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Post by aussietanker on May 3, 2007 0:59:53 GMT 10
both my dons are missing the wash basin ...  can anyone that has these in there vans tell me if they have ever seen anything similar on sale any where else ... can anyone pls measure the bottom (base) and top (open bit) diameter and advise how high it is ... is it metal? ... painted or enamel? .... and is it the same colour as the bath that is in the van ? ... can you post any detailed pics of it ... i know that the bit that holds it in place is leather tipped ... are there "spots" or "grooves" down the side of the basin that these 3 "holders" attach to ? ....
or is it just a simple basin? also ... my 150 don badge is blue (but the same size and shape etc as the green ones that i have seen) ... that seems unusual .. all those that i have seen in pics are green like the one on my 12' Don ... i am wondering if the badges match the bath and basin colour ... can anyone that has seen these in the flesh pls comment ... TIA regards A|T |
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Post by Don Ricardo on May 3, 2007 22:11:50 GMT 10
G'day Aussietanker, I think I can answer some of your questions about the wash basins. The basin in our van is just an ordinary enamel basin which used to be very common when I was a kid (ie in the 50's and early 60's, and before that too I would guess). The original basin in our van was green. You can see an example on the Vintage Caravans website which has a page on Jim Maskell's Don 140: vintagecaravans.com/don_caravan.htmIf you click on the photo of the basin it will enlarge. The basin in Jim's van is pretty much as I remember the colour of our original basin, so I think Jim's is probably original, and that's what you are looking for. For reasons I don't remember, my parents replaced our original basin with one of the same design which is blue (the one we have now). I vaguely remember this happening and thinking that the new basin was a great improvement, so maybe the old one was chipped and/or rusting or something (mind you the 'new' basin has a chip in the enamel as well). I've measured our current basin and it is 313 mm across (diameter) and 103 mm deep. There are no spots or grooves to hold the basin in place, it is just held in place by the three brackets. The brackets are rubber tipped with red rubber hose. You mention leather, and in our case the rubber is so old that it feels like leather so I think we're talking about the same thing. (Amazingly, the rubber hasn't perished in any way, just become a little stiff.) If you need more detailed photos of the basin or the wash basin alcove let me know. I will be happy to post them for you. Regarding the basin in the 150, I am not sure of its colour, but there seems to be some hints from some of the posts that the Dons may have been colour coded. Hence the basin in the 150 may have been blue to match the rest of the van?? (If we could find a couple of green basins to share - one for you and one for me - and you are willing to live with a blue basin with a chip in the bottom, I am happy to pass it on to you.) In terms of finding a new basin (or two), the only suggestion I can make is that there is an antique/bric a brac shop in Mogo which is on the south coast below Bateman's Bay. The shop specialises in 40's and 50's bric a brac and they have a whole room full of very ordinary household goods, of which the basins would be typical. (My wife and I walk through there and think we've been transported back into our mothers' kitchens in the mid-1950's!) "Great" you say "thanks a lot - I don't live anywhere near Mogo". "True I say, but Kingy does!" Kingy lives in Moruya which is 20 kms or so from Mogo, and probably drives through there from time to time. Maybe he could check out the shop for basins if we asked nicely? Hope this is of some use. Don Ricardo PS Don't know about the badge on the 150. Stands to reason that it might be blue, though. I'll do some research. Where's Mark T when we need him? |
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