For those interested in old cars.

[MrWolf]

They used to drive bare chassis from Bedford's Dunstable factory to Willowbrook coachworks at Loughborough on trade plates, with the driver dressed up like a WW2 bomber pilot well into the 1970s.

[petethemole]

33 minutes ago, MrWolf said:

They used to drive bare chassis from Bedford's Dunstable factory to Willowbrook coachworks at Loughborough on trade plates, with the driver dressed up like a WW2 bomber pilot well into the 1970s.

In the '50s the main road near my home was a route to the North and Midlands from Luton and Dunstable.  I would regularly see those and also Bedford and Commer/Karrier lorry chassis, presumably going to be built into vans.  Typical dress for drivers was a WW2 dispatch rider's coat looking very bulky due to the layers underneath, muffler, beret and goggles, also ex-army leather jerkins over donkey jackets.

[spamcan61]

4 hours ago, MrWolf said:

They used to drive bare chassis from Bedford's Dunstable factory to Willowbrook coachworks at Loughborough on trade plates, with the driver dressed up like a WW2 bomber pilot well into the 1970s.

Oh yes, a late uncle of mine was one of those drivers, into the early 70s, driving a chassis in all weathers with minimal protection; seems unbelievable now.

 

edit: found this photo on Flickr of this kind of delivery:-

 

 

Edited June 20, 2021 by spamcan61

[doilum]

A mere jolly compared to the heroes who brought Atlantean chassis down from Leyland to Washwood Heath!

[stewartingram]

What about the Bristol built chassis taken across to Lowestoft?

[PhilJ W]

4 hours ago, Northmoor said:

Those London buses are barely ten years old.  The reason they have NI plates is that they were all built by Wrightbus in NI and individually driven to London, so had to be registered.

 

2 hours ago, boxbrownie said:

They’ve never heard of trade plates? 

 

The idea was to link the registration numbers to the fleet numbers, as on the original Routemasters. Whether that was done I don't know. 

[jwealleans]

1 hour ago, stewartingram said:

What about the Bristol built chassis taken across to Lowestoft?

 

Or all those which went to Plaxton's at Scarborough?   I don't think  we ever had a holiday there without seeing a few.

[boxbrownie]

3 hours ago, stewartingram said:

What about the Bristol built chassis taken across to Lowestoft?

That’s true……in fact going to Lowestoft from anywhere is a brave move 

 

I won’t even mention Scarborough ……

 

 

 

Edited June 20, 2021 by boxbrownie

[MrWolf]

Don't knock Scarborough! I have fond childhood memories of sitting on the seafront, staring gloomily out of the window of dad's Hillman Minx at where a monsoon and raging north sea storm collided, roughly where the beach used to be.

 

Yeah okay.....

[alastairq]

Even worse, I lived there once......and worked there twice.....

[37114]

6 hours ago, spamcan61 said:

Oh yes, a late uncle of mine was one of those drivers, into the early 70s, driving a chassis in all weathers with minimal protection; seems unbelievable now.

 

edit: found this photo on Flickr of this kind of delivery:-

 

 

Those are Bristol chassis, they are RE single dockers, (HT is/was a Bristol registration). In addition to Lowestoft they also went to Belfast to Alexander's plant for bodying for Irish operators which is where this one went. 

 

 

Edited June 20, 2021 by 37114
Clarity

[Rugd1022]

More pics of the Maser - the alcantara sections of the driver's seat were redone recently and don't quite match the rest but I may be able to find another complete seat, anyway I'm enjoying getting stuck in with cleaning it up, lots of little jobs still to do though....

 

 

 

 

 

Does anyone have any recommendations for cleaning the original alcantara parts....?

 

 

 

 

[boxbrownie]

Alcantara is just a synthetic fabric, any good quality upholstery cleaner should work……although like every other cleaner I shall say “test on a small section out of sight before cleaning” 

[boxbrownie]

First search result……https://www.amazon.co.uk/Autobrite-Direct-Alcantara-Surface-Cleaner/dp/B07BL9Y2Z2/ref=asc_df_B07BL9Y2Z2/?tag=googshopuk-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=310513207083&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=6509423795722738192&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9045284&hvtargid=pla-562525957414&psc=1&th=1&psc=1

[ardbealach]

16 hours ago, 37114 said:

Those are Bristol chassis, they are RE single dockers, (HT is/was a Bristol registration). In addition to Lowestoft they also went to Belfast to Alexander's plant for bodying for Irish operators which is where this one went. 

 

 

I remember these bus chassis and their drivers looking like Scott of the Antarctic regularly passing my primary school just outside Glasgow on the main road from the south.  This was back in mid Fifties. Presume these are the chassis you are talking about being shipped to Belfast. (Alisdair)

[doilum]

21 hours ago, 37114 said:

Those are Bristol chassis, they are RE single dockers, (HT is/was a Bristol registration). In addition to Lowestoft they also went to Belfast to Alexander's plant for bodying for Irish operators which is where this one went. 

 

 

Anyone know when they stopped this method of delivery?

[stewartingram]

Probably when bus production went monocoque?

 

Stewart

[russ p]

On 20/06/2021 at 16:52, jwealleans said:

 

Or all those which went to Plaxton's at Scarborough?   I don't think  we ever had a holiday there without seeing a few.

 

Do you remember seeing them going through Guisborough? Not sure where they were from possibly Bathgate but seemed to be a fairly regular occurrence 

I remember seeing one one day when I was a school and whoever I was with reckoned it was something to do with John Marshall! 

Edited June 21, 2021 by russ p

[jwealleans]

I don't, actually; the only place they stick in my mind was when we were on holiday in Scarborough (which was every year).

 

That said, it wasn't something terribly out of the ordinary then, so they may simply not have registered.

[37114]

1 hour ago, doilum said:

Anyone know when they stopped this method of delivery?

Early 2000s, Dennis used to deliver the Javelin chassis in exactly the same way to Scarborough,  as well as some of the Dragon chassis to Southampton for export. They use specialist trailers now, just Google A D Boyes transport for photos 

[PhilJ W]

1 hour ago, doilum said:

Anyone know when they stopped this method of delivery?

Early 2000's when the Health and Safety at work regulations kicked in. 

[ardbealach]

I imagine there must have been quite a technique in driving the bus chassis with a lot of twisting in the framework. Uneven distribution of weight between where the engine was situated and the rest of the chassis.  And maybe even problems in braking and steering? (Alisdair)

[MrWolf]

If you have ever driven a long wheelbase lorry at speed even minus the load bed, you get an uneasy snaking feeling and you can feel everything trying to torque steer under braking and acceleration. The rear axle and double wheels is a massive piece of unsprung weight and you tend to drive like you were on snow or ice. I can't imagine what it was like having removed another half a ton of cab too.

 

Shades of Brooklands Bentley I imagine. "The world's fastest lorry" as they became known.

[PhilJ W]

1 hour ago, ardbealach said:

I imagine there must have been quite a technique in driving the bus chassis with a lot of twisting in the framework. Uneven distribution of weight between where the engine was situated and the rest of the chassis.  And maybe even problems in braking and steering? (Alisdair)

Bristol FLF chassis had a special frame attached for the journey to Lowestoft. The worst to drive would be the subframes for the Metro-Scania, they were bolted together with about a six foot wheelbase.

[Enterprisingwestern]

8 hours ago, ardbealach said:

I imagine there must have been quite a technique in driving the bus chassis with a lot of twisting in the framework. Uneven distribution of weight between where the engine was situated and the rest of the chassis.  And maybe even problems in braking and steering? (Alisdair)

 

Didn't some chassis' have concrete blocks suitably placed?

 

Mike.