Just a quick update on the bus progress – not much to show in terms of physical changes, but I’ve been doing a lot of behind the scenes planning and designing and thinking.
I had the vehicle modification inspector out this week to look at my plans for installing a passenger seat at the very front of the bus. I need to be able to build in a slide-out section of floor for the passenger’s feet to go as they would otherwise be hanging over the stairwell. He was happy with my plans and I have a clear idea now what he requires to sign off on it. I can’t really do anything else on the bus until I fix that rust in the doorway and rebuild the door and steps, which requires being able to weld.
I did a class in MIG welding last weekend, which turned out to be very disappointing. It wasn’t very well run and the teacher was terrible at explaining things. I honestly learned more watching Youtube videos! But the good thing was I had my own welder to play with for a few hours, so at least got a feel for what is involved. It is much harder than it looks. I realised I would have to do many many hours of practice, so was thinking about buying a welder. But they are not that cheap.
Quite a few guys in my bus groups are old-fashioned stick welders and they say it is just as strong as MIG welding. It also seems less complicated and cheaper so I thought I would give that a go. I bought myself a basic stick welder from Bunnings. Along with the necessary safety gear (I made sure to get a quality helmet) it has cost me all up about $400. It is quite a bit of money but this is a skill I am determined to learn and if I can master it, it will mean being able to do my own work on the bus, instead of having to pay other people, so it will save me money and pay for itself anyway.


Great little blog , i saw your comment on coaster forum about buying the toyota coaster so came in for a closer look.
I have experience with welding as with many things , for structural steel its ideal but for automotive mig is the way as you can control the heat into the weld , stick you can easily warp thin panels …
You can hire mig for a weekend for less than $100 , for novice just run fluxcore it spatters a bit but its great to learn on … Plus its 3 times faster & more efficient than stick … You can buy 2nd hand good brand mig for $400+ ..steer clear of bunnings brands ..
Anyway by time you read this you may already have this knowledge …im in melbourne . I dont currently have a bus , but had many vehicles in my life …
Hope you enjoy your new purchase ..
Hi Rick, thanks for stopping by. yes I did a class in MIG welding so have tried both. The coaster frame is definitely a lot thinner and I’d be nervous about trying to do welding on it myself. I’m actually hoping that the new bus will be in much better condition and I won’t actually have to do any rust repair welding myself at all. Fingers crossed!