Entries from 4/10 were lost due to failure of QHoster in allowing their installation to be hacked and encrypted by ransomware. A summary follows:
The angle brackets have been fitted, these reinforce the joints between the lower perimeter frame and the body cross-bearers at the boot.
Next the external cladding panels for the waistrail above the boot doors and below the rear window was fitted.
The entrance steps were next on the list, the last of the non-slip strips fitted and the bottom step drilled for the rearmost handrail which has been temporarily fitted to provide location guidance for the horizontal beading below the rear bulkhead window.
Work then turned to fitting the cladding to the nearside from the windows downwards in preparation for fitting the nearside windows.
Next, three droplight frames were painted ready for assembly then the two broken droplights were reglazed and the brass frames repaired as necessary. Over the last few days I have fitted out the first of the frames (bay 2) with the Delrin strips which will take the screws for the droplight fittings. The droplight components have been “chromed” as necessary and the top seal glued with silicone to its aluminium runner – this will be fitted last after the glazing is installed in the frame.
Completed cutting the material for the inner flange of the window frames (the bit the glass abuts) and started to make up the remaining frames. I hope to complete the rest of the frames by the end of next week, however I am fitting this job around nearside paneling and frame repair so it may take longer.
Some progress today. Work on the three remaining half-drop windows continued with cleaning and preparing for paint the fixed-glazing bottom clamp bars. This involved the use of citric acid to remove the aluminium oxide from the corrosion pits, luckily this is all on the inner surfaces where these were screwed to the steel window frames. It is surprising (and annoying) that Weymann did not at least give these a coat of paint as a barrier between the steel and aluminium to prevent electrolytic corrosion.
The completed first window has had as much excess sealant removed as possible whilst it is on the bench and all the steelwork has been treated with waxoyl on top of the paint to seal any exposed metal. It is now ready for fitting.
The aluminium waistrail panel was fitted in the first bay today, this was a pre-requisite for fitting the window.
Restoration diary of a 70-year old AEC single-deck bus and the trials, tribulations and adventures of our 1966 Bristol bus.
