Buyers Guide to Commer PBs

Next, look for rust at other panel joins and seams.

At the front by the drip rails:

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Look up at the gutter. Most vans have had or need repairs at the gutter. Look all the way around the van. for instance, above the rear door:

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I bet most Commer vans out there have some form of gutter rot. Look at what happens to the gutter, you just can't see it because it is hidden by the interior of the van:

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It's a b*tch to repair because of all the panels, and how they come together

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Keep looking.

Rust that looks like this:

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Is often hiding rust like this:

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Which leads to more rust like this:

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Notice how the chassis is rusted too? Such rust requires extensive repairs like:

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And before you know it, your camper looks like this

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But don't give up now, keep looking under your prospective van for things like this

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Another common place for rust is the front foot wells, by the pedals.

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Rot here will end up like Fred Flintstone

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And if too bad, major surgery

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Hi Phil and welcome to the Madhouse:D
Phew, Glen must have shown just about every rust trap there is on a Commer and some of the more extreme repairs that have been carried out:I but there are decent solid vans out there(somewhere):) As with any old car they can rot quite nicely so be prepared to get down and dirty when you are looking for one. It can take time and a lot of cash to restore one so go for the best you budget will stand (with some in reserve for those little surprises that might creep up). We are blessed with a good spares availability so don't be put off by something that needs a bit of mechanical fettling, use it in price negotiation;)
Good luck in your search - if the '69 deal falls through there is a very nice later Dodge version for sale at a very reasonable price:)

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Let it Snow
 
These vans rust. Bad. And the rust can be difficult to repair, which means big $$$$$$ or big time (or maybe both).

Go in with your eyes open. Be honest with yourself. Anyone who goes to look at a van needs to take a screw driver, and a camera. Use that screw driver. Poke everywhere. If you see bubbles in the paint, poke. Flaky chassis, poke. Flaky gutter, poke. Take pictures of it all. Poke poke poke. Take your time. Go have a coffee, come back, poke some more.

When you get home, put those pictures here on this forum and people will tell you if it is worth looking at some more or if you should walk away. If you are in the UK and are lucky, you might find someone local who will take a look for you (fee of cakes and bikkies I believe).

But above all, be aware. If it's just scraping through MoT's now, it will cost you in the future. Vans that have good history and have had a proper resto in the past will serve you well and be much cheaper in the long run than a nearly-there van.

Remember, an overheating engine is a much easier fix than a rusted gutter.

If anyone has more pictures of specific areas to look for then please post them here. It would be ace if new buyers could take their smartphone when viewing a van and link to this thread to see where to look :)
 
Excellent post Glen, it must have taken you ages to find all this pics - mind you there are plenty;) Agree with the smartphone idea, so much easier to give advise if you can see the areas being described:)

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Let it Snow
 
Thanks loads guys I've been through all the rust repairs with type 2 vans n don't fancy that right now but with this guide ill have another look at the 69 n post some pics up ad
From memory the middle if the drivers long panel has some filler missing n surface rust as passenger rear arch is going at the bottom
 
Hope your ready heres loads of pics of the 69-70 please be brutaly honest as to what you think of it n whats it worth bearing in mind mechanicals are still unknown n it needs passenger quater light n window

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A LOT of work. Very difficult to give a conclusive opinion but it looks like the spring hangers have been patched up in the past and will need doing properly - that usually means the rear floor corners and box sections will be rusted through as well. Part of the front peak has been chopped off[:0](but repair sections are available) so obviously the rot had set in around the gutters and it looks like it doesn't stop there. The cab floors look reasonable but expect some repairs in that area. Door steps look a little grotty but you may get away with local repairs - but did you look at the back of them, this is where it gets really nasty sometimes and repairs aren't easy, also I can't see any pics of the inner cills that run the full length underneath. The front wheel arches look very good so maybe the rot hasn't spread too far from lower down from the inner steps. The front valance will also need some love so also expect the inner valance to be worse. You are likely to find bits that need attention almost anywhere with the rust bubbles I can see but at least they don't seem to have been skimmed over and all the seams are visible. On the plus side it's an Autosleeper[^] and the interior wood doesn't look too bad, nothing a good sanding and Danish oil wouldn't fix. I would look on it as a very good project but don't expect to be driving it onto a campsite in a couple of months;) We've seen a lot worse get sorted and at least with this one you seem to be getting what you can see without it being covered in filler. Remenber floor sections and box sections can easily be made out of flat sheet metal and all of the lower panels are available.
Price is always difficult and I tend to always go on the cheap side of valuation - but if it was on Ebay I could see it reaching about £750 this time of year.

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Thanks loads ill take a closer look at the area's you mentioned before i get in touch with the guy its not going anywhere I'll keep you posted with anymore developments n pics thanks again
Ps where are all you guys n girls mainly based ? Cheers
 
We are everywhere;)
From Scotland to Devon, Australia, New Zealand, Norway, Canada the USA we're all over the place:)
We do occasionally get together and have a party[8D]

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quote:
Originally posted by Bigredtruck69

Thanks loads guys I've been through all the rust repairs with type 2 vans n don't fancy that right now



There's your answer. If you aren't keen on rust repairs then stay away from this van. There will be a huge amount of rust you can't see.

It's definitely a fixable project (auto sleeper interior is a plus), but like Panky says, you won't be driving it any time soon.

There are still tidy vans out there, just keep an eye open and something will come up.
 
If you are after a solid cheap van you cant do better than this as long as you don't mind going Dodge, looks amazing for the money[8D]

http://forum.commervanfan.co.uk/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=8018

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