Campbelltown Steam Field day

[cobber]

Would anybody be interested in being part of a Vintage Caravan / memorabilia display at the “Campbelltown Steam and Machinery Museums field day” on the 17th & 18th May ?.

Now........ you don't have to tell me that's the Munmorah weekend... I know that, sometimes hard choices have to be made OK?

I just see this as a way of letting a different group of people, who have an interest in history & old stuff, know that the vintage caravan movement is up and running in this country, in the UK steam festivals and vintage caravan displays go hand in hand and I think this is an opportunity to promote the concept here in Oz.

At Campbelltown some of the machinery owners stay there overnight and fill up on Billy tea and Damper we would be welcome to join them.
They have a web site at www.csmm.com.au

Let me know if you are interested and unable to get to Munmorah.

Cobber.

[fcdriver]

Hi Cobber,
Sorry mate I will be down the road at Berrima for the Holden "Grey Pride Day".......
However I might drop in and say Hi.
Would have been a good weekend.
I hope others partisipate in this event.
Bruce

[cobber]

Bad luck Bruce....... I was counting on you

For those that live in the Hunter region and like the sound of this idea (steam and vintage caravans) the “Hunter valley Steamfest” is on this April 19-20th.
They are having a vintage car and bike Show 'n Shine on the Sunday.... maybe they would be receptive to the idea of a few Vintage Caravans on show too??

The Maitland Visitor Information Centre may be able to help you with inquires.... [phone].

Cobber.

[humpty2]

Cobber, Re: Steamfest. If your not at the display day and parked in your spot(not allocated) by 8am you won't get in. There is no reservation of a selected site.......first in best dressed.
I haven't bothered to go for the last 3 years and it is less than 10 minutes from home. The last time I went we were pushing to find space for 2 cars at about 9am.
Humpty.

[cobber]

OK, thanks Humpty...... doesn't sound like the ideal setup.

The Campbelltown arrangement I think will be much better, it is a dedicated steam and machinery museum with a fence all around and people who are dedicated to the hobby of rescue and restoration of old stuff.
Their field day flyer says they will have :- wagon rides, tractor ploughing, antique earthmovers,military vehicles,working steam displays, engine displays, vintage cars, hot and cold food, stalls, and much, much more (and at least a couple of vintage caravans )

AND they have free parking and BBQ facilities .

What more could you ask for ;D

Cobber.

[Deleted]

Hey pipe smokin' Albert.

You gunna put yourself in as a "Vintage Display".. ...you might be able to slot into the "Antique Earthmovers" section. I have seen the work in your garden and i reckon you are quite handy with a pick and shovel. ;D ;D ;D
Heck.... i have even seen ya let of steam so ya might get a start in the "working steam displays".


"at least a couple of vintage caravans"...... Dont tell me the much neglected " Driftwood " is going to get an airing along with that Clysdale 1946 show ponyvan of yours.

Now now .. keep ya teeth in...

Your son ...


'Arold

[cobber]

Paid a visit to the Museum today to see what it was like......... it's much bigger than I expected .
Apart from all the tractors, traction engines, steam thingos, sheds full of all sorts of “stuff”, they have a line up of about fifteen vintage caravans....... mostly painted green, and not in bad nick .



There are a few others scattered around the place too.



Some of them are used by the enthusiasts.... who spend their weekends there playing with their machinery, to camp in overnight .

The grounds are tidy, they have BBQ facilities, they expect large crowds of lookers and there is lots of room for more Vintage Caravans to be put on display.

Will I be on my Pat Malone pushing the Vintage Caravan cause to the general public

They do have another “field day” later in the year......... guess when......... 18th & 19 October .

Cobber.

[Deleted]

Bloody Splitter
Wotdahell has steam got ta do with old caravans

Dontcha know Its rebellious breakaway behavior like the type you are advocating that can bring an empire down.
Hmmmmmmph ... Go on, Go ahead and bugga orf ta the silly steam festive.
Us REAL vintage caravanners will be enjoying ourselves at Munmorah. while your stuck in the middle of a park mumbling to ya self about how ya should have took old '46 to "Funmorah"

P.S... I like the "Annexe " on the van in the first picture. Ya could bung coaster wheels under it and just leave it permanently attached. Only a metre wide..... reeeeeeeaaaalllyyyyyy usefull...

'Arold Steptoe
C/- Steptoe and Sons
Rag and bone merchants
Oil Drum Lane

[Don Ricardo]

G'day Cobber,

Interesting collection of caravans they have at Campbelltown. I was trying to work out why they were all painted green, until I read that they are used as on-site accommodation.

Obviously some pretty old equipment there that should be preserved. Are the Campbelltown folk at all aware of what they've actually got sitting there, and is there any interest in preservation and/or restoration or is the focus really only steam? If they are only interested in things that are steam driven, do you think it would grab their attention if we boiled a whistling kettle in each van?

Don Ricardo

[Trish_M]

I love the last and second last vans, would love to have one and do it up with red velvet curtains, paint it ruby red with gold accents and brass coachlamps! Then take it somewhere nice and quiet have a bonfire and sit with hubby playing guitar and have a sing....I can see it now.....daydreaming already!! I must have a bit of the Gypsy in me but then again dont we all its what the caravanning is all about!

[cobber]

Hey Reddo,
Your said,
"while your stuck in the middle of a park mumbling to ya self"
Just getting in practice mate........ not getting any younger ya know .

Don,
Don't know what the arrangement is there yet..... much of the big machinery is owned by individuals and stored permanently in large sheds at the museum, there would be over thirty restored engines in one shed alone.
I don't know if that is the case with the caravans, I suspect some of them are privately owned, I will check it out.
Steam may be their main focus but they have an interest in all sorts of machinery.... when we were there yesterday there was a bloke up the top of a windmill tower rebuilding it...... something I have done myself , another bloke was painting an old railway carriage.
I like the steam kettle idea Don..... I will put one on the Primus while I sit there mumbling to me self ;D ;D ;D.

Trish,
There are four or five really old Gypsy style 'vans there that would benefit from your treatment, it's what they need. If they are privately owned I hope to talk to their owners over the weekend.
Cobber.

[Trish_M]

gypsywaggons.co.uk/
Some beautiful Gypsy Wagons on here!

[cobber]

Trish,

That's a nice site... thanks for posting it.
There is another nice Vardo right here in Oz
www.albury.net.au/~tim/maymus.htm

Cobber.

[tonyh]

hey cobber,
Love the smell of a steam engine in the morning ;D I would love to go - a bit far though!!!!
I haven't let it out before but the next project after the FC ute & before I got sidetracked on this VVing thing was a 1/3 scale Allchin steam traction engine - got most of the parts, all the plans, the lathe and a mate with a milling machine for the rest of the parts. Just need the time - might be a retirement project - if I don't get sidetracked again by a Sunny ;D
cheers, tonyh

[cobber]

Tonyh,

Always good to plan for your retirement by having a hobby that can keep you busy, I reckon everybody on this forum is getting themselves set up just right .

I know this museum have a two foot gauge railway, so somebody there is into making models.

Cobber.

[tonyh]

Cobber,
I forgot to mention a couple of months ago I was calling on a cane farmer - great guy in his late 70's still running the farm and we got to talking on steam engines after I saw a portable steam engine he had restored and a hot air engine he was restoring when I told him of my "little" project - he said would you like to see a full size one - Took me to another shed and there it was a non restored complete in very good condition, it was running when he bought it then he decommissioned the boiler. He had a guy from England ring, he told him on the phone he wouldn't sell and a few days later the guy turns up, has a look and offers him a HUGE sum (he told me how much and I know why I'm building a model) to part with it and he pleasantly said no, even after the offer was raised and sent him back to England empty handed. Beautiful piece of machinery.
Cheers, TonyH

[cobber]

Not exactly a Vintage Caravan display..... only two of us there, but the “Menangle Oil, Steam & Kerosene field day” was a worth while event to be involved with.

As always a lot of interest was shown in the V V's both by visitors and people who had steam stuff on display, same sort of thing as “Motorfest” only to a different crowd.

Heaps of interesting things going on all the time to keep people amused.... for two days in my case .
They have two “Field Days” each year........ problem is they both occur on the weekends we have allocated for Munmorah and Coledale so I expect that's that, unless we were interested enough to consider changing the date for one of our events .

We were allocated a spot not far from the entrance so we got plenty of visitors, this was a quite moment on the first day


Demonstrations going on all day



Night time entertainment around the “Drovers Camp”, very friendly Aussie group, as you would expect.


The power for the lights was provided by these two portable steam engines that sat there all night turning the dynamos, quite eerie to see these monstrous machines working with hardly a sound coming out of them.... I luv 'em .


TonyH,

I asked a few blokes about the “Allchin” steam engines. They don't see any at Menangle & they reckon full size ones are pretty rare in Oz, I was shocked to hear how much these things are worth.
People with an engine / machine are allocated a spot at this Menangel Museum where they can build a shed at their own expense to store their machine, they are then able to come and play with / work on / restore / ride on their machine at their leisure...... good idea, not many people have room to store a steam traction engine in their back yard.. some of us don't have room to store our caravans, now....... I have six acres, anybody is welcome to come and build a shed (to council approval standard) on my land to store their Vintage Caravan... (conditions apply)
Aplications can be made on this thread .

Cobber.