Our Touring Past

Reddo

I cannot tell you how thrilled I am with the job you've done repairing and restoring my old van, she's come up a bloody treat !!!

Congrats on a beautiful result and I hope to see you both at Shellharbour

Hi A/M

Thanks for the compliment.
There is an interesting "Twist" to this van that i discovered while renovating it.
Will show you at S/H.
Meanwhile i took the old annexe to a canvas place today. They are going to make a new roof for the annexe in Olive green. While they are at it i have asked them to use the old walls ... but fit zips across the tops so they can be detached easily.. Still leave the eyelets for rope lace up down the sides.
Change the turnbuckle roof fixings to a sailtrack rope... easier to fit on my own. Just drag the roof on. Then fit whatever sides i need to fit to suit weather conditions etc.

I have to take the van over there next Tuesday for its first "dressmakers" appointment

Raining here all this week. Had planned on getting the bro and his paint brushes down here to do his bit. Will hold off until the sun returns.

I have fitted new light truck tyres to 13 inch rims. still not happy with height of the van. High and wobbly. So.. I have a 50mm dropped axle fitted with brakes i brought off Humpty a while back. Exactly the same width as the axle under the van at the moment. I have just dropped it at the sand blasters. It comes home Friday. Will only take a few hours to swap em over. Plenty of room between top of tyre and bottom face of tin mudguard when the van drops another 50mm...... so all good in that department.

Progress photos later.
Reddo

Howdy

The sandbaster has let me down. Axle wont be ready until early next week..
Was hoping to get it under the van so it sits at the right hieght for the annexe maker to do his stuff..

I was also keen to take it for a tow to see just how heavy it was and... how it stopped and handled behind the panelvan
so... hooked up...

and set sail.
90 KPH .. no wobbles or swaying.. hard on the brakes. pulled up good. hit a few boil ups and speed humps in the road... no cupboard doors came open.
No overheated wheel bearings or brakes... all lights working.

Im happy.
I had painted the wheel spats pale green.. then i realised the flash was gunna be pale green.. felt it would be too much green so p[ainted em the same colour as the van...
I put the slots in the spats to sort of acknowledge that Supalite had used wings on the wheel arches back in the day. Jury is still out on weather they look right or not??

So whats next??..... a quick call to the bro to see if he and his brushes where available for Friday.?? .By the time i hung up he was in the driveway.....

and got straight into setting out the side stripes...

About and hour later we had both sides done... just had to peel off the masking tape.. hard to see in the pictures as it is almost the same colour as the van.

He will put a dark green pin stripe around the edges to tidy things up.

It was about now that our home phone rang.. was Jeffs wife Merryl ringing to tell Jeff that she had just found thier blue point siamese cat that they have had for 10 years ... it was dead on the front lawn.. victim of a an attack from a stray dog.
Needless to say it was "down brushes".

He was gone for a few hours.. i had cleaned up all the brishes and gear. Then after finishing off undertaker duties Jeff arrived back in the drive...obviuosly very upset... but insisting on doing some more on the van..
So.. he set about bringing "The Crows"back to life..

and .. Here they are..


More later.

Cant wait to get it finished and head to Shell Harbour...
Reddo

Luv it

Looking good Reddo, credit to you.

Your brother is a good bloke - working in 3rd world conditions, an unpadded box on 'Dairy Farmer's scaffolding' and he's away!

When you are finished, and bored, give me a call, I have a few projects you might like to put in the Shed of Invention!

George

Hi George
Thanks for your "Anti Boredom "suggestions...
But when ya have a shed full of oil old motorbikes that go out of thier way to either break down or pee on the floor at regular intervals there is little time to take on other peoples projects.

Hard to find enthusiasm in the depths of winter too ... much easier to pour a good Port and recline in front of the fire..... and thats at 9.00am

Bro doesnt mind Dairy farmers scaffold. Once he gets started he takes some stopping ..
Has always refused renumeration in cash for his efforts... so ... we have Once a month drinkies in the shed ... my shout. Also .. He quite often finds bottles of good red mysteriously turning up on his doorstep overnight...

Had a good look at the roof in the sunlight yesterday.. i am going to have to give it another coat of silvo... bit patchy.
Have you tried buying oil based silver paint lately??.... Taint easy. Can get silver lolly water... ( water based) but it dont get along too well with the existing oil based stuff....and... we all know ya cant sand calico to key it up to accept waterbased juice....So.. Hsd to go to solvent based aluminium coloured epoxy enamel and was up in thinners... just dont let it fall on any of the existing paint.. clean up can make a big mess.... or so i am told.

Regards
Reddo

Still hasnt been given a name..
But does now have green pin stripes around the pale green..
And i hope we have cured an issue i had with the Supalite Cadet..
That being people constantly asking what brand and what year.?? .So.. rather than clutter the back with anymore signs i decided to do this...






The crows got to dry their wings this arvo too..



Praying for no call outs to work tomorrow.. and a sunny day, so i can repaint the roof with silver.

Regards
Reddo

hi reddo

the atlas looks fantastic. just another example of your fine workmanship - we look forward to seeing it close up at shellharbour.

geoff 'n jude

Hi Reddo

Really Niiice!! But I'll be you still get asked what it is. I put a sticker on the windscreen of the '37 Vauxhall and if I had a quid for every time I get asked the year and model - well I'd have a couple more cars. I just point to the sticker most times now and get a sheepish look.

For roof paint I used Robertson's oil based as per the pic. Great stuff, two coats on the roof of the bondwood and Carapark, still looking good after a couple of years on the bondwood. Looks like Al on the Carapark. George

Hiya Geoff and Jude

Yup.... lookin forward to catching up Shell Harbour.. and maybe some warm weather too...??

George... Where did you buy the Robertsons paint from. I spent 1/2 Hour with Bunnings staff and i couldnt do any better than the epoxy enamel solvent based stuff?... then got talked into a litre of thinners to clean the brushes / rollers.... cheaper to buy elcheapo rollers and brushes and just toss em in the bin after each coat is applied !!!
Tried a Paint shop.... They had an oil based silver .... but only in 5 gallons.

Also please to see there is someone else out there that hammers lids down on paint tins like i do.

Cheers
Reddo