Rare 1950s Nutshell caravan

[Caiptean]

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[richard]

Good luck with the sale Colin , mike and I just back from Beaulieu and mike was exhibiting ,NOT selling , his Nutshell and there was terrific interest from all ages !

[Caiptean]

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PS Is anyone aware of a lower chassis number?

PPS I knew of six Nutshell caravans (no idea on numbers of Raleigh caravans) - any idea on the current known total?

[richard]

I heard mention of 11 in total that is very precise , and very few . I wonder if this is correct ?

[Jean]

Colin, Why don't you advertise it in RUMCAR NEWS?  May be someone will buy it to come to our Open Day 30/31 July this year.
Make immediate contact with Chris at chris@rumcars.org he is about to go to print but I think he has a few spaces, there is no charge.  Jean

[Caiptean]

Jean,

Thank you for the advert suggestion. I'd very much like to do that but my e-mail is down.

Kind regards,

C

[Caiptean]

I heard mention of 11 in total that is very precise , and very few . I wonder if this is correct ?

Richard,

Interesting as the last count I had (a few years ago with another Nutshell owner) currently stood at two in England and four in Scotland - his being one of the Scottish ones (Ayrshire) that was towed erected behind a Morris Oxford estate. The English ones being Birmingham and Sussex but there may be more.

That count didn't include Raleigh caravans.

Kind regards,

C

[richard]

Sorry to mislead Colin my figure was to include Raleigh. I personally know of 11 mixed

[Grant Kearney]

Does mine count.......
I know Bruce Henderson well, owner of the Ayrshire Nutshell and Oxford Traveller.  He will know about the Austin 7 owners who tow Nutshells in Scotland.
I know of a very nice original one in Coventry and the one in the bubblecar museum.  Alan Hillier used to tow one behind his MkG twin estate but long since sold and Bob Cotton sold his at a Hengrave Hall rally many years ago.

[richard]

Now i REALLY would like someone to copy the front leg Grant - if you know of anyone No I was not counting yours pictured here 😀 Should I Of course so thats maybe 12 ? Alan had a Nutshell and a Raleigh I think . I have counted them but dont know where they are now 

[Caiptean]

Does mine count.......
I know Bruce Henderson well, owner of the Ayrshire Nutshell and Oxford Traveller.  He will know about the Austin 7 owners who tow Nutshells in Scotland.
I know of a very nice original one in Coventry and the one in the bubblecar museum.  Alan Hillier used to tow one behind his MkG twin estate but long since sold and Bob Cotton sold his at a Hengrave Hall rally many years ago.

From the photograph yours looks like a Raleigh (I did have one of each at one point). If the chassis is okay then it probably could be restored although much of the original wood might not remain original.

Just looked at the pictures of the Bubblecar museum - that is a Nutshell.

I couldn't remember Bruce's name - I met him at a Morris rally a few years back (I have a rather tuned Traveller) and we exchanged details which i mislaid when I moved.

Bob Cotton I haven't seen since I sold him all my Bond Minicar spares probably some twenty years ago now...

Kind regards,

C

[Grant Kearney]

Now i REALLY would like someone to copy the front leg Grant - if you know of anyone No I was not counting yours pictured here 😀 Should I Of course so thats maybe 12 ? Alan had a Nutshell and a Raleigh I think . I have counted them but dont know where they are now

I am sure this will be possible.  I will have a look at it after Nottingham and see how the original is constructed.

[Grant Kearney]

[/quote]

From the photograph yours looks like a Raleigh (I did have one of each at one point). If the chassis is okay then it probably could be restored although much of the original wood might not remain original.

Just looked at the pictures of the Bubblecar museum - that is a Nutshell.

I couldn't remember Bruce's name - I met him at a Morris rally a few years back (I have a rather tuned Traveller) and we exchanged details which i mislaid when I moved.

Bob Cotton I haven't seen since I sold him all my Bond Minicar spares probably some twenty years ago now...

Kind regards,

Colin
[/quote]

Hi Colin,
I hope mine is a Nutshell rather than a Raleigh.  The front end did come to almost a point before collapsing and I believe this was the most obvious difference between the two.
I used to live on Dens Road in Dundee so really wanted a Nutshell rather than the Raleigh for that reason.  The chassis is sound and I do plan to restore it but will have to replace much of the wood work.  I need to inspect and measure and good one at some point before progressing.

I could locate Bruce Henderson's details should you want to contact him.  Not seen him for a couple of years now.  I first met him in the late 80s when he was the chairman of the Scottish Morris Minor club.

Way back in the distant past I was running a black Minor saloon and met you in the north of Scotland when you drove up in your MkF Family.  I must have been impressed with your MkF following a day trip with you as I bought a  near identical model later that year and have never look back.  I now have too many Bonds........
Regards
Grant

[Caiptean]

Grant,

Obviously it is difficult to see from the photograph and the 'fine point' is a main 'tell' between a Nutshell and a Raleigh. Hopefully yours will turn out to be a Nutshell - the more the merrier - when we met (at a Minor rally) Bruce did mention one of the Scottish 'four' was needing a complete rebuild.

Internally there are other differences in the base - principally the access into front locker in a Nutshell is through neatly cut ovals in a sloping plywood panel whereas the Raleigh is a very basic opening with a single square leg in the middle.

The Nutshell front and rear 'detachable' end panels are identical and have a vertical bow when viewed side-on; the Raleigh towing end panels are linear - the front mounts vertically; the rear slopes inward and these are not interchangeable. Obviously the folding side panels are shaped to fit each type. In addition the windows are different sizes between the two makes. When erected these differences are visually really noticeable.

My Nutshell has the original L. Stewart & Sons makers plate on top of the towing stem - I suspect many have been lost but the rivet holes may still be present.

Originally the Nutshell had an integral wheel and hub arrangement which meant dismantling the bearing assembly on the roadside if you had a puncture - very messy and impractical for regular use. The Raleigh had separate hubs and three-hole rims so a puncture the tube (even tyre) could be changed roadside with comparative ease - I equipped my Nutshell with the latter as it saw regular use - a 'no brainer' decision.

At the time I did a lot of comparison work on the two types (I had one of each) and took many pictures although these currently reside on prints and negatives in one of several boxes unopened across two house moves. I cannot remember where my Raleigh went - I think it was to another Bond club member. A Nutshell (or Raleigh) will tow surprisingly well behind a Bond.

I remember your black Minor saloon and apologies for getting you into Bond Minicars!   
The Scottish Microcar Club rallies  were excellent as were the Bond 875 events.

Ironically I now run a Traveller with a highly tuned A-series (oversized block /balanced engine /ported head /full-flow headers, overdrive transmission /centre-point clutch /vented disks etc) and whilst it has no problem towing the Nutshell (1) you can forget it is there and (2) the legal towing speed is tedious. However, I've toured Scotland in it including the Outer Hebrides and Orkney.

If you have any more photographs I might be able to assist further (currently my e-mail is playing up).

Kind regards,

C


 

[richard]

Are chassis identical ? I thought not ?