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Post by hilldweller on Dec 16, 2013 16:54:24 GMT 10
That blue is lovely! Can't wait to see a pic with the awning roof up. Are you counting down to a trip away at Christmas? And yes I'll be heading away in the Caravelle Mabel will have to wait 'til next year (or the one after, or ...).
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Post by hilldweller on Dec 15, 2013 8:16:58 GMT 10
No progress this weekend as, despite shorts and Tshirt weather, I've come down with a doozy of a headcold . Did manage to go shopping, however, and came home with a solid old rimu door from a house demo/recycling place and then went a bit mad in the big orange shed and added 1x circular saw, 1x electric planer and 1x multitool plus coloured chalks and a few other bits and pieces including an imperial tape measure. (Mabel's measurements make so much more sense in imperial: she is 6'6" wide, 10'8" long at the base and the framing is one and a quarter inch square). The Caravelle's interior rebuild was done with a tenon saw and $39 jigsaw (worth its weight in gold) but I still can't cut a dead straight line and don't have the skill to attempt window frames with hand tools. Wondering if anyone on here has made a point of using only the tools that would have been in common usage at the time their van was built? Perhaps some of you pretty much do that anyway?
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Post by hilldweller on Dec 8, 2013 15:08:39 GMT 10
Much less exciting progress this weekend. Been pulling out nails. Hundreds of them . One-inch flat-head galvanised (?) nails holding the hardboard to the frame, badly rusted panel pins and nails with a square profile for the half-round trim over the joins, upholsterer’s tacks along the top edge where the canvas overhangs, and a random selection of whatever was handy for fix-up jobs over the years. No glue. I am assuming I will make full use of twenty-first century glues when it comes time to put the new cladding on but probably nails as well, since the rows and rows of painted-over flat-head nails are part of her original look. It is very fortunate that previous owners liked her enough to keep fixing her up over the years, even if the end result was a complete mess with random nails, dribbles of something hastily painted over the cladding, and great gobs of badly-applied sealant. She could so easily have dissolved into a weetbix-like mess, or ended her days as bonfire fuel . Applied a bit of paint stripper to one of the window frames in an attempt to see what timber was used. So now I can see it but still don’t know what it is. Possibly rimu. Not cedar. I’m thinking I might check out a building recyclers for a 1940s-ish door to cut down to make front and back window frames, on the basis that if the timber is good and straight now I can be confident it will remain that way. I don’t think that would necessarily be the case with fresh pine from the big green and orange sheds, and that seems to be all they sell. Speak up if that’s a silly idea
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Post by hilldweller on Dec 8, 2013 8:13:57 GMT 10
Looking very flash! Great to see the pics. The painting on those gypsy style wagons is amazing too!
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Post by hilldweller on Dec 2, 2013 18:04:10 GMT 10
That's awesome thanks guys - some encouragement, a plan, a product, a tool, a pic and even a video!!! What more could a girl want? Stand by for further questions in a week or two
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Post by hilldweller on Dec 1, 2013 16:05:08 GMT 10
Wow! Superb job and truly deserves to be a cover van Love the lino splashback and the curtains.
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Post by hilldweller on Dec 1, 2013 15:50:48 GMT 10
All the cladding's now off ;D From marks on the framing it looks as if the original front and back windows were narrower than the aluminium replacements she was wearing when I bought her, but the bottom rail is in the right place. I can't tell where the top is supposed to be but I've made a cardboard cut-out that would have the top at the same height as the side windows to see how she'd look with much smaller re-replacements. The aluminium ones are on Trademe. Smaller windows will of course reduce the light but I think Cobber had it right in another thread: 'As is the case with my Ol' 36, no matter how much you butcher and try to modernise Mabel she will never be as comfortable as a younger van, and the more you interfere with her originality the less interesting she will be as an example of "the way things use to be".' In fact I think I should print that out and pin it up above the workbench, just in case I get carried away with 'improvements'! Now, some I have some questions as I'm just a tiny little bit out of my depth and Mabel is nothing like the Caravelle LOL. First, in terms of general approach, am I right in thinking it would now be best to fix up the framing before pulling off the roof or doing anything to the interior? Second, how do I tell which of the framing needs to be replaced? There's some obvious rot in most of those boards around the bottom and some splintering of the rails right at the top where the roof sits. In between it all looks solid but there are areas where the reddish timber has blackened and the surface feels just slightly soft when poked with a sharp object though not flaking away. Do those need to be replaced? And third: Some of the framing seems a bit 'minimalist' by comparison with most of the pics I've seen on here, eg this lower front section. Should I add to what's there, since it won't be seen? Most of the internal hardboard has warped over the years. Water damage presumably has something to do with that but I'm thinking a little more framing might have helped. That's all for now except to say that it's great to have this site - I'd be lost without it and more importantly so would Mabel!
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Post by hilldweller on Nov 30, 2013 18:38:53 GMT 10
Ta da!!! We have framing . Can’t believe how long it took to remove the hardboard on just one side, and I’ve still got to get rid of about a million little tacks and nails. I particularly like this bit . Not so keen on this . The roof isn’t quite as I was expecting. The top side of the canvas is painted, or at least the edges are, dunno about the rest yet, but it wasn’t painted onto the hardboard, in fact nothing was painted onto the hardboard . It's quite a heavy canvas, definitely not calico. There's no going back now!
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Post by hilldweller on Nov 25, 2013 17:44:03 GMT 10
If you do replace it Gilbert, can you post pics on here to add to the collective experience? My van Mabel is going to need new canvas and like you I've been trawling through threads on here to see how Ray and others have done it. All the best with your van
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Post by hilldweller on Nov 25, 2013 17:35:05 GMT 10
Thanks for the encouragement guys, and big thanks to Rattles for putting a name and purpose, in six minutes flat (!), to the little thingummywhatsits. I really had no idea what they were and had assumed the ones on the offside had fallen out, along with half of those on the door side. So that means Mabel had a full awning with sides etc, doesn't it? I had been thinking of getting a plain canvas roof awning for her, eventually. The old awning track is a bit weatherbeaten but I think it will still work.
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Post by hilldweller on Nov 24, 2013 17:32:32 GMT 10
Yay, finally! ;D Poor Mabel's been neglected all winter but this weekend did a bit of a garage clean-up, swung her around to sit sideways for better light and access, and removed the various bits of external hardware and then the door, the three original windows and the two replacements which can go on Trademe. Still got some stubborn paint-filled screws to attend to, to get the window hinges off. One of the windows definitely has some rot in one corner; the other two I can't tell yet. Can someone tell me what these are please? There are five left of what looks to have been a semi-circle above the wheel arch. They just screw in. I'm taking heaps of photos of everything before I pull it apart. I'm very worried I won¡¦t remember how to put it all back ! I've seen threads on here of vans that look a lot better than Mabel one post and nothing but the chassis the next . Just itching to see what's under the distorted hardboard though . OK, fingers crossed for Photobucket, which has changed again since I last used it....... OK second attempt.... third attempt... Hallelujah! Thanks to the helpful people in the 'whatever' section who pointed out the issue with the length of file names.
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Post by hilldweller on Nov 23, 2013 10:49:56 GMT 10
You're right, it is a bit hard to see from those pics - you'll have to post more! Congratulations on getting back to blue after your paint issues marathon.
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Post by hilldweller on Nov 7, 2013 17:47:52 GMT 10
Looks like you're back into it with a hiss and a roar! I admire your attention to detail. Looking forward to the next update too
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Post by hilldweller on Nov 4, 2013 16:33:28 GMT 10
Oooh how exciting another old NZ van on here Have you seen pics of Kevin Milne's van? 1936 from memory and thought to be a Tanner but then on further investigation found not to be, I think. Not the same as yours but definitely some similarities so I'm wondering if yours is perhaps a Tanner, or something else along those lines from around that era. Kevin Milne did quite a bit of research into the origins of his van and it's featured in a few media articles, both before and after restoration. If you google you should find references and pics. It's very helpful for the rest of us when investigative journalists with a national profile buy these old vans LOL. There's also a company called Auckland Caravan Company who did vans with the pointed front but the pics I've seen (mostly on Trade Me) of ACC vans don't look as old as yours. Not sure I'd be brave enough to try that tow hitch LOL. Cobber's the expert on those. Are you going to reclad with hardboard and canvas? What's the inside like? Can you post more pics?
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Post by hilldweller on Nov 1, 2013 18:06:40 GMT 10
That's going to be the most spacious 10'8" vintage van ever Ingenious use of space and I have no doubt the kitchen will be similarly inspiring. Really like the bus lamps
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Post by hilldweller on Oct 28, 2013 7:32:34 GMT 10
I'm no expert on the mechanical side of things but it's a beautiful original van you've got there. To me it would seem a shame (and would devalue the van) to change its appearance. Brakes perhaps, but I'd leave the wheels and drawbar intact (obviously attending to any rust and dodgy bearings etc, but not making any fundamental changes). Just my thoughts.
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Post by hilldweller on Oct 26, 2013 17:50:32 GMT 10
Mmmm nice van . There are some similarities between your van and Mabel, who I think is 1940s (though that's not definite). What's the interior like in its styling? Deco-ish? What are the wheels - can you date them?
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Post by hilldweller on Aug 3, 2013 11:21:24 GMT 10
Wow those windows look great. Bet they smell good too with all that fresh timber (other than the burning of course!) Will be interested to see how you disguise the modern power inlet.
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Post by hilldweller on Jun 14, 2013 18:52:57 GMT 10
That must have been a difficult decision Ray. Some lucky purchaser's going to get a wonderful van though All the best with the sale.
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Post by hilldweller on Jun 8, 2013 9:20:28 GMT 10
Looking good That table leg is awesome. It's funny how sometimes it's impossible to get anything finished, and then suddenly it all comes together at once. Keep going....
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Post by hilldweller on Jun 1, 2013 12:10:16 GMT 10
That's very pretty
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Post by hilldweller on May 28, 2013 16:32:48 GMT 10
Is the brown under carriage paint any thing special or just paint ?? Jill Um... I don't actually know The sandblasting place gave me an industrial looking paint chart and I picked a colour off that and said full gloss. Also said I wanted a rust inhibiting undercoat and he rattled off the name of some product they normally use and I said that would be fine. It's a place that blasts and paints big hunks of metal mostly for commercial clients, not a caravan or car specialist, though I did notice a Lilliput waiting its turn when I dropped off the wheels. I'm sure there are people on here who have researched the matter much more thoroughly and could give you some good advice. So Spotlight, the rest of you reckon? We do have them over here, so that's encouraging. The local branch is an absolutely hideous place but I will steel myself to venture in one day and see what they have in the blind department. Don't want the modern ones with those endless plastic chain arrangements. I've seen the little crocheted rings on line if Spotlight doesn't have them and if really pushed I could possibly recall enough of my Grandmother's tuition to make them myself. Edit for Jill: Just picked up the wheels and they gave me some leftover paint for touch-ups, in the original tin. It's a 2 pack paint called International Interthane 870. Forgot to ask about the undercoat. Was expecting to have to pay a bit more for the wheels but apparently they were included in the original $300, which was nice of them The wheels are great. Nice and round
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Post by hilldweller on May 28, 2013 16:19:24 GMT 10
Great post Seeshell especially re the time to figure things out LOL. The big ticket items on the Caravelle were the things I couldn't do myself: electricals (road and interior), exterior painting (including prep), upholstery and window replacement (and would have been more if I'd opted to have a mould made to do the wraparound front and back in single pieces of perspex). Paint for the inside and plywood and timber involved lots of small purchases which probably added up, but I chose not to add them up I made a conscious decision not to buy anything expensive other than the aforementioned big ticket items. Expensive curtain fabric or lights or whatever just wouldn't look right, to my eyes. There are good bargains on Trademe (and no doubt ebay) if you can afford to wait for them but the current 'retro' fashion seems to be driving some prices up. I'm sure old formica tables, for example, are now a lot more than I paid for the first one I bought. Have been pleasantly surprised that getting Mabel's chassis blasted and painted wasn't the biggie I had previously thought (knowing nothing about these things) it might be. Would definitely do that again on any future vans.
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Post by hilldweller on May 27, 2013 17:29:26 GMT 10
Thank you both Wheels are at the sandblasters now. The bit under the tube was in good nick, painted black. Still no luck with tyres so the old ones may have to go back on for garage purposes. Seeshell yep I may have to line them as you suggest but I think she had blinds underneath originally as there are marks in the paint and screw holes. Little blinds with scalloped edges and a crocheted pull-ring would be cool if I can find or replicate some
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Post by hilldweller on May 26, 2013 15:29:10 GMT 10
With considerable reluctance I psyched myself to post some pics yesterday. To my surprise, p'bucket was fine i.e. as good as it's ever been and a lot better than a couple of months ago.
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