diff --git a/basis/images/bitmap/bitmap-tests.factor b/basis/images/bitmap/bitmap-tests.factor
index e250d81ae5..d74c69ef1b 100644
--- a/basis/images/bitmap/bitmap-tests.factor
+++ b/basis/images/bitmap/bitmap-tests.factor
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 USING: images.bitmap images.viewer io.encodings.binary
-io.files io.files.unique kernel tools.test ;
+io.files io.files.unique kernel tools.test images.loader ;
 IN: images.bitmap.tests
 
 : test-bitmap24 ( -- path )
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ IN: images.bitmap.tests
 [ t ]
 [
     test-bitmap24
-    [ binary file-contents ] [ load-bitmap ] bi
+    [ binary file-contents ] [ load-image ] bi
 
     "test-bitmap24" unique-file
     [ save-bitmap ] [ binary file-contents ] bi =
diff --git a/basis/images/bitmap/bitmap.factor b/basis/images/bitmap/bitmap.factor
index 9005776e40..88eb984488 100755
--- a/basis/images/bitmap/bitmap.factor
+++ b/basis/images/bitmap/bitmap.factor
@@ -6,15 +6,20 @@ kernel macros math math.bitwise math.functions namespaces sequences
 strings images endian summary ;
 IN: images.bitmap
 
-TUPLE: bitmap-image < image ;
+TUPLE: bitmap-image < image
+magic size reserved offset header-length width
+height planes bit-count compression size-image
+x-pels y-pels color-used color-important rgb-quads color-index ;
 
 ! Currently can only handle 24/32bit bitmaps.
 ! Handles row-reversed bitmaps (their height is negative)
 
-TUPLE: bitmap magic size reserved offset header-length width
-height planes bit-count compression size-image
-x-pels y-pels color-used color-important rgb-quads color-index
-buffer ;
+ERROR: bitmap-magic magic ;
+
+M: bitmap-magic summary
+    drop "First two bytes of bitmap stream must be 'BM'" ;
+
+<PRIVATE
 
 : array-copy ( bitmap array -- bitmap array' )
     over size-image>> abs memory>byte-array ;
@@ -37,16 +42,11 @@ ERROR: bmp-not-supported n ;
         { 1 [ bmp-not-supported ] }
     } case >byte-array ;
 
-ERROR: bitmap-magic ;
-
-M: bitmap-magic summary
-    drop "First two bytes of bitmap stream must be 'BM'" ;
-
 : read2 ( -- n ) 2 read le> ;
 : read4 ( -- n ) 4 read le> ;
 
 : parse-file-header ( bitmap -- bitmap )
-    2 read >string dup "BM" = [ bitmap-magic ] unless >>magic
+    2 read dup "BM" sequence= [ bitmap-magic ] unless >>magic
     read4 >>size
     read4 >>reserved
     read4 >>offset ;
@@ -79,17 +79,13 @@ M: bitmap-magic summary
     dup rgb-quads-length read >>rgb-quads
     dup color-index-length read >>color-index ;
 
-: load-bitmap-data ( path -- bitmap )
-    binary [
-        bitmap new
-        parse-file-header parse-bitmap-header parse-bitmap
+: load-bitmap-data ( path bitmap -- bitmap )
+    [ binary ] dip '[
+        _ parse-file-header parse-bitmap-header parse-bitmap
     ] with-file-reader ;
 
 : process-bitmap-data ( bitmap -- bitmap )
-    dup raw-bitmap>buffer >>buffer ;
-
-: load-bitmap ( path -- bitmap )
-    load-bitmap-data process-bitmap-data ;
+    dup raw-bitmap>buffer >>bitmap ;
 
 ERROR: unknown-component-order bitmap ;
 
@@ -101,15 +97,16 @@ ERROR: unknown-component-order bitmap ;
         [ unknown-component-order ]
     } case ;
 
-: >image ( bitmap -- bitmap-image )
-    {
-        [ [ width>> ] [ height>> ] bi 2array ]
-        [ bitmap>component-order ]
-        [ buffer>> ]
-    } cleave bitmap-image boa ;
+: fill-image-slots ( bitmap -- bitmap )
+    dup {
+        [ [ width>> ] [ height>> ] bi 2array >>dim ]
+        [ bitmap>component-order >>component-order ]
+        [ bitmap>> >>bitmap ]
+    } cleave ;
 
-M: bitmap-image load-image* ( path bitmap -- bitmap-image )
-    drop load-bitmap >image ;
+M: bitmap-image load-image* ( path bitmap -- bitmap )
+    load-bitmap-data process-bitmap-data
+    fill-image-slots ;
 
 M: bitmap-image normalize-scan-line-order
     dup dim>> '[
@@ -118,12 +115,12 @@ M: bitmap-image normalize-scan-line-order
 
 MACRO: (nbits>bitmap) ( bits -- )
     [ -3 shift ] keep '[
-        bitmap new
+        bitmap-image new
             2over * _ * >>size-image
             swap >>height
             swap >>width
-            swap array-copy [ >>buffer ] [ >>color-index ] bi
-            _ >>bit-count >image
+            swap array-copy [ >>bitmap ] [ >>color-index ] bi
+            _ >>bit-count fill-image-slots
     ] ;
 
 : bgr>bitmap ( array height width -- bitmap )
@@ -135,11 +132,13 @@ MACRO: (nbits>bitmap) ( bits -- )
 : write2 ( n -- ) 2 >le write ;
 : write4 ( n -- ) 4 >le write ;
 
+PRIVATE>
+
 : save-bitmap ( bitmap path -- )
     binary [
         B{ CHAR: B CHAR: M } write
         [
-            buffer>> length 14 + 40 + write4
+            color-index>> length 14 + 40 + write4
             0 write4
             54 write4
             40 write4
diff --git a/basis/images/images.factor b/basis/images/images.factor
index 5ac0da7a28..5282ceeab4 100644
--- a/basis/images/images.factor
+++ b/basis/images/images.factor
@@ -68,7 +68,7 @@ GENERIC: load-image* ( path tuple -- image )
             [
                 3 <sliced-groups>
                 [ [ 3 head-slice reverse-here ] each ]
-                [ add-dummy-alpha ] bi
+                [ [ 255 suffix ] map ] bi concat
             ] change-bitmap
         ] }
     } case
@@ -81,4 +81,4 @@ M: image normalize-scan-line-order ;
 : normalize-image ( image -- image )
     [ >byte-array ] change-bitmap
     normalize-component-order
-    normalize-scan-line-order ;
\ No newline at end of file
+    normalize-scan-line-order ;
diff --git a/extra/images/viewer/viewer.factor b/extra/images/viewer/viewer.factor
index 06e4c686f3..1d4de79f07 100644
--- a/extra/images/viewer/viewer.factor
+++ b/extra/images/viewer/viewer.factor
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ TUPLE: image-gadget < gadget { image image } ;
 M: image-gadget pref-dim*
     image>> dim>> ;
 
-: draw-image ( tiff -- )
+: draw-image ( image -- )
     0 0 glRasterPos2i 1.0 -1.0 glPixelZoom
     [ dim>> first2 GL_RGBA GL_UNSIGNED_BYTE ]
     [ bitmap>> ] bi glDrawPixels ;