26/06/14: STOP THE PRESSES!! Anchor pins sourced

Just days previously, the Ulsterbus 2599 group strengthened its appeal to find a set of front and rear anchor pins for the brakes after efforts behind the scenes to source some had drawn a blank. Having spoken to several people, it was looking increasingly unlikely that we would find the required pins and that new ones would have to be made from scratch - at great expense, and stalling so-far excellent progress on the restoration as we generated the funds needed.

However, after just 48hrs of appealing for help, it is with great delight we can announce that the required anchor pins for both front and rear brakes have been sourced, and will be on their way to us very soon. Having these pins means that work can once again recommence on the brakes and that we will be one step closer to putting 2599 back on the road, where she belongs, for all to enjoy once again. Thanks must go to Carl Ireland for sourcing the pins for us, to Rob Sly for being one of the many people raising awareness for our appeal, and to Lee Roddis of Chesterfield for putting the group in touch with Carl just hours after our appeal went live.

These are just a few specific names we need to thank, BUT we couldn't have done it without the help of you, our faithful supporters. On behalf of the Ulsterbus 2599 group, I would like to extend my thanks to everyone who has offered helpful advice and suggestions, and/or who has gone out of their way to have a look for the necessary parts for us. There are far too many names and companies to list here in full, I hope you all know who you are, and a huge thanks to you all for your efforts.

Dan Stone
Ulsterbus 2599 Group blogmaster

22/06/14: An urgent plea for help

Sorry all has been quiet on the 2599 front, but we have a major dilemma that is severely hindering progress with the restoration. We are currently struggling to find four anchor pins (similar to the one pictured below) for the brakes, as the ones Tim has taken off are life expired. We also require urgent information as to whether they are generic to most vehicle types and can be sourced simply by visiting a scrapyard, or whether these type of anchor pins are unique to the Bristol RE/Alexander X-type combination.

If anyone can help in any way, or can put the group in touch with anyone who may be able to help, please either leave a message under this blog post, or get in touch by emailing Dan Stone at the address below:

dstone564@gmail.com

An amazing find, and developments behind the scenes 18/06/14

All has been rather quiet on the 2599 front for the last couple of weeks, with Tim and Gary both jetting off on holiday, and Paul, Calum and your blogmaster being hard at work (or attending, anyway) at our respective jobs. However, a chance find has turned up some key components that will be a big help in the restoration process, as follows:

• Replacement windscreen
• Replacement emergency window
• Replacement cab window
• Battery box (!)
• Replacement cushions for the seats
• Two replacement rear windows
• Lucas Voltage Regulator
• Two wheel rims ready to fit to the spare tyres
• Enough window rubber to replace all the old rubber around the windows
• A complete set of front brake shoes
• Replacement bulbs for all indicators and headlights

We were simply blown away to be offered such a huge range of key parts that will speed up the restoration process as we no longer have to go searching for them (some of which are very difficult to get hold of in this modern day and age), and many thanks to the persons who have supplied them to us.

In other news, many of you will recall how badly corroded the throttle supporting plate was when Gary did some mechanical work around the front of the bus (put it this way, it wasn't supporting very much!) After speaking to Tony Challons and supplying him with the relevant drawings he went away and made some enquiries, and we can now announce that a brand new support plate has been manufactured from scratch - with some minor modifications from the original design added by Gary - and will be collected at the weekend. All that remains is for Gary to drill a number of small holes in the plate, and refit it to the bus on our next visit to the farm.

A word from your blogmaster 10/06/14

As has been mentioned before elsewhere within this blog, the group also has a facebook page, which after initially being a closely-guarded secret for the first few months was unveiled on 6 April and thrust the Ulsterbus 2599 group name into the public domain for the first time. At that time we had around 70 members. Since then, interest in the project has continued to grow as word has spread about the bus, and on 10 June, just two months since the name of the page was changed, and six months since 2599 was purchased, the facebook page welcomed its 100th member - quite an achievement!

On behalf of Paul, Calum and myself (Dan), we would like to thank everyone who has shown an interest in 2599, and extend our thanks also to those who have assisted with parts, advice and finances to move the project in the right direction. We couldn't have done it without you all.

A sunny Sunday afternoon on the farm 01/06/14

Sunday 1 June dawned a hot, sunny day and with your blogmaster donning shorts for a rare occasion (sorry about the terrible display of legs lads), we arranged to spend an afternoon 'down on the farm' to get stuck in and do a bit more work on 2599.

This was a significant day, as for the first time we would have both our expert mechanics, Tim and Gary, on site at the same time allowing us to complete multiple mechanical jobs at either end of the bus. Your blogmaster ventured into Nottingham to meet Paul, and after assisting our leader with some domestic duties at his home (don't tell my mother), we paid yet another visit to every bloke's haven for tools and DIY bits, Wilko's. A tub of swarfega, an extension lead and a few more pounds lighter financially, we headed off in the direction of Watnall.

Tim and Gary had already arrived and were setting up when we turned up on site, at which point Paul revealed he had a surprise for us. After much messing about around the boot of 'starship Focus', he ventured out into the yard for all to see dressed, one can only describe, as a rejected member of the Ghostbusters in his new overalls! After his antics around the sparks in previous weeks which had led to Gary christening him 'Sparky' and 'Big Girl's blouse' we noted that Paul was prepared for every eventuality including safety goggles. After much abuse and ribbing about his new look (at our leader's expense; I mean, what kind of friendship would we all have if we were civilised to each other?!), we got stuck in with the tasks in hand.

I sat down (literally) to the easier task of the afternoon, and began applying copious amounts of paint stripper to the nearside rear wheels, currently off the bus while Tim did the work on the brakes. With a bit of elbow grease, and a few expletives under one's breath, several years of paint/road dirt/grime/other assorted crap was removed and we started to see the bare metal of the rims.

In the meantime, at the rear of the bus, Tim continued to make progress on the rear nearside brakes, occupying his time with trying to remove the two anchor pins on the brake shoes, which were being rather stubborn. At the front of the bus, Gary and our Ghostbuster reject continued to work to remove the rotten throttle supporting plate, and once they had finally managed to part it from the bus, we saw for the first time exactly how bad the problem was - there was more fresh air than plate 'supporting' the throttle! Gary took the rotten plate and after rummaging about in the back of his minibus, came back with some graph paper and a tape measure and proceeded to produce a scale drawing of how the new supporting plate would look.

Heading around the back of the bus again, Tim was struggling to remove the battered anchor pins, and after much persuasion managed to free one from the bus. We regrouped and discussed progress, and after a customary brew (Gary's minibus comes well equipped for every scenario, even a kettle), we cleaned up and parted company, with Paul and I paying a visit to the home of Mr Tony Challons to pick up some front brake shoes. In addition to these, we also came away with a key component for the alternator and some spare headlight bulbs that would come in most handy. Tony also looked at our scale drawing of the throttle supporting plate and took it away with him to give to a contact of his who could manufacture something to our requirements, something we were not expecting! Thanks once again to our mechanical experts Tim and Gary, and to Tony who is one of many people that has been most helpful in providing key parts to aid in 2599's restoration and helping us to have key components produced.

A week of progress 30/05/14

With a whole week of evenings free as we ventured into the final days of May, Tim was kind (daft) enough to offer his services once again, and a start was made on the rear brakes. Over the space of several nights, Tim managed to remove the nearside rear wheels, and take off the drum to gain access to the brake shoes. Paul even assisted with the removal of the drum, although from the photographic evidence below the jury is still out as to whether he was actually helping or rivet counting...answers on a postcard to the usual address folks (sorry leader!)

Once the shoes had been removed, they will be sent off to Partic at Bulwell for relining, and will subsequently be refitted to the bus at a later date. From there, the plan was to remove the anchor pins, potentially a difficult job, and then clean and rebuild everything before putting it back together and making a start on the offside brakes. Thanks again to Tim for his time.

While the nearside rear wheels were off 2599, we planned to tidy them up by scrubbing several years of old paint/dirt/grime etc off them before repainting them and refitting them once the brakes had been sorted. So behind the scenes, we sent our leader off to do some shopping, and after several visits to Wilko's (a man's best friend when it comes to anything remotely DIY-related), we had built up a collection of the relevant paint strippers, cleaning materials and tools for the job. But that's another story...

 

And 'sparky' is born...17/05/14

Time to return our attentions back to 2599 now, and begin charting developments that had taken place since we had moved her to her new home at Watnall.


On 17 May, Paul and Gary had spent a few hours up at the farm doing some preparation work on the cross member under the floor, while your blogmaster spent an enjoyable afternoon at work. On closer inspection, Gary confirmed the good news that the draglink would not have to be disconnected to perform any of the work involved.

Gary proceeded to grind away the old bolts from the remains of the rotten supporting plate, and in the short amount of time available managed to grind away six of the seven bolts holding the plate in place before he had to go to work. Your blogmaster was also highly amused to hear of Paul's antics while assisting Gary with this job, with lots of shouting and many expletives being uttered as sparks flew everywhere. Sadly Gary informed us he was unable to film this, so we don't have £250 coming from you've been framed (damn shame, we were relying on you Gary!) However Paul has now been christened 'Sparky' or 'Big Girl's blouse', much to the amusement and comedic entertainment of his friends and fellow project members.

Fame at last? 17/05/14

Not a post about 2599 as such, but news reached us that our project leader, Paul Waplington, had been shortlisted as one of four finalists for National Express driver of the year, quite an amazing achievement considering there are thousands of drivers on the network.

Paul is already something of a minor celebrity across the East Midlands and elsewhere, having appeared on TV in late-2012 as part of celebrations for 40 years of National Express, and from personal experience is most popular with his passengers, many of whom travel regularly with him on his London and Newcastle duties, and has been told times many by friends and regular travellers that he is a credit to both National Express and his employers, Silverdale. Now sadly Paul just missed out on the top prize, but he did come away £250 richer with a certificate of his achievement (drinks on you next time, leader!)

Well done from all your pals in the Ulsterbus 2599 group, you deserve the recognition mate!

FROM L-R: shareholder Calum Maclennan, fellow shareholder and blogmaster Dan Stone, and project leader Paul Waplington

D-day 11/05/14

Since arriving in Nottingham, and apart from a week in the custody of Tiger European at Colwick while we awaited confirmation on storage, 2599 had been residing on a storage site at Langar. Unfortunately, the site was difficult to access for all concerned, somewhat hampering progress in the restoration, with ever-increasing conditions and restrictions being placed on what we could and could not do. When we first moved in, we were under the impression we could work on the bus, however upon our arrival we were told if we did any 'heavy' work that our rent would increase - and dramatically! Relationships with the site owners had also become increasingly sour during our short time at Langar, one incident back in March involving Paul trying to source a cup of tea from the reception for our Tanvic man while he fitted the tyres. Having sourced said brew, one of the site owners entered the reception, started growling about wanting payment for the brew, snatched it off Paul before any sort of payment could be discussed, almost burning him in the process, before storming into an office and slamming the door in his face.

It was just one of a chain of events which led us to look for alternative accommodation for the bus. I had been in talks with my good friend Michael Rogan, who owns a Barton Leyland Leopard and a Midland General Bristol RE, about the possibility of a space on the farm where he stores his vehicles at Watnall, on the other side of Nottingham to where 2599 was kept. After a lengthy negotiation process, we were given the green light to move in and a date of Sunday 11 May was pencilled in to undertake the move.


Michael very kindly offered his services to drive 2599 for the journey, and around lunchtime, Paul and I met up in Hucknall, and we drove to Watnall. A minor miscommunication meant that we arrived a little prematurely at the farm, however this gave Paul a chance to meet our new landlords, and for me to become reacquainted with them, having not seen them for above a year! We pressed on to pick up Tim, before returning to Watnall to pick up Michael, and from here we set off to Langar, feeling even more positive that we were making the right move.


While Tim did a walk-round check of the bus to make sure all was as it should be, I started her up and Paul placed the relevant trade plates at each end. The customary photographs were taken before our departure and after Michael had taken the wheel, we set off around 1430hrs, leaving Langar behind for the final time. From my position in the front nearside seat, I could see Michael's grin getting wider and wider as we pressed on. Tim followed in the support car most of the way, apart from a couple of points where he sped ahead to get photographs and video footage of the move in progress. Michael let Paul take the hot seat on the A52 near Gamston, and apart from a slight diversion via Hucknall to surprise former group member Peter, we made good time, arriving at the farm around 1600hrs.

More photographs were taken, before Michael reversed the bus into its new home. After much discussion, and with time not being on the side of both myself or Paul, Michael offered to reverse 2599 into her allocated bay under the barn for us, something that would take some skill with several parked vehicles from other parties hampering progress. A group photo was taken, and after saying our goodbyes, Paul ended up playing taxi once again, dropping me off at work in Alfreton for a late shift, and Tim off at home in Hucknall.

It was an emotional moment for all of us. We had done it, 2599 was now safely tucked up at her new home at Watnall. A great relief for the group! We had more freedom to tackle some of the bigger jobs that needed doing, the new landlords are friendly and accommodating, and our expenses each month had reduced considerably!

A corner had been turned, and a new chapter in the 2599 story had begun...

A step in the right direction...03/05/14

As we left April behind and marched into the early days of May, there was a positive feeling amongst the group. Gary had done a full inspection earlier in the week and declared that 2599 wasn't a total basket case, his words giving us all hope that our efforts were not for nothing, and that the project can (and will) succeed (not that your blogmaster has any doubts, it is going to happen!). Saturday 3 May dawned bright and sunny, and while I had to go to work, Paul and Tim paid a visit to Langar to do a bit of work on the bus.

Tim did some initial work into looking at the charging problem on the alternator, before pressing on with the biggest task of the day, refitting our reconditioned manifold back to the bus. This was a big moment, as this now meant that the bus was now mobile once again, after spending several months inactive and unmovable at the storage site. Once fitted, the newly recharged batteries were refitted and connected, time now for the moment of truth.

I remember being on shift, which was unusually quiet for a Saturday afternoon, with many punters taking advantage of the decent weather and the local beer gardens, when I received a phone call from a very excited Paul, whose first words were "listen to this", before I could hear the roar of a Gardner 6LX. Smiles all round!! I am informed 2599 started first time, on the button, and after the air pressure had been built up, Paul had taken her around the storage site for a couple of laps, which Tim videoed. A fantastic moment for all concerned in the project, finally we were making huge leaps in the right direction. The next step was to make the final arrangements to move the bus from the storage site to her new permanent home at Watnall, both with the people concerned, and to the bus, such as tying loose panels back on for the move and to obtain the necessary trade plates to move her.

Cue Michael Rogan... 

And the Irish adventure doesn't end there...postscript 28/04/14

It was late, dark, we were all starting to flag a bit, and after dodging idiot lorry drivers trying to race each other on the A75 (one of Scotland's more dangerous roads), we crossed the English border sometime in the wee hours of Monday 28 April. We made several stops en-route to relieve ourselves, refuel on coffee and rest up a little, one of said stops being at Wetherby Services. It was here we found ourselves questioning why a WH Smiths on a motorway services would be selling both scarecrows and wetsuits on offer...one of life's little mysteries at 3am, and still unsolved!!

Your blogmaster collapsed into his own bed at around 0430hrs for the first time in three days, quite a surreal feeling getting home when the sun is coming up with no alcohol involved! But there was no time to be lazing about at home recovering, after a few hours sleep I was back up and en-route to Nuthall (nr Nottingham) to meet up with Paul Waplington and our other mechanical ace, Gary Crosby, at the yard of Hearson's Coaches. I must be mad!

So at 11am, we found ourselves meeting up in Hearson's yard, and after a brief chat about the plan of attack, we set off firstly to Partic Autoparts in Bulwell, who were assigned the task of relining the brake shoes we had purchased from Tony Challons prior to our Ireland trip. After parting with some cash, Gary and I continued our journey onwards to Langar to 2599, while Paul kindly sped off to McDonalds to get the coffees in (cheers leader!). We regrouped at the farm, coffee in hand, and work began.

Gary conducted a quick inspection of the bus, before gathering his tools together from the minibus and we made a start. The first job on the agenda was to attack the damaged wheel stud that the man from Tanvic said had given him much grief while changing the front offside tyre. While he did this, I made myself comfortable in the cab, with my coffee, turning it into an impromptu office and sat down with paperwork spread everywhere to begin pouring over 2599's books and making sure the financial aspects of the project were kept upto date and documents were filed correctly. After a bit of work, good news came from Gary that we would not have to go to the lengths of removing the wheel and hub assembly to sort out the wheel stud, and that the problem had now been rectified. A huge sigh of relief all round.

The next job, while Paul and Gary set about inspecting the front springs and the throttle linkage, I set to work with the WD40 and a bit of elbow grease in an attempt to free up the jammed exterior emergency exit handle, in the hope that we would be able to repair rather than replace. With much persuasion, I managed to free the jammed handle, but on closer inspection it appears we may have to replace it using the one sent over by Robert and the lads from the Ards group.

In the meantime, closer inspection of the throttle linkage revealed that the support that the linkage sits on was completely rotten, and that the area around the battery box would need some strengthening. That was the bad news, however the good news from Gary was that we may be able to retemper the front springs, rather than replace them at this stage, saving us another massive expense. Gary's final conclusion was that, all in all, 2599 was in pretty good condition for her age and that with a bit of time and effort, he had no doubt that we would succeed with our mission to return her to the rally scene in the future. We went away feeling even happier, in the knowledge that the project was beginning to move in a positive direction.

The Irish Adventure: Part 3 27/04/14

Sunday dawned, and we enjoyed the bit of a lie-in we had (well your blogmaster certainly did!). After the hospitality of the previous night, where we had got to know so many people, it was going to be a really emotional to leave it all behind. Reflecting on the previous evening's entertainment, as the night had worn on, the lads had grouped together in one corner of the dining room with myself, Paul G, and Alex listening to hotel owner Jimmy tell us more about Belfast, and showing us card tricks as the alcohol flowed, while the ladies grouped in another corner with Jimmy's wife Alison having a general girly chit-chat and a lot of laughs over a bottle of wine, and winding down after what for some of the girls had been a stressful day. These were some truly amazing people and I was still overwhelmed - still am - by their kindness and how we had all banded together to become friends.

We enjoyed another Ulster Fry, and as we ate, we discussed how we could ever repay the kindess of these wonderful people at The Gregory, that had itself only been open for three weeks. The old cliche enter as a stranger, leave as a friend was never more appropriate than here, and to know they had built it all up in such a short timeframe was remarkable! I can't remember how the conversation got around to it, but Paul W suddenly had a lightbulb moment. We had previously discussed period advertising for the rear of 2599 once it was complete, and it was suggested that we design a suitable advert for The Gregory to apply to the rear of the bus and raise awareness of this fantastic little guesthouse. I can recall members of the guesthouse were delighted when we suggested the idea, and don't worry folks, it will happen.

The time came to make that emotional journey to check-out, and after several more laughs and many photographs, we said our emotional goodbyes to the folks at the Gregory, owner Jimmy, his wife Alison, and their sons James and David, who had made our stay in Northern Ireland something special, wishing them all the best with their new venture. We also bade farewell to Alex, our new friend from Canada who was stopping in Belfast for a while with his work, wishing him all the best, an even more emotional goodbye to Stephanie and her mother from the US who unfortunately I hadn't had as much time to get to know as some of the others (thankfully Stephanie and I still keep in touch), and to Maria and her friend who were returning to Dublin later that day.

From here, we pressed on. At the previous day's ITT rally the Ards Bus Preservation lads had kindly arranged to show us around their vast collection of vehicles, so we pressed on towards their premises, stopping off briefly to photograph the Belfast University buildings, admire one of the murals on the Newtownards Road, and for refreshments at the magnificent Stormont Hall. We met up with Robert Nogues in a lay-by near the exact location of the collection, and followed him in. On our arrival, we were greeted with the sight of Ulsterbus Leyland Leopard 1886 (OSJ620R), which Phil and Richard had been doing some work on. While we talked, Robert opened the doors to the shed and our jaws dropped at the vast collection of gems inside. Bristol RE's, Leyland Leopards, Tigers, a Lynx, a Mercedes Minicoach, there was something for everyone! For more information about the Ards collection, visit their page at http://ardsbuspreservationgroup.weebly.com/

Robert gave us the grand tour, showing us around much of the collection, and giving us a little bit of history about each vehicle, which was most interesting, many of the vehicles here being buses that you would not see back home on English soil. We were also blown away by the collection of parts the group had built up, just about everything you could need in the world of bus preservation! It was also an excellent opportunity to take some key measurements from Citybus RE 2446 that would come in useful in the restoration of our own 2599.

After our tour, we talked some more with the lads, at which point Phil offered us a short trip out in 1886, on which they had been working upon our arrival. Even better, we got the full effects of the engine with the floor traps up, and video footage does exist of this short trip. Our grins just got wider and wider with each gearchange. We returned to the shed and talking some more said our farewells to Richard, Phil and another gentleman whose name escapes me right now. Robert showed us to the local KFC where we said our goodbyes and enjoyed a quick snack before our mad dash to the ferry terminal for the long journey home.

Our Irish adventure was coming to an end, and we had so many fond memories of it all. We rolled onto the ferry at around 1930hrs, and after a chill out on the ferry and a visit to the hotel bar for your blogmaster, we set sail for Scottish shores and the long drive back to the East Midlands that lay ahead...