1950s Metcalfe Van - Rescued

[reddo]

Hi All
Following on from the lead i got from a bloke at broke fair.. i went to Singleton yesterday armed with a car trailer and a stack of rescue gear.
Rescued this van from a shed where it had been stored since 1970.... 47 years without seeing the light of day..
Deceased estate of the Late Glyn Cox

it measures 9'7 1/2" long and is 6'7" wide..

Attention Richard...for your records
I found a little plaque screwed on the top cupboards..
States.."Manufactured by A. Metcalfe- Wallsend"
I am guessing approx 1956 / to 60.. Has FJ Holden wheels ( braked)
Timber windows.. ice chest.. has had conversion to gas 2 burner stove
No mention of Metcalfe vans in "The Library".. ??

Drawbar has been cut and reset to suit the 5 ton Austin truck that Glyn use to tow the van with.. interesting to note that the coupling has been set up at an angle to keep it level when towing after the drawbar mod was made...
Here is a few pix of the "mission" yesterday.. 36 degrees and howling westerly winds .. luckily i had the wind behind me for the run home.
Will add more pictures of what needs repairing later on in another post.

Reddo

[reddo]

Can only post 3 pix at a time ...
Something i havent seen before in the old vans.... is a table at either end.. so can seat 6 for dinner.. but only 3 can stay and sleep.
Both tables have good undamaged green laminex.. Sink is green fin old hand pump.

More later

[Strugglebrook]

As always camp with the Master overnight at Broke provide exellent company and allow him to give Rattcliffe numerous pats and Smakos.
The Master scores another little plywood gem. No one closes the deal like the Master.
Gives me something to aspire too.

Junior .

[iluvans]

Great find Reddo!!
More chance of finding a rare vintage van like that than finding a NSW NRL team in a grand final!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[iluvans]

Seriously though....how good to find a beaut V Van made in your very own suburb. Special significnence for you. Great stuff!!

[iluvans]

BTW.....how did the olde Panno go towing her home?

[reddo]

Hi Iluvans and Strugglebrook.

Iluvans.... Gunna be a great Grand final....Asmuch as i admire The Cowboys effort to get to the big one.. I think that 8th playing 1st will be a bit too much for them...It will be Melbourne raising the shield this year.
As long as its a good game without the refand the touchies wearing out the pea in their whistles and letting the game flow .. it should be a great game.

Panno handled the towing reasonably easy....in fact it worked harder on the way up the valley with the car carrier empty pushing into a 40 knot hot nor wester for an hour than it did sailing home with the van ( i reckon around 450 KG max) loaded on the trailer with the wind up behind us.
Had a bit of a mishap with the panno yesterday when taking an FJ wheel back that i had borrowed from humpty....will show ya a photo in my next post.

Strugglebrook..... thanks for the kind words mate.....Aaaaah young grasshopper.. you have much to learn.... here is a bit of wisdom from the old master .....' We hear through our ears not our mouths... In order to be told something , one must stop talking long enough to listen ....Otherwise opportunity to prosper may well be lost"....

Before i go any further ..
My reputation as a re-seller goes before me . and... if there is anyone out there interested in the little van i will listening to offers from here on.. and during the restoration...
Which means if someone offers me a reasonable amount at this point i would consider selling it as is where is now.. As progress is made on tidying up and money/time is spent on it.. my sellable price will increase accordingly...
So....if anyone is interested at any stage during the resto process ??..they can contact me via a PM here on the forum... or reddo952@bigpond.net.au with a brief message and a contact number.

Here is a few more pix of the van.

A few more later.

Cheers
Reddo

[reddo]

Another interesting feature of the van is the "Slide up" fly screens.
They drop down into a cavity below the windows on either side of the van .
Has a retro style annodised 240 v light fitting
The hatch mechanism is accessed through a small hinge down door at the front and rear of the Hatch.
Brass gauze on all flyscreens.
The door originally had an opening top section with a gauze window behind it.. but time has taken its toll and will need a rebuild.
I still havent got any further info on "metcalfe" but if the old fella did make vans in Wallsend i dont thing there was too many of them.
Having said that he went to a bit of effort to get the little plaques made??.... something that some of the better known van companies of that period didnt do!!.
The quality of workmanship on the doors and cupboards would indicate that Metcalfe vans wherent a " backyard roughy " job.. someone new what they where doing ( unlike me.. the wood butcher) and had good carpentry /joiner skills !!!
Reddo

[reddo]

Here is a pix of the drawbar with its "nose up" look.
Its has the Newcastle safety hitch welded in place at an angle to the drawbar to allow the brake mech to work horizontally.
If it was welded in at the same angle as the drawbar it would possible cause the piston to jam when trying to slide through the hitch body when under brakes...


Ok.. back to taking the spare wheel i borrowed from Humpty.

I was heading up to Humptys Monday morning . slowed and stopped at a roundabout to give way to a coffee van and a large semi coming into the roundabout on my right.
Stopped briefly before hearing someone locking up behind me..... followed by a BANG... and the was propelled across the intersection just quick enough to avoid smacking into the coffee van. the glovebox was jolted open, the keys spat out of the ignition and the bench seat had shifted itself back to the furtherest rearward position it could possibly go..
Motor was still running so i rolled across the intersection followed by the 2012 Hilux that had done the damage.
Got out ready to snot the driver.. who.. by this time was out of the car and full of apologies.... he at east realised that he was in the wrong and was near in tears about smashing into a classic car.
I went off the boil a bit when i seen this .. also a big relief to see that his bullbar post had lined up the towball on the EH and it had taken most of the impact... and had shortened itself from being 4" away from the number plate to being sqwiushed against the plate.
The replacement towbar that the mate made for me a while back when the old towbar faiked had certainly saved the car from copping major rear end massage.
The bullbar has just touched the tailgate and left two small crease in it as well as putting a slight bow in the spare wheel door. all in all.. the van escaped anything too major considering the speed he hit me at. If he had been an inch or 2 either way ..left or right the entire rear of the van would have been caved in.. possible rightoff.
I got all his details and will be visiting a few panelshops today. I called at the towbar builders shop and shook his had and thanked him for overengineering the towbar and comissioned him to build a new one just as soon as the claim is organised.

I reckon with Kangaroos commiting suicide in through the grill back in May and Kamakazi Hilux drivers attacking from the rear ....the poor old panno has just about had all the excitement it ( and its owner) can handle for 2017..

Reddo

[Strugglebrook]

Thank you for the advise Master, I will also keep an eye on the rear vision mirror.

Junior