London General B-type bus, 1:32

[AlanG]

B340 is now fitted with prominent slatted side lifeguards, to protect pedestrians who might otherwise fall under the rear wheels. These have become part of the popular image of the B-type, but it appears that in their early years many if not all the buses had no such precautions fitted. They appear to have come into use some time during the 1914-18 war.

The wooden strips are mounted on angle-iron brackets attached to the chassis, and are curved to deflect pedestrians away from the wheels.



It seems a little odd that the top short strip is painted red, where everything else is black. In fact, most early photographs I can find seem to show all the slats the same colour, though this could be an artefact of the photographic process. However, the photo of B5015 which I showed a couple of posts back definitely suggests a different colour for this top one, which could well have been red.

[Don Boose]

The wheels are outstanding. Exceptionally realistic!

I really enjoy this thread, with all the high-quality images and the discussion of your research and design considerations.

Don

[AlanG]

Originally Posted by Don Boose

The wheels are outstanding. Exceptionally realistic!

I really enjoy this thread, with all the high-quality images and the discussion of your research and design considerations.

Don

Thank you Don. I think a lot of the fun of doing something not "out of the box" is finding out these little snippets which enliven the process. They allow you to get into the mind of the designer a bit and understand why things were done the way they were.

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The mudguards, or fenders if you prefer, are likewise supported on angle-iron brackets. The front ones have two, both of which will be fixed to the chassis, one above and one below.



The rear mudguards have a substantial forward projection, and three brackets, the front two of which are attached to the lower section of the body.

[AlanG]

Fitting the mudguards...



... and wheels.

[Vermin_King]

Looking good, sir

[rifleman]

dam fine work sir

[romanmodels]

good work on the wheels and mudguards

[AlanG]

Thank you all for your comments.

Originally Posted by romanmodels

good work on the wheels and mudguards

The best thing about these is that they were a good deal easier to make than they look. I like that sort of thing

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Finally the lifeguards and one or two odds and ends prepared earlier but left to the end as they would have been vulnerable to clumsy fingers.

Right-hand guard and control levers.



Left-hand guard, tool(?)box and driver's step.



Starting handle ...



... and we are ready to roll.

[AlanG]

Well, there it is. It has taken rather a long time, but is now quite pleasing.



Now I must edit the parts sheets to make a downloadable kit, and provide some construction notes in case anyone else is crazy enough to make one of their own. I'll let you know when that is done.

All the best to you all,
Alan

[Vermin_King]

That is quite beautiful, sir. Thanks for letting us come along for the ride