Engel’s
Coach Shop
105 So
406-962-3573
Ambulance
Restoration
This
is how the ambulance came in. The hole
in the rear door is pretty obvious. The team following didn’t get stopped in
time and put their pole through the door. You can see the right front wheel has
already been repaired just to make it navigable.
You can also see the upper left hand corner frame damaged
and cracks appearing in the panels.
These cracks were not due to the wreck, but drying out over the years
since its last restoration.
The front end took the brunt of the
damage when it hit the car, bending the fifth wheel assembly, ruining the
springs and breaking the driver’s footboard framing.
Since we need to
replicate the stripe and lettering, we’ll take pictures and stencil what is
there so we can put it back just like it was.
Now
comes the dismantling that begins to show the extent of the frame damages the
vehicle underwent as a result of the wreck.
Even though there is a heavy half inch
piece of iron inside this footboard frame,
the wreck still put quite a strain on the joint work.
Since the left
rear frame took such a hit, it needed to be pulled out, replaced and integrated
into the original framing.
This being done, with enough clamps in appropriate
positions, we could make sure the body framing remained square so that when the
doors were rebuild and installed, they would fit and operate correctly.
Now with the driver’s footboard repaired with new framing
on both sides, we can finally begin the process of new paneling.
We use poplar almost exclusively to keep in line with
original construction methods.
As you can see here, there is hope that this might look
like an ambulance again. The body panels
are on and time to rebuild the left rear door.
The windows in the rear all have drop down window panes while the
driver’s windows are permanent beveled glass.
The right door was in fine condition, but the left door
needed complete replacement. When the
team behind hit the door, they splintered the door frame, panels, window frame,
and shattered the glass. Both doors also
have drop down windows which fit into the lower panels.
The side moldings were salvageable so they were put back on
and the primer coats applied. When this
vehicle landed on its upper left rear corner and damaged the framing, it also
damaged the topping material. Here we
can see new topping being fitted after the primer so all the wood is sealed,
even under the material.
The interior of this ambulance is all natural finished,
so in the painting process that all needed to be protected.
With the painting on, next comes the duplicating of
lettering and designs. When this vehicle
came in the molding was highlighted with the same color yellow as the
undercarriage. As I thought this to be
inappropriate for vehicles of this era, I applied a fine line stripe inside the
moldings and door frames to add the needed accenting.
Now we need to get the undercarriage caught up to complete
the process. We’ve got the tires reset,
rubber tiring back on, old finish removed and the priming underway.
The fifth wheel is straightened out, we have repaired the
springs, installed a new splinter bar and we’re ready to finish the painting
process on the undercarriage.
This is the nerve-racking time. Everything is painted, striped and ready to
reassemble. Now is not the time for
scratches or dings. With the aid of an
overhead hoist frame, the body is elevated to make ready for the
undercarriage. Here we have the rear
spring/axle assembly refastened and preparing for the front axle.
With a little patience, perseverance, fear and trembling,
we finally have Cheyenne’s Old West Museum ambulance back together and ready to
go home. As always, it’s a pleasure to
see a vehicle back together and functional again.
Thanks again to the folks at the
Engel’s
Coach Shop
105
So
406-962-3573
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