Radiator removal.

Picture showing the location of the top right hand radiator mounting bolt.At last the front of the engine is exposed.

Water pump removed, so much rusty water came out when I removed the lower hose I think its time to back flush the radiator and also wash out the block.

The engine mounting rubbers look a bit tired so I'm thinking of changing these as well.

Polly pick up progress and OBL's water pumps.

Polly the "B"Pick up is in the garage while OBL432 can use the carport. This constant rain is a right pain.
It is a shame that polly is "in doors" as it is now very hard to work on the pick up as we are rather tight for space.
So I turned to OBL, yet more out standing jobs. To replace the water pump and fan belt.
So off with the front panel.
Off with the top shield over the radiator, this makes sure all the air at the front of the van is forced throught the radiator when driving and does not just pass over the top of the engine.
Next job remove the radiator, which is held in place by five bolts. Four can be undone from the front and last one is found inside of the cab. Once all the bolts are removed undo the drain pipe and tap and the last little job is to remove the sheild and gasket from around the filler neck.
Next episode tomorrow! (if I get home in the light).

Tonibell Ice Cream.

From the late 1950s a familiar sight and sound around the streets of Basildon Essex was a Tonibell ice cream van. The company, known as Tonibell Manufacturing Co. Ltd, was founded as Tonis in 1937 by Italian born Toni Pignatelli and his wife. Originally operating from a shop in Burnt Oak, Middlesex, their first vehicle did not take to the streets until 1951 by which time they were joined by their son Ronald. During the fifties the business grew and Basildon, with its new town status offering fresh custom, was seen as the ideal place to expand operations. Their first depot, a yard adjacent to the Laindon Service Station on the Southend bound carriageway of the A127 before the Fortune-of-War roundabout, opened sometime in the late 1950s. They continued here, having become Tonibell following a change of name in 1960, for a few more years before relocating to Bowlers Croft on the Nevendon Industrial Estate.

Their vehicles were custom variations of among others; Morris vans and the Bedford CA series. Early vehicles were finished in a blue livery with some featuring a scaled down cow astride the front roof. Later models also included the cow and a memorable colour change to pink, which was probably how people best remember them. They also had a specially written chime.

In addition to the street operations there were several ice cream parlours and snack bars in Basildon town centre.

In the late 1960s Tonibell moved again, this time to a new depot in Bentalls on Industrial Estate No.2 (Pipps Hill), but by the early 1990s had closed. Many thanks to the great GD for more fantastic period pictures, NICE....

More period pictures and recent rally picture.

Further street shots taken in the 1950's. Kindly supplied by GD again.
Play spot the vehicle.

Morris J Type . Morris J2 van. Vauxhall Ten Four. Standard 10 Companion (estate car). Simca estate. Austin A30 van. Triumph TR2. Standard 8. Austin A40 Countryman. Standard 10. Morris Minor pickup. Austin A40 Devon.949 BYY Seen at the Welland Rally this weekend.

Other interesting news is Alex popped round to see me on Sunday evening, he is restoring an early J type and has been watching all the blogs and gleaming valuable information along the way. Well he is doing a splendid job, I could see that from the pictures he brought along. I suggested that he should share them with us all so I hope to be doing a blog for his vehicle shortly. He does not have a computer, prefers to spend his hard earned money on J spares rather than a "PC" what a sensible chap. Taking of blogs the one I was doing for MYH has dried up, the owner has not sent me anything to share, come on GS, send us some more!!!!!! the world awaits.

Still packing/sorting/clearing.

If it was not for the great GD, sending me classic period pictures like this one above, this blog would be like others, nothing going on. Cheers mate.
Got up early Saturday morning, fitted my new rocker shaft and re-profiled rockers. Adjusted them using the "rule of 9", turn the engine over, watch to see a valve being fully open, number the valves from the front of the engine, so if valve number three is being opened, take 3 from 9 which gives you 6, so valve six will now be "on the back of the cam" or "fully closed" so you can now adjust the valve clearance to 12 thou.
All went well, I had already cleaned the rocker cover and had stuck the new cork seal to the cover with some silicon sealant. This was now dry and it was easy to fit the cover with the seal which now stayed in place. I have always found , when I use to tighten the cover bolts up the seal would either squeeze out or in and a nice oil leak would be the result. Sticking it in place stoppes that problem.
Later on In the day before my wife Caroline came back from food shopping I gate crashed the local fete and flower show. They had a small display of about 30 vehicles, the newest a 1986 mini and the oldest a 1934 Rolls Royce. No other commercials just me at the end of the line. I put a picture of the actor David Tennant (with the van) in the windscreen and was an instant hit with all the seven year old's who wanted to be with the "Doctor's Van".
I left the van on site and walked home to carry on with the D.I.Y. etc. I collected the van about 6 pm just as they were shutting the gates.. So that's my one and only rally this year I hope all you other J type owners have better luck.

Van for sale and another period picture from GD!

A recent rally picture of a J type, yet another one I have not been face to face with.Kensal Green Underground Station, August 1950. I wonder if my mate in London could take a current picture of the tube station from the same spot?
Another van for sale, a nice LHD 1950 van, Note the square side lamp holes a good give away to an early van.

Love the roof mounted rear lamp and number plate. Anybody want to pop over there and save it?

Sunday Night and Monday nights jobs.

Sorry these entries are in the wrong order.

Monday night I set about doing the tappets on OBL. A very easy job and on a J type you can sit down while you do it. After slackening off the adjusters I felt the ends of the rockers. These were stepped and so they would be imposable to adjust correctly with feeler gauges.

So I removed the complete rocker assembly and as you can see there is some wear/ridges on the underside of the rocker shaft.
Not a problem I have a new shaft and a set of reconditioned/re-profiled rockers in the garage so I might as well fit them. A job to do the next time I have a free hour.
Sunday night I had about half an hour to myself, so I thought I would replace the rear gearbox oil seal, so undid the four bolts on the propeller shaft, and pulled it from the gear box. Off to the garage to get the new oil seal, bugger wrong one! So lets reassemble it and do something else.

Gearbox mounting rubbers needed changing, yet another job I have put off for months. New ones are available off the shelf if you know what to ask for.

The off side one was easy, the near side was harder as it has the gearbox steady assembly and my home made exhaust was also in the way, Still both replaced in about three quarters of an hour.