The first activity of 2012 did not relate to SM106, but instead to SMS97 (note the change of designation now that the dreaded conversion has been largely undone) with a good day out delivering my surplus stock of window rubber to Reliance Bus Works on Steve's behalf. It was very interesting to have a poke about and investigate another sibling and it gives me great encouragement that a vehicle which had no great deal of work done was OK for MOT. Now, of course, much of the body has been re-panelled, but a lot of work needs to be done inside - such as the floor which really shows the imprint of conversion to SMD and unsympathetic use. The dogs then enjoyed a nice walk on the Trent & Mersey Canal at Thurlwood , and we had a picnic at lock 54, so amenable was the day. It was very nostalgic, and the first time I have ever been to the canal in that area without a boat! On the way home we called at Routemaster Buses as it was hardly off-route, so we had a comprehensive tour. Their 'Green Line' liveried school buses were just preparing for the afternoon run, and looking very smart. I must say that I do like a Lynx, and it is refreshing that an operator still cares for one.

Clio went long-distance and found herself among friends. Photo © J.Wilkins

New Treadmaster Lino and re-instated trunking in the luggage pen. Photo © J.Wilkins

The following Sunday I decided to grapple with an old problem - how to install the front door support poles when the bottom bearings are fixed down. It's a classic chicken-and-egg problem - can't install the step-tread or Multi-slat unless the bearing block is fully installed, but when it is there isn't enough clearance to lower the poles enough to engage them on the top drive-spigots. Obviously, it's a case of creating more room by lifting the top drive block, and of course the rubber cups on the bottom of the hollow poles won't pass over the brass bearings on the bottom support. It didn't take long to uncover another huge bodge in the door actuator area, and become rather grubby as a consequence of the copious lubrication which has been applied over the years. Obviously the top support (which carries the gearing to move the doors simultaneously) was originally fixed with countersunk set-screws from underneath. One of them obviously didn't want to undo at some point, and it was sheared off, blocking one of three fixing holes. The other two were replaced by ¼ inch" UNF nut and bolt, but not very securely, so every time the door was actuated the whole top pivot flopped and rotated, making the holes oval. The offending residue was drilled out and a new set of UNF applied to the three fixing holes, but that fouled the cam which operates the door-sensor microswitch (so it was removed for now because it doesnt even switch any longer). Once the method was clear, the step tread was screwed down, the Multi-slat mat glued down, the rubber cups threaded onto the lower guides, the brass bearings fitted and properly lubricated, and the poles installed. It's wonderful what you can achieve in (rather less than) a day.

And it is also wonderful to behold the number of rivets in the body. Moving on in the entrance bay, it had become time to fit the beading on the corner return, which fixes through the minimalist bulkhead into the stiffening angle of the conduit that runs up to the door-gear. It was a fiddly fit, and there is a lot of metal, so the longest rivets held in stock were deployed - 24 of them to be precise. After that I added the cover strip to the nearside-front of the luggage pen, and fitted the door-seal brushes at the top of the entrance bay. A total of 36 rivets, but not a record. As the luggage pen seemed to be flavour of the day, I cleaned the remaining paint from the top trim and rubbed it down, then attacked the handrail with paint-stripper and Autosol. Drilling and plugging the handrail attachment points also seemed a good idea, and I think that next time I will cut and glue down the new Treadmaster lino. Gosh, was my right arm tired after that lot!

Chassis cleaned and primed, seen from battery area Photo © J.Wilkins

and from the rear (cross-member left centre). Photo © J.Wilkins

There is nothing quite like plugging away at horrid, dirty jobs for putting a person off regular web updates, so a number of the unseasonably warm weekends before Easter were spent in brushing off the rear chassis in the area around the radiator, which was removed for attention a good while back - and should be replaced as a matter of importance. Wire-brushing is ineffective around obstacles, so part of the job was to undo and remove the outriggers that support the radiator, giving much better access in addition. They are only held by a few ½ inch UNF bolts, which were not particularly difficult to remove, and they in turn were much easier to deal with off the vehicle. The forward one carries a welded bracket for the "Splash-Proof Box", AKA alternator control unit, which is relocated on the London chassis and thus unused (and a dirt trap), so it was removed by cutting away the welds with my angle-grinder. When it was time to re-assemble the rear outrigger, there was an Oh-Blimey moment when I realised that I had also freed off the rear cross-member, which carries the rear engine-mount and had shifted under the load. I had to resort to taking some of the weight of the engine on my bottle-jack, with suitable packing, in order to be able to lever the cross-member back into place and hurriedly re-insert the bolts. It all looked a lot better when silvered and is now ready for the battery frame and radiator to be fettled and replaced.

The radiator and fan-shroud, disassembly 2010 Photo © J.Wilkins

Now cleaned-up and painted Photo © J.Wilkins

The radiator is not particularly pretty, but after a session of tidying, brushing and further cleaning of the tube area it looks much better. A lump of muck is still rattling around in the top tank, and I have not been able to persuade it to come out. Have you tried picking up a radiator of that size and shaking it? I need to replace several of the ¼ inch BSF studs that hold the shroud (missing) and fan housing in place. Maurice has found me a tap from his considerable collection so I shall have a go at cleaning the holes and putting in some setscrews before cutting off their heads for new studs. Easter, saw us on a boat holiday with David, Lisa and Rachel (all of whom have starred on these pages in the past) but Easter Monday saw renewed activity, this time on the front dash while I ponder a radiator plan. A day's work saw 40 holes drilled and countersunk in new beading, together with pilot holes, to fit below the windscreen and down the sides of the main dash-panel. I had to work out a way of transferring the drilling positions to the beading, via the dash-panel, but a bit of thought saw it sorted, if slowly. Rain fell incessantly, so I did a lot better than most visitors to the Conwy Valley that day. I was also able to offer up a trial length of the window weatherstrip that has been run from the modified die - and pronounce it fit. It turns out that the rubber is exactly what is required for a PRV-bodied ex-Manchester Panther Cub dating to 1964 - and more probably for a PRV-bodied London DMS. Negotiations with the bus owners who want this stuff have been vexing and unproductive so far. Everybody wants it, but few can afford it, apparently, despite the price dropping to about half if a decent run is ordered.

Front dash beading complete. Photo © J.Wilkins

Pressing the pillar capping home Photo © J.Wilkins

As I was on a bit of a roll for a change, a second session was devoted to the beading on the front dash. This time it was the lower horizontal run that was the focus of attention, but during the usual early-morning head-scratching session a new thought was liberated. The aperture for the towing hatch has wood (screwed to structural members) all the way round, and I have already put in place the curved length of aluminium angle that covers the underside of the lower dash rail. Depending upon the way that I end up fabricating the lower corner panels, a similar aluminium trim is required for the verticals. They were soon knocked-up from some scrap 1.2mm sheet, and bent on the 'ship', which has not seen much action lately. With the aperture lined, there was nothing for it but to press on with the lower beading. Once that was in place and curved around the offside corner, the nearside corner became the focus. The front of the door aperture is lined with a tricky, curved and flanged sheet which required some pressure to hold it in place, while the curved dash corner panel needed a push from the other side to get it all tight before drilling. This type of job is becoming more familiar, so pressure was applied with a wedge in the doorway and some clamps, a pre-drilled piece of beading was offered up and the pilot holes drilled with my Black-and-Decker while using a free hand to press home the dash. A wonderful result, and the full time score was 30 holes piloted, drilled, and countersunk plus a bonus of 20 pop-rivets in the front of the doorway. I am not looking forward to dealing with the windscreen pan where it curves over, but the bonus will be the chance to fit the windscreen, which is long overdue.

Many weeks have passed without any real progress due to a complex and interlocking set of family matters, including illness and a bereavement among my in-laws, viewing property and trying to purchase a house in Manchester, sundry engagements and a topping of really terrible weather. Over a matter of two months therefore, the only substantive progress has been cutting and sticking down part of the Treadmaster floor-covering under the offside of the lower saloon, and finishing the beading for the lower run on the front dash. What a woeful state of affairs! Worse, I have still made no progress with the problem of the missing radiator drain tap and not been able to budge the brass assembly from the steel bush in the lower tank (with a view to wholesale replacement by the spare). So, amazingly, St.Swithin's Day dawned fair and I was able to get stuck in, albeit a little late in the morning. First off, remove upper beading from the front dash, polish with emery, wash, leave outside in the sun to dry before priming. Next, get stuck into replacing the pop rivets removed during the removal of the rear blind box now I have a stock of M4 to suit. During the happy popping I heard my landlord's Range Rover arrive on the forecourt - and a sickening crunch and clanking noise as he drove over the beading. That was very upsetting, but so ridiculously my fault. Luckily it was straightened and cleaned up with a bit of annealing over my camping stove and was eventually primed and undercoated ready for the big windscreen-pan fixing to come. Now it has an almost authentic patina as well. Once the rivets were all inserted the heads were scuffed and dabbed with etch primer, then undercoated in magnolia (twice). The other effort was to glue down the larger piece of Treamaster lino at the rear end of the lower saloon. Luckily I remembered to measure the position of the seat fixing holes before spreading the glue. Handling a piece of lino one and a half metres by a half was no joke. The contact adhesive has a frightening grab, and the precision required to make a good join is no joke. In the end, I discovered that the dried adhesive would not stick to a dust sheet, so the lino was laid on the floor and eased into position with minimal exposed glue surfaces before I was more or less by luck able to tack down the mating edges and pull out the dustsheet. Final grab was achieved by walking over it carefully, and the edges to the walls pushed home with a hammer and a length of plank with a good straight edge. Progress at last! The nearside area should be a doddle in comparison.