19. What’s In A Badge?

A number of finishing details now required attention; the Carlight badge on the rear of the caravan being one of them. Still available from Classic Caravans, the correct badge for the Casetta is a varnish decal, and in the process of experimenting with applying the decal an embarrassing number were ruined; indeed all of the ones obtained from Classic Caravans were used! Tim, a local Carlight enthusiast came to the rescue and supplied the decal that would finally be applied to the caravan.

The method for applying the decal is to apply some varnish to the back of the decal, when the varnish begins to dry out it is termed green and this is when the decal should be applied to the caravan before being left to dry out fully. After that the paper on which the decal was mounted can be soaked off and once dry, sealed with varnish again. The problem with conventional varnishes is that they are not totally clear and therefore cause a yellowing of the decal and the adjacent caravan body, not to mention a step from the caravan paint to the varnish.

If clear lacquer could be sprayed over the decal to seal it, many of the aforementioned problems would be resolved but it was discovered that lacquer caused the gold of the decal to pickle. The solution to this was found by using Liquitex’s Gloss Medium and Varnish to both apply and then seal the decal. The product was translucent when wet but dried totally transparent and was simple to apply using a small high quality flat brush. Once dry, numerous coats of Simoniz Clear Acrylic Lacquer were applied over the whole of the raised area of the fibreglass panel and once cured were polished flat with wet ‘n’ dry paper and compound. The finished effect was extremely rewarding and certainly made up for the time taken to achieve the result.

Transfer applied with no unsightly edges

The original serial number plate had suffered considerable weathering and really needed replacing. Unfortunately, Classic Caravans no longer had any of the original plates but Mandy believed she could get a replacement made up; and the original stamping dies were with Classic Caravans. Carlight originally used a line drawing of a Caribbean but it soon transpired that Classic Caravans did not have a useable line drawing. After some discussions with Robert Hodgson, who owned the Carlight name, a line drawing of a Mark II Casetta was released!

A Concours d’Elegance purist might disapprove of such a change but much of the caravan had been rebuilt, there were numerous modifications and, the line drawing had been offered from a true Carlight source; it was a chance not to be missed. Mandy was therefore able to procure a unique item; resplendent in black and silver, which was a great match to the caravan’s trims and looked fantastic.

A unique serial number plate

18. A Sort of Homecoming

There still remained one major job; the fitting of the awning, skirt and waist rails, and various other rails and cappings. The condition of the removed items left much to be desired; corrosion had set in such that most pieces would need to be replaced. It was also felt that attaching the long pieces was certainly a two-man job and so with very little debate Neil was again contacted at Classic Caravans with a view to having the work completed during the summer. Neil’s initial quotation caused some considerable alarm but after some negotiation a revised figure of £2,500 to fit all new parts was agreed.

The first task was to raise the funds but some other more pressing commitments came along so it was well into the autumn by the time that Classic Caravans were again contacted. The familiar voice of another Carlight legend, Percy, explained down the phone that Mandy was now at the helm. After various email exchanges and conversations explaining my circumstances, Mandy, very obligingly, indeed sympathetically, agreed to honour Neil’s quotation.

In early November the caravan was delivered to Classic Caravans where various aspects of the works to be undertaken were discussed. Although the original mouldings would not be used they did serve as valuable patterns. More importantly though, not all of the original aluminium mouldings could be replaced like for like, and in particular the wide D-section moulding, as used on the waist rails was no longer available. Instead, a much squarer section moulding, as used on the Commanders, would have to be fitted. This was not very welcome news but on further consideration it was realised that the original window capping rail was of the same style. Similarly, other detail changes would have to be made resulting in an awning rail on both sides of the caravan along with matching lower skirts. In early December, Mandy was able to supply some photographs of the completed work. The Casetta was ready for collection!

it takes a keen eye to spot the difference between this and the original

17. Soft Furnishings

When this Casetta had been purchased in 2007 it was felt that the safest place for the soft furnishings was in a skip, so it was fortuitous that the complete set of bed/settee cushions had been rescued from the first Casetta. Back in 2005 they had been professionally reupholstered and following the accident required no more than a steam clean. There had also been a set of matching curtains but sadly some of these were now missing. The curtains had actually been made from the material of two huge Ikea curtains by a local friend who had a curtain making business.

The material was a heavy cotton in plain navy blue and I had searched through hundreds of rolls of fabrics in the hunt for such a material and colour. It had been quite depressing to learn during the autumn of 2007 that Ikea had discontinued this line but by sheer luck my friend had liked the material so much that she had kept the surplus with a plan to make curtains for her son’s bedroom. Fortunately, she never got around to the task and was more than happy to use the material to complete my set.

A small problem was that the original curtains had faded slightly, no doubt after the accident during the months that the wreckage had sat outside. This issue was though solved by using some navy Marabu Fashion Color (sic) fabric dye, although as expected, this did create a slightly darker shade of navy.

Another problem to solve was that of the lamp shades for the 240volts wall lights. A pair of John Lewis faux suede shades had been used in the previous caravan and whilst they had been rescued they were no longer in the best condition. Unfortunately John Lewis had discontinued the shades; it then became apparent that they were of a non-standard size having a generous diameter yet a shallow height, perfect for the required position in the caravan. Anything with a smaller diameter would create an unwelcome bright circle of light on the ceiling above the shade. Finally it was decided to have the shades recovered and this was done by Lampshades UK of Wrexham using a navy silk with matching navy and gold braiding and gold tassels. Having considered various samples, the gold was considered the best match and it would complement the brass of the lamps. It would however create a problem with the cream tasseled curtain ties but this was solved by dying them gold using a mixture of tan and lemon yellow Rit Liquid Dyes.

Navy blue soft furnishings contrast with the lighter wood pannellng

In the washroom the shower curtain track was replaced with a Streamline plastic track from Speedy Products

16. Screens

With the windows back in attention turned during March to the flyscreens. Both Casettas had been fitted with flyscreens on the three main windows but not the V-front windows, indeed I had for some reason a notion that flyscreens on these windows were only ever offered on the glass windowed Casettas. The Casetta in Somerset had yielded these V-front flyscreens and there appeared no reason why they should not be made to fit this Casetta. Flyscreens had also been salvaged from the Commander in Cheshire; so why not also put flyscreens in the washroom?

A needle and grey thread was used to repair a couple of edges and then after painting the wooden surfaces the three main window flyscreens went in. For the washroom it was necessary to make up a couple of small blinds from the various surplus bits and pieces. Two rollers were cut to the correct width and so too the aluminium roller supports, albeit with a little cutting and bending to replicate the correct style. The actual netting was cut to size with scissors using strips of masking tape as a cutting guideline for otherwise the fine grid made visual concentration almost impossible!

Beneath the shelf over the rear washroom window there was now a light and a flyscreen roller; a pelmet was constructed to hide these additions in a similar style to that above the kitchen window and this facilitated the lowering of the curtain wire to avoid the new obstructions.

A pelmet was fitted to screen the additional light and flyscreen roller. The catch for the sink had to be repositioned to accomodate the flyscreen track.

Focusing on the V-front windows, the aluminium roller supports were attached without any trouble but the width of the nets were measured to be about an inch too wide Additionally, the netting was in poor condition so two new pieces were cut to the correct width and stapled to the rollers. The design of the Bonocar window frames are of course very different to the earlier Casetta glass window frames, so new flyscreen tracks had to be made for which Andrew again stepped to the fore with some lengths of Jelutong wood. The grooves, or in this case kerfs, were quite easily made using an industrial circular saw and then finished by using a flat file, with its handle removed, held in a vice. It was interesting to note three different sets of dimensions used for the wooden tracks and guides between various models; the mark 1 and 2 Casettas, and the Commander; attention to detail in this area was essential to guarantee a gapless fitting.

There had also been lantern window flyscreens in the original Casetta but two of the six had been destroyed in the accident. Using bits retrieved from various sources two replacements were constructed so that this caravan could now be fitted for the first time with lantern window flyscreens; thus, every opening window now had a flyscreen.

15. The Lantern Windows

The lantern roof is a distinctive feature of Carlights, always attracting attention from observers; however the lantern windows are in a very exposed position and do not weather particularly well, so a considerable amount of work had to be done in this area. The opening pieces of Perspex were stripped of all their attachments. All the aluminium handles had corroded and even those rescued from the first Casetta carried numerous blemishes; anodising exacerbated the problem so chrome paint was used to give a better finished look. As for the hinges, these were mirror movements which seemed now to be obsolete and replacements could not be found; there was nothing else for it, the originals would have to be overhauled.

Total dismantling of the actual movements was ruled out because of their method of construction but an overnight soaking in light oil was sufficient to free them up. However, because they could not be dismantled it was not possible to have them plated, so once some wire wool had been used to remove any corrosion, and they had been cleaned up with an acid cleaner, they too were sprayed with chrome paint. The same was not for the v-shaped brass holders, these could be sent away for chroming.

With all the fittings attended to the actual Perspex needed to be considered. Weathering had caused some crazing of the Perspex, whilst drilling out the original rivets and re-riveting the restored fittings would only cause more weakening and probably some cracking of the Perspex. New Perspex was therefore sought and Ashley, a signwriting friend who happens to restore horse drawn caravans came to the rescue. His signwriting work has often involved making Perspex signs and so cutting new lantern windows for me was no trouble for him.

New Perspex made a tremendous difference and with a little care all four main lantern windows operated faultlessly

Ashley demonstrated how the tip of a drill bit should be modified so that the drill scrapes out rather than cuts a hole into the Perspex and I was then able to put all the correct holes in the new Perspex. Stainless steel nuts and bolts were also used rather than rivets and the edges of each window were fettled so that each window made a perfect fit. Once the four square windows were installed into the lantern roof their operation was perfect but the same could not be said for the rear trapezium windows, above the door and in the washroom. Closed, these two windows did fit extremely well but the mirror movements resisted full opening, in hindsight it seemed that the holes in the original Perspex were incorrectly positioned. At some time in the future Ashley will be asked for two more pieces of Perspex and a fresh attempt will be made!

The rear lantern windows look great but their geometry presents a problem yet to be resolved

14. Window Dressing

One of the last remaining major tasks was to re-fit the windows but before this could be completed there was considerable preparatory work to be done. Each window frame was totally stripped; essentially this meant disconnecting the window stay so that the actual window could be hinged upwards so far that it easily separated from the frame. The upper hinge rail could then also be removed by drilling out the rivets and this allowed the hinge assemblies to be sent away for re-anodising. The hinge rail on the window simply slides off after pushing out a small locating peg.

Minus the window, the frames were stripped of their rubbers, cleaned and re-coloured. The process of re-colouring was quite straightforward and simply involved applying a smear of dark brown shoe polish! Attention then turned to the actual windows, many of the original brown plastic catches were broken and most, if not all showed signs of ultra-violet light degradation. As has been done on the first Casetta, all of the catches and stays would be replaced; although the brown style catches were totally unavailable so the later black plastic catches and stays would be used. That said, even the black fittings have become hard to come by but with some salvage from the original Casetta, my stock of spares and a lucky purchase, sufficient new or as new quantity was amassed.

The replacement window catches and fittings were in black

Converting the Bonocar windows from brown to black fittings did restore total functionality but aesthetically was not so successful. It was not so much the change from brown to black, indeed after a total colour change the black did not seem unusual in the slightest, rather the problem lay with the process of changeover The black catches affixed in a manner quite different to that of the brown catches; with the black catches a plastic retaining plate needed to be pressed into position from the outside of the window and herein was the problem. The windows being double glazed have an internal spacer to provide structural support for the attachment of the catches; the spacer is brown although this fact is masked by the colour of the Perspex window but it is glued in position and its internal diameter needs to be enlarged to accept the legs of the retaining plate. Invariably the glue had become very weak since it was applied in the late 1970’s and simply did not hold the spacer as the hole was drilled out. The spacer then spun so the drill needed to push the spacer against the second piece of Perspex. Heat then built up which melted the glue and in some cases even part of the spacer. A cotton wool bud was used to clean up some of the resulting mess which conveniently solidified on cooling but on close inspection this was not totally successful. Nonetheless, the benefits of new catches throughout the caravan far outweighed this unsightliness which in truth would be largely shrouded by both the catch and its retaining plate.

The condition of seals between the windows and frames was very good except that, as is usually found with old rubbers, they had shrunk so that when refitted without being stretched there was a gap of three or four inches to fill. With seals from two caravans to hand it was though, a simple process to cut and fit a small additional length to fill the gap. As for the seals that went between the frames and the body of the caravan, these were in very poor condition and no doubt had in places been responsible for much of the water ingress. A new solution was sought and research brought up a number of options. After discussing the matter with Davies Tapes of Letchworth, EPDM sealing tape was chosen; a self adhesive, closed cell synthetic rubber tape. Davies supplied some samples and 30metres of 15mm x 4mm tape was finally specified.

It was particularly satisfying and in truth slightly relieving to fit the windows, especially those at the front of the caravan where the frames had been totally reconstructed. Thankfully though, they all went in without any dramas, the caravan was now beginning to look finished!

With the windows back in the caravan began to look finished - never judge a book by its cover!

13. An Open Door

The exterior of the caravan now painted, it was possible to re-fit the aluminium door frame extrusions but as they went on something looked amiss. This sense of discontent continued as the edging frames went onto the doors themselves; there was nothing else for it, the aluminium extrusions would have to be re-anodised.

Where an annodised surface shows corrosion re-annodising is not a straightforward process. Anodising will highlight any imperfections and furthermore acid is used to prepare the aluminium for the process but the acid actually eats into any corrosion. Moreover, there is only a certain amount of preparation that can be done once the aluminium has corroded to the extent of becoming pitted. Hence the process of re-anodising old surfaces is often a process of compromise. Nonetheless, compared with the fresh paintwork, the original anodisng now looked markedly scruffy and so all the edgings were again removed and this time sent to the anodisers along with a number of other items from around the caravan.

At the same time thought was given to the door hinges for these also appeared to be anodised; closer inspection though suggested they were die-cast items but significantly they carried the name West Alloy Ltd and the part number 3170. An internet search showed that the company was still in existence and more astonishingly still listed the part number as a current product! Surprise and excitement grew further to discover that the complete door lock assembly, a Caraloc 400 is also still manufactured albeit now with a vaguely more sculptured look. West Alloy does not sell directly to the public but Leisure Shop Direct of Ilfracombe proved to be a most helpful supplier.

By late February the hinges and lock assembly had arrived, the anodised items and so to re-chromed items from Derby Platers had also all come back and so the door could finally be put back together. The re-anodised items were much as expected with the door items looking so much cleaner but still showing a certain weathered look.

There is a small aluminium panel which covers the cill below the door and this was re-fitted in conjunction with the door frame, a difficult and delicate process, though much easier than some of the door edgings proved to be! Indeed, it was only after some minor alterations would the lower door, bottom edging actually fit. The doors could now be hung and with much relief, for there had been considerable work in this area, the doors filled the frame correctly. However, the situation was not quite so straightforward. Even though everything was square, the door catch would not secure properly on the striker plate. I remembered from my first Casetta that behind the door frame surround on the lock side there had been a slither of wood to force the striker plate closer to the door lock; I now used the same technique and this problem was solved.

There still remained another issue to deal with. Whilst repairing the door frame it had been noted that on the hinge side the frame bowed outwards from the caravan so that the top and bottom hinges would be in one plane and the middle two hinges in another. My amateur set-up did not provide me with much scope to investigate the reasons or consequences of this but I could see that the effect would be to help force shut the top and bottom outer corners of the door. Now with everything re-assembled this was indeed the case and to good effect. Clearly though the bow was too great; essentially it was the construction of the dresser forcing the middle of the door frame out but nothing looked amiss, certainly there had been no evidence of distortion to the caravan so perhaps Carlight had intended some bowing. The problem it presented though was that as the stable door was opened, the gap between the upper and lower doors increased on the none hinge side to a maximum with the doors perpendicular to the caravan before closing up again as the doors opened fully against the caravan side. Indeed, the gap opened up so much that a standard barrel bolt would not keep the two doors fastened together; in truth this was an alarming problem.

With the caravan now painted it would be a difficult and unwelcome task to plane some of the bow out of the frame. Also, just how much wood to shave off would be guess work and afterwards there would then be an issue with how the aluminium door frame extrusion would fit; an alteration would have to be made to the dresser’s top corner! Putting some small wedges beneath the top and bottom hinges was one option but this would be unsightly and would prevent the door corners closing as snuggly as they were currently doing. The most expedient solution seemed to be to source a longer barrel bolt! That proved to be a task easier said than done if I wanted to have something discrete but eventually the ideal product was found, a BS-90 stainless steel long barrel bolt from Sugatsune-Kogyo Limited in Henley-on-Thames.

Fully closed everything looks in order; indeed the new hinges and lock assembly, and re-anodised extrusions complement the restoration but mystery still surrounds the door frame construction.