To Dismantle your Shed

THE FACE OF THE BUS; ALMOST THE ONLY THING WHICH TELLS THE CASUAL OBSERVER THAT THIS IS AN ALBION YOU'RE LOOKING AT, MATE. AFTER 68 YEARS THE BADGE IS SADLY LACKING IN LUSTRE.

THE RADIATOR BADGE WAS CEMENTED IN PLACE TO PRESERVE IT FROM SOUVENIR HUNTERS. CRAIG CAREFULLY PRISES IT AWAY, AND IT WILL BE SENT AWAY FOR RE-ENAMELLING IN VITREOUS ENAMEL.

THE GARDNER 6LW WOULD NEVER WIN A BEAUTY CONTEST, BUT IT BEATS EVERY OTHER DIESEL ENGINE EVER BUILT AT FUEL ECONOMY. BUILT BY L.GARDNER AND SONS LTD., BARTON HALL ENGINE WORKS, PATRICROFT, MANCHESTER, IT WAS USED IN BUSES, TRUCKS, RAIL VEHICLES AND SMALL SHIPS, AND COULD DELIVER UP TO 17mpg IN A DOUBLE DECKER BUS APPLICATION.








First remove the external steel cladding. Then remove the cross beam, noting which way up it was fitted. And so on, until your bus will fit inside.

With 1615 safely ensconced in the shed, some research was undertaken to establish how to go about obtaining spares for the Gardner engine, to enable it to be given a full overhaul. My friend Michael Myer of North Shore Diesel Injection Service at Woy Woy is a specialist in Gardner engines. Woy Woy on the Central Coast just north of Sydney is surrounded by small fishing harbours and inlets plied by ferry services, and many of these vessels are propelled by Gardner engines in their marine form, so Michael is not short of work. He advised firstly to find the engine number, on the upper surface of the crankcase, in front of the injector pump, and beside where the front cylinder block mounts. And to establish if the crankcase is iron or aluminium alloy. If iron, the bearings will be hand scraped babbit metal, not modern slip-in shells, and will have to be updated. It is aluminium (phew) and the engine number is 31935.
While he was at it Craig established that the bus' Chassis number is 60004D. In Albion's weird and wonderful model and chassis ID system, all the 60000 series numbers to 60500, with suffix letter to be added, were allotted to the CX19 Venturer, starting with 60001A, then B,C, D, etc. up to L (I and G were not used after 1938), making a group of ten, then came 60002A,B,C, etc. So by my reckoning, 60004D is the 34th chassis produced of model CX19. I await correction by an expert in the field.

Noises in the Night

click on any photo to enlarge

To avoid as far as possible any disruption to other traffic, Craig planned to move the bus to his home near Wollongong in the early hours of morning. Craig, his long-suffering girlfriend Olivia Walker, and I assembled at Sydney tramway museum at 4.30 AM, armed with some tools in case of trouble, cameras still and video, and drums of water to cope with the losses from the leaky water pump gland.

AT 4.55AM THE RADIATOR RECEIVES THE FIRST OF MANY DRINKS: THE WATER PUMP GLAND GAVE UP LONG AGO, BUT SPARES FOR GARDNER ENGINES ARE NOT DIFFICULT TO OBTAIN

I have to say it was a rare pleasure to be allowed to participate in this undertaking: the combination of the slow steady beat of a Gardner 6LW and the sounds produced by an Albion gearbox is a pretty intoxicating mix. The gearbox is unlike any other in existence, because it has the pre-war specification of helical gear teeth for third gear: the so-called "silent third", which reverted to straight-cut teeth in post WWII production. So it has all the sounds of an Albion CX19, with the added sophistication of "silent third'. Those readers who have heard it will know what I mean.


HEADLAMPS FITTED AROUND 1940 OR '41, AND RUNNING ON 12 VOLTS, ARE NOT A DAZZLE PROBLEM

In pitch darkness at 5 AM the journey began down the Princes Highway. South of Waterfall, we diverted onto the Old Highway, in order to reach Wollongong via Bulli Pass.



CRAIG AT THE WHEEL OF A VEHICLE DATING FROM 1938; HE DATES FROM 1978

Craig correctly reasoned that one short sharp descent would be preferable to the alternative route via Mount Ousely which involves much more hill climbing and a longer, if gentler, descent to the coastal plain. Second gear was used for the majority of the way down the Pass, which has a 20 kph speed limit for trucks and buses. A truck followed us all the way and overtook at one point but showed no desire to exceed our speed. The grade is 1 in 8 at some points.
Unlike some well-worn gearboxes, 1615's showed no sign whatsoever of wanting to jump out of gear on the long 5 kilometre descent, but at the bottom, after acting as a compressor for so long, the engine belched a nuclear mushroom cloud of blue smoke to underline the fact that the piston rings and bores are in dire need of attention.
By 6.40 AM we were outside Craig's home in Figtree; about 55 km from Loftus we reckon, without a moment's trouble from the old girl, apart for some pauses for a drink of water in the radiator.
Reversing into the entrance drive was quickly completed, Olivia took a shower and departed for work, and some flattened cardboard was pushed under the engine of 1615 to catch the various fluid leaks from the machinery room behind the radiator.



DESPITE HAVING ITS TOP DECK OFF, THE DOUBLE DECKER IS STILL TOO HIGH TO FIT INTO THE AVERAGE GARAGE

Next step: remove the front fascia of the garage so the bus can fit under the entrance beam to be locked away for the next few years while work proceeds on the body frame, cutting out the many rusted sections, welding in new metal, and returning it to 1939 condition.



IN THE DRIVE. CRAIG PARKINSON STANDS BY WHAT WILL KEEP HIM OFF THE GOLF COURSE FOR A FEW YEARS



SWEEPING UP THE LEAVES AND TWIGS DISLODGED BY THE PROCESS OF REVERSING INTO THE DRIVE.
THE BUS AWAITS THE REMOVAL OF THE GARAGE FASCIA TO PERMIT IT TO ENTER. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED

Step One (of 1,894) ---- Remove the Top Deck

The appointed day for lifting the top deck was Saturday March 25th. Craig was on a month's leave from work, father Bill is retired now, and your correspondent was eager to help.
Firstly some shunting of trams was needed. A clear space under the travelling cranes had to be created in the workshops, by moving Brisbane car 180 to another road in the Display Hall. Two wooden overhead work towers sitting on the deck of Ballast Motor 93u had to be lifted off, and 93u put in positon to receive the top deck when it came off.

David Griffiths unscrews the desto box which has brackets securing it to the floor. photo Bill Parkinson

The Gardner 6LW engine in 1615 is a little worn these days, lacking some compression, and needs a few moments cranking to get it going. Surprisingly, the electrical system is 12 volt, quite sufficient to start a Gardner, but rare by 1939 when all other diesel buses had 24 volt systems with more grunt for starting cold engines in winter.

The bus was driven down the slope to the Workshop entrance so Craig and I could get to work with angle grinders, cold chisel, crowbars and side cutters to remove the few remaining rusty bolts, and top deck lamp wiring.


Sparks fly as Craig Parkinson cuts bolts around the stair well. photo Bill Parkinson




By lunchtime, space in the workshop was now clear, and 1615 was reversed in by the west door of the shops, turned 90 degrees and positoned under the cranes. Chain drags were attached to the southern crane and hooked around the lower front corners of the top deck. At the northern end the same was done to the rear corners. These were felt to be stronger and better able to take the strain than the waist rails, which are literally a bit wasted by rust.


The method of slinging can be seen as the lift begins at dead slow speed. photo Bill Parkinson

The strain was taken, and the top deck showed a strong desire to stay attached in the region of the rear nearside destination box.. We found we had not sliced through three bolts hidden under the box where it protrudes into the top deck beside the rear three-seater. With step ladder, grinder and crowbar these were quickly dealt with and the lift recommenced.

Cutting the last remaining electrical wiring, to the front desto box. photo Bill Parkinson


This time the front destination box wanted to stay joined to the bottom deck: its winder passes through the ceiling of the drivers cab, and we had not noticed it still had the winder handle attached! After these two minor setbacks the lift proceeded and we watched closely to see if the deck would quietly form into a U-shape, suspended at each end!
In the event, not a millimetre of distortion could be detected: the skirt rails and waist rails remained dead straight. As Bill Parkinson commented, " It's just a Warren truss, really".

Aloft and completely free of the lower deck, the top deck can be seen to remain dead straight and true, a tribute to its builders. photo Bill Parkinson


The lift completed, the team waits at the other side of 93u to observe the sideways transfer of the top deck between the two driving cabs of the ballast motor. photo Bob Merchant


An aerial view from the mezzanine meal room floor shows the descent to the flat bed of the ballast motor, number 93u in the Sydney Tramways service stock register. photo Bob Merchant

The cranes travelled westwards about 5 or 6 metres and the top half of 1615 descended neatly onto the deck of 93u.
Observers immediately commented that if we placed a few chairs into the top deck space we could make 93u into a passenger car for the first time in its life.


Craig prepares packing pieces to receive the descending deck. photo Bob Merchant
Strange things happen when you take a top deck off its bus: there is no way in, no doorway to the space inside. And the floor of the top deck, a very handy place to park all sorts of things, seat frames, interior trims, glass, screws, handrails, becomes the roof of a single decker and you have to take all this junk off before you can drive it away. The photos show the before and after.


We prepare to clear the roof, until a few minutes ago a floor, of material from the stripping of the top deck interior. photo Bob Merchant


All seats, trims, glass, cushions and debris have been cleared from the roof and it has had a good sweep, preparatory to driving the bus out the door. photo Bob Merchant


The bus emerges from the west door of the workshops as a single decker. photo Bob Merchant


In Tramway Street, getting a few cobwebs out of the engine before garaging the bus back in the top shed to await driving to Craig's home in Wollongong where a lot of cutting and welding of rusted frame components will begin. photo Bob Merchant