Janorma...A Victorian Beauty.

[humpty2]

We have known about the van since June '09, but kept it a secret until we were sure it was ours.
We had to sneak into Mexico to get the van, and then took all the back roads back out to NSW so no one could see us.
Even if you did see us at one of the Caravan Parks we stayed at, you wouldn't have got near the van for all the other admirers.

Mrs. Humpty is now eating lemons to get that silly grin off her face!.;D ;D ;D
We used the van as a normal van on the way home....and everything in it works well.

OK...now for some pictures.

[humpty2]

From the road at the back of the house you can only just see a llittle edge of the van.


When we pulled the covering down, we have now exposed the van.......FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE 1965.



The van when it was parked , was parked very close to the wall.
The tyre closest to the wall had gone down which presented a problem but one which could be overcome.
We used a trolley jack and the lifting action moved the van away from the wall. We then pulled it up outside and blew the tyre up.




Then began the slow job of inching it out...we had to bring it forwards first, with a turfer and we had a rope on the back connected to a winch on the car trailer.







Janorma sees sunlight for the first time since 1965!!



At 14'6 Janorma looked bigger than we expected.



Extraction completed, we then turned it around and loaded her onto the trailer with no problems.









Here we are leaving Janorma's place of residence since 1949 (thereabouts, could be earlier) and heading back to Newcastle.
We are unsure of the make, it's not home made.......but we will find out as the previous and original owners are sure to find the receipt for the van somewhere in the house.
She was built in Victoria and only went from Stawell to Apollo Bay, Robe, Warnambool and those areas.
The owner had 2 daughters, Jan & Norma.....hence the name.
This is a wonderful original caravan, I will post more photos tomorrow of the interior and other things.

[Geoff & Jude]

well, well, well

and it was only recently 'she' said no more caravans.

pretty nice fing there humpties.

geoff

[kazandadam]

Woohoo! What a beauty You must be still pinching yourself ;D
What a find.......and in such good condition too for sitting around the past 45 years I love it........and such a unique shape too, might need an airfoil on the the roof of the EH though with this one ........have fun with it.

Cheers Adam

[DC3Td]

Another great relic sees sunlight after all these years. What a ripper. You sure your sheds big enough for it? cheers gordon

[cobber]

G'day Humpty,

Yes...... now I see what you mean (he gave me a hint that something was in the wind................... about 15 minutes before this post started )

That is a really excellent find.... it's another example of what this forum is all about I think, bringing old caravans back to life and showing the world how touring use to be.

Waiting with baited breath to hear the history and seeing the inside photos.... she looks like she could do the meander no trouble........... aye ?

Cobber.

P.S Looks a little bit like a Beaumaris 'van.. without the lantern roof, do you think

Cobber.

[sutcac]

Well done Humpties ........what a beauty ..................

...............what about the matching 1940's tow car

[Don Ricardo]

G'day Humpties,

What an absolutely M A G N I F I C E N T vintage caravan. Congratulations on your find.

I can't wait to see some pics of the inside.

I agree that it doesn't look home made, so now the search begins to work out who built it. It helps knowing that it was built in Victoria - narrows down the field a bit, but only a bit.

By the van's shape and livery I would guess that it is very possibly pre-WW2, so a 30's van. Is that what you're thinking?

The paintwork (dark on the bottom, light on the top, separated by sweeping curves) is typical of many 30's vans in Victoria. This paint style carried over on to some Victorian vans in the late 40's. However, the window and door construction and size also suggest the 30's to me as well - hence my guess.

If Norma is able to find the paperwork for the van then we'll all know how accurate our guesses were or weren't!

I've been thinking about possible manufacturers since I saw your photos. So far I've checked out Land Cruiser, and crossed that off the list. Hopefully the double hatch on Janorma will be a clue to its identity...

I note that the van has been fitted with a gas bottle, which I presume would have been added at some later point - maybe the 50's or 60's? By the number plate, the van's last tow car would have been around 1963 or 64?

All very intriguing!

Don Ricardo

[dosse]

Congratulations Peter
Great pickup I can see why your both happy......Looking forward to the history and more photos.
Regards dosse. PS I am very surprised to see your little dog standing unaided .

[humpty2]

I'll be putting a photo on tonight showing the van behind a new single spinner Ford in company with another new Ford with what looks like a Paramount van.........and NO we can't find out any more information on the supposed Paramount.
The photo was taken in 1949 at Apollo Bay.
Sorry about the quality of the pictures, but that's the way it was back then.
The 2 children standing beside the Ford are Jan & Norma.
Norma will send me any info she finds on the van, and feels there will be some as nothing was thrown away.

[humpty2]

Here is that promised picture taken in 1949.
Both Fords are brand new, the one on the right being the local Ford Dealer.

[harko]

Fibreglass fantasia!....2 Sunliners, 1 Olympic, also a Carlight Continental(fibreglass roof & ends)......and don't tell anyone, but I have a bondwood 'Castle'in the shed , and now a teardrop thinngy ................. EH Premier S/Wagon & XB Ford Fairmont V8 for my towcars. AND NOW IM INTO TIMBER

[humpty2]

Some info.......yes, it was converted to gas later


Look at the date on the bottle and it's still full!!
What do we use to get the smoke film from the kero stove off the ceiling??? Sugar soap hasn't done it so far.

Col......What are these wheels off?? About 70/72mm pcd.





When I finish repainting the outside, I'll have to get this signwritten again.


Here are a few shots taken after Janorma had a decent bath.




You will see the 2 hatches open to get the breeze from either direction.

this is what they look like from the inside.


The door which opens "Against the wind" has a removable panel for ventilation which is kept in the bottom of the door.



On the floor this is what I wish all the lino was like.

Unfortunately, people walk on lino and it wears.


The windows have sliding fly screens so you can open them easy.


I don't know how old those lights are, that is not a neon tube.

Now for some shots of the interior in general.
Note: The removable water tank.... large pantry with gauze see through at the top...... The large wardrobe doors..... shelving at eye level all the way around....... The original cushions in good condition ...... the icebox........and some magazines found inside.









Here is a shot from underneath the van showing the jack stands and the oregon chassis and flooring.
We are going to remove the lino and polish the oregon floor boards.

[Don Ricardo]

Wow Humpty,

The more we see, the more wonderful it is! Some really interesting features.

Don Ricardo

[kaybee]

Hiya Humpty ,congrats on the successful recovery mission ......your new wheels look like Chevy bolt pattern '37-'48.....wheels themselves are trailer/van type aftermarket maybe Hendy ,Austral or one of the other popular companies that supplied the trade back then. I'm told Toyota commercials are the same bolt pattern,not that I'm suggesting you use them, but might be handy if you get stuck somewhere and need a wheel/tyre combo ,cheers, Col.

[humpty2]

Col, Thanks for that.......Notice both wheels are different, one has a raised edge the other just your normal dome. The hub caps are generic aluminium.

[kingy]

Great find Humpty, a true well preserved example that needs little work to use as it was many years ago
..........bout time you changed the wording on your avatar though ;D
Kingy

[humpyboy]

Mar 5, 2010 20:38:59 GMT 10 humpty2 said:

Col, Thanks for that.......Notice both wheels are different, one has a raised edge the other just your normal dome. The hub caps are generic aluminium.

Hey there Humpty2, nice pick up there, will come up a treat, as for the wheels, I also have same on my Don only my hubcaps are generic rust ;D

[woddabugger]

Now thats what we are talking about, wow what a ripper and HOW SWEET IT IS

[Deleted]

Nice find Peter .......you gotta be happy with that

Alot of history there, and its fallen into good hands .......

Mark

[Swellwillys]

Wow !
Great find Humpty !
That's a sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet little van with some remarkable stories to be told I'm sure.

Well Done,
Swellwillys

[Cruz]

;DHumpty2;D
You must be grinning. What a great van.
Well Done

[JBJ]

Hi Humpty,

Great find. You need more storage sheds now.(or less vans)

Your wheels being early Chev 6 stud are the same as I have on Lucille. They bolt straight onto the Toyota 6 stud wheel hubs brakes I got from Alko, so Toyota & probably most Jap 6 stud wheels should fit your hubs.

Should be pretty easy to find extra wheels if you need them. I bought Twin Tread ( Indian) conventional 6.50x16 tyres pretty easily from my local tyre dealer. The price is somewhere in Lucilles thread, cant remember exactly. A lot cheaper than US tyres when I bought them.

Look forward to seeing the van in the flesh

JBJ

[Geoff & Jude]

hi humpty

that light is the same as the one kb gave us for 'the ritz' over the dining table.

you can still get new bulbs for it from lighting specialists.

we've got a couple of spare bulbs if you can't find one.

geoff

[humpty2]

JBJ........I won't be building a bigger shed just getting rid of 2 or 3 vans later.
Re the wheels: One is different to the other so I need one to match either of them. Thanks for the heads up on the tyres.

Kingy.....I don't need to change the avatar, just add to it.

G & J..... I can get those light globes at Rovert here in Newcastle, there is one on each end of the van and they both work.

Thanks everyone for looking, and agreeing with Mrs. Humpty on what a great van this is....and yes we're still both smiling.
And yes G & J......NO more vans!!........unless it's a beauty like this one.

I already have the van undercoated at this point, such is the good condition of the existing paint. Interior will remain untouched at the present time, but will do a restoration later on.