Ouest went to the dentist to check out the teeth that she nearly knocked out last week. X-rays showed everything is okay, though the dentist did predict the front tooth will be out in a couple of days. That tooth took a lot of abuse in the past couple of years, from banging it in a swimming pool, to getting knocked loose by a swing, to smashing it on the bus’ step—I for one will be happy to see that bad ju-ju tooth gone.
I’ve spent the past couple of days working from morning to late afternoon on the wiring. So far so good. The puzzle is falling into place. I figured if I just started plugging away on the wires that I knew the proper start and end point for, that the answers for the few that were completely toasted would suddenly appear. And they have. At this point I’ve only got about three question marks on my schematic.
Ali has been in charge of keeping the kids busy, which has been made a lot easier by our lovely location. Four acres of wandering animals, and fenced in land to roam free upon. Our friends here have a 3-month-old and a two-year-old, so it’s been funny in a sad kind of way how little time we’ve all actually got to sit down and hang at the same time. Kids everywhere, naps, meals, cuts and scrapes have kept everyone busy. We did however manage to hit up the town for some frosty ones, as well as share some pizza out by the bus—so we have managed to squeeze in some quality time, sharing the important things in life.
Look at all those different beeeeeer-rainbows. Awesome.
By popular demand. Fire on the Bus by Ouest Schulte.
Ouest and Lowe standing hand in hand under a tree while bicyclists ride by the bus.
The cops out in front of the burning bus while the happy kids watch on.
And of course there we are giddily watching as the bus (yes, the bus looks a lot like a VW bug) drives away on the back of the tow truck.
The End.
The funny part was how quickly she whipped this book of hers out. I was still shaking fire extinguisher dust out of my hair when she handed it to me with a proud smile on her face.
10 Comments on “Wiring”
Isn’t it ironically funny the interesting and quirky things
that kids come up with in there spare time!
Love the book!
Now when do we get to see a grin with all those missing and loose teeth?
Glad to hear that the bus is coming back together, it looks like you at least have a pretty awesome place to hang out while the repairs are getting done.
Good luck,
Deborah
What a great record of the event from Ouest’s perspective. I’m sooo glad everyone was okay and the kids are not traumatized. Here’s hoping for speedy repairs.
Good for you digging in and handling the re-wiring, the upside will be you will know the bus inside and out. Get the key wires done (ign, oil pressure, temp, volt, lights) and you will be able to at least start back on your journey. All the best.
Pat was the wiring tied down so vibration would not chaff the insulation? Is the insulation on the existing wiring not cracked?
Are you going to replace all the wires, or just the ones damaged?
Mike replaced most of the wiring under the dash (pretty much everything except the main wiring loom) back in February: https://www.bumfuzzle.com/blog/2014/02/07/project-partridge/ and Pat took care of the hotel side of the house before adding the insulation.
Looking at Ali’s parts list and the ignition switch on the floor, it looks like the problem started in the engine bay, worked its way up one of the wires Joe mentioned, the wire overheated and eventually made contact with another wire inside the loom and that’s how the fire started.
I am willing to bet a case of Tecate that the new engine manifold somehow had something to do with this, especially if replacing the manifold involved removing and re-installing the starter motor(?)
About the only wires that haven’t been replaced under the dash is the bunch that goes into the steering column for horn and signals.
Hope you are able to get back on the road soon. We wish you continued good luck with your woes.
Mark and Cindy
I love the photos – and I’m looking forward to more views of the tooth!
Do you know what caused the meltdown? I’m with Roland, it’s something to do with the new engine manifold, isn’t it?
PS Tell Dave I have total sheep envy.
That photo of the 3 kids pushing alfalfa through the gate to a dog, a hen, a pig and two sheep – really cute!