 14”!
Do you have a mig welder 😁
No...but I hope to have a welder come out in the next day or two.
Interested to know why you decided to raise the roof and why only 14"
14” is actually a lot of difference in ceiling hight. Raising the roof just makes it feel bigger and we also needed a little extra room for the bunk room.
What time is it there, It's 3:35 am here in Ireland. I am thinking of converting a bus to travel Europe. Big undertaking. I can buy the Bus cheap enough, about €2,000 about $2,500, and would have a budget of €10k to build, not looking for anything to luxurious. Just wondering if I should raise the roof as the buses I am looking at are low in height.
Look at flux core welder no gas they work look at them on RUclips ya get a a lot of smoke normal for flux mig you to get argon for what you doing flux be fine look at some vids not that hard there is a chart under the lid for feed /heat 😘
I helped a friend with a show Phil Keaggy and Randy Stonehill on RT 50 I had a friend went to college there 20 years ago nice ppl there like you to meet Carlos and Emily ORLANDO HOUSE OF PRAYER check them out on Facebook 😁 we did two hours sets there I played with drums with friends almost all spontaneous they streamed it they moved into a smaller facility Ocoee Florida
I was four when you make the video
Can I hire you to do mine since you have the know how? I will need mine as high as legal height can be. I am in the ministry and want to help the poor and needy, mainly homeless, to give them the showers and meet other needs. I have a GREAT mission God gave me to do for Him. I am 1 of 10 children, I know what it means to live like that. I remember my Dad ("Jack of all trades, master of none") bought a school bus and converted it, we all helped, but that was when I was like 5yo. I am 62 now.
You could shoot me an email with details. info@goodnewsbus.com