Car bits but WW1 aviation releated!

[Tony Haycock]

Last weekend I took a few guys across the Tasman to the Bendigo swapmeet.

It was a successful visit!

Got some goodies for my 1915 (probably ex-French military) Peugeot type 153A

A Bleriot (yes the same as the famous aviator) charge/discharge gauge, a match for the Bleriot switchbox I have for the car




A Bleriot headlight the correct size. One down one more to find,a nd my CAV headlights are now for sale!




and the best find of all... the correct oil pressure gauge for the car. I never thought would see one of these anywhere!



An expensive day out!

[Whiteknuckles]

Glad you had fun in Oz, even if it was in Victoria

How far along is the 153A project?

Andrew

[Tony Haycock]

Glad you had fun in Oz, even if it was in Victoria

How far along is the 153A project?

Andrew

A very long-term project! When I bought it, the engine gearbox and (incorrect) diff have been done, the radiator re-cored and it came with a new set of tyres and a restored CAV switchbox and headlights.

Since then I have found the correct magneto and waterpump (both were incorrect when I got the car) and have had to undo the modifications made to the shaft which drives them both. Found the correct steering box and column (therse were missing) and I think I have just tracked down a steering wheel and horn button for it. The latest arrival has been the rear spring hangers, which I did not have so now I can get the rear springs in place, correctly locate the diff, het  driveshaft made, collect the flywheel which has been off to get balanced, reline the clutch cone and put clutch and flywheel assembly back on. My car restoring mate has the template of my radiator and bulkhead to make a bonnet for it.
The intention is to get it on the road with a speedster body in the short-term, then build the proper body off the car as money allows.
It came to New Zealand as a rolling chassis and was bodied locally in 1920, which leads me to suspect it was one of the cars used by the military during the war which then went back to the factory to be refurbished and sold. Also someone has stamped "1918" on the sump, despite it having a 1915 engine and chassis number and Peuegot did not make any cars in 1918. The intention is to give it a copy of a Larbourdette Skiff Torpedo body but that won't be cheap!   
 

[uncletony]

Very cool Tony!

[coyotemagic]

Your perseverance in tracking down original parts for this extraordinary project is amazing.  I hope you'll post some photos so we can follow your progress.  As Bo has said, this is such a cool undertaking.
Cheers,
Bud

[Tony Haycock]

Your perseverance in tracking down original parts for this extraordinary project is amazing.  I hope you'll post some photos so we can follow your progress.  As Bo has said, this is such a cool undertaking.
Cheers,
Bud

It is a slow process but I am enjoying the hunt! They only made a total of around 800 of this type, many were used by the military. Of the 800, roughly 300 were high ground-clearance "Colonial" models of which mine is one. My car was wrecked in the late 1960s to help restore another one and as far as is known, these are the only two surviving "Colonial"cars  and there are probaby no more than half a dozen of both variants in existance, so bits don't turn up very often!

Luckily I have found a guy in the UK who is restorung a European-spec car and turning a second one into a replica of a 1914 Peugeot Grand Prix car and he is able to keep any of the original parts not being used on the GP car and if he doesn't need them , I get them. So far it has worked well and every that he hasn't needed, I have and they have been parts common to both versions. 

I haven't done much to it lately, so I need to get stuck into it again soon so I won't be too old to drive it by the time it is finished!
I just love the possibiity that it may have served in the trenches during the war. Of course it it impossible to prove but there is enough circumstantial evidence to make it quite likely.   

[Des]

It's always a great feeling when you go to a swap meet and find treasures like you found. When I was restoring vintage motorcycles many years ago Bendigo and Bargo were the two main swap meets I went to every year, Bendigo being the larger of the two swap meets always had many more lucky finds for me. I would love to see some photos of your project Tony, I have not heard of this "colonial" model.

Des.

[Tony Haycock]

It's always a great feeling when you go to a swap meet and find treasures like you found. When I was restoring vintage motorcycles many years ago Bendigo and Bargo were the two main swap meets I went to every year, Bendigo being the larger of the two swap meets always had many more lucky finds for me. I would love to see some photos of your project Tony, I have not heard of this "colonial" model.

Des.

It was an unexpected bonus to find something for the Peugeot. I had no expectation of finding anything although I did know that were some of those cars imported in Australia, none of which seem to have survived. There are a couple of early 20's type 153s over there but they are totally different to my earlier car.  There was no chance of getting anthing for my other car, a 1930 Durant as no Durants went it Australia in 1930 anyway.
 I only went because my father (not that he needs anything for his cars) suggested we go so he, my brother and some of their mates had a good weekend in Australia, with me as driver/guide.