This Eagle conversion was originally built by David Sargent of Traditional Coachworks, and was completed in 2002. Dave died in 2010, and a few years later the family sold it to a Canadian lady who drove it to an RV Park in Mesa, using it as a winter home. Then, in late 2019 she decided to sell it at consignment lot in Apache Junction, AZ. 

Since the bus hadn't been driven most of the previous 10 years, it needed a lot of work to make it road worthy. It smoked like a chimney, leaked oil like a seive, and had tires that were 9 years past their expiration date. So, an in-frame overhaul and 8 new tires were needed before it could be driven very far.

In addition, the HWH hydraulic leveling and slide system worked fine, but the slide seal had a leak. After making a few calls, it was clear that replacing the slide seal would involve a lot of labor as the slide had to be removed, which would be very expensive. However, the overall build quality was very high and the interior was still in good condition, so after negotating the price down to compensate for what I had found, the rebuild process began.

Me and Dan Lenz

First I located Ivan, a local mobile mechanic, who serviced all mechanical and hydraulic systems, and did an in-frame overhaul of the engine. I also found Dan Lenz, a former employee of the Eagle Bus Company and all around great guy. He travelled to Phoenix and spent a day teaching me how they built the buses, what kinds of things typically need to be serviced, and most importantly how to drive it.

In addition to the above, I installed a new auxillary air compressor, had the electrical system updated, had front and rear airbags installed to supplement the aging torsion suspension, added network and AV cabling, replaced the washer/dryer, and generally brought all bus and house systems back online and up to date.

After getting the bus road worthy we took it to a Cummins dealer where they serviced the generator. We then drove it from Arizona to Texas, where an HWH dealer replaced the inflatible slide seal. Then we made a trip to Montana, where we ended up having a complete out-of-frame engine rebuild performed at a Detoit Diesel dealer in Billings.

A few years later I met a former Bombardier employee and pilot, who generously shared his knowledge and experience with aluminum, rivets and painting aircraft. He helped me to replace broken rivets, compound and polish the polyurethane paint, and refinish the mirrors.

It has been a big project full of a lot of unknown unknowns, and has required a lot of work by a lot of people, but it has been a great learning experience.

See Photos for more details about the bus, and My Story for the motivation behind the website.