Gore VCC - March 2019

THE WIPER The Newsletter of the Gore Branch of the Vintage Car Club of NZ (Inc.)

March 2019

Next meeting: 12th March MEETINGS: SECOND TUESDAY of the month at the Clubrooms, Waimea Street, Gore Branch telephone number: 03 208 7424

2018-2019 Committee and Officers Branch Patrons Chairman Vice Chairman Secretary Treasurer Club Captain Assistant Club Captains

Neil McVicar, Ray Tressler Greg Elder Vacant Katy Parish Tim Walsh John Parish Ken Buchanan Ray Taylor Charlie Davis Bill Sheddan Greg Elder Keith Nunn Branch Recorder (Wiper Editor) David North Assistant Branch Recorder Position not filled at present House Convenor Des Brewster Assistant House Convenor Paul Corcoran Social Committee Beb Kennedy, David McDowell, Keith Nunn Beaded Wheels Reporter Jim McFadzien Festival Rally Organiser Denis Knight Assistant Rally Organiser Keith and Raewyn Dodds Bar Manager Chris Scoles Assistant Bar Manager Murray Proctor Maintenance Supervisor Keith Nunn Maintenance Assistants Bill Ainge, Keith Dodds, Ray Harvey, Barry Clearwater, Alec McLennan Swapmeet & Parts Paul Corcoran Swapmeet & Parts Assistants Barry Clearwater, Evan Henderson, Gerry Kennedy, Bryan Neilson Hill Climb Evan Henderson Hill Climb Assistant Alec McLennan Sheriff Denis Knight Librarian Stewart Quertier Raffles Starr McDougall National Delegate David North Privacy Officer Katy Parish Health & Safety Officer Murray Low Museum & HPV David McDowell Tuesday Ramble Co-ordinator Fay Graves Branch Daffodil Day Co-ordinator Bill Sheddan Vehicle Identity Card signatories Evan Henderson, Denis Knight, John Parish, John Tremaine

(03) 202 5710 (03) 208 5505 (03) 208 3531 (03) 208 5505 (03) 208 6901 027 696 2965 (03) 204 8848 (03) 208 1237 (03) 202 5710 (03) 208 5403 021 172 3281 (03) 208 1960 (03) 208 6862

(03) 208 0121 (03) 208 5404 (03) 208 6038 (03) 208 0052 (03) 208 4768 (03) 208 5403

(03) 208 6862

(03) 208 6479 (03) 202 5868 (03) 208 5404 (03) 208 7932 (03) 208 5450 021 172 3281 (03) 208 5505 (03) 208 4007 (03) 208 6791 (03) 208 1093 027 4342935

Front cover picture: “Some posers wanting a photo of me and the car, or was that the other way round?� from Bill Sheddan (on the left in the photo) at the Dunedin-Brighton Rally)

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Chairman's Report March 2019 The great weather has continued and the countryside is getting rather dry. Hope it stays nice for our Festival Rally.

Daphne and I enjoyed the Coastal Day run in our Mk1 Escort Sport. I have not been down past Mokoreta to the coast before on those gravel roads. Lovely drive down through the native forest. Was surprised on one slippery muddy corner to find the organiser’s Triumph off the road. Keith tells me that he was only retrieving a wiper blade that had fallen off and was lying on the bonnet!! So a big “Thank you” to Keith and team for organising this run. (It took a while to clean the CAR.) As I mentioned at the February meeting if someone knows of a guest speaker that could give an interesting talk at a monthly meeting please let us know.

With the Frank Robson Run on the 10th of March for Vintage and Veteran cars it would be nice to see Club members’ cars out for this event.

Lots of Club events coming up so dust off those vehicles and enjoy.

Well it’s back to the shed where the Cadillac needs a service before the Festival Rally.

Happy Motoring Greg Elder

Reminder The Ladies Run, organised by Fay Graves, will be taking place on Sunday 7th April. Full details will be given at the March monthly meeting and in the next issue of The Wiper.

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Club Captain’s Report March 2019 The Coastal Day Run organised by Keith and Linda Nunn was enjoyed by the occupants of the 17 cars that took part. The weather was a bit patchy but the trip to Waikawa and the return via Fortrose and Waipapa Point was interesting. It was great to see a sea lion swimming at Waipapa Point and the road out there is all sealed now.

February and March are very busy months for the branch with the Festival Rally and Diggers Run in February and the Clearwater Capers and Frank Robson in March. At the February meeting Denis had 48 entries for the Festival Rally with possibly more late entries to come. I hope the weather plays its part so that we can enjoy the day.

Thanks to those that turned up for the working bee at the clubrooms on the 9th of February. It doesn’t take a lot to tidy up the grounds that the Wednesday maintenance team look after but it does make a difference.

The Swap Meet is also coming up on March 17th so have a clean-up out in the shed and come along and set up a stall to make a bit of cash. More car related stuff is always welcome at the swap meet as that is what most people come to buy.

John Parish

Newsletters from other branches Many Branch Newsletters are now posted on the VCC Website: www.vcc.org.nz/news-from-our-branches A very few branches are still sending us printed copies and these are displayed on the stand in the Library for three months. Others are received as pdf files or by email and can be forwarded to you, on request, by the Editor or the Secretary.

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From the Editor’s keyboard This month’s issue has something of a “Veteran” feel to it. We have Karl Wood telling the story of early Veteran Rover cars and Bill Sheddan reporting on a new acquisition and his participation in this year’s Dunedin – Brighton Veteran Rally. All very appropriate with the Frank Robson Run for Vintage and Veteran cars taking place on the 10th March.

Please send me any comments you may have on the draft Branch Constitution. This will become the template for updating all Branch Constitutions and willl be discussed at the VCC Executive Meeting (which I will be attending as the Branch Delegate) on the 23rd March.

As always, thank you to everybody who has sent me material and to the rest of you, think about what YOU can send me - I have a never-ending need for it as there is a new issue to produce every month.

Happy reading, David North

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Early Veteran Rover Cars The Rover Cycle Company was formed in 1877 by J K Starley and W Sutton to manufacture cycles in Coventry. During the 1880’s the company designed the Rover safety cycle which led the industry with its rear wheel driven by a chain from centrally located pedals. The company came under the sole control of J K Starley and flourished with the cycle boom of the late 19th century expanding to be one of the main cycle producers and exporters of the time with a strong middle class client base.

In 1901 J K Starley died and the company’s board decided the company needed to become involved with the mechanical transportation revolution predominant at the time. In 1903 the company produced its first motorcycle a 2¼ h.p. single cylinder with belt direct drive. They also employed Edmond Lewis from Daimler to design a motor vehicle aimed at the company’s middle class client base. Edmond Lewis was his own man and rather than follow the European trend of multi cylinder motors he decided on a single cylinder engine believing that with correct design it would prove to be a more suitable power plant for the class of car the company wished him to develop.

The 8 h.p. Rover designed by Edmund Lewis in 1904.

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The prototype car was up and running by mid-1904 and contained numerous innovative features. The motor was of 8 h.p., had a bore and stroke of 114mm x 130mm and had a variable camshaft which was controlled by a foot pedal. The motor became an engine brake on changing the camshaft profile and also had a half way position which reduced compression for cranking. The chassis was originally of aluminium construction and rigidly attached to the motor transmission and body with three point suspension. Three forward gears and reverse were controlled by a steering column mounted lever providing a top speed of approximately 30 miles per hour. Edmund Lewis designed an automatic carburettor (controlled by a disc built into the steering wheel with a Bowden cable connection) which gave a fuel consumption of in excess of 35 miles per gallon. This was at a time when many cars still operated with governors. Ignition was by trembler coil, timer and accumulator. The first outing for the car on the August Bank Holiday of 1904 was at the speed trials at Bexhill in Sussex. The car performed well and according to Car Illustrated it was “fast, remarkably free from vibration and …. gave a very good account of itself “ The 8 h.p. car was shortly followed in 1905 by a 6 h.p. car (they called “the little wonder”) with a bore and stroke of 95mm x 110mm. Rover were very conscious that the cost of motor vehicles made them unaffordable to the middle classes and this car was an attempt by them to capture this market. Rover’s stated aim was to produce a car for sale for one hundred pounds. They never did quite achieve this, the closest being the sale of the base 1907 model for 110 guineas.

The 6 h.p. car was quite different to the 8 h.p. car using plate steel rather than the more expensive aluminium, a feature of the larger car, and a propeller shaft band brake rather than engine braking. This model became very popular as it was considered the best value for money small car on the market at the time. The Rover’s popularity was enhanced when R L Jefferson in 1905 drove an 8 h.p. Rover from Coventry to Constantinople, a distance of 2509 miles, in 31 days. This at a time when motoring was in its infancy, the journey was through territories where the motor car was practically unknown and petrol or assistance unprocurable.

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The success of the single cylinder cars was followed by the development of a 12 h.p. twin cylinder car in 1906. This car was intended for the London taxi market but proved unsuitable because of an inadequate turning circle. The result was that less than 400 of this model were manufactured, the only survivor being the car beautifully restored by Barry Robert of Auckland.

Edmund Lewis then designed and built a 16/20 four cylinder model. A modified version of this car won the 1906 Isle of Man TT (Rolls Royce won in 1905) and a number of replicas were sold to the public. I am unaware of any surviving examples of the 16/20 but an example of the TT replica exists. A restored three speed example is on display in the British Heritage Museum at Gaydon.

The earliest Rover cars arrived into New Zealand in 1905 and immediately found favour. Their gearing enabled them to climb hills.

The cars were well built (French Malicet et Blin gears and German roller bearings) and reliable.

V.C.C. Auckland Branch Library: Auckland agent George Henning competing in the 1906 Auckland - Taupo reliability trial with his stripped 6 h.p. Rover

Early importers included: George Henning (Auckland), Inglis Brothers (Wellington), A.W. Smith (Christchurch), Cooke Howlison (Dunedin), P.H. Vickery (Invercargill) and Gordon Hughan (Carterton). In southern New Zealand the exploits of Dr Robert Fulton of Dunedin in his 8 h.p.

Rover which he acquired in November 1905 became well known. The vehicle was used daily as transport for the doctor and reputedly did approximately 10,000 miles a year. Dr Fulton was also an early president 12

of the Otago Motor Club and the car participated in early reliability and hill climbing trials. This led to the car being popular among the medical fraternity who, as a profession, were among the first to see the advantages the motor vehicle. Doctor Fulton and Doctor William Borrie of Port Chalmers (who purchased his 8 h.p. Rover from Cooke Howlison in 1910) both continued to use their Rovers as their primary transport until well into the 1920’s.

Elworthy Family Archives: Pioneer motorist Archbishop Julius of Christchurch with his 8 h.p. Rover, one of many interesting cars he owned.

On Boxing Day 1905 at what was to become the Addington Trotting Track the first automobile races in New Zealand were held. In the small capacity class a 6 h.p. Rover was second and in the under 10 h.p. class an 8 h.p. Rover was first. In March 1906 George Henning entered a 6 h.p. car in the first organized national reliability trial which was from Auckland to Taupo. The trial took place over four days, with the little Rover achieving second place against larger and more powerful opposition. It would appear from newspapers of the time and numerous early photos of the cars that a significant number of these single cylinder cars came to New Zealand. I suspect that they later lost popularity with the arrival of the more powerful French and American cars capable of carrying more passengers. I believe many single cylinder motors from these vehicles ended up driving milking machines or shearing plants.

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The total number of 6 and 8 h.p. cars manufactured appears to have been just over two thousand of each model though no accurate records survived the bombing of Coventry during the Second World War. The early Rover cars which I am aware of surviving in New Zealand are: David Bruce’s 1904/5 8 h.p. car (number 168) restored by him with help from Barry Robert and Richard Foster. This car is now owned

by Michael Pellow and George Ratcliffe of Auckland.

Barry Robert’s 1909 12 h.p. twin cylinder car restored by him and rallied in V.C.C. events over many years.

Barry Robert’s 6 h.p. (number A1794) car restored by him and in his ownership.

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A 1907 6h.p. car (A1400) in the Faraday Museum in Napier.

A 1907 8 h.p. car (B1002) part restored by Bud Smith with the mechanical work completed by Alec Shadbolt.

B1002 in the author’s workshop

A 1907 8 h.p. car (B1253). This car is still in project format with most of the parts being collected by Ian Williams and Dave Manhart.

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Subsequent owners were Brian Batchelor and Graeme Clearwater who added to the parts collection.

A 1909 6 h.p. car (A1883). This car was owned in the early 1960’s by Merv Hunt of Taradale, It was subsequently purchased by Sir Len Southward and resided in his museum for many years.

The ex-Southwards 6hp car in the author’s workshop

The last three cars above are now in my possession here in Queenstown and undergoing restoration. In addition Richard Daglish at Rolleston has an early 6 h.p. project, the parts having been primarily collected by Ian Williams.

In late 1905 Edmund Lewis left Rover and went to work for Deasy. He was eventually replaced by Owen Clegg in 1910. Clegg developed a new 12 h.p. four cylinder car which was introduced in 1912. This car became the sole model sold by Rover from 1912 up until the First World War. The 12 h.p. car was very highly regarded, being well made and 15

reliable. It earned the reputation for Rover as “the Rolls Royce of the middle classes”. There are restored examples of this model in New Zealand.

I would like to acknowledge the support of Barry Robert and Alan Meredith in undertaking these restorations and the information supplied

by Michael Pellow and George Ratcliffe. As an aside I was recently able to help Graham Henley of Perth who has a 1908 8 h.p. car which he restored in 1962. At the time of restoration he was unable to locate the correct sliding camshaft for the car so did not have engine braking. He is now installing a camshaft from a 1905 engine I have which was used to drive a shearing plant near Oamaru.

Work in progress – a corner of the writer’s workshop with car B1002 in the foreground and A1883 behind it.

If any members are interested in coming to Queenstown to see what I am working on they can contact me on 0272294228.

Karl Wood Editor’s Note: Karl’s article is reproduced (with additional colour photographs provided by Karl) courtesy of the Veteran Car Club’s Bulletin where it was published in its original form.

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Clearwater Capers Sunday 3rd March

12.30pm: assemble at the Gore VCC Clubrooms 1.00pm: first car away All tar-seal route to an interesting destination about 80kms (50 miles) away Enquiries to Charlie Davis: 027 4515234 18

Frank Robson Run (for Veteran and Vintage vehicles only) th

Sunday 10

March

1.00pm: assemble at the Gore VCC clubrooms 1.30 pm: first car away for a leisurely drive to Waikaia to view the new Museum Enquiries to Greg Elder: (03) 202 5710 or 0274318058 19

Gore Branch Events for the 2018-19 Season Event

Date

Organiser(s)

2019 Clearwater Capers Run

Sunday 3rd March

Frank Robson Run Sunday 10th March

Charlie Davis, Ray Taylor Greg Elder

Gore Swap Meet

Sunday 17th March

Paul Corcoran

Ladies Run

Sunday 7th April

Fay Graves

Night Trial

Saturday 11th May

Bill Sheddan

End of Season Run Saturday 8th June

Tuesday Ramble

Charlie Davis, Ray Taylor

Normally the last Co-ordinated by Tuesday of the month.

Fay Graves (Variable in December)

2020 National Veteran Rally

16th to 18th October

Paul Herron

Editor's note to event organisers: if you want to see a report in The Wiper please provide one yourselves or organise somebody to do it for you. (N.B. This usually works best if you ask them before the event!

Wife says to husband “Could I please have some peace and quiet while I work in the kitchen?�

So the husband goes and takes the battery out of the smoke alarm.

Gerry Kennedy 20

Other Events 2019 3 – 8 March

MG 22 Pre’56 National Rally. Enquiries email waynemarsh@xtra.co.nz

7th – 13th March

North Island Club Captain’s Tour. Kaaren Smylie Phone 07 576 4180, cell 021 664 341 or email: nicc@vcc.org.nz

16th March

Scenicland Rally, West Coast Branch. Contact Marie Woolhouse, phone 03 768 6525 or email b.m.woolhouse@xtra.co.nz

30th – 31st March

Annual Branch Rally, Canterbury Branch

6th April

South Canterbury Branch Swapmeet. Email scvccswapmeet@hotmail.com

6th – 7th April

Autumn Rally Overnight run to Te Anau.

Southland Branch. Contact: John Burke 03 217 8177 or Dave Harris 03 215 6068

19th - 21st April

National South Island Easter Rally, Ashburton Branch. Colin Sweetman: phone 0274 372 087 or email easterrally2019@gmail.com

20th – 21st April

Wheels at Wanaka: www.wheelsatwanaka.co.nz

6 – 13 May

Veteran & Vintage Tour. Starts Ashburton, finishes Hanmer Springs via Haast Pass. Expressions of interest to Diane Ross, (03) 308 2356 or email randross@kinect.co.nz

25th August

National Day - Daffodil Rally for Cancer

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2020 16th - 18th October

National Veteran Rally, Gore Branch

2021 17th – 22nd January

Vero International Festival of Historic Motoring, New Plymouth. http://www.historicmotoring.co.nz

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Tuesday Ramble 26th March 10.30am: assemble at the Gore VCC clubrooms 10.45am: depart for run to Balclutha 12.30pm: lunch at South Otago Town & Country Club (meal cost $15.00 per head – fish & chips, tea, coffee)

Hopefully we will be joined by South Otago Branch members

2.30pm: visit to Wake Robin Nursery Jude (the manager of the S.O.T&C Club) requests as many as possible in old cars please as she is putting it on Facebook so the public can come and view

Numbers required before 22nd March to Gerry Kennedy: 03 208 5806 or 027 233 4634 23

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Dunedin-Brighton Veteran Rally 26th January 2019 Early last year I was rummaging around in the bucket (that contains the bucket list) and pulled out “own a veteran car”. With our club proposing to host the National Veteran Rally in 2020 I thought “Why not?” so I placed a little add. in the Beaded Wheels and waited for the replies to flood in. I assumed there were lots of veteran cars out there with their elderly owners wanting to see them go to a new home but I received only three replies. I now realize the veteran cars and their owners are usually separated posthumously.

Trademe listed an old dismantled Saxon that was mostly there. The history of the Saxon cars looked interesting and I was interested but what a major undertaking. I thought a veteran car guru north of Riversdale might have assisted but he knew he would end up doing the lot and he was committed to his other projects. I have just recently parted with the ‘36 Willys sedan that I was going to restore for the last 40 years so I decided the restoration of the Saxon was not for me.

Another Saxon came up on Trademe at a pretty reasonable price in comparison to the dismantled one. I got a text from Greg “Nice restored Saxon on Trademe. Buy It” so after a bit of negotiating I did. I had a bit of difficulty getting it transported south, the first transporter was full of promises for six weeks but then failed to deliver. This caused me to miss the Alexandra Blossom Festival which I had entered in anticipation and was rather miffed at missing. After contact with a more reliable transporter the Saxon finally arrived.

It ticked all the boxes. Small with a simple 4-cylinder Continental motor, 3-speed box, electric start and lights. From what I have gleaned, the car was imported in 1994, restored by a Bob Heart in Auckland and on the road in 1996. I have also heard that the car had a history of unreliability and breakdown problems. The Saxon went through a few owners until two enthusiasts got it a couple of years ago and sorted out its problems.

It used to drink oil and smoke badly which was caused by an overfull sump. As there was no way of telling how much oil was in the sump it was just topped up by guesswork. The problem was solved by brazing a bush onto the side of the sump at the correct level and screwing in a little 25

pet cock. The car would not run properly until the old updraft carb. was replaced with a more modern SU carb. and a little Bosch fuel pump. The car was factory fitted with a distributor ignition system so no problem here fitting electronic ignition. The old cone clutch was replaced with something more modern and the regular puncture problems were overcome with new tubes and tyres. The previous owners had a mishap with the non-existent brakes so they were reconditioned also. I have heard rumours that the car got out of control on some Auckland rally due to the problem brakes and hit a bank. This I think also contributed to the recent overall repaint.

So in the shed sits a cute little usable veteran car complete with driver but lacking a navigator. I won’t go into details here about that but believe the Saxon arriving unannounced on our doorstep one day could have contributed to that state of affairs, and that’s why my usual navigator was replaced for the weekend by our grandson Jarred.

The Saxon and Jarred at the start of the Rally 26

After loading up on the Friday I picked up Jarred at Crookston and carried on to Dunedin via Lawrence. I picked a motel close to central Dunedin as I had only driven a few miles in the car and was unsure if it would get from the beach camp to the Octagon. After unloading and a meal up town we collected our rally pack from the club rooms then headed for South Dunedin before dark in search of a Lime scooter. After finding one with some charge left in the battery Jarred had an enjoyable little hoon down the Ocean Drive and around South Dunedin before it got too dark.

Damp conditions for the start in Dunedin

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Saturday morning dawned dull and grey and by 9am it was drizzling when we lined up in numerical order in the First Church car park. At 9.45am the 30 cars and 5 motorbikes chugged around to the Octagon to line up once again in order for the 11am start by Dunedin’s Mayor Dave Cull. He waved us away one by one after a little blurb over the loud speakers about each car but it was impossible to hear over the put putting and spluttering of 35 ancient vehicles.

We motored south on Princess Street, turned right then up, up, up the hills to the top. I was number 6 and had a few bangers in front of me. (I hope they don’t mind me calling them bangers.) They were slow so I passed all of them. I got to the top of the hill and looked down to Kaikorai Road. Oh S@#T. I dropped (grated) into first gear and crept down Stone Street all the while being passed by 5 other lovely veteran cars with useable brakes!

We then carried on out to Brighton avoiding the motorway. The Saxon toodled along nicely and with Jarred navigating and swinging the handoperated screen wiper occasionally we arrived at Brighton Domain without incident.

After lunch at the rugby clubrooms we left to visit my cousin Tom Smellie who is a gifted model maker of all sorts. Whether it be steam or in the air or on the water Tom can make it from scratch. Four-stroke motors made without a plan with piston diameter about the size of your finger nail. Clever. Jarred was impressed too.

By evening the rain was well and truly gone so we walked from the motel to the VCC dinner venue at the Savoy where we had an enjoyable meal followed by the prize-giving. Paul Herron brought a couple of prizes south including 2nd in the Concours.

Sunday morning we loaded up and went in search of Lime scooters again. Jarred had another hour scoot around the Caversham, St Clair area before we headed to Waihola for lunch and then home.

All in all a great weekend and without incident. I don’t like incidents.

Bill Sheddan 28

Paul Herron (centre) at the prize-giving

Links to press articles about the event The 2019 event – featuring Bill’s car in the video: https://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/oldies-goodies-take-road The 2019 event again: http://www.channel39.co.nz/news/dozens-veteran-cars-enjoy-day-outsaturday 2017: https://www.odt.co.nz/slideshow-section/events/dunedin-brightonveteran-car-rally 2014: http://www.channel39.co.nz/news/octagon-full-smoke-dunedin-brightonveteran-car-rally The Editor

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2021 Vero International Festival of Historic Motoring For a week in January 2021, New Plymouth City and the Taranaki district is going to be the place to be for any lover of old cars, trucks or motorcycles. The team has put together a fantastic event to suit all types of vehicles from the 19th century up to 1990. Mark the date on your calendar (17th -21st January 2021) and register your interest to receive emails and stay updated with event planning.

The 2021 Vero International Festival of Historic Motoring would like announce that our website www.historicmotoring.co.nz is now live. We would like to invite all our members and off-shore friends to go to the site and register your interest in attending the VCC's showcase event.

This will assist us with projected numbers and the type of vehicles we will need to cater for.

We would also like to introduce our official accommodation suppliers for the Festival, the Plymouth International Hotel and the Auto Lodge Motor Inn. Both are offering special discounted rates for Festival entrants and offer a full range of accommodation from self-contained motel type units to luxury suites. You can follow the link from the Sponsors section of our website to contact them. When booking, please ensure you mention that you are attending the Vero International Festival of Historic Motoring at the time of booking Don't forget we also have a Facebook page, Vero International Festival of Motoring 2021. Like our page and keep an eye out for future updates Tony Haycock Festival Director

Something to Think About The word "RACECAR" backwards is still "RACECAR".

Denis Knight 30

Online Bonuses (Some Edendale Crank Up-related links) History of Land Rover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8ksoT78cy8 History of Citroen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6N1NqwT1ZJ8 Inside Citroen’s ‘secret’ car collection: https://www.motoringresearch.com/car-news-list/features/citroen-secret-carcollection/?fbclid=IwAR1ZeOUGbkT3lBv0nyIHpa0ZJyKK4EFXTsvE7ERFkJ2BXQh HZsyrRFz9-fA

George Begg’s cars (Ken Muir is a member of Gore VCC): https://www.stuff.co.nz/southland-times/news/110140244/george-beggscars-to-be-displayed-at-edendale-crank-up https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMZtlrdJUVs David Brown Meltham factory 1970's: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bo6pe8xqjRI David Brown agricultural tractors - a vintage marketing film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XzGxeDvNtyA Crawlers & Tractors - Vintage Working Weekend: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pn-GTXeVPpc BEDFERG 1978 Massey Ferguson TK Bedford Hybrid (as seen at the Edendale Crank Up on a number of occasions): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6Zqg1OqfFY and for all you “Dancing Tractors” fans here are a couple of ditties:

Rodney Atkins - Friends With Tractors https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OjcrUaIZCt0 Kenny Chesney - She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWu4aynBK7E The Editor 31

Southland Rally, 2nd February 2019 Once again I decided to venture outside the confines of the Gore VCC runs and rallies and made the trip from Riverton to Invercargill to participate in this year’s Southland Rally. The “standard” format was changed slightly this year, with the addition of a “non-competitive” option in an attempt to broaden the appeal of the Rally.

The car park at the clubrooms

I arrived at the Southland Branch clubrooms in Otatara in time for the advertised pre-start briefing at 9.30am to find a fairly full car park and clubrooms. More cars and people, including a small number of other Gore members, were arriving all the time. The briefing eventually happened at about 9.50am, once the steady flow of arrivals appeared to have halted. Due to the fact that there was only one Post-80 vehicle competing this category was combined with the Post-60 one. This was probably just as well as the sole Post-80 entry was the Editorial Toyota and I was bereft of a navigator.

A look through the Rally pack revealed that there were to be no questions on the competitive part of the route but there was a “Return Fun Run” back to Invercargill which did have a number of questions and challenges. I quickly decided that these would be beyond me!

The sunny Riverton weather I had started out in turned into a damp Invercargill morning by the time I set off from the clubrooms. I had 32

chosen the long and this took me out of Invercargill by a somewhat circuitous route, eventually heading towards Fortrose. The route then curled around, bringing me back towards Invercargill and then out onto the Lorneville-Dacre Highway towards Dacre. The instructions turned me back towards Hedgehope just before State Highway 1 and Dacre and then took me towards Winton for a while. Another loop around saw me heading for Wallacetown and the Community Centre grounds, the venue for the lunch stop and the field tests.

Cars at the lunch stop, including the Editorial Toyota (foreground, bottom photo)

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Four Gore members at lunch (L-R) Ray Tressler, Jim McFadzien, David O’Hara (obscured) and Neil McVicar

By this time the day had turned distinctly cold and windy and I didn’t fancy the prospect of sitting around in the field having a picnic lunch as I waited for my turn at the three field tests. Other deciding factors were that I hadn’t booked for the BBQ tea (I have found in the past that BBQs and coeliac-friendly food are not good partners) and Wallacetown is on my normal route home from Invercargill back to Riverton! I therefore bid the hardier Rallyists farewell and headed home to enjoy my lunch in the comfort and warmth of home. At the time of writing the results are not available on the Southland VCC website so I have no idea who won, although at the February meeting Neil McVicar informed me that I had won the Post-80 Concours – I’m not sure how, either because I washed the car before the Rally or I was the only Post-80 entrant! Neil also won a prize and suggested there must have been a raffle for them!

David North 34

Gore VCC Supper Roster 2018/9 March April May June July August September October November December January February

Ken Youngson Keith Nunn To be advised Denis Knight To be advised To be advised To be advised To be advised To be advised To be advised

IF YOU ARE UNAVAILABLE ON YOUR ROSTERED NIGHT, PLEASE ARRANGE YOUR OWN SUBSTITUTE.

We need to cater for about 3040 members each night. The cuppa and serving of the supper is to be arranged within the Social Committee.

If necessary, small items can be bought at Gore New World and charged to the Gore VCC account.

To be advised To be advised

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Reminders Non-commercial FOR SALE and WANTED advertisements are free to Club members. Each advertisement will be published in 3 consecutive issues of The Wiper. Please contact the Editor.

The vinyl “VCC Wings” badges (as featured on the front cover) are still available from the Treasurer, cost $2 each.

VCC name badges If you haven't got one, they are available from Van De Water Jewellers at a discounted cost of $18. The badges are black with white lettering and bear your name and Gore VCC. NB. Not wearing one at a meeting is likely to attract the Sheriff’s attention and result in a fine!

The Wiper is also available by email. It arrives earlier than the postal or hand-delivered ones, the pictures are in colour and there are (working) hyperlinks. There are two versions, a pdf file and an online one. Let me know if you would like to try this out.

The Editor

Spotted!

In the 25th January issue of The Ensign, John & Mary Tremaine are on page 4 talking about the Edendale Crank Up and John Tremaine is on page 8 with his Model A. https://www.theensign.co.nz/digital-edition/?edition=ENS_2019_01_25 and then, in the 9th February issue, we find Mary again, this time talking about her Ford Fairlane! https://www.theensign.co.nz/community/fairlane-nice-car-for-cruising The Editor

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COOKERY CORNER Coffee & Walnut Loaf Ingredients: 2 tsp instant coffee (dissolved in 2 tbsp hot water) 175g unsalted butter, softened 175g golden caster sugar 3 eggs 200g self-raising flour 1 tsp baking powder 3 tbsp milk 100g chopped walnuts (plus a few extra to decorate) Method: 1. Cream together the butter and sugar 2. Add the coffee and eggs and mix until thoroughly incorporated 3. Add the flour and baking powder and mix until no lumps remain, then add the milk 4. Fold the chopped walnuts into the batter until evenly distributed 5. Place batter into a lined 3lb loaf tin and bake at 160ºC (fan) for 45 minutes - 1 hour or until a skewer comes out clean For the soak: 2 tsp instant coffee powder 2tbsp hot water 2tbsp demerara sugar Mix together in a bowl, then pierce loaf several times with a skewer and brush on until it is all absorbed To assemble: Ice the loaf all over with coffee icing (optional – I didn’t bother as it was too hot!) and top with chopped walnuts Donna North 37

ADVERTISEMENTS FOR SALE VCC rally number holder Only $10-00 Russell Newland.....Ph 03 208 5899 3/3

WANTED [via Marion & Bryan McConachie, Otago Branch] Hi there, I have just been researching my house and have found that the original owner Annie Blakeley (nee Lees) owned a Hupmobile which was sold approximately February 2018. I was wondering if there was any way to track the ownership of the car and find out if it is in fact still in existence? I would appreciate any leads or information you could offer.

Thank you. Kind regards, Rosie Creighton rosie.creighton.nz@gmail.com WANTED [via Ross Holden] Received this message from Alistair this week. Anyone with a possibility please get in contact and I will put you in touch: “Hello I'm looking for a Triumph j-type overdrive unit. Would appreciate hearing from anyone who might have one for sale.�

Contact Ross Holden, Communications & Marketing Officer, VCC Email: comms@vcc.org.nz or phone 021 2638488

Tailpiece

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Run reports, articles of interest, photos, technical tips, letters and feedback are always welcome.

Please send all contributions to David North

before the 21st of each month for inclusion in the next Wiper If you don't have a computer I can type up a hand-written article or put your notes or jottings into shape for The Wiper. If you prefer I can even take notes as you talk to me and write up the story for you - I am always ready to help so just let me know how! e-mail: northd14@gmail.com physical mail: 4 Trotter Street, Riverton 9822 telephone (mobile) 0211723281 Remember that insuring your vehicle(s), boat(s), house(s), contents or travel with Vero Insurance and quoting the branch number (300135) results in the branch receiving a commission payment Please support our advertisers so that they, in turn, can continue to support the Branch The opinions and statements in The Wiper are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the policy or views of the Gore branch or of the VCC. The branch accepts no responsibility for the accuracy of any statements.

The Wiper is printed by i-Cue 10 Wood Street, Invercargill.

Telephone (03) 218 3350 39

GORE BRANCH VINTAGE CAR CLUB OF NEW ZEALAND INC.

WAIMEA STREET, PO BOX 329 GORE

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