Double-Decker Bus MOC: Build a Red London Bus (1100 Parts)
The detail that makes or breaks a double-decker bus MOC is proportion: the length-to-width ratio and the height of the upper deck. Nail those two and everything above them falls into place. This build takes roughly 1,100 parts and about 3.5 hours of building to produce a 28 cm long, 15 cm tall red London bus, complete with a steering wheel, passenger seating and an interior staircase. The plan and colour list live on brickplan.cn.
Because the model is tall and narrow, work in the order below rather than jumping between decks. Sort the red parts out first as well: they make up so much of the body that hunting for them mid-build is what turns a three-hour project into a five-hour one.
Step 1: Chassis and wheel assembly. Build the chassis from 2x6 plates laid in a double layer, which gives the flat, stiff base the rest of the bus depends on. Fix the four wheel groups with axle connector pieces, setting the front-to-rear wheel spacing at about 18 cm inside the 28 cm body, then check that the overhangs at each end look even. Add bumper pieces to the front and rear. Red as the main body colour over a black chassis is what sells the London look immediately.
Step 2: Lower deck and interior. The lower deck is about 4 cm tall inside. Fit four rows of seats at three seats per row. Wall the driving area off as its own compartment and install the steering wheel, dashboard and windshield there. At the rear, leave a clear footprint for the spiral staircase and build it from stair/step pieces stacked diagonally as they climb.
Step 3: Upper deck. Close the upper floor with large plates so the deck reads as a solid surface, then stand vertical pillars around the perimeter before fitting the transparent window pieces between them. The upper deck carries one row of seats fewer than the lower deck, which leaves an open viewing space at the front. Finish the roof with curved plates for the slight crown that makes the silhouette look like a real bus rather than a box.
Step 4: Exterior details. Use curved bricks at the front for the rounded nose. Spell LONDON down the side in white pieces. Build the doors on hinge pieces so they actually open and close. At the rear, add tail lights and a number plate made from a 1x2 white plate with black lettering.
When the body is finished, do a push test: the wheels should roll smoothly with no binding. Add a removable roof cap on top of the upper deck so you can get at the interior whenever you want to play with it.
On parts supply, brickplan.cn has the complete colour list. Red accounts for about half the build, around 550 pieces, so order them in one go. Buying red in dribs and drabs across different batches is the usual cause of visible colour mismatch on a model this size.
FAQ
Q: How do you build a double-decker bus MOC? A: Work in the order chassis, lower deck interior, upper deck, exterior details. Get the chassis flat and the wheels running smoothly first, then build the body upwards and leave the cosmetic work for last. Following the plan in sequence gets you there in about 3.5 hours, and the interior is the part that eats the time.
Q: Can a double-decker bus MOC be made movable? A: Yes. A chassis built on axle wheel groups will roll along a table, and hinge pieces let the doors open and close. If you want to go further you can add a motor and convert it to remote control, but that means reserving space for the motor in the chassis from the start. The standard static version needs no extra parts.
Q: What do about 1,100 parts cost? A: Loose parts come to roughly CNY 330, with a slightly lower unit price on the red pieces because there are so many of them. If you already own city sets, you can pull around 60 percent of the common parts from them, which brings the actual top-up order down to just over CNY 100. The brickplan.cn plan includes a colour-separated list so you can check what you already have before ordering.
Q: How is a double-decker MOC different from a normal single-decker bus build? A: The double-decker adds a whole extra deck, and at about 15 cm tall it stands roughly 1.8 times the height of a single-decker, so centre of gravity and load bearing on the upper deck both need watching. The interior also gains a spiral staircase structure. It is a harder build, but the finished model has far more visual punch.