So December is upon us and the last post of the year is here. At the beginning of the year RT8 was a 'single deck toast rack' and at the end not only a double deck but clearly a 2RT2, so all in all a good effort. The early part of this month has seen us tackle alot of the electrics, all the wiring is now in for the lighting, brakes lights and the charging system, so whilst not very visible it has clearly been an important stage.


As can be seen from the wiring now flooding into the cab, a chunk of the month was spent on running this through. The brakes were looked at as well at this time and the tyre and wheel refitted.


The next area tackled was the lower deck saloon where the coving and side panels have been fitted. Once again the original drawings are at odds with certain features such as the seat brackets and floor traps but these have all been negotiated around and are now in place pending rexine and painting in due course.


One interesting point note on the covings is the two and in some cases three small holes around the light fitting, at the '9 o'clock' and '3 o'clock' positions on this example, (no it isn't dirt) this is actually where the springs were fitted for the wartime blackout cowls.

So this is now what the lower deck looks like as it starts to take shape. The wheelarches have been removed and will undergo some further work before being refitted permanently.


And finally a view of the side now as it continues to become less skeletal. This of course is the last posting of 2008 and whilst progress may well be slow over the festive break we will continue to chip away at this project. It certainly looks like 2009 will be the year that RT8 returns to the capitals streets after some half a century away! On that note I will wish all of you who follow this or have just randomly popped by a Merry Christmas and a Happy, Healthy and Peaceful 2009

November 4 Update

So another month passes us by and this month has seen the majority of the work being carried out on largely completing the rear of the vehicle. The rear quarter can be seen here in the first picture and has been the source of most problems, as we know from records that RT8 took a nasty rear end crunch in the late 1940's. Where we have rebuilt the framework to original 1940 spec it would appear some of the panels had been modified to fit a slightly wonky rear end! However, it has been overcome and is all back together now. Worthy of note is the bottom panel on this quarter which is a unique 2RT2 feature. The steel panel that looks like it has beading around it when in fact this is purely a slightly raised edge to give the impression of beading and this conplete the symmetery of criss crossing beading.


A slightly different view this time taken from a conveniently parked open top.



The rear end is largely now complete as can be seen from this image. Glazing, beading and blind boxes are all now in place. The only problem is now when you walk in to the 'barn' you think its almost finished and then you see the rest of it!


The latest area being seen to is the platform and lower saloon. As can be seen the ceiling has gone in around the platform and this progress will continue through the month as the lower saloon is brought up to the same stage as the upper one, with ceilings and side panels all being added. The unseen area that holds the battery cradle and the conductors 'cubby hole' are also all being finished off.


And finally the cab area, now all stripped down and ready for the the framework to start going back on. A couple of metal brackets that have rotted away need to be recreated before we can start reinstating this area. Hopefully if the progress on the lower saloon is good this month we will get started in earnest on the cab. Who knows maybe the scaffolders will give us a confirmed date and the roof can go back on... well pop back next month and find out what exactly was tackled next on this project

So Autumn is upon us and it's time for another update on what has been another excellent month. The first job tackled was the remainder of the upstairs coving, panelling and ceiling, which was completed fairly early in the month and left the upper deck looking like less skeletal and more like a bus! A couple of window pans were added on a temporary basis to check sizes and allow the interior mouldings to be checked and fitted.


Following this we started work on the emergency exit. Now this was a slower and more difficult task as RT8's original was in a terrible state. However, it was successfully restored to full working order utilising most of the original parts.



So with this in place the focus moved to the exterior of the bus where, the blind box frame, rear quater panels and blind box glazing went in allowing the rear of the bus to reall take shape.

Meanwhile it was felt approrpriate at this point by Tony to add a route 37 blind being the first route to get 2RT's and thus very likley the first route RT8 operated on!

The rear window pan has again been removed this time to be restored as we know the fitting size is accurate and hopefully that will go back in place early in October and be followed by the lowermost panels.

From there it will be a case of either putting the roof back on, but for this we are awaiting scaffolding and don't yet have a date for it, or tackling the downstairs saloon to bring it up the stage as the upstairs. Either way some good progress should be made and the back end should be largely finished. So don't forget to pop by at the beginning of November for your next fix of RT restoration monthly!

August 31 Update

Well I was hoping to get back onto regular updates at the end of the month and lo and behold my second child came along a few days earlier and delayed it!! Quite ironic as when the first baby came along it was on th very day we started the strip down on RT8 back in August 2006!
So as you can see we have started now fitting out the interior. The sides walls are going on in Gaboon Ply as they were originally and then the original cappings are being put back on to check the sizes and also allow for the window pans to be fitted. We also had all the seat frames in and checked they all aligned as they should and what a difference it made to the look, but alas at the end of the month they had been removed again. As you can see the very first of the ceiling panels are in and by the end of the month the remaining ones will all be in. So all in all a good deal of change and with the first of these panels going in she is starting to look less skeletal and more like a bus. I will endeavour next month to actually publish on time around September 30, until then for Cheers for now.

Only one seat frame has remained in which is a rather convenient store for some of the drawings being used.


Finally the 'toast rack' look is departing and a sense of a real bus is prevailing

The original coving panels are all now back in upstairs having been stripped and prepared. The first ceiling panel has gone in along with the original front internal dome and blind box.

July

Well July has been a good month for progress and August is all set visually to be either better. Its been a three pronged attack on the body work following the wiring all going in during the early part of the month. From there the rear upstairs was tackled with the blindboxes completed, the rear seat, stairwell and handrails all going in as well as the last biths of framework around the top of the stairs. All added together its left the rear looking very RT'like. The window cappings and surrounds have all been temporarily fitted to check sizes before being removed again at a later date and rexined. Meanwhile the cab has been started by our willing volunteer Tony (many thanks) and the floor removed before we start putting it back together again, even an old LT collar badge was found wedged underneath the cab seat area!. The last thing started has been the front upstairs area with internal panels around the blind box being fitted and now we are working back. Back to monthly updates now so on or around Aug 31 should bring the next one.

May 2008

Well as can be seen much of this month has been spent working on the blind boxes and the rear of the vehicle. All the blind boxes are now in having been carefully freed up from years of non use, they were in remarkably good condition, except for the ply wood surrounds which had rotted. Perhaps the best know feature of a 2RT2, the rear roof box is also now back in place and as can be seen is also in good shape, requiring only minor straightening. The conduit for the wiring is now all going in as can be seen in the shots taken of the rear end, linking up the side and rear blind boxes and also the wiring for the light switches under the stairs to the upper deck lighting. You can also still see on the interior of the rear roof box one of the 'Emergency Exit' stickers still left from its time in London nearly 50 years ago. The engine also returned this month and as can be seen looks splendid, (the oil underneath is not from it by the way!) it now only needs to be painted black and will then go back in at some time soon. Next some more interior fittings will be added, the upstairs rear seat and staircase guard added and some minor framework bits completed, which will take us nicely to the next update around August 1. Thanks to those who took the time to post messages last month, always nice to know you are out there and reading and really nice to know its not limited to those just on the UK.

April 2008

So good progress has been made this month with the front framework being completed and the front blind boxes all going in. These were all in remarkably good condition with little attention needed to get them working again, the pply wood however was certainly a different matter! The last part of the body framing is going in as can be seen with the lower sections that hold the drainage holes all having gone in, obviously as this is a natural water gathering point the wood in these areas no longer even existed. Work has now started on the rear blind box and a couple of pictures are included showing it being broken down into its individual parts, such as the ultimate blind. All these will be thoroughly overhauled refitted to the new ply and the original frames and put back, the side blind will follow. The next job after that will be fit to fit some of the lower upstairs interior panels but this is all for next month and with Peter, the chap working on this having a weeks holiday the next update will be around June 15.

March 2008

Well I was hoping at this point to be able to show the full front upper deck framework on but alas as the end of the month hit, it wasn't quite finished but hopefully you can see the progress made.

It has been the most complex and difficult part of the framework, due to the fact that we have very few drawings for this part, very little survived that was complete enough even to be used for patterns and of course it a very curved area, leaning back, tapering in and rounded on top!

As can be seen though the front two sides bays are in complete with the metal supports, which are both the originals, the roof box and front top window support went in, again for some peculiar reason the wood around the roofbox all survived and is the original stuff that has been cleaned up and treated. We will now finish this area off, add the blind box framework, the front central pillar and fix the floor boards at the front down. We will then go back and finish some framework around the rear blind box and top of the stairs and for now that will be the framing finished.

If that’s all completed for next month then we will start fitting the wiring, conduit and light fittings to the upper deck and also anytime now the engine should be back from recon and it will be our intention to fit this before starting on any panel work either outside or in but that’s all some time away.

As to completion date, thank you for those who fired in dates (mostly sensible!) Cobham next year (2009) was the favourite and I think if I had of suggested that when the vehicle was being stripped down most would have laughed, so clearly the progress has been good. My feeling however is that it will be slightly behind that and possibly London-Brighton run in May next year? But you never know, however we aren't setting a date on this to then have to rush (and possibly mess up) any of the finishing items, its one of those that will take as long as it takes. I will do an update at the end of April/beginning of May, so cheers 'til then.

February 2008

Well as can be seen the upstairs ceiling framework has largely gone up and is in place now giving the whole rear end a distinct RT look. It took as expected the best part of a month to make and fit, it was also done with fitting the original rear domes and roof panels to make sure everything did fit as planned, and I am glad to report that with only a few minor alterations all was well. The next month or so is going to see some of the smaller and less noticeable finishing pieces done. There are a number of small framing bits for the rear that need to be added so we will now go back and do this before the front is tackled. The front of course is the next (and last!) serious major reframing task although we will do it in two stages and leave the cab (as it is suspended from above) until last and perhaps do it after the engine is back in. I will update around Easter but if the progress is not visual enough may hold on until March 31, so you will just have to pop by from time to time! I have been emailed to ask to run a sweepstake on the completion date and seeing as many people said the condition was so bad it would never get done I guess it’s a positive response, anyone want to take a guess?