1966 Half Cab Double Decker

Loggie

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Loggie
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1,527
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Dunloy
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Sierra
Maybe not the usual content for RMS, and wouldn’t normally start a thread for a bus, but this one is a bit special!

To backtrack a little I have been searching and hoping to add a vintage bus/coach to our fleet for the past 5 years but through one thing or another it has never really been possible. I started a new avenue for wedding hire back in late 2020 and this has been a real popular area for us. Because of this market and a lot of other things just falling into place we were finally able to make a deal happen on this!

Brought up the road from Dublin yesterday it has been in the south for the past 4 years or so. Originally it was a Leicester city transport vehicle and this is where it did all of its work.

The vehicle itself received a complete restoration back in 2011 and almost every panel is new. It is hard to find any real faults on it even up close which is hard in the classic bus world.

Powered by a Leland 600 engine, it sounds fantastic. Going to be a bit of a learning curve for us being honest with the regular maintenance and adjustment required. Any experts on this type of commercial classic in the country?

Anyway I will add some pics for now and will try and get some more over the coming day.

Hopefully some find it interesting - happy to answer any questions!


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purplea4T

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purplea4T
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4,000
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Bangor
Lovely, the nose has a real Art Deco look about it, body lines are class on it, far better looking thing than an oul Routemaster. It certainly looks like it's had a quid euro thrown at it to keep it looking well.
Try uvcvc.com - Ulster Vintage Commercial Vehicle Club.
 

Loggie

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OP
Loggie
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Dunloy
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Sierra
Cheers! Yeah I’m not really a fan of the body on the routemaster, really happy with this - will check them out appreciate it!
 

Woodcutter

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Woodcutter
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31,312
That is mega, what a great idea, with all the retro/vintage trend these days I expect that’ll be popular. 😎
 

Dan

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Dan
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8,926
This is cool! We wanted one for our wedding in 2019 but couldn’t find one.
 

FM155

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FM155
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Alfa 155
Lovely job! The grilles remind me of the Albion lorries of the same period. When I was at a mates shed a few times out near Nantwich, the shed next door was a load of guys restoring and running various old busses back to the 50s. Lovely old things but you'd need to get an easy way of servicing all the old grease nipples, the suspension and steering are covered in them.
 

davyk31

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D
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3,337
Looks fantastic and should be very popular.

Only thing would worry me about running something like that is the risk of a breakdown with 50 guests on board heading for a wedding. What’s the contingency plan there, is it a case of good maintenance and hope for the best or keep other vehicles and drivers at base waiting to go to the rescue?
 

Loggie

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OP
Loggie
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1,527
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Dunloy
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Sierra
Luckily we do have a ramp for accessing most service items so hopefully be able to manage in house. That sounds class @FM155! This one came from a similar barn full of vintage deckers all in various states of restoration.

@davyk31 yeah it’s always going to be a bit of a concern but hopefully with the condition it’s in and regular maintenance we will be as prepared as possible. I’m thinking of keeping one of the more modern 80 seat deckers reserved any time this is booked just as a backup and have a booking contract made up just in case there are any problems.

That’s of course there is a gearbox left after my practice this evening lol
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Loggie

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Loggie
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1,527
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Dunloy
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Sierra
Thank you @Mr.Mint @WSK, credit to its previous owners it has had an absolute fortune spent being completely rebuilt all over.

I have a copy of bus and coach preservation with a write up on the full restoration, started out a lot different than it is now!
 

Mr.Mint

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Mr.Mint
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3,353
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Dungannon
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Many Things.
Loggie said:
I have a copy of bus and coach preservation with a write up on the full restoration, started out a lot different than it is now!
Click to expand...

I can imagine! They never got the looking after they deserved as they were out to make money, pure and simple.

Great to see it's gone to a good home and will be maintained properly.
 
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