About The Ruck Bus:
The Ruck Bus is a 2007 Ford Ecoline E350 6.8L V10 cutaway by Coach and Equipment. The bus came with 77k miles, 3 futons, flat screen Roku TV, Double din touch screen radio with surround sound, speaker amp, led lighting, Intermotive Fast Idle System, an 800watt Power Inverter, two Interstate SRM24 battery 550CCA 690CA and a little bit of rust.
The Plan:
The plan for The Ruck Bus has changed slightly. It was to convert the bus to a livable space for two people and two dogs. After using the bus to move my belongings from New York to Florida, my girlfriend and I have decided The Ruck Bus was a little small for the both of us with two dogs (Jake and Cyrus). Additionally, there was a lot more to be done with the project and it would take a while before it was travel ready. If you didn't know, we have decided to upgrade to a larger RV that we are calling The "Ruckreational." The Ruck Bus, aka Reptar will still be converted with the help of my friend. Reptar will stay in the Ruck Shack family and be used for future events. Overall goal for Reptar:
48v electrical system with 5000watt inverter and a solar power/charging system, Full size bed, bathroom/shower combo, 3.3cu refrigerator, stove, oven, 40gallon fresh water tank and a lot of cool tech and equipment.
While I was in Kentucky meeting two Discord users from The Ruck Shack community, one of them, Bullyville, convinced me that he can paint the back of my bus. After showing me some pictures of his past work, I was sold on the idea and said "Let's get to painting." It went so well that we ended up doing the front of the bus also. Take a look at some of the pictures.
The floor removal took a few days. There were some rail mounts from the wheel chair lift and seating that was bolted all the way through and tight. I had to cut them out with the angle grinder. I decided to keep the bus heater and air conditioner since they both work well. The air conditioner does need a new compressor.
After doing some research for materials I found a guy on marketplace with a pallet of flooring in a color I liked. I purchased 7 boxes of Ash Umber Waterproof Vinyl Flooring for $49 per box. Regular price was roughly $81/box. I think it looks great.
When I purchased the vehicle the wheel chair lift was removed and the side door was bolted shut. As I removed the flooring I was trying to locate the location of the bolts were keeping the door shut. I was not able to find them for the longest time. After a few weeks I decided to remove the weather stripping around that door and found the bolts. There were three bolts and once removed the door swung open. This was a relief as I plan to make storage under the bed area which can be accessed from the outside using the door.
I am using expanding foam sealer to fill some gaps in the door. I will use a sheet rock saw to cut off the excess foam.
The bed frame was built for a full size mattress. I have left enough room under the bed for a water tank, water heater, water pump, and of course storage.
The solar panels I decided to use are 290watts each. I purchased 4 of them for a total of 1160watts of solar power. The panels I found on Facebook Marketplace from a guy selling them in bulk. Each panel cost me $75 for a total of $300. The panels will be used with my MrPower 5000watt solar inverter/charger and two ECO-WORTHY 24V 100AH Mini Size LiFePO4 Lithium Deep Cycle Batteries to be ran in series for a 48v system.
I am mounting two panels on the top rail and two below that are on sliders. This will allow for all 4 panels to be used while stationary and only taking up the space of two.
Camera System:
The camera system I went with was from Amazon.com and I am overall very happy with it so far. You can get more information on the product here.