Carapark 12/9 Journey

[sherroy]

Hi Everyone,

My name is Sherroy, I'm new to the Vintage caravan world,  I joined the forum a couple of weeks ago but had not introduced myself or my latest project: The Carapark 12/9
Carapark 12/9 by Sherroy Archie, on Flickr Carapark 12/9 by Sherroy Archie, on Flickr
I bought her off gumtree mid May.  
Carapark 12/9 by Sherroy Archie, on Flickr
I would love to say that I have been fascinated with vintage caravans all my life, but that would be a lie, infact before I bought my 12/9 I didn't even know Caraparks existed or that there was a community of vintage caravan enthusiasts out there. I came across a listing on Gumtree for a 1950's Caravan and was smitten straight away!  I arranged with the owner for a viewing, she was  stored in a shed for the last couple of years and before that was a "cubby house" on another property. The owner had already stripped the interior and collected some items with the internt to do it up, but he's decided to pack up and move out bush, so everything had to go! the listing included Hutchinson Dolly (I have been told it is used to connect vintage cars to vintage caravans), an anex, some old-style vinyl floor tiles and some other bits and bobs 
Carapark 12/9 & hutchinson Dolly by Sherroy Archie, on Flickr

For a few years I had been thinking about a small building/renovating project (not a full house) e.g, tiny home, teardrop camper, shipping container or a caravan make over. With the carapark my project has been decided! everyone tells me it's going to be a big job and I'm looking forwad to every bit. 

I have been trying to work out her make year but have been ussuccessful as of yet. I'm not sure if the drawbar is original, I have stripped alot of paint off and still can't find the stamp. I believe the jockey lock is not original so maybe it's underneath that?

My next job is to take all the panels off and then take her to the sandblasters, but I have to wait until the weather turns because winters in Tasmania are wet wet wet! and my garage roof is not high enough to put her inside... yet! ha ha 

I have some questions on regulations/legalities on this sort of restoration:

• Are their any special rules that I need to adhear too? I have been googling but can't find any straight answers. 
• Does the axle need to be upgraded to comply with new laws/regulations? I don't know what the current axle load on it is but I have been told the original tare load was 762kgs so maybe 1000kgs

I look foward to following other peoples journeys and hope to learn more about vintage caravans along the way

Cheers

Sherroy 

[Roehm3108]

Thanks for putting up the pics of your 12/9. You certainly have a real blank canvas to work with. I once had a Superb which still had steel sheeting. Your aluminium van would be around the mid 1950's, roughly when they changed their name to Carapark.

Not sure what you mean about "special rules". If you're referring to registration, it would pay to look up the Tas Main Roads site. Some other Tassie members might also give you advice, as each state has its own rules. "mel" and "murray" are regulars on this site and have gone through that part. Unless the axle is rusted beyond salvage, the carrying capacity should comply, if it is an original axle. If you have the van stripped down, why not also sandblast the frames and chassis and give it a rustproofing treatment?

I presume that you've visited the "Down History Lane" of this site and read up about Caraparks? Some of the old ads will give you some great perspective views of what the interior looks like.

[sherroy]

I have seen the Caraparks on the down history lane, it was a real eye opener, such interesting caravans. I believe my caravan has never been registered and because there is no vin I wasn't sure how to go about eventually registering. If there was a special requirement for that. Did you have any trouble with registering?

[Roehm3108]

Here in Qld, if your vehicle was never registered, you have to get a roadworthy from a mechanic who can also issue vin numbers. You then get a plate with that to fix onto the trailer. Best to check what the Tassie rules are, you should be able to get that info online. One of the Tassie folk will probably point you in the right direction.

[shesgotthelook]

Hi Sherroy,

Have a read of this thread regarding Dolly Wheels;


vintagecaravans.proboards.com/thread/2892/dolly-wheels

[sherroy]

Jun 15, 2019 13:23:31 GMT 10 shesgotthelook said:

Hi Sherroy,

Have a read of this thread regarding Dolly Wheels;


vintagecaravans.proboards.com/thread/2892/dolly-wheels

Thanks for the info, they came with the caravan but I don't think I'd ever need them. My dad insists I keep them but I don't know why. ha ha

[Don Ricardo]

Hi Sherroy,

Great to see the photos of your Carapark 12/9 and to hear about your plans for it.

You might like to connect with forum member Stevej who has restored/refurbished/repurposed many many Carapark 'toaster' caravans (as we fondly call the models like yours - I'm sure you can work out why?). You can find Stevej's posts about some of his vans by clicking on the 'Members' button on the menu ribbon underneath the forum banner at the top of the window, then entering 'stevej' in the search tool on that page.

Stevej actually has developed a business working on Carapark 'toasters' and has made some 'how to' videos (You Tube?) to help other people with their vans. He also has set up a Carapark page on Facebook.

Sounds like you know what you're doing with your van, but it's always helpful to be able to talk to someone who also has 'been there, done that'.

Don Ricardo

[sherroy]

I have seen and commented on Stevej video's on youtube, they are very informative. I hope he does more, maybe on interiors etc.