Advice on small '63 Franklin, please?

[justanotheramy]

We had a look at a van I really liked yesterday, and in the spirit of insomniac fretting and trying very hard to avoid getting too emotionally involved because it is quite cute I could really benefit from some outside perspective.
I'm totally concentrating on the "issues", here, and not mentioning the good stuff — and this is its "before" state not the condition it will be sold in. The seller will be handling necessary repairs in addition to giving it a clean and paint, I just need advice on what is reasonable to expect on that front.


Draw bar, obviously patched and has some rust under the paint.


In a similar vein, the step is gone, and the back 'feet' work but seem a bit… is corroded the right word?
I've seen these mentioned as things to watch out for, but… what does that mean, practically? Is it something that will need repairing, replacing, or… what?


Floor at the front, under the dinette. Is this a typical amount of movement?
Floor is otherwise solid, no spongy patches at all.




Only obvious sign of water getting in, from cracks in front corner perspex windows.
The other side is also effected, but much less so.
From inside:

From outside:

A joiner will be looking at this, so I probably shouldn't borrow trouble and fret before I have to, but… how close is this to serious frame stuff?


Roof, door side, looking back — sealant stuff seems to have something to do with the clip bar thingies for an anex, as I didn't really see it anywhere else?




Window seals need replacing, but will be replaced — either with the rubber seals if the correct profile can be sourced, or… I think he said cleaned thoroughly and siliconed into the frames? Only window damage is small cracks in the front corner windows (see above) and they can be replaced.

Any thoughts or advice much appreciated.

[smiles]

Hi Amy

I'll leave the advice giving to others who may want to comment on the 'nuts n bolts' issues you've mentioned.

But just my 2 bobs worth! Whenever I look at 4 sale listings on EBay or Gumtree & the description states something like " easy repairs, can be done by anyone or just needs some new rubbers or whatever" then I think to myself "oh yeah, if it was so easy then why haven't you done it before you put it up for sale"!
There are plenty of good vans that have been garaged all their lives so have no rot or even need much repairs beyond some external painting. If you can get a nice van with no water damage or rot, then you'll be way ahead in van use ability!
Cathie

[JBJ]

Hi

Theres a lot more issues with this van than you would think.
the drawbar repair worries me. It would seem that it was cut thru & removed for some reason, then rejoined. Maybe it was lengthened?. But I think the rejoining/patching is pretty ordinary, & think a competent registration inspector would likely be unhappy with it.
With the floor, I'm just finishing off a floor replacement in my Quest, that looked better than yours before I started investigating.

The window repairs will always involve more timber replacement than first appears neccessary. Thats the nature of the caravan repair beast.

My Quest had leaks at the top under the aluminium moulding like yours, & much more is involved in repairs in this area.

I would suggest that you take Cathy's advice. But as you probably are set on this van, you probably will still buy it.
If you do, I hope you have good tradesmen you can rely on, at reasonable prices, because I can almost guarantee that it will be a much more intensive repair than you expect.

Anyone can repair anything, dependent on the amount of time, money & skill you throw at the project.
I've rebuilt 5 vans, so I have a little bit of experience. But I still bought the wrong van last time, & its a much bigger repair than I would have dreamed possible after looking the van over.

In hindsight, I should have forfeited my deposit, & drove home without it

Best of luck with whatever you buy, there are still a lot of good vans out, its just finding & buying them

JBJ

[Roehm3108]

Both Mr smiles and JBJ are seasoned restorers and I agree with everything they have said. Vans in this condition are a bit like an iceberg - what you see that needs fixing represents 10% of the damage. The rest is hidden! Be very wary if the seller is offering to do the repairs for you - he will be doing it to a price, with less concern than if you were doing it yourself.

Personally, I would have walked away from this van after seeing the drawbar weld quality. When in doubt, DON'T!

[Deleted]

Hi Amy,
as all the "professionals"say,leave it alone!
I would go with whatever these fellas recommend,as they have done many more restos than you or me probably ever will!
what area are you from?
there are about 30 vintage and classic vans for sale around the country that I know of,just takes a bit of persaverance to follow up on,and I reckon all of them are in better nick than this one.
are you on all the facebook caravan sites?Lots of vans there.
Good luck with the hunt!
cheers
hughdeani

[justanotheramy]

Thanks guys. I have taken your advice (and followed the urgings of the 3am insomniac fretting that led me to make this post ) and decided to pass on this van.
Much appreciated.

I feel like I should say, for the record, though, that I think the seller in question does a conscientious job of bring old vans back to life and finding them new homes There is a lot to like about this particular van, and hopefully someone will have a fabulous introduction to vintage vanning in it.
After lurking around here on-and-off for… wow… too many years to still be caravan-less! … and watching so many restorations and seeing the worst of it…
I'm probably a very difficult customer

Hopefully something will turn up soon. We're impatient to be off!

[justanotheramy]

Hat-tip, too, to this "Tips For Buying" thread in the Classics forum, which is making me feel much more confident about looking at vans… Even if I do still need to check back in with the experts here, I feel a bit less lost

[Mustang]

Hi JAA,
you must be getting an education ... Yes.