You've got 'em, now what are you going to do with 'em?

Alrighty it's been over 3 months since 2413 left Tempe, in that time what's happened? Short answer, not much!

My plans are to start work on 2413 first. Since 1930 is over 30 years old it can go straight onto the conditional registration.

With 1930, all that needs doing is a new windscreen on the nearside and the speedo needs attention (either repair or replacement. mkI/II VDO of course!). Along with addressing another issue that has just reared it's head in the past month or two. One battery terminal has corroded, so much so that when I was looking at it with SW yesterday, it disintegrated! Hopefully it'll be a quick job to cut the line back past the corrosion (about 3cm) and fit a new terminal and 1930 will be back.
My short term plan for 1930 is to leave it in it's Fearnes livery, then after 2413's done and I have all the pieces I require - take it back to the Chullora overhaul mkI livery.

1803 and 1840 at Randwick after withdrawal in early 1990, Graeme Knappick

RC's mkI ex 1964 ex MO 0304, I believe is in a livery that was a more correct one. Not to mention there is MO 2030 with it's single door (hint hint)


2413 on the otherhand starts up with little problem. For this one, it will be a matter of painting it inside and out into the Chullora overhaul livery. Blue cab, everything that is white at the moment, painted beige. Signwriting and the front will need a window cut in, for the number 3 desto box. I've somehow got to get either an original bumper or cut up the new style to resemble the original style. I think the one that's on it will have to go eitherway, it's been pushed in and the tow hook has become indented onto it.

This is the look I'm going for, except with a large blue L7 Urban Transit Authority logo, instead of the STA's logo


Graeme Knappick's pic of 2413 at Circular Quay

Next post - some pics of both as they are now....

The Mark I

At first, I was happy to have just a mkII, I had not been on a mark I merc for years. Then in May 2007, there was a tour to celebrate the 30 years of Mercedes Benz O305's in Sydney. I started to think that having a mark I would not be such a bad thing. Then I pondered it further, thinking that having the first Kingsgrove O305 would be good.
I did some research using the fleetlist, turns out Kingsgrove's allocation was 1916 through to 1965 (except 1951). 1916 had become MO 2029 at Fearnes, I thought if the opportunity presented itself, I'd try and get it.

A few months passed, I had gone a purchased 2413, early in 2007 I set aside a portion of funds that I though I could get a mkII with and maybe have some left over. Anyway, the purchase of 2413 only took up half the amount I set aside. Then a week or so after RC drew my attention to the Fearnes coaches website, they had mkI's for sale, plus a Leyland Leopard that he wanted. Then AH and SW headed down to Wagga Wagga, they were able to test drive whatever they wanted, I asked if they could give MO 2029 a go. It was started and it did not sound good at all, after all were tested, I was told that MO 1964 along with MO 0304 were goers. RC ended up wanting to get a mkI as well, then AH ended up purchasing one of the companies last Worldmasters - the last to be donated to the Sydney Bus Museum. As it turned out I had enough funds for this. So I decided to go with the advice given and purchase MO 1964 - ex 1930.

MO 1964, ex m/o 1930 at the Fearnes depot in Wagga Wagga NSW late August 2007, Andy Lee

Now....there were four buses purchased, only one word to describe their trasnfer

CONVOY!

"APEC weekend" 2007 was the weekend decided on, since the metro area had a public holiday and the other parts of NSW it was business as usual. So, we all went down on the Friday morning and since it was a normal day in Wagga Wagga, we were able to sort out unregistered vehicle permits at the RTA office that day. This meant we could take all the buses back to Sydney on the Saturday.
For more info on the trip, read my post on the ATDB
http://www.busaustralia.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=25310&start=0&postdays=0&postorder=asc&highlight=wagga+wagga

The whole experience was great, the people at Fearnes were excellent and very accommodating. A shame there aren't more like them around anymore....

MO 1964 - M/O 1930

1930 was bodied in April 1978, part of the first order of 200 Mercedes Benz buses made by the NSW Government for the Public Transport Commission. It was delivered in mid 1978 to Kingsgrove. It has been suggested that the only reason Kingsgrove received the mark I O305's was due to a by election in the state seat of Earlwood. They were all meant for the Eastern suburbs, thus they were fitted with Eastern destination blinds at the factory, being the first type of bus with narrower side destinations - the Leyland Leopards before them had full size front and side destination blinds, Kingsgrove had none of the smaller south western set available to install. The front destinations were changed over and the side ones had to wait until a batch of smaller blinds could be produced.

Mercedes Benz mkI 1923, in original livery, during a tour in June 2007

m/o 1930 in service at Circular Quay possibly in late 1978, note the drivers window.
photo supplied by Graeme Knappick

In either 1983 or 1984, it received an overhaul at Chullora, the bell cords that were hung along the windowline were removed and poles with push buttons were installed instead. The drivers window was replaced with the same window used on the mkII and mkIII bodies. Then painted into mkII/III colours, then in December 1989, the first of the mark I's are withdrawn. 1930 was withdrawn in January 1990.

1930 seen here on the 28th January 1990, withdrawn in a storage yard at Randwick depot, next to a new O405 3353 which to this day remains at Randwick depot. Graeme Knappick

1930 along with eleven other mkI Mercs were purchased by Fearnes Coaches, before leaving Sydney, they were sent to Pressed Metal Corporation for an overhaul. There the floors were redone, wall panels replaced and interior painted. The side destination box was removed and replaced with a matching window. The front was replaced and the whole bus painted in their livery.

1800, 1840, 1861, 1877, 1916, 1918, 1924, 1926, 1930, 1942 and 1964 were all purchased for use by Fearnes, 1832 and 1857 were used for parts.

Once at Wagga Wagga, what was m/o 1930 was registered MO 1964 and used on town runs. A few years later, it along with MO 1967 (ex 1840) were painted into a special town shuttle livery. The route ran from one end of Wagga's main street to the other, linking two places where Fearnes services terminated and shuttling passengers from the centre of town to these places. After Fearnes redesigned their network, making all services terminate in the centre of town, the shuttle was discontinued. Their mark I Mercs cascaded down to school runs after their fleet of ex government Leylands were withdrawn. In 2002, MO 1964 was repainted into the Fearnes livery. She continued to serve until 2007.