The last three days have been concerned with assembling and fitting the entrance steps, a job which is largely complete. I also cut the wooden finisher for the lower step from an undamaged section of the ash guard rail from the nearside. Tasks that remain are painting the sheet metalwork, fitting and painting the lino, fitting and painting the wooden lower step finisher and finally the nosings. The view below shows the wooden steps fitted, awaiting the riser panel.
Primed the repair section for the forward door pillar.
Drilled the mounting holes in the mahogany planks for the steps. I also drilled some packing strips for underneath the planks. Soaked the whole lot in preservative.
Finished filling and sanding the curved section of the entrance step metalwork and shot two coats of red oxide primer over the whole lot.
When the red oxide was cured, I sprayed a coat of silver over the rear of the entrance steps sheet metal – i.e. the side that faces the chassis and won’t be easy to reach when its all assembled. Final coat goes on tomorrow.
Restoration diary of a 70-year old AEC single-deck bus and the trials, tribulations and adventures of our 1966 Bristol bus.
