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SchortBus

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This is my set up. It's been a one thing at a time build, with no real plan, other than I like to cook gourmet food, and school buses don't come with a kitchen.

So, my first acquisition was the 2 burner propane stove from Wallys, I recall it was $40 shipped to the store. I bought the big cookie sheet at Smart-n-Final for about $12 I think, and it's held down with velcro, for cleaning.
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Then, having lived in an RV, I knew an outside vent was mandatory. Now, I found this 110v oven hood at Habitat for Humanity for $15, brand new! It runs off my inverter and vents straight out the side window. I cut no holes or drilled any either, it's like it was meant to be here. You can see I keep the window open to vent the hood, and it's impossible to tell from 10ft away there's an oven hood inside. 
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Next I bought this old solid wood 8 drawer dresser at a thrift store. It was priced at $120, but when I went back to buy it, it was on sale for $49. SCORE! I cut off the 3" legs and it fit perfectly between the wheel well and the passenger door. 

Then I bought this brass sink (requires mucho maintenance to look shiny), also from Habitat for Humanity...the guy gave it to me for $30, down from $50, as he digs my bus project. I found this plastic piece which doubles as a cutting board, and a sink cover for extra counter space.
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Now the sink sat around for months until my friend Dave gifted me this solid brass, antique, Chicago faucet. It is the PERFECT match, and after rebuilding it, works flawlessly...save all the time keeping it polished.
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I have a 40 gal H20 tank that I'm pressurizing with air to pump my water. The drain is rather simple, with no trap, and a 3/4" poly pipe going staight thru the floor. I had to sacrifice half of the top drawer for the sink. No grey water tank as I try and be discreet when doing dishes, and besides, it's just soapy water. (I know it's illegal, so is my lifestyle)
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So, for less than $200, and some sweat equity, I am cooking in style. And sometimes when I'm cooking up a tri-tip with onion and garlic, people will smell the vented fumes, and want to buy some!
 

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kitchen pics,

first pic is my road traveling kitchen when I am on the move from one area to the next,

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second pic,  gold camp eastern Oregon,

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view of the whole camp,

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another year at the same camp in Oregon,

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last pic is an overview of another gold camp this one in Nevada sorry no up close but it's basically the same as the Oregon set up,

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sorry that's all I have for now.  highdesertranger
 

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I love the oven, but it has not been trouble free. I have had a few problems with it. I want to point out that Camp Chef has been good as far as parts for it if you get past their BS. and yes I still carry a lot of buckets, you can see 7 in the first pic that's about half of what I like to have. highdesertranger
 
SchortBus - love the way you reused everything to make a beautiful kitchen. Have you finished the rest of the bus? Pictures please, if and when! :)

We got to watch HDR set up his camp at the RTR a few years ago- it's pretty amazing!
 
ratfink56 said:
SchortBus your kitchen looks great! May I suggest notching the plastic cover to fit around that beautiful faucet?

I'm not sure how you would notch it...it's funny, but 
I found this plastic piece behind an out of business restaurant long before I put in the sink. I didn't cut it, it just fits.
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Not sure if you could see before but one side has a 90* bend.
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And yes, the faucet is really cool! My friends wife was pissed off when she saw it in my bus! But hey, Dave gave it to me, and it had been in their garage for 20 years, just waiting for me to get a brass bar sink.  :D
 

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tonyandkaren said:
SchortBus - love the way you reused everything to make a beautiful kitchen. Have you finished the rest of the bus? Pictures please, if and when! :)

Thanks! At the moment, my house needs janitorial servicing (it's a mess, and it's a rainy-stay inside-do nothing day), but here's a shot of me getting ready (read high), before a show. I have a futon, that I'm sitting on, that is my bed. When I get around to it, next time I clean, I will post up some pics. It's my private little magic touring bus.

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An older one I found.
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And a really old view of my smart screen.
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ratfink56 said:
Didn't notice the curve at the edge of the cover.
Yeah, I have cooked in a few commercial kitchens and never seen anything like it, but it works perfect for my application.

Here's another shot. I bought this white shelf thing, that is above my hood from back to front, from Home DePot (a closet organizer). I remember it was a 14ft shelf for $20, and I had to cut off a couple feet. It is held up with chains, and some L-brackets above the window. Again, no cutting or drilling any holes on the bus.
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I reckon the stereo covers up the sounds of rattling stuff on the road.
 

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highdesertranger said:
come on people we need some more kitchen pics.  highdesertranger

Perhaps all the peeps have store bought kitchens, or they're embarrassed to post a pic of their Chinese microwave...

And that's a nice camp kitchen there "Cookie".

I had plans of adding an outdoor propane grill...you know, removable for driving. I think I was looking at a Camp Chef, but I've hit maximum stuff. George Carlin knew it well, ya gotta get rid of some stuff, so ya can get some more stuff. 

For now, this Calphalon grill pan is my steak cooker. And it does a surprisingly great rib eye!

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Mines already been shown, but I can do a bit of a summery.

 Counter is a 1" ponderosa slab, propane on-demand water heater scavenged out of a bus in a junkyard.

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 Storage for sink essentials, and cutting board.

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 Slide out sink, and over stove/window dish storage.

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 More to come that has not yet been featured, and photos of details.
And I do also have a portable grill/burner combo for summer time cooking outside.
 

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LowTech said:
A propane on-demand water heater scavenged out of a bus in a junkyard.

Is the water heater vented out the back, not vented, etc... Also what size/model do you have, and do you just use it for the kitchen, or is it a shower too?

I have been thinking I need an outside shower, and since I already have 3 propane appliances, a 4th is no problem.

Nice post!
 
At the moment it just vents out the top. It fires far less than the stove so I'm not really concerned about that. I will have something build so that it vents out the side wall. That's more to keep the heat out.
It is also a shower if I want. It's just a basic Ecotemp, the small one.
 
Pics are 1024x768, about 144-216KB each. The originals were like 3+MB.

First draft. Cutting board and large storage drawer. Both happen to be 2'x2' because that's the size of the wood I bought. I was planning to add one or two more drawers down below. The piece of wood at the bottom is to keep the legs the same width so the drawers don't fall out :)
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Added sink. Using 2gal water jugs for gray tanks.
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Drawer loaded for a camping trip.
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Actually using the thing. Kaibab NF, fire road 688, just south of GCNP south gate.
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Then I decided I didn't like this layout. All the weight was on one side, no storage, no seating, stupid blocks on the countertop so I had somewhere to screw into, etc etc. So I'm rebuilding the whole thing. Here's what it looks like now. The blue circle is going to be the new kitchen, and I got a proper 6gal actual real human-waste-grade gray tank (but just for the sink). Still not sure where I can dump it other than pit toilets and maybe it's compatible with dump stations...

I'll be reusing the same sink I made for the first version. Probably gonna build it up another foot or so. I bought an 1800W induction cooktop that will be used when there's good sun, and I have a propane grill that will be used when there is not (or for cooking outside etc.)
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behind me in that pic is the bedroom.  I sleep on a cot.  been doing it for years.  my set up was available for all to see at the RTR.  here iswhat it looks like when a turned around,

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back off shot,

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the canopy on the left is the kitchen,  the tarp in the center is the bedroom,  the easy-up on the far right is the gold processing center.  highdesertranger
 

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HDR, you sleep out in the open (under the tarp structure) even in wind/rain storms ?
 
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