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Post by yve on Apr 5, 2018 12:18:50 GMT 10
We have bought a Fibreglass Franklin. Thinking its possibly a 1968? Not sure of its Model though. I took some photos when we first inspected it and showed them to Don Ricardo. He was interested in the number on the drawbar and whilst the first 3 numbers are quite clear, 695, it feels as though the 4th number is a C ?. Its very hard to read and we are guessing by running our fingertip over it. We picked it up yesterday and would be happy to hear any thoughts on it.
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Post by Roehm3108 on Apr 5, 2018 21:36:46 GMT 10
Hi OP. I have mentioned this on several occasions in the past years of contributing to this forum, but it continues to be forgotten or ignored. It really isn't helpful when a poster simply throws a one or two sentence relatively vague question into the ethernet and expects a sensible reply. You need to tell us what you already know with photos, so that we can see what you see. There are meany knowledgeable members on this site, but their talent is with vintage caravans, not mind-reading. So PLEASE help us to help you by giving us whatever information you possess to date, so that we can make a competent response to your ongoing questions!
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Post by Franklin1 on Apr 5, 2018 21:52:37 GMT 10
G'day yve, Have a read of the following thread to give you some understanding of how the Franklin chassis numbering system worked in the early 1960s: vintagecaravans.proboards.com/thread/16778/refurbishing-1963-franklin-melbourneDoes your van have any Franklin badges/stickers above the front and rear windows, or perhaps to the side of the top left corner of the door?? The chassis numbers ending with a 'C' seem to be from approximately 1963. cheers, Al. |
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Post by yve on Apr 6, 2018 7:53:23 GMT 10
Hi and sorry for your frustration with the lack of photos. I thought I followed all the "instructions" regarding Flickr and downloading photos but obviously I stuffed up and couldnt attach them. I will get some help with it and attempt again later today. Franklin 1 it has a raised aluminium Franklin badge front and back below the windows. It also has a registration sticker on the wardrobe door showing registration "ending feb 69" which is why we thought a possible 68. I have read the Franklin History but there isnt a lot on their fibreglass era. Photos I hope will be up asap. Thanks anyway
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Post by Franklin1 on Apr 6, 2018 21:17:50 GMT 10
G'day yve, Until you get the hang of posting photos, I've downloaded your Flickr photos into my computer records, and am now posting a smaller size version of your album...     Your van certainly seems to be one of the earlier models of these fibreglass vans, judging by the chassis number and the tail lights. I'm thinking that 1963 would be fairly close to the build year. We've seen a few examples of the early Franklin chassis numbers being welded with the letter in 'superscript form' (eg. 123 A; 123 B). I'm confident the letter after your numbers is a 'C'...  I've never seen one of your Franklin badges up close, so I don't know what they were made of, or what appearance they had at the time of fitting to the van. I have an example in my records of one that may have been painted red by someone at some time...  ...and this other one that a forum member cleaned up and polished during his restoration...  Hope this helps you... cheers, Al. |
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Post by yve on Apr 7, 2018 7:41:57 GMT 10
Thank you so much Al. Truly appreciate your help and advice. The van seems to be in great condition. The underside is in mint condition with the original paint still in place. It has sat in a backyard paddock under trees for the last 10 years covered in debris but has washed up well. Prior to that it was used by an old chap who was gold prospecting for 30 years. Hmmm no gold nuggets discovered whilst we cleaned it.
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harko
New Member
Posts: 7
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Post by harko on Oct 27, 2019 19:13:52 GMT 10
Hello we have a fibreglass caravan that has 694FG on the backs of the cupboard doors .
The chassis is completely rotted away on the drawbar at the place of the chassis number .
I see that 695c is here and they have 695FG in the cupboards .
So would i be correct assuming my number would be 694c or could it be a b c d etc
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Post by Don Ricardo on Dec 9, 2019 21:46:21 GMT 10
Hello we have a fibreglass caravan that has 694FG on the backs of the cupboard doors . The chassis is completely rotted away on the drawbar at the place of the chassis number . I see that 695c is here and they have 695FG in the cupboards . So would i be correct assuming my number would be 694c or could it be a b c d etc Hi Harko, I see that no-one has replied to your question. Apologies for that. I'm not sure if you're still looking for an answer, but here goes anyway... You might be correct in assuming that the serial number for your van is 694C, but it is also possible that you are not correct. In the Franklin serial numbering system used from 1960 to 1964/5, the letter of the alphabet represented the year, and the preceding digits the build number in the given year. In the numbering system 'C' equals the year 1963 (or possibly 1962), so we know Yve's Franklin Futura (as the fibreglass model was called) was built in either 1963 or 1962 and was the 695th van built that year. We are guessing that the 'FG' you've both found in the cupboards stands for 'fibreglass'. From your number '694FG' we know that your van was the 694th van built in whatever year. It's possible that by coincidence, your van - with a serial number just one different from Yve's van - was built in a different year to hers. However, on balance, I reckon there's a pretty strong chance that they were built in the same year and side by side in the factory. In that case your serial number would indeed be 694C. In any case, the year certainly won't be any earlier than a 'C' because that's when the Futura was introduced. There were some minor differences in signage, etc, between the Futura vans built over time. If your van has the same diecast 'Franklin' signage as Yve's then that adds strength to the idea they were twins in the factory. Don Ricardo |
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harko
New Member
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Post by harko on Dec 10, 2019 15:57:54 GMT 10
Thanks Don much apreciated. My van has absoloutely no signage. And no holes from badges It is 694c though because the new chassis has it welded on it 😉 Its come a long way since the original post with a new chassis springs drop axle wheels.and floor. Im about to glass in the floor before re-atatching it to the chassis .    |
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