Day by Day our 14' Viscount

[LGT]

Hi again. I cut my teeth on selling laminates to the caravan industry when Corinthian Industries produced and sold Corinite, which was impregnated paper pressed onto three ply and later hardboard as a low pressure laminate. Many wood colors and grains were available.The paper was photographs of real wood veneers taken with huge cameras in Japan and a false grain was pressed into the paper to make it feel and look very much like real wood veneer.The process was sold to Formica in about 1973. From then on Corinthian only manufactured doors and I retired from there after almost 40 years.

[atefooterz]

Aug 19, 2017 19:41:42 GMT 10 LGT said:

Hi again. I cut my teeth on selling laminates to the caravan industry when Corinthian Industries produced and sold Corinite, which was impregnated paper pressed onto three ply and later hardboard as a low pressure laminate. Many wood colors and grains were available.The paper was photographs of real wood veneers taken with huge cameras in Japan and a false grain was pressed into the paper to make it feel and look very much like real wood veneer.The process was sold to Formica in about 1973. From then on Corinthian only manufactured doors and I retired from there after almost 40 years.

Cheers, did you ever know a cranky dude called Reg Barrington? He managed to build some amazing boats from scraps the factory did not want, as timber was cut to fit door widths.

[LGT]

Hi again,
I knew a Reg at St Mary's in Sydney who ran our timber mill. Our doors and mouldings were all Merani which was a favourite timber for Caravans and boats. Could that be the man.

[LGT]

Days 14 and 15


I finally have the cupboard doors back on, the range hood in place and the fridge back together.

The fitting of the sink will have to wait until I lay a line of tiles as a splash back.

The interior lights have been cleaned up and await refitting. I am waiting for delivery of an external light and a manual sink tap.

When all the little jobs are finished inside I will redo the step and surrounds with polished checker plate. The final task will be the carpet tiles, new switches and power points and the fire extinguisher.

When the inside is basically completed I will do some work on the pop top exterior and replace the fly wire in the inner external door. The door itself has been treated and looks so much better but after seeing Mustang's shiny entry door I can only hope that it looks at least acceptable. What a wonderful restoration Vincent Viscount is. A real masterpiece. Congratulations.

[atefooterz]

Aug 20, 2017 14:39:01 GMT 10 LGT said:

Hi again,
I knew a Reg at St Mary's in Sydney who ran our timber mill. Our doors and mouldings were all Merani which was a favourite timber for Caravans and boats. Could that be the man.

Could be, i knew him at his home in Rockdale, early 1990s, he scavanged the facings edges
Your interior is really starting to become as sharp looking as the exterior!

[LGT]

Interesting because our main plant was at Rockdale on West Botany. Thanks for the comment. It should all look pretty good when finished but still a lot to do.
Cheerfs
LGT

[atefooterz]

The only offcut scraps he bothered with were Cedar, used in diagonal plank construction, rest of the boats construction was a mix of Ash & Oregon, so no need for any Meranti lolz!

These offcuts, laminated into a caravan would have been the ultimate "dark gloomy" old wood look interior.
Corinthian Doors, like Franklin, sponsored the 18 footers, Corinthian for about 20:1 $ spend! All new and cutting edge, not re branding old skiffs, as Franklin did.
All these skiffs were built in his living room! 10 footers Dove & Viola and the 18s Tangalooma & Scot.
www.sydneyflyingsquadron.com.au/sailing/18-footers/scot/

[LGT]

We raced the 18 footer with pro crew. The young Richard P was instrumental in us getting into the 18s. He never crewed it but in fact was twice world champion in Farr 40s and Mumm 20s. He was the yachtsman of the year in the 90s.There were two 18s one quicker than the other. The good old days.
Cheers
LGT

[atefooterz]

Aug 21, 2017 20:40:40 GMT 10 LGT said:

We raced the 18 footer with pro crew. The young Richard P was instrumental in us getting into the 18s. He never crewed it but in fact was twice world champion in Farr 40s and Mumm 20s. He was the yachtsman of the year in the 90s.There were two 18s one quicker than the other. The good old days.
Cheers
LGT

All that high speed action explains your record breaking progress on your Viscount resto! I started 18s in 75/76 then last raced wings in 2001/02 Fave seasons being 91- 97 and getting paid 6 months of each year, with the GPS circuit. #greatTimes

[LGT]

Hi again, As you are a seasoned yachtie I can say that the Richard P I referred to was Richard Perini from RSYS. I also sailed on The Gold Coast in the early 90s in my Nolex 22 built in Christchurch. We won the XXXX series in 1992.I always sailed as forehead hand in comp and only steered her for relaxation. Gave it away when both shoulders stopped working.

[Mustang]

Aug 24, 2017 17:03:45 GMT 10 LGT said:

Hi again, As you are a seasoned yachtie I can say that the Richard P I referred to was Richard Perini from RSYS. I also sailed on The Gold Coast in the early 90s in my Nolex 22 built in Christchurch. We won the XXXX series in 1992.I always sailed as forehead hand in comp and only steered her for relaxation. Gave it away when both shoulders stopped working.

I crewed on a Nolex 30 when I lived in Tassy, what a fabulous little yacht with the retracting keel.

[LGT]

Days 16 and 17.

All the cupboards and drawers now have knobs, handles and catches fitted. The fly wire on the inner door has been replaced and awaits a new lock as the key for the original was not with the van. The splash back tiles have been applied.
I finally found a 12v bayonet globe fitting to replace a dampliedaged one for one of the internal light fittings. I discovered Carafix here and now have a close source for all things caravan.
I purchased a full cover for the van as I will be storing it outside for a while.
I only have carpet tiles and curtains to complete the interior.

I intend to begin work on the exterior now. The pop top needs some attention and certainly needs cleaning. I will replace all skin rivets with new ones and fit them with white caps.
I have ordered the two Viscount decals which will be applied after the polishing of the exterior cladding.
The tow end will have a new jockey wheel attachment and the stone guard on the lower half of the van front will be altered from black to a dark grey.

[LGT]

Days 18 and19



I decided not to use metal checker plate on the remake of the entrance step. I was warned that it can be very slippery when wet so I have used vinyl flooring material instead in a travertine pattern

which looks quite good.

As with all such projects the time comes when most of the obvious improvements are completed and attention turns to the jobs that take time but are barely noticeable to most people.

The last two days have been taken up with such jobs as replacing old rivets that although still do the job they take away from the original look you are striving for. Old external window fittings which served a purpose over the years are all removed as redundant. The build up of dirt in the window crevices and tracks all need attention. Window winder struts that lift the widows out have a fitting on the outside of the window frame and over the years such things as old nails and ill fitting screws have been used to hold the strut in place. These fittings were originally riveted into place so they have all been corrected.





As planned the skin rivets have all been replaced with new ones and as it was originally they were fitted with a white cap and again one could say that this is unnecessary but it immediately improves the look of the outside.

I spent this morning washing the outside with my pressure spray cleaner. It certainly found pockets of thirty year old dirt but unfortunately exposed the only structural problem I have encountered.

These vans used what I consider to be very poor quality plywood sometimes where it is absolutely bound to finally fall apart. I would guess there is no marine grade material used at all.

The underside of the pop top is three ply where the skirt joins the pop top roof. Although it is not open to the weather directly it sits on the lower roof section which allows the ply to be in contact with a damp atmosphere of rain and wash water. Over the years the ply de-laminates.

To replace all the ply in the pop top would be a major job, so as the problem is only in one 300mm section I am considering removing the top veneer of ply which has failed and painting the section with a two pack epoxy or fibre glass. I will then paint the complete area with an enamel paint to waterproof it.

I have been lucky not to have found more weather affected areas throughout the job but all the seals are in a very sound condition.

Once the repair is done I intend to polish the whole of the outside. Then it will be carpets and curtains.



As a matter of interest my van has a Recreational Vehicle Manufacturers Association of Australia badge number 50705. This places it in 1978. I have removed the tired old plated badge and cleaned it up, finally priming it and finishing it with a bright silver finish. It will be reunited with my 78 Viscount on the left of the entrance door.

[Mustang]

Great progress & good news about lack of moisture damage.
Without raining on your parade the manufacturers badge has no meaning on age or numbering on your van. They were sent to members of the association & attached in any numbered fashion.
The welded number on your chassis will verify the year of the van.

[LGT]

Thank you Mustang. Yes I read the thread on the site from 2012 which answered the question. I have put it back on the van for historic purposes only. The van was built in 1978.

[LGT]

Would anyone know the name of or better still the formula or code for the mustard and white of my caravan. I want to get some spray cans made up for touching up.

[LGT]

Day 20

After an average game of golf I spent three hours hand polishing the entry side of the van . I have used a metal polish called Reflections which was recommended by an abrasive expert friend.
It is a cream polish with a mild abrasive component around the 320 grit equivalent.
It took a lot of rubbing to remove the awfully stained and sun affected skin surface but the final result was definitely worth the effort. It should be fairly easy now to keep it looking good using a detailing wax spray. I am waiting for the Viscount decals for the front and rear to finish off the exterior upgrade.
The double bed extension has now been re fitted and the replacement screen door lock arrived today and has been fitted.
Apart from carpet and curtains the inside only needs replacement switches and power points to ensure against any electrical defect in the future.
The main task now is to repair the ply water damage on the pop top that I have mentioned previously.

[LGT]

Day 21



Today I tackled what I considered a fairly tricky repair to the underside of the pop top at the front of the van.

I thought that only 300mm of ply had de-laminated but in fact the full width of the van, 1720mm approx by 110mm had to be removed and repaired. The first thing was to remove the sprung lift strut to allow the repair. Well, may I suggest that one should think this through more than I did.

I removed the four screws holding the whole mechanism in place and then pulled the top spring rail down by hand far enough to remove it under the roof eave or overhang. Once it cleared to roof it literally exploded with such force that it knocked me off the rather precariously positioned ladder.

I luckily landed on my feet and had the whole system in pieces in my hand.

The replacing of the mechanism was going to need some thought after the repair was completed.

To repair the damaged ply I removed the top layer of the plywood which is of course the ceiling of the caravan. The fortunate thing is that the de-lamination has not affected the ceiling at all.

I decided to replace the top layer of ply with a piece of woven fibre material which was an unused collection bag for a leaf vacuum machine. I sprayed the ply with contact adhesive and the same on the 110mm wide strips I had cut from the material.

Whilst this was drying I abraded, rust converted and finally re-sprayed the sprung lifting mechanism in bright silver metal spray paint.

It was then a matter of fitting the cut material to the plywood and re-fitting the mechanism.

I supported the pop top on both sides throughout the process. I then measured the clearance necessary to clear the roof overhang and place the mechanism in place.

I then pulled the sprung unit down to 300mm and held it in this position with a buckled tie down strap. I then placed the unit in position and screwed the bottom spring track in place. Next I slowly released the pressure on the sprung unit until the top track was in place to be screwed home.

Job done.



I inspected the sub roof and cleaned it. The only thing left to do is to paint the material I placed over the ply and rejuvenate the mustard coloured sides of the pop top.



Last thing today was to visit the local Dulux Inspiration store.

Although I now know the names of the white powder coating used by Viscount I cannot find any code or formula, so I decided to obtain a Dulux colour chart of whites and neutrals.

This chart consists of thirty different white colour chips, one of which is certainly going to match the elusive Viscount white used on my 78 pop top.

The store will then prepare a spray can for me to touch up some white areas that are past the polishing rejuvenation stage after forty years. The rear of the van is the only area that really needs a respray. When that is completed I will finally cover my new baby with the cover I received for Father's day a little earlier than usual.

After that it will be carpet fitting and then my curtains will arrive from my very talented daughter who happens to be a quite exquisite dress designer and maker.

[atefooterz]

Pop top springs sound very OH&S unfriendly!
Tracking down 1970s colours gets tricky fot a few reasons, local companies like Berger & Ancol(?) were taken over and similar colours replaced by new owners versions. Major thing is rosin, white enamel issue, the amber toned became replaced by a more magenta/ rose coloured one in more recent times(cheaper) and the important issue of non organic pigments replacing the old organic ones. The old Dulux white V bright white is exactly the problem with modern hues, bright white was re named applience white during the 1980s from memory

[LGT]

Great info thank you. I am headed to the van now armed with the Dulux white colour chart. One will be near enough and I will have a spray can produced.

[atefooterz]

It is bizzaro how what was 1 stock colour is now 15 variations, none matching the original, my van stock 70s green V the 20000s 12 Dulux & 7 Taubmans swatch variations haha!

[78466noM]

you have done a wonderful job on the old girl

[Mustang]

Aug 31, 2017 13:17:05 GMT 10 LGT said:

Great info thank you. I am headed to the van now armed with the Dulux white colour chart. One will be near enough and I will have a spray can produced.

Keep in mind you will need an "etch" undercoat for aluminium.

[LGT]

Days 22 and 23



I can finally see a reasonably bright light at the end of the tunnel.

I have replaced the rear lights with new LED combinations from Supercheap Autos.

They are rated for 52000 hours. All I can say is that I hope the next two or three owners will enjoy them because I certainly won't be around.

I noted prior that I went colour matching for a white touch up paint and settled on a Dulux white enamel colour called Terrace White. I had a 300ml spray can produced for me at the Inspiration paint centre as an acrylic lacquer and I can honestly say to anyone who has the same white as me that it is a perfect match . I not only resprayed the back of the van but I also touched up areas of the sides and in any light I cannot tell the difference.

Finally today I cut and fitted the carpet tiles I bought at Bunnings for $4.95 each .At 500mm x 500mm per tile I used 16 and a half of the 18 tiles I purchased. They were time consuming but easy to lay. They are rubber backed and I don't believe that they need to be glued down at all as they fit tightly together and simply don't move at all..





The top edge of the pop top is painted and looks fresh and clean.

The curtains are under way and will take a week or two.

The final job will be new switches and power points and a full detail touch up of the inside.

It is getting close to finished and the first weekend trip away.

[atefooterz]

Looking very fresh now!