Millard 1900 16 foot update Q & A's

Hi John,
We have owned a small older caravan for a number of years, and we are lucky in as much that we have cared for it and looked after it.
If the caravan you have obtained is in real need of restoration, then you must be prepared for major work.
Has it leaked?
Is it aluminium or wood frame?
Is it aluminium or timber clad?
Is it really worth the effort?
I would advise google "vintage caravans.com", join their forum, and go to "classiic caravans" and read all the advice, heartaches and success that posibly awaits you.
What you are envisageing is not a quick fix, you may be better of buying a better condition van.
Haveing said all that, our van is old , but well maintained and really , really enjoyed.
pete

Hi John,
A caravan built in the 70's-80's would be lucky to even have a welded ID number, let alone a compliance plate, they didn't come in till the very late 80's early 90's.
The best indicator of weights etc would be the original licence docs,-- if you can find them.

I agree with Pete, unless the caravan has special family or historic significance for you or it is something that you WANT to do, you would be better off buying someething much more modern.

Having just said that, I can appreciate your wanting to take up the challenge to rebuild, refurbish and renew the old van, purely for the satisfaction you get when it's eventually finished.

The cost and time factors do not even come into consideration on a project like that.
(Years ago, I spent the best part of 18 months and around $10,000 in fully restoring an early Landrover which was worth only $4000 when finished.
Sounds stupid, but the satisfaction I got out of doing it all myself made it worthwhile)

I hope that you have the same.

Disco.

Hi there. Two points: if the tare is 900 kg, it is likely that the weight is at least 1000 kg by the time you fit the gas bottle, fill the water tank and so on. Also, many items added by the owner will add to this before you start to add food, bedding, clothes etc.. Our van is 1000 tare, and we fight to keep the ATM below 1400 kg.
The second point is that you are talking as though the caravan is a self contained container which is then fitted with beds, cupboards etc. My understanding is that many vans, then and now, rely on the fittings for structural strength. The cupboards, partitions, etc are fixed to the floor, and then the cladding is added at the end, to keep the draught out!. If you 'gut' the van, you may well find there's nothing left in terms of structure!. Your van is almost certainly NOT a structure with 'proper' stud walls such that you can gut the fittings, and start to refit assuming that the outside is a rigid, strong frame that you can fix to.
If you plan to gut and refit, then you will have to ensure you do not add to the bare weight of the van, which probably means using material half as thick as your brain tells you!
I think you should follow the earlier comment, and explore what other restorers have done.

The frame will be timber. The old vans of that period were much lighter than the present ones. A large reason for these was the light weight construction of the internal cabinetry. The frames are of very small section timber and the covering ply was light as well. The cupboards were not lined. The drum doors are much lighter than the modern heavy ply and thick surrounding frames. There are also less cupboards. If you are going to refit the van, carefully study the cabinet construction and carefully copy the techniques. If you use modern construction for the furniture your weight will increase dramatically.

I think your van was made before they went mad with staples. If that is the case then the cupboards will possibly be screwed in place from the inside.

With a van of that age the caulking under the external trim and windows will be dry and flaky. It will only cost a few tubes of sealant to do but occupy a fair amount of labour. Remove all the cover strips off the corners. Remove the windows, hatches and door. Scrape off all the old butyl mastic. Then reinstall these with new caulking. While you have the windows out have them repaired, it's cheaper to take them to the glazier.

If you can do most of the work yourself it will not cost you much. If you have to get it all done for you then labour will be by far the greatest cost. You should end up with an old but excellent van for little cost.

PeterD

The chasis hos no major rust just some surface rust, it has hydrolic brakes, that work fine, but i will get the thing looker over by a mechnic before i start incase the springs and brakes need attention.

it has 240v wiring that works fine and has done for the last 10 years.

i will look into ugrading my tow pack to make sure of the weight issue,

this windows will need to come out to ger repaird anyway, is it an option to put in perspex ones like on modern vans?

thanks for the ideas and feed back

The chasis hos no major rust just some surface rust, it has hydrolic brakes, that work fine, but i will get the thing looker over by a mechnic before i start incase the springs and brakes need attention.

it has 240v wiring that works fine and has done for the last 10 years.

i will look into ugrading my tow pack to make sure of the weight issue,

this windows will need to come out to ger repaird anyway, is it an option to put in perspex ones like on modern vans?

thanks for the ideas and feed back