London buses

[Orcade-Ian]

A mate down in Lancashire was at the Much Hoole gathering near Preston and not 1 but 2 350/4's turned up - so Mike P, they do exist in the flesh and not just in photos.  Yes, there is a very nice 550/4 K lurking in the background on one pic

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Ian

[Athame57]

Nice bikes, but what is it that had you call the thread London Buses?

[Bryanj]

Cos London buses are renowned for not being on time then turning up in pairs!

[Orcade-Ian]

Thanks Bryan,
Sorry for the apparently misleading thread title then, I thought most folk knew that legend had it that there was never a bus when you needed one, then 2 would turn up at the same time.

Ian

[Athame57]

Thanks Bryan,
Sorry for the apparently misleading thread title then, I thought most folk knew that legend had it that there was never a bus when you needed one, then 2 would turn up at the same time.

Ian

Ian, this just isn't correct, these things happen in THREES! 

[Orcade-Ian]

Thanks Bryan,
Sorry for the apparently misleading thread title then, I thought most folk knew that legend had it that there was never a bus when you needed one, then 2 would turn up at the same time.

Ian

Ian, this just isn't correct, these things happen in THREES! 

You are probably right about THREES but I think you might have to wait a lot longer for three 350/4s to turn up together at a small show in Lancashire - especially all the same colour!

Ian

[Bryanj]

Its down to inflation you know, i liked when they retired all the routemasters as to old then had to un retire then cos the new stuff kept braking down!

[Orcade-Ian]

That's similar here in Orkney Bryan, some of the ageing ferry fleet, totally unfit for service have been dragged out of retirement when the replacements - told by many that they are unsuitable, have broken down.

Ian

[Oddjob]

I was a bus driver twice in my working life. The second time they retired a load of old buses for emissions etc. Then they brought a load back as all the new buses went down to London for the Olympics or the Ryder cup, so much for emissions. They came back but the drivers had to suffer with unsuitable equipment along with the passengers. I admit I would try and break the old buses whenever I got one. The bus companies say one thing and do another.

[Laverda Dave]

Routemaster buses........Back in the distant past of 1983 when I was a coach trimmer I worked at Chalk Farm bus garage in north London for a while. We used to operate RM's on the Number 24 bus route. London Transport was formed in 1933 and it celebrated it's 50th anniversary in 1983 with a transport gala at the Chiswick Bus overhaul works.
Considering we had RM1933 on our bus fleet at Chalk Farm we decided to restore the bus and to enter it into the gala. We spent a lot of our own time restoring the bus, I retrimmed the seats and replaced all the mauve rexine material used to line the interior of the bus.
We painted it in the colours used by London Transport in 1933 and took it to the gala where it won first prize and it became our show bus and only allowed into service during the day.
The photo shows the finished bus at another show.
Anyone who collects die cast models may be aware of a Chinese company called Sun Star, they brought out a model of RM1933 in its 1983 colours. My brother bought one for me on my 60th.
RM1933 sold a couple of years ago for £58,000!

[Bryanj]

If we are on about buses i spent some time working at Stroud(glos) depot of Bristol Omnibus where i saw Lodekkas, Bristol RE and Spaceships(older gardiner engined manual gearbox) plus the DP coaches and leopards.
Plus of course the infamous Leyland National, 50+ mods to fuel system within 9 months, valve springs breaking on the god awful Leyland fixed head ohc diesel, weighed more tha a dekker, caried less people and did less mpg!

If you want beakdown and worksp stories i can go on for hours

[Laverda Dave]

And the Leyland National bus body was also used to build the Pacer trains for British Rail back in the 1980’s. Single boogie at each end of the carriage makes for a spine crunching ride!
We went in one a few years ago from Exeter to North Devon, it was absolutely knackered.

[Athame57]

Anyone remember in the 1980s when London buses were carrying an advert poster of Nigel Mansell at the wheel? Well I was despatch riding at the time and the publisher Century Hutchinson sent me to Westbourne Park bus depo where the shoot was happening. I rode in and approached the caravan he had there, I saw him watching me coming. He was interested in what I had arrived on, my Suzuki RG500Gamma  was having day out due to GS450 workhorse having work done on it. He came out for a looksee and chinwag, yet it was still an assistant who signed my docket sheet.

[Orcade-Ian]

Ee! I'm right glad I used that misleading topic title, some great stories from all of you,  ta!
The only bus one I can add was when I was sitting on the back seat of a newly restored Bedford OB (stop sniggering you lot!) there were no other seats apart from the driver's and we were off to Preston for its Ministry Test.  It had been lovingly restored by my great friend Norman Wade (sadly no longer with us) and featured on Top Gear with Tony Mason on the Blackpool run.  Happy days!  Norman served his apprenticeship with HF Brockbank (Brockie) the well known BSA motorcycle dealer and racer in Southport, so there is a motorcycle connection somewhere.

Ian

[McCabe-Thiele (Ted)]

Your post has reminded me of when I used to collect used Vauxhall's from Luton employers (Circa 1965)  who were allowed to buy two cars a year at a big  discount. The Vauxhall dealers would buy these low mileage cars from the employers when they were 6-12 months old, everyone in the chain made  a tidy profit.

Frequently on the Luton run we would see new Bedfords Bus Chassis on the M1 presumably on their way to coachbuilders. They had a makeshift drivers seat with a plywood board in front & behind. The drivers wore goggles to keep the insects out of their eyes. No windscreens so not a nice job when it was cold or raining.