|
Post by sharon on Aug 11, 2015 15:49:16 GMT 1
HI Folks, I have a MK1 1974 Transit Campervan. I bought her as a wreck & have slowly been restoring her over the past few years. I just have to learn how to upload photos to this site. She is almost complete. I only have the interior of the front cab to do & a little touch up here & there & then she is done! So keep an eye on this space as her story & pictures will be coming very soon!
|
|
|
Post by FredTransit on Aug 11, 2015 19:15:48 GMT 1
Photo posting instructions are now a sticky at the Announcements section at the top of the forum. I look forward to seeing em Sharon!
|
|
|
Post by sharon on Aug 14, 2015 18:04:22 GMT 1
HI Folks, I have a MK1 1974 Transit Campervan. I bought her as a wreck & have slowly been restoring her over the past few years. I started on the camper as she was leaking badly & was already drive-able. She was leaking from the roof on the right hand passenger's side over the cab. Unbeknownst to me she was rotted through, so I had to replace the roof, left hand side & the back. Still keeping the original windows & entry door. Being a crazy fisher person, I put up the long PCP pipe you can see on the side to hold my rods.
After I had the roof, left hand side and back replacedFront View The good side which didn't need replacing The back Rotted wood around temporary sky light Roof falling in Mold everywhere More rot & water damage Rotted front roof Old cupboard doors Door fell off, rotted roof caving in Roof rotted all the way to the back Better view of how damaged the roof was Smelled too There used to be a front window. Broken & leaking Afterwards insideGot rid of the cupborad & put in a fishing tackle rack Top view New roof Driver's side view New upholstery New passenger's side New sky vent Better view Rear section Without table You’ve got to have tunes for your ride, so I put in a new stereo with blue tooth capability & USB so I can charge my phone & talk safely while on the road. New speakers for the back, the front speakers were already great. After that, I did what I could inside, like change the cupboard doors from terrible cheap chipboard to marine pine. Every time you opened a door, chips of wood would flutter down over everything. There was so much fake wood grain, I just painted them white. To break things up a bit & brighten it up. I slowly replaced the wood under the seats, as it had also seen better days too. I reupholstered all the cushions with an industrial water & fire resistant fabric which I got for a song & in just the right colour too. Lastly I replace the linoleum floor and man did that make a huge difference! It made everything pop & look new & fresh. The last thing I need to do is make new curtains which I hope will make a huge difference too. I’m glad I haven’t yet as there has been so much dirt & dust with all the Reno’s I’ve done. Now that I’m almost done, I’m tempted to re do the laminex in the kitchen. We will have to wait & see on that.
That's all for now. Will continue soon!
|
|
|
Post by FredTransit on Aug 14, 2015 19:27:51 GMT 1
That's a mammoth job there! Looking good again there. Did you take the whole roof off?
|
|
|
Post by irishtransit on Aug 14, 2015 19:27:57 GMT 1
wow the transformation is amazing.she looks a nice usable van now.
|
|
|
Post by rick on Aug 14, 2015 21:34:01 GMT 1
Like it! You will soon be have some fun in the old girl
|
|
|
Post by troppo on Aug 15, 2015 0:52:15 GMT 1
Well done mate, thats an incredible transformation. You`ll be camping in comfort from now on i reckon
|
|
|
Post by retiredtruckie on Aug 15, 2015 1:41:15 GMT 1
Looks real good you'll be camping and fishing in no time
|
|
|
Post by cadill69 on Aug 15, 2015 2:39:34 GMT 1
Looking good! NSW to, I'll keep an eye out for you.
|
|
|
Post by sharon on Aug 15, 2015 11:48:13 GMT 1
HI Fred, Yes the entire roof was replaced. It was just so rotted it couldn't be saved. As for fishing & camping. I've used her the whole time. I used to put a tarp over her while camping to keep the rain out.My faithful camping & fishing buddies keeping an eye on the van for me!
|
|
|
Post by jonochap on Aug 16, 2015 10:38:07 GMT 1
Well worth the time and hard work, lovely camper well jel
|
|
|
Post by FredTransit on Aug 16, 2015 13:20:18 GMT 1
Loving the Jacks too. We have two.
|
|
|
Post by rick on Aug 16, 2015 21:22:30 GMT 1
Love the fact you have used it as you have done it mate I can't wait for mine to be road legal
|
|
|
Post by sharon on Aug 17, 2015 6:45:30 GMT 1
Hi Folks, the next installment! She originally had the 200 cubic straight 6 cylinder in her. I tow my boat behind her & she was struggling to get up hills. Plus the engine was tired so I was able to find a new 250 cubic straight 6. She doesn’t go any faster but she has more torque & power to get up those hills. Plus I have a much larger boat now too. I don’t need speed, although she does get up to 110 kms, because, let’s face it, she is a loaf of bread on wheels. However, with this new power I found the brakes weren’t strong enough. Especially with the boat on the back. I never felt like I was going to stop in time, so I found myself travelling way behind the vehicle in front. So I got my brakes boosted. So much so, that I almost go through the windscreen now! As for petrol consumption she is pretty thirsty. She also had a small petrol tank of around 60 litres which would only give me a bit over 200kms. Plus the tank had a bad leak to boot, so I got a custom made tank made which holds about 110 litres now. After much tinkering, I’ve even got the petrol gauge working now too. This has made me a much happier camper! So the camper part is done, she has a new engine and a long haul petrol tank, now for the front cab.I was dreading the front cab, as I knew she had a fair bit of rust & it was going to be expensive. Under the windscreen I found there was mostly bog from bad work in the past on her. The driver’s side wing had a lot of internal rust too. I got new parts where I could, but, as most of you already know, it’s not that easy finding parts. Especially here in Australia. Never the less, I soldier on & you can see the result from the photos.BeforeDuringAfterI got the stripe put back on her Left Hand SideI have to start a new post as I have reached too many photos for this one.
|
|
|
Post by sharon on Aug 17, 2015 7:49:57 GMT 1
After the front cab looked so good, I decided to do the inside of the cab too. Man, am I glad I did, because when I pulled up the floor, I found the wheel arches had really bad rust & the driver’s floor was like the Fred Flinstone’s car. I could see the road beneath my feet!
Before
After I ripped everything out
I’ve been able to get the heater working again after all this time. Have replaced all the hoses. What a treat! I bought 2 new truck seats for her. Suspensions ones with 2 armrests, which I just love love love!! Did I tell you how much I love my new seats? I’ve just got her back from the spray painter who painted the inside cab. This is where I’m up to. I'll got out tomorrow & take some photos of her newly painted inside. The sun has gone down now. I’ve been slowly pulling apart the dash, restoring the paint work. It’s starting to look really good. I’d love to find a new wiper & heater fan switch. If anyone knows where I might find them that would be a great help!
Next I’m going to install matting to reduce the noise & heat from the engine. As you can imagine not so pleasant in summer down here. Pretty nice at the moment since it is winter here. New carpet, the seats back in & she is done! Not long now. Will post photos on completion. I hope you have enjoyed her long winded history.
|
|