Lang remembers his vehicles.

Here is one I did in the 80's.

It is an International 4x4 1200 which has a small Holden V8 and an ex-Telecom Dodge twin cab. Was a great machine.

I will make a confession about something that still gives me nightmares. Just after I finished putting the new cab on it I was driving with the family to Fraser Island all loaded up with camping gear. Cruising along close to 100 the steering wheel came off in my hand. Frightened it might swing if I slammed on the brake I put on gentle pressure and we sailed slowly to the wrong side of the highway and down the very gentle slope finally coming to a stop in front of a large tree. The splines were too fine to get the wheel back on as we sailed to certain death.

In my haste I had only put the steering column nut on by fingers a couple of turns and some days later covered it with the horn button completely forgetting to tighten it.

Of all the "near death" incidents I have had over the years this is the only one that recurs in my memory mainly because the family was along for the ride.

Think I learned a lesson? You bet!

Lang

After we got back I recabbed - is there such a word? - the Inter and this is what it looked like when I sold her.


Here is another unidentified truck. A GQ Nissan Patrol wagon which I cut down into a ute. It really looked a picture and like the old twin headlight FB of the 60's people kept coming up to ask where to get one. Very easy conversion, just weld up the back doors, get into it with an angle grinder and shift the rear lift gate to the back of the shortened cab.

It had a sad end when I left it a bit late to go north and went into the flooded Macarthur River near Hells Gate up in the gulf. Water came right over the roof but totally submerged the petrol motor kept going to the other side but sucked in water and lifted the head. Lucky it was wet as we managed to get to Borroloola then on to Daley Waters stopping at puddles every 10 kilometres to fill up with water. Long story but I swapped it for a later patrol with the yardman at the Daley Waters pub. He fixed mine, I fixed his and everyone was happy.

Well, after my sister produced the old photos which are up in the other thread Bev appeared with a box she has been sorting for about 6 months and said "Why don't you show these to your little friends" - that is what you blokes are called any time I mention the truck forum.

So take it or leave it, these are out of her collection. They are all vehicles we have owned over the years (over 400 in 50 years at last count not including pre-marital activities). The reason there are so many, apart from the fact I have the attention span of a 5 year old, is I like to buy or restore a vehicle for a particular event, trip or show and once used want something different for the next one. As a result we quite often have one of the most interesting vehicles at the event but of no interest after it has finished so some years turnover can be very high. I often swap vehicles instead of selling.

Doing as much work as I can and only buying preferably running but at least mainly complete vehicles then only making them look good cosmetically it has not cost a lot over the years and I normally come close to breaking even on disposal. I doubt I have actually made a profit 50% of the time. I absolutely work on the "If it ain't broke don't fix it" theory and worn, rattley and leaky only add to the charms.

Many are not relevant to a truck forum but might be of interest because of their historic significance. I will try to put on captions but may have an enthusiasm failure half way. If it is too much just click to the next thread.

Lang



First one is my first vintage car, a 1926 14/40 Vauxhall. This was while I was truck driving so suppose I would have been about 18.

Second one is driving from Lae to Madang Papua New Guinea in my ex-army Landrover 1978. A serious trip in those days with very deep fast river crossings, several requiring about 50 boys on a long rope to stop the vehicles being washed down stream. The Falcon belonged to another army bloke and we dragged it the whole way. It was a good car when we started but he left it totally destroyed in Madang with the bottom ripped out and everything stuffed after I towed it completely submerged like a submarine through a 1 1/2 metre deep fast flowing muddy river.

Third one was at Marshall Lagoon east of Port Moresby loading a little Suzuki on an army assault boat to do a river survey with an army engineer. Only two of us so I left the Army aircraft parked on the strip and acted as his chainman for 4 days in the bush, great fun.

Normandy photos

Every 5 years they have a huge celebration in Normandy France to commemorate the 6th June 1944 D-Day landings. There are never fewer than 3,000 restored WW2 vehicles spread along the landing beaches. Every 5 years since 1989 we have attended and have taken a different vehicle each time.

In 1989 I bought this GMC workshop body in England. It was all set up as a caravan in the back. Like the WW2 soldiers, I just love 6x6 GMC's. They built 630,000 jeeps in WW2 but about 750,000 GMC's. Once rolling on the highway they just sing and jeeps struggle to keep up with them. Middle photo lining up at Southampton ferry to go to France.



The next one is 2004. I took an Australian 1940 Dodge staff car to Aqaba in Jordan and we drove it up through Syria and Turkey to Europe - luxury! First one in Switzerland Pisa Italy and at Gold Beach Normandy.


Start of the trip. Damascus, Syria then Adana, Turkey and of course ANZAC Cove Gallipoli.

Next on is 2009.

Many people wanted to go to Normandy but were not game to do it by themselves so Bev and I organised 16 Australian vehicles to ship to Istanbul, Turkey then via a Crete detour, drive to France. I did up a very nice 1942 Chevrolet Ute for the trip.

First photo is the whole mob at Gallipoli,
Second photo is the tiny village of Sfakia on the south coast of Crete where the defeated British, Australian and New Zealand troops were evacuated under heavy air attack. Last one is Bev at the Lone Pine cemetery at Gallipoli


Next is 2014. We were short on time so just went and bought a Bedford for the event and sold it again straight aftrerwards. I can not find a photo at the moment but it is the same type as this one.


Last visit 2019
I restored a 1941 Chevrolet panel van in Texas at a mate's place and we shipped it to Europe. Absolutely perfect vehicle to camp in the back of.

Here are a few of the Model T Fords I have owned. Bev has absolutely no interest in old vehicles other than as a happy passenger (but has been chucked in to drive everything and anything from time to time). For some reason she always enjoyed driving the Model T for short periods - they are good fun I must admit.



A random collection.

My backyard a moment in time -1956 Standard 8, 1942 Dodge Carryall, 1967 Volvo F86 eight wheeler.

Fiat 500 we drove around the world

A bit of sport back in the 70's a Volvo P1800


Here are a few trucks.

1967 Kenworth that went great but it was just too damn rough to ride in so swapped for the F86 Volvo - best thing I ever did to save a marriage.

1956 Foden Tanker I bought in Darwin. What a classic but 28mph on the governor soon had the novelty wearing off.

1942 Dodge Weapon Carrier, one of many in this family of vehicles I have owned.


This is a 1951 Ford which I think is the best looking they ever made. I took more trouble than usual over this one but could never get over my distrust of Ford side valve V8s. Give me a Chevrolet or Dodge flat 6 any day, The International rear body looks the part.

Bottom is a 1941 Chevrolet 4x4 1 1/2 tonner and a 1942 Federal 6x6 (it had 6-71 GM in it).

Loving the photos and stories Lang, thanks very much. How did you come by your appreciation of the Mopar product?

Probably through the Dodge weapon carriers although I did have a few Valiants. Back in the late 60's the old man had shifted to General Manager of Neales Motors the main Chrysler/Rootes distributor in Melbourne. I was at Amberley at the time doing my Army flying course and dad told me the factory at Broadmeadows had a problem They had done a contract with Hertz to supply all their rental cars on a buy-back basis. Suddenly they all got to the magic 10,000 mile mark and Chrysler were stuck with hundreds of these damn things.

Upshot was I started a regular weekend run with my army mates. We would fly to Melbourne on Friday evening and sleep all over the floor at Bev's parent's place to be at Broadmeadows at 0800 Saturday morning. We were allowed to go down the lines of almost new ex-Hertz Valiants and swap tyres, floor mats etc to get a perfect vehicle. Into the cars and drive straight through to Brisbane arriving Sunday. At the lunch break on Monday we would drive into a dealer in Ipswich who would buy everything we brought and we would clear about $200 each which was 3 weeks pay for a second lieutenant. I must have done around 8 trips over about 3 months.

One trip I got a couple of extra days leave and Bev came with me to visit family in Melbourne. Got to Sydney on a more relaxed drive home and was reading the early morning paper and someone close by was advertising for a good Valiant wagon. Leaving Bev with a new baby in a s..hole Kings Cross hotel I raced to Balmain, sold the wagon and jumped on a Melbourne plane in time to get to Broadmeadows before closing. I arrived back in Sydney about midnight and we set off for Brisbane in the morning to go to work (and do our sales deal) on Monday morning. Woo-hee! a whole 6 weeks pay profit in one weekend.

Lang

Ps Just remembered that when I got back to Sydney the rat-infested hotel was completely locked. No night porter. Great if there was a fire. Being only about 22 with muscles in my eyebrows I finished up climbing to the third floor via the down pipes in the back alley. Bev s..t herself when someone started pounding on the window at one o'clock in the morning.

Lang m80
gr8 pix n gr8 times

https://www.hcvc.com.au/forum/attachment/21672

RE: Absolutely perfect vehicle to camp in the back of.

eye thnk eye get the hint
Good time had by all
LOL

Notch up anothery

LOL
cya

Thanks for sharing the pics and the stories Lang. I'm sure all of your Little Friends on here are enjoying them, I know I am.