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The top of the springs have a lot more movement than the bottom.  The bottoms can be attached using hog rings, they are much faster than sewing and less expensive than a clintch it tool, but work well.  It is important to get the bottom of the springs attached in the proper spot.  Hand tying really is not that bad once you get the hang of it and a sofa can be sprung up within three or four hours.    A drop in spring unit can be used, its called a Webline.  Uses coil springs within a metal frame that can be installed into the chair or sofa, but imo they are a poor substitute for traditional hand tied coil springs.

That model is a long, long way from our republic, a representative democracy.

I stand by my definition of fascism, at least in the context of this thread.  I do realize there are many aspects beyond what is being discussed here.   It is true that our form of gov. is "supposed" to be a constitutional republic, but is it really?  When was the last time anyone felt there representative really represented them in DC? Today writing a letter to our Senator, or representative in the house only gets a form letter as a reply and no real action.  When the bail outs passed 90% of Americans were against them, but still they passed.  Our representatives were getting their hat handed to them in their home towns over Obama's health care, but still it passed.   I apologize if I offend anyone, but in the evidence I have seen, our presidential elections are a fraud, our presidents are appointed, not elected, its all for show.  Our country bleeds jobs over seas, impoverishing Americans, but what do our representatives do about it? nothing. I do believe we have some control over local and some state elections, especially if there is a ground swell support for a candidate. This may be the best place to start taking back our country.  Our country is going fascist, a little at a time because they cant get away with it all at once.  It's the frog in the pot analogy, turn up the heat all at once and it will jump out, turn up the heat a little at a time and the frog will not notice until its to late.  I also feel it is important we do not allow ourselves to be divided by small differences of opinion, we all agree things are not going in the direction we want them, we have to come together and find solutions.  I also think it is important we do not confuse patriotism with love of our gov. over our love for country. 

So what are you doing to make it work for you?

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Yes this country is fascist.  When the gov. and corporations work together to make profits privet, but the looses public this is fascism.  Does the word bailout ring any bells?  The trouble is, the way our monetary system works has been keep a dark secret since 1913.  No body really new how it worked because we were all lied to in school.  How many people today still believe the Federal Reserve is a government department? Many, but less do now because of the internet.   The Fed is no more federal then Federal Express.  It is a private bank owned by its board of directors,  this bank lends our government money at interest, money that it creates out of thin air, money that we must pay back with our labor.

I will explain it in a real simple way.  Lets say our gov needs 100 bucks, it goes to the fed and asks for 100 bucks.  The fed says ok, but it will cost you 10% payable in one year.  Our gov thinks this is a good deal so it says ok.  Well, one year passes and the gov returns to the fed and says we were able to get the 100 bucks back, but we do not have the extra 10%, or the extra 10 bucks.  The fed says that's ok we know you are good for it, lets say we loan you an additional 100 bucks plus the 10 bucks you owe with the same terms and next year you can make good on it.   Such a deal huh!  Trouble is next year the gov will be in the same boat only deeper because the interest, that little 10% was never made, it does not exist, so it can never be paid back.  Of course the gov is us, we the people and we are the ones who are enslaved because the dept can never be paid.  Einstein was right compounded interest is the most powerful force in the universe, he just failed to mention it is working against us as long as our gov continues to barrow money from those money changers over at the fed.  

Our gov has the constitutional ability to print, or coin its own money and spend it into the economy without interest. That is a fact, and we did this from about 1776, or before, because King George was upset that the colonist were using their own money,  until 1913 when the fed came into being.  There were central banks in existence before the fed, but they were always defeated, in fact Pres. Jackson survived an assassination attempt because he opposed a central bank.  Just think, if the gov. can print and spend its own money as needed without interest,  there is no need for taxes.  We the people do not have to be enslaved to a central bank working as tenant farmers to pay back a debt which can never be paid.

I was into stocks, I found a real good plan that worked by watching trends, I mean trends that go back 15 years, not just 3 years like many use.  I did well, started with a few hundred bucks and ended up with enough to buy a mid quality new car.  Then the charts showed me it was time to bail and I did, just before the economy went to H$%.  Lucky, yea real lucky, I ended up using that money to buy a kubota and started growing vegetables on a three acre plot thinking if things get real bad, I can sell, or triad food for necessities.  What I have learned is I am a real poor farmer.  I feel bad for people who think they can put aside some seeds and grow a survival garden if things get bad, it is a huge learning curve.  My garden gets better every year, but the real problem is trying to run a business and grow a large garden.  I am using organic methods and usually get to busy in the shop to keep ahead of the weeds, not to mention the abundant wild life that is thriving in my area.   Its has been three years now and I still cant grow all my own vegetables, never mind having enough extra to sell.  As far as retirement goes, I just don't see it happening for me, also many people who have saved all their life for a nice nest egg are going to see it disappear as the value of the dollar continues to drop.  I see the dollar going the way of the peso in the not to distance future.  I don't mean to be so pessimistic, I think things will get better, but first we have to get through the collapse of this corrupt cabal that has taken over our federal government and get back to sound constitutional money that is printed or minted buy our government, not a private central bank lent to us with interest.  

Well.  I am also one of those poor souls who grew up without the internet.  I never even knew servos existed until like maybe last year.  I would have loved to slow my Adler down, way down about 24 years ago when I first started.  I just had to give her a little clutch and turn it by hand when I needed to go slow.  I think what made a big difference was the machine finally broke in enough to allow me to sew slowly.  Or maybe the machine and I just met in the middle.  I still use the clutch and hand turning when in really tight corners, or intricate fancy top stitching, I don't see that changing even with a servo.

Humm interesting.  Like I said above, I have never had this happen to me.  But I don't doubt it if you witnessed it personally.  I usually use fiber flex which is not slippery like the solid plastic welt can be, especially against fabrics with a slick backing.  I don't know what you are using, maybe sewing closer to the cord would tighten things up enough so you don't get the slippage.  I don't know how experienced you are at sewing, but I know that getting close to that cord when sewing welt can be one of the most difficult skills to master, especially in vinyl.  When I was just learning to sew I had nightmares trying to get it right. 

I have had covers that needed a little stretching to fit, of course you always want to stretch them a little to get a nice fit, but if you have to stretch them more than planned the material could stretch more than the welt and give the impression that it slid.  Sewing both ends of the cording into the seam would force the cord to stretch with the rest of the cover fabric.

Chris: Those are some nice looking rigs.  The slides are really nice, they open up the interior a lot.   We really liked the slide on our trailer, but I wont be adding one on the bus project, think I will keep it simple for my first conversion.  It looks like the only way to get a full size fridge on the bus is to remove one of the windshields. If I go that route might as well just replace both windshields as they are starting to cloud around the edges and the rubber is getting old and there are some signs of leaking around the dash.   I did join a bus conversion forum and those guys had some really good ideas for getting the black water tank out of the bus.  The one I like the best is to just leave it and fill with expanding foam.  What ever I do,  I hope to have it done this coming weekend.  I will keep the pic's coming as I get things done, my son just bought a digital video camera, so maybe we can get some video up.

Cant say its in common usage up here in Vermont, at least in "polite conversation".  It is used mostly by guys, and I rarely hear it from a woman.  But I have a neighbor who cant compose a single sentence without profanity regardless of where he is, or who he is talking to.  As for myself, it is rare that I use profanity unless I need some magic words to make things go right, for some weird reason the magic words always seem to work, and it cant be just one, but a whole string of them composed in just the right order. :D

Lynn is giving you some good advice.  I always clip the cording back just enough to not sew over it, have never had the cording slip down, because I also clip it and sew at the bottom so how can it.

do you have a photobucket account?  If you don't its free and really makes posting pictures much easier.

Chris: Thanks for the encouraging words.  What type of bus do you have?  There are a few things I can use from the trailer, guess I will figure out just which ones as I go along.  I have considered a house hold type fridge, but the rv fridge in our trailer works and is not to small.  It would be nice to install a residential fridge and avoid cutting into the roof and walls of the bus. I have room to tipple the size of the holding tanks used in the trailer, so I will be in the market for new tanks.  I have one good roof mounted air conditioner, bathroom fixtures, furnace and a large awning that I think will be usable at this point.  The engine is an 8v71 and according to the previous owner was rebuild 70 thousand miles ago.  The engine has a sticker on it from the company who rebuilt it, so I could "supposedly" call and get the details.  It has a manual 5 speed trans.  The clutch is stiff, but did loosen up some on the trip home, we oiled and greased all the linkage and that has helped some also.  I think I would have preferred an automatic, but my son insists I will be better off with the manual.  My only experience driving this thing is backing it up and down the driveway.  I am not real excited about the door, it is the bi fold type and not real conductive to rv use. I am thinking about fabricating an rv type door to replace it.

My son has a 1961 mci mc5 that he has been restoring for about 4 or 5 years now. He has not done much on the cosmetics, but instead has been working on the mechanical end.  He has taken it to AL. a couple times.  He has a friend there who has a scenicruiser, they are not into the rv conversion thing, they like buses as buses.  Ill give him a few years ;D

So what does a man do when he see's the woman he loves just about in tears?

He goes out and buys her one of these and turns it into a palace on wheels.



Yea I am probably in over my head, but I once rebuilt a pop up so I think I am up to the task.  I am also a furniture maker and upholster, so the inside should go well.  I don't know much about buses, but my son does. I have restored many car's, so I am confidant I can handle it.  I just have to get over it's massiveness and learn how to drive the thing.  My son drove it home, it was about 200 miles one way and the bus ran and drove well.  Once home we noticed some things that we over looked before I bought it.  The radiators are going to go south any day, I am surprised they survived the trip home.  I need a new alternator and I have already replaced the batteries.  Everything on this thing is commercial grade  (ie expensive) so it will be a few weeks, or longer before I can afford to fix it, but my son and I can do the mechanical work ourselves.

The bus was fully seated when i brought it home.


There is plenty of work I can do before I am able to order repair parts. Pulling out all the seats was one job that my son and I worked all one weekend on.
This picture shows the seats removed, I left a few in and turned one around just incase we decide to take her for a spin, but they to will have to come out soon.


The next weekend my wife, son and I tore out the luggage racks and the bathroom partitions


This thing is built like a tank and things come out hard.  I am glad for the help, there is just no way I could do this myself, or at least I would still be working on the seats.

This is a picture of the poo pot.  I haven't figured out how to get this thing out yet.  It looks like the holding tank is to big to fit out from under the buss and I think it will have to come out by coming up into the coach and out a window?  I will have to do some research, I have found a couple of bus conversion forums and someone their should have already done this.


I suggested to everybody that we just leave it.  I could build a nice lid for it, fill it with ice and keep some cold ones in there >:(  That didn't go over to well.

If anyone is interested in following this project I will post pic's as I go, don't know how regular thy will be, but I really would like to get this done within a year.

This project may take a little explaining.  My wife and bought a new 30 foot travel trailer back in 2000.  We were very excited to have it and we towed it around camping for a couple of years.  My father had a seasonal site at a camp ground and we had the opportunity to put our trailer next to his, so we rented a seasonal site there.  It was fun and nice to just jump in the car and spend a weekend at the lake, but I was busy in the shop and we ended up not using it enough to justify the expense, so we towed it home and parked it in our driveway.  I always had trouble chasing leaks around the roof, every time we used it I had to climb up there and reseal some section.  I figured the trailer flexed so much during towing that it needed regular resealing, so when we towed it home I cleaned the roof good and sealed the whole thing.  I was real busy in the shop, so we didn't use it for several years.  My father bought a new motor home and last year moved to a new camp ground.  My wife decided it was time we started having a life once again and we had the chance to park out camper next to my fathers, so we towed it out last fall and put it in storage.  This spring our site was not ready and we had to wait until mid summer to put it on the site.  Once in place we started going out to camp and getting the trailer ready.

I was so heart broken when I saw the look in my brides eyes, even my father who is normally as male dump as I am picked up on it and told her not to cry that it would be ok.  Our camper that we were so proud of just a short 10 years ago was all rotten.  I couldn't believe it, I first noticed it at the door bottom and figured I could fix that easily enough, but as we continued cleaning and getting it ready we soon found additional spots.  The floor on one side of the entry door was real spongy.  One corner in the master bedroom was all rotten, as well as the roof over the bunks and the fridge.  The floor under the slid out rotted and I have no idea how I am going to get the slid to go back in.  I usually do not hesitate to take on big projects, but this is one I cant justify putting the needed time and effort into.  It is junk, and rebuilding junk is just not worth it.  I have to take some credit, I should have tended to the roof while the trailer was sitting.  I made the mistake of thinking since it was not flexing from towing that it would be ok, dumb idea.  So what does a man do when he see's the woman he loves just about in tears?

If your shop is in your home you have to stand firm.  My hours are 9 to 5 Monday - Friday and on weekends by appointment only.  If someone needs to stop by later than 5, I make exceptions, but only if it is worked out in advance.  If you are not careful the business will run you rather than you running the business.  I have one commercial customer who insists that I am open on weekends, I never have been for this customer, but he continues to send his delivery drivers to pick up on weekends, of course I am never open and they have to come back during the week, this has been going on for years.