1971 Viscount 22ft Chassis A4128 Retrovation

[Deleted]

I just picked up my new/old van today and thought that I would share my "before" photos, and give you some of the background from the previous owners. I haven't included many interior "before" photos, as they actually look like "after" photos!



The reason for this is that the inside has been stripped out, insulated and rebuilt over the past 12 months. However the job was not quite completed before the owner decided to sell the caravan, so not much of the original internals remains.



I think that the original kitchen would have been just behind the front door, where the little obscure glazed window is located, and there is a fridge vent to the outside. The previous owner installed the new L-shaped dinette where the old kitchen was, and put a new kitchen to the front.



Externally the previous owner put in new axles, new electric brakes, new lights, new drawbars, new windows and a new air-conditioner. With all of the new fit-out, new electrical and new appliances, I don't know if it should still be included in this Classic Caravans forum?



The previous owners also repainted the exterior, with an etch primer and a gloss white and the non-Viscount stripes. If the budget can stretch I would love to re-instate the original Viscount side flashes.



My plan is to make a few small interior layout changes and finish off the previous owners interior work, which is mostly minor jobs like timber and window trims. I am also planning to commence a "retrovation" on the interior, and try and make it look more retro and original, while still keeping the functionality of all the new gear. While it is great to have a new interior with no wood rot or dampness, it looks a little bit safe and neutral for my taste.



The first stop after picking it up was to talk to a caravan refurbisher (The RV Repair Centre in Kilsyth) to get all the electrical work certified and to talk about re-upholstering. I was thinking of re-upholstering in a retro-style vinyl, but was told that they only do fabric (which can look a bit cheap), or leather, which is going to be too expensive!

I suspect that this maybe the tip of the iceberg in trying to give it an authentic feel with materials that are considered outdated or unfashionable.



One of the original features which I will be getting rid of is the old folding dining table. It is an oval shape, with the two half-circle ends that can be folded down in the original soft-grey coloured woodgrain laminate. If anybody has a 1971 Viscount with the matching laminate and needs a matching table please contact me.

Wish me luck on my adventure as I know a few people, including the Mrs, and the people at the RV Repair Centre, scratching their heads and wondering why I would buy an old caravan, that looks new, and spend money on making it look old again!

[annieoakley]

I am very interested in the table. I am also in Melbourne eastern suburbs. My van is not Viscount but has the matching laminate. My van has two seating areas but only one table.

[Deleted]

Hi Annie, I am glad you will be able to make use of it rather than the table going to landfill. Send me a private message so we can work out the best way for you to pick it up. Remaim

[bobt]

Gidday remain

Going by the photos she looks a bit of all right.

Did they do away with all the gas appliances, no lpg bottle on the draw bar? Whats happening down the other end of the van? You just have to like the two doors bit. It has been a real long time since I have seen a 2 door caravan on the road.

Yep I can understand those people scratching their heads. Not so much why does he wanna do it but why does he wanna do it? ;D Had some mods done by a repairer a little bit further down the road, based on what that cost me I would be a little nervous about getting your work done.

Good luck with it. Do keep us posted.

bobt

[millard1399]

G'day remaim,

Yep you would have to be one of the rare people who come on this forum and want to put a renovated van back to looking "old". Most people start with old, and then add modern features along the way.

Perhaps you could sell this van to someone who wants a renovated van, and then go buy one that's still like they used to be?

If you want to see what some professionals have done to some large Viscounts, have a read of these threads:

Viscount modern fit-out No.1

Viscount modern fit-out No.2

Viscount modern fit-out No.3


Can't you imagine your Viscount lined up beside these three Viscounts?

cheers,
Al.

[Deleted]

Thanks bobt. The other end of the van is an island double bed with the headboard against the rear window and bedside tables either side. The rear door has had wall lining put over it on the inside, so no longer opens. So my first minor modification will be to re-instate the rear door. The roof vents have been sealed shut, and the new ceiling lining goes over the old roof vent openings so I reckon the second door is going to be important for ventilation.

Yes I am nervous about the cost, am still waiting on a quotation. I spoke to a few caravan repair/refurbish companies. One wasn't interested as the van was too old, two said that they could not look at it before Christmas, and the last reckons he can make a start mid-October. To be fair one of the companies that said that they could not look at it before Christmas was happy to recommend a retired colleague who may be interested, but who lives outside Melbourne.

They all charge like lawyers, on an hourly basis, and they seem to be around $100 an hour. So I am nervous, and am happy to explore other options....

[Deleted]

Thanks Al, those three Viscounts are very nicely presented, I wonder if the seller made any money in the deal? What is his ebay profile name - I'd like to keep an eye out for whatever else he decides to sell.

[Deleted]

I thought I would update you all with some recent pics on my 1971 Viscount retrovation. After much research, investigation, planning and plotting I decided that despite the newness of the interior of my recent purchase that I was probably better off stripping it all out and starting again.

It took me a few weeks to get around to this realisation, as no matter how I planned, it was always going to be more expensive to fix up what was already there, and I was always going to end up with a compromise.



The main issue was that the previous owner hadn't really done a great job with the previous renovation as far as the lining and trim - it was poorly fixed and everything was popping off, or popping out, everytime it went over a bump.

In making this big decision to strip out the van, and essentially throw half its value into the bin I did think about how long it would take to fix up all of the previous internal problems, and I realized that I didn't have the patience, enthusiasm and time to see the project through to the end.

The next part of my thinking was whether I should sell the van as is, and buy something else. However I wasn't comfortable in selling something to an unsuspecting sucker (like me), and I hadn't had much luck with seeing anything similar in months.



I originally purchased the van as I was looking for something with a retro feel, that was large enough to convert to a home studio, had lots of big windows, especially on the door side. I really liked the look of the Viscounts with their aluminium frame and generous wrap-around bay windows at the end - and not many of this size come onto the market.



A mate and I started to strip it out, and being a newbie I thought that the two of us would do it in half a day. We soon found that the two of us working inside were getting in each others way, and the most efficient way was for one to work inside, and the other to carry waste out to the skip. I decided that I was going to salvage as much as I could from the strip out for re-use or resale, and this also took time.



In the end it took the two of us about a day and a half, and the process confirmed that it was the right decision - there were a lot of rough edges and poorly put together bits.





Part of the benefitt in stripping out is that it is painless to rewire and get new light fittings and powerpoints exactly where you need them. So I guess with the relining and new floor the job is about 25% complete and I'll post some more pics as work progresses.

[Deleted]

Hi Remaim.
It is looking good
love the floor.

Cheers Gav

[mausie]

We need to get one of those!!

We could fit 2 Austins in that and still have room for a bed. Just tow with the 4 wheel drive.

Great job! Will be watching with interest. Keep up the good work.

Mausie

[greedy53]

are the walls painted because it's a really good job

[Deleted]

Greedy, the walls are a gloss white finished plywood. I will be doing the ceiling with the same material. I really wanted to avoid the standard woodgrain finishes as many of them seem to make a caravan look smaller and darker.

[greedy53]

thanks a very good job must find some for my van

[Deleted]

Remaim, what type of white gloss ply have you used? Where did you source it and could I brave a question about the cost?
I've been looking for something similar but all I have found is 2400x1200 @ $200ea.

[Deleted]

Droonies - as a Newbie I have quickly discovered that anything caravan related is expensive, although $200 per sheet seems more than excessive. I selected a Gunnersons plywood product in a White Gloss Polyester. I notice that "Caravan and RV Works" is selling a White Gloss Polyester sheet at $58.50 -

www.caravanandrvworks.com.au/shop/index/product-detail/product_id/3418.

I found that my Gunnersons White Gloss Polyester plywood is not usually a commonly held stock item and had to be ordered in, which took two or three weeks. I would find out who your local Gunnersons suppliers are, and get price and availability from them.

[Deleted]

I thought I would add some prequel pictures. I managed to get in contact with a previous owner who took these photos of the original Viscount layout before the first renovation. I am amazed how dark and dingy it looks!



This is the original kitchen which ran between the two side doors. I replaced the little, obscure glass window with a large 1520mm wide clear class window.



Original dinette and floor coverings.

[Deleted]

I took some more photos of the interior with the ceiling now fully lined with the gloss white polyester, and the new LED spotlights connected and working. I was a little worried that the LED spots may not have been enough, however the gloss white polyester wall and ceiling finishes bounce the light around, so I need not have worried.

I have added these photos as before and after pairs from roughly the same angle for easy comparison.





These two photos are looking diagonally from the rear corner to the front corner.





These two photos are looking diagonally from the rear corner to the front corner.





Looking diagonally into the rear corner.





Looking diagonally into the rear corner.

The next stage is getting the cabinetwork in and upholstery, which probably won't be in until after Christmas.

[millard1399]

G'day remaim,

What an astonishing difference!

I have visions of a glitter ball suspended from the ceiling, and a real Saturday Night dance happening on that floor!

Another option is to hire yourself out as a mobile lighthouse. Ships would see you from halfway round the world!

"How can a man work in here when it's so bright??!!" ;D

cheers,
Al.

[Deleted]

Thanks for the comments Al. I probably would not have all eight LED spotlights on at once. I do need good task lighting for my work as it will be used as a design studio and I work with building plans, material samples and colours all day (and night). When the cabinetwork is installed it will break up the expanse of whiteness and make it look more like an office!

[Deleted]

Hi I thought that I would some add some recent pics to my 1971 22ft Viscount Retrovation. I reckon it is looking pretty smart, but I know it is not to everybody's taste. With the galvanised wheel arches I ended up just using metal primer and gloss black paint over them and then building over the top of them. I designed this nifty, extra long daybed sofa, and Jason from Jaro Upholstery in Packenham did an excellent job with the upholstery with contrasting piping. It is really comfortable as well!



The back cushion is attached with velcro to keep it sitting nicely. To convert from a sofa to a bed the back cushion is removed, and the base cushion is flipped so that the fabric side is up. This makes a cosier bed base than sleeping on shiny vinyl.



I selected the scatter cushions from Signature Prints in a Florence Broadhurst print.



I'll post more pics of the rest of the fit-out when it is looking more presentable. It is hard to believe the difference when looking back at the original van photos.

Remaim

[ForumMod]

Crikey! It sure IS hard to believe the difference between now and how it looked originally. That sofa bed is brilliant!

Are you sure you'll get any work done in the van? That bed looks pretty tempting to me. Afternoon siestas that start at 9am and finish at 5pm would be what I'd be doing if I owned this Viscount!

I think the job so far is an absolute credit to your creative instincts. You should be very proud of what you've achieved. ;D ;D

cheers,
Al.

[Deleted]

Thanks Al for the credit - the cabinetwork is also really interesting, looks great and I haven't seen anything like it before in a caravan, so I will post some more pics when it is cleaned up and looking presentable....

[Deleted]

Just decided to do a bit of tidying up on the outside of the van, and as I have discovered any small job with an old caravan seems to snowball into a much larger job. I thought that I would give the old rims and tyres a bit of a tidy-up as they were looking a bit sad and dirty, and it would be an easy job.



Taking off the wheels, masking the tyres, giving the rims a quick coat of chrome spray from Bunnings and adding tyre black to the tyres was a quick and easy job, that certainly lifted the look of the van, but made the rest of the exterior look a bit tired and shabby. I plan to keep an eye out on eBay for the right hubcaps....

However in tidying up the wheels I started to think about the amauter looking paint job which was completed with lots of runs, and no bogging up of holes. I decided that the van would look cleaner without the awning tracks so I took them off and discovered lots more holes where the rivets were. I also decided that the blue stripe was not very Viscount, and the previous owner had lots of blue paint seeping under his masking tape when he did the stripes.



After a day of bogging and hand sanding I went out and purchased one of those little hand sized paint sanders to try and get rid of the blue stripe before repainting - I don't want the old blue stripe bleeding through my new paint...more pics to follow.

[Deleted]

Just thought it was time to show a few updated photos of the van. I think (hope) that the end is in sight, with just a little bit more external painting and a tidy up on the inside.



I am really pleased with the "white wall" tyres I reckon they look really smart and lift the look of the whole van. I didn't want to go to the expense of buying new tyres as the old ones were serviceable so these are Atlas White Wall Tyre Inserts, which fit between the rim and the tyre. They were pretty reasonably priced and I got mine from these guys www.antiquetyres.com.au/taxonomy/term/594



I have had a real struggle with the paint (see my previous postings). What I thought was dirt which would wash off when was actually dirt in the paint. I think that the previous owner had painted it outside and then it had rained lightly and dirt from the roof had run off the front and rear of the van while the paint was still drying.



The other problem with the enamel paints I have been using has been the temperature here in Melbourne. Even though the van is undercover the paint has been taking days to dry and results have been patchy. As a result I have pretty much given up on trying to finish the exterior until the weather gets warmer.



I'll post some more photos without the masking tape later in the year. My original intention was to repaint the original Viscount flashes, but decided that with all of the pickling and temperature issues that I was having with the repainting I would go with something simpler and more dramatic. Anyway the finish line is in sight, so I look forward to posting some finished photos when it is all complete....

[Deleted]

So even though my Viscount Retrovation isn't quite finished my teenage daughter has moved in to use it as her art studio! It still needs a good clean inside and a tidy up before I can start using it as a workspace, but you get the idea.







From the little time that I have spent in it I realize that it is actually a really good work space away from any distractions that are happening in the home. The Mrs can't wait to get the room back that I have been using as a home office so it is going to be a win/win situation.

I will post some more pics when I have moved in properly and it is more presentable.