BADBD IREELS .z. VETERAN AND VINTAGE MOTORING JUNE 1960 W. A. CLAPHAM 29 SOUTHWARK STREET CHRISTCHURCH Betw een Man ch ester and Madras Streets, alongside Cokers Hotel. Phone 77-471

Canterbury Service for

AUTO Christchu:rch Distributors of ELECTRICIAN A.B. Batteries

Whether VETERAN. EDWARDIAN. VINTAGE or MODERN­ they all need The LESCO POUR-A-CAN

Stand It Up or Lay It Flat It Will Not Leak or Smell

Made in Avai labl e from Y OUI' Ga rage 0 1' One Gallon. Se rv ice Station. and Manufactured under A LLBO Y Licence bv Two Oaflon Ctlpacities SOUTHWARD E l\" GINEERING CO. LTD . Seaview, Lower Hutt. '2 2

Beaded W heels is th e voice of th e Vi ntage Car M ovement in N ew Z ealan d and of th e C lu bs whose efforts are fostering and eve r wide ni ng th e inte rest in th is m ovem en t and form rally ing points for that ev er increas­ ing ban d of enthusiasts. The fascinati on of age itself or revu lsion from the flashy m ediocrity of our p resen t day is dra uiing an inc reasing num ber of motorists ba ck to th e indiv id uality, solid wo rth, and functio nal elegance th at was deman ded by a more discrim inating gene ratio n and it is to th ese th at we ded icate- BEADED WIEIEELS V Ot. \1, No. 22 ] U l\'E, 1960 Bead ed Wheels is Published Q uarterly by the VI1\TAGE CAR CLUB OF :'1.Z. l NC. 20 HACKTHORXE RO AD CHRISTC HURCH, S.2, NEW ZEALAND. A careful look at the contemporary motoring scene -*- provid es material for speculation ab out the wisdom Yearl y Subscri ption 10/- post free. or greatness of the persons wh o conce ived the mo tor -*- car and those who championed " the cause" against I ndividu al copies 2/6 each. -*- stern opposition in the un-enlightened days at the Ed it or: Mr s M. J. ANDERSON. beginning of th e century. -*- Has the motor car become th e master of man ­ A ssista nt E ditor : R. PORTER. A nd crs ons Line, Carterton. and are we who drive them modern slaves to the -*- finance companies, fashion, tax gatherers and the Copy must be typed on onc sidc of pap er strong arm of the law? There is no doubt that the and sent to the Editor, 20 Hackthorn e motorist is one of the most heavily taxed members Road, Chrisichu rch. -*- of the public and there is little doubt th at , with the CO py SE PTExlHER ISSUE CLO SES exception of the bookmaker, he is one of the worst AUGUS T 15th , 1960. sufferers fina ncially if he has the misfortune to be caught transgressing the strict code of behaviour pre­ IN THIS IS SUE Editorial Page 1 scribed for him in a mass of sta tutes and regul ati ons. Road T est No. 21 2 Compulsory Stop 5 Wh at would men like Edge and J arrott say at th e Vauxhall (Part 3) 7 plight of the average motorist today? W ho is his Third Na tional Veteran and champion? Wh o is the re who does not regard him Vintage Car Rally 11 as ready prey be it for some "aid to bett er dri ving" Register and Dating Committee .. 15 or a few more pence per gallon to swell the coffers Camera Review 16, 17 of Govern ment. It seems that it is a road that knows Sunbeam (Part 1) " 18 no turning from the everlasting burden of pay, pay, Vintage and Veteran Motor- pay. Cycle Notes 22 " " I n My Day" 24 The pap ers howl "The Road Death T oll," th e price Northern Natter 27 of petrol goes up and the qu ality down, th e Courts Canterbury Notes .. 28 General Not es .. 29 spend thousands of pounds of the taxp ayers (mostly Letters 31 motorists ) money and a lot of th eir time finin g Photo Quiz .. 31 motorists and trying to mak e them pedestrians again, Cla ssified Advertisements .. 32 the men in blue ha ve long ago eschewed such simple COVER PHOTO: devices as stop wa tches and hankies for the marvels O bv iouslva lovely old Cl cmcn t-Talbot of 1905 (? )i of modern science in orde r to trap the unsuspectin g but. so rry. we do no t kno w who the lovel y dr-ive r is. speedster (again at vast expense ) and the motorist Actually, rho glass pla te negative was fo und in a town rubbi..h dump. Tht"I1 it co llec ted dust (01 " carr ies on without a mur mur, taxed, fined , overtaxed, 50 11I(' yea rs on a wor kshop shelf an d o nly rcc eu tlv had . a print ta ke n 00', A p ity we ca nno t gi ve any restricted, taxed again, marvelling at what the inven­ det ails o f car 01 " ow ner, bu t the photo does pro ve that brass was ke pt polished in those days, that tive genius of mankind has achieved for mankind tvres \\t'n' white, qu ite smoo th a nd dt.·\,o i(t' of anv with the automobile. t;-"ad dl·sig-n. :\ o t ~ those flarin c Iro nt guards, t h ~' 8 tt.·pm·y whe el, tha t ha ndsome horn, bu rron cd up­ ho lster y. folding hood and abse nce o f a ny wind­ And this should thoroughly convince you that we sen' ,·.", It also proves tha t a fashio nabl e yo un g- lady wt.·ann ~ boned collar an d pa dded-o ut-ha ir-style was are nuttier than any other motorists and III fact are no t 3 \ ',' 1'S,' to sitt ing a t the wh ee l o f a n automobil e, D U C5 an yo ne recognise car 01 " driver? our own wors t enemies. ROAD TEST No. 2 I A. A. Anderson 1912 Regal "20" doubts about the strength of the whole as­ sembl y, wisely refrain ed from tru stin g it with It always seems to be my fate to be rop ed the weight and torque of the engine which int o acting on the judging pa nel for the they ca rried on two large 2Y2 inch tubes run­ "concours" at the Dunedin-Brighton run and ing parallel to the frame between the front whilst this is a leng thy task it always has the and middle cross members. compensation that one can often sample a The front axle is a most impressive H sec­ good cross section of New Zealand's finest tion forging; the whole effect of which is veteran ma chinery in the course of one's offi­ ruined by the very thin and dang erou sly fl ex­ cial duties. Last year marked the first appea r­ ible looking track rod that is ca rried in front ance of Bob O akley's magn ificent Regal of it. The larg e diameter wooden wheels which is the subject of this test, and during mounting 880 x 120 tyres give a most im­ the customary aft ern oon's fun and games at pressive air to th e appearan ce and Bob has the Brighton Domain I was given a short done a very fine job of finish on them by pol­ bu rst in the ma chine. At this stage of its ishing the wood and varnishing. The springs ca reer Bob (being a thorough going purist ) are semi-elliptic all round and ar e generous had retain ed one of the peculiar features of in weight and length, the front bein g 3ft. 2in. the vehicle as he had received it, i.e., speed long and the rear 4ft. 4in .; again unusual was controlled onl y by a hand throttle, th ere trouble has been taken over the finish and all being no conventional accelerator whatever. leaves are polished and blu ed after retemper­ This feature made changing down with a ing. In spite of the lightness of the cross gate gearbox distin ctly a "o ne armed paper­ memb ers and chassis the rear springs are hanger's" manoeuvre, but in spite of this shackled at both ends and a torque tube is peculiarity th e vehicl e had obviously got real anchored to the centre cross member whi ch charac ter, and so, when the offer of th e ca r thus takes all the shocks from axle movement for two da ys was made to me when last in and drive torque in addition to clutch thrust Dunedin, i naturally acce pted with alacrity. and a large proportion of the engine weight, Now most of mv contacts with vehicles of torque and vibration- a most important sec­ American origin have, if anything, confirmed tion of the car. a life-long suspicion that they fall into the Steering is by worm and wheel box giving category, not so mu ch of " bad things" as a real vintage feel and calling for 1Ys turns just plain uninterestin g thin gs. The Regal from lock to lock. definitely is an exception to this experience Overall dim ensions are mod erate, wheel­ but, shad es of Mr H endry, we will not now base being 8ft. lOin, and the track 4ft. gin. pursue the qu estion of wheth er this proves the and weight whilst not ac tually known mu st rule! be quite light. T o propel this throu gh the Even a brief glance at th e specification atmosphere the makers provided a conve n­ will show that for a cheap and in many ways tional 4-cylinder cast iron side valve engine crude machine the Regal has plenty of novel with 3in. bores, L head design with non­ features to intrigue both engineer and driv er . det achable cylinder heads and the usual array The obvious starting point is the underslun g of bungs for valve inspection. Intern ally, the chassis passing beneath both front and rear finish on con rods, etc., is ag ricultural to say axles and giving the whole ca r a low and the least and very massive cast iron pistons do rakish appearance. Its construction consists not make any easier the task befo re th e two of two pressed steel side memb ers of channel bearing crankshaft. There are, how ever, section measuring I Y2 inches width of some interesting features utterly at variance flan ges by only 3 Y2 inches at th eir deepest with the cru dities. The crankcase, for in­ point. These two members are join ed by only stance, is of " ba rrel" construc tion giving a th ree most ineffectual looking cross members, very rigid engine design and into th e rear end one under the radi ator , one amidships behind of the "barrel" is spigotted the very generous the engine and one right at the rear of the rear main bearing and crankcase end cover. chassis, and the makers, obviously having At the front end the bearing is fixed in ord er 2 to accura tely locat e the tim ing dr ive whi ch big end a pip e run s right th rough the sum p is by generously dimensioned helical gea ring and has a plug below sump level and th rough and remark abl y qu iet. Anoth er interesting these fou r plugs any grit, sludge, ctc., can be feature is the oiling system, which is quite in­ drained without int erferin g with the m ain oil genious and really does ensure th at impurities supp ly. an d solids are not re-circulat ed th rough the Cooling is by th ermosyph on assisted by a bearings. T he oil is contained in a cast alumin­ large multi-blad ed and shroud ed fan , belt ium sump beneath the cast iron cra nkcase but d riven, and m ixture is provided by a Schebler which is completely enclosed like a box. O nly ca rbure tto r on the opposite side of the motor four openings are provided, being a dr ain ­ from the Am erican Bosch magneto wh ich bu ng and a connection for the suction pip e supplies the sparks. Bob has aga in lavished for the oil pump on the outside, and, in the his care for detail and finish on this engine as top of the " box" inside the crankcase, two the ena mel finish on the castings and com­ filling pipes abo ut Y2 in. in diam eter and plete elimina tion of ba cklash from all clevis sta nding up at least )14 in. above the level of pins and rods bear testimon y. the "lid" whi ch also form s a base to the Unfortunat ely for the transmission, crudity cra nkcase. When the crankcase is filled with agai n takes over and the car is cursed by that oil a pool )l4 in. deep stays on this "lid" before most dr eadful device the int egr al back ax le oil can flow down the pip es to the sum p and and gea rbox. the big ends dip into this pool. A plunger Three fairl y well chosen forward ra tios a re pump 0 11 the camshaft sucks oil from the to han d and a reverse selected by a short sump and delivers it via a drip feed glass on right hand lever in a gate, wh ence motion is the dashb oard to both main bea rings and the passed via long rods to the box han ging on timing case whence it flows back to the the end of the torque tu be. The whole rear cra nkcase, raises th e level and causes more end assembly is fitted with H yatt type long oil to flow ba ck into the sump. Under each roller beari ngs and the crown wheel and

-' 3 pinion are straight cut so th at in motion the also a small lever operating an exh aust cut­ transmission though really quite sound has out that makes a most satisfying "rumble" all the audible symptoms of impending disin­ on hills. These ped als are lost in a vast acre­ tegration. age of aluminium chequer-plated flooring The clutch is a leather-faced cone 14Y2in. and on the polished mahogany dash in front in diameter by 2i'2in. of fac e width and the of it are located an ignition switch (obviously driven member is connected directly to the vintage Sunbeam ) and the oil drip feed sight drive shaft by a bronze star type uni versal glass. On the right is a period Stewart joint in such a way that wh en the clutch is Speedo driv en from the open gearing on the disengaged the entire cone, joint and dri ve front wheel and also the short gea r cha nge shaft moves bodily rearwards, this movement lever and hand brake. being accommodated by a very long "pot Away out front an impressive vista of joint" down in the bowels of the rear cnd. plated radiator flank ed by torpedo lights and Stopping in the traditional American man­ blu ed springs greets the eye. H avin g thus ner, was accomplished by external contract­ tak en in the scenery we depress the clut ch and ing bands on th e rear drums operated by the engage first gea r. Expecting the usual cone­ foot pedal and also internal expanding shoes squ eal and neck-breaking jerk one is agree­ in the same drums are hand operated. The ably surprised when it doesn't happen and drum diameter is llin. x 2in . face width and, we're off-up to second and one suddenly in spit e of the most complex linkage system realises that one should never have had the especially for the foot brakes, the stopping timerity to drive the brute a yard. Eve ry­ was really very good. thin?" becomes alive . in th e most ala rming So mu ch for the anatomical dissection . It Iashion ; those magnificent mudguards have is th e road that all cars were built for and all got St. Vitus ' dan ce, the two front wheels it is only by road perf ormances that a car can are moving all over the place ind ependent be judged, and thus it was that Bob rashl y bo~h of each oth er and of you clutching handed over his pride and joy a week or two va inly at the wheel upon the " bridge," and ago. from the. ba ck axle the most horrifying sounds On wheeling the car from the garage the are commg . Persevere and we're into top first impression is of a really sporting, almost and at 30 m.p.h. the wind takes awa y the Mercer-like appearance, and then one 's eye worst of the noise, centrifugal force has dealt is immediately drawn to the superlative qual­ with the front wh eels and )'ou've got used to ity of finish. The paintwork is of the very the guards, so we press on. highest ord er, the colour being a very well chosen and restrained near- yellow and the woodwork of the bod y is constructed of very WANTED TO BUY fine mah ogany with a beautiful stained and Back numbers of "Beaded Wheels" in polish ed finish, with lining in red. All the go od condition. 2/- per copy. Please woodwork and painting has been don e by the contact the Secretary, P.O. Box 2546, own er himself and is of exceptional quality. Christchurch. Since the car had not been used for some weeks previously there was the odd form alit y FOR SALE to go through-water level was checked and The following back numbers a re now a va ilable a dose of neetsfoot oil applied to the clutch at 3/ - per copy. March 1960 173 Printed copies leather, acetylene pressure was check ed (Bob December 1959 120 carries a bottle in pla ce of a generator in in­ September 1959 61 December 1958 33 " terests of cleanliness and good temper) and September 1956 33 after two trial swings away th e motor went December 1957 13 " and your scrib e took his seat in the small June 1957 30 " September 1956 ;} Cyci~styl~d copies leather-lined bucket seat. March 1956 12 "" Before one is, firstly, the leather-bound To ensure immediate delivery of YOUR wheel with its nickel-pl ated quadrant below magazine please inform this office of whi ch are the nickeled ped als including, for­ any address changes. tunately, an accelerator this time. There is Into th e centre of the city to fill up with When the shingle sta rts ca ution rules, bear­ petrol we are impressed by the anchors and ing in mind th e tremendous unsp run g weight though the front wheels' antics look peculiar at the rear and its customary effect on road we now realise th at th ey don 't mean any holding. harm, th e clutch is still smooth an d the urge But very soon it is obvio us th at again th is off th e mark makes city driv ing a real pleasure car would pro ve an exception- no vices are especiall y when all other traffic can' t help found and no tend ency to either bounce or but notice one' s most effective pair of front roll at the rear, and the narrow and tw isty dumb-irons! ! sections are finally taken as fast as visibility A team is collected an d we head out for allows. Steering is really vint age once speed the Penin sula whi ch offers a wide variety of has been built up and gyro effect cancels out motoring conditions; th rough th e suburbs at whip in the tie rod !!Brakes are good as a qui et 30 m.p.h, in top tak ing it easy; then two-wheel systems go an d th e engine runs up a rush at High cliff at 45 m.p.h.- steeper­ to its 1500 r.p .m. with out fuss and with ba gs. down to second-down to first gea r, an d one of torque just when you want it. T hirty miles realised that th e box is a really easy one to per hour in second is usual and 45-50 miles handle. At th e top of the hill there is a long per hour in top attainable th ough not recom­ stead y climb to th e summit by Larnach's mended too often. In short th is is a veteran Cas tle which alternates between full bore in that is really fun to drive, has given its owner second and also top gea r with cut-out open, a great deal of satisfac tion to restore an d cer­ and passenger on the floor a la Paris-M adrid tainl y whenever I visit D un edin and Bob - the road holding is a joy on this smooth wants someo ne to give th e R egal an airing it sealed section of th e road and we give th e car will give me mu ch pleasure to again come to her head in anticipa tion of th e rough, nar­ grips with this ver ita ble " mecha nical cha r­ row, shingle descent int o Port obello. acter."

Compulsory Stop by L. Meader I t could be, I tell myself, just another case It is all very bewildering and confusing . of " O ne man 's meat . . ." On the other I could, of course, obta in a second opinion, hand, I have a very deep respect for the Doc­ but, fr ankly, I lack th e moral cour age in case tor's professional acumen and judgment. it confirms the orig inal one. It might help Until this thing happened about two weeks me if I could talk about it to someone. Would ago I regarded myself as a reasonably well­ you mind if I told you, it won't take very adjusted indi vidual, a good husband, a fond long. father, of ave rage intell igence, in regular It all sta rted abo ut a month ago. My son employment and interested in vintage cars. and I were resting after 18 months' work on This int erest appeared to be- except for the old Sta nda rd tour er. Not completely grimy finge r nails and an occasional skinned restored, you know, but considerably tidied knu ckle- a dignified and suitable hobb y for up and running nicely. Then we heard of a mature man an d one which was socially this O verland M odel 4 run about in very acce pta ble. Now I have doubts ab out this. good mechanical order an d only three previ­ Another of my simple pleasures was to read ous owners. (" M y grandfather owned it aloud to the fam ilv advertisements of inter­ for over 19 years.") Negotiati ons and hag­ esting cars for sa l ~. But this pleasure, too, gling commenced and were going their nor­ is now denied me. Where formerly th ey lis­ mal pleasant and leisure ly course until a keen tened, mad e some polite and vague response prospective buyer appeared and necessitated and then 'went on with whatever had been an increase in the tempo of th e final stages. occupying their attention, they now say, Looking back, I can see th at is where the "But, father, remember wha t your psychia­ first mistake was mad e. I neglected to pre­ trist said," and sta rt a bright conversation on pare my wife for th e arrival of another car another sub ject with the obvious intention of and obta in her reluctant resignation to a diverting my thoughts. further year or so of jobs around the house 5 being done when th e time could be spared M y wife was indignant. "If anyone needs from the car. a psycho, it's you. Wh y don 't you see him ?" The moment my son drove the car up The visiting psychiatrist comes to our­ the drive with the number plate rattling vig­ well, where 1 work-on Tuesda ys. Last week, orously between the cross-eyed head lamps when we had finished the aft ernoon 's work and sagging front guards 1 felt that icy chill and were waiting for dinner to be served, 1 of disapproval. For two days 1 ignored the broached th e subject to him. cold politeness and studied om issions of the " Doc tor, my wife suggested that 1 avail car's existence until 1 could stand it no myself of your prof essional services, if th at is longer. The purchase and possession of the possible." car was a real fact. M y wife must face up to " You must be joking, Mr M ead er," said reality and facts. Tactfully 1 began my efforts the doctor," there does not appear to be an y­ to get her to accept th e situation. thing wrong with you." "Dear," 1 said, " why don 't you like cars ?" "1 know that," 1 said, "but my wife has "1 don 't dislike cars," said my wife. "Cars asked me to talk to you." are very useful and so is a sense of propor­ "Very well, Mr Meader, but 1 know it tion. " can't be anything serious, " said th e doctor. Possibly the new arrival was giving her a "Last week my son and 1 bought our sixth sense of insecurity, 1 thought. car," 1 began. "Dear," 1 said, "does it upset you when "Sixth car, Mr Meader! Good H eavens! you sec me manipulating and altering things Six cars? Would you like to sit down again so 1 can have them the way 1 think they and tell me about it?" should be and goin g the way I want them 1 explained about th e little car 1 use to go to?" to work, the bigger ca r needed when we take " It would not upset me in th e least," re­ th e famil y out and th e car my son uses for plied my wife, " to see you manipulating and his work and youthful pleasures. 1 paused alt ering things with a hoe or a paint brush. for a moment, partly to review mentally what In fact, it would please me very much." 1 had said and partly to allow the doctor tim e It seemed unbelievable to me that after to assimilate what he had heard. 22 years of married life my wife could be de­ " M 'rn, yes, those three 1 can perhaps veloping feelings of jealousy but, if it was allow you, Mr Meader," murmured the doc­ so, then the sooner I knew, the better. tor, "but 1 warn you, you ma y find it diffi­ "Darling," 1 said , "how do you feel about cult to justify an y more. Please go on." cars? Do you see them as bold, powerful, That pause was another mistake, 1 know thrusting their way forw ard or do you see that now. In fact, 1 knew it as soon as 1 had them as feminine? You know, notice th e mad e the pause. 1 don 't care what the text lines and colour scheme first, compare its age books say regarding an involuntary pause at and appearance with the one the neighbours th at stage of the int erview, I'm certain 1 have? That sort of thing." didn't stop talking for any of th ese reasons. "1 do not see cars as Freudian sex svm­ Explanations would have made the situation bols," said my wife firmly. "1 see then~ as worse and 1 continued with my story. 1 cars. Cars on th e driv e, cars on the lawns, spoke of the 1923 tourer as it was when we cars everywhere around the hou se. 1 also bought it and what we had done on it, of the see the garden a wildern ess and a house that similar model we obtained for parts or restor­ needs painting badly." ation when we had the time and how we had This attitude seemed a strange one for an heard of the Overland and had tra cked it otherwise reasonable woman who attends down and found it irresistible because, al­ rallies and club picnics and obviously the though of about th e same period as the Stan­ problem was too deep for me to try to handle dard, the design and construction were so while she had her present emotional outl ook. different. Finally, 1 dwelt briefly on Vintage " Would you like me to have a word with Car Clubs, their objects, aims and intentions. the psycho ab out you, dear?" 1 offered. " It H e was unimpressed and th e quiet probing wouldn't take him long to explain why you started. feel the way you do ." " Why do you like cars, Mr Meader ?" 6 "Does it give you pleasure to manipulate sat qui etly in his cha ir, leaning forw ard , eyes and alter things to have them the way you down cast, his elbows on his knees with his think they should be and running as you face cupped in his hands and pondered deep­ want them to run?" ly for some minutes. Then he raised his head "How do you feel about cars, Mr M ead er ? and spoke, and in his voice was hope and Do you see them as powerful, adv enturous, confidence : rushing onwards or do you regard them as "H'rn . Yes. M ost interestin g. I think feminine-the curves catch your eye, the that at the present tim e you and your wife seats are soft and comfortable?" have no real cause for serious alarm but I would suggest you leave it at six cars .No "Tell me now , this urge you hav e to buy more than six. Do you think you can? I'm obsolete and out-of-elate cars ...?" sure you could if you tried. Now , you're not The gentle questionin g went on for about to worry, I'll see you aga in the week after fifteen or twenty minutes and I gave-I hope next, but in the meantime if you feel a com­ - more sensible and helpful answers than my pulsion to buy another car please get in touch wife had given me. Eventually the doctor with me immediately." ~ ~~illJ lZU=D~{b~ ~ .... =...... PART 3 COMPETITION! 1908·1912 Ja ck Newall For 1908 the Ca nterbury Aut omobile together- and a formula arra ngemen t was Association staged probably its biggest trial used to allow for the various engines and ever. Among the thirty-seven entries were sizes. quite a number of cars from the North Scott, Morgan & Co. had entered their Island, including a White Steam car of H aw­ new 20 h.p. Vau xhall (Y.2) which had kins & Rowe, Napier, which was considered arrived from England only a week or so be­ ineligible and relegated to carry officials and fore the event, and this was to be driven by reporters on the trial. Entries ranged from Mr Waiter Scott. Because of this lat e arrival the 50 h.p. Darracq of Timaru, down to a the car was run just as it came out from the bevy of 8 h.p. Reos an d Rovers. Names th at factory-Mr W. B. Scott would not allow have gone by the wayside like S.C.A.T. , any experimenting at th at stage. As the dark Argyll, Stuart and Bclsize mingled with the horse of the event and with a reputation pre­ more famili ar Vauxhall, Talbot, Wolseley ceding it, no doubt the new Vauxhall was and Ca diliac ; in all there were seventeen watched with great interest especially by the makes represent ed. rival firms. During the four days of the event a total Decemb er 28 saw the thirty-seven cars of 54 7 miles was covered. Offi cial observers lined up in Worcester Street, east of the were, of course, carried on all cars and these Ca thedral, and the first car was flagged away were cha nged daily. Points were lost for all at 8 a.m., the remainder followin g at one unofficial stops (apart from stops for tyres ) . minute int ervals. Entry No. 12 (the new As with most of these early trials, the object Vauxhall ) was away at 8.26. The route was was to test the relati ve reliability of the va ri­ from Christchurch up the M ain North Ro ad ous touring cars. Eac h day a specified time to Leithfield , then inland back thro ugh Sef­ was set for the run, which cut out "excessive ton, Oxford to Springfield for lunch-one speeding" and at the same time allowed the hour allowed for this-and then back to smaller cars to compete. There were no Christchurch on the M ain West Road. The classes-trade and private owners were all in time set for the 119 miles was 5-5 ~ hours. (P ho to by co ur tesy W . ] . Sc o tt.) 1908 Four Da y Trial. The Vauxhall negotiating the hairpin on Dyers Pass. Much of the inland section of this rout e was ter runs, and there were no withdrawals dur­ on back roads, whi ch even today leave much ing the day. This was north up the main to be desired. road to Culverden and then to the Upper The following day there were only 35 Waiau Ferry for lunch, and the same route start ers, one of the 16/ 20 Reos and the home, 166 miles. Sizaire Nau din pulled out, and during the O n the final day the 25/35 Ariel was a day the 50 h.p. Darracq and a 16/ 20 Argyll non-starter and the rema ining 3 1 set off on a withdrew with engine troubl es. Generally pretty gruelling trip . D uring the day a fur­ engine and tyre troubles were more numer­ ther four cars withdrew. On top of the 435 ous. The rout e was from Chr istchurch to miles already covered and th e hilly route of Darfield, th en through the Rakaia Gorge to the day's run, was the timed hill climb, T he Methvcn for lunch, on to Ashburton and course led out to Little River and on to back to Christchurc h on th e M ain South Akaroa. Becau se this roa d was very na rro w Road, 149 miles. The petrol consumption and it was onl y possible to pass in a few test (held this second da y) was mad e more places, lunch was a rather prolonged affair difficult by strong nor-west conditions. as the entrants had to wait until the coaches Knowin g how it can blow in th e back coun­ from Little River had arrived before begin­ try round the Rakaia Gorge, one can imagine ning the return trip. T his was on the same the cars battling for miles against the strong route as far as Little River (including th e head wind. Added to this were th e hazards hillclimb at Barrys Bay) then up Gebbies of the water races between M ayfield and Valley, Gove rnors Bay and on to Chr ist­ Ashburton- "Water races were big, could church, 113 miles. It had rain ed hcavilv in have floated boats." the ea rly morning and road s were muddy 'and The third day with 32 sta rters, was in con­ stieky until Little River, but dri ed later in th e trast less eventful, even the W aipara Rive r, day. usually notorious (the A.A. used to keep a On the way to Akar oa, the spring con­ horse there as th e crossing was so soft ), was trolling th e advance and retard position of particularly 10\,,-, so the smaller cars had bet- the mag. of the Vau xhall becam e unhitched 8 -leaving it fully advanced all the time. It is interesting to note that the entry fees "Y.2" was first into Akaroa and after the for the trial amounted to £165, from which car had been directed into a quiet street by the C.A.A. made a nett profit of £13/18/1! one of the officials, M. Malaquin who was The next competitive appearance of "Y.2" the observer said, "Now if anything want's was May 21, 1910, when petrol consumption fixin g, I'm going off for a while !" (He had and speed tests were held at Addington Met­ previously admitted to being scared at riding ropolitan Track, Christchurch. By this time in th e Vauxhall for the hillclimb and wanted extensive experimenting had been done on ever ything in order.) Of course Mr Scott the Vauxhall in regard to fuel consumption didn't touch a thing-not wanting to J03e and the special "extra air" system had been five marks! fitted. Back at Barrys Bay the cars were Jined up For the fuel test, carburettors were con­ outside the Post Office and sent off up the nected to an improvised tank holding half a hill at three-minute intervals-no closed gallon of petrol, fitted to a lamp bracket. Cars roads of course. The clim b was 1,600ft in ran until the fuel gave out. The speed test five mil es of b ends a nd sha rp curves a nd aJ­ was made immediately after this and no ad­ though th e ro ad had dried it was still heavy, justment to the motor was allowed. This was but th e run u p was fast a nd exciting. The half a mile standing start on the circular Vauxhall's time for the hill was 9min. 22sec., track, and considering that it consisted of fastest time of th e dav. Second was the 25 three inches of dust well watered, the speeds h .p. T albot taking 12~in . 1lsec. with about were surprisingly good. Entries, of which 100vt. more up. In spite of th e Talbot's there were twenty-three, were divided into extra weight th e V auxhall co llected first place three classes on h.p. rating. Some of the less on formula also. well known cars included a 7.3 h.p. Chenard The trip wa s not yet ove r however, and Walcker, 16 h.p. Marlborough, and 25 h.p, Dy ers Pass climb wa s still a head- see photo. Chalmers Detroit. This corner was so tight that many cars had Petrol Consumption Class C. 20 h.p. and to hav e two go es to get round. By taking it under 30 h.p. close to th e bank, th e Vauxhall roared up,' no 1. W. J. Scott's 20 h.p. Vauxhall (Y.2) doubt giving M . Malaquin one more fright 100 points, 34. 44 m.p.g., 43.18 ton for the day. Here also passen gers were shed m.p.g. from many ca rs- Sco tt, Morgan & Co.'s 2. F. W . Johnston's 12/16 Talbot, 94.3 Gl adiat or for one co uldn 't get up with a full points, 27 .77 m.p.g ., 38 .72 ton m.p.g. load. Then finally, for " Y.2" home a t 7.17 Speed T est Class C . p.m . I . Scott's V auxhall, - 48sec. Of the thirty-seven entries, tw enty-seven 2. D exter & Crozier 's 30 h.p. Cadiliac ca rs comple ted th e trial and only six had non­ - 5 1sec. sto p runs for th e wh ole event. The over all The special pri ze for highest aggregat e of winner, taking into account petrol consum p­ marks presented by th e Dunlop Rubber Co. cion a nd hillclimb was th e 15 h.p. Talbot 01 was awarded to Scott 's Vauxhall with 182 Ad ams Ltd. driven by H. 1'. Adams. Gold points out of 200. medals were awarded to th e six ca rs making . The first Hackthorne Road hillclimb was non-stop runs :-A. Morten's 30 h.p, W olse­ held on June 11, 1910. The climb ran from ley-Siddcley ; Ad ams Ltd. 15 h.p, T aIb ot ; th e foot of H ackthorne Road up to th e junc­ Adams Ltd. 25 h.p . Talbot ; J. H. Williams' tion with Dyers Pass Road, and included 22 h .p.S.C. A.T.; Scott, Morgan & Co.'s 20 some fairly stee p grades and very acute cor­ h .p. Vauxhall ; vV.M 'A. Duncan's 12/14 ne rs. On th e day th e road was in exce llen t Sing er. These six cars were also presented condition. Only 'twelve of th e ninet een ca rs with certificates of reli ability ea ch having en tered, competed and th e contest was main­ 1,000 m arks-no points lost for relia bility on ly fou ght ou t between the Vauxhalls and the th e trial. The Trophy for fastest time in the Talbots. A stripped tw o-seater 20 h.p . T al­ hillclimb, a nd th e Trophy for first place on bot was picked to win th e event. Results for formula in th e hillclimb were both awarded the first time were divided into Open or to Scott, M organ & Co.ls V auxhall. Trade Class, and Private Owners' Class. 9 Results: Second formula, second fastest time, A. T rade: 1 W. J. Scott's 20 h.p, Vaux- Good win's Vauxha ll. hall (Y.2) , 1min . 49sec. First on Probabl y the first real speed trials ever formula and fastest time of the day. held in New Zealan d were on Brigh ton Beach 2. On formula a 15 h.p. T albot. on M ar ch 9, 191 2. The five-mil e straight of This dav NII' Scott drove bot h Vauxhalls sand, ran from near the mou th of the Wai­ entere d byW, B. Scott & Co . makariri R iver to a mile north of the New The nex t major trial was the 1910 trial to Brighton pier. These beach races were handi­ Dunedin and back, bu t "Y.2" was not enter­ cap events, begun from a standing start and ed for this. In stead NII' Scott drove one of although a time was picked when the tide was the new " AT ype" Vauxhalls which received out leaving a wide expa nse of firm sand there a Silver M edal for second place in Open were usually a few hazards suc h as heaps of Class and first prize for petrol consumption. seaweed, odd patches of really wet sand or Before the next hillclirub on H ackth orn e sometimes even pools of water. However th is Road on March 11, 1911 , the light touring day conditions were fairl y good. Both W . B. bodv had been bu ilt and fitted to "Old Blue." Scott's entries were stripped to th e chassis and Th ~ course was the same as the previous year no doubt mu ch work had been done in tun­ and th ere were thirteen competitors. "Y .2" ing up "Old Blue." went up at appro xima tely 40 m.p.h. to clip 1. W. J. Scott's Vau xhall, off 15sec. : 15 1-5sec. off last year's time . The four 4min. 50sec. VauxhalIs entered ( two by W.B. Scott & Co. 2. W. B. Scott's Regal, off 30sec. : 6min. and two privately owne d ) scooped the pool. 6sec. Open: 3. J. C. M ercer's 12 h.p. Sizaire Nau din, Gold Medal, fastest time, W. J. Scott's off 75sec. : 6min. 75sec. Vauxh all, 1min. 33 4-5sec. The average speed of the Vauxha ll was Gold M edal, first on formula second 62 m.p. h. an d the peak reached was 68 fastest time: W. B. Scott's Va ux ha ll, m.p.h. 1min 48 3-Ssec. By M arch 15 the car was com pletely over­ Private O wners' Class : hau led and re-eq uipped with the light tourer First on formula and fastest tim e : E.R . body for the H anmer Springs trial of March Stead's Vau xhall. 15 and 16. (T o be continued.)

( P ho to by co u rtcsv W . 1 . SCOll. ) Hackthorne Road Hillclimb 1910. Vauxhall entries from left: "Y.2" O. Clothier's 16 h.p, model, W. B. Scott 's 20 h.p, model. 10 l'HIRD NATIONAL VETERAN &VINTAGE CAR RALLY' IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE MORRINSVILLE RALLY, EASTER, 1960. From the Vet eran and Vintage Car Club, Waikato The events of April 16th and 17th repre­ They had been working on th e arra ngements sented the culmination of ten months' work th ere for almost as lon g as th e club had on on th e part of th e Waikato Veteran and V in­ th e ac tua l rally, and the efficien cy with which tage Car Club, and the success of the ra ily, th e social programme, ground arran gem ents, th e hu ge entry, and the 14,00 0 spec ta tors accommod ation, garaging, etc ., was managed mad e every hour spent during th ose months was its own tr ibute to their enthusiasm and very mu ch worth whil e. ha rd work , ably directed by J ock Kiely and Readers will be aware that th e two previ­ Graem e Co urtney. ous national events were held in th e South We would wish to express our apprecia­ Island in 1958 and 1959, so th at th is rall y tion to four business houses who help ed with was th e first to be held in th e N orth Island, don ations towards South Islanders' costs ; and th e Waikato Club realis ed, very early in these were: th e pr eparations, that it would be necessary Croydon Clothing Co . Ltd., Dunedin; to set the same high standa rd as was evid­ Matheson Minster Ltd., Au ckland; Hole­ enced in those previous ralli es. It was clearly proof (N .Z. ) Ltd., Au ckland; Parisian Neck­ necessary also to seek ways and means of wear Ltd., Au ckland. The remainder of the attracting South Island enthusiasts since the finance for that purpose was raised from the distan ces and financial outlay involved was Rally Fund built up by th e club and the very much higher for the southern fraternity Chamber of Commerce. than for th ose of us living here. Messrs Rothmans (N .Z.) Ltd., co ntributed In all, eleven South Islanders made the 20000 "Rembrandt" cigarettes and thes e were trip and we were happy to be abl e to refund distributed four pa ckets per car at eac h start­ to each on e £ I 0 tow ards th e cost of trans­ ing point, two to th e marshals, and the re­ porting his car across Cook Stra it. As things mainder were provided at th e dinner. Coca ­ turned out, we would have been abl e to assist Cola pr ovided this beverage free to all en­ finan cially five tim es as m an y entries from the tran ts as th e rally finished at M orrinsville. sout h. Wc were fortunate in having with us Our thanks to both organisations. Geo. Gilltrap, from Queensland, who During the Saturday morning, th e Hamil­ brou ght over his 1907 single-cylinde r Cadillac ton Radio Club had set up four tr ansmitting especi ally for th e rally. George, who lived and receivin g stations (T aupiri, H amilton , in Rotorua until a year or two ago, was an Cambridge and Morrinsville ) and these were early pioneer in th e Waikat o Club and is a of grea t assistan ce in th e control of such a life member. large number of ca rs particip ating. Perhaps the largest factor which drew en­ The Timed Rally trie s from far afield was th e very generous Of the 116 entries receiv ed, 97 vehicles ar­ help rendered by the chain of Mobilgas rived at Morrinsville, all but two under th eir sta tions all of whom were listed and provided own power. Of those 19 who were unable to M obilgas and top-up Mobiloil to all entrants start or had had to retire, most drivers arriv­ running their vehicles on the journey to th e ed by othe r means, determined not to miss Waikato and during th e actual rally. This the show. tremendous gesture virtually halved every Some. excellent timekeep ing was returned, entra nt's costs, and it also extende d to pro­ th e various routes had proved not too diffi­ viding a free Mobilgas can-just in case some cult th ough interesting, and we learned that of th e fuel tanks were a little on the sma ll th e ten minutes refreshment break included side for th e journey from one M obilgas sta­ ab out mid-morning on each route card had tion to th e next! Very many thanks indeed been mu ch appreciated. to M obil gas. At th e M orrinsville end, everything was in The Gymkhana th e capable hands of th e Publicit y Committee T om Rashl eigh and his helpers had been of the M orrinsville Chamber of Commerce. working on this for some months, while on 11 F

Goo d Friday, Ap ril 15th, th ere was mu ch Crysta l Springs, M at am at a, where a picnic ac tivity to be seen on the M orrinsville Re­ lun ch was provid ed. H owever, th is trip did creation Ground as the arena was fenced and not quite turn out as the quiet afte rnoo n's the pit area enclosed and staked out. I n view relaxation we had planned as the pu blic got of the large number of vehicles to be handl ed, to hear of it, so that rather over 3000 people it is not surprising that th ere was insuff icient crowded the area in which cars were parked! time du ring Satu rda y afternoo n to run all the The Film Evening, Sunday April 17 events planned, but from spectator and en­ Ca rs had retu rned from Matarnata during trants' point of view there was always plenty lat e afternoo n, and th e Regent Cinema was of movement so that the whole show went crowded at 8.15 p.m., with drivers and crews. with a swing. The first veteran ca r film shown was " H istory Alm ost every Waikat o member not actu­ Repeats Itself" showing the re-ena ctment by ally dri ving or navigating had been working the V.C.C . of G reat Britain of th e famous at a checkpoint du ring the morni ng and th ese demonstr ati on run from London to Hastin gs gentlemen were to be seen during the after­ in 1909 when the Brigad e of Gua rds were noon making up T om Rashleigh 's team of transported by car to that town . The main helpers of whi ch the main part were Morrins­ film was our old favourite (which most of us ville officials. have seen several tim es, and hope to see sev­ The Dinner and Social eral times more) "Cenevieve." Geo. Gilltrap, These were of the high standard we ha ve who now owns "Genevieve" at his museum come to expe ct when the M orrinsville Cham­ in Queensland, was heard to rem ark that the ber of Commerce Publicity Committee is at car has been somewhat altered since it was the helm an d the guests of honour were used in the making of the film . H on . W. S. Goosman, M .P. , an d Mrs Goos­ The National Film Unit man, and the M ayor of M orrin sville, Mr Lyn Diggle, the Nati onal Film Unit Rusht on , and M rs Rusht on . cameraman from W ellington, had been cov­ The Concours d'Elegance, Sunday, April 17 ering the rally and we understand th at his This was held in the R ecreation Ground "action" shots are really something. We hope also, and with so ma ny fine vehicl es display­ to see the results of his efforts in a future ed, the judges' task was ind eed a difficult " Pictorial Parade." one. A preliminary inspection was held in Moans th e pit area, and from th is twent y vehicles In the writ er's experience, no matter wh at were parad ed int o th e arena for the final efforts one makes to see that everything goes selection of first, second and third. smoothly, there are inevitabl y one or two The Matamata Picnic matters which seem to be rather less than Aft er the Concours , cars were dri ven to perfect. He personally saw very littl e of the

( Photo by co urtesy R cgen cv Stud ios.) The Nolan 1901 Wolseley passing a fuel queu e.(T he two OD the right ar e vintage cars­ the only glimpse you ar e likely to get.] 12 rally and gymkha na, as he and his long­ Class I (Vetera n motorcycles) : None suffering bett er-h alf were busy all da y Sa tur­ a rrived. day, most of Sa turday evening and half of Class ] (Vintage motorcycles) : No. 101, Su nday working out the rally results. If this M r G. S. Woodward, 1927 H arl ey-Davidson seems surprising, he would menti on that an an d side-car (430 points lost ). ave rage of ten timings on 97 route cards adds Gymkhana Trophies aw arded for the best up to 970 sepa rate calculations! And he performance on points: blesses the man who brought in the adding Veteran Ca r: No. 9 1, M r E. Sutherland, machin e! 1903 De Dion Bouton. Vintage Car : No . 37 , Mr W . Hi ckey, EASTER, 1960 1927 Ford A. P.V .T. Car : None gained points. With the exception of the M aximum Mile­ Ve teran or Vintage motorcycle: No. 100, age Awards and the " Hard-L uck" T rophy, M r P. W. J. Wood, 1919 Triumph and side­ all of the followi ng trophies were presented to ca r. th e winn ers a t the Regent Cinema , Morrin s­ Ladies' Trophy awa rded to best perform­ ville on Sunday, April 17, by the club patron, ance in Rally by lad y driver with lad y navi­ l'vIr S. T. Nol an. ga tor: No. 88, Miss G. M .Steel, and her The club wishes to record its appreciation navigator, 1924 Buick (920 points lost ) . to Mr de l ong, jeweller and engraver, Mor­ The Motordrome Cup awa rded to the rinsville, who had engraved the nam es of the Waikato memb er gaining th e highest agg re­ winn ers on all cups during that da y. ga te points during the year at events organ­ Morrinsville Trophy- aw arded for best ised by the W aikato Club : Ca r No. 38, Mr perform an ce by vete ra n or vintage car in R. Hi cks, 1927 Austin 7 (25 points ga ined ) . the Easter Saturday Rally. This is an annua l Concour d'Elegance awarded to th e best trophy and is acco mpa nied by a miniature: veteran or vint age car, an nu al trophy acco m­ Car No. 45, Mr \11/. M. ]claca, 1926 Ford pani ed by min iature: T " Beauty." (No poin ts losses) . 1st, Car No . 60, M r C. Maxwell, 1913 ( M r ]elaca tied with Mr R. Hicks, ca r No. Austin . 38, Austin 7, 1927, but as sta ted the old er 2nd, Car No. 61, Mr R. L. Miell, 1924 car takes the aw ard. ) Buick. Rally Class Trophies awarded for th e best 3rd, Car No. 34, Mr D. F. C. Gr een, 1931 performan ce in class. Lagonda. Class A (up to 1904 ) : Ca r No. 91, Mr E. Maximum Mileage Awards awa rded to Sutherland, 1903 De Dion Bout on. (50 points ca rs tr avelling greatest distan ces under their lost ) . own power, and checked from entries shown Class B ( 1905 to 1908 ) : Car No. 4, Mr on dri vers' log sheets. Note : This awar d is G. Gilltrap, 190 7 Cadill ac) (9 10 points not yet affected by the few log sheets which lost ). have not yet been returned. Class C ( 1909 to 1912 ): Car No. 67, Mr Ca r No. 4, Mr G. Gilltrap, 1907 Cadill ac, M. Nolan, 1909 Ford T (60 points lost ). 8'1-5 miles. Class D ( 1913 to 1916 ) : Car No. 19, Mr Car No. 9 1, Mr E. Sutherland, 1903 de M. H . Close, 1914 Ford T (2 05 points lost ). Dion Bouton, 6 14 miles. ClassE ( 19 17 to 1920 ) : Car No. 116, Mr Car No. 36, Mr R. J. H asell and Car No. J. S. Stewa rt, 1920 Stanl cy steam car (60 59, Mr W . J. M auger, both returned mile­ points lost ). ages of 545 miles. ClassF (192 1 to 1925 ) : Ca r No. 113,Mr It should be noted that the mileages allow­ D. H all, 1925 Sunbea m ( 130 poin ts lost ) . ed are up to the starting point in th e rally, Class G ( 1926 to 1931 ) : Ca r No. 4·5, Mr but do not include the actu al rally route. W. M . ] elaca, 1926 Ford T " Beauty" (no Hard Luck Trophy: Ca r No. 56, Mr J. A. poin ts lost ). M cLachlan, 1912 Cad iliac fire-engine. Class H (P.V .T .) : Car No. 114, Mr G. C. All the above are now in the hands of M r W . Gray, 1933 Alfa-Romeo (410 points de long, the engraver, and will be posted lost ) . to the winn ers when read y. 13 A COMPETITOR'S VIEWPOINT over those centra l North Island hills. He The Easter Rally organised by the Wai­ had br eakdowns, temperamental automatic kato V. & V.C.C. attracted 116 entries, 97 inlet, chiefly, but nothing he could not handle actually appearing at M orrinsville. As a on the road side . He kept right up to schedule, public spectacle it was an outstanding suc­ and topped it off by winning his class in the cess, but a dead loss for any wh o ent ered rall y. With a loss of only 50 points, he also mainly for the opportunity to inspect rare took second place to the overall winners. machinery from other parts of the country. Another in the long dist ance marathon At no time was there a respite from the class was George Gilltrap, late of Rotorua, "cash customers," the int erested but not so but now living at Coolangatta, Queensland. respectful public, and the inevitable enfants H e drove his very tid y 1907 Cadill ac to Syd­ terrible repl ete with chewing-gum for the ney, shipped across the Tasman, and drove sticking on to upholstery and boots for the down from Au ckland, via R otorua for good scratching of paint. (" Blow yeI' horn," "Get measure, covering in all 845 miles to win the a horse." ) M aximum Mileage awa rd. The Cadiliac, The rally run was most excellently organ­ tru e to type , was ticking over very sweetly ised over good roads through lovely country aft er its long trip. from a number of starting points. Crews en­ The gymkhana even ts in the afternoon, joyed this part thoroughly and th e winners, while fun for the drivers, failed to hold the a New Beauty Ford "T" which tied with an public interest sufficiently and sa id public Austin " 7" (no loss of points) was a popular invaded the pit area. Result: shambles. result. Speedometers were permitted, sur­ A slap-up-good official dinner and social prisingly, and while apparently having no filled the evening. bearing on results, added fun for navi gator A quick lick over brass and paint next and driver. As one car made its Victory Cir­ morning and the Concourse was on . The cuit of the Show Grounds it was announced parade of the twenty selected for final judg­ over the P.A. system that its speedometer had ing was an eye-gladdening sight and the gone de ad shortly after the start and th ey judges are to be complimented upon making had navi gated th e 60 odd miles without same. thoroughl y well deserved aw ards . The win­ "A good effort to arrive so nearly on time. " ner, Maxwell's 1912 Austin "Doctor's This was greeted with derision by "T" and Coupe," was a very smart outfit in truly Veteran owners. "The poor fellow, what showroom condition. It is debatable whether bad luck, he sur e qualifies for the hard luck a darker colour scheme might not have been trophy!" Incid ent ally, this trophy was more in keeping with the Edwardian dignity awarded, deservedly, to th e crew of the Can­ of this choice old vehicl e. terbury 1912 Ca dillac fire-engine which fin­ The gen-sheet said Sunday afternoon was ished the trip without ben efit of gears. to be " a social run to Matamata H ot Springs The Grand Parade was a magnificent spec­ for an afternoon's relaxation and swimm ing." tacle. This was th e signal for Jupiter to How very welcome that would have been! start " pluving." Sedans and oth er "glass­ "T his will be our chance for ph otography ; houses" carried on undeterred but open car to look under the Bugatti bonnet; talk Stanley crews just got wet. The tiny 1900 De Dion Steam er with John Stua rt ; dro ol over the pulled up its pram-type hood without halt­ lovely Lagonda, and find out why the old ing and was aw arded a round of amused ap­ two-cylind er Wolseley was scaring the day­ plaus e. To Ned Sutherland in his tru sty lights out of everyone with violent and highly 1903 De Dion it was less than nothing. Sinc'e unnecessary backfires." So it was thought. the previous Sunday he had dri ven through The 30 miles run over rather bumpy bitumen all kinds of weather on the trip from Cen­ would have been an easy price to pay for tral Otago. His epic journey deserves a full this chance to look at, talk about, and per­ account, but in the meantime, here's a very haps drive rare machinery. Alas, it was not special laurel wreath, Ncd, for your grand to be.Neither was the warm mineral swim­ effort in dri ving the littl e 6 h.p. single cylin­ ming. Apparently it was public knowledge der machine with its two-speed gears, and no that the " funny old cars" were goin g to The weather protection, on that long journey and Springs, so the public went to. Utter con- H· fusion, but no doubt good for the ga te­ right idea for the most part. It takes old ta kings ! Nett result: picnic lun ch bolted hands to avo id the snags in a show of this betw een int ermina ble question and answer, kind. A club putting on such an event would pati ence stretched to limit, and some nice be wise to bea r this " report" in mind if they upholstery an d paint with " trophies" to d is­ are to retain the goo dwill of th e V int age an d play in memory of the Dear Public. A few Veteran owner. O verhear d was the opinion, wise car crews took one look at the seeth ing ''I'm qu ite willing to turn on a circ us ac t to mass and turned tail for home, lun ch-less. enter tain the public, and to sta nd on display O ne must not belittle the V . & V .C.C.'s for hours, provided we get one day com­ fine work in staging a rally of this magnitude . pletely to ourse lves when we ca n be just a They did a very fine secreta rial job of work, club ." That op inion would appea r to sum put on a most interesting rally, and had the up matters pretty succinctly.

REGISTER AND DATING COMMITTEE

Since the last report of activities of the tween our "dating" an d that of the V.C .C . Register an d Dating Co mmittee some of Grea t Britain . changes have ta ken place. Spa re Parts service. This side of our Resign ations have regretfull y been received activity has not been discontinued, although from Mcssrs H . G. H all and W . S. T urnbull, it could be if we cannot get more assistance . both origina l members and organisers of this We appeal to all those members wh o have committee, the for mer through lack of avail­ information or know of the wh ereab outs of able time an d the latter d ue to a prolon ged "bits" wh ich could be of tremendous assist­ visit overseas, it is hoped that both members ance to othe rs in th eir rebu ildin g, to ad vise will be ava ilab le to offer their valu able ser­ us so that the R egister may be kept up to vices lat er, when conditions permit. date. Enq uiries will be welcomed providing they are in writing and accompanied by a To fill th ese vaca ncies, the wri ter and Mr stamped addressed envelope. We do not Jack ' ''' ilkins have been elected. und ert ake to supply " bits" but will be glad to give information, if available, regarding No w, in regard to our recen t work, eleverr the last known " hedge" or " haystack" such vehicles have been "Dated" since our last pieces were seen benea th. Address to : Secre­ report, for ms are coming in in grea t style, tary, R egister and D ating Co mmi ttee, 63 St . but it would be possible to " da te" many more M artins Road , Christchurch, S.E.2. and incide ntally make our work mu ch easier if members wu'uld only keep us posted with We would like to thank Mr Brian McLeo d, progress in restoration , information or dat a who so generously ga ve to us a copy of the they have received since sending their Dati ng history of Rolls Royce ca rs, "T he Magic of Forms in an d photog raphs! Why do mem­ a Na me." This will be a valuable addition bers forget or neglect to enclose photographs, to the librar y, thank you, Mr M cLeod! are they ashamed of the vehicles they own? Needless to say, should any readers have T hanks, anyway, to those wh o do remem ber. books of a simila r nature or early motoring magazines sueh as "Autocar" or "T he T o those who are mem bers of the V .C .C. M oto r," they would be of grea t assistance to of Grea t Britain and have had their vehi cles us in the Dating Co mmittee and wheth er they da ted by them, could you let th e Dating may be a "gift" or just "on loan ," they would Committee know as we readily accept th eir be catalogued and th e greatest care taken of " da ting " and this may help us to prevent them. Please assist if you can. waste of tim e in resea rch and will certainly help others with similar cars, also most im­ For the Register and Dating Committee , portant, prevent possible inconsistency be- H UGH FOSTER, Ch airman. 15 Camera

( Photo by co urt esv Rr-gcn cy St udio s. ) Geo. GiIltrap on his 1907 CadilIac after 845 miles of gentle "c huggi ng." No doubt about the Gilltrap ent husiasm.

( Photo by co u rtesy R l' H l~ II Cr St udioa.) 1910 Delage ente red by Auckland member J. W. Francis, 16

• Review

(P ho to by cou r tesy R cgc uc v Studios . ') 1906 Cadillac-Les MeIntyre of Rotorua.

( P ho to by co urtesv \ V. J. Scott. ) Hackthornc Road Hillclimb 1911. "Old Blue" nearing the finish. (See "Vauxhall" Article.

17 THE RIDDLE OF THE" HAMILTON SUNBEAM" by AAA. PART I

The year 1914 almost unquestionably M cKenzie Co untry a passage was booked to marked the apotheosis of motor racing-never the North Island and the journey mad e to before and seldom since th at date have there the far northern beach at Muriwai, som e 30 been larger fields of competitors in the maj or miles north of Auckland where the Au ckland races from such a wid e ran ge of makes and of Automobile Associati on held its, by th en, tr a­ such consistently high qu ality. In an excep­ diti onal annua l race meet ing for th e New tional age the nam es of Sunbea m and Peu­ Zealan d M otor Cup togeth er with a good geot stood out somewha t beyond th eir con­ range of suppleme ntary races. temporari es and this sto ry deals with one These even ts had sta rted in a relat ively indi vidu al ca r, a produ ct of a stra nge com­ sma ll way but th e yea r that saw the purch ase bin ati on of two exce ptional ma kes in an ex­ of the Sunbeam in England by Mr H amilton ceptiona l age . saw also the run ning of the fou rth of these The War of 19 14-18 relegated the cars of meetings which attrac ted a crowd of 5000 that heroic age to dust sheets and dispersed people and mark s the start of the palmy days and took a heavy toll of the drivers. The of the meeting's popularity. slump th at followed it struck hard at the fin­ T he 1924 event was held on March 22 ancial resources of the major manufacturers and a glance at the entry list shows the first and thus it was not surprising that in th e appearance of some " rea l" ma chinery, being early twenties old racing cars were a veritable H. Nattrass' M ercer, Craig with the Indian­ glut on th e mark et. Mos t were given sketchy a polis Stutz (see Beaded Wheels, Sept., gua rds and some semblance of touring equip­ 1956 ), and Sanderson's Vauxhall 30/98. ment and given to the manufacturers' pro­ T he rest of the field arc of int erest as being vincial agents to sell and in this way " LO.M . typical of entries received up to that tim e ; 2" one of the Sunbeam team in the fam ous they number]. W. Andrcw's special Ford T ourist Trophy race in th e Isle of Man in "1''' complete with the Rajo O.H.V. head, 1914 came to be lying somew ha t forlornly special back axle rati o 3 :I ) and special in the premises of R. F. Fu ggle Ltd., Sun­ lubricat ion system; Sam De Beer's Austin beam agents for the county of H ertfordshire 20, "Wizard" Smith' s fam ous 4-cylinder com plete with sketchy wings and road equip­ Essex, a Chandler and Seabrook's J ewett, all ment. basically large touring cars stripped and Such a machine was the obvio us choice tuned to as high a pitch as possible with of a man of the calibre of C. W. F. (Bill ) essentia lly " woolly" designs. Hamilton in En gland for a trip and it was The Motor Cup went to the Nat trass' brought hom e with him on his retu rn to his Me rcer in a most disappo inting race in whi ch run at I rishman Creek on the high M cKen­ the Stutz, Austin an d Vauxhall all blew up zie plain between Lakes Teka po and Pukaki . within feet of the sta rt and " Wizard" Smith After considerable practice and tun ing up oiled all his plugs. Wc have to use the Fly­ and down the long shingle roa ds of th e ing Five Mi le event in order to get any spee d 18 comparisons, which event was a feature of fabulous Peugeots at Sheephead Bay in 1915 the complete series of Muriwai meetings. In at an average speed of over 103 m .p.h. for 1924 the beach was particul arl y heavy, yet 350 miles in the han ds of Gill And erson. The th e Andrew Ford recorde d 86.1 m.p.h. or 30/98 of Bartlett had over a litre on the Sun­ 3min. 29secs. ; De Beer's Austin was only beam, and was good for well over the ton, fraction ally slower at 3min . 30 1-5secs, whilst whilst the Itala (if the persistent ru mours of the M ercer was som ewh at slower at 3m in. its origin were tru e) had a rotary valve 33 4-5secs. engine of no less that 7.8 litres developing Fo r 1925 the meetin g dat e was put for­ some 150 b.h.p. on th e starting line at ward to February 21, and for this event the Amiens back in 1913. Hamilton Sunbeam was entered for the N.Z. T he T. T. Sunbeams as they faced the Motor Cup, the Open Handicap and the sta rte rs on the " Islan d" at 9.0 a.m., Wednes­ Five Mi le Flying R ecord event. The M otor day, June 10, 1914, had a capacity of 3,295 Cup field was a very differe nt one from the cc.(81 x 160 ) deliveri ng 99 b.h.p. at 3,000 prevIous year. e p.m . and gea red for a maximum speed of Andrew's Ford was again in evidence to­ some 90 m.p .h. only. Theoretically at an y gether with another of the same type, but rat e, there was littl e cha nce for H amilton. that was the complete roll-call of the spec ials. The SO mile race for the Cup sta rted with There was Andy Irvine with the Bugatti that a good rolling start, but the Itala knocked out carr ied off th e 50 mile Light Car Cup at a con -rod on the first lap and the Stutz was over 72 m.p.h. average that sa me afternoon running very badly so that a goo d scra p be­ - a Brescia M od ifie wit h a long chassis; Ley- tween Sunbea m and Vauxha ll was only nar-

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( Photo by co u rtesv "T he Radiator. j ) Sunbeam passes Vauxhall. land M otors entered a vast rotary valve It ala rowly won by the former as a speed of 80 reputed to be a 1913 G.P. machine ; the well m.p.h. for 50 miles with seven turns, th e known Australian H ope Bartlett brought over Vauxhall being only 38 seconds behind, his most successful 30/98 Vauxhall and A. F. whilst Andrew's Ford , the previous year's (T im ) Bell brought th e Indy Stutz to the winn er, and the Irvine Bugat ti were both line with a vast pat ch in the sump to cover within a few seconds of the Vauxha ll- defin­ r up the evidence of Craig's ind iscretions of itely not a runaw ay victory. the previous year-there was also the Sun­ But again the true interest lies in the Fly­ beam. No w looking over th e list th e Stutz ing Five Mil e affair for which only the Vau x­ with a ca pac ity of over 5 litr es combined with hall and Su nbeam were entered. The Sun­ a most advanced design of power unit, was beam tore off a mea n speed over both direc­ probabl y potentially th e fastest of those pres­ tions of 100.27 m.p.h., and the Va uxhall only ent- this same car had flattened out even the just managed a shade over 90 m.p.h., the 19 actu al times being 2mins. 59 3-5secs. and speed to the line of a ppro xima tely 90 m.p.h, 3m ins. 19 3-5secs. respectively. The beac h that mile woul d represent a mere 45 seconds was again prett y heavy as in the previous which represents a race average of 82 .5 m.p.h. year so th at taking the 1924 Fo rd perfor m­ It is unfortuna te th at the Five Mil e Fly­ an ce of 86.1 m.p.h. would probabl y repre ­ ing event was not repea ted in that yea r so sent a speed of someth ing app roa chi ng 9.'1 that a tru e compari son is not ob ta ina ble­ m.p.h. on th e roa d which would be a realistic suffice it to say that th e car was definitely figure-likewise th e Vauxhall's 90 m.p.h . faster than the year before, and whilst the would measure up to som ething just ove r 100 previous time of 100.27 m.p.h. still stood as m.p.h. on the road which is exactly what the Austral asian record this would probably Bartletts car regularly proved to be its opti­ have been beaten by the Stutz and by the mum speed. Now this means the Sunbeam holder. would have some thing like 110 m.p.h. up its In 1927 Wilson an d the Stutz did it agai n sleeve- bod ywork was stan dard and as race d and the Su nbeam did not make the journey in 1914 , whilst carburation was still by to do battle. Claudel H obson . H owever, on the 14th Februar y, 1928, the Sunbeam again mad e the trip to Auckland The year 1926 agai n saw the Sunb eam at and Muriwai. Bob Wi lson and th e Stutz M uriwai on Sa turday, Fe bruary 13, this time having won the N.Z. M otor Cup twice in acco mpa n ied by its younger broth er, the succession had only to win the 1928 event to 1922 eight-cylinde r machine now owned by carry off the cup outright and this augered Club Pr esident Rob Sha nd. Both cars were well for a battle royal. entered bv C. W. F .H amilt on , the old 4-cyl­ The entry list was particularly impressive inde r to be d riven by himself and the eight by on this occasion ; th e Australian s especially his brother-in-law, Mathew Wills, the M ac­ were there in force, being Russcl Taylor and kenzie Country "cqu ippe" being completed A. E .C.East both with lat e model C.P. by I rvine with the 13ugatti. The old 1914 Bugattis, Carter with a M ercer (ex Nat­ car now had a streamlined tail coveri ng the trass? ) and M eredith. New Zealand field- bolster tank though this latter was still re­ tained . O ther tu nin g wor k was done and the car spo rtcd a fun nel device to lead air to the carburettors (what type?). The eigh t-cylin­ der was sta nda rd in every way though it mu st have given a cram ped an d un comf ortable Ford Dealers ride to as big a ma n as Mathew. The re­ since before Model T days. mainder of the field comprised the Stutz, now in the hands of R . B. Wilson , an d now com­ pletel y rebu ilt by Mason and Porter ; the Nat­ trass Mercer, winner of the 1924 event, CORDON HUGHAN Irvines' Bug. and th e usua l bevy of " hot" Fords. From a close sta rt the two Su nbeams LTD. and the Stutz shot ahead in a bunch but by P.O. BOX 48, CARTERTON the thi rd lap the lead ers were sprea d out with Stu tz lead ing, the 1922 T .T. Sunbea m sec­ PHONE 8099 ond and the 1914 car third, and by the fin­ ish the Stutz ha d won in 35 mins. 37sees. compared with 37 mins. 36 3-5secs. for H am­ Sorry, we cannot supply par ts for ilton's run the previous yea r, a ga in of almost a model "N" or "S." We do have exactly two minutes. H alf a mile separated the winn er fro m Wills and the same distan ce "T" coils an d poin ts. lay betw een him an d the 1914 car. Thus a And we do provide complete service mile sepa rated the leader an d the H am ilton car an d it is obvious th at the Sun bea m had for all models since 1934. conside ra bly more speed up its sleeve than in the previous yea r- allowing an approach 20 ,.

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(Photo by courtesy C . W. F . H amilto n.) "T he Victor," 1925 N.Z . Motor Cup, Muriwai. Co mplete with magnificent array of adm iring locals.

ed the Stutz, Cutten's Mill er, George H en­ miles in eight laps, was the pr incip al event. ning with the ex M athew W ills' 8-cylinder This had a ttrac ted the Stutz an d the T homas Sunbeam, D. F. Bau chop wit h a T homas Specia l and, sha des of 1925, the Irvine Bug­ Sp ecial (not the " flat iron " but the "cy lindr i­ atti together with the Sunbeam. cal" type ) an d last b ut not least Bill Hamil­ After Oreti the Sunbea m fad es out of the ton and th e 1914 T .T. Sunbeam. limelight and was honourably reti red to Irish­ In the event Wilson again drove the old man C reek un til, just before World War Il, Stutz to victory, thu s winni ng the N. Z. M otor one Farnsworth, a distant relative, persuaded Cu p for the third successive time an d retain­ Mr Hamilton to part with her and from him ing the cup. In so doin g he wro te finis to an it went to An dy M acIntosh of Invercargill. event that ha d beco me a genu ine classic for H ere it finally blew up, like so man y fine cars, by the nex t yea r Wall St reet had "crashed" in the hands of a crackpot to wh om piston and its reverbe rations were beginning to be speed limits mea nt nothing (blipping the felt in New Zealand, so th at no one was th rottl e to up to 5,000 r.p .m. whilst wa rmi ng found to put up a further tro phy for the up in the garage). even t. H owever, in spit e of the impressive By the tim e Mr H amilton had hea rd of field of tha t last Motor Cup race, second the demise of the old Sunbeam the wrecker place went to the old 1914 T T Su nbeam. had already put th e gas th rough th e fram e The rac e average this year was slightly slower a nd sold bo th ends as trailer-sets. O nly the for the 50 miles involving 11 turns in place of engine, gea rbox, radiat or and a nu mber of only seven as in 1925 and 1926 ; the Su nbeam spares and odd bits and pieces wer e saved was right behind the winner at the end of and brought back to Irishman C reek. They the rac e, show ing th at it had retained its old finally ca me by dev ious means into the hands form. of the writer an d it is only now that the his­ T he curtain comes down in Southla nd at tory of the car has come to be written, a nd the fam ous O reti Beach Meeting, on March its real rid dle to historians has come to ligh t 3rd, 1928, wh ere th e fifth race on the pro­ and will be more full y discussed in th e next gramme, the Domi nio n Speed Cup of 24 instalment. 21 by Geoff Vintage and Veteran Motorcycle Notes Hockley Single-Speed Smoothie.-While specimens keep the wind away"- so sang a poet, whose of the th ree-speed-hub model Triumphs of nam e we can't recall, when soliloq uizing 1913-14 vintage are by no means unknown up on how ignom iniously even the mightiest among local collectors-Neil Sutton's 1914 and most resplend ent of hu man carcases may 3-speeuer, for insta nce, must be one of the end up . M echanical contrivances, too, often finest exa mples of its type in existence- the suffer similar undignified fat es, no matter genuine "TT." single-gea red models of that how imposing they may have been in their era seem to have faded out of existence, loc­ prime-didn't a R olls once end its ca reer ally at any rate . We retain very pleasant converted to a milk delivery? We ca me re~o llec t i o~s of the old "T.T.", which had across a mou rnful example of this recently few vices and man y vir tues, chief among the when scour ing a cer ta in country district en­ latter being its smoo thness, flexibility and deavou ring to confirm a rumour that some­ "six to sixty" performan ce. We can' t recall where in the confines of the coun ty resided an any other ma chine of its type whi ch rivalled indi vidual who possessed an extremely rare th e "T.T." 0 11 these counts, with the excep­ and in teresting motorcycle-none other than tion, perhaps, of the Rover, whi ch thoroughly a Dayton . With such sca nty information to deserv ed its reputati on as a sweet-running go upon our progress was quite the reverse of machine. Yet there was something about the rapid, and the sun was sinking in the west old "T.T." which othe rs hadn't just got (in­ in the most approved J am es Fit zpatrick man­ cluding, it must be admitted, a front fork ner when, dusty and discou raged, and with which left a lot to be desired- we once heard the kno wledge that ab out 100 sq ua re miles of an ex-D on R. of the 1914-1 8 war remark coun try still remain ed to be investiga ted, we that if he had been given the choice of using pulled up at the ga te of a some wha t dilapi­ the Kaiser or the T riumph fork designer for dat ed dwelling to make our last enq uiry of bayonet practice, he would have chosen the the day. T o the elderly and hirsute person latter ) . It is cer tainly difficult to fathom the who appeared, ba wling abuse at half-a-dozen desirability of a design which permitted the barkin g dogs, we addressed ourse lf as we en tire fork to oscillate merr ily back and forth, had done to others twent y times previou sly thus alternately shortening and lengthening that day, but never dreaming that this time the wheelbase several tim es a second, accord­ we had reached the end of our qu est. Had ing to one's speed and the roughness of the he (we enquired in our most honeyed tones ) terrain. H owever, a judiciously a pplied lea­ ever ow ned a Dayton motor bike? Yes, he ther strap assisted in curbing these propensi­ had. " Bought it new in 1915 in Christ­ ties, and ma nufacturers of dog-collars must church, from a shop in Co lom bo St reet­ ha ve paid han dsom e d ividends during the can't remember the nam e of the firm , but you man y years in wh ich th is type of fork was wouldn't know it-it was before your time, used. H owever, wha t we sta rted out to say, of course." We accepted with out comment before side-trac king ourself in a discussion on this unsolicited tribute to our youthful ap­ fork design, was that we are glad to announce pearan ce, and forbade to stat e th at the name th at one of these seemingly extinct models of the firm was quite famili ar to us-hadn't was decently disint erred after several decades we spent hours, as a schoolboy, gazing spell­ of dust-gatheri ng and is now getting th e bound at the glittering array of new motor­ " works"-without any half-measures. Judg­ cycles in the window ? An d where was the illg from what we were permitted to inspect old machine now? (we asked, br acing our­ of the restora tion proceed ings, and knowing self for the inevitable repl y ) . We ll, it ap­ the owner's reputa tion for only the best be­ peared that after man y yea rs of use, a con­ ing good eno ugh, we'd stick our neck out so nectin g rod had broken and the engine had far as to p rophesy that the completed job been removed and dismantled for repairs, will be a top-notch exa mple of ancient motor ... which somehow he had never got around to cycle restoration. carrying out, and after ano the r decad e or so, Demise of a Dayton.- "Imperial Caesar , the remains were inter red in the nearb y river­ dead and turned to clay, may stop a hole to bed and had doubtless long since disint egrat- 22 ed. We thanked our informant, and turned -the morrung of Easter Friday found us dejectedly away, ponderin g on the strange bowling briskly along en route for H anmer twist whi ch makes otherwise quite estimable on Henrietta the Harley, with all 989 c.c.'s citizens bury rare and interesting ma chinery co-operating nicely and everything going as in riverbeds, when we noticed a few dejected­ merrily as wedding bells, and we were con­ looking fowls scratching listlessly in the dusty gratulating ourself on being a real tough type yard. However, it wasn 't the chooks, but the for tackling the trip. on a ma chine which had utensil holding their drinking water, which celebrated its _fortieth birthday, when we suddenly caught our eye-believe it or not , spied another rider ahead-a mere speck in that beaten-up-looking flock of egg-producers the dist an ce. Wc took an extra handful of were imbibing from a DAYTON TANK!­ grip, opened the extra air , shook a reef out the top of which had been cut out to form a of our topsails and set off in pursuit. Well, miniature water-trough . Wc picked up this believe it or not , the bloke took quite a bit relic of past glori es and inspected it-patches of catching- and when finally we drew of fad ed scarlet enamel still remained, and alongside, he was none other than the de traces of the three-in ch-high gold letters Thier man, cruising as effortlessly as you which had once proudly proclaimed its name please on the old Humber. He was tactful to the world were still discernable. "That enough not to enquire what had detained us was on e bit of the old bike that came in use­ -our ego felt perceptibly deflated as it was, ful," our friend remarked. We refrained from and th at would ha ve been th e last straw. comm ent, and turned our handlebars in the During the Hanmer get-together, the Hum­ dir ection of home. ber's performance was still further improved (wc hope the own er will forgive us for dis­ v. & V. Personalities.-Spectators at re­ closing these "secrets of tunc" ). But in his cent rallies who, like your scribe, are afflicted haste to get the old bus mobile after the orig­ with adv an cing years and increasing avoir­ inal restoration job, Des had inadvertently dupois, probably emitted sighs of envy at the assem bled the front forks with the upper spin­ athletic prowess of a certain competitor, who , dle lug ba ck-to-front, causing the forks to scorning th e use of pedals, kick-starters or assume an almost vertical position and giv­ other new-fangled devices, coaxes his steed ing the unf ortunate old machin e the impres­ into life by breaking into a hand-gallop with sion that it was climbing a perpetual gradi­ it and then vaulting into the saddle with the ent. However, on this little error being grace of a startled gazelle. Upon consulting rectified, the old bus gav e a distinct sigh of their programmes to identify rider and ma­ relief and darted off like a startled jackrabbit. chine, the aforementioned spectators found We'd be willing to bet that it's good for an­ the combination revealed merely as " D. de other fifty-two veal's! Thier, 1908 Humber motorcycle." Now , Strange-as-it-seems Dept.-By a remark­ while such scanty information is all that one able coincidence, we had only just finished can expe ct to find within the limitations of a typin g the little story of th e sad cnd to our programme, we are sure that a few more de­ qu est for a Day ton when wc opened a letter tails of Des and his venerable steed , which from a friend containing the news that a must be one of the old est ma chin es to regu­ specimen of this rara avis (incomplete, unf or­ larly a ppear at club events, will be welcomed tunately ) had been unearthed. \Ve turned a by our readers. We think we are correct in vivid shade of gre en with envy at the lucky saying that it was at the Ashburton Rally discoverer, and would like to congratulate that Des and th e Humber made their debut, him on an extremely interesting find. In the the result being a well-deserved first place course of a fairly extensive association with in the veteran class. Apart from the excel­ motorcycles, we can only recall seeing two or lent restoration job which has been carried three specim ens of this mak e, and the only out on this 52-year-old, it is well worth in­ time we rod e one left us with an impression spection as being typical of its period-purely of smoothness and quietness. basic transport with an entire lack of frills­ The Day ton was made by the Day­ yet this clutchless and gearless veteran has a ton Sewing Machine Co ., of Day ton, sur prising road performance, as its owner has Ohio-and the one which we sampled cer­ demonstrated more than once. For instance tainly was a good second to a sewing-machine 23 as regards mechanical silence . The big twin would certainly be a real collector's item engine was a propri etor y one mad e by the today. Spacke M ach ine Co m pany, known as the Note.-We were una ble to discove r a pic­ De Luxe, and was used in a few other lesser­ ture of the above make in our files-but known American machines. T he most dis­ here's one almost as rare-a 19 15 o.h.v. twin tinctive feature of this engine, which might Pope, another superla tive restorat ion job by have accounted to some exten t for its mech­ M aestro Ted H odgdon, to whom we referred anical quietn ess, was the unorthodox timing in these no tes in the last issue. gea r, which consisted of a horizontal cam­ sha ft carrying face cams operating th e valves th rough a system of pawls or bell-cra nks, and a worm gea r on the end of the camshaft drove the magneto. Anoth er unconventi onal feature was the rod assembly, only one con­ necti ng rod running on the crankpin and the other being attached to a lug on the main or master rod, similar to radi al aero engine prac­ tice, though we can't recall wh ich rod was used for the front cylinde r and which for the rear . We have the impression, if memory serves us ari ght, that the seconda ry rod was some times prone to break under hard use. Another D ayton feature was the peculi ar front fork , which was hinged at the crown a la T riumph and rocked back and forth on a long, curved leaf spr ing concea led under the mudguar d. The Dayton factory ceased producing motorcycles in 191 7, and a com­ plete speci men of the make, if one exists, " 1915 Pope Model 'R' Tw in."

" IN MY DAY" By Horace Robinson Early in 1919 as a lad I sta rted my motor­ you were out for a run and came across a ing ca reer with th e inevitabl e M odel TFord, similar make or model to your own, it was although the first car I owned of my very not unu sual to stop and com pare notes about own was in 1928. This was an interesting your vehicle. T ake, for instan ce, the M odel and fascinating little En glish 10 h.p. vehicl e 1'. One was supposed to be able to bu y mad e by Rh ode of Birmingham and about spa res at almost an y country grocery shop whi ch I wrote in an ea rly number of B.W. and by jove you needed to. The " tin lizzie" I don 't know what nostalgia constantly was not the most scientifically-ma de piece of brin gs back to mind early motorin g and machinery and with rough roa ds and poor mot or-cycle experiences, but recently I found service facilities, every thing rattled and wore among my oid papers the drivi ng licence or bro ke. I remember pistons for 4/6 eac h, (called in those days a Ce rtificate of Com­ gudgeo n pins at I 0 each. You could bu y a petency ) issued to me by the Au ckland City new Ford in any colour you like, provid ing Co uncil in 1920. T his started memories it was black. I th ink we paid £ 180 pou nds afresh, so here goes for some " discon nec ted for ours . No self sta rter, kerosene side lights, jottings" . and clectrics which fun ct ioned only when the In those days the cars were incli ned to be engine did. T o get anything bu t a d im glow rough and th e road s even rougher, but at we had to push into low gea r in orde r to least we had the roads to ourselves, so mu ch cause the Aywheel gen era tor to rea lly give to ourselves that if on a Su nday afternoon forth. 24- We travelled man y happy thousands of she burst into life, so gentle a life. Aft er miles in -this ca r coveri ng perh aps most of the less violent accelera tion in low th e handle main roads in N.Z . and plent y of th e side was pull ed straight back into top . No dam­ roads too. In 1920 we traded her in for a age ever seemed to happen to th e gea rs. I new M odel T with all the latest mod cons. suppose that the belt drive and low power such as self starter, lights independent of the did the trick. In wet weather on steepish engine, dem ountable rims and tyres and a hills one used to ru n alongside the bike to one-man hood. This was followed lat er by make up for belt slip. H appy days, and with a 4 cylinder model R Hupmobile, quite a benzine at 1/ 9 per gallon I would n' t have vehicle this. M an y an envious eye was called th e king my uncle. Carbide for our turned at what was called its "streamlined lamps was easily proc urable, for wherever body ". The whole mechanical setup com ­ th ere were pushbik es th ere was to be found pared favourably with modern designs but carbide . Not so easily procured was petrol. not th e two wh eeled external contracting .T ust 35 or so years ago the motorist made sure brakes. However , and it ma y be hard for he knew where the few pet rol stockists were the younger men to realise this, th ere were to be located and always carried a spare tin not many cars on the roa d and one was sel­ besides his reserv e stock at home. dom called upon to make a quick stop. In 1925 we acquired a 10 h.p. Lea Francis Still referring to our model R H up mobile, wh ich was the last word in medi um sma ll we, the local lads, were thrill ed because with cars. With our loving ca re th e Lea Fra ncis a fair start Upper Q ueen Street and College gave satisfactory service, but would not sta nd H ill could be brested in top gear, no mea n bull ying-s-everything was precisel y ma de but feat at th at tim e. not overstrong, pa rt icularly the sun wheels Let me divert for a littl e on to th e motor in th e diff and because of the fact th at she cycle side of things. About this tim e my chose " fa r away places and exp ensive gar­ fath er, who was in th e finance and commis­ ages" as focal points to crack a sun wheel or sion age ncy business, prompted no doubt by two, she had to find a new hime. T he new an older brother who was a motor cycle en­ owner, incidentally, was smarter th an we thusiast, started to adva nce money : (a) to were for he smartly modified the back end facilitate th e purchase of motor cycles and and had no more troub le from that qu arter. (b) again st the security of motor cycles. O ur She was a very interestin g littl e car with a business premises had a shed in whi ch the modern type high revving O .H .V . engine and machines were store d whilst the owners would bu zz around like a detuned prese nt­ straightened out th eir "straightened" circum­ day M inor 1000. I hazard a guess th at with sta nces. Of course, we were not allowed to a compression of say 7 to 1 instead of 5 Y; move the motor cycles apa rt from a run be­ to 1 used in her day , she would hold her own forehand to see if all was well before the with a present da y Minor. loan was mad e. I well remember the covet­ An yone with mechan ical knowledge was ous looks and the vicarious pleasure yours considered or exp ected to be a min or miracle truly had from just being in th e same shed worker and I know th at among our circle of as these lord s of the road. What were th ey? friends and relatives I was the gen eral facto­ Belt driven Bradburys, no gea rs, straight dr ive tum and quite imp ortant. It is different now from th e engine to rear wheels. Rudge with a family of my own who consider " the Multies with the exp anding and contracting old man " to be perhaps a little qu eer and pulleys. Reading Standards (I help ed to quite unn ecessary and ou t of date, etc. take the side-cot off one to get it into the But to resume, I was to be wet nurs e shed) . Four cylinder Excelsior with reverse to a Glide car whi ch did not glide or do any­ gear, Big X, Indian, H arleys, A.B.C., wa ter thing else very pleas ant. A "Pike's Peak" cooled Scott, Levis and man y others. And motor Cha ndler with th e sensational traffic the best of all, to my mind, the 2% h.p. transmission (an earl y attempt at consta nt Douglas with two speed gear and no clutch. mesh ) with slim fingers inside the cogs for I bought th at one for myself. It was simple pulling th ings round. They worked loose at and trustworthy. One just pedall ed off in the drop of a hat an d nothing would fun c­ low, gear, dr opped th e compression lifter and tion. M an y a weary night I worked at them, 25 cold, undaunted, unafraid-but unsu ccessful. who used it as a Briscoe for taxi s. I don't Act ually th ey were a good idea and I not ice know which was more unsu itab le-both I that the latest Cooper rac ing gea r box has a think. similar idea with this imp ort ant difference We used to run around in a Metz with a - a high efficiency pu mp is incorp orated in friction dri ve, similar dri ve to th e "T wombly" the Cooper box to keep the fingers literally at present in Auckland. (T here we hope th e float ing in oil and so cut out the wea r. similari ty ends.- Ed.) . I hated the damn Then th ere was the four cylinder Dod ge thing because of its friction drive. How I with th e starter cum generator, solid, reliab le, would love to have it now. built for rough going an d no beg pardons. What about th e Chev . 490 brought out to It had a reverse action gear box change . compete with th e Model T? Fou r wheels, Another brother who desired to becom e th e engine, bod y and running gea r-just the bare owner of a vehiele of his very own, but bein g essentia ls- but how they could romp up the just ma rried an d without the wherewith al to hills. purchase one, was presented with a 1914 Sam Jo wet, a wool buyer, used to own a four cylinder Buick left hand dri ve, smart little Perry. I wonder if it' s the one which the far mer-owner had flogged for we hear about in B.W. , south of Auckland? about 10 years. One Sunday afterno on my M y Cousin ha d an Americ an Ro amer and broth er proudly rattled for some miles to his the only th ing abo ut it th at put it in the friend who owned the only modern garage ca tegory of a motor car was because its radia­ in the distric t, and said to him: "Clive, what tor was an exact copy of th e magical Rolls do you think of her." Clive slowly walked Royce, until by legal action R.R. fixed them round the sad an d rusty Buick and said : for all time . "You've been robb ed" . M y broth er said An interesting but pl ain little car we ac­ eagerly: " But I got her for nothing, Clive," quired for a tim e was called a " Princ ess." to whi ch Clive retorted, "You've still been It was a bab y American car with bonnet, robbed ." etc., just like an old Renault. The only way I am not going to talk about the ca rs in we could get any speed out of her was to ch ronological order but just as th ey occur to apply what th e makers ca lled "brakes". At me, so let's go on. A wealthy friend, nam ed any rate, she appeared to try to move a little Joe Emmanuel, procured an Apperson light faster once the brakes were applied. VS and what a smart car that was. In some I would never tackle the " Winto n" or respects it resembled a Jag 2.4 and it was " O wen Magnetic" with the electric gea r box th e more trouble-free ca r in th e district­ (both used as taxis) which were as much of silent and a ton of power. I never had mu ch a novelty to me as the modern " automatic to do with the famous M odel 0 H udson. flotomatics" or whatever you ca ll th em. They were mostly used in th e service car Pullen Armitage Livery and Bait Sta bles ru ns an d could have rivall ed th e famous Cad­ had Daimlers but few people bou ght them illacs used by Newm ans in Nelson . (Whis­ mainly, I think, country ga rages did not per- an old chap living near by me at th e understa nd sleeve valve motors. present time has a 1920 M odel 0 , which they Another friend bought a lovely littl e Re n­ ca lled a "speed model" , in, near perfect con­ ault, 9 h.p., Ca briolet, beautifully fitted out. dition, but he won 't do anything but let me I had an awkw ard job re-ringing it one da y peep at it. ) -non-detachable head-s-n ot much gea r at I remember teaching a father and son to home and less exp erience with this type of drive a Scripps Booth (engine by O akland ) . block. This car had grav ity fuel tank and They used to argue so mu ch that eventua lly th e owner used to drive with th e petrol tap the son got out an d walked home. This turned only half on, and swor e th at he saved happened time and time again. fuel that way. H e is still a motorist and I APartin Palm er made in U .S.A., and in­ don't think ' his mechanical and scientifi c cidenta lly most of th e North Island ca rs knowledge has increased any. seemed to be mad e in th e U.S.A ., had an The Goldsteins bo ught a 1921 Austin 20 elect ric bell mounted in front of th e wind­ with Victorian type disappearing top (went screen, no horn , and was owned by a friend right out of view at back of rear seat). What 26 a solid job this car was- central ga te change, I helped prepare the Ford six cylinde r th at built like a battleship and should have a life was owned by the old Co lonial M otor (now of say, 100 years. Both boys are now dead. Ford M otors of New Zealand ). It was one They were impossible to teach to handle the of the few six cylinde r racing cars turned out ca r, and it stayed at home most of the time. by Ford pre M odel T . I well remember th e At any rate , in tho se days, most people used genuine wa ter and gas pip e plumbing which their cars only at weekends, holidays and ado rned th e engine compa rtment, evidence special occasions. of its age and the fact that early cars had to Schneidemans had an Austin 20 and a use what was available to them at the time. Rolls Royce and to our amazement the Rolls I wonder where it is now- it would be quite Royce appeared on the programme for the a show piece. Muriwai Beach races. H owever, it never competed. They also had a very fine Pierce Ch asing a few of the models mentioned Arrow, which , I should say, was amo ng th e should keep th e Auckland boys busy for quite better ca rs in Auck land. some tim e.-Ed.

Northern Natter by Ausbent Worthy perhaps of a word or two in this ing at T auranga recently, Ross's rebuild month's edition is the fact th at Auckland V . shows us wh at th e Scots could do in the days & V . enthusiasts recently organ ised a cricket when their engineers designed and built cars match at Me rcer between th emselves and the in their own country. Ross, we ga ther, has had H amilton Club. This venture int o the realm a spot of troubl e with a recalcitrant diff ever of the rougher sports was a huge success, so since he has had th e machine, so if anyone successful in fact that th e umpires, scoresmen, knows of a good diff please come forward. barrackers and all had a go with the willow. An ea rlier side valve model of th is make is It seems th at Auckland actua lly led Hamil­ under restoration by Bern ard M cGinn , whose ton at the finish by a ru n or two, or was it 6Yz L. Bentley awaits only the completion by a wicket ? H owever, a wonderful time was of a replica V.P . Body. had by all. Wh at price a snoo ker competi­ We won' t deal at length with the Morrins­ tion next time! ville R ally as that is reall v the prerogative of No tewo rthy among recent restorations up th e H amilton Club. Suffice it to say that it here is a 1924 11.9 h.p. Lagonda. This was an extremely well organised affai r and wasn't by any means the easiest type of everyone en joyed th emselves very mu ch . We vehicle to restore, with its integral body and would also 'like to say how pleased we were chassis, but Barry Roberts has made a most to be able to welcom e to Auckland those stal­ praiseworthy job of it. Not completely satis­ warts from the South Island, who made the fied with the looks of his radi at or, Barry is in lengthy trip up to sta rt from our hom e port. the process of manufacturing by hand a com­ Mr and Mrs 'Warn er M au ger with their sup­ plet ely new honeycomb radi ator. Wc leave erb Sunbea m 20 sports tour er. Ron H assell to your imagination the colossal am ount of and eo-driver in a neatly rebodi ed and sweet­ time and patience required to make the hun­ ly running Bentl ey 3-litre. Mr and Mrs Don dreds of little hexagon ended tubes and braze Oddie in th e comfortable lookin g big blaek them all together. Two other cars were ba ck 4 Yz Bentl ev. The Turnbull brothers, whose on the road again aft er a th orough mechani­ infinite pati ence and skill ena bled them to re­ cal overha ul and these were Earl Gill's 1923 ward us with the sight of a beaut ifully restor­ 23 /60 Vau xhall and Ron J acob 's 1922 An­ ed type 57 Bugatti. Then there were M essrs saldo . T he Vauxhall was still being work ed O wen and Willi ams with no less th an a brace upon right up to the time of dep arture. of Fiat 501 's. Arro l Johnston is a name th at just about In this event for the Auckland Club NIr goes back to the beginning of things and it and Mrs Tim Fran cis fielded their cha rming was most pleasing to see the beautifully re­ little 1912 Dclage. Always a good ru nner stored example of a 1928 Arrol Johnston this one, but it has been off th e roa d for a tourer by Ross Oldficld 'having its first out- few years for rebuilding, including a very 27 nice replica body to replace the tru ck tra y, Vau xhalls, Bentl eys and Sunbea ms one was with which it was previously adorned. Also tempted to ask "What doth the Ca ddie lack?" another Austin 7 made its debut, a fascinat­ H owever we hear that a noble red fire-engine ing little "e nclosed upright gr and" model, re­ of that mak e managed to make Morrinsville, stored by our club captain, John Irvine, abl y in spite of the Wellington Wharfie's efforts in driven by Mrs Irvine and navigated by Mrs stripping all the gear box cogs. There fol­ J acob . We peered into the back, but it was lowed one of those soul inspiring episodes, of empty .. . Wot ! no male to see fair play ? locating, purchasing and fittin g a gea r box of the right size and shape, aft er which the At the starting line it was nice to meet Caddie could once again fulfil its volunta ry M . D . H endry, our prolific Ca dillac histor­ role of the rally's firewatcher. A strange ian. He was able to travel in Noel M cMil­ th ought is it not that, whilst the American lan 's enormous Cadillac coupe, which enginee rs made wonderful back-ends and un­ although overhauled mechanically was as yet inspiring gea r-boxes, British engin eers were too untidy to take part officially. Refle cting busy producing magnificent gear-boxes and afterwards on the nobl e line up of vintage appallin g back-ends?

Canterbury Notes by j.S.P.P. As the branch's year draws to a close, we mittee, becau se 80 per cent of memb ers, can look back with satisfaction. The branch seemingly, ar e uninterested in the bran ch's staged another maj or rally, this time at Ash­ activities cease running them? Perhaps mem­ burton, th e most successful social event for a bers might give this some thought particularly very long time at C hristmas, a larger than with our annual general meetin g coming up. usual calendar of events, and finally the pur­ EASTER RALLY TO HANMER chase of club rooms . To round this off, at It was at the M arshland Road Garage just the time of writing a sound financial position. off New Brighton Road on a rather overcast One problem (one of man y l) that the Good Friday morning that twenty-on e Vet­ committee runs up against, is putting a new eran and Vintage cars together with three angle into an event to attract a wider group motorcycles gathered to compete in th e Easter of members to take part. With this problem, Rally organised by the Canterbury Branch is the qu estion of the number of events the this year at Hanmer Springs. Entrants came branch should be prepared to organise. One prepared for a couple of nights away from school of thought maintains th at events hom e complete with tins, camp str etch ers, should not be held very frequently, as and cooking equipment. competitors will tire of them, and conse­ On enterin g the Main North Road traffic qu entl y numerous events would be poorly immediately became heavy and remained so patronised by memb ers. The oth er school for the next 70 odd miles. Suffice it to say of thought maintains that as long as the that many competitors could not recall seeing event is well organised, there will be ample worse driving by mod ern car owne rs th an memb ers only too willing to compete in as that indulged in by some few. The sun soon many events as the committee likes to put on appeared and apart from holiday traffic, it the calendar. was most pleasurable motoring. It has been made very clear to me, since Bowm an's single-cylinder Ca dillac was resuming some responsibility in the branch, seen to have suffered a puncture on th e ridge th at there is only a relatively small section of between Wa ikari and Hurunui, but with the the members who are prepared to support assistan ce of the dri vers of a brace of passing more than one or two events a year. One F.N.'s was soon on its way again. Some of has only to take note of th e members who the cars paused to be photographed against turn out to an event, whether as competitor the Hurunui Hotel, one of the last colourful or organiser; to take note of th e members Colonial hotels, before entering the Hurunui who willingly offer help in some way or other river-bed for the lunch bre ak-scheduled, ac­ to the committee, to realise that this group cording to the regulations, to take 30 minutes. would not total more than 30-40 memb ers or There were some unauthorised stops made 15-20 per cent of members. Should the com- by Veteran dri vers in Waikari, some of whom 28 were heard to say that they had done th e efficiently run was shown by the public being Weka Pass in top gear. Not th e least sur­ there till th e last test at 5.30 p.m. prised was a certain F.N. owner struggling In the evening a small ga thering was held along in second, who was overtaken by a in a marquee at the School groun:Is. . , Delag e of simil ar horsepower in top. It is to be hop ed that com petitors WIll m Aft er the lunch br eak competitors made future Rallies give every possible assistance to straight for Hanmer. An 8/18 Humber the marshals who organise and run the events driven by Ri chard Foster suffered several for you. It is feared that the marshals at stops but th e fault appeared to be th e carbur­ Hanmer may not have received all th e co­ ettor and this was soon rem edied. On arriv­ operation they deserved . ing at H askins Garage, Hanmer, between 3 Congratulat ions to Robins and his eo­ p.m. and 5 p.m., competitors wer e required driver from Timaru, who motored up on the to fill their tanks as they had don e at th e Darracq . It is the first tim e this vehicl e has start. From then on accommodation was the been seen up her e. Let us sce more of you. order of the da y. Through the courtesy of the School Board the Hanmer School grounds had been made available for camping sites, General Notes and thi s area was favoured by th e Vintage Our congratulations to the Waikato Club owners. on the success of th eir Rally. From all re­ Som e Vetcran erians occu pied cabins at the ports this event seems to have given mu ch Forestry Camp, others in motels, and the re­ pleasure to most competitors, how ever it may maining few camped in huts on th eir own. be some consol ation to rem ember that all the peopl e can't be pleased all th e tim e. Bead ed This sca ttering of ca rs and owners caused Wheels was somewha t disappointed to re­ the marshals great inconvenience and a cer­ ceive no ph otographs of the vintage entries. tain annoyance, since regul ations provided A glance at the programme shows suc h fine th at all cars were to be located in the School examples as Wycherly's 30/98, Gill 's 23/ 60, grounds overnight, so that all could take part Fairburn's Hispano-Suiza, J ames' Ph antom I, in the cold start test orga nised for the follow­ the Moses and Lawrence Daimler plus a host ing morning. As it happened only those who of oth er very desirable motor cars. camped at th e School took part in this test. The time is opportune to remind all mem­ At ab out 10.30 on Saturday morning an ex­ bers of the Vintage Car Club of N .Z. that hilerating sprint was stage d in the Main their annual subscription falls due on July 1. Avenue, and after the matched pairs had Remember, you hav e only until the end of been run off it was an open go and competi­ September to pay your £ 1, after September tors freely challenged each oth er. It appea r­ thi s am ount is increased to £ 2, so be in before ed that Foster's 1908 Humber excelled Wittes' the axe falls. 1912 Fiat. What a pity we haven't all got Canterbury members not e: The vintage Longumare carburettors . It was a delight to hearse parked outside the Luxton residence see Dermis King from Nelson, unfortunately is definitelv not for hire. It happens to be only on a flying visit in course of busin ess. Bill's newly-acquired pride and joy, a grea t Other keen supporters who had travelled brute of a Stutz, snat ched from Hawkes Bay from Greymouth that morning were Ron area last week. Oh, for prohibition, a nice Clarke, who is restoring th e most delectable cosy fun eral parlour and a little Canadian, 1907 (?) Alld ays and Onions, and Ace Bous­ Scotch or American "coffee." trid ge restorer of th e perfect Calcott, both Our sympa thies to the Otago Bran ch on with families. the partial destruction of th eir club rooms by Though the Caravan Club had booked th e fire, some six weeks ago. Many of us have domain for Sa tur day afternoon the Ca r enjoyed Otago hosp itality, possibly most of Club's officials, comprising H arry Wear, Jim all your Editor who has had many a pleasant Cummins, Bill Luxton and Bill Clapham, ran evening in the Otago Clubrooms. We sin­ a series of well organised tests in the School cerely hope that before very long the rooms grounds. It was pleasing to see so many hun­ will have been sufficiently repaired to enabl e dr eds of people watching th e cars and driv ers the bran ch to continue its ga therings of "The being put to the test and that the tests were M erry Men." Before Repairing- c. HUNTON LTD. 55 KILMORE STREET

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30 The Editor, to th e "giants of the industry" th at on e has "Beaded wheels," to look wh en one is contemplating attrac ting Dear :Madam,-One of th e disadvantages vehicles from all ove r the country, since man y of a journal published at three-monthly inter­ hundreds of gallons of fuel are involved and va ls is that topi cs raised in one issue are the use of man y petrol stations for fuelling ra the r liabl e to have become stale by th e next. points en rout e. H owever, may I tak e th is oppo rtunity of re­ You rs faithfully, plying to th e letter from Mr Michael H aggitt 1. H . F. D EATH, in the March copy? [Penn zoil N .Z. Ltd. sponso red th e first We a re very sorry ind eed to have been the Nati onal R ally in New Zeal and.T he Co m­ ca use of his irritati on regarding the use of the pan y (although suppliers of lubricants only), word " Brighton" in an earlier Waik ato Notes organised service stations on all main rou tes but I assure him that there was nothing dero­ to and from Picton to supply petrol to all gatory intended to th e very lively club which competitors pr oducing the necessary coupons. runs the Dunedin-Brighton run, or to the run Som e of th ese sta tions supplied th e fuel at all itself. Our corresponden t who used th e term hou rs of th e day and night. Whilst maybe in connec tion with th e prep arati ons for th e not "a giant of industry" I think all will Easter National Rally here in M orrinsville, is agree th at Pennzoil rendered to com petitors one of th e foremost sta ff reporters on a at th e Picton R ally as mu ch assistance as any nation al newspa per, and we realised th at she larger compa ny has achieved. had used th e term in the general sense of H aving person ally worked with th e Penn­ " news paperese" to illust rate th e scale of th e zoil Co. dur ing th e organising of th e P icton even t. She was obviously thinking of the R ally I feel in a position to state quite un ­ " Lo ndo n to Brighton " and th erefore used the eq uivocally th at Pennzo il N.Z. Ltd. not only name more as an exa mple th at would be gen ­ sponsored th e event but also assisted the club erally understood by th e un iniat ed. greatly wit h all aspec ts of the Rally. I would, however, tak e more serious issue On th e contrary, we th erefore have ample with Mr Haggitt with regard to the matte r of evid ence of a " Lilliputia n of industry" ac ting oil compa ny help. Clea rly M r Sa m Slyficld as a most effective "icebreaker" some three has bee n a tr emendous help to th e South years ago .- Ed .J Island clubs, and we all hope th at he will continue to do so in fut ure. H e knew, quite W HAT IS IT? well, the lines on which we were working­ The lat est car qu iz for Bea ded Whee ls: R ead ers, we had a very interesting evening here in see if you ca n ide ntify the car in th is photo and H amilton with him many mon ths ago-and post your guess to the Editor, 20 H ackthorn e Road, we understoo d at th at time that his eompa ny Ch ristchurch. The nam es of th e kn owled geable to­ had no No rth Island organisa tion, th ough it ge the r wit h othe r inter esti ng de tails of the mach ine was expec ted that was bein g looked int o. And wi ll appear in the next issue. in any case, Pennzoil a re suppliers of lubri­ As mu ch de tail as possible, pl ease! ca nts rather than fuel, so that he would not have been in a position to have rendered the assista nce which we ob tained th rough the M obilgas chain of stations. The writer, and two others of th e Co mmit­ tee sta rte d working on thi s angle as long ago as last J une, and whe n we at last received a f ~v ourab le reply from the M obil gas organz a­ tion , we began to realise on just what an immense scale thi s assista nce would be. So th at our corresponde nt's comments "broke the ice in the sponsorship field" cou ld ha ve been even stronger since th e ice was clearly absolutely melted! You , M adam, will realise, and I expec t M r H aggitt does too on reflection, th at it is 31 ,",VHAT IT WA S.' WANTED: Diff. assembly for Fiat 509 . T his is ano ther case where your Edi tor has over­ Ken Reiper, 352 Hastings St., Napier. reached herself. The ph otograph in qu estion came to Beaded Wheels as pa rt of a fab ulou s collec tion FORSALE: T wo 500 x 22 Goodyear tyres, of publicity ph otographs fro m the vintage years, fea turing 1.100drich tyres. She na turally assumed still in th eir wrappers. £6 each. E. N. that her knowl edgeable and helpful rea de rs would Dawson, 129 Tipahi St., Nelson. have leapt into tile br each with a full description, but this, a las, was not to be the case and no guesses FOR SALE: 1924 Austin 12/14; 3 owner. wer e rece ived. All we can tell you is tha t the car New upholstery and hood. T yres fair; ex­ illu strat ed was a Chandler R oad ster of approxi­ cellent overall condition. A. C. Fullerton­ mat ely l Sl 23 vint age owne d a t onc time by lVlr R. Smith, Onepuhi Rd. Phone 5369, Marton. Pcrro n of Timaru. The exa ct model is unkno wn . FOR SALE : Essex 1924 T ourer. Model A wheels, otherwise original. Any offers. Mr T. C. Box, c/o Gough , Gough & Hamer, Classified Advertisements T imaru, CLASSIFIED ADVERTISE M E NT S RATES M EMBERS OF VINTAGE CAR CLUB O F N.Z. FOR SALE: 1927 T albot 14/45 tourer. I NC .: F ree for first three lines (a pp rox. 25 Excellent running order, recently repainted word s) ; thereafter I j-.per line (8 wor ds) . and well shod. Off ers please, to Brotherston, NON-MEMBERS : 5/- for first three lines or less; th er eafter 1/- per line, 48 H adfield Cres., Wanganui. To be accepted a ll adve rtiseme nts m ust be typed and be accompanied by th e necessary rem itt an ce FOR SALE: 1914 Buick part restored, £200. and m ust be in th e hands of the Ed itor not later 1919 Studebaker, original, 22,000 miles, than th e 15th day of the month befor e publica tio n £ 150. 1933 Sunbeam 18 h.p. saloon in very dat e. good condition. £ 350. A. V. James, Specia l displ ay advertiseme nts of ca rs for sale M atu a Rd., Otumoetai, T auranga. Phone complete with photos lI1ay be insert ed a t special and ver y reasona ble rat es, for detail s of which ser­ 283 1U . vice wri te to the Edito r. FOR SALE : 1929 De Soto Roadster. Good WANTED : Up to 10 710 x 90 B.E. Sankey Mech. condition. Body complete but wheels, also White and Poppe 1018e.e. motor scruffy. Chea p every day transport. Would complete or otherwise. No. 25 White and restore nicely. Ford New Beaut y Tudor, Poppe ca rburettor. Bosch Z.F .4 anti-clock­ 1926 (all steel body). Low mileage. Won­ wise magneto. N. Findlay, Meeanee, Napier. derful all round cond ition. Plenty of spares for both cars. Further details, Mike Poyn­ WANTED: Crown wheel and pinion, also ton, Box 2559, Wellington. rear wheel hub for 14/40 Sunbeam 1925. B. J. Archer, 24 St. Benedi cts St., Auckland. SELL: Cadillac V8 engine and tr ansmission parts and sundries. Most models from about "LAHER" SNUBBERS 1918 to 1930. Alan D.Storer, 108 Ran ­ WANTED: A pai r of " Laher" front axle furl y St., Christchurch. Ph one 87-6 19. snubbers for 1926-27 M odel 50 Ch rysler 4 Ro adster. Contac t Leo. Brusewitz, Mapua, ACKNOWLEDGMENT via Nelson. The club expresses sincere thanks to Miss L. Wills, Snowden Station, for makin g avail­ WANTED four 12 x 45 stra ightside tyres able valuable and histori c photos of Muriwai and tubes. Buy or swap for 18 x 475 straight competitors and their cars and other contem­ side tyres and tubes. Will consider selling porary photos of interest to all Vintage fol­ latter sepa rately. B. J. Barn es, 206 Bluff lowers. These will be copied for club records Rd., In vercargill. and details will be available later. It is hoped to be able to reproduce man y of them in WANTED: Bosch Z.U.4 or D.U.4 four­ future issues. cylinder platf orm mounted magneto. Hand­ As a matter of interest to those club mem­ book or workshop manual for 1924 Buick bers and others who pester and beseech Miss 'Master Six. Replies: J. Elliott, c/ 0 44 Pah Wills to sell her 4 Y2 she states that it is NOT Road, Ac-ckland. FOR SALE. 32 A New Driving Sensation Plus a New Mileage Bonc Yours with- LS

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Study these other exclusive features of Firestone Rubber-XIOl.

* Tyre sq uea l a nd wh ine vir tua lly eliminat ed . * M ore im pa ct strength- hetter sta bility . '-, Increased sa fety a t a ll sp eeds .

FIRESTONE CAR TYRES, AND ONLY FIRESTONE, INCORPORATE THE AMAZING NEW FIRESTONE RUBBER-XIOI WHAT I T ~ This is a,, £f l£1JI I rea ched hSt' to Beaded 'ro 'balanced- SUPERGRADES of publici featuring . ''l Oll that her kn ow" I ~~ a p t . . . care better for y our car have int' but this , a las, were received . Balance is the quality which makes an oil eq uall y effici ent illu strated wa under all motori ng conditions. Balance in Castrol SUPERGRADES mat ely IY23 , is achieved by careful se lecti on and bl ending of high q uali ty oil Pcrron of Ti r w ith balanced doses of Wakefield Patented Additives. Castrol 'bala nced' SUPERGRADES contain zinc dialkyl.dithiophospha te, the proved preven tative of cam an d ta ppet wear.

NEXT OIL CHANGE GET CASTROL ' bal an ced' SUPERGRADES ClassJ CLASSIFl !vIEMBERS INC.: . words ); NON-!vIEM th er eaft To be ace and be ac e: and must I, than th-: da te . r

The M l' lI te r ~( iece in Oils. ·..·'/ ·r

Castrol ' balanced' SUPERGRADES. CASTROLITE F or most new eng ines in winter and summer. CASTROL XL F or hi gher mileage en gines and for m inimizing oil cons u m ption.

Al'fj'q'? CASTROL k/qnced~rades ask (6r 35

Adver sin g enqujt-ies to be addressed to tlu : Ad\"('ni ~ ill g- .\ l a ll a ~ ~ 1", ~ O H ackth o rn e Road , C lui stc hu rch. S .2. Publislu-d bv Villta g-t· Crlr C lub of N .Z . In corporated a nd pt-inte d hy S impso» & \\rilli alll s Lrd., I () ~ ' St. Avaph Sll t·t:l, C luistc- lu u rh, :"t ~ W Zeala nd. Rvgrvten-d a t th e (i .P .O . \ Vei ling-to ll, for' trausmi ssio u as .1 m ag azi nc , et c .