Rare bus

[Truck Shop]

When I was at Lampson Crane yard today I saw this bus setting on a antique flat car. This bus is pretty damn rare I think. It's a 1935-36 Kenworth bus built for North Coast Lines which were affiliated with the railroads at that time. You could barely make out the name painted on the right side.

This is a very low slung bus. Note how low the driver would set. And the road light mounted on the top center.  This the oldest KW product I have seen.

Truck Shop

[Superdog]

Here's the oldest KW I know of.

[Truck Shop]

Well when I said oldest product I've seen I mean {not behind ropes or chained off}. That 1925 KS was built in the second year of Kenworth as a company.

It first started as Gerlinger in 1915 then Gersix from 1917 to 1923.  My brother lived next to a retired Kenworth engineer, he worked there from 1938 to 1974. He was an interesting fellow to talk to.

Truck Shop

[j hancock]

Any idea what engine powered the bus?  Rear mounted or pancake behind the low side grill panels?

[kscarbel2]

1 hour ago, j hancock said:

Any idea what engine powered the bus?  Rear mounted or pancake behind the low side grill panels?

For a time, I owned the very last highway coach manufactured by Kenworth, the XW-1.  It was built in October, 1948 which was coincidentally the same month and year that North Coast Transportation was sold to Greyhound and became North Coast Greyhound, then wrapped into  Northwest Greyhound which consisted of several small regional lines that the hound was buying up.  The XW-1 was a demo that had some features not found on the 25 previous W-1 coaches that Kenworth turned out.  KW was unsuccessful in getting GHL interested in purchasing more W-1's although they did operate the XW-1 (NWGHL unit no. Y1001) for several years on the old North Coast routes, primarily up and down Hwy. 99 between Vancouver BC and Portland.  The W-1's were only sold to North Coast and Intermountain Transportation of Anaconda, MT.  They were powered by Hall Scott 190's which were 779 cubic inch 240 hp "pancake" gas engines, with either a 4 or 5 speed Spicer.  The XW-1 featured torsion bar suspension and 37 reclining seats with underfloor and trunk baggage bays.  The big Hall Scott, although an excellent long life engine only produced around 3-4 mpg and just could not compete with the General Motors Diesel 6-71 which was taking over the industry by that time.  With no further orders, Kenworth dropped out of the highway coach market.  The lucrative school bus division was transferred to Pacific Car and Foundry (the Kenworth Pacific) and a few years later sold off to Gillig.

The excellent picture that you posted is of a deck and a half, or "decker" as North Coast referred to them.  During the '30's Kenworth quite often relied on out of house body builders to furnish the body that went on the KW chassis.  The body on the bus pictured was built by either Heiser or TriCoach and the bus had a Hall Scott 180.  Most of the NCL coaches, including the Kenworth W-1's had the distinctive round NCL light on the upper front.

Kenworth produced buses from 1922 to 1948 (not counting the above mentioned school bus production).
 

http://www.busconversions.com/bbs/index.php?topic=22124.0

[41chevy]

1937 K.W.

 

 

[Truck Shop]

7 hours ago, 41chevy said:

1937 K.W.

I believe that 708 is being restored or is restored now.

Truck Shop

[Truck Shop]

9 hours ago, kscarbel2 said:

For a time, I owned the very last highway coach manufactured by Kenworth, the XW-1.  It was built in October, 1948 which was coincidentally the same month and year that North Coast Transportation was sold to Greyhound and became North Coast Greyhound, then wrapped into  Northwest Greyhound which consisted of several small regional lines that the hound was buying up.  The XW-1 was a demo that had some features not found on the 25 previous W-1 coaches that Kenworth turned out.  KW was unsuccessful in getting GHL interested in purchasing more W-1's although they did operate the XW-1 (NWGHL unit no. Y1001) for several years on the old North Coast routes, primarily up and down Hwy. 99 between Vancouver BC and Portland.  The W-1's were only sold to North Coast and Intermountain Transportation of Anaconda, MT.  They were powered by Hall Scott 190's which were 779 cubic inch 240 hp "pancake" gas engines, with either a 4 or 5 speed Spicer.  The XW-1 featured torsion bar suspension and 37 reclining seats with underfloor and trunk baggage bays.  The big Hall Scott, although an excellent long life engine only produced around 3-4 mpg and just could not compete with the General Motors Diesel 6-71 which was taking over the industry by that time.  With no further orders, Kenworth dropped out of the highway coach market.  The lucrative school bus division was transferred to Pacific Car and Foundry (the Kenworth Pacific) and a few years later sold off to Gillig.

The excellent picture that you posted is of a deck and a half, or "decker" as North Coast referred to them.  During the '30's Kenworth quite often relied on out of house body builders to furnish the body that went on the KW chassis.  The body on the bus pictured was built by either Heiser or TriCoach and the bus had a Hall Scott 180.  Most of the NCL coaches, including the Kenworth W-1's had the distinctive round NCL light on the upper front.

Kenworth produced buses from 1922 to 1948 (not counting the above mentioned school bus production).
 

http://www.busconversions.com/bbs/index.php?topic=22124.0

Great info Thanks!

Truck Shop

[BillyT]

Magic bus

[bigmackattack]

would be nice to see it restored, would cost a ton of money though

[HeavyGunner]

On August 7, 2016 at 7:27 AM, kscarbel2 said:

For a time, I owned the very last highway coach manufactured by Kenworth, the XW-1.  It was built in October, 1948 which was coincidentally the same month and year that North Coast Transportation was sold to Greyhound and became North Coast Greyhound, then wrapped into  Northwest Greyhound which consisted of several small regional lines that the hound was buying up.  The XW-1 was a demo that had some features not found on the 25 previous W-1 coaches that Kenworth turned out.  KW was unsuccessful in getting GHL interested in purchasing more W-1's although they did operate the XW-1 (NWGHL unit no. Y1001) for several years on the old North Coast routes, primarily up and down Hwy. 99 between Vancouver BC and Portland.  The W-1's were only sold to North Coast and Intermountain Transportation of Anaconda, MT.  They were powered by Hall Scott 190's which were 779 cubic inch 240 hp "pancake" gas engines, with either a 4 or 5 speed Spicer.  The XW-1 featured torsion bar suspension and 37 reclining seats with underfloor and trunk baggage bays.  The big Hall Scott, although an excellent long life engine only produced around 3-4 mpg and just could not compete with the General Motors Diesel 6-71 which was taking over the industry by that time.  With no further orders, Kenworth dropped out of the highway coach market.  The lucrative school bus division was transferred to Pacific Car and Foundry (the Kenworth Pacific) and a few years later sold off to Gillig.

The excellent picture that you posted is of a deck and a half, or "decker" as North Coast referred to them.  During the '30's Kenworth quite often relied on out of house body builders to furnish the body that went on the KW chassis.  The body on the bus pictured was built by either Heiser or TriCoach and the bus had a Hall Scott 180.  Most of the NCL coaches, including the Kenworth W-1's had the distinctive round NCL light on the upper front.

Kenworth produced buses from 1922 to 1948 (not counting the above mentioned school bus production).
 

http://www.busconversions.com/bbs/index.php?topic=22124.0

Any pics of your bus KS?  I read the thread in e link you provided and someone commented on your pic but I didn't see one.  

[kscarbel2]

5 hours ago, HeavyGunner said:

Any pics of your bus KS?  I read the thread in e link you provided and someone commented on your pic but I didn't see one.  

Not my bus.

I posted another gentleman's comments in italics (with a link to that web page), because he was very informative on the subject.

[HeavyGunner]

Oh I misread that. Thanks anyway. 

[Mike]

Should be a demand for those low slung buses today. Would help those short legged old folks like me and small kids.