Getting the Show on the Road

[Richard Coombs]

My faithful Punch-mobile was pronounced as being too riddled with rust to pass its February MOT without a lot of expensive welding to its underside.

This was back last Summer when my trusted local garage got a good look under the bonnet when they replaced a cracked screen-wash tank.

Only a couple of years back welded panels were added to the door sills , but now my mechanic was warning me that the van had got to the stage where costly welding would probably be an annual occurrence at MOT time.

"Is it time to look for another van?" I asked
The answer was a resounding "Yes" , and like I said they are trusted by me as I have been using them for around 30 years now.
They have always been straight with me , never ripped me off , and always given good advice.

Ive had the trusty - but rusty- Ford Transit for over 10 years now.
It was not new when I acquired it having already done 120 thousand miles in seven years by then.

As my Dad used to say 'It doesn't owe you a penny ' .
So its time for a replacement.

"Geordie" : a local automotive bodywork repairer and painter is keen to have a 'second-go' at painting a blue sky and red and white stripes , having done the first van with me.

But there is a lot to do to the (nearly) new Mercedes Benz 'Sprinter' before it is ready for painting.

I started late November (2016) and it will probably be end of this February before I am done and ready to take it along to Geordies paint-shop.

Naturally , being the self confessed 'camera compulsive' that I am , there are a LOT of photos.
Far too many for here.
But here is my Flickr link for anyone wanting to see what a daft 'vanity project' looks like.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/rkcpuppet ... 6787116925

Winter is totally the wrong time of year to be working outdoors on such a big project , and I am actually supposed to be indoors in a warm workshop building myself a new Portable Booth right now .

But my hand has been dealt, I need the replacement van before the old vans MOT comes due and it goes to the scrapyard.
Also I am rigourously sticking to 'one job at a time' in 2017....so cold weather or not, it will get finished !

When the new "Punchmobile" is done I will post some finished photos here.
But for now heres old faithful 'Rusty':

[Richard Coombs]

Still not finished on the internal work.
But the paintwork on the outside of the van is 75% there - still needs the bumper level all painting black .
And also the Punch and Judy in a Proscenium mural painting on the back ... but that is a job for the long Summer evenings up at Matlock Bath.


The new owner of the old van is just starting to renovate it (deal with the rust and repaint the whole van dark blue)
So before he got too far with that , I could not resist driving over there for some side-by-side pictures.

For one brief moment in time it almost looks as though I have a "Fleet" of liveried Punch mobiles !

[Timboo]

Aaaaaaaand?

Is it finished yet?
Apart from the back door mural...

Will it be journeying to Covent Garden this year?

Did you finish it before starting on another job? ( I can't talk, I have so many jobs "on the go" One of which a cast of Punch characters that were started before Noah was a lad that only in the last couple of days have I resolved to have Punch at least finished for May Fayre.)