NBC Standard Bus colours in commercial Spraycans

[creweboy]

Would anyone know any readily available commercial spray colours that are the same to the key Standard Green Red and Blue used by the National Bus Company?

[HillsideDepot]

I saw somewhere recently that NBC Green is BS 381C.

 

As for NBC blue, was that a standard colour? I saw some discussion recently (probably amongst Flickr bus photos, but I really can't be sure now) that blue was discouraged and each operator had a different shade for their short lived schemes.

[PhilJ W]

I saw somewhere recently that NBC Green is BS 381C.

 

As for NBC blue, was that a standard colour? I saw some discussion recently (probably amongst Flickr bus photos, but I really can't be sure now) that blue was discouraged and each operator had a different shade for their short lived schemes.

Yes NBC had an official blue as well as the green and red. The only company that used it AFAIAA was the Notts & Derby company but not for very long as that company was subsumed into one of the larger NBC companies.

[Velopeur]

Midland General/Notts& Derby Traction was eventually absorbed into Trent. Its associate company, Mansfield District, was absorbed into East Midland.

 

The livery of Midland General had been blue. On absorption into NBC, its colours distinguished it from Trent, which adopted NBC red and East Midland which adopted NBC green (East Midland's green was quite a contrast to its previous maroon livery).

 

There are photos online showing blue livery and the NBC-style fleetname. The main difference over the original livery seems to have been the adoption of the NBC white relief, rather than the cream used previously.

 

Edit

 

I forgot to mention that Midland General/Notts & Derby Traction had always been an oddball fleet, even under earlier nationalisation. They did not use the Tilling red or green either.

 

I seem to remember one or two companies in the Tyneside area had unique NBC liveries too, for a time - purple and yellow? I think Tynemouth & District was the yellow one.

[northernblue109]

There were four blue NBC companies: East Yorkshire, Jones of Aberbeeg, Midland General and Sunderland District. The shade of blue differed between companies, possibly because pre-NBC paint stocks were used. Photographic evidence suggests that East Yorkshire and Sunderland District were noticeably darker. The following image and the extended caption below may be of interest:

 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/northernblue109/5776098357/in/set-72157628652705215

[creweboy]

Hi, thanks for the info probably best if we give the Blue a miss! I knew I was asking for trouble, what about the Leaf Green and Poppy Red as a readily available Car Sprays colour from Halfords?

[5 C]

How about Vauxhall Leaf Green, as applied to Nova and Astra of mid-80's vintage?

 

http://www.vodc.co.uk/showpost.php?s=e645e31ddb8f8bfebaaac9f149a29c8c&p=306008&postcount=20

 

It may be a bit on the insipid side and depending on the light, may or may not be a good match photographically for these factory fresh Leyland Nationals at Lillyhall:

 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/23207961@N07/2534851058/

 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/23207961@N07/2531605416/

 

Halfords list a Vauxhall Leaf Green in their range:

 

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_productId_189102_langId_-1_categoryId_165505

 

A word of warning though, I know Vauxhall would occasionally recycle colour names and this Leaf Green may not be the Leaf Green in the Nova photos above.

 

Good hunting!

 

Andy

[PLD]

There were four blue NBC companies: East Yorkshire, Jones of Aberbeeg, Midland General and Sunderland District. The shade of blue differed between companies, possibly because pre-NBC paint stocks were used. Photographic evidence suggests that East Yorkshire and Sunderland District were noticeably darker. The following image and the extended caption below may be of interest:

 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/northernblue109/5776098357/in/set-72157628652705215

 

East Yorkshire's dark blue was a continuation of it's pre-nationalisation 'Indigo' colour applied in NBC style and with NBC style fleetnames. Sunderland District and Tymemouth (both associates of Northern General) were both dark blue for a time, claimed by some sources to be the same shade as EYMS (quite possible as there was some interchange of vehicles with those fleets, most notably AEC Renowns to Tynemouth in exchange for Fleetlines) Midland General was I believe a lighter 'Royal Blue'...

 

 

I seem to remember one or two companies in the Tyneside area had unique NBC liveries too, for a time - purple and yellow? I think Tynemouth & District was the yellow one.

The Yellow on some Northern General and United vehicles was a later time and was 'encouraged' by Tyne & Wear PTE to show a common image with their livery...

 

[HillsideDepot]

'City of Gloucester' was also a blue fleet, but only after the northern part of Bristol Omnibus had been split off to form 'Cheltenham & Gloucester' (which included Swindon and Stroud depots as well as). But that was towards the end of NBC, when rules were beginning to fade, and all sorts of colours were just around the corner.

[Thomas]

Cambus NBC in Cambridge had  light blue colour with white trim.

[RANGERS]

Cambus NBC in Cambridge had  light blue colour with white trim.

 

 

'City of Gloucester' was also a blue fleet, but only after the northern part of Bristol Omnibus had been split off to form 'Cheltenham & Gloucester' (which included Swindon and Stroud depots as well as). But that was towards the end of NBC, when rules were beginning to fade, and all sorts of colours were just around the corner.

Both Cambus and City of Gloucester were units set up in the final days of NBC to prepare it into units of circa 400 vehicles for privatisation, so strictly speaking their days as NBC subsidiaries were short lived, in the case of Cambus it was about two years IIRC and was further subdivided when the Peterborough operations became Viscount in a dark blue/ yellow scheme, albeit still part of Cambus.

[Southernman46]

I'm amazed at the depth of knowledge people have about this.

 

Whatever the colour - they were pleasingly simple livery schemes (just like BR blue) - good days !!

 

Mrs SM's two stock phrases...............

 

"Not another blue loco they all look the same"

 

"Not another green / red bus they all look the same"

[HillsideDepot]

Whatever the colour - they were pleasingly simple livery schemes (just like BR blue) - good days !!

 

 

Indeed.

 

I went to the recent National Bus Company running day in Winchester, and we were treated to a variety of red and green buses (and a few white coaches, not to mention a few half coloured half white 'wannabe' coaches) and I was struck then what a superb, simple but effective livery it is. It was great to be surrounded by NBC again, but in a weird way it was hard to grasp how special a day it was, it all seemed so 'normal' - but then I'm just showing my age!

 

There are a few photos on my Flickr page, if anyone is interested, link in my signature.