| 201 Bedford OB Duple Vista Coach |
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THE REAL COACH The first OB chassis rolled out of Bedford's factory in August 1939 however production only lasted two month's before the outbreak of World War II resulted in the cessation of manufacture resulting in just 73 pre-war chassis being produced. During the war years Bedford produced an utility version of the OB chassis known as the OWB. Production of the OB resumed in October 1945, the early post war period saw a boom in coach & bus travel, and the OB played a major part in fulfilling both operators and passengers requirements between 1946 & 1951. The OB chassis was bodied by a large array of coach builder however the most popular choice by far was the Duple Vista coachwork which was fitted to the vast majority of UK coach versions. Although the OB is most commonly identified as a coach, the model was also used by some operators as a small capacity bus, most of the vehicles acquired for this type of work received custom bodywork, although in later years some coach versions were downgraded to this work by some operators. The OB chassis also proved popular with overseas operators, with examples going to operators in places such as Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), Kenya, Australia, New Zealand, Holland, Switzerland & Belgium. Production finally ended in November 1950 a month after Bedford announced the new SB chassis at that years London Commercial Motor Show. Duple delivered their last Vista bodied OB's in the Spring of 1951. In total over sixteen thousand 'O' Series passenger chassis were produced between 1939 and 1950, over half of which were produced during the wartime years. The Bedford OB very much represents the heyday of British Coach Travel, these small 27 or 29 seat coaches proved the ideal vehicle for many operators in the early post war years. This classic coach was a familiar sight across the UK from the mid 40's until the early 60's and even today many active examples still exist in the hands of preservationist's today. Extra large pictures of the models covered in this section can be found in my  |
| Cat No. | Operator | Fleet No. | Registration | Route No. | Destination |
| 20101 | Southern Vectis | 213 | EDL 642 | -- | Private |
| 20102 | Royal Blue (Southern National Omnibus Co) | 1433 | LTA 909 | -- | Swanage |
| 20103GS | Southdown Motor Services | 71 | JCD 371 | -- | London |
| 20104 | Grey Cars (Devon General) | TCB604 | JUO 604 | -- | Buckfast Abbey |
| 20105 | Eastern Counties Omnibus Co | BS951 | KAH 951 | -- | Excursion |
| 20106 | Premier Travel (Cambridge) | 67 | BGV 719 | -- | Private |
| 20107 | Premier Coaches (Watford) | -- | LTA 904 | -- | Watford |
| 20108 | South Midland Motor Services | -- | LJO 757 | -- | Southsea |
| 20109 | East Yorkshire Motor Services | -- | KSU 381 | -- | Excursion |
| 20110 | Bere Regis | -- | DJT 995 | -- | Relief |
| 20111 | Grey Green Coaches | -- | HYP 560 | -- | Clacton |
| 20111DL-GS | Grey Green Coaches | -- | HYP 561 | -- | Bognor |
| 20112 | West Yorkshire Road Car Co | 648 | FWW 598 | -- | Scarborough |
| 20113 | Sheffield United Tours | 153 | JWJ 531 | -- | Blackpool |
| 20114 | Wilts & Dorset | 477 | FOR 633 | -- | Upavon R.A.F. |
| 20114DL | Wilts & Dorset | 478 | FOR 634 | -- | Pewsey |
| 20115 | Yelloway Motor Services | -- | HDK 542 | -- | Bangor |
| 20116 | Barton Transport | 528 | JNN 573 | -- | Devon & Cornwall |
| 20117 | East Kent Road Car | -- | MKK 40 | -- | Excursion |
| 20118 | British Railways | 1229W | FWO 615 | -- | Relief |
| 20119 | British Railways | 1203W | HWO 881 | -- | -- |
| 20120 | Western National Omnibus Co | 555 | HOD 44 | -- | Newquay |
| 20121 | Devon General | SB604 | JUO 604 | -- | Exmouth |
| 20122 | Skills Motor Coaches | -- | LTV 522 | -- | Filey |
| (20123) 99630GRC |
British Railways (Gilbow Railway Collection) | 1230W | FWO 616 | -- | Special Service |
| 20124 | Midland General Omnibus Co | 134 | KRB 68 | -- | Tour |
| 20125 | Edinburgh Corporation Transport | X24 | GWS 468 | 6 | City Tour |
| 20126 | Shamrock & Rambler Coach Co | -- | KEL 95 | -- | Skegness |
| 20127 | Liverpool City Corporation | B1 | TMM 191 | -- | TMM 191 |
| 20128 | Standerwick | -- | DFR 702 | -- | Bacup |
| 20129 | Leathers Coaches | -- | GWV 101 | -- | Maiden Bradley |
| 20130 | Western S.M.T. Co Ltd | DB2161 | XS 6185 | -- | Special |
| 20131 | Wallace Arnold Coaches Ltd | -- | KUA 510 | -- | Brighton |
| 20132 | King Alfred | -- | FOT 215 | -- | Salisbury |
| 20133 | Scout Motor Services | -- | BRN 791 | -- | Preston |
| 20134 | Southern National | 1430 | LTA 906 | -- | Tour |
| 20135 | Orange Luxury Coaches | -- | KGT 889 | -- | Private |
| 99630GRC (20123) |
British Railways (Gilbow Railway Collection) | 1230W | FWO 616 | -- | Special Service |
| Single Deck Model Index | 20101 | |||