The lastest goings on in J type world.

J types of Stoke Poges, were joined on Friday by the Head Quarters Branch from Birmingham. Made a change as it was only two weeks ago that roles were reversed and I visited Birmingham for the classic car show.Here is Mr Kevin Mitchell, the events organiser for the MO and 6/80 car club.

He kindly popped in to see me while at work to present me with an award for an article I wrote for their magazine about my adventures and mis-adventures with my J types.

As you know the side-valve J uses the same side-valve engine as some of their club cars. Indeed some J type owners are in this club as they offer a good spares parts service.
Another J type is for sale on e-bay, owned by Tony Mellor who has had it only a couple of years. It came from Cork and had the registration number ZR 3057. He has spent rather a lot on this vehicle, fully refurbished engine and gearbox, fully welded up with many new parts to be fitted. (A coincidence is that Tony also owned 5003 NX many many years ago).

It was only a few weeks ago he was looking for an enthusiast or a company to reassemble this kit of parts. All of a sudden he is emigrating , I know I would try to take my J with me if I ever thought of doing that! What will it fetch? I would guess about 6k, we shall see.
I have replaced my leaking near-side windscreen rubber in my J type, I have taken a full set of pictures at every stage and made a list all tools/materials used.

It will be a separate blog just like the picture albums and it will be "posted" in the next couple of days, just a couple more pictures to take if it ever stops raining..

A nice period shots.!!!

The above image and plenty more pictures of J types from the recent NEC show, check out the MO-6/80 car club site. Click here.

Another period photograph found by the great GD. while surfing the www.

They say imitation is a form of flattery.

ROD 525 lives on, a rather nice scale model of ROD is currently on e-bay.
Based on the Corgi version it has been very cleverly converted to a pick up.

Very nice model and with only one day to go, only one bid. Item number 320445972513

OBL 432 at the NEC.

Well by now OBL will be back at home after a week away in Birmingham. No problems going up apart from the driver needing a tea and a wee.
Return journey very interesting due to very gusty side winds down the motorway, apart from a fuel stop half way I got home in the light.

Many things are happening in the J type world, Here are a few.
The van below that was for sale in NZ has been snapped up and is as we speak on its way to Australia to join the new owners other classic vehicles.

As the new owner states and I quote

I have seen some of the documents on your site, they are great, a wonderful service.

I should blame you really, your site triggered the interest in the first place!

OK, when it arrives I will take some shots and video of the van.

So it's my fault, I'm very pleased to say!!! Another J type thats going to be used and enjoyed, excellent.

The chassis plate and sidevalve engine/gearbox are for sale for £350 on e-bay. The chassis plate dates from late 1952/53. Beware if your thinking of buying it, the DVLA do look out for items like this, to catch people out trying to claim false identities for their vehicle.

It also would appear that the guy who bought the "Bowie" van off of e-bay also bought the Colin Ellis wreck, so far he has spent over £6 thousand pounds and he still does not have all the bits to make a road worthy van. It is rumoured he has a third vehicle but he declined to give details.
The ice cream van below has been on e-bay a few times, trying to get work for it at events well its up for sale now with a bid of £6500 but it has yet to get to the reserve. In an e-mail I have been told of that the seller is looking for £12 thousand, must be money in ice creams.

A nice 1958 van for sale in NZ.

Van at Birdlings Flat for viewing.
new WOF on sale, new tyres
Excellent Billboard, wonderful running cond
P/Plates not included, Twin internal sliding front doors
will freight to all main centres via tollrail..please present all offers..
Reason for sale
cashflow problems otherwise it would have NEVER been up for sale!

Licensed to seat 5 but only has the original delivery single seat, 4 speed gearbox, Model: JBI ,

Year: 1958, Main colour: Green, Second colour: Black
Vehicle type: Passenger Car/Van, Body style: Light Van, CC rating: 1,320
Fuel type: Petrol, Gross vehicle mass: 1,999kg

Nice tow bar, could be very useful.
Nicely fitted indicator stalk, it looks in keeping with the van.
Side panels? Do they hide filled in windows?

Added seat? or maybe a cunning tool box? Are these squares filled in windows? Or as they are a bit skew, could they be some sort of stuck on sound deadening material?


Very clean and sound, you could start using this straight away, you might even win a prize at your first rally.

Another J type changes hands.

Yes another J type moves on. The history of this van is rather checkered, found by Colin Ellis in an orchard about 25 years ago. It was in a sorry state then and needed cross bracing and a large strap around the whole vehicle when it was first saved. The main reason it was saved was it was a rare G.P.O. version.

It has rested for the last 20 odd years, no work has been done on it for a very long time.

The engine was stripped down and left. It was in this state that Colin sold it earlier this year as he was getting rid of a life times collection of G.P.O. vehicles and related items.

It sold on e-bay for the staggering sum of £2300. Well over priced for a now very fragile vehicle. It has re-appeared for sale on e-bay just a couple of days ago. It sold again for £3000 !!!! and auction ended early.

When you consider what you will have to spend on this to get it back on the road this is a very high price to pay for a massive, costly project.

I have been asked what is my next job on my J type. A very good question, so many things need to be done, as very little has been to it recently. It is in need of a clutch and gearbox and a full service would not come amiss.

So having been asked a few times "how do you do?" I'm going to replace my leaking windscreen rubbers.

I have never had a problem doing these. I replaced all the rubbers on 3981 EV and ROD 525, so I will do them shortly on OBL432 and take lots of pictures to help others.

OBL432 pictured outside the house I have been slowly clearing. The remaining furniture in the house will be collected next Friday for auction/house clearance, what does not sell will be dumped, needs must, money urgently required. Down sizing big time.

Pathe film clips.

Police driver training, 1958 style. They tell us to drive correctly on empty roads in a Police Morris 6.Street shot.
Aerial view of a London square with a white J type on the far right.
Close up of that same J type.
Geoff Duke wins the 1958 "Red Rose Trophy", with a little help from his motor bike carrying J.
I mentioned yesterday the Pathe Film Clips, already G.D. has found another J, with a nice diagonal roof board for ROYAL ? Oddly the film title "A Village High Street" is dated 1940!!

Anybody else found any more?

TSL 577.

The owner P.W. sitting proudly in the driving seat of his new "toy". Peter is no stranger to J types, he had one thirty years ago and it is hoped that some pictures of it can be found.
A nice tidy cabin.
Chassis 12841.

Peter had popped round to pick my brains about fitting indicators, as the van had none.





It was a shame that the visit was marred by a bad knocking noise that developed on the journey over to me. Apart from a very noisy petrol pump, a new "electronic" type, no points in them, but well known to be twice as clunky as the original type. Having listen to the engine I had to say I thought the noise was a big end on its way out. Anyway true to J type reliability it go home with no further problems. It is now being considered whether to fit a "B" series engine and four speed box as this will prove more suitable for the many long journeys that are planned in the future.

To celebrate 50 years of the M1 Motorway opening (its not the first, the Preston by-pass, now part of the M62 was the first). I have been looking at various on-line news reels.

http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=36077

http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=37838

Here are some other of interest. Plenty of steam trains, lorries and street shots showing many J type going about there daily lives, sales films from all the main car makers of the 40's and 50's. (warning there are about 15 thousand on line clips, some only a few mins long others up to half an hour, plenty to keep you occupied over the long winter nights.

Commercial Motor Shows

1960 http://www.britishp athe.com/ record.php? id=42163

1962 http://www.britishp athe.com/ record.php? id=42648

1967 http://www.britishp athe.com/ record.php? id=44954

1964 http://www.britishp athe.com/ record.php? id=43207

http://www.britishp athe.com/ record.php? id=69878

http://www.britishp athe.com/ record.php? id=34396

http://www.britishp athe.com/ record.php? id=70125

http://www.britishp athe.com/ record.php? id=42093

http://www.britishp athe.com/ record.php? id=1464

http://www.britishp athe.com/ record.php? id=43351

http://www.britishp athe.com/ record.php? id=45969

http://www.britishp athe.com/ record.php? id=42402

http://www.britishp athe.com/ record.php? id=59893

Lots of steam engines..

http://www.britishp athe.com/ record.php? id=36276

How to make steam loco wheels

http://www.britishp athe.com/ record.php? id=36276

Here are three pictures of a postal J going about its work by Buckingham Palace in 1958. There are plenty more to be seen.

A couple of people have contacted me who are looking for a J van, if your selling let me know, I will pass on the details, might save you the e-bay fee's.Further updates have been added to the following blog's/ picture albums MYtH/HBF238 and the J type picture album, enjoy.