CLASSIC, VINTAGE AND VETERAN MOTORING FOR 70 YEARS
9 418979 000012
No. 349 December 2017/January 2018
NEW ZEALAND’S FOREMOST HISTORICAL MOTORING MAGAZINE $7.95
L24 BSA NEW ZEALAND WIN AT PEBBLE BEACH MECCANO CAR CONSTRUCTOR KITS MAGAZINE OF THE VINTAGE CAR CLUB OF NEW ZEALAND
These photos are dated 1958-59 – most from a mardi gras event at Eastbourne, Wellington. Beaded Wheels committee member Mark Dawber is curious to know if the cars are still around.
PHOTOGRAPHS REQUIRED Submissions of suitable prints and information (where available) are welcome. Post or email original photographs or high resolution digital files of historical interest with any available information to: Beaded Wheels, PO Box 13140, Christchurch 8141. Laserprints/photocopies are not suitable. Photos returned as soon as practicable.
management committee Contact National Office for all queries regarding VICs, logbooks, historic race licences, lighting endorsement, registration of vehicles, address changes, subscriptions, membership cards, speed events. The Vintage Car Club Of New Zealand (Inc.) National Office, PO Box 2546, Christchurch 8140 Phone 03 366 4461 Fax 03 366 0273 Email admin@vcc.org.nz
branches ASHBURTON PO Box 382, Ashburton 7740 ashburton@vcc.org.nz AUCKLAND PO Box 12-138, Penrose, Auckland 1642 auckland@vcc.org.nz BANKS PENINSULA 27 Showgate Ave, Riccarton Park, Christchurch 8042 bankspeninsula@vcc.org.nz BAY OF PLENTY PO Box 660, Tauranga 3140 bayofplenty@vcc.org.nz CANTERBURY PO Box 11-082, Sockburn Christchurch 8443 canterbury@vcc.org.nz CENTRAL OTAGO C/- 4B Roto Place, Wanaka 9305 centralotago@vcc.org.nz
2 Beaded Wheels
Please note this information changes annually - these details are valid until October 2018. PRESIDENT Diane Quarrie 06 876 4009 president@vcc.org.nz
REGISTRAR Rod Brayshaw 07 549 4250 registrar@vcc.org.nz
CLUB CAPTAIN NORTHERN REGION Kaaren Smylie 021 664 341 nicc@vcc.org.nz
SPEED STEWARD Tony Haycock 021 662 441 speedsteward@vcc.org.nz
CLUB CAPTAIN SOUTHERN REGION Alon Mayhew 027 202 9491 sicc@vcc.org.nz
BEADED WHEELS CHAIRMAN Kevin Clarkson 021 0270 6525 kevin@vcc.org.nz
SECRETARY/ TREASURER Michael Lavender 03 325 5704 hon.sec@vcc.org.nz
COMMUNICATIONS & MARKETING comms@vcc.org.nz
Ed Boyd 06 348 4547 mgmt3@vcc.org.nz Tony Bartlett 06 867 9850 mgmt1@vcc.org.nz David Yorke 06 358 8060 mgmt2@vcc.org.nz
ARCHIVIST Don Muller 03 385 6850
archivist@vcc.org.nz
A full list of branch addresses and contact details can also be found on the VCCNZ website at www.vcc.org.nz CENTRAL HAWKE’S BAY C/- 94 Mt Herbert Road, Waipukurau 4200, centralhawkesbay@vcc.org.nz EASTERN BAY OF PLENTY PO Box 2168, Kopeopeo Whakatane 3159 easternbayofplenty@vcc.org.nz FAR NORTH C/- 64 Mangakaretu Road, RD2, Kerikeri 0295 farnorth@vcc.org.nz GISBORNE PO Box 307, Gisborne 4040 gisborne@vcc.org.nz GORE PO Box 329, Gore 9740 gore@vcc.org.nz HAWKE’S BAY PO Box 3406, Napier 4142 hawkesbay@vcc.org.nz
HOROWHENUA PO Box 458, Levin 5540 horowhenua@vcc.org.nz KING COUNTRY C/- 34 House Ave, Taumarunui 3920 kingcountry@vcc.org.nz MANAWATU PO Box 385 Palmerston North 4440 manawatu@vcc.org.nz MARLBOROUGH PO Box 422, Blenheim 7240 marlborough@vcc.org.nz NELSON PO Box 3531, Richmond 7050 nelson@vcc.org.nz NORTHLAND PO Box 17, Whangarei 0140 northland@vcc.org.nz
NORTH OTAGO PO Box 360, Oamaru 9444 northotago@vcc.org.nz NORTH SHORE C/- 7 Godwit Place, Lynfield Auckland 1042 northshore@vcc.org.nz OTAGO PO Box 5352, Dunedin 9058 otago@vcc.org.nz ROTORUA PO Box 2014, Rotorua 3040 rotorua@vcc.org.nz SOUTH CANTERBURY PO Box 623, Timaru 7910 southcanterbury@vcc.org.nz SOUTHLAND PO Box 1240, Invercargill 9840 southand@vcc.org.nz
SOUTH OTAGO C/- 1931 Breakneck Rd, RD 4, Balclutha 9274 southotago@vcc.org.nz SOUTH WAIKATO PO Box 403 Tokoroa 3420 southwaikato@vcc.org.nz TARANAKI C/- 297 Huatoki St, New Plymouth 4310 taranaki@vcc.org.nz TAUPO PO Box 907, Taupo 3351 taupo@vcc.org.nz WAIKATO PO Box 924, Hamilton 3240 waikato@vcc.org.nz WAIMATE 4 Harris St, Waimate 7924 waimate@vcc.org.nz
Please note this information changes annually - these details are valid until October 2018
WAIRARAPA PO Box 7, Masterton 5810 wairarapa@vcc.org.nz WAITEMATA C/- Embroidme, 23E William Pickering Drive, Rosedale, Auckland 0632 waitemata@vcc.org.nz WANGANUI PO Box 726, Wanganui 4540 wanganui@vcc.org.nz WELLINGTON PO Box 38-418, Petone, Wellington 5045 wellington@vcc.org.nz WELLSFORD/WARKWORTH PO Box 547, Warkworth 0941 wellsfordwarkworth@vcc.org.nz WEST COAST C/- 17 Loris Place Greymouth 7805 westcoast@vcc.org.nz
Beaded Wheels
Beaded Wheels
Issue 349 December 2017/January 2018
Publisher
THE VINTAGE CAR CLUB OF NZ (INC.) The Historic Vehicle Authority of New Zealand ISSN 0113-7506 Vol LXVIII No. 349
FEATURES
Editorial Committee Kevin Clarkson (Chairman), Judith Bain, Bevars Binnie, Rosalie Brown, John Coomber, Mark Dawber, Marilyn McKinlay.
12
George Henning
16
From Wellington to Pebble Beach the long way!
22
L24 BSA
21
Replica War Era Fire Tender
26
Behind the Wheel of a 1930s Meccano Car Constructor Kit
29
Rally Snippets 29 Hunua 100 29 Sulphur City Rally 30 Nelson Biennial Rally 30 Waimate Event Centre Display
Back Issues
32
Balcairn Trial 2017
Available on request to PO Box 13140, Christchurch 8141.
34
Taupo Branch Golden Jubilee
Material for Publication Reports of restorations, events, road tests, historical and technical articles should be submitted to beadedwheels@vcc.org.nz. Email of text and photos is preferred, digital photographs should be high resolution eg 300dpi. Alternatively mail your contribution to PO Box 13140, Christchurch 8141, typed or neatly printed, double space on one side of paper only. No payment is made to contributors. The opinions or statements expressed in letters or articles in Beaded Wheels are the author’s own views and do not necessarily express the policy or views of The Vintage Car Club of NZ (Inc).
A New Zealand first at Pebble Beach, see page 16.
Email beadedwheels@vcc.org.nz
Advertising Address Classified and Display Advertising to: PO Box 13140, Christchurch 8141. Phone 64 3 332 3531, Fax 64 3 366 0273 Rate schedule available on request.
Correspondence & Editorial Contributions Phone 64 3 332 3531, Fax 64 3 366 0273 PO Box 13140, Christchurch 8141.
Subscriptions Beaded Wheels subscribers change of address to PO Box 2546, Christchurch 8140. Phone 03 366 4461, Fax 03 366 0273 Annual subscription (6 issues) $45* inc GST Australian subscription (6 issues) NZ$76* Other countries (6 issues) NZ$136*. *Payment by credit card will incur additional bank fee processing charge of 3%
Wairarapa Branch member Jim Chalmers, from Pahiatua, had five entries in their new members’ rally. He drove this handsome Ford V8, see page 48 for more branch news.
Production Typesetting & design by RGBDesign Printed by Spectrum Print Ltd, Christchurch.
Closing Date for February/March Issue Editorial Copy Advertisements
8 January 2018 10 January 2018
The Vintage Car Club of New Zealand (Inc.) National Office Phone 03 366 4461 Fax 03 366 0273 Email admin@vcc.org.nz
Postal Address PO Box 2546, Christchurch 8140, New Zealand. Address 12 Aberdeen St, Christchurch, New Zealand. Website www.vcc.org.nz Copyright Information The contents are copyright. Articles may be reproduced complete or in part provided that acknowledgement is made to “Beaded Wheels, the magazine of The Vintage Car Club of New Zealand (Inc)” as the source. Beaded Wheels reserves the right to digitally store all published material for archival purposes.
1937 Hudson Terraplane, see marketplace page 41.
COLUMNS 4
President’s Message
4
As We See It
5
VCC Events
6
National Office News
7
Mailbag
9
Captain’s Log
9
Timelines
10
The Way We Were
35
Brass Notes
36
Mutterings of a Mature Motorcyclist
36
50 Year Awards
37
Marketplace
43
Swap Meets & Rallies
48
Idle Torque
58
Passing Lane
COVER Tracy Stenhouse aboard Stuart Francis’ L24 BSA. See page 22. Photo David Russell (Southern Exposures). Like us on facebook Beaded Wheels
Beaded Wheels 3
president’s message
As mentioned in my previous Beaded Wheels column several other members of the Management Committee and I travelled to meet with the members of Taranaki Branch at a special meeting called to discuss the future of the 2021 International Rally. There was a large turnout of members and it was a very positive meeting with the overwhelming consensus being that they wanted the event to go ahead as planned. We were heartened by the response. The Management Committee has therefore decided that the event will be going ahead, albeit in a more condensed version than previously. We will also be introducing some new initiatives which we hope will increase the number of entrants. I will be in a position to announce more details such as who will be the event director and the dates for the event in the next edition of Beaded Wheels. I recently attended a meeting in Wellington with the national Cancer Society to discuss our National Day and Rally for Cancer. The feedback from the Society was overwhelmingly positive. They have asked however if we could look at moving the date out a few weeks from their Daffodil Day (which understandingly is their busiest time of the year). They would then be able to give us more support for our event. We are looking at some time in September so our North and South Island Club Captains will be looking to find a date which doesn’t clash with branch events. Our event manager for the Rally for Cancer has also written to Branches asking for feedback and suggestions so that we can make this event even better next year. Once again I would like to thank everyone who participated. It is my hope that next year we could potentially double the amount we raised in August with the support of all our branches and members. While the National Day is a good start, the Club generally doesn’t spend much effort on promoting itself. The Management Committee is currently working on a concept to put together a promotional resource that branches can use to promote themselves and the Club. Club Registrar, Rod Brayshaw, recently attended the FIVA General Assembly
4 Beaded Wheels
as we see it
and Technical Committee meeting and presentation. The Technical Committee had to be reduced in numbers so only eight from 14 have been elected for this coming year. I am pleased to say that Rod has been elected as one of the eight. FIVA is now an official partner of UNESCO, and the Vintage Car Club, as a founder member of FIVA, will be able to use this involvement to open doors in New Zealand. Rod has reported that there is a change in historic vehicle use developing in many countries and there was lots of discussion on what we should do as clubs to adapt to the changing world. Rod will present a report at the next Executive Meeting to encompass this. I have had the privilege of presenting many 50 year awards during this year. These are always special occasions to honour those members who have made such a huge contribution to the VCC. Aside from paying their subs for 50 years, all recipients have one thing in common. They have stuck with the Club (and their own branches) through all the up and downs that occur in any organisation such as ours. They are an inspiration to us when sometimes we feel disheartened about things that are happening in our own respective branches or at a national level. As 2017 comes to an end I would particularly like to thank those members who put up their hands time after time to organise events for us or to stand on committees. A big thank you also to another group of members that we couldn’t do without – our marshals – who stand out in the heat, rain, wind and snow directing and telling us where to go (in the nicest possible way of course) so that we can drive our vehicles safely and get to where we need to go. On behalf of Geoff and me and the whole management team, we wish all our members and families safe travelling over the holiday season and best wishes for Christmas and the coming year. Diane Quarrie VCCNZ National President
When the 50 year membership awards started some 12 years ago we knew that the number of members qualifying would increase over time as we had done some projections on this. In the beginning the low numbers meant that we were able to publish the full 50 year citation about the member, complete with photograph of the award being presented. However space and the lack of it is always presenting us with compromises. As the numbers of new 50 year members being awarded annually gradually increased we dropped the photos, then later still we reduced all the citations to about 150 words. That has been the situation up to now. The option of reducing the citations even further is not a good one as this would result in them becoming meaningless and of little value. From this issue on we have taken the step of listing the 50 year member recipients and their branch in a format which we hope acknowledges the long commitment these members have made to the Vintage Car Club. What can I say about this issue’s cover photo? It has a distinct Steam Punk look about it. Steam Punk has been around for a few years now and Oamaru is well worth a visit, as is the whole Victorian precinct there. I like the aplomb with which she seems to be handling the bike and I particularly like the evil death glare coming from those eyes! Congratulations to the photographer who has captured the moment perfectly. More details on the photo can be found at the end of the BSA story on page 25. I am guessing some members will like the picture and some won’t. All complaints to me please, accompanied by a box of fine wine to help me get over the Christmas celebrations. Kevin Clarkson Chairman, Beaded Wheels
This list of events is compiled from the VCCNZ National Calendar of Events, and branch events as listed in each branch newsletter. Any deletions, additions, alterations need to be notified to Beaded Wheels by the Branch Secretary before 10th of the month prior to magazine publication
VCC National Events 2018 24 March
30 March–1 April 30 March–2 April 1-7 April
National Executive Meeting, hosted by Wellington Branch North Island National Easter Rally hosted by Waikato Branch South Island National Easter Rally hosted by Southland Branch South Island Club Captain’s Tour
DECEMBER
2 3 3 8 10
North Otago Marlborough Otago Marlborough Ashburton
10 10 10 14 14–19 17
Canterbury Marlborough Otago Nelson Ashburton Marlborough
17 Nelson 17 West Coast
19 West Coast 26 Canterbury 31 Marlborough
JANUARY
1 1 1 1 6
Ashburton Banks Peninsula Canterbury Waimate Far North
Windsor Rally Garage Raid Moped Rally Secret Santa Christmas Meal Vintage & Veteran Workers Picnic Children’s Christmas Picnic Run to Fighting Bay Christmas BBQ Christmas Light Run Pre-Christmas Tour Motorcycle Christmas Pot Luck Lunch Christmas Picnic Fish ‘n chips Run Morning tea Shantytown Boxing Day Run New Year’s Eve Special Noggin ‘n Natter
New Year’s Day Run Little River Picnic M/C New Year Run New Year Day Parade Autospectacular
7 14 14 16 19-22 20
Canterbury Marlborough Waikato West Coast Wanganui Central Otago
Wanganui Otago Marlborough Otago Ashburton Otago
21 21 25 25 27 27
28 Canterbury
Picnic Run Run to Onamalutu & BBQ Blue Smoke ‘n Pedals Morning Tea Shantytown Vintage Weekend Swap Meet & Cromwell Classic Car Show Burma Rally Jackson Rally Baot trip Pelorus Soun Mid Week Run Annual Rally Dunedin-Brighton Veteran Rally Veteran Picnic Run
F EBRUARY 2–4 Banks Peninsula Skope Racing, Ruapuna 3 Southland Southland Rally 3 Estn BOP East Coast Rally 4 Manawatu Veteran Rally 9–11 Banks Peninsula Enzed Racing, Levels 10 Waimate Wallaby Run 11 Nelson Club Run 11 Wairarapa Remembrance Rally 11 Wellsford/Wkwth Gymnic 17 Canterbury Boot Fair 17 Nelson Swap Meet 18 Ashburton PV/PWV Run 18 Central Otago Sunday Run 20 West Coast Morning Tea Shantytown 24 Canterbury Commercial Annual Rally 24 North Otago All British Day 24 Wellsford/Wkwth Swap Meet 25 Waikato Branch Open Day 25 West Coast Club Run 28 Southland 3rd Southland Rally 28 Taranaki 25th Waitara Mini Vin Tour
VCC Events MARCH 3 3 3 3 4 4 10 10 10-11 10-11
Canterbury Moped Run Canterbury Back Country Run Manawatu Ruahine Ramble Southland Veteran Rally Canterbury Rear Wheel Brake Rally Waikato Ladies Rally Taupo Lake Taupo Rally Wairarapa Rex Porter Memorial Rally Canterbury Annual Rally Wellsford/Wkwth “Are We There Yet?” Rally inc Mike Brown Memorial Trophy 11 Nelson Club Run 17 Horowhenua Swap Meet 17 West Coast Scenicland Coal Trail Rally 17-18 Canterbury Jim Toohey Motorcycle Run 18 Gore Swap Meet 18 Waikato Vintage Venture 18 Taranaki Kiwi Road Picnic Run 20 West Coast Morning tea Shantytown 21 Manawatu Branch AGM 24 Sth Cant Swap Meet at Winchester 25 Central Otago 25th Moped Run / Grahams Trip to Scenicland Rally 30 Waikato National North Island Easter Rally 30 Southland National South Island Easter Rally 31 Ashburton Branch Easter Run
APRIL
South Island Club Captain’s Tour Nth Otago Gerald Lynch-Bosse Memorial M/C Rally Canterbury P Group Annual Rally Nelson Club Run Ladies Rally Central Otago 21st Golden Times Rally Arrowtown
1 April
14
15 15 21
While Beaded Wheels makes every attempt to check the accuracy of the dates published in this column we advise readers to confirm all dates with the individual branch concerned.
Find out more about the Vintage Car Club Join our enthusiasts as they motor their classic cars, trucks and motorcycles. Visit vcc.org.nz to download membership application forms or contact your local branch directly for application forms and details. See page 2 for contact details of your nearest branch. Beaded Wheels 5
Julie Cairns-Gee
National Office Manager VCCNZ Inc National Office, PO Box 2546, Christchurch 8140 ph 03 366 4461 fax 03 366 0273 email admin@vcc.org.nz www.vcc.org.nz Office Hours Mon – Thur 9-5pm
national office news Christmas Hours I wish to take this opportunity to wish you all a very merry Christmas and happy and safe New Year. The National Office will close on Thursday 21 December and reopen on Monday 8 January 2018, the Beaded Wheels office closes on 18 December and reopens 15 January. Discounts on INTERISLANDER and BLUEBRIDGE Ferry Crossings All financial members of the VCC of NZ (Inc.) can obtain a discount with Interislander and Blue Bridge. You must show your membership card. Full information on how to book is on the Club’s website www.vcc.org.nz or can be obtained from your Branch Secretary. When booking with the Interislander, you must book through the Group Bookings option. The codes are as follow: INTERISLANDER – WH5465 and BLUE BRIDGE – ANTIQUECAR VCC Speed Events It is compulsory for any member entering a VCC Speed Event to hold a current VCC Historic Racing Licence and VCC Log Book for the vehicle they are using. If you currently hold a VCC Historic Racing Licence, please keep an eye on the expiry date and if it needs renewing please complete the Historic Race Licence Renewal Form and forward it, along with $23 and a new one will be issued. VCC Identity Cards – Renewal Applications Please note that all VCC Identity Cards (VIC) have an expiry date. This expiry is upon change of ownership or 10 years from the issue date. Your vehicle must also be as described on the VIC. A renewal form personalised for each VIC is distributed by the National Office to current financial members approximately three months before expiration. Even if your vehicle has had no changes this form must be checked, current mileage advised, signed and forwarded to your branch, along with the VIC (if the photo correctly shows your vehicle in its present state), or three new photos, as stated on the form. 6 Beaded Wheels
Upon receipt at the National Office the VIC will be reissued and will be valid for a further 10 years unless there is a change of ownership or major changes to the vehicle during that time. It is compulsory for all National and International VCC Rallies that vehicles entered must have a current VIC. If you have sold your vehicle, please notify the National Office.
mailbag The editorial committee reserve the right to p ublish, edit or refuse publication of any item submitted as comment. The views expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily express the policy or views of the Vintage Car Club of New Zealand (Inc.) or the publishers. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.
Beaded Wheels Beaded Wheels is the voice of The Vintage Car Club of New Zealand (Inc.) and its 36 branches covering the length and breadth of the country. The efforts of our members continue to foster and ever widen the interest in this segment of our country’s history. It is to these people, who appreciate the fascination of age, the individuality and the functional elegance of vehicles from a bygone era, that this magazine is dedicated. Beaded Wheels – Our long established title may have readers wondering about its origin. By way of explanation beaded edge wheels use beaded edge tyres that are kept in place by reinforced rubber beads, which fit into the rolled edges of the wheel rim. This style of wheel was a distinctive feature of early motoring being used on early bicycles, many pre1924 cars and most motorcycles until 1927. In March 1955 The Vintage Car Club of New Zealand adopted the title Beaded Wheels for their club magazine which was the successor to the monthly Guff Sheet.
Original Windscreen My family has been in possession of a windscreen which my research suggests is from an early model vintage car. It was recently found hidden amongst other long forgotten gear from previous generations in our farm woolshed. I have cleaned and verified it as original. It has a brass frame, the hinges work and the glass is not damaged. Tony Mannington, owner of a 1931 Ford Model A and a member of the Taupo Branch, has kindly shown the screen to a number of car enthusiasts and as yet we have not been able to establish which make and model it belongs to. I ask whether any reader may know what vehicle it belonged to, or their advice as to how I progress identifying the screen? Would any one be interested in acquiring it? I am able to be contacted by email: timandmary@xtra.co.nz Timothy Plummer
mailbag
1923 Packard I have received an enquiry from Tim Martin (tum@sover.net) of the early Packard Register in the US regarding the origins of this red 1923 Packard Model 126 Runabout that has been in England since about 2005. Does anyone know anything of its history in New Zealand? Mark Dawber The Bugatti - correction With the arrival of Beaded Wheels 348 I did my usual thing – a quick check through marketplace then on to Andrew Anderson’s The Way We Were column, always one of my first reads. I am sure Andrew knows otherwise but he wrote that after the Bugatti ran out of available crankshaft sections a V8 was fitted. This was not the case as Ralph Watson fitted Roycroft’s new 3.4 Jaguar motor in early 1954. Ron drove later that year at the Ardmore GP in the Richard Webb Memorial handicap to gain a fourth place. He then switched to the Alfa P3 for the main event, achieved fifth place and the Land Trophy for first New Zealand driver. All thanks to the handful of regular contributors as they bring some great stories from the past. Don Ammon Nelson Information Wanted
I’m looking for information (make, model and year) of this car as we are trying to put together a family history album. Graeme Duthie graemeduthie@xtra.co.nz 60 Year Awards My grapevine informed me of a recent ceremony held at Cutler Park presenting
members with their 50 and 60 year membership awards. Apparently the 50 year presentations were dealt with first, receiving a plaque and framed certificate plus the right of reply. The three 60 year recipients were not issued with a plaque but received an unframed certificate and not offered the right of reply. To my mind this is not acceptable. Those, like most elderly VCC gentlemen, were basically original members who worked their backsides off to develop clubrooms and properties voluntarily for the benefit of the vast membership we now have and the privilege of being able to use our historic vehicles. Strange isn’t it that couples being married for 60 years are acknowledged by the New Zealand Government and the Queen, think about it. Geoff Ralls Member, Blenheim Editorial reply: Thanks for your letter regarding the Canterbury Branch Awards Dinner Geoff. The issues you raise require some explanation. I was a member of the Management Committee when the 50 year badges were first discussed nearly twenty years ago, and it was decided that as we had a 25 year and 35 year badge, a special badge honouring 50 years membership would be struck, along with a special framed certificate. This would be the premier award for membership, and presentations would be made with a citation at a special function to honour the recipient. At that time there were only a few original members who would qualify. You will see on page 36 of this issue that there are 17 recipients listed, and in Kevin’s column “as we see it” on page 4, an explanation of why we have decided against publishing the citations in Beaded Wheels. When we started to have members who had achieved 60 years membership, the Management Committee decided to award those members with an updated 60 year certificate to replace the older certificate in the frame but no further badge would be awarded. We now have a number of these members, and they are honoured at these presentation events with a new certificate. All 60 year recipients have already received the premier award and badge ten years earlier and had the right of reply. Our three recipients at the Canterbury Branch event were separately hosted with the seven 50 year recipients as a group, and sat at the top tables with them, the President’s representative and myself as Chairman. I was saddened to think that there could be any suggestion that we do not honour any of our older
members, or that the award of these certificates could be seen as less of an honour. I can assure you that these three gentlemen were treated with the utmost respect and were not offended at the proceedings. Last year our founder member and life member Andrew Anderson was presented with a 70 year certificate at an international event. He did not receive a badge or a frame either. John Coomber Canterbury Branch Chairman Steaming Along
While moving house recently I came across these photos of steam trucks from about 1910, they are both English. The truck with the trailer is a 1911 Foden 5 ton chain drive. I do not know what the other is, but if you look under the tray there is some kind of con-rod driving a crankshaft connected to the rear wheels. I will leave it to someone more qualified than me to sort that one out. Harry Lodge 1 Glencorse Street, Tokoroa 3420 1933 Lagonda Is there a member with one of these in their collection? My interest has been in photographing cars since I started work for a stock and station firm in 1948. One of our clients at Rakaia owned it. They had their honeymoon in England and brought back this car. I think it was a 1933 model but I don’t know the horse power. I think the car was sold in the late 1950s. It would have been a rare car and hopefully it is still alive with a caring owner. I would be pleased to hear from that owner and hopefully get some new photos. Clive Morriss, Christchurch, Phone 03 358 2753. clive_eileen@xtra.co.nz Beaded Wheels 7
From Wellington to Pebble Beach – the long way! Story and photos Mark and Sonia Richter, Tony Haycock
Judging time.
VCC members Mark and Sonia Richter made history as the first New Zealanders to take their car to the illustrious Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance and win their class. To put this in context, if you are a racing driver, Formula One is the absolute peak. As a rugby player, to win the World Cup and if climbing mountains, to stand atop Mt Everest is the proof you are at the top of your chosen field. For old car people, owners or restorers, to be invited to show your car on the lawn at Pebble Beach means you have the summit in sight. To win your class is as good as it gets. But to do it in a car you drive regularly, and to drive a couple of thousand km to be lined up against trailer queens and to still take the silverware is something which has never been done… until now!
16 Beaded Wheels
The invitation In late 2016 we received an invitation to enter our 1931 Hispano Suiza J12 in the 2017 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. This was a surprise and it looked like a fun event, but it was learning that we could also go on the nine day, 1700 mile Pebble Beach Motoring Classic (PBMC) from Seattle down to Monterey that convinced us to go ahead. Although we enjoy sharing our car at events we had never participated in an organised classic car tour before or competed in any concours events. Provenence and Preparation We bought the Hispano in 2011 and restored it for touring use around New Zealand which we often do. The three position convertible top, powerful 9.45 litre V12 engine, superb brakes and great handling make it a joy to tour in. It will happily cruise at freeway speeds and, more surprisingly, really likes twisting mountain roads. Ours was the first J12 built. Hispano commissioned Saoutchik to body a show car to launch the model (also known as Type 68) at the 1931 Paris Salon. Saoutchik built an elegant five passenger three position convertible to show off Hispano’s finest most expensive model. The car was also shown at the Olympia (London) Motorshow later that year and then again in the Geneva Salon in March 1932. It was subsequently sold to the Shah
of Persia and delivered in October where it was used as a parade car and remained there until 1963. The Hispano had covered around 23,000km from new when we bought it in 1979 from the first New Zealand owner, Roy Southward. Roy had purchased it from Bob Ortenberger of Oklahoma who had bought it from the Shah in 1963. The J12’s low mileage meant that most of the mechanical components had only been lightly worn and only needs light refurbishment. The engine had been fully rebuilt by Bristol Restorations in Wellington, in 2006 and by the time we received our invitation to Pebble Beach the J12 had covered around 30,000km of touring so needed a few things tidied up. Our restorers, Bristols, also went over the car sorting out little details and ensuring it was running superbly. Seattle We landed in Seattle in the middle of a heatwave. This was fine by us as we had just come from skiing in New Zealand and prior to that had spent a lot of our southern summer time ice driving in the Canadian Arctic. On our first night we met our wonderful PBMC hosts, Al and Sandi McEwan who run the PBMC. They treated us to an evening cruise in their perfectly presented picnic boat. After cruising Lake Washington checking out the mansions,
On the lawn with Sonia and Mark.
house boats and floating bridge we had a superb fish dinner. What a great way to start. The J12 had made the journey in one piece and was tucked up in Ron and Margie’s fabulous garage (along with a few other PBMC entrants). On starting it seemed very short of power. After driving it and trying a few tweaks we finally found that a carburettor linkage had come loose during shipping. Nothing serious. On the road with the PBMC Mid afternoon on Monday 7 August everybody met at Peter Hageman’s firehouse for registration. It was great to see all the cars together for the first time and to start putting faces to names. After an enthusiastic send off we all drove to the Woodmark Hotel ready for our start early the next morning. The evening was spent cruising out on the lake having our first drinks and meal together. Most people on the tour have done it before so it was a mix of new faces and old friends. The first day was the longest. We started out from a heat struck Seattle and things got hotter as the day progressed (up to around 105°F). The Chinook Pass was a highlight with lots of wildflowers near the top. The forest fire smoke haze limited the view of Mt Rainier and would continue to dog us for the next few days.
That evening it was a relief to have drinks by the relative cool of the Columbia Gorge. At dinner we were introduced to the fluffy dice tradition. Each evening the Master of the Dice, superbly performed by Julius Kruta on our trip, would award a pair of fluffy dice to the person he judged had made the biggest booboo that day. Some days the competition was pretty stiff. If you won you were expected to wear them to the next night’s dinner ready for hand over to that day’s lucky recipient. As we were still getting to know how the J12 handled the heat we decided to drive the steep 6000 ft climb up to Timberline Lodge in the cool of the morning. The Hispano dealt with it well but we still took a couple of precautionary breaks. This meant we missed out on the Columbia Gorge Historic Highway loop that most of the tour took. This is a must do for next time as the old highway shows off the gorge and its many beautiful natural features. Timberline Lodge is one of the depression era wonders. Started in 1936 it took only 15 months to complete. It was built entirely by hand by a mixed team of unemployed highly skilled craftsmen and men sent to assist and learn from them. Words do not do it justice. If you get the chance, spend a few nights there, preferably in winter.
After the climb of the previous day a beautiful twisting drive through the Claukamas River valley helped keep things cooler until after lunch. We stopped for a swim in the river (very cold, even for New Zealanders.) and then one in the much warmer Detroit Lake. Nicely cooled off we headed for the lunch spot near Sisters. The lunch stops on the tour allowed everyone to regroup before tackling the afternoon stage. Like all the meals provided on the PBMC they provided a convivial setting for getting to know our fellow participants. After lunch we headed up McKenzie Pass, an optional side trip that is a must. At the top of the pass is a vast moonscape of volcanic rock with surreal walks seeing different lava forms. Our evening at Bend was made more interesting by a dry lightning storm which, we later found out, started more fires. A long steady climb from Bend saw us arrive at Crater Lake around lunch. The tour had to use the Eastern rim road due to smoke from forest fires. Instead of lunch Sonia and I decided to walk down the rim trail and have a swim. The lake is the deepest in the US (1,949ft, 594m) and has very pure clear water. It’s also very cold. That evening we took the jet-boat ride up the Rouge River to its gorge which was lovely, though a bit tame compared to
Beaded Wheels 17
L24 BSA Words and photos Stuart Francis
The story starts in 2014 when as previously related (issue 347) “Mossy” (a local character with an eerie ability to unearth old motorcycles) told me and my friend Donald about a stash of barn find motorcycles that were for sale. The 10 hour drive north to Kaikoura was well worth it. I bought a 1946 MAC Velocette, a 1924 L24 BSA and a 1915 Douglas Donald bought a 1918 BSA and a 1924 CW Douglas.
A
fter sorting out the 1946 MAC Velocette I turned my attention to what had been sold as a 1926 L26 3½ hp1 (350cc) side-valve BSA. The machine was a real barn find and I decided to try to keep as much of the patina as possible. By far the biggest problem was that the back wheel was missing, as were the exhaust pipe and magneto. The rear mudguard was so damaged and twisted it could have been used as a very large corkscrew. The engine and gearbox looked like they needed some attention. Fortunately it came with a load of secondhand parts, three engines, a refurbished barrel with a new piston, four gearboxes, a couple of clutches and some other spares. The engine was quite an easy job. After removing the rather tired top end I found the bottom end was not too bad. Fitting the refurbished barrel and piston got the project off to a flying start. What did take time was making the cylinder head valve covers and sealing rings. Having 1 The RAC horsepower tax rating based on
piston area.
22 Beaded Wheels
machined a piece of brass to the right shape, screw-cutting the fine thread on my worn lathe was a bit fiddly, needing a couple of passes with a thread chaser before they felt right. Silver soldering a piece of bored out hexagon brass bar onto the top of the valve cover finished them off. The sealing rings were just very thin pieces of aluminium tube that I annealed to soften them. The gearbox was next and after replacing the output shaft ball bearing and a rather worn gear selector, it all seemed to go together quite well. A suitable old Lucas magneto was found in my stock of spares to replace the missing item. A quick rebuild, including re-magnetising, produced a healthy spark. The badly twisted rear mudguard was held together by the number plate mounting bracket. It took a lot of work to tease it straight, weld up the cracks, tap out the larger dents and paint it in an industrial semi matt black that looks like old worn enamel. The rear carrier looked alright until it was removed. It was twisted
and had a number of rust holes on the underside. Some deft work with the welder and grinder, followed by clamping it in the big vice and applying pressure through a piece of timber soon sorted it out. A quick coat of my favourite paint finished it off. The front forks were stripped to check for wear. BSA used an unusual arrangement, the side links have short tubes brazed onto them that run in bushes in the steering head arms and fork legs. The tubes and bushes were slightly worn but were ok for a machine that might just exceed 45mph and will only be used on high days and holidays. I did replace the four very long bolts that held the side links in place, it looked like somebody had used an 18 inch Stilson wrench to tighten them. By far the biggest job was fabricating the rear wheel. The narrow 19 inch, WM1 rim, rear wheel from my pile of bits seemed a good start. It quickly became clear that to centre the wheel rim, get the rear chain in line and brake plate in place the rim had to be re-spoked with a different offset
and a dished rear sprocket manufactured. The sprocket needed three layers of metal to get the right amount of dishing, like three levels of a pyramid. Keeping the sprocket teeth concentric and true to the centre whilst welding it all up was a bit of a challenge. After a bit of trial and error and a quick skim in the lathe, it all started to line up. Originally the 1924 L24 had dummy rim brakes at both ends but at some point the front brake had been replaced with the slightly later internal expanding band brake. The spring steel brake band is anchored at one end and the brake lever pushes the other end, expanding the band and forcing the friction material onto the inside of the brake drum. The friction material was rather worn, so after some initial discussions about bonding, a local friction material supplier riveted on a new lining. The rear brake is an early BSA Bantam item that does not look out of place. The exhaust pipe was an old Matchless G80 pipe that was severely cut and shut
to fit the tortuous path it had to follow, leaving it outside in the rain to rust added to the look. So after assembling all the bits together and the pipe work connected, it was time to start putting the oil and petrol into the tanks. The first concern was there seemed to be a small but persistent oil leak coming from the front left-hand side of the oil-tank. Initially I thought it was the hand oil pump pipe union, then I thought it was a split seam, but it eventually turned out to be a couple of tiny rust holes in the bottom of the tank. The petrol tank was ok but petrol shot out of the AMAC carburettor when the fuel was turned on. Suspicion fell on the float level and after some head scratching it turned out that a later float needle had been fitted. Tony Warren, who owns a very nice 1928 ohv model, experienced the same problem and suggested fitting a hole-punch eyelet on the float needle shaft to adjust the fuel level. It helped considerably, however there was still a steady slow drip from the bottom of the Beaded Wheels 23