For those interested in old cars.

[PatB]

When I went out on Friday I espied two interesting/unusual vehicles. The first was a GMC pick-up from the late 50's/early 60's, this was in the 'rough' paintwork condition that seems to be the fashion nowadays. The second was a Morris Minor 1000 van but instead of the standard van 'box' the van part was very like the Traveller but without windows and not even a splinter of wood in sight. Both vehicles were spotted in Benfleet but as I was driving I was unable to take any pics.

 

Can't shed any light on those, but I am reminded of the Traveller that I saw, back in the mid-80s in Newcastle, which had had all the rear panels replaced with nicely varnished tongue & groove boards. It appeared to have been done really well and was generally well kept and so it wouldn't surprise me if it was still around.

[Horsetan]

There's some sort of New Year's Pre- and Post-War car show at Stony Stratford (outside Milton Keynes) tomorrow morning - 10am to 12.30pm - if anyone's interested.

[Rugd1022]

Both of my Minis are incapacitated at the moment (batteries, damn and blast them), hope it's a good turn out though.

[Horsetan]

Both of my Minis are incapacitated at the moment (batteries, damn and blast them), hope it's a good turn out though.

Do you not have a battery charger?

[Rugd1022]

Somewhere yes, can't seem to find it at the mo! The Jap Mini is Sorn'ed anyway and still won't go into reverse but the good news is there's an A-Series specialist just round the corner from our booking on point which I've only just found out about.

Edited December 31, 2017 by Rugd1022

[Horsetan]

Currently in Stony Stratford. Packed to the gunwales with all sorts of old cars. And it's raining!!

The Crown is doing roaring trade, and everyone needs their toilets...

 

Just a tiny selection of the cars that turned up. First time I'd ever seen a 2-stroke Auto Union......

 

 

 

 

<---- Obligatory Mini for "Rugd1022"!

 

The obligatory Jaaags:

 

Edited January 1, 2018 by Horsetan

[Horsetan]

OT, but has anyone used Vactan rust converter fluid?

[allan downes]

Thanks for sharing, Horsetan my good friend and you said it was raining at the car show ?

 

Naturally. What did you expect - sunshine ? In Britain. For an outside event ? Yeah, right.

 

Whenever a client comes along to pick up his finished model from me guess what the weather is doing outside no matter what time of the year ?

 

Pissing down of course, what possibly else !

 

Allan

[keefr2]

OT, but has anyone used Vactan rust converter fluid?

Yes. Have used it quite a bit on the Mini. It seems quite effective, but the instructions are quite technical in regard to how many microns thickness should be applied for best results, and as I just slapped it on with an old brush I probably haven't attained full effectiveness! It's also very thin and watery and so a little difficult to apply cleanly to specific vertical or 'upside down' horizontal areas - such as underneath the floor. It also settles into two component parts after standing for a short time and takes an awful lot of stirring before you can use it again. But overall it does what it's supposed to, but for how long remains to be seen for me personally!

 

Keith

[Wolseley]

OT, but has anyone used Vactan rust converter fluid?

How could rust be off topic if the thread is about old cars?

[Horsetan]

How could rust be off topic if the thread is about old cars?

You have a point there....

[Wolseley]

We just came back from Canberra after spending a few days there.  It was rather busy for this time of year, thanks no doubt to our visit coinciding with the holding of the Summernats.  Driving down, we saw a couple of cars that were lowered, with alloy wheels but otherwise (at least visually) standard.  One was a spotless 1956 Chevrolet and the other a slightly scruffy mid to late 60s Lincoln Continental, towing a rather large caravan, also a few old Holdens, Ford Falcons and various mostly unmolested Holden Monaros ranging from the HK to the VZ.  There were also quite a few show cars being hauled on trailers, mostly Holden Commodores - immaculately presented, but all looking as if their suspension had collapsed.  There were also a couple of custom painted Harley Davidsons standing outside the hotel entrance (must have been a display put on by the hotel, as they were on private property and were still there when we left.  I took a few photographs, but I haven't downloaded them from my phone yet.

Edited January 6, 2018 by Wolseley

[allan downes]

When I worked on the Commer van assembly line in Dunstable the body panels were wheeled in from outside somewhere with the rust built in where it was 'eliminated' with a wire brush !

[New Haven Neil]

We were watching some Inspector George Gently repeats last night (spotting locations from our old homeland) and the two tone blue Farina Oxbridge taxi mentioned earlier in the thread made an appearance!  Felt like a old friend appearing.

[RANGERS]

When I worked on the Commer van assembly line in Dunstable the body panels were wheeled in from outside somewhere with the rust built in where it was 'eliminated' with a wire brush !

 

Ensuring that rust was pre-installed was the standard practice of most British car assembly in the 60s and 70s. Any panels delivered to line without a decent covering would be rejected and sent back outside for a few more days open to the elements.  

[37114]

Ensuring that rust was pre-installed was the standard practice of most British car assembly in the 60s and 70s. Any panels delivered to line without a decent covering would be rejected and sent back outside for a few more days open to the elements.

I think my 1977 Land Rover chassis was rustproofed with black coloured water...

[duncan]

Not just British cars, all makes from all countries, some still like that a few years ago       

[brianusa]

We just came back from Canberra after spending a few days there.  It was rather busy for this time of year, thanks no doubt to our visit coinciding with the holding of the Summernats.  Driving down, we saw a couple of cars that were lowered, with alloy wheels but otherwise (at least visually) standard.  One was a spotless 1956 Chevrolet and the other a slightly scruffy mid to late 60s Lincoln Continental, towing a rather large caravan, also a few old Holdens, Ford Falcons and various mostly unmolested Holden Monaros ranging from the HK to the VZ.  There were also quite a few show cars being hauled on trailers, mostly Holden Commodores - immaculately presented, but all looking as if their suspension had collapsed.  There were also a couple of custom painted Harley Davidsons standing outside the hotel entrance (must have been a display put on by the hotel, as they were on private property and were still there when we left.  I took a few photographs, but I haven't downloaded them from my phone yet.

 

As an aside, what's the car TVs Dr Blake of Mystery fame drive now that he's got rid of the Standard?  Looks like an Australian hybrid.

 

Brian.

[BernardTPM]

Holden FE

[runs as required]

Thanks for those interesting Stony Stratford pics.

The 2 stroke typically smoky DKW looked chokingly familiar to me from a trip by push bike to the Nurburgring in 1954 (first appearance of the exposed wheel W196 after Fangio banged all the barrels at Siverstone with the original centre-seat streamliner).

I think there was an E German version of that Auto Union  DKW 2 stroke, including a Rennwagen Porsche challenger (the surviving pre-war rear engine GP cars all went east after the war). But I don't think the 2 stroke Wartburg was AU.

Also from Stony Stratford, I did like the red Jaguar Mk II (?) pretending to be a taxi

dh

[Horsetan]

Thanks for those interesting Stony Stratford pics.

There's more.

 

The 2 stroke typically smoky DKW looked chokingly familiar to me from a trip by push bike to the Nurburgring in 1954 (first appearance of the exposed wheel W196 after Fangio banged all the barrels at Siverstone with the original centre-seat streamliner).

I think there was an E German version of that Auto Union  DKW 2 stroke, including a Rennwagen Porsche challenger (the surviving pre-war rear engine GP cars all went east after the war). But I don't think the 2 stroke Wartburg was AU.

I can't begin to imagine what the air quality must have been like in the DDR, where most cars available to "the people" were 2-strokes.

 

Also from Stony Stratford, I did like the red Jaguar Mk II (?) pretending to be a taxi

Errm, that's not a taxi sign. That's the hi-vis of the steward in the background....

[uax6]

When I went out on Friday I espied two interesting/unusual vehicles. The first was a GMC pick-up from the late 50's/early 60's, this was in the 'rough' paintwork condition that seems to be the fashion nowadays. The second was a Morris Minor 1000 van but instead of the standard van 'box' the van part was very like the Traveller but without windows and not even a splinter of wood in sight. Both vehicles were spotted in Benfleet but as I was driving I was unable to take any pics.

There are two possible answers to the moggy question:

Its either a Domi van, which was built in Norway (IIRC) for their post office. There appears to a uk registered one in a buff colour (put domi post office morris minor into google and the first image is the one I mean), or

Its a GRP replacement traveller back.

 

Both these types are increadably rare. IIRC there are less than 5 known Domis in the world, and I think the GRP traveller might be even rarer. I've only seen on Domi, and that was at the Minor LCV 50th in 2003...

 

Andy G

[Horsetan]

Another Stony Stratford special:

 

Jaguar C-type

 

[Wolseley]

We just came back from Canberra after spending a few days there.  It was rather busy for this time of year, thanks no doubt to our visit coinciding with the holding of the Summernats.  Driving down, we saw a couple of cars that were lowered, with alloy wheels but otherwise (at least visually) standard.  One was a spotless 1956 Chevrolet and the other a slightly scruffy mid to late 60s Lincoln Continental, towing a rather large caravan, also a few old Holdens, Ford Falcons and various mostly unmolested Holden Monaros ranging from the HK to the VZ.  There were also quite a few show cars being hauled on trailers, mostly Holden Commodores - immaculately presented, but all looking as if their suspension had collapsed.  There were also a couple of custom painted Harley Davidsons standing outside the hotel entrance (must have been a display put on by the hotel, as they were on private property and were still there when we left.  I took a few photographs, but I haven't downloaded them from my phone yet.

 

 

Here they are.  I only took four photos, as modified vehicles and hot rods are not really my sort of thing.  The Holden Kingswood looked pretty original, but I don't know what was under the bonnet.

 

 

 

 

[PhilJ W]

There are two possible answers to the moggy question:

Its either a Domi van, which was built in Norway (IIRC) for their post office. There appears to a uk registered one in a buff colour (put domi post office morris minor into google and the first image is the one I mean), or

Its a GRP replacement traveller back.

 

Both these types are increadably rare. IIRC there are less than 5 known Domis in the world, and I think the GRP traveller might be even rarer. I've only seen on Domi, and that was at the Minor LCV 50th in 2003...

 

Andy G

I think that is the one, it was advertised for sale last year at £10,900. The only difference is that the one I saw has been signwritten, aso it was RHD and had the one piece windscreen.