Affiliated to SAVVAe-mail: editor@vintageveteran.co.za

website: www.vintageandveteranclub.co.zamail: P.O. Box 651901, Benmore, 2010

clubhouse: 3 Athol Oaklands Road, Oaklands, Johannesburg

SEPTEMBER 2013NEWSLETTER

Another AGM is behind us and generally our club is in great shape. We are fortunate to have what wehave and if the turnout on most Sundays is anything to judge by our club is being enjoyed by manymembers and friends. This is great because it is a sign of health and must incentivise us to keep it thatway.

In order to remain alive and well we need to constantly be adding to our membership as a reality is thatwe do lose a certain number of members every year to a range of factors not the least of which is thata number pass away. That means that we need to keep recruiting. So here is my first challenge to you.If just half of our existing members introduced just one new member in the next six months we wouldincrease our numbers by nearly 50% and that would be great. So please give this some serious thoughtand see if you can bring in a new member from your circle of friends. They don’t even have to own anold car or bike but should just have some interest in that direction and they would be welcome.

The next thing I would like to share is that we will be making some improvements at the club later thisyear so you can look forward to a new and brighter library. The idea is that on a Friday evening youwould be able to pop in there and find something interesting to read as well as see some friends andsocialize. I personally thoroughly enjoy catching up with the past week of friends on a Friday and thisis a highlight in my week.

We will also do some refinements in the hall and anyone who would like to be involved is welcome tocontact a committee member if you so wish it.

This month’s piece by your Chairman is all about appeals so the next one is please keep those articlesfor our newsletter coming in. A huge thank you to those who do put pen to paper or more likely fingersto keyboard and I am sure you will agree with me that one of the things which makes our newsletterinteresting is the variety in the articles we publish.

There then are the thoughts for this month and until next time I wish you happy motoring and goodhealth. Remember Spring is just around the corner!

Ian Holmes.

FROM THE CHAIRMAN’S DESK

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THIS MONTH’S COVERPaul Koski’s magnificent 1914 Cadillac appeared at the last Club Sunday. This

remarkable car has a fascinating history and is an example of one of the first cars tobe fitted with an electric self starter. - See engine pic below

At the time of writing this bit for the Newsletter I have only onenew member to report on. A warm hello to Lukas Swart, who livesin Linden and has a 1935 BMW 319/1. This is a vehicle with afascinating history and just a taste of the story is that in 1953 thethen owner drove the 319 through Africa. So there are manyinteresting tales to tell. Lukas has done a lot of research on theBMW and his restoration is slowly taking shape. Keep at it lad,you’re doing a great job.

So, now let’s discuss the renewal of the annual subscriptions.Again I must thank all that have already paid. But I still have, atthe time of writing, 68 members that for one reason or the other,still need TO PAY!! Please, Please, Please, pay as soon as youcan. I will again be at the club at the end of the month to collectcheques and cash payments. Oh and please remember if you dopay by cheque, make the cheque out to: The Vintage and VeteranClub. A cheque made out to VVC has been returned to us againthis year. Oh Dear!, banks are getting sticky on cheques.

To end off then it’s the usual note on getting your vehicles DATED,get your INDEMNITIES sorted out and remember to sign theREGISTER on Sundays and sign in your guests.

Enough this month already.

Enjoy the Spring Vintage Motoring, Noel.

Pleas e jo in us on Friday evenings at the c lub , in the “Milk Bar” for a few rounds !

Fred OppenheimerBrian Askew

Stewart ReeveNadav Ravid

Roy HeydenrychPeter HyslopDick Maizey

Eric McQuillianJohn MeiringIan MiddletonDavid Knott

Jan SteenkampWilliam Strong

Oliver GerondeanosDick Allwright

Patrick GearingSydney BrettBill Nettleton

Robert De AssuncaoMicheal Leisegang

Gerry CallinicosSymeon Yiallouris

Colin BremnerLukas Swart

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!This month we say

Many Happy Returns to:

NEW MEMBERS

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75SAV

VATECHNICAL TIP

SAVVA TECHNICAL

TI P

SAVVA Technical Tip 75 – Ignition CoilsThe following maybe old hat to most of us but newer enthusiasts could get caught

out so let’s look at it again. Incidentally, this applies to 12 volt coils only.Recently, an friend told the story about being on a vintage car run in his mid 60’s sports

car when the coil gave up and left him stranded. Fortunately, one of the other participants had aspare. I asked if he had the old one handy which he had. As I thought, it was clearly marked “tobe used will a ballast mumbled something like – so what’s the difference.simple – if you use these coils on 12 volts without a ballast resistor you will also end up beingstranded on the side of the road. If you go to the local scrapyard to retrieve a nice shiny coil froma newer model vehicle it will invariably be an 8 volt coil that requires a ballast resistor. The ballastresistor is usually a white porcelain thingie attached to the fire wall.These coils work such:When you turn the key to start the engine and the engine is turning over you are putting 12 voltsinto an 8 volt coil resulting in a much hotter spark. This extra spark assists starting especially incold weather or when the engine tends to be “rich”. Once the engine is running and you releasethe key the current then flows through a resistor which takes away 4 volts leaving 8 volts for thecoil. If you continue putting 12 volts on this coil without a ballast resistor it will eventually overheatand the windings burn out leaving you stranded like my friend was. So, when buying or replacingthe coil on an early car that is not fitted with a resister ensure it is a 12 volt one. Coils to be used with a resistor are usually marked – “to be used with a resistor”.

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VVC WINTER RUNTony Watson pulled out the stops this year in revitalising what was the VVC Winter Run and laterbecame the Jeffs Watson Memorial Run. This event always used to take place from Johannesburg tothe Rustenburg area where the participants stayed at either the Wigwam Hotel or one of the otheroptions that availed themselves in that area.

As a youngster (pre-driving licence, and recently post-nappies) I remember attending the run in thedickie seat of the 509 Fiat with Mum and Dad driving up front. Being part of the old car scene wassomething that I was lucky enough to grow up with, and we had great fun on the run, bundled up inscarves and jackets to ward off the cold mornings. When we finally got to the venue, I remember beinggibberishly excited at the prospect of staying in one of the wigwams. We bunked in the loft upstairsand played Indians outside while the adults did their adult thing.

So from my point of view, taking my daughter on the newly revived winter run brought back a wholelot of old memories.

This year, we started at Ferris Cars in Broadacres. The motley crew of drivers who would steer theirsteeds through the Magaliesberg fortified themselves with coffee and admired each other’s transport.

We then proceeded through the hills along some beautifully windy roads – the ones that you see inpost cards and hear Jeremy Clarkson throwing an endless array of adjectives at – towards our lunchstop. This was held at the Black Horse Brewery, and to date, I think it has been one of the best venuesthat I have been to in an old car. The restaurant was terraced with a view of the paddocks where horsesand bare bushveld trees sculptured the view. Inside the main building was a roaring winter firebackdropped by an old copper distiller. We sat out on the deck, and sampled an array of the micro-brews that are made on the premises. Casual chit-chat and banter about motorcars was the centre ofour conversation, until it was time to drive to the overnight stop.

More beautiful South African vistas complimented our drive until we reached the Wigwam Hotel. Thecamaraderie that had developed during the course of the run continued over drinks and then intosupper. One of the highlights of the evening gathering was the award of an old VVC trophy that wasserendipitously purchased from a pawn shop for the best performance by a motorcycle on the WinterRun. This hadn’t been awarded for some time, and it was good to see the recipient, Patrick Watson,receiving the trophy for his efforts on the Norton.

That evening as we were swapping war stories that we have experienced with our cars, I was struckby how small the South African motoring world really is. I was chatting to Ally van Jaarsveld about ourcar histories, and she mentioned that she used to own an Alfa similar to the one that I was using onthe run. It turns out that she sold it to Dalyn van Zyl, and I bought if from him some years afterwards!The car that we were driving was therefore Ally’s old car!

The run was a casual and fun-filled event, which I hope will happen again in the future. I for one, enjoyedevery moment, and Bella, my daughter, had a superb introduction to overnight runs. We have somegreat photographs of her fast asleep in the back of Dad’s R-type, not being woken even by the roarof the twelve cylinder Liberty engine that powered the Woolley’s Special!

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Thanks must go to the organisers and particularly to Tony for all of his efforts in gathering some specialpeople, some special cars, for a really wonderful event.

List of entrants:Clive and Bruce Woolley Rolls Roys Liberty SpecialAli and Bryani van Jaarsveld 3 litre BentleyTony Watson 4 ½ litre BentleyPatrick Watson Norton MotorcyclePeter Posniak Supercharged MGRich and Margie Curry LandroverSyd and Pat Biddulph TalbotCourtney and Brindy Watson Alfa JuniorRoy and Jane Watson R-Type BentleyJolyon and Karen Simpson Modern

Courtney Watson

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BRIAN’S BENTLEYMy 1936 Bentley 4 ¼ Litre – By Brian Lawlor

This Bentley was originally sold in England to a Captain Earle in September 1936 as a standard 4 doorPark Ward saloon. Very little is known of it’s subsequent history. It is believed to have been owned bya doctor in Worcester, Cape.

When I first saw the car in Cape Town in August 1989 it was no longer a saloon. The roof and doorshad been crudely removed and the car had been made into a two door tourer. I bought the car in thiscondition.

Due to the state of the alterations, there was no question of restoring it to it’s original saloon configuration,so it was decided to rebuild it as a three position drophead. New doors had to be made from scratchas the ones on the car didn’t fit properly and were very crude.The panel behind the doors was also suspect and had to be strengthened and realigned to provide thenecessary stiffness to support the new doors and hood.

Although Park Ward did make a three position drophead it was decided to model the new body on theVan Den Plas drophead, mainly because of the flush fit of the hood when folded down.One of the big plusses with the restoration was the fact that Park Ward in 1936 had introduced an all-steel body frame instead of a timber one. This meant that stiffening of the body as a result of theremoval of the roof was much easier using steel tubing, which greatly enhanced the necessary strengthof the external panel between the door and the rear mudguard.

A new windscreen had to be made as did the roll-up side windows in the doors. Hood bows are steelwith wooden mouldings. The hood mechanism fits flush with the top of the back seat.The hood material came from Germany and the hood was fitted by Sue Sheppard, who also did theupholstery and carpeting. The car has been completely rewired to the original circuit layout.The engine was checked and mechanically found to be in good shape. The car has apparently onlydone about 70,000 miles. The petrol tank was also cleaned out.Painting and covering the new ash frame doors in aluminium and other bits of panel beating were doneby a panel beater friend of Doug Brody.

Finally, the colour! It has always been a family thing about my liking for black cars. In this case, as aresult of a suggestion by an artist friend of Angela’s, this was partially averted. She suggested OldEnglish White and black, and you can see the result for yourselves.

Many thanks to Doug Brodie for the use of his workshop hoist. I was able to rebuild the entire exhaustsystem and also many other components underneath the car as a result.My thanks also go to Cyril Richmond for the odd body components he made for me and also to CarloDonadel for his assistance with the electrics. Another thank you goes to Rick Lewis for his generalassistance.

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[ PHOTOS FROM JULY CLUB SUNDAY ]Photos by Mark Richardson

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VINTAGE & VETERAN CLUB AGM 2013Chairman’s Report.

This is the sixth report I am honoured to present to you as chairman and all the clichés about timepassing quickly apply in this case.

Membership is currently at 283 which includes twelve Life Members and this is slightly down from 299at the same time last year. Sadly the year saw the passing of some of our very prominent memberssuch as Kobus van Jaarsveld, Mike Milner-Smyth, Teun Groothedde, Tony Theodorczk Len Bassettand Brian Harris to mention just some. Life Member Ruth Blackwell has since also passed away soour total will now be 11.

This year saw the running of the DJ again and this was an extremely significant event as it marked the100th year anniversary of the running of the first race. Clerk of the Course and honorary member PierreCronje did a superb job with his team to put on a truly world class event and I thank them most sincerely.Interest was huge and for the first time ever there were over two hundred aspirant riders including atleast ten from overseas. The event followed the Johannesburg to Durban route in keeping with the firstrace in 1913 and took place over three days instead of the usual two, It was a great success and waswon by Kevin Robertson again who must surely now have an unbeatable record of seven wins. Anumber of other events also took place with runs to the Vaal, Kenjara and the breakfasts proving tobe very popular. Members also took part in rallies and events arranged by other clubs so activity in thisrespect has been at a very good level.

Our Newsletter saw the passing of the baton of Editorship from Jean Gobey to Chris Van very ablysupported by Brian Noik on the technical and distribution aspects and this continues to play a vital rolein the affairs of our club. The electronic version reaches some interesting parts of the world and isdefinitely read as we receive the feedback from time to time.

The very good news recently was that the efforts by Brian Lawlor to secure our lease for another periodfinally bore fruit after a marathon four year process. We also undertook an upgrade of the toilet facilitiesthanks to Brian Lawlor and Pierre Rousseau and further improvements are currently in the planningphase. We plan to build a new library and sort out some long standing problems with the roof. We nowalso host the meetings of the Vintage Motorcycle Club and are pleased to have them close again asour aims and objectives are aligned as well as having many members common to both clubs.

Our Club Sundays are extremely well supported and I am always amazed by the turnout and steadytrickle of vehicles never seen before. This must be a sign of good health for our movement and is afterall what most of us are about. Friday evenings continue to supported by the faithful although the numbersare down on previous years.

I must be emphatic in regard to my thanks to your committee for their outstanding work and supportduring this past year. If I compare the size of our committee with similar clubs we are running on abouthalf of the number I see mentioned in their newsletters and this has a number of implications. Thebottom line is that our people simply do more and to all of them we owe a sincere debt of gratitude. Iwant to mention them individually so let me start by thanking Eric for his ongoing support, wisdom andeffort in helping me to lead this team.

Brian and Pierre have done a super job with taking care of our clubhouse and the best is yet to come.Thanks Paul for the financials despite your busy schedule and Alan thanks for your enthusiasm andcontinued efforts to put together events. Sometimes to get these to work is like herding cats but youkeep at it. Noel gets a very special mention for his outstanding work in keeping our membership up todate, reminding us of important things and keeping minutes of the hours we spend in meetings. A betterteam we could not find.

I also want to single out some ex officio members without whom we would not function smoothly. RicLewis who is always so willing to lock up and help with the bar, John Hassall who organizes theBreakfasts and the DJ trophies are but two of these. Thanks to all of you who volunteer for bar dutyas well and we need more of you! Sometimes we overlook those who behind the scenes do so muchand if I have done so now, please forgive me.

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2013 CALENDAR OF EVENTS(Subject to amendment – see Magazine & Notice board for more current information)

AUGUST25 Aug VVC Club Sunday Post-vintage Cars & Bikes & Flea market31 Aug VOWC Wheels on the Vaal (Vereeniging)

SEPTEMBER1 Sep VOWC Wheels on the Vaal (Vereeniging)14 Sep SAVVA AGM15 Sep PR Piston Ring Swop Meet24 Sep SAVVA National Drive it Day! SAVVA28 Sep COMBINED International Ford Model A Day29 Sep VVC Post-45 Cars & Bikes & Buick Club

OCTOBER21 Oct PR Motoring Memories at Piston Ring27 Oct STUD Studebaker Club Show Day, Smuts House27Oct VVC Sports Cars & Bikes& Rolls & Bentley Club & BDC

NOVEMBER10/11 Nov EC Fairest Cape Motorcycle Tour CVMC24 Nov VVC Veteran Cars & Bikes

DECEMBER29 Dec VVC Christmas meeting

Thanks to the Monday Club who continue to be our catering partners and always see to it that we donot miss out on nice things to eat and drink whenever there is a function or an event.

Club dating activities have been slower than expected since I took over the role of dating officer but Ialso know that when regular roadworthiness testing is introduced this will pick up very smartly.

Our club finances are in a sound condition and for that reason the committee decided not to increasethe subscriptions for the new year. These will be dealt with in more detail in the financial report.

In conclusion a word of thanks to all of you the members who continue to support our club and theevents. I believe the time has come for some succession to take place on the committee so we willbe actively recruiting some new members. I ask you to give this some thought and to be willing if youare approached in this regard. We will be needing help with the Membership portfolio as well as someother functions so we look forward to some new blood.

Ladies and Gentlemen, thanks for your attention and that concludes the Chairman’s report for the Clubyear 2012/2013.

IL Holmes

All members are reminded to pay the 2013/2014subscriptions NOW!

The subscription rates are published in the newsletteron page 11, as well as the renewals have been posted

to all members.

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For those who missed it here is Sunday’s joke - 60th HighSchool Reunion

He was a widower and she widow. They had known each other for a number of years being highschool classmates and having attended class reunions in the past without fail. This 60th anniversaryof their class, the widower and the widow made a foursome with two other singles. They had awonderful evening, their spirits high. The widower throwing admiring glances across the table. Thewidow smiling coyly back at him. Finally, he picked up courage to ask her, "Will you marry me?" Afterabout six seconds of careful consideration, she answered, "Yes,..... yes I will!"The evening ended on a happy note for the widower. But the next morning he was troubled.Did she say “Yes” or did she say “No?” couldn't remember. Try as he would, he just could not recall.He went over the conversation of the previous evening, but his mind was blank. He rememberedasking the question but for the life of him could not recall her response. With fear and trepidation hepicked up the phone and called her. First, he explained that he couldn't remember as well as he usedto. Then he reviewed the past evening.As he gained a little more courage he then inquired of her. "When I asked if you would marry me,did you say “Yes” or did you say “No?”"Why you silly man, I said ‘Yes. Yes I will.’ And I meant it with all my heart."The widower was delighted. He felt his heart skip a beat. Then she continued."And I am so glad you called because I couldn't remember who asked me!”

CLUB JOKE

HERSHEY INVITEWe have a very enthusiastic member in America in the form of Sandy and Dee Mitchell. They alwaysare so gracious in offering hospitality to SA motor enthusiasts, below is an email from them and anyonewishing to go there to attend the Hershey show is welcome to contact me, your Chairman to set somethingup.

Photos of this years winners at the Concours d Elegancia in Detroit on July 28thBest Europoean 1934 Afla Romeo and Best American 1931 Duesenburg with body by Derham (4 built,believe it or not all 4 still exist today.)

For those interested in attending Hershey 2013, I'm in the process of making motel reservations. CurrentlyTerry Lee of the Rolls Royce Club of the UK will be joining me again. Terry has been a frequent visitorto South Africa and a good friend of Johan Marais of Cape Town. Dee my wife has elected to join Terryand me this year. While we’re at Hershey she galavants around the Amish area and whatelse SHOPS!

I have already booked Terry, myself and Dee at the Day's Inn South in Carlisle Pa which is about 30miles from Hershey. The rate is approximately 72 dollars a night for 2, give or take. (includes a nicecontinental breakfast.)

If interested please contact me: email: sgmdim1@aol.com or phone 734-856-6554The dates of Hershey are Wednesday October 7 to Saturday October 10.You can fly into NYC Washington, Driving time from Washington is about 1 1/2, from NYC 2 1/2 hours,or you can fly into Harrisburg. Another option is taking the train from Newark International Airport toHarrisburg. - Sandy

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Dis claim er: While reasonable precautions have been taken to ensure the accuracy of advice, information and views givento readers, the Editor, Club Committee and Publishers cannot accept responsibility for any

damages or inconvenience that may arise

VVC COMMITTEE FOR 2012/2013

Ian Holmes ianhol@iafrica.com Chairman/ Dating 011 793 7304Eric McQuillian eric@anatomical.co.za Vice-Chairman 011 888 3790Brian Lawlor bjclawlor@cinet.co.za Clubhouse 011 883 2054Paul Koski paul@frontiers.co.za Treasurer 011 442 6662Noel Fordred daisymiss59@gmail.com Register/members 011 465 1084Alan Hogg alan.h@mweb.co.za Special events 011 786 1911Pierre Rousseau pierrer@akhane.co.za Clubhouse/General 011 728 4172

Ex-officio Portfolio Holders:John Hassall jh29@pixie.co.za Social breakfasts 011 679 2342Chris Van chrisvan@rocketmail.com Editor

All correspondence to the club should also be addressed to info@vintageveteran.co.za.

PLEASE NOTEDeadline for articles for the next issue is the 7th of the previous month

Please do keep your articles coming in. Your contributions are appreciated!

When submitting photographs please ensure that they are high resolution,to do justice to the pictures, particularly in the printed version.

CORRESPONDENCE

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

FOR SALE

Please send us anything you wish tosell / swop / find and we will post it here

email the editor - chrisvan@rocketmail.com

WHO ARE THESE GUYS?

Circa 5:15pm, Friday afternoon 26th July 2013, on walking through the main entrance I encountered2 diligent artisans repairing the ceiling boards in the main hall. Most tradesmen have clocked outat this time on a Friday. Surely they can’t belong to any Union? Some of our members arealready ensconced at the bar!

Why are these fellas still working?

Their faces appear familiar. Isn’t the big fella the one that has a girlfriend named “Rosy” and theother chap, isn’t he that one that renovated the toilets and I’ve seen riding the old DJ bike? He’san OK guy! Come to think of it, I’ve seen them both at the bar. The big guy drinks Tafel Lager,the other seems to enjoy his tonic and gin.

Have a feeling they might have something to do with the VVC Committee! You know, that bunchof fellas who seem to get together from time to time to make it easy and Holmesly for normal clubmembers like us, to sit back and enjoy ourselves at our cozy little club.

Apparently there’s quite a number of these crazy fellas who perform all sorts of duties and choresfor “NOTHING”.

One venerable musical gentleman actually built the Club, so I’m led to believe. Another has beenon the committee since the Anglo Boer War, others do all the nitty gritty stuff – Fordreding, Hogging,Hassalling, Pierroueting and Kosking around.

The Chairman, I believe, has actually recently given up his day job in order to do more Chairmaningand researching of Irish Afrikaans and Jewish Folklore and humour, to brighten up our ClubSundays.

Just look at the response he draws when asking for nominees for committee duties! 0#%$^&*!!Oh well we say, don’t change what already works so well!!!

As one such person who does similar duties for a much smaller Club, I am forever mindful of whatgoes into keeping the Club’s wheels oiled, so I trust you will all echo my sentiments in thankingyou unsung heroes for giving unstintingly your time and creativity to us.

As a grateful member of what I believe is the best Vintage/Veteran/Motoring club in South Africa.

I SOLUTE YOU.

Yours thankfully,JOHN ALLISON

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