Early Commer Bluebird - updates

LancsClassics

New Member
Hello all,

I haven't been on here for a while. I have had the Commer since late 2017 but circumstances have meant it has mostly sat in the garage for most of that time. There have still been many bouts of enthusiasm to improve, enhance and perfect- the van, not me, that is - if only!
The van is a 1961 Commer Bluebird camper and is in exceptional condition with no sign of ever being welded and having covered less than 29,000 miles from new. It really is in superb condition underneath. It had been re-sprayed a few years ago and still looks in fine fettle. The interior is mostly original.
When I bought it I set to with a full service of just about everything, so that all the oils, fluids, filters, grease points as well as service items in the electrics and ignition were replaced and set up. Had the van running well but I soon realised a few issues creeping in. I'll run through these in due course, in the meantime here are a couple of pics of the van.

Best wishes, Mick
 

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Hello all,

I haven't been on here for a while. I have had the Commer since late 2017 but circumstances have meant it has mostly sat in the garage for most of that time. There have still been many bouts of enthusiasm to improve, enhance and perfect- the van, not me, that is - if only!
The van is a 1961 Commer Bluebird camper and is in exceptional condition with no sign of ever being welded and having covered less than 29,000 miles from new. It really is in superb condition underneath. It had been re-sprayed a few years ago and still looks in fine fettle. The interior is mostly original.
When I bought it I set to with a full service of just about everything, so that all the oils, fluids, filters, grease points as well as service items in the electrics and ignition were replaced and set up. Had the van running well but I soon realised a few issues creeping in. I'll run through these in due course, in the meantime here are a couple of pics of the van.

Best wishes, Mick
 
I was underneath this gorgeous van at Martins and can confirm that it's as good as it looks in the pictures - if not better. Every spot weld can be seen on the seams underneath with absolutely no sign of any repairs, it truly is a rare gem :cool:
 
Yes, its a good looking van. It also has some very useful updates such as a Lexus 6 speed gearbox and an SU carb conversion - but more of that later.
When we first got it Julie and me decided to give it a run to see her Dad, just a few miles up the road.
Better get some petrol first, the tank level was a bit low. I say low, but the gauge reads backwards so it actually showed high. In case someone says the wires are the wrong way round - tried that, doesn't make any difference. Other forums on old cars report a similar issue on some fuel gauges - weird?
OK, let's get some petrol. Put the nozzle in the tank, squeeze the trigger and ........... watch the petrol dribble all over the forecourt.
The filler hose was as porous as an old sock. Luckily we got a couple of gallons in and carried on our way, for the time being.
Then, when at Dad's house I couldn't get reverse gear - highly embarrassing. It needed the cross gate gear linkage reaction rod adjusting, but more significantly there was a loose taper point screw at the main linkage front knuckle.

All teething problems, surely. Although the ragged 40 year old spare tyre (completely flat and would not hold air) was a giveaway that this van needed some 'finishing' before it should be taken further afield. Clearly it hadn't been used recently, just as well we had it couriered from the North East to Lancashire when we bought it.
So I replaced the filler hose with a proper petrol-proof type, fixed the gear linkage and fitted a new spare tyre (posh picture), also improved the spare wheel carrier locking bolt device. I wasn't keen on the wing nut, now it has two nuts and you need spanners to nick the spare.
We also had a wheel hub cap drop off in one of the early runs so I drilled the hub caps and tapped the three wheel lugs where the cap locates. They won't fall off nowIMG_20200712_130731766.jpgDSC01088.JPG
 
I've lost a few hubcaps, they don't seem to like being fitted with the embellishers
 
One of the first things I did was replace the mirrors. The originals were looking faded and I could not find any new mirror glass to fit. The ones I used were sourced from Amazon I think and advertised as for a motorbike, but are about the same area as the originals. Probably a bit small really but you get used to looking (very) carefully.
I had to make new door fixing brackets to suit the mirrors which I did in stainless steel, machined on the shaper. I also made shorter stems to get the mirror heads in the right place.
Next job, seat belts.

DSC01069.JPGDSC01057.JPGDSC01068.JPG
 
I need to replace mine as they are like looking a a bad victorian photo and I’ve been told to get some mirror cut to fit.
 
Hi Panky, yes the shaper is a bit overkill but I can't resist proper old machine tackle like this. The lathe and mill get most jobs in my workshop. How did I ever manage without the machinery, it certainly gets a fair bit of Commering!

The seatbelts were the next job. The van does not have any fixings so I had to make my own. I turned up some screwed bosses and welded to steel back plates, then welded the plates to the door frame. Still need to paint over the red primer where I have welded the plates on. I also made covers to fit at the top fulcrum, machined from aluminium billet and polished up.

Getting the positioning between the lower reel fixing and the upper fulcrum is important so that the belt fits correctly across the shoulder and waist. They worked out well so quite pleased. Probably not a manufacturer approved design in 1961 :confused: but makes us feel safer being in the van.
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Some other stuff that I have done in the last year or two.

Electrical updates: Fitted an alternator and at the same time replaced the ammeter with a voltmeter.
IMG_20200712_161132345.jpg

Fuse box. I like things simple and basic, but as standard just ONE fuse for the whole vehicle?!!. That's stretching it.
So I put a 6-way fuse box on the dash panel in front of the heater. Split this out to various circuits for main beam, dip beam, horn (and relay), radio/auxiliary, also to provide for an electric cooling fan (and relay).
While I was in there I tidied up some of the wiring, replaced the reversing lamp and the dash switch as well as adding an auxiliary 12V socket on the dash.
IMG_20200712_160639156.jpg

The big tasks have probably been the cooling system and carb / exhaust / breathing.

Commers can run hot, fundamentally because when the designer had the brainwave of putting the radiator INSIDE the vehicle?? and in my van's case it doesn't have a grill to let the air in.......... well, not the best approach but it still seems to manage. Most of the time.

It does suffer in hot weather and this then affects the carburation and hot starting. A case of vapour lock, where petrol delivery from tank to carb stalls due to local heat in the fuel pipe and pump. I ended up making several mods and changes to the carburation.
Re-routed the fuel pipe from where it ran across the top of the exhaust manifold to round the front of the radiator in cooler air. Eventually I went the whole hog and fitted a Facet electric fuel pump and pressure regulator, with primer switch near the choke knob.
The SU is fitted to a fabricated inlet/exhaust manifold which is great except that it moves the carb so far across that the very small air filter was literally squeezed in against the body work. I have heard that some engine mounts affect the lateral positioning? Also there was no heat insulator between carb and manifold. I had to cut the carb stub off the manifold and shorten it by about 16mm. This allowed space for a heat insulator and I made a right angled adaptor on the carb to run a silicone hose past the radiator and to a bigger air filter in lower, cooler air.
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Also special hatch to put oil in the dah pot!
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On the cooling side I wanted to fit a pull type electric fan, but space is limited between the rad and the engine. I decided to go for a new Ford Escort spec alloy radiator and expansion bottle, moved forward to allow space for the fan and had to remake the throttle cable system to fasten to the chassis instead of the original radiator. Temperature sensor in bottom hose with override switch on the dash.
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Oh, and lastly, fitted an RC40 silencer and plumbed up in stainless. The exhaust was starting to look tired, so... in for a penny.
 
Love the Louis 14th hinge on the flap, a bit early for the car but I'll allow it;)
Some very good mods there, ones that a lot of Commer owners end up doing.
 
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