Post by Don Ricardo on Dec 14, 2016 9:33:40 GMT 10
thanks very much for your reply. Sorry about my delay in responding. I have had a better look at my Gypsy, and this forum etc, I think it is more like a 1954 or 55 model. It is a Super Gem (with aluminum windows and Alply finish), and is in as-original condition, plus deterioration of course. With a dust out and a clean up and some basic work it should be OK to restore or even use on the road. I bought it at an auction about 20 years ago as a play-house for my kids, but mostly because I just loved the look and shape of it. My now grown up son loves it, and early cars, so it will be a father and son project.
It looks as if it was originally two tone with a cream top half and pale blue on the bottom. Paint is very deteriorated, but Alply is good. It would be good to get a feel for the paint colours and arrangement. It still has original metho stove and icebox, laminex, and water pump/ sink etc. Not that I have tried to use the stove! It is missing an original door closure, the opening roof hatch, and an annexe to clip on to the fixing tabs along the left roof edge. Not sure what those items should look like yet. Does anyone on the forum have a Gypsy Super Gem with the aliminium windows and Alply cladding?
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Hi Gypsy Bruce,
Great to hear a bit more about your Gypsy Super Gem, and given that your van has aluminium windows and Alply cladding, I would agree that it can be no earlier than 1954 or 1955.
There are a couple of forum members who have Super Gems that may be of interest to you, although both only posted a couple of times. One was Gypsyqueen73 who posted on this thread in 2013. The thread itself concerned Aguamum's earlier model Gypsy Super Gem, but Gypsyqueen73 also told us about her van there. There are some photos of Gypsyqueen73's van here, which show that it also has the aluminium windows, etc.
Higher up Aquamum's thread here, there are also some great photos of Aquamum's own Super Gem (which she has just sold as it happens), including one which shows the shape of the hatch, which may assist you. I doubt if the shape of the hatch would have changed much over the life of the Super Gem model.
The other van you may be interested in belonged to Cintdavies, who also posted some photos of her Super Gem here back in 2013. The window frames look to me as if they are aluminium - they're not thick enough to be wooden I don't think - but they appear to be a different profile to those on Gypsyqueen73's van. In any case one of the reasons I think you will be interested in Cintdavies' van is because of the colour scheme. At the time she posted the photos, it was painted cream and grey, but if you look at the photos you will see that underneath the grey there are at least two shades of blue, one a bit darker than the other. So that may confirm what you can see on your van.
It's great to hear that you are intending to bring your little Gypsy back to its former glory as a project with your son. Hopefully you will tell as about it as the work proceeds, and provide some photos along the way? The best way to post photos is via Photobucket, an online photo storage website. There are instructions on how to post photos in the 'Forum Guidelines & Helpful Hints' section of the forum.
Don Ricardo
