Mignon - The Restoration of a 1979 Bedford Camper

Note hugely interested cat nearby 

This system uses no freon gasses, no evironmentally-harmful emissions.... Air Con Mk.I

Hope you can take a joke Kev !

Here's your cat-flap (and a fair bit of panel beating for me !)

From left (clockwise):

Mag's 'this-cost-70-grand-new-I-tell-you! gently decaying vision of grandeur', a BMW 740, Mignon II, Mignon I, the mighty Ebay Ford pickup and Gil's new birthday present, an Astra twin-top. Looks like a dodgy second-hand dealer's yard instead of our house !

The village think the gypsies have moved in...

Do you a new driveway guvnor ?

(Click to enlarge)

It's a bit like this round our place at the moment !

Well, it's mostly good but there is some 'oiliness' to be getting on with. First and foremost are the front brakes. Bleh.

They're drum brakes and I've never dealt with them before. The front brakes shudder quite badly and pull to the left, but I'm hoping it's just a new set of pads that are needed. (Caution: Pub Talk !) The pull might be the slave cylinder binding which is even more 'bleh' as I've never attempted to change something like that on any vehicle. Fortunately the bits are easy to get (Mignon 1 is parked nearby !), even the special tool you need to adjust the brakes. However, the manual says 'you may find this tricky' which translates to 'do not attempt unless you possess Superhuman powers....'

Mignon is too big to fit into the local garage so I'm on my own. Me and the trusty Haynes manual....

Secondly, the Gauges of Doom.

The temperature gauge plunges into the red about a minute after starting up, yet I know it is not overheating. The fuel gauge has a link to a parallel universe and is reading the contents of a fuel-tank in a different dimension. The fuel gauge we can live with - a simple bit of mental arithmetic will tell you when you need to fill up (i.e., before I didn't !). However, if it does overheat, we have no way of knowing.

I know the gauge itself is ok, so it must be the sender unit. Easy job, happily. Replacing the fuel gauge sender requires the tank itself to be dropped out. I'll see how I'm feeling !

(Caution: More Pub Talk !) Usually, behind the dashboard is a little device called a voltage regulator. It smooths out the electrical current reaching your gauges as the engine revs rise and fall (and thus the output power of the alternator). With both gauges a bit dead, I assumed it was probably that and asked on my club forum if anyone had a spare for this particular model.

Well, it turns out this model doesn't *have* a voltage regulator; it was fitted to later models only. When I asked someone why they hadn't let me know, they said: "We didn't want you to feel like an idiot !" 10/10 for social discretion, 0/10 for usefuleness !

So, both the senders have failed. Not the non-existent voltage regulator. Or the lunge-sprocket.

Interior-wise, the roof boards need replacing as a previous leak has pretty much destroyed them. Not difficult, but very time consuming.

Then all I need to do is install and wire the Zig power management unit, connect that to the car battery, wire in the leisure battery, wire that to the Zig, route the existing lighting circuit to the Zig, change the lights over to LED and fit some additional ones, attach the stereo to the Zig, the CD changer to the stereo, wire the TV in, connect the audio-out to the stereo's audio-in... *breathes*...... panel beat and respray the fridge vent, respray all additional vents, get the windscreen seal replaced, new carpet, new curtains and the furnishings recovered, fit wall brackets for the microwave, attach the awning, shot-blast the wheels, fit the chrome covers, replace the hazard light unit, re-wire the existing cab CD unit, clean/replace the roof vent guards, strip and respray the heater, fit new door mirrors, remove and respray the gearstick and steering column... *struggles to breathe*.... sand, prime and respray the cab interior metal, fix crack in worksurface, re-attach loose pieces of interior trim and fix or replace the ship's clock at the rear. *chokes*

Piece of cake these old campers, eh ?!

(Click on any to enlarge)

Sometimes we men have a tendency to complicate our problems, especially those of the mechanical variety.

"Ah yes, it's definitely the splunge-sprocket wearing against the giggle-pin, which has caused the half-widget to come loose and that's stopped the lunk-ratchet from engaging properly. I'll definitely need a new whurt-grunzle first..." I bet you've heard talk like that in the pub...

Mignon 2 was losing power going up hills and then finally conked out, arriving on the back of a recovery truck (see below). I diagnosed a faulty fuel pump - all the signs were there of fuel starvation under power.

Which was true.

Because it had run out of petrol.

Doh !

Filled it up from a jerry-can and within 30 seconds she had sprung to life once more. Note to self: must fix fuel gauge !

(And repaint the camper body... time to buy a proper spray gun, primer, cellulose paint and find a neighbour's car to practice on )

(Click any to enlarge)

Set off for Southampton yesterday.. easy trip. Apart from being jet-lagged and cursed with flu, that is. Still, flight was booked so I gritted my teeth for the 9 hour drive home.

It was all going so well... until 20 miles before home. One dead camper van. I think the fuel pump has packed in, but luckily I have a spare. Thanks to the AA, we now have 2 dead, non-functional, 30-year old campers on our drive. I think this might have something to do with why our neighbours are struggling to sell their house - it looks like a load of gypsies have set up camp at the front of our house

Anyway, here he is, arriving in a somewhat ignominious fashion, at dark o'clock: 'Ole Henri, as the previous owners called him:

Now it's time for doing, rather than talking. Lots of kit on its way, the bumpers need to be sent off for re-chroming, the wheels need to go for shot-blasting and the old wallpaper and carpets need to be replaced.

Overall though, it's a lovely little van. Even Gil likes it and she's never been keen on these things. Photos to follow when our digital camera turns up !

This post is for our family and family friends who might want to contribute something to my father's retirement present. I've broken it down into price category so there should be something in everyone's price range.

You will need to be a member of Ebay and have a Paypal account to get some of these items. Ebay is a hell of a lot cheaper than the standard retail shops and some items are just not available over-the-counter. If you don't have an Ebay account or have never used it - don't worry - it's very straightforward and people generally encounter few problems when buying or selling. The only thing I would add, is that Ebay sellers can be a little suspicious of 'new' buyers who don't have any positive feedback from previous sales. All you need to do is send the seller a very quick email, via the Ebay 'send the seller a question' link, telling them that you are new to Ebay but a genuine buyer. That's generally all the confirmation they need that you are not wasting their time.

If you do buy something on Ebay, please read the description very, very carefully. Some sellers don't offer postage and state you have to pick the item up (might be on the other side of the country !), some ads are slightly misleading and the seller is offering something different from that which you expected.

Some items are 'Buy It Now' - i.e., they are not an auction and it is just like buying from an online shop, but the sellers usually want the payment via Paypal. For those items which are usually run as an auction, I'll add a suggested maximum bidding price. Ebay uses an 'autobid' system which means it will bid, on your behalf, up to the maximum amount you are prepared to pay in increments as the auction progresses. You may well get the item for far less than your maximum bid.

If you are unsure as to the suitability of anything you're looking at, just drop me a line at the usual address ! This list will probably drop off the front blog page at some point. You can always get back to it by clicking the 'shopping' tag at the left there. If you do buy anything, please let me know so I can cross it off too - my links are just suggestions. If it's cheaper somewhere else then all the better :-)

Anyway - onto the list...

1 - 50 pounds.


1 - A glass turtle or tortoise figurine for a dashboard mascot !  Shouldn't be more than a couple of pounds, but something tasteful please and quite small ! Something like this, perhaps:

2 - A Range Rover Efi Classic Alternator. This is to uprate the electrical power coming from the engine and bolts, I think, straight in to the Bedford. This will be an Ebay Item, so try a search for 'range rover alternator' there. As high an output rating as possible (the 120A one would be nice), but it must be from an older vehicle - late 80s, early 90s. Don't bid or pay more than 30 pounds for one and check that the seller will post it. Here's an example, but this auction will expire at some point:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Landrover-Land-Range-Rover-3-9-V8-EFi-Alternator_W0QQitemZ320134626981QQihZ011QQcategoryZ31348QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

 
3 - A 'Zig' water level gauge. You'll find this in the electrical section of their shop. 39.95

http://www.olearymotorhomes.co.uk/

 

4 - A 'Zig' battery meter. Same again. 16.49

http://www.olearymotorhomes.co.uk/

 

5 - A 12V to 12V Regulator. This stops the LCD TV (see below) from having strange lines all over the picture or, at worst, being fried by the battery ! You need to specify which tip to have fitted on the end, so this can't be bought until we have the TV. 34.99

http://www.action-replay.co.uk/Computing/12v12vDC_power_adapter.shtml

 
6 - A camping crockery set. Normal ceramics will just be small shards after a couple of hours driving ! I found the following, but I'm sure there are plenty of other options too. White or green would be the preferred colours. Around 25 pounds. If anyone wants to be creative and add things like egg-cups, a bottle opener, corkscrew etc etc, then please feel free :-)

 

7 - A combination Smoke/Carbon Monoxide detector. If the fridge or heater isn't venting properly, the build-up of carbon monoxide can be deadly very quickly. Clearly, this is a Bad Thing (tm). The one I've linked to is 29.49 - the Kidde 900-0122-UK 2-in-1.

http://www.safelincs.co.uk/section.php?xSec=42

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50 - 100 pounds.


1 - A Car Stereo. Plenty available in this price range, but I'm going to be a bit picky. Head off to Ebay and find a second-hand cassette unit with a CD multi-changer. The reason for this is that my Father still has a lot of cassettes and a multi-changer is a nice, lazy option for the CDs ! It doesnt matter if it's not a standard size, as it will be going in the side of a wardrobe. You may well get it for much less than 100 pounds. Here's an example:
 

2 - The speakers for the above. We'll need 4 and they're usually sold in pairs. A nice quality pair comes in at around 35.00, so two of those would be 70.00. Again, Ebay is the cheapest place to get them, so shop around !. Second-hand is perfectly good too....

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/INFINITY-6012i-16cm-6-0in-180Watt-2-way-car-speaker_W0QQitemZ160135358986QQihZ006QQcategoryZ18799QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

 

3 - Television Aerial; these are a bit specialised and aren't cheap, sadly. Probably the best for our purposes is this one, the Teleco Wing at 78.95.

http://www.olearymotorhomes.co.uk/

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100 - 150 pounds.

1 - A 'Zig' CF9 Charging system. These can be had on Ebay, second-hand, but it's the command centre of everything electrical and I don't want to trust the electrical safety of the entire camper to a used item in unknown condition. 104.95

 
2 - An Elecsol 110Ah battery. It's the Rolls Royce of batteries and should last a long, long, time. It comes with a Rolls Royce price too. Cheapest I could find it was on Ebay for 104.00  :-(

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Over 150 pounds.

OK - I'm probably being a bit optimistic here ! I suspect I'll be the one buying these items ! However, if you win the lottery, I do need these to complete the package:

1 - LCD TV/DVD combination. Again, cheapest on Ebay as a reconditioned unit, but it does have quite a tight spec. It MUST run on a 12V supply, and it MUST have an integrated DVD player and be a minimum of a 15" screen - anything less is just too small to be watcheable. Searching for '12v tv' seemed to do the trick for me. Example below:

 

2 - Fiamma F45i 2.5 metre awning. It's the smallest in the Fiamma range but still retails at around 250.00. Again, they can be found on Ebay, possibly for a lot less, but second-hand ones are always a bit horrid - avoid ! There are some new ones on Ebay though.. 2.5 metres is a perfect length - anything longer won't fit.

Just as a reminder - the camper is white and green :-)

http://www.olearymotorhomes.co.uk/

Unfortunately, plan B as listed below can't happen. Due to family circumstances, he doesn't have the time to do the project. Whilst unfortunate for me, I'd rather be in the position of having a rusty truck than a family member who's seriously ill.

So....

Plan C !

I've bought Mignon XVIII (no. 2) from a lovely family in... Romsey. Romsey. Why, oh why, oh why, does nobody in Scotland own one of these things ?! They're all daan Saaf in Kent or Cornwall. Another marathon driving session is on the way. Anyway, *sigh*, Mignon 2 was, and here's an ironic twist, professionally restored and resprayed last year so is in very nice condition.

The interior is a bit like a student flat...Mignon's is oak.... Swap time !

I've just been to my brother's wedding, which was superb, and my uncle, David, reminded me he volunteered to make the trek up to bonnie Scotland to help out with this. He's a welder, fixer-upper and generally all-round handy guy; he may come to regret the offer, which I will definitely be taking up.

He's also the only person who will sit down and have a load of beers with me whilst talking about American cars and trucks. I'll have to reign him in though - if I let him loose, it would be like an episode of the A-team, with Mignon being fitted with a tank cannon, water jets, outboard motor, helicopter blades, neon lighting and 22-inch wheels. You know it to be so....

Also - had an email from a fellow CF nutter enthusiast, who's going to show me how to fit an awning, a leisure battery and a split-charge unit. I think I'm on my own with the solar panel, which is now back in contention, due to the different body-type on Mignon 2, and also the costs saved by not doing a full metal restoration.

Shopping list to follow !

Well, my friend CC has launched off into the wild French countryside with his posh van, whilst I sit here contemplating all sorts of problems.

I think this is most inconsiderate.

I am going to use all my connections and have Interpol pull him in for using too many resistors in an LED light, or something like that. Once he has diagnosed and solved all my problems, I may allow him to be released, albeit with a tagging device to make sure he doesn't have too much fun.

Seriously - this is what retirement is all about.. the ability to do what you want, when you want. Go to France ? Why the hell not.

Mignon is progressing.. photos and stories when I return from my involuntary exile in the Caribbean

Right.. I've hammered out a deal with one of the Bedford CF Club members. We have a plan (tm).

To restore Mignon's cab would cost in the mid to high four-figures. Too much. However, he would like the cab to work with for a show-class restoration he's doing. He has a Bedford CF2 chassis circa 1984 which is mint, and a wrecked camper body. See where this is going ?!

We're going to crane Mignon's camper body onto the CF2 chassis, replacing various bits and pieces as we do. He's more interested in historical accuracy than I am, so he's taking some of the original '79 parts, and I'm getting some later parts. He's also getting the interior... I'm a bit sad about that, as it's original oak, but it will be better off in his restoration - I doubt my Dad will care too much. Mignon's interior will be replaced with a set salvaged from a caravan write-off.

He gets: CF1 cab in rusty state, original oak interior.

I get: CF2 chassis in very nice condition, virtually new interior including heated tanks, waste tanks, all new exterior fittings, new wiring, new plumbing, awnings, roof-rack.. etc etc. The CF2 is not as nice as the CF1, in my opinion.. all the chrome fittings were replaced with rubber, similar to what MG did with the MGB in the late 70s. However...

It's gonna cost me 2k. Less than half the price of the restoration. You could spend that on 2 awnings alone. Strange how these things turn out sometimes.

Mignon is dead.

Long live Mignon !

(CF2 shown below)