The First Blue Bird School Bus

I was a school bus mechanic for over 30 years and we used Blue Bird buses since the 50's they were very well built and the company stood by the bus they built. I enjoyed seeing the video, thanks Dale, Willoughby-Eastlake city schools, retired mechanic.:)
 
Rode Blue Bird buses for 12 years of public school. Picture of my first grade bus in 1944. Don't know the make of chassis. It had a long seat down each side by the windows and a double wide seat down the middle.
Joe Young Slapout, AL
 

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Great video. Would be neat to see some model A school buses. Any out there? I question Mr. Luce's discription of shifting into high gear on the mode T. It seems to me that the time I drove a model T, the lever he discribed was to apply the rear wheel brakes which when applied also held the transmission in neutral. The low/high pedal was as he said, mashed down for low, but then I believe it was simply released to the up position for high. Neutral being half way between low and high on the pedal. Can any model T guys confirm or refresh my memory??
Eeyore, I too was a transportation supervisor/bus mechanic for 30+ years. Aug.16, 1976 to Sept.30, 2008. You are right, Blue birds were the best. We had Carpenter, Ward, Superior, Wayne and Thomas' through the years and BB was the best for tightness and keeping our eastern Washington dust out.
 
Gravelraod, you are right about the lever operating the emergency, or parking, brake also being neutral in the center position and forward being high gear. Most T drivers did as you stated, you just needed to be careful when positioning the Low pedal at a stop sign.
 
Bluebird has been based in Ft. Valley, GA for a long time is there any information on where these were constructed? I cant watch the video because my cult of Apple won't play!
 
roccaas said:
Bluebird has been based in Ft. Valley, GA for a long time is there any information on where these were constructed? I cant watch the video because my cult of Apple won't play!
Click to expand...

The narrator speaks of Perry and Clinchfield Georgia if that is any help. His father had a Ford garage in Perry and rebuilt the first wooden bodied bus with metal and called it Bluebird #1

Shadetree
 
Shadetree said:
The narrator speaks of Perry and Clinchfield Georgia if that is any help. His father had a Ford garage in Perry and rebuilt the first wooden bodied bus with metal and called it Bluebird #1

Shadetree
Click to expand...


Yep, the part of The South that calls to mind, "hotter than Georgia asphalt".
 
Ok, so I've gotten a download patch to view this on an Apple.

Great video, thanks for posting.

THAT is a real Southern accent, rarely heard any longer. Also, calling a dealership an Agency seals the deal!

Also, Southerners never "push" or "press" a lever or pedal, it is always "MASH IT".
 
milton .the 1929 in your picture ,this bus use to belong to a doctor based in san antonio,tx he,wife and 8 year old son were at many Texas tours , believe they were orig. from south america or someting like that. real nice people.
 
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