Well, some news from deepest Suffolk where Tony has been working today on 32 in preparation for the more serious work to come....
Essentially, he's spent the day underneath in the cold removing the nuts off the U bolts which hold the rear body on - with 4 nuts on each bolt, having been on for 40 years and with no grease, it was no easy task - as he said - "what a b**tard!". Several needed much heat to encourage them to come off. Clearly, the body has never been removed! Anyway, they're off so the body can be removed with a forklift next week to give us access to the chassis and to the back of the cab to paint, probably to replace the window seals at the same time. We'll have to see how the blast wall comes off! Also, he has started on making the backing for the replacement original style CAV / Lucas indicators.
Thursday 21 February 2013
Monday 11 February 2013
Show me love....
Well, what a mammoth effort over a few short days! After the hopeful tone of the last blog entry as I approached Lincoln on the train, it turned out to be a rather longer day than planned.....
32 did run after a fashion but not well enough for a delivery journey of 130 miles or so. It did run but a quick cabby around the airfield proved that it struggled to get above 30 mph and spluttered and misfired under load or at speed. So, back to the hanger for Alf (the resident fitter of the RAF Firefighting Museum) to have a look. The plugs were cleaned and the leads checked, still no joy. The distributor was then removed, in part then all together - still no joy after re-fitting and yet another test drive or two.... By now, the day was moving on and morning had turned to early afternoon to mid afternoon and still no success. By this time, a break was in order, before we returned to fit a new distributor and leads and plugs. At least this time there was an improvement and with a few more tweaks of the carb and the timing, we were convinced that it was running well enough to attempt the drive south. It was half past seven, dark and the cold weather was becoming very apparent.
Ready to go??
32 sat outside of the RAF Firefighting Museum at RAF Scampton - Wing Commander Guy Gibson's office was just above where I was stood on the first floor:
So, after a quick coffee, it was off to Suffolk! A fuel stop at Lincoln was in order and the tank was brimmed with £140 of fuel along with a jerry can for good measure, leaving the engine running just in case it proved difficult to start. Then for the off. All went well as I wove my way through Lincoln towards the A46, all the while trying to get used to the ideosyncracies including the ear-splitting noise from the blowing exhaust manifold, numbed slightly by my earphones.... All well until near disaster..... Just outside of Lincoln, a few splutters and a few misfires.... Really - you're going to stop working now? After all that work? You bugger!! But, with some liberal use of the loud pedal, it cleared and normal service resumed with the handy flashing yellow light at the rear warning traffic of the slow speed. And that was it really. 40 mph, onto the A1 then the A14, a quick fuel top-up near Cambridge and just before midnight, after negotiating some narrow back lanes, Tony's house near Stowmarket hove into view. Time for bed, a very long day....
Monday brought a good dusting of snow in Suffolk and once cleared, I hopped in to fire 32 up. No joy. A auick check of the battery brought news that it seemed OK but once the starter was pressed, only about 6 volts was being produced. Once a new battery was installed - hey presto.
A decent run to the shed a few miles away followed then time for some preparation work after a coffee. With three of us, in no time at all, the old low red PVC tilt and frame (dating from its Clywd FB days) were removed and it was reversed into the shed. The new mirror arms and mirrors were added and the old ones removed, the remaining chipboard was taken off the back and the tail and side boards removed for ease of access and drying.
The new mirror arms:
Then, with considerable care, the original cab headlining was eased out allowing access to the wires and to remove the now redundant bolts from the blue lights and the two tone horns. A judicious smack from Tony popped the roof dent out completely! The number of holes left is amazing and will take a bit of filling!
The original, unmolested headlining:
Tony tackles the wiring:
Daylight!
Look - no dent....:
The head and tail boards removed to allow them to dry and be sanded down:
Looking much more AFS-like already!
That was about enough for the day and 32 was reversed back into the shed for more work another day.
32 did run after a fashion but not well enough for a delivery journey of 130 miles or so. It did run but a quick cabby around the airfield proved that it struggled to get above 30 mph and spluttered and misfired under load or at speed. So, back to the hanger for Alf (the resident fitter of the RAF Firefighting Museum) to have a look. The plugs were cleaned and the leads checked, still no joy. The distributor was then removed, in part then all together - still no joy after re-fitting and yet another test drive or two.... By now, the day was moving on and morning had turned to early afternoon to mid afternoon and still no success. By this time, a break was in order, before we returned to fit a new distributor and leads and plugs. At least this time there was an improvement and with a few more tweaks of the carb and the timing, we were convinced that it was running well enough to attempt the drive south. It was half past seven, dark and the cold weather was becoming very apparent.
Ready to go??
32 sat outside of the RAF Firefighting Museum at RAF Scampton - Wing Commander Guy Gibson's office was just above where I was stood on the first floor:
So, after a quick coffee, it was off to Suffolk! A fuel stop at Lincoln was in order and the tank was brimmed with £140 of fuel along with a jerry can for good measure, leaving the engine running just in case it proved difficult to start. Then for the off. All went well as I wove my way through Lincoln towards the A46, all the while trying to get used to the ideosyncracies including the ear-splitting noise from the blowing exhaust manifold, numbed slightly by my earphones.... All well until near disaster..... Just outside of Lincoln, a few splutters and a few misfires.... Really - you're going to stop working now? After all that work? You bugger!! But, with some liberal use of the loud pedal, it cleared and normal service resumed with the handy flashing yellow light at the rear warning traffic of the slow speed. And that was it really. 40 mph, onto the A1 then the A14, a quick fuel top-up near Cambridge and just before midnight, after negotiating some narrow back lanes, Tony's house near Stowmarket hove into view. Time for bed, a very long day....
Monday brought a good dusting of snow in Suffolk and once cleared, I hopped in to fire 32 up. No joy. A auick check of the battery brought news that it seemed OK but once the starter was pressed, only about 6 volts was being produced. Once a new battery was installed - hey presto.
A decent run to the shed a few miles away followed then time for some preparation work after a coffee. With three of us, in no time at all, the old low red PVC tilt and frame (dating from its Clywd FB days) were removed and it was reversed into the shed. The new mirror arms and mirrors were added and the old ones removed, the remaining chipboard was taken off the back and the tail and side boards removed for ease of access and drying.
The new mirror arms:
Then, with considerable care, the original cab headlining was eased out allowing access to the wires and to remove the now redundant bolts from the blue lights and the two tone horns. A judicious smack from Tony popped the roof dent out completely! The number of holes left is amazing and will take a bit of filling!
The original, unmolested headlining:
Tony tackles the wiring:
Daylight!
Look - no dent....:
The head and tail boards removed to allow them to dry and be sanded down:
Looking much more AFS-like already!
That was about enough for the day and 32 was reversed back into the shed for more work another day.
Saturday 9 February 2013
Wake up it's a beautiful morning...
Well, the long-awaited day has finally arrived to go and collect GYL 32C from it's current home at the RAF Firefighting Museum at RAF Scampton. Sitting on the train gazing out of the window, the flat mainly agricultural land stretches as far as the eye can see.
32's working well so we're told, all the bits are back on, and it's ready to go! The weather's great - clear, not too cold, so hopefully a decent drive down to its new home in Suffolk where it will receive a little some TLC.
Watch this space!
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Wednesday 6 February 2013
Mirrorball...
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Tuesday 5 February 2013
The history boys...
Well, apparently 32 is now up and running following the fitting of a (new) starter motor and the re-fitting of the repaired exhaust and a new choke. However, the reason why it's in such good condition lies further back in the mists of time.
Bought for the AFS and registered in 1965, it served on past the disbanding of the AFS in 1968 through the days of the EFS. It was sold off in May 1988 to Clywd Fire Brigade in north Wales. The mileage at this stage is unknown but the other petrol carriers sold off later that year had circa 1,100-1,200 miles on the clock. Clywd FB fitted 32 with a tail lift and used it as a foam carrier; it was based for some time at Deeside Fire Station (now part of North Wales Fire and Rescue Service) possibly because of the large industrial park nearby. Some time in the late 90s or early noughties it was purchased by an individual who repainted it green and showed it until it was donated on his death to the RAF Firefighting Museum.
The only pictures I have of it in service are through web searches, so they are not mine and I do not hold the copyright. However, whilst reproduced here, in a spirit of honesty, I also include the links to the sites where I found them.
http://www.historical-fire-engines.com/img-bedford-105.htm
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mr-bg/5596575260/
Bought for the AFS and registered in 1965, it served on past the disbanding of the AFS in 1968 through the days of the EFS. It was sold off in May 1988 to Clywd Fire Brigade in north Wales. The mileage at this stage is unknown but the other petrol carriers sold off later that year had circa 1,100-1,200 miles on the clock. Clywd FB fitted 32 with a tail lift and used it as a foam carrier; it was based for some time at Deeside Fire Station (now part of North Wales Fire and Rescue Service) possibly because of the large industrial park nearby. Some time in the late 90s or early noughties it was purchased by an individual who repainted it green and showed it until it was donated on his death to the RAF Firefighting Museum.
The only pictures I have of it in service are through web searches, so they are not mine and I do not hold the copyright. However, whilst reproduced here, in a spirit of honesty, I also include the links to the sites where I found them.
http://www.historical-fire-engines.com/img-bedford-105.htm
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mr-bg/5596575260/
Sunday 3 February 2013
Let's face the music and dance...
Well - here's the first post for this blog, similar in essence to my other blog on PGW 326, a green goddeess that I purchased in 2011. The progress, trials and tribulations!
The story of acquiring GYL 32C (or 32 from now on) is long, simple but slightly tortuous. Back in mid-November 2012, on a visit with a fellow group of RSOLES (the owners group for green goddesses, Bedford RLs and other ex-Auxiliary Fire Service vehicles) to the RAF Firefighting Museum at RAF Scampton, amongst their core collection was a slightly forlorn looking ex-AFS Bedford RL. It was donated to the museum and following a few years use as a support vehicle, had become surplus to requirementsa dn the Steve Shirley MBE, who heads up the museum, mentionmed that he was looking for a good home for it. In addition, as the collection grows and the museum moves up from Manston to Lincolnshire, it was taking up valuable room.
Now, as far as I was concerned, one green goddess was quite enough thanks but nonetheless, I had a look around. At the other corner, working his way around, muttering similar things was Tony Henwood. The owner of several AFS vehicles including a fantastic newly-restored RL command vehicle, he too had quite enough vehicles in his fleet. However, something was eating away at us and after a quick chat and mentions of '...maybe owning half each...', I returned back up to the museum on the following Wednesday to have a closer look. To cut a long story short, eventually an offer was made and hopefully, we will take delivery some time in February 2013. The main delay has been repairing the starter motor but now that's back, the exhaust can be repaired and fitted along with a new choke and 32 will be ready to go for the journey south for a bit of pampering before the summer season.
Why 32? Well, apart from being in good condition and ex-AFS, it's quite rare. One of only 10 AFS petrol carriers, of which only 5 were Bedfords (the others were Commer Q4s), there weren't many to start with and even fewer now. A quick DVLA check shows that 32 is the only one left taxed and on the road, with one on SORN and 3 - well who knows. These were designed to carry bulk fuel for fire columns in jerry cans held in racks in the back. A few oddities - they had very different indicators to most RLs, had a full height fire wall behind the cab, a shielded fuel tank and an extended front bumper so 2 foam extinguishers could be carried.
The bottom of the fire wall that runs between the load bed and the cab:
The shielded fuel tank:
I have already done some initial work - the chipboard partitions on the load bed have been removed in readiness for the can frames to be remade and reinstated - a long job in the cold and icey conditions!
The partitions before:
All gone - an awful lot of chipboard!
The ice knocked off the tilt....:
Anyway - more news as it happens!
The story of acquiring GYL 32C (or 32 from now on) is long, simple but slightly tortuous. Back in mid-November 2012, on a visit with a fellow group of RSOLES (the owners group for green goddesses, Bedford RLs and other ex-Auxiliary Fire Service vehicles) to the RAF Firefighting Museum at RAF Scampton, amongst their core collection was a slightly forlorn looking ex-AFS Bedford RL. It was donated to the museum and following a few years use as a support vehicle, had become surplus to requirementsa dn the Steve Shirley MBE, who heads up the museum, mentionmed that he was looking for a good home for it. In addition, as the collection grows and the museum moves up from Manston to Lincolnshire, it was taking up valuable room.
Now, as far as I was concerned, one green goddess was quite enough thanks but nonetheless, I had a look around. At the other corner, working his way around, muttering similar things was Tony Henwood. The owner of several AFS vehicles including a fantastic newly-restored RL command vehicle, he too had quite enough vehicles in his fleet. However, something was eating away at us and after a quick chat and mentions of '...maybe owning half each...', I returned back up to the museum on the following Wednesday to have a closer look. To cut a long story short, eventually an offer was made and hopefully, we will take delivery some time in February 2013. The main delay has been repairing the starter motor but now that's back, the exhaust can be repaired and fitted along with a new choke and 32 will be ready to go for the journey south for a bit of pampering before the summer season.
Why 32? Well, apart from being in good condition and ex-AFS, it's quite rare. One of only 10 AFS petrol carriers, of which only 5 were Bedfords (the others were Commer Q4s), there weren't many to start with and even fewer now. A quick DVLA check shows that 32 is the only one left taxed and on the road, with one on SORN and 3 - well who knows. These were designed to carry bulk fuel for fire columns in jerry cans held in racks in the back. A few oddities - they had very different indicators to most RLs, had a full height fire wall behind the cab, a shielded fuel tank and an extended front bumper so 2 foam extinguishers could be carried.
The bottom of the fire wall that runs between the load bed and the cab:
The shielded fuel tank:
I have already done some initial work - the chipboard partitions on the load bed have been removed in readiness for the can frames to be remade and reinstated - a long job in the cold and icey conditions!
The partitions before:
All gone - an awful lot of chipboard!
The ice knocked off the tilt....:
Anyway - more news as it happens!
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