3697 finally being pressure washed

The day has finally come as on Saturday 18th July myself and other enthusiasts have helped done the pressure wash inside and out. Seat Cushions were removed for the steam clean and also gutters were cleanned and also the roof was pressure washed.

Restoration will pause until the Parkers remove the back window to repair rust and also replacing and putting in new pop ribbets the bus should start painting in the next few months.

Due to the 20th Anniversary of the Mk2 Leyland Leopard withdrawn from Government Service 1746 will start restoration as early as next week so it can attend the tour that we hope to have in October to mark the 20th Anniversary of the withdrawal of the Mk2 Leyland Leopards in Government Service.

The Rubbing Back Begins

On the 1st July 2009 Sanding and rubbing back Fibreglass Panels have started and also more interior work has been done like Sanding parts of the ceiling checking for rust and vacuming and cleaning seats.

The Next update will be on the 18th July as we take the bus out to be pressure washed to have the roof prepaired for sanding and hopefully there will be photos on the next blog. I hope to have the Bus painted in the next few months .

Body Work on Mk1 Leopard 3697

No Body work was done today as i was doing major cleanning with the interior that you will find in the other post that was made earlyer.

Last Time i was at oakville i was scrapeing paint off the panel work of 3697 and the bottom bits will be scraped later on when we start prepairing for painting. On the Paint work now you can see the lines from the old double downswept Livery that Newcastle had from the 1970s till the 1980s which they were withdrawn from 1985.

And also wire Brushing and patching up rust will be the next step but as now it is winter time we wont be painting till around September which it will be better weather for painting.

The next vehicle i will be doing up will be a Sydney Mk2 Leopard 3952 which will be started hopefully on the 2nd weekend of June. 3952 Should be painted up at the same time and both ready for Motorfest in January 2010.

A Blog on the restoration Project of Mk2 Leopard 3952 should be set up when restoration starts.

The Inside of mk1 leopard 3697 almost Finished

Today i was down at Oakville at 9am this morning starting work on Newcastle Mk1 Leopard 3697 doing the Interior which was a Big Job.

The Bus was cleanned top to bottom and the Parkers didnt know the bus when they saw it as it made such a Big Difference. I was going to do Before and After Shots but forgot to do the Before Shots as i really wanted to get stuck into the bus but got some lastest photos of its current Condition.

The Only Interior work is only minor just a Bit of a rust repair that needs to be touched up and 4 Seat Cushions need to be refitted and a bit of a paint and thats about it for the interior for 3697.

FLASH BACK ! 3697 in Service

Here is a Photo of Mk1 Leopard 3697 in Government Service in the 1980s in Newcastle this Photo was taken by Andrew Hourigan.

3697 was doing a Route 100 down Scott Street in Newcastle heading for Parnell Place wich was the old Bus Terminus for The Newcastle Buses.

Mk1 Leyland Leopard 3697 before Starting its restoration

Restoration began on 3697 on the 8th May 2009. Myself and James Parker started to scrape paint of panels to prepare for painting we will be taking some of the bad panels off which that have rust in them.

Next up we will be tiding up the interior and sanding back walls to prepare for painting we will be painting it back into its Newcastle double downswept Blue and White and we hope to see this bus restored intime for the 2010 Motorfest on Australia Day.

3697 is a 1969 PMC Body Mk1 Leyland Leopard it mainly operated in Newcaslte most of its life when it was withdrawn it was in Canberra operating for Murrays Coaches as unit 196 MO0487 it was then Preserved at The Canberra Bus & Truck Museum and was painted Brown and White.

And Finally Purchased by the Parker Family at Oakville and is now undergoing restoration many interesting things were found on the vehicle like the UTA loco , Fleet Number and the Stripe for the Double Downswept colour Scheme.

More Photos will be posted Hopefully next week.