Bus Shite

[cms206]

One of the Vectas was ours though I believe one of them'll be restored as a United bus.

 

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

[Felly Magic]

United Dartised many of theirs IIRC with Cummins/Allison drivetrain, conversion must have cost a few bob

[RoadworkUK]

Pretty sure that Eastern National National appeared on one of our school contracts in the early 90s. We had a blend of Nats and Nat 2s turn up. I found the differing rear lamp designs and exhaust notes endlessly fascinating.

 

Incidentally Eastern National ran a batch of 'Coastline' liveried Merc L608Ds (van conversions rather than coachbuilts) Registrations were in sequence from C215HJN and up.

[CreepingJesus]

Found something I don't ever recall seeing on the road (though I probably did), while trying to work out what particularly woeful buses Fife Scottish used for school buses in the early 80s.

One of only two Alexander RVC bodied B10Ms ever made, B176FFS (and its sister B175FFS) did the Kirkcaldy - Glasgow express run. One of them apparently ended up converted to a single deck in S Wales!

Western ran them from Killie - Glasgow at one point too.

Surprised I don't remember them.

[Felly Magic]

FFS sums up the 'styling, brutal to say the least, but looking at the shape, it does have an ALX400 look to the upper deck with the side profile

[petermchugh79]

Naked Alexander

 

Sent from my D5803 using Tapatalk

[Jim Bell]

Some old local pics.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[cms206]

United Dartised many of theirs IIRC with Cummins/Allison drivetrain, conversion must have cost a few bob

1551 ended up at Arriva Scotland West, it was Cummins/ZF.

 

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

[tooSavvy]

 

This saddo, rumpless POS was rattling disconcertingly just opposite Halifax Borough Market....

 

TS

[Felly Magic]

Enterprise Plasma, finished by Plaxton, go like a stabbed rat, but are a bit fragile

 

Anyhow, doing a test for my new site host, if it works, more buses here http://imgbox.com/g/GJIZUNQt21

 

[quicksilver]

 

This saddo, rumpless POS was rattling disconcertingly just opposite Halifax Borough Market....

 

TS

Plaxton Primo, yuk! Operator near me had a brand new one for a council contract but the sodding thing spent more time off the road than on it. Could even be that very one as I think it was TJ Walsh who bought it when they finally gave up trying to keep it going.

[mrcitroen]

Plaxton Primo, yuk! Operator near me had a brand new one for a council contract but the sodding thing spent more time off the road than on it. Could even be that very one as I think it was TJ Walsh who bought it when they finally gave up trying to keep it going.

 

There is one that kicks about round my way. Front suspension looks way too high and it nods and bounces along the road. Been like that for ages, so must be getting through inspections.

[DVee8]

https://www.facebook.com/sunderlandnow/videos/10153045253856427/?t=18

 

Good old Sunderland bus station 1993

[tooSavvy]

^^ Under the Crowtree Leisure Centre? Choked-a-Dog fumes & the famous 'my foot slipped' as the driver mowed down an old dearie (head job iirc)....

 

Ah, the memories..

 

https://www.sunderlandecho.com/news/death-crash-bus-gets-all-clear-1-1078662

 

TS

[busmansholiday]

Enterprise Plasma, finished by Plaxton, go like a stabbed rat, but are a bit fragile

 

Anyhow, doing a test for my new site host, if it works, more buses here http://imgbox.com/g/GJIZUNQt21

 

Better pictures of Leyland Nasty Wagons on your site than in the book on them I just bought. Which reminds me that I've a couple of slides to edit out for the film show I'm doing in Sheffield tomorrow night for my fellow saddos. Subject is January to June 1978, buses I photographed. Total of 298, less the two that were taken in December 1977. One of those was Crosville using an LH to tow a National.

[clayts450]

One of those was Crosville using an LH to tow a National.

 

Please share

[Felly Magic]

Tracky converted a National 2 to a towbus at one point, they'd had some real oddball single deck conversions as tow buses over the years including an ex Scouse Atlantean

[busmansholiday]

We had a Plaxtons bodied Leopard tow bus in the late 70's. It wasn't cut down or anything, full 36' long, fitters just opened the boot and attached the tow bar to the bracket that had been fitted inside it.

I remember the delight* of steering a buggered United RE coach behind it from Woodall Services back to our depot in Sheffield one day. Caused me to go a bit white when they pulled out into the traffic on Park Square roundabout (before traffic lights) forgetting the total length. Quite a few motorists had a close encounter with brown underwear.

[Felly Magic]

The preserved West Riding PS2 Tiger bus known as 'Ethel' was once used as a tow bus, they just removed a flap on the rear, and attached a rigid bar. I know an ex Kippax & District Leyland PD3 survives as a hacked down towbus that SYPTE used for many many years. It is known as DUGGY due to it's reg. 

[Felly Magic]

Naked Plasma. This was how they arrived in the UK to be fitted out at Plaxton Scarborough, once you iron out all the annoying faults, they turn out to be very nimble and fast as foook, still a pile of shite though

 

 

 

[Yoss]

My bus moved to a new home yesterday. Our old yard is being sold for redevelopment but the Southampton and District Transport Heritage Trust (catchy name) have done a deal to use part of the Bursledon Brickworks site.

 

This was the site when I arrived yesterday.

The Swift had conveniently broken down where it was parked blocking most of the other buses in but I managed to squeeze mine in on the end. The site isn't finished and more land is slowly being levelled in this little woodland clearing. The hope is to have seven buses either side and maybe one or two runners in the middle that can be easily moved. The trees are a double edged sword. They provide shelter in the summer keeping the sun off but hold moisture when it's cold and wet which tends to turn buses green though the Trust have an agreement that we can use nearby Lucketts Travels bus wash.

 

Our old site was similar meaning I had to wash all the moss and algae off every Spring except I used to have to do it by hand, standing on an old shipping container to get to the top deck. That was an all day job.

 

 

BUT! We have our own railway station!

Which is actually an old flatbed wagon planted next to a narrow gauge line that runs round the site.

 

This is the view of the line from the platform.

 

And if you look the other way...

A proper integrated transport hub, though I don't know when the next train is.

 

The Brickworks itself is one of these industrial heritage type places with all sorts of old machines lying around.

Some parts are still derelict.

 

And there's a shed down the bottom full of traction engines.

 

Some random machines.

 

And there's bits of old buildings just dotted about the place.

 

And bricks of course.

[Felly Magic]

A friend of mine has just aquired a second, yes second Optare Citpacer VW LT55, sadly it's failed the MOT on poorly aligned brakes. It's an uber rare coach spec version, with upside down Mk3 Grandad rear lights, will get some photos off em soon, here's a taster

 

[jbz2079]

I've seen one on the road, it belonged to Blackpool Transport and it was new.

They had a few, they didn't persist with them for long though.

[tooSavvy]

 

Fred Dibnah arrived and announced "Heh, brought too many laddas! eh"

 

TS

[quicksilver]

A friend of mine has just aquired a second, yes second Optare Citpacer VW LT55, sadly it's failed the MOT on poorly aligned brakes. It's an uber rare coach spec version, with upside down Mk3 Grandad rear lights, will get some photos off em soon, here's a taster

 

Magic Rider Optare CityPacer D901MWR.JPG

There's a coincidence, I'm currently working on a model of one of these, which were known as the InterCityPacer. That one survives thanks to one of my local operators, who bought it from a scrapyard as a parts donor for their fleet of CityPacer buses but decided it was good enough to rebuild and put into use. I think it went on to a couple more operators afterwards before being preserved.

 

Here it is back in 1999, complete with Granada lights and a bonus beige Richard Bucket-mobile.

[Yoss]

Just spotted this at Lordshill Sainsbury's, in Southampton.

 

Last week I saw a Brighton and Hove bus on the 18 in Shirley but was unable to get a picture. It did make me do a double take though. I know they are all part of Go Ahead but it's like the early days of Blue Line when the first batch of buses were painted but as they expanded they were getting old VRs from anywhere and putting them straight in service. They're certainly brightening the place up.

[lisbon_road]

Yoss, I am a member of SDTHT (or lapsed, not sure).  Looks like the new site is good.

 

Are First giving up more services in Southampton then?  I know they've dropped some schools and also the park and ride service in Chandlers Ford, so presumably the 'heritage' fleet of the step Darts and the Olympian might be gone now.  

[Yoss]

I know they chopped the route 12 completely a few weeks ago. This linked the hospital to Shirley via Millbrook and was effectively the old Routemaster route 17A. If you want to go from Millbrook to the hospital now you have to take two buses via Shirley. And yet they increase the frequency of the main routes into town leaving Shirley High street gridlocked half the time.

 

I hardly use them any more.

[83C]

Been putting some pics on Flickr:
 

 

LHW 504P - Bedford/Plaxton

 

UFJ 229J - Bristol RELH6H/Plaxton

 

HYC 642Y - Ford/Duple Dominant

 

 

C142 SPB Leyland Tiger - Leyland Tiger/Berkhof Everest 370. Drove this many times for Swanbrook and was a lovely thing to drive. Just had to be aware of the extra height and higher centre of gravity - corners could be a bit hairy if taken too quick!

 

 

G38 YHJ Leyland Lynx - Pictured here at the Oakeley Arms, Tanybwlch. I owned it at the time, and we took it on a tour of the old Crosville depots (before Arriva it was Crosville Cymru SLC38).

[tooSavvy]

Flickr..

 

Select pic > bottom right is a bent arrow logo > tap = blue box with script to host >> you just want the bit between [i.mg] XXX [/i.mg] inclusive.

 

*no DOT in IMG... Just to show you

 

 

TS