1966 Ex BRS Austin VAK 100 "Noddy" van. Shack building.

That's fantastic news, Glen. I'm really enjoying this thread and admire your determination. I can foresee the finished article being a show stopper!

Just needs one of your famous minting sessions?

Great to see it finally arrive and let the transformation begin!

that single picture is the fulcrum for this entire thread !! well done

is that your S2 too? don't think i've ever seen it come to think !

It's certainly in need of love, but at least it has a skin to be bad under... 

Thanks folks, for your words of encouragement. 

Sciclone, I can't work on it where it is, nothing beyond tinkering anyway. The engine swap will have to be done on my driveway at home once it's here. I may look into hiring/borrowing/stealing some kind of heavy machinery to aid the swap, but it will depend on funds and timescales. I may have a request out for some physical assistance at some point, but it's a long, long way off yet. Also, to be fair, the phrase "doesn't play well with others" could have been coined for me...

Yes Darren, that's my Series 2. I've been following your adventures with yours elsewhere, nice work on the doors!

Hi Phuq, yes, I've been on the S2C forum for a very long time indeed, I remember your Morris because I was very tempted indeed by it myself, and quite relieved that someone else bought it and saved me from myself! 

Right, bit of an update.

Had a couple of hours spare today, so set off to the yard armed with a Landy full of tools to see where I could get myself...

First off, I remembered to take my decent camera, so I could get some better pics than with my phone.



The tyres were all very soggy, so when it arrived I had pumped the front ones up a bit to make it easier to steer. The passenger side went up OK, but the driver's one developed an alarming bulge, so I let it down again!

This is after I'd let it down!



Fortunately I've got five of the old van's tyres that still hold air, so I took one of them along to swap over.



One pic of a big brake drum, but I neglected to take any of the "new" wheel fitted... Doh!

Anyway, with that done, and needing to regain my breath, I took a walk around and took a few more pictures.





These first two ^^^ show the area of chassis at the very front that will need attention. This seems to be a common weal point on these; all the ones I've viewed have been bad here, with this one being one of the best. Access should be OK with the engine out and front wings off. I can cut repair sections from the bits of old chassis I've kept. I may also add a strengthening web to the open side of the "C" section along the length of where the engine and gearbox will sit to make sure that doubling the power and torque output won't cause me undue problems down the line.





The next two show the cab step areas, which should also have runners on them to support the door bottoms. These will both need stripping out and rebuilding. They're only ply, which is why they've not lasted. I've been thinking, and will probably use pre-machined oak floorboards to repair these areas, and the cab floor, as it's easy to obtain, relatively cheap and will be very long lasting, even in areas exposed to the elements like here.



"Interesting" rear step/towbar affair. This will be going straight in the skip! It will be replaced either with something adjustable and less easy to walk into, or by a tail lift. I'm undecided. A tail lift will make my life very much easier, but will be difficult to reconcile with my plan of keeping the external appearance "period"...



Rear plywood doors (which were knackered), are in the back of the wagon, along with a load of other rubbish the seller couldn't be bothered to remove. The mounts and runners from the original roller shutter are still there. Most of the ones I've seen or seen pictures of have the short tailgate and roller shutter at the back, but one of the hulks in Lincolnshire had a tailgate and two barn doors. I'm not sure which way I'll go, they both have their advantages and disadvantages. It mainly hinges on the tail-lift decision and what is available secondhand when the time comes. A full height roller shutter is another option, or full height barn doors.





You can see from these next two that one of the side panels (the one with the awful butchered side door) has popped a few screws on the journey up and down the country. Considering it did over 500 miles at motorway speeds on the back of a lorry, and I thought when I first saw it that it wouldn't take the move, I'm pleased that there is as little damage, and that the structure is obviously still as sound as it appeared when I looked properly. I could re-secure the existing panels, and seal the side door shut, but I thin I will take the opportunity to replace the entire panel and doing so make a better job of it. 



This one shows how roomy the cab is, by 1950s/60s standards. The view of the road out of the windscreens is impressive, particularly compared to that from the Land-Rover!

I then moved on to the engine. With a socket on the crank pulley bolt I could turn the engine about 1/3 of a revolution before coming up against something hard. I suspected a stuck valve, so whipped the rocker cover off to check. I say whipped, getting the air-cleaner off the inlet manifold was a challenge, the alloy manifold and steel pipe were reluctant to part company after so long, but did so eventually.



I was presented by a very grotty oily mess. The exhaust valve for number six cylinder was stuck open, so I gave it a squirt of WD40 and a couple of light taps with a small hammer and it popped shut. Sweet.   The engine then turned easily by hand through several revolutions, so I was happy enough with that. I then replaced the rocker cover, trying not to think of all that muck, and refitted the air cleaner.

I then disconnected the electrical services completely from where they joined the main battery feed cable at the starter. The wiring looks pretty ropy, and I don't want any chances of it going up in smoke. I put a jump lead on the starter terminals but, although the starter was clicking, it wouldn't spin. It was getting late then, so I quickly whipped the starter off and packed the tools up. I won't get a chance to go back until next week sometime, so in the meantime I'll strip, clean and rebuild the starter, and make up a short loom to connect to a temporary starter switch. 

All the best, and thanks again for your words of encouragement! Glen.

Those pictures show much better the construction, it's a marvel it's stayed as complete as it has. The whole thing looks built to a budget rather than to last, which can be good for repairs and restoration but certainly bad for longevity.

Quite an exciting thing really, and any commercial with doors that disappear into the body get extra points from me.

J van! Sweet.

What a great wagon this is...!!!

Everything about it is just so intriguing to me! I love it...

Keep the updates coming sir...