TRY118H - The Loudest Bristol RE of Them All! EXTENDED VERSION 

I drive buses how I like them to be driven. Most of these were hammered day in day out, so unless they are mechanically very fragile, they can be driven with a bit of enthusiasm with no issues.

Unfortunately in my country Singapore, the transport authority don't give any shit about preserving any single buses because they automatically assumed it as 'unsafe' after 17 years and they won't let us get hold of it even if we want to. They only allowed overseas third party buyer even if allowed. My country don't really appreciate older buses sadly.

@@garfieldandfriends1 That's sad. Singapore had some very unique buses.

Cheers. I spent a lot of years just riding around and observing how other people drive, so I soon learnt the rights and wrongs. I'm not perfect by any means though, it a bit to get used to the 680 powered VR I drove in another video.

Nicely driven and wonder wonderful harmony in that Lego and engine nice job 🙏@@scatmancraig1974

someone's taken the P....

Sadly I didn't get any car alarm bonus points in this video, but I have driving another RE previously.

They don't make them anymore, unfortunately.

Without no clutch, the downchange "blip" is a necessity to ensure that the gears engage smoothly. Without it, there would be a lot of lurching about.

@@scatmancraig1974 Think you misread my post, I know why you blip on the downchange, I passed my pcv in an Atlantean, always pause on the up change and blip on the down. 👍

RE's aren't particularly heavy, around 7.5 tones unladen compared with around 9 tonnes for a Leyland National. And the noise difference is down to the RE's exhaust system.

@@scatmancraig1974 What makes RE's alot lighter than Nationals? The bodywork? I know that some Alexander bodied buses used an all aluminium frame like the Citybus, B10M PS etc.

I thought Mk2 Nationals all had TL11s?

@@michaelcallummayaka A few had Gardner engines

Any idea why the transmission howls so much? I remember all the Bristol RE's that we had in New Zealand doing the same

@@regan44017 Simple ,it is down to the SCG box specially designed for the RE when Bristol included a semi auto option to the then standard 5-speed manual box. That simple gorgeous screaming sound emanates from a set of one to one transfer gears, like a Mark One BMC Mini Cooper. Said transfer gears take drive from the box to the rear axle via a short prop shaft as both input and output shafts are side by side. The box mounted separately from the 680 ahead of the rear axle with a longer prop shaft taking drive to the left input shaft at rear of the box, right input shaft takes drive to the rear axle. Said arrangement endowing the RE with surprisingly good handling akin to a decent 60,s sports car.

@@basiltaylor8910 Cheers for that explanation!

@@regan44017 You are most welcome.

I wondered if anyone would spot the Central intro. I have I soft spot for the old ITV idents, sadly now a thing of the past.

@@scatmancraig1974 quite, and how we associated idents with particular programmes. ATV Midlands: Crossroads, Thames: The Sweeney/ Minder, Anglia: Tales of the Unexpected, and so on. Back to REs, are you likely to be driving something loud at the Lincoln running day in a few weeks time?

I'm not sure yet, I often get lumbered with Doncaster 122 which no one else likes. I haven't been to the LVVS for months now as I have been too busy trying to restore my own project, so I'm not high up in the list for being able to request what I drive. Having said that, I usually request UVL873M, not that I get it very often though...

Excelet vid indeed but he over revving

I make no apology for using all revs available, I drive how I like to be driven. Unless they are known to be mechanically fragile, there's nothing that I do that they didn't see day in and day out in normal service.

Where is the exhaust on the RE does it exit underneath? It's seems louder than a National

@@Letshaveafewbeers Yes, the one I help with, is underneath in the middle.

Not all RE's sound like this, some Leyland powered RE's had quiet exhausts. I think it was basically down to some operators specifying twin-silencers instead of the standard single silencer.

@@Letshaveafewbeers A series two RE has an exhaust tailpipe that exits roughly in the middle of the wheelbase on the offside. Earlier series 1's had a different system with a tailpipe on the offside rear corner. I think Hartlepool Transport modified theirs to a similar system to the earlier series 1's.

@@scatmancraig1974 Interesting when you say offside rear corner was that before the rear axle or after. Initially when I posted I thought it was a conventional exit at the rear but hidden underneath under the body where the engine was with a small silencer hence the noise.

Great driving and excellent gear changing. UFM53F is quite noisy but is very nice.

When it comes to gearchanging, I do lose my patience sometimes. I think the extended version of this video has a slam change after I had to wait for what seemed like forever to get on to a roundabout. I drive as i like to be driven, so fairly briskly but with a little bit of respect to the vehicle.

@@scatmancraig1974 A slam-through gear change can sound so nice though.

Er no the re manual box is synchromesh on second third fourth, and overdrive ,fifth, and the Gardners are okay if you want mogadon motoring, unless you get the Gardner the Mike Ede Treatment.

@@basiltaylor8910 You are wrong. Having driven them fo many years I do have a certain knowledge. The Southdown manual REs were constant mesh, not synchromesh. 100% guaranteed! I also drove the Bristol K type and Lodekkas. I also drove an R reg Seddon Pennine with a Perkins V8 and 5 speed cashbox. Also drove Seddon's with Gardner 180 6 speed synchro, and Chinese 5 speed. The Leopards were crash 1st and synchro 2nd, 3rd and top. Similar gearbox in PD3 (Queen Mary's) The Ford and AEC Reliance coaches were 6 speed synchro. I could go on explaining what PSVs I've driven since 1976. Having trained drivers on a wide range of vehicles from 1953 K type to 2017 Citaro bendis, I've picked up a little knowledge along the way.

@@stevesales4263 Tell that to Alan Townsin Author of the Bristol Story Part One !!!, he states that the RE manual box is sycnhromesh,. Southdown REs were built to special order with constant mesh gearboxes ,as Southdown,s fleet was all Leyland constant mesh, their drivers trained to use said gearboxes ,.Apart from the' Queen Mary PD3,s,oddly enough ,they were synchromesh,, know as I rode one as a seven year old over half a century ago, sounding a lot quieter than a constant mesh PD2,.

@@stevesales4263 Could you handle 'Daisy' A 1949 Bristol L5G LHT 911, 'Joan 'A 1966 Bristol FLF6B FHU 59D,both can reduce a driver to embarrassing tears. Stroud Depot had an S reg Seddon Alexander Y-Type as a driver trainer with a 4-speed ZF Synchromesh box twirled by a Gardner 6HLXB , know having asked a senior driver if the bus was a 6-speed, no ,a 4-speed he replied .

@@basiltaylor8910 I'm sure I could. I drove the Brighton & Hove K -type for functions. As a reward for trainees as their driving progressed, I also taught them to drive it. I drove Lodekkas on service, usually as weekend overtime at Conway Street, Hove. I would have loved the opportunity to try out Daisy, but sadly not. However, I found that patience was definitely a virtue with any crashbox. I drove an R reg Seddon coach, a front mounted Perkins 540, mated with a 5 speed crashbox. It was very noisy and a bit gutless. Also at the same period, a 10m Seddon Vanhool with a rear mounted Perkins 540 and synchro Chinese gearbox and a Seddon 12m mid-engine which if I remember rightly, had a Gardner 180. During my early time in the mid 70's to early 80's driving on service, much of it was 36' Leyland Leopards with a 4 speed box and Eton rear axle, or my favourites, the Bristol RE's, 32' and 36', all with 5 speed constant mesh boxes. When running about empty or nearly empty in the evenings or on Sundays, I spent many hours perfecting my techniques, for instance starting off in 1st low to 1st high to 2nd low and so on. With the RE's I would just work up and down the box, either using or ignoring the clutch. It was a matter of pride to achieve smooth, silent shifts.

I disagree with the driving - driving like a thing possessed.

I was a very lucky man that day.

It wouldn't have been a Mk1 National without the smoke trail. I own a Mk1 and it clags even better!

I own 2590, but all attempts at making it louder have failed so far. I'm still trying...

Even more light years away from Leicester, where it spent the first 11 years or so of its life.

Looking at the moquette, yes it bloody did!

I think it was on SWC25K, an ex-Colchester example, that I first chatted up a girl from Walbottle High after boarding at West Road Crem after chucking out time at St.Cuthbert's. We were at the back of the bus, obviously

I used to let all the familiar yellow Atlanteans roar uphill and wait for the OK Tigers and Blue Bus REs bounding up Denton Bank from the furthest outliers of the city boundaries; they always seemed more "county", distinctive and interesting. And so were their passengers.

Busways 1802 was also on the 49 Throckley - Wallsend sometimes

there an even older Re which is a RE mk1 with a flat front but the windscreen was not as high as with this one which is a mk2, it was shorter and the driver side window the top front corner off if was rounded like on the MWs

haha I just watched that bit on the shorter version, it's funny

As far as I know, this bus had the standard DPA rotary pump as all Leyland engined Bristol RE's had. The exhaust has been modified a bit, in other words it is pretty much unsilenced. Bristol RE's usually had a single silencer followed by a very long tailpipe, which created some magnificent sound effects. Some operators specified an extra silencer, which killed the exhaust noise stone dead.

I have Duncans RE book, as well as the earlier one by Martin Curtis and the Bus Monographs one too. All good reads.

@@scatmancraig1974 I got the Ian Allan Martin Curtis Bus Monograph RE edition for my 12th birthday. I was a happy laddie

After the Leyland Atlantean Monograph bought with WHSmith voucher during Cold Turkey week, 85/86. Sadly disappointing due to non-glossy finish. And no photos of yellow Tyneside Atlanteans. But Gavin Booth looked very avuncular and reassuring.

Leyland National Bus Monograph by Stephen Morris? Meh...a bit how those buses sound

Nothing of the sort that sound was classic leyland and 25’s are in a different league but love the bark of a leyland 680 but would keep her barking rather than thrashing the pants off this

RE mk2

I'd love to have another drive of it myself. It was sold to an unknown owner a few months after I drove it, and hasn't been seen in public since.

I don't know where you live, other than somewhere near Brighton...! It was a bit of a short notice invite to drive this particular bus. The owner also deals in parts and the restoration of Leyland Nationals, and my original intention was to collect spares for my own bus. The drive of this Bristol RE was a very welcome bonus!

I'm currently uploading a video of a very similar bus. Not as loud, but just as nice to drive!

I'm going to do another video in the next few weeks, hopefully with a Gardner powered RE. I'm tinkering it at the moment, which might take a while.... But when I do film it, I'll try and include the ATV ident.

normally, they then immediately stop to turn right.

There is a lot of Nationals in the yard where the RE was kept, over 30 in various states of repair.

No, just a 680. The whistling you can hear will be the fluid flywheel, which makes a similar noise to a turbo.

They were fitted also with the legendary Gardner 6lxb which in its own right sounded great.

and more fun