The Bus is Back

Thanks to Richard Schauer for sending this update of our Milwaukee trolley bus, 441, which is no longer off at a contractor getting repainted!

441 has returned to IRM and is safe and secure in the Hoffman Garage.  It awaits work to return it to a running, and very attractive, condition.  

It figured that yesterday, November 8th, had to be the only rainy day this week.  But that was what was arranged, and a little bit of rain didn't bother anything.  Loading, transporting, and unloading the bus went as smooth as silk.  

I've included several pictures that should be self-explanatory, along with one showing 441 following its last day of service, September 25, 2022.

A Brand New Look

Thanks to Richard Schauer for sending us this exciting update along with photographic proof that Milwaukee trolley bus 441 has emerged from the contractor's paint booth in fresh as-delivered orange, cream, and maroon. Remember, getting buses or trolley buses painted off-site like this is primarily a factor of money - if you've been thinking of donating, and would like to see one of our other buses or trolley bus made "good as new" like this, drop us a line!

The 441 project is nearing completion... at the body shop, that is.  As I'll discuss in a moment, it will need a substantial amount of work to return it to being an operating, complete trackless trolley.  But what a beauty she is!

On Friday, it was rolled out of the paint booth, and its full new appearance could be appreciated.  The workers there were busy painting the rub rails orange, as well as touching up various imperfections on the bus itself.  The most noticeable spot was in the point of the V on the front end, where some gold color got onto the ivory.  By the time I took these photos, it was close to being fixed.  (The white line in the orange below it is from some liquid they were using at that moment.  The employee stepped out of frame while I took the photos.)

Now, as you will see, there are some things missing.  The number on the front end, part of the TRANSPORT CO. lettering on the street side, and the number on the back will all be added at IRM.  We had some difficulty with a few of the lettering masks, so rather than create an unfixable and unattractive problem, I opted to have the letters remade as stencils and apply them later.  

We expect the shop to complete its work on 441 this week, and it will be moved back to IRM.  A partial list of the sundry items required to complete the project follows:  clean, prime, and paint trolley poles; clean, prime, and paint trolley bases and boards; reinstall poles and add new ropes; source and install appropriate roof mat material; reinstall marker, head, tail, and right turn signal lights; drill out holes for rub rails, source hardware, and reinstall; clean up, send out for chroming, and reinstall front bumper; paint retrievers and brackets; paint and reinstall builders plate; complete battery box door work; clean, prime, and paint wheels.... You get the picture.

It's still too early to pin anything down, but a date during 2024 for the completed TMER&T 441's presentation will be determined and disseminated.

Trolley Bus Teaser

The latest from Richard Schauer regarding progress on our Milwaukee trolley bus:

Work continues on 441, and it changes color every time you look!  The lettering and stripes are now applied.  Yesterday, when I went in, there was a group of employees working away removing masking on every side of the bus, so there weren't any good photos to be had.  So, I've opted for a "teaser" approach to today's update.  More touch-up is needed, as things didn't go 100% perfect, but it remains on schedule.

Fresh Paint

Many thanks to Richard Schauer, who earlier tonight sent along the below two-part update on Milwaukee trolley bus 441, which is off-site being repainted by a contractor.

The time you've all been waiting for has arrived!  441 has begun receiving its finish colors, and it's looking sharp.  You will receive two parts from me tonight, such is the volume of photos.

First, the last two photos of it in primer were taken on October 18.  They were finishing up the masking for painting the ivory above the belt rail.  441 got moved into the paint booth after this, and that's when things started moving....

The next seven photos, for which I didn't have my usual camera, show 441 in the tight confines of the paint booth.  The ivory color is finished, and the V on the front dash shows up clearly.  Note that the V is sort of a compound figure with the maroon stripe, which is why the upper part might look a little angular or unusual.  All of these photos were taken on October 25th.

To be continued...

News as it happens!  These photos are about 3 hours old, and the paint was just barely dry.  441 has received the orange color and is really starting to look good.  The ivory below the belt rail will be overpainted in imitation gold, which will become the lettering and striping color.  This will then be painted in maroon, and when the masks are removed, the gold will be revealed.  The black "shadow stripe" will be applied to the bottom edge, with swells aft of the wheel arches to resemble flowing fenders.  And to finish it off, the rear bumper becomes silver.  All of this work should be done in the next few days, and I'll keep you informed with plenty of pictures.

Trolley Bus 441 Update

Many thanks to Richard Schauer, who sent along this progress report on Milwaukee trolley bus 441, which is off-site undergoing professional exterior restoration and repainting. Remember, if you have a favorite bus or trolley bus in our collection and would like to support having it repainted, drop us a line!

Sorry for the delayed update; this one will cover three weeks.  441 continues to make incremental progress at the body shop.  The first two pictures show it as of September 27th.  The front end sheet was still in need of welding at that point, but some repair work was in progress at the two front corners.  The curb side showed a goodly-sized dent that had been filled, and the street side a smaller one.  

By October 4th, as the second two pictures show, the front end had been welded and was in the process of being made smooth and flat.  Finally, on October 11th, I caught the whole bus in primer.  The top half was ready for ivory paint, which was planned for this upcoming week after sanding the primer and re-masking.  A couple of minor welding repairs were still needed on areas of the skirts, the largest of which is just forward of the battery box door.

Trolley Bus News

Thanks to Richard Schauer for sending us another update of progress on Milwaukee 441, the trolley bus that is currently off-site for exterior restoration and repainting.

The progress the shop had hoped to make with 441 didn't quite materialize, but things are still moving along well.  The whole bus except the lower front end is now primed.  As you can see, the welding-in of the front panel hasn't happened yet.  The dark swirl marks on the curb side, they tell me, are from a powder they use to find little craters, bumps, and other imperfections.  I hadn't heard of this before, but I guess you learn something every day.  The bus also got moved forward about a bus length for the primer spraying.

Trolley Bus Painting Update

Thanks to Richard Schauer, who on Wednesday sent this update of the recent rapid progress on Milwaukee trolley bus 441, which is off-site for exterior restoration and painting.

441 is in the home stretch at the body shop.  I met today with the foreman and painter and discussed the remaining tasks and the finish painting arrangements.  As you will see in the pictures, the windows are all masked and the plan is to prime the entire bus tomorrow.  There are still a couple small items on the punch list for them to take care of before priming, including edge-welding the new front sheet into the old sheet.  This is planned for tomorrow morning.  After this, the prime coat will be sanded smooth, any imperfections fixed and spot-primed, and then when it gets a paint booth time slot, in it goes.  The painter plans to paint the roof color first, in contrast to 9631, to avoid any chance of overspray on the detailed striping and lettering.  It is still possible that 441 will leave the body shop before the end of the month.

Milwaukee Marmon Update

Thanks to Richard Schauer for sending along the latest news regarding our Milwaukee Marmon-Herrington trolley bus, number 441, which is off-site undergoing a full exterior restoration.

Progress on 441 continues, not as fast as before, but it's still moving along.  Work is now focused on the upper section.  The window frames have been masked off, and the petrified rubber roof mat has been chipped off.  The first three photos show this work.

The sign shop has provided lettering masks, which will be used to "letter under" the top coat of paint.  The area is painted first with the lettering color, the mask is applied, and then the surrounding topcoat color is applied.  When the vinyl mask is peeled off, the lettering color shows through.  (I should note the spacing of the masks on their backing sheet does not reflect their spacing on the bus, with the exception of the delicate EXIT and ONLY letters.  Each mask is cut out and applied individually, according to photographic and physical evidence of its former location.)

I'll address the likelihood that 441 will be ready by Bus Day at the end of the month, or the original target of its 75th birthday in October: I don't think so, unfortunately.  I also don't think it will miss by much, and would expect it back on property before winter.  The list of remaining work is steadily shrinking, but still substantial.  Remember also that if it's completed and returned to IRM on some particular date, it will still take some reassembly time to become a running vehicle again, which for 9631 amounted to two months.

Trolley Bus Painting Progress

Thanks to Richard Schauer for an update of a sudden flurry of activity on our Milwaukee trolley bus, 441, which is off-site at a contractor's shop for exterior restoration and painting.

I visited the shop on July 26th, and they had completed sanding and leveling on the entire lower section of the bus, except the front end.  The foreman told me that the guys looked over the top section and determined it would take comparatively little work, and they wanted to do a "test prime" on the lower section.  You may recall that they did this same thing on the 9631, to find any areas that needed more work.  The uniform gray color brings out imperfections in the finish that the varying paint colors can hide.  They had masked the top section, and planned to prime the next morning after all of the dust in the shop had a chance to settle.  The first four photos show it on that day.

Sure enough, when I returned on August 2, the test prime was completed and various imperfections were sanded out.  In addition, they had fitted a new piece of metal to the front end, but had not yet welded it to blend it into the surrounding sheet.

Now that it seems that 441 has gotten on the right track, I'll keep the updates coming along as the news happens.