London General B-type bus, 1:32

[AlanG]

Originally Posted by SCEtoAUX

... Sometimes too brown, sometimes too red. The quest continues.

I have that problem when I'm cooking steak.
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Now for a short step backwards - back to black and white. All along I have planned to try opening up the windows and entrance way in the lower saloon, and to provide a simple interior.

The first stage is to take the exterior sides and ends, shrink their width by a suitable multiple of the paper thickness and modify the markings to represent the interior. The rear end with its large cutout is very fragile, so I attached it to the end of the floor to keep it stable while fitting the entry reveal. In the finished design I will add a large tab bridging the two sides so that this will not be necessary, as the large floor piece does get in the way somewhat.



The whole interior box can then be made up.

[rifleman]

this is paper magic at its best

[AlanG]

The upholstered seats come next. On each side is a long bench divided in the middle by an arm rest. On the original the arm rest is just a free-standing piece of bent metal tubing fixed at its ends to the seat base and window sill, but I decided that panelling it in with "wood" would be acceptable and much easier.



There are four sloping braces on each side supporting the front edge of the seat base.

[Vermin_King]

Such precise work. The white model will be special in itself

[AlanG]

Originally Posted by Vermin_King

Such precise work. The white model will be special in itself

It does indeed give me the incentive to keep going, though some parts of it have been superseded by later detailing work. I'm keeping the white sheets up-to-date though, so will probably release this version along with the glorious technicolor, when I eventually get around to writing some construction notes. Someone might be interested...

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The ceiling completes the box.



The side windows are just big enough to let my fingers inside to seal up the ceiling tabs, but I did use a range of ad hoc tools to get right into the corners.

Now the glazing can go on the outside, not a job I really enjoy. I don't like using spirit glues, partly because of the smell, and partly because of the stringing which I try hard to avoid but with limited success. The clear material I used is very thin plastic cut from an office filing pocket. It is not crystal clear, and nicely softens the rather simple-minded appearance of the interior fittings.

[peter taft]

Wonderful, just wonderful!

[eatcrow2]

I have a feeling, that more than a few will be "interested".. Excellent work!

[AlanG]

Now for the outside layer. This is essentially the same as for the version with blank windows, but with the windows cut out and no gluing tabs.



Each piece is simply layered over the inner box and glazing material, though with very careful lining up.



Finally I added the driver's seat, side route boards and rear lantern and licence plate - not really necessary here, but it makes it look a little prettier.



So ends phase 1, "Can I do it at all?" Now for phase 2, "Do it properly".

There will be a bit of a hiatus while I'm overeating and overdrinking, followed by an orgy of colouring. Then I'll see you all again when I start making this thing for real. Until then, whether you celebrate Christmas or not you have my very best wishes for the season.

Alan

[AlanG]

Christmas is over, so I can get back to work. Until I have something to show for it, here is a little background. All the photographs are links to the London Transport Museum site https://www.ltmuseum.co.uk/

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The London General Omnibus Company ("LGOC" or just "General") had its origins in 1855 as the Anglo-French Compagnie Générale des Omnibus de Londres, set up by the Compagnie Générale des Omnibus ("CGO") in Paris. In the 25 years since George Shillibeer started the first omnibus service in London in 1828 a very large number of small operators had started up. With no effective regulation the standards of quality, reliability and safety were, to say the least, variable. The aim of the new company was to amalgamate these into a single organisation, to provide a consistent level of service across London. It began operating horse buses in 1856, and by the end of that year had swallowed up hundreds of independently-owned buses and was running three-quarters of the buses in London. In 1859 the business was transferred to a new English company, and became LGOC.


Early (1850s) horse omnibus

1890 horse omnibus

LGOC remained by far the largest horse bus operator in London for the rest of the century, but by 1900 the first steam and motor buses were appearing. General started experimenting with these, which initially were just horse buses with a steam or oil engine and steerable wheels placed where the horses' rear ends would have been.


1900 steam bus

1903 petrol-electric

Very quickly designs settled on a straight four-wheeled chassis, with a front engine and the driver sitting behind, though the passenger accommodation was still very much based on horse bus practice. LGOC used buses of this type with chassis from several manufacturers from 1904.


1906 De Dion Bouton

1906 Wolsey H-type

Other companies tried to break into the market, but in 1908 LGOC bought out the Road Car Co., Vanguard Co. and other rivals, achieving a virtual monopoly of motor buses in London.

In 1909 LGOC started designing and manufacturing its own motor buses, starting with the X-type, of which it made a total of 60 in that year. However, it started making an improved version, outwardly very similar, in 1910. This was the B-type, which was made in large quantities (2500 by 1913, and around 3000 in all), and was the mainstay of London's motor bus system for ten years.


1909 X-type

1910 B-type

[Butelczynski]

Petrol electric bus?We seem to be going back to those.I'm looking forward to seeing trolley buses back on roads.