Too many distractions this week. I started the week by cleaning and whitening the cab door check strap, to prevent it damaging the paint on the wing by contact when fully open. I imagine a correctly-fitted wing would allow room for the door to swing. However, it became clear after fitting that the check strap must never have worked, as it was too long and the cab door was hitting the side of the bus. Shortening it by 1/2″ made a vast difference and the door now does not reach the wing. I continued to tinker with the remaining half-drop window that doesn’t quite close. It now does, but only locks into place on the rearmost end. Some relieving of the side casting fixed that. The new screws to fix the top seal have arrived, so once my few days of illness had passed I was able to fix the final top seal in position. Attention to the side casting of the window frame with a drill-mounted burr means that all the offside windows now close properly. The lower side frame fixing screws need attention on the first window still and the rest need to be checked. So, not much achieved this week.
17/8/2025
Another heatwave made work difficult and limited at the beginning of the week, however I did manage sort out three of the four O/S half-drop windows that would not close properly – this was due to the screws holding the upper rubber seal not being driven far enough in, so preventing the sliding pane from reaching the top. The final window, nearest the front, would not close because the rubber top seal was not correctly aligned, so I removed that and reglued the rubber to the channel, prior to refitting. The undercoat on the new front wing revealed a few defects in the finish that needed filling with stopper, so that was attended to. Next, I turned my attention to the rear brakes, which were in the “full on” position. I removed the springs from the shoes but was unable to turn the operating cam, I suspect the problem is in the main servo. Further investigation is warranted. Returning to the final half-drop window, this si still being troublesome despite a succesful gluing and resiting exercise, so a little grinding may be the only solution. In the meantime, I sorted out the canvas restraining strap for the cab door and sanded and primed the clamp bars for urgent refitting, to prevent damage to the new front wing.
10/8/2025
First job this week was finishing the front wing, sanding and priming the filler on the curve that joins the front face to the top surface. I’m pleased with it as it looks very good. Whilst waiting for various coats of stopper and primer to cure, I stripped, primed and painted the handbrake rest and attended to filling and sanding the roof repair above the entrance door. Further sanding of the new front wing and attention to the join between the new wing and the dash meant that I was able to apply a thin coat of undercoat to the wing. Last job of the week was to revue the window situation; it seems none of the O/S windows will close properly. I have to investigate why, next week.