Examining the remains (3)

As expected, the window pans when removed were heavily corroded; when the glass was extracted, some no longer completely surrounded the space.

Internally, there wasn't much left. No seats or seat frames, no panelling or cappings downstairs, incomplete upstairs. The blind boxes were more or less complete, although some of the glass was broken.

The verdict? Nothing that can't be fixed, given time, skill and a supply of components from other sources. The collection of which had already started.

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Examining the remains (2)

There was no ceiling downstairs, but the between-decks structure and upstairs floor were generally good, except that the coving panels and brackets along each side were heavily corroded. The single-piece Jicwood roof was in surprisingly good shape, although the inner and outer front domes had been removed.

The lower deck floor was rotten along the sides, but otherwise solid. Along with as much else as possible, what can be retained and refurbished will be.

The cab and much of the front of the bus had been stripped; the front bulkhead (despite various LT repairs) was cracked on both sides. The main riser and the stairs were good, although the staircase riser (the support for the stairs) turned out to be badly rotten. The platform had fallen off at Billingshurst, leaving the pole swinging in the breeze.

[continued in next post]

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Examining the remains (1)

OK, so what did we have to cope with?

The basic framework was there, except for the waist rail on the offside, and the chassis and mechanicals were intact except for some small items that had been 'removed' (for example the speedo drive), and everything was corroded. The engine had been overhauled in 1976 and little used since 1978, which was promising; the fuel system was blocked between the tank and the header tank.

Two of the wheels were from a Routemaster, similar but not identical. Some of the windows had been smashed for effect during the making of the film, to accentuate the effect of the fire.

[continued in next post]

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Recovering the remains (May 2008)

Poor old 4779. The engine was started, a little reluctantly, but it wasn't going anywhere under its own steam. In May 2008, the Langley Vale wrecker did the honours, moving the bus a short distance from its former Dorking residence.

The project had begun...

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Planning a rescue

Being something of a 'special bus' to me, I had tracked 4779 to its resting place in 2002. Even before I ever dreamed of owning a bus, it seemed important to know that it wouldn't disappear without something being done. At least the bus was now under cover.

Those who knew the bus concluded that it was 'too far gone' and would be one of the ones that got away. I hoped not.

After some years, and with an imminent lifestyle change, I started to think about the possibility of a project. I would need serious help, effectively someone to give me an apprenticeship in coachbuilding with 4779 as the project. Things came together in 2008, Ian was the man to lead the project, and the bus was bought - as a leaving present by a company I had worked with for 15 years.

The photo shows the remains in use as a store. Definitely an RT, but was it too far gone?

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