Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[old van man]

I thought this may be interest to the forum back in the early 90s my old friend and caravan restorer extraordinaire Richard Welsh , wrote this interesting article about the restoration of model 4 car crusier
This is the story of how i came to own the same van
Around 8 years ago i got to hear of a pre-war caravan on a old caravan site near Eyem (the plague village) in the Derbyshire peak district, i was then told i would never find it, game on !
Armed with a packed lunch and a OS map, we set of in the trusty Sunbeam rapier
After the third trip i was starting to think this was a wind up, later, on the 4th trip
i had pulled in to a quarry entrance to look at my map, when on the wall in front of me was a mill stone with the words Hope valley caravan site
With a old 4 digit phone number, carved on it
A road led through the quarry and into the site, which was still in use !
there was a good selection o f 50s 60s statics, sited on shelves, cut into the hillside by the quarry over many years
And there tucked away under a old blue tarp was the car crusier
i contacted the site owners to be told that the caravan owner had disappeared owing 2 years rent
I then had to wait for another year before the site owners would sell it to me, i paid the back rent on the van and it was mine

[cobber]

Thanks for that one O V M.

A good story about how you came to find the 'van

Have you used the "West Epoxy System" in any of the restorations you have done ?
I asume it means coating timbers that may be a bit loose but still reasonably sound with an epoxy glue.... but not useing fibre glass mat, is that right ?

She is a nice 'van that one... may she live for another 80 years.

Cobber.

[old van man]

Hi cobber, yes i have been using Epoxy resin systems for 20 years now
i have used it in a wide variety of things from racing car panels to whole lifeboats,
Epoxy resin is most effective when used with a woven glass cloth ether pre -impregnated or tradition wet layup
epoxy is alot strongerand lighter than polyester / chop strand fiberglass
The applications for caravan restoration are numerous
from strengthening weak timbers to re-forcing damaged body panels
when mixed with collida- silica powder it forms a paste ideal for filling which when set is as hard a steel ...OVM