2020 NEWS
NOVEMBER 2020
GREAT NEWS. After many years laid up at ayard in Buckfastleigh PDR1 Leyland Atlantean DDR 201C has passed its M.O.T and is again out on the road. Grant, not content with just this amazing effort will be completely repanelling her over Christmas and total repaint back into 1960s livery with tram style fleet numbers
Owner Ian Byrn has had the window rubbers on AN68 STK 131T replaced by National Windscreens,and gotten her through the M.O.T for 2021 . Next job will be to fit the front top deck window hoppers to complete the original look
OCTOBER 2020 VEHICLE CLEARING
This month has seen several vehicles that had used for parts to help save other preservation projects, be removed by Barnsley breakers. Volvo citybus B10m 175 B175 VDV and 176 B176VDV having started their lives together,ended together. Group vehicle 312 W312 SDV citycoach followed along with MPD 201 which had been a doner vehicle to a private project converting MPD 203 into a motorhome. It was felt that we needed to concentrate preservation on vehicles which were mobile
Work has continued on PDR1 158, Philip has spent many hours scraping lays of paint from interior panels ready to apply the original Panama beige. Next stage will be to relay the upper deck floor with marine plywood as the original floor is now very rotten
SAT 13TH JUNE DDR 201C PDR1 ATLANTEAN RETURNS
We are very happy to see Leyland Atlantean 201 finally brought back to Plymouth. Having spent the last 7 years languishing at a garage in Buckfasleigh, it has been brought by Grant at Car To Coach body repair and spray paint finishers. As you can see with only a jet spray wash it is still resplendent in orient red, unbelievable as it had been sat under a large tree all that time. Still complete as original interior, it will need mechanical overhaul and will be repainted in this 1960s livery. We wish Grant all the best with this fantastic example of a Plymouth corporation Atlantean
GROUP VEHICLE CITYBUS MERCEDES MIDIBUS 283
283 N283 PDV Has returned from its repaint at "Car to Coach" looking better than it ever did in service.
still awaiting acurate logo transfers, but fit and ready for use when we can get out again
CSU 938 RETURNS TO WALLACE ARNOLD LIVERY
Leyland Lepoard CSU 938 also went to Car to coach and has had an amazing repaint back to its original company livery "WA" wallace Arnold. As a side note, it now has a sister vehicle, although not in directly in the group W656 FUM owned by James Pratt has also been returned to it original livery of Wallace Arnold. Hopefully sometime they will be able to go out together. I think at rallies they will be a real head turner.
NDR 509J AND WJY 758 ATLANTEAN RESTORATION UPDATE
Having sometime on our hands at this present time. Some jobs that could be done at home, have been completed on 9 that have taken a backseat until now. All seats have been restored for upper deck. We made the decision to recover the rear downstairs seatback which still had original covering but didn't match restored seats. Now restrictions have eased and warm weather, the floor has been painted. (treadmaster will be laid in the future,but not high on priority list).
WJY 758 has also had work started on it. The missing engine components have been rebuilt or replaced. It was towed out so drive shaft could be re-fitted. It is now mobile and in place so a new exhaust system can be fitted.
For those who attended our Atlantean timing trip in March. The indicator fault on 168 has also been fixed. It was found the switch contacts between hazzards and indicators had become covered in grime and welded itself together. A new hinge for overhead swithboard in the cab has also been replaced
SAT 4TH APRIL ANOTHER DEPARTURE
The ex Target Travel/Roberts mini coach B674 CBD a longtime derelic from days at Colebrook has been removed for scrapping. One day we will be able to have a working party to clear the undergrowth from that area and make better use of vehicle parking. Photos courtesy Tom Pearce
TUES 24TH MARCH 158 (458) WJY 758
While we were all trying to make sense of what had happened to us on the 1st day of the Covid-19 national lockdown. Cannon recoveries of Heathfield managed to go to Winkleigh and return our latest acquisition WJY 758 to Outland rd. It'll be stored as best as we can until the time when we are free to move around again. The plan is to restore it back to original 1975 yellow livery when it was still numbered 158. Thanks to Tom Pearce for being there to photograph the arrival
NUMBER 9 RESTORATION UPDATE EARLY 2020
Work has continued on 9, and now is starting to get nearer completion. On a miserable sunday 26th jan we gave her a "blast out the cobwebs" run to Yelverton and back down Southway drive.
Having not been out for many months,we were very happy that she performed faultlessly
