Final trimming and fitting of the repair section I made yesterday was carried out this morning. The repair section was fitted and screwed and glued in place after some fettling of the slot into which the boot floor bearer mortises.
Attention then turned to removing the remains of rusty screws from the the overlap section where the side meets the rear corner. I cut to length (64.5in) the long length of timber for the nearside rail and proceeded to start creating the rebate for the boot floor using the circular saw and a jig made from another timber. I made the horizontal cut in both offside and nearside timbers this afternoon and prepared the first timber for the vertical cut tomorrow.
Yesterday and today were spend manufacturing a rather complex shaped piece of timber to repair the siderod just aft of the NSR wheelarch. This needs to provide location for the boot floor perimeter rail and the lower perimeter rail along the rear of the bus. This piece is about ready to be installed but requires a little more adjustment and cutting to suit the body tumblehome.
Today I removed the three wooden strakes (or runners) from the boot floor and the rotten lino. I then measured up for a new lot of floor covering for the boot and for the luggage racks as the lino there needs replacing too.
I also removed the steel plate that acts as a catch for the boot doors and the steel sill cover that protects the boot floor edge. This will need to be remanufactured as it is totally rusted through in several places. I will probably have to make this in two pieces as it needs to be folded to match the floor profile and edge then welded into one piece.
Boot door sill
Restoration diary of a 70-year old AEC single-deck bus and the trials, tribulations and adventures of our 1966 Bristol bus.
