Monday, 22 October 2012
#vanlife
Just a few iphone shots from a great weekend away in York. Autumn was looking it's best, good food, good company, good vanlife!
Sunday, 14 October 2012
Roof reality
This was the weekend I'd been waiting for over the whole period of having the van; the day we finally talk about putting the pop-top roof in. A day that I had in my mind would be exciting and momentous in the van's project history - in reality, I'm left rather deflated about the whole thing...
Those of you that have followed the Stone174 blog from the first post will have a good idea of the order that things have been done in. The project has always been a 'save a bit, spend a bit' affair, with jobs changing priority as the van has transformed.
The order has gone; windows, lining, bed, electrics, furniture, roof.
Ideally (if it had been an open cheque-book job) it would have been roof, windows, electrics, lining, furniture, bed. Almost completely the opposite way to how we have done it.
So to fit the roof it isn't just a case of whipping out the hacksaw and cutting a hole. To fit the strengthening beams the rear cupboard has to be trimmed. To do this right the interior furniture has to come out. To do this the bed has to come out, To remove the bed, most of the electrics/stereo/lighting have to come out.
We always knew it was going to be a bigger project than fitting a roof to an empty van - but can I entrust someone else to pull it all apart and put it back together again?
So far we've only chatted to GT Campers about this. Their advantages are location, experience, and the right product - a roof from Reimo. They seem to have fitted quite a few and have ironed-out all the little quirks and issues that some less-experienced fitters have had - the marketplace is currently swamped with companies claiming to have the ultimate roof solution, but after a lot of research it seems many people have said 'I wish I had paid the extra and gone for Reimo'.
So. Do I start pulling bits of the van apart myself? Or do I hand it over and say 'everything works, give it me back like this, but with a roof!'
GT have said they only need the van for a week - which scares me a little after recent experiences with the facelift where I was given a similar deadline that over-ran. I'd rather it took two than was rushed in one.
One way or another it will be done this side of Christmas (hopefully) and to cheer us up from the dreaded thought of pulling our beloved camper apart, we ordered camping passes and tickets to next year's Volksworld show. Something to aim for and keep in sight throughout what I hope is going to be a painless process.
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| Photo credit: Paul Nutton |
Those of you that have followed the Stone174 blog from the first post will have a good idea of the order that things have been done in. The project has always been a 'save a bit, spend a bit' affair, with jobs changing priority as the van has transformed.
The order has gone; windows, lining, bed, electrics, furniture, roof.
Ideally (if it had been an open cheque-book job) it would have been roof, windows, electrics, lining, furniture, bed. Almost completely the opposite way to how we have done it.
So to fit the roof it isn't just a case of whipping out the hacksaw and cutting a hole. To fit the strengthening beams the rear cupboard has to be trimmed. To do this right the interior furniture has to come out. To do this the bed has to come out, To remove the bed, most of the electrics/stereo/lighting have to come out.
 |
| Photo credit: Paul Nutton |
We always knew it was going to be a bigger project than fitting a roof to an empty van - but can I entrust someone else to pull it all apart and put it back together again?
So far we've only chatted to GT Campers about this. Their advantages are location, experience, and the right product - a roof from Reimo. They seem to have fitted quite a few and have ironed-out all the little quirks and issues that some less-experienced fitters have had - the marketplace is currently swamped with companies claiming to have the ultimate roof solution, but after a lot of research it seems many people have said 'I wish I had paid the extra and gone for Reimo'.
So. Do I start pulling bits of the van apart myself? Or do I hand it over and say 'everything works, give it me back like this, but with a roof!'
GT have said they only need the van for a week - which scares me a little after recent experiences with the facelift where I was given a similar deadline that over-ran. I'd rather it took two than was rushed in one.
One way or another it will be done this side of Christmas (hopefully) and to cheer us up from the dreaded thought of pulling our beloved camper apart, we ordered camping passes and tickets to next year's Volksworld show. Something to aim for and keep in sight throughout what I hope is going to be a painless process.
Friday, 28 September 2012
Wheels & Tyres For Sale
Right. Decision Time.
The BBS CH are now up for sale. They are 19x8.5 with offset ET35. PCD is 5x120 - bolt straight on to your T5 without adaptors. They come with spigot rings, a full set of bolts and a set of locking bolts.
Genuine BBS centre caps and logo valve caps will also be supplied.
Tyres are all Kumhos, 245/40/19 Extra load rated. Two of these have done a little more than a thousand miles, whilst the other pair have done around 5k.
UPDATE: NOW SOLD
They aren't perfect... but they aren't bad either. The stainless steel rim protector ring can be removed and replaced; they've had a couple of minor dings but nothing that stands out from three feet away.
A couple of spokes have the odd stonechip but nothing major. But they are genuine BBS alloys with good tyres, not cheap repros. No welds, cracks or repairs.
New this wheel and tyre package cost £2,250. So I'm asking the fair price of £1,250 for the quality German wheels and tyres. Open to sensible offers to move these on.
Re-advertised due to time-waster. Now just £850 with the option of free delivery.
UPDATE: NOW SOLD
The BBS CH are now up for sale. They are 19x8.5 with offset ET35. PCD is 5x120 - bolt straight on to your T5 without adaptors. They come with spigot rings, a full set of bolts and a set of locking bolts.
Genuine BBS centre caps and logo valve caps will also be supplied.
Tyres are all Kumhos, 245/40/19 Extra load rated. Two of these have done a little more than a thousand miles, whilst the other pair have done around 5k.
UPDATE: NOW SOLD
They aren't perfect... but they aren't bad either. The stainless steel rim protector ring can be removed and replaced; they've had a couple of minor dings but nothing that stands out from three feet away.
A couple of spokes have the odd stonechip but nothing major. But they are genuine BBS alloys with good tyres, not cheap repros. No welds, cracks or repairs.
New this wheel and tyre package cost £2,250. So I'm asking the fair price of £1,250 for the quality German wheels and tyres. Open to sensible offers to move these on.
Re-advertised due to time-waster. Now just £850 with the option of free delivery.
UPDATE: NOW SOLD
Thursday, 20 September 2012
Canopy update
Earlier in the year we decided to update the old Bluebird canopy. Whilst there was nothing really wrong with it, the material did seem heavy, it didn't pack away particularly well, and would easily fill up with rain at the mere sign of drizzle.
Here's the replacement:
This Khyam version is similar in design but much more lightweight making it easier to fold and store away. The three legs, spiked at either end, come with four sections each (only shown with three in the pic) and the usual beaded 'Kador' strip is sewn down one long edge.
It slots straight into the Reimo multirail, no need for adaptors or 8-strip. Length-wise, it's almost exactly the same length as the multirail making it ideal for the T5.
Water tends to bead more than settle and eventually finds a direction to run off rather than pooling in the centre. Total packed weight comes in at less than 3kg in a bag no longer than a single pole section (around 650mm long). Grab one yourself from Khyam here.
Here's the replacement:
This Khyam version is similar in design but much more lightweight making it easier to fold and store away. The three legs, spiked at either end, come with four sections each (only shown with three in the pic) and the usual beaded 'Kador' strip is sewn down one long edge.
It slots straight into the Reimo multirail, no need for adaptors or 8-strip. Length-wise, it's almost exactly the same length as the multirail making it ideal for the T5.
Water tends to bead more than settle and eventually finds a direction to run off rather than pooling in the centre. Total packed weight comes in at less than 3kg in a bag no longer than a single pole section (around 650mm long). Grab one yourself from Khyam here.
Sunday, 16 September 2012
Show report: Busfest 2012
With a name change for 2012, Busfest seemed to have lost none of the attraction of the Vanfests that have gone before it. Glorious weather for the three days helped massively and the camping, although well spaced out, seemed as busy as ever. The day visitors car park would have made a show in itself - it was huge! And the numbers of T4 and T5 parked up went to prove that late vans have become incredibly popular.
Numbers of foreign visitors, both camping and trading seemed up too - surely a good sign. The whole showground had a lovely relaxed vibe to it (maybe the sunshine and lager helped there) and everyone seemed a little more chilled out than usual. I suppose the three-day format helps, there's no rush to see and do everything all at once.
I'll let the pics do the talking:
The Sunday show and shine lineup was the only slightly disappointing bit (or have I just been to too many shows?). Firstly, half the 'usual' arena size had been given over to the Syncro driving display which is good to watch for 15 mins then a little same-y. There's only so much you can do with a 4x4 on a flat showground. This meant the show and shine was crammed into the other half. Cue buses and vans parked ridiculously close together that you couldn't take a decent photograph or get a good look at the vehicle. If my van had been in there I'd be really worried about bags, zips, BIKES! scratching my lovely paintwork.
Secondly, with hundreds of visitors turning up in T4s and T5s why are there hardly any in the show? And those that are there (and this is my own controversial opinion) are sometimes lacking in taste and subtlety. Where are the truly jaw-dropping T5s? They all seem to be on the stands of the converters and not in the show lineup.
That said, it is always good to have a nosey around other vans from any era. You can always pick up another 'ooh, that's a cool way of storing that' or 'that's a nice finish to the woodwork' regardless of how the van has been converted.
Busfest 2013 will definitely be on my list to visit again - who knows, if they can sort out that show arena size - maybe I'll put my money where my mouth is and get the Stone174 in there...
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| Cool T5 from TransportersRUs - this was my van of the show |
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| Nice details, well executed and different |
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| Lusting over the Syncro line up |
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| Nice front end options from Ultimate Transporters |
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| Cool looking chin spoiler |
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| Some sweet rides from overseas |
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| Another truck for the dream garage |
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| It wasn't all buses - this Ghia on air had me and many others drooling |
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| Stock or slammed, something for all tastes |
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| Not all VWs either - this cool Dodge had a Kustom tiki-inspired interior |
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| More gorgeous classic buses |
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| Plenty of early barndoor splits in attendance |
Secondly, with hundreds of visitors turning up in T4s and T5s why are there hardly any in the show? And those that are there (and this is my own controversial opinion) are sometimes lacking in taste and subtlety. Where are the truly jaw-dropping T5s? They all seem to be on the stands of the converters and not in the show lineup.
That said, it is always good to have a nosey around other vans from any era. You can always pick up another 'ooh, that's a cool way of storing that' or 'that's a nice finish to the woodwork' regardless of how the van has been converted.
Busfest 2013 will definitely be on my list to visit again - who knows, if they can sort out that show arena size - maybe I'll put my money where my mouth is and get the Stone174 in there...
Monday, 10 September 2012
Another perfect week away
We took off straight from work last Thursday and did the usual run to Taunton Deane for an overnight stop, leaving us nearer to our beloved Cornwall the next day. It may have been the tiredness but instead of telling the chap at the services we were sleeping in the car park, we told him we were in a Motorhome... 'that'll be £20 then' was the reply, 'but you do get a £10 voucher for breakfast'. Which we promptly snapped-up and used the following morning.
Staying at our usual campsite Trewan Hall for a week - the perfect place to relax. It has become the norm now for our September visits not to bother with the Khyam awning, but to live out of the van just using our new Khyam canopy for a little outside shelter.
After a week of mooching around Cornwall; eating, drinking, walking, sitting and generally doing very little, we headed up to the Camping & Caravanning Club site at Blackmore - just around the corner from Busfest at the Three Counties Showground. The weather was playing-ball and we could barbecue each evening - unfortunately surrounded by other people...
Dotted amongst the other campers were a collective of vehicles that had done the Silk Road - an ancient trade route from China back to Europe. Obviously you need a vehicle that is slightly more hardcore than the usual, this MAN based 4x4 camper was my pick of the crop, a truly awesome machine:
So after nearly three full days of milling around Busfest and the campsite looking at cool campers, it was time to head for home. Perfect weather, perfect surroundings, in an almost perfect van (I'll go in to detail in the next post), what more could you want from a week away?
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| Ready for off - the early bird is first to the beach! |
Staying at our usual campsite Trewan Hall for a week - the perfect place to relax. It has become the norm now for our September visits not to bother with the Khyam awning, but to live out of the van just using our new Khyam canopy for a little outside shelter.
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| Note the lack of other people - just how I like my campsites |
After a week of mooching around Cornwall; eating, drinking, walking, sitting and generally doing very little, we headed up to the Camping & Caravanning Club site at Blackmore - just around the corner from Busfest at the Three Counties Showground. The weather was playing-ball and we could barbecue each evening - unfortunately surrounded by other people...
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| Parked on hard standing doesn't quite give you that 'barefoot on grass' feeling |
Dotted amongst the other campers were a collective of vehicles that had done the Silk Road - an ancient trade route from China back to Europe. Obviously you need a vehicle that is slightly more hardcore than the usual, this MAN based 4x4 camper was my pick of the crop, a truly awesome machine:
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| Any vehicle that needs a ladder to get in to is cool in my book! |
So after nearly three full days of milling around Busfest and the campsite looking at cool campers, it was time to head for home. Perfect weather, perfect surroundings, in an almost perfect van (I'll go in to detail in the next post), what more could you want from a week away?
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| Sunrise on the day we head for home |
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