July 11 and 12, 2020 - This weekend we got a lot of small jobs done:

• removed the handicapped stickers and reflective strips around the emergency exit to eventually prep for painting (painter's tool and GooGone are our friends)

• removed the bottom sheet metal panels that were welded to our hat channels and bus frame (angle grinder)

• removed some of the ground-in dirt and light rust on the floor (angle grinder and bristle brush attachment for drill)

• removed the last sheet metal panels around the driver's area (crowbar, mallet)

• replaced the batteries on the bus

• pulled out the rubber hoses that were once connected to the rear AC unit

• removed the rubber flooring in the driver's area (knife, painter's tool)

• began to tackle the rat's nest of wires we no longer need (knife, wire cutters, electrical tape)

• shopvac, shopvac, shopvac

This Saturday, we had the pleasure of being joined by our friend Cesar. He is fearless with a crowbar, and he is way more persistent than either of us when confronted with rivets that won't budge. We're super lucky to have friends and family who want to help with the bus conversion!

The electrical part of the bus demolition was neither easy nor fast. Ana's dad, Ruben, came by to help on Sunday, and we appreciate his electrical knowledge as we tackled the wire situation. Most of the job involved finding wires that we had already disconnected and tracing those to where they were plugged in. Some wires we found wrapped around other wires weren't connected to anything on either end. Ruben found several cables that were once meant to connect to CB radios, antennas, or other communications systems. Although we still have some electrical work to do, we feel so much better having started the job and gaining some experience.