squareweave
Well-known member
I just thought I would share a few of pics of my latest find. It is an all OG (paint and interior) 1969 sunroof van. It has been sitting in a metal quonset hut for the past 20+ years. I bought it from the estate of the original owner. I saw it listed on the internet and thankfully my American neighbours were all watching Super Bowl and I ended up being the first email of 20+ emails that the son of the original owner received within the first day alone. It was located in Washington state only just over an hour from my house. I went down to look at it/pick it up with a friend. The front door of the shed was to small to get the trailer through so I had to drive through a marshy Christmas tree farm to hook it up. I got stuck backing the truck up to hook it up to the trailer. Had to put it in 4x4 and finally got it out. Once I had the bus on the tow dolly I had to drive back through the Christmas tree farm slowly without stopping because I surely would have been stuck . The truck was spinning the whole way. But there was no way I was leaving without this van in my possession.
Back to the van itself. The original owner (a machinist) took out the back seat when new and replaced it with a set of drawers and a 12 volt fridge. Fortunately he stored the rear seat in his garage all of these years and it is in like new shape and I got it with the van. The cabinets were held in using stock rear seat and seat belt mounting points so no extra holes.The van is a rust free as they come. The sunroof and all doors open and unlock like new. All brown mats are there and in beautiful shape. the rear decklid is original to the van but has has a respray because of a minor dent. I am not sure if I will strip the respray or have a new decklid painted. Its not much of a patina bus as the paint is still very strong
on it. Anyways enough jabbering here are a few pics if you are interested?
Here is the house in the hills where its been hiding for years.
And the quonset hut where it was located in
The van in its hiding spot
The hook up
The og owners son and my friend Jordi after we struggled to get it up on the dolly after sitting that long
Out on the gravel road............success!
Just checking the tow straps to make sure everything was tight
Ready to roll
The bus had to sit and wait for export from US customs so I finally got it home after it was stored in a secret storage spot :roll: in the US untill this past Wednesday.
Coming through Canada customs
Now at home, I removed all of the cabinets and installed the seats. The only thing that was missing was the three black armrests but fortunately I have a mint set to go in. So here it is, not cleaned up aside from a quick wash so excuse the mess and the dirt.
The og chrome symbol came with the van too
With the help of my friend Geoff we got it running within 5 minutes, so I had to take it around the block using the emergency brake. Here it is after its maiden voyage :lol:
Back to the van itself. The original owner (a machinist) took out the back seat when new and replaced it with a set of drawers and a 12 volt fridge. Fortunately he stored the rear seat in his garage all of these years and it is in like new shape and I got it with the van. The cabinets were held in using stock rear seat and seat belt mounting points so no extra holes.The van is a rust free as they come. The sunroof and all doors open and unlock like new. All brown mats are there and in beautiful shape. the rear decklid is original to the van but has has a respray because of a minor dent. I am not sure if I will strip the respray or have a new decklid painted. Its not much of a patina bus as the paint is still very strong
on it. Anyways enough jabbering here are a few pics if you are interested?Here is the house in the hills where its been hiding for years.
And the quonset hut where it was located in
The van in its hiding spot
The hook up
The og owners son and my friend Jordi after we struggled to get it up on the dolly after sitting that long
Out on the gravel road............success!
Just checking the tow straps to make sure everything was tight
Ready to roll
The bus had to sit and wait for export from US customs so I finally got it home after it was stored in a secret storage spot :roll: in the US untill this past Wednesday.
Coming through Canada customs
Now at home, I removed all of the cabinets and installed the seats. The only thing that was missing was the three black armrests but fortunately I have a mint set to go in. So here it is, not cleaned up aside from a quick wash so excuse the mess and the dirt.
The og chrome symbol came with the van too
With the help of my friend Geoff we got it running within 5 minutes, so I had to take it around the block using the emergency brake. Here it is after its maiden voyage :lol:
