I'll start a thread here on the restoration of a 1947 Flxible Clipper Bus and update as new information and images come through:
A little history about my Flxible Clipper:
Bought new by the Utah Parks Company (part of the Union Pacific Railroad) in 1947, the Flxible Clipper spent all of its working life taking tourists around the various National Parks. For a commercial bus, it's had a very pampered working life.
Taken out of service in 1965, it was converted to a motorhome and eventually found its way to the previous owners in 1972. Since 1972 it has been in the same family ownership and stored in the 29 Palms region of California. As a result the vehicle has almost no rust but has needed major mechanical work due to the fact that it has not moved for over 25 years!!
I saw a local advert for the bus some months ago and was amazed to see the bus re-advertised some time later without a serious offer being made. I contacted the family and learned that the grandfather who owned the bus had passed away and this was the reason for the sale. The only serious offer they had was from a junk yard who were buying the vehicle for the scrap metal. I didn't want to see that happen so agreed to buy the bus.
Since shipping the bus to the restoration shop, the engine (Detroit Diesel) has been fully rebuilt, new cooling system and radiator, new brakes, re-built clutch and front axle, new King Pins, new fuel lines and re-ferbished fuel tanks, new wheels (old ones were split rims) and new tyres.
Once the bus gets some test miles under it's belt, the interior will be stripped out and a complete new interior fitted. Final stage will be the exterior and I plan on keeping the original paint design.
I've started a flickr account to show some of the photographs and tried to put the images in order. The first images come from the original advert, then an image of the bus being loaded for shipping to the restoration shop and then images from the restoration shop showing some progress.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/9…089781485/
A little history about my Flxible Clipper:
Bought new by the Utah Parks Company (part of the Union Pacific Railroad) in 1947, the Flxible Clipper spent all of its working life taking tourists around the various National Parks. For a commercial bus, it's had a very pampered working life.
Taken out of service in 1965, it was converted to a motorhome and eventually found its way to the previous owners in 1972. Since 1972 it has been in the same family ownership and stored in the 29 Palms region of California. As a result the vehicle has almost no rust but has needed major mechanical work due to the fact that it has not moved for over 25 years!!
I saw a local advert for the bus some months ago and was amazed to see the bus re-advertised some time later without a serious offer being made. I contacted the family and learned that the grandfather who owned the bus had passed away and this was the reason for the sale. The only serious offer they had was from a junk yard who were buying the vehicle for the scrap metal. I didn't want to see that happen so agreed to buy the bus.
Since shipping the bus to the restoration shop, the engine (Detroit Diesel) has been fully rebuilt, new cooling system and radiator, new brakes, re-built clutch and front axle, new King Pins, new fuel lines and re-ferbished fuel tanks, new wheels (old ones were split rims) and new tyres.
Once the bus gets some test miles under it's belt, the interior will be stripped out and a complete new interior fitted. Final stage will be the exterior and I plan on keeping the original paint design.
I've started a flickr account to show some of the photographs and tried to put the images in order. The first images come from the original advert, then an image of the bus being loaded for shipping to the restoration shop and then images from the restoration shop showing some progress.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/9…089781485/