Harper Brothers, Heath Hayes, Set A of 17 6x4 Colour Prints

Harper Bros operated from 1922 to 1974 and are still fondly recalled. His set of 17 views depicts the incredible fleet at their Heath Hayes depot. We open with the gold and black HB insignia, followed by a view of the depot with NO 7 KYY770 and No 3 OLD820 parked to one side. They are both Leyland 7RTs from London Transport. Turning through 180 degrees we look across the road to the open air storage area with a mixture of stock on show. No 4 KXW384, a Leyland 7RT with Weymann H30/26R body of 1950 and the adjoining No 3, OLD620 is a 7RT with Park Royal body of 1954. No 9 BDJ807. May look like another LT bus, but St Helens bought a batch of LT style AEC Regent IIIs with Park Royal bodies in 1951-52. No 9, BDJ807 had been St Helens No 7. No 11, 888DUK, was a 1963 Guy Arab V demonstrator with Strachans H41/31F body. No 22, 1031E is a Leyland PSU1/11 Royal Tiger with Burlingham C41C body, new to Harpers in 1953, but was rebuilt with a plain front end for bus work as a DP 41F.No 26 LRF993F and 23, NRF349F, are Leyland PD3As with NCME H40/32RD bodies and were new in 1968.  N0 27 HBF679D is a Titan PD2A/27 with MCCW \h36/26RD body of 1966. NO 47 NRF420L is a Bedford DB5 with Willowbrook B40F body. No 48, VRF629 is a Leyland Royal Tiger PSU1/11 with a rare Metalcraft C41C body which was rebuild by Harpers as a bus in 1961. No 50 XRE725 was another PSU1/11 from 1952 with a Burlingham C41C body. The coach lines of the sides survive, but a flat bus front has been fitted by \harpers, creating a strange hybrid. No 59, in the yard across the road from the depot is a Guy Arab LUF with a Burlingham C41C body . Harpers ran football excursions from the West Midlands and seaside tours with such coaches. No 60, 1294RE is an identical Guy Arab LUF of 1959. BDJ802 had been  St Helens No 2 and is a 1951 AEC Regent III with Park Royal body. Next to it is No 28, HBF680D, a Leyland PD2A/27 Titan, new to Harpers in 1966. BDJ803 is locked in an enclosure because of its toolkit. It had been St Helens AEC Regent III No 2, but had been cut down as a towing vehicle. A copy of these notes accompanies the set. These views are copyright. Reproduction by any means is prohibited without our prior written permission.