The top rib was added to the passenger seat partition, completing this area. Also, the original antenna location is not really compatible with the safari windows that are being added since the passenger side windshield would swing into the back of the antenna. The factory got around this problem by having a special antenna that was S-shaped at the bottom for clearance. I could probably fabricate something close to this special antenna but since I think that looks weird I’m opting to instead fill the hole. I’ll worry about the antenna later, there’s so much glass surface area that I may be able to mount it hidden under the headliner and still have plenty of reception.

The fabrication of the walkthrough partition continued with the addition of ribs to the sheet metal installed yesterday. The ribs add strength to the otherwise flat sheet metal, preventing the panel from resonating while the bus is running. These ribs would have originally been pressed into the panel by a machine twice the size of the garage the bus is being restored in. Since I don’t have one of those, the ribs are being recreated by welding in a section of sheet metal bent into a “C” shape.

The passenger side partition panel had been cut out of the bus at some point in the bus’s past, presumably to allow the use of a swiveling seat. Although the restoration will not be 100% accurate, (i.e. non-original safari windows added) having a large part of the interior missing would have been too much of a deviation from original. So in what is probably the most ambitious fabrication project within the bus project so far, a new partition is being created. Luckily, the passenger side partition is somewhat simpler than the driver’s side partition since there are no compound curves required. First a section of tube was heated red hot and bent to the correct radius and welded in place, using a piece of angle iron clamped across the top of both partitions to keep the top tubes co-linear. Next the sheet metal was cut and bent to fit into shape. Finally the sheet metal was welded onto the top of the seat pedestal. The partition will have the raised sections added in the next few days to mirror the raised sections on the driver side partition.

The battery tray had a rust hole in roughly the shape of the bottom of a battery. Years of battery leaks caused this area to rust at a faster rate than the rest of the bus. The repair is mostly complete, all that remains is to finish grinding and shape the repair to more closely match the crease lines of the surrounding metal. The repair required working in an extremely confined location hence this is probably one of the ugliest repairs I’ve done lately; it won’t be noticeable after the body work is completed.

Work started on getting the bumpers ready for primer/bodywork. The front bumper only had a few minor bumps that were straightened out; the rear bumper however had a very deep dent and a tear near one of the brackets. The bumper metal is much thicker than anything else on the bus so removing the rear bumper dent required a considerable amount of beating with an 8lb hammer. Despite the crude method the dent mostly disappeared without introducing much warpage. After the bumpers were straightened paint stripping began, these are among the last remaining parts that are rust-covered. Stripping the inside of the bumpers will require media blasting that will be completed this weekend.