General Category > Invalid Carriages & other related conveyances
The Hammond Harding finally gets its turn
Stuart Cyphus:
With the chassis tidy, it was now time for some reassembly for the first time since at least 1986, and also to look at how to place the engine, of which more anon. For the panel-work, which mainly consists of the rear wings and rear light/number plate panel, all are attached by pretty hefty nuts & bolts and even heftier metal tube clamps, which by the looks of them, have their roots in Victorian times. In being removed all those years ago, instead of being slid lengthwise off the chassis tubes are they were meant to be, they had simply been prised apart by Geoff Capes on his afternoon off in order to pass them over the chassis tubes! Clearly nobody had ever given a thought to ever trying to reattach them. Ever-larger pliers, mole grips, ever bulging biceps. Nothing it seemed was going to shift these clamps back into position! Hmmm, problem. How to do this? Then my gaze fell upon the No 6 vice upon our bench. Hmmmm, now if that could be unbolted.... And so at last said clamps finally yielded back into shape under under half a ton of best Draper accessory, held vertically upon one's knee. It might ruin one's creases, but it gets the job done!
Stuart Cyphus:
Then of course we come to the engine. As mentioned earlier, originally this Harding was powered by a 148cc Villiers Mk 31C engine, complete with Black Box electrical system. Not your normal fitment to an invalid carriage of this particular type certainly. It is my belief that this particular Harding may well have been a cancelled order for a Harding Consort, the rather rare full-bodied & full luxury flagship of the Harding Range, which, instead of being built up as a Consort, was simply outshopped as a rather special hot-rod standard De Luxe. A "Sleeper", if you like...
Be that as it may though, I decided long ago that it would be pointlessly expensive to have this 31C engine restored as I already had a complete & rather more functioning 147cc Villiers Mk 26C lump stored in the depths of the shed. This model of engine, in fan cooled form, was fitted to countless carriages between 1947 & 1961, and indeed my particular engine had seen service in a c.1954 Tippen Coventry until being removed when the carriage was cut up for scrap in the '70s. Upon lining up the 26C lump into approximate position within the chassis earlier today, it was very satisfying to find that the front engine mounts lined up perfectly with just a tiny bit of filing needed for clearance.
And so that is how the Hammond Harding stands as of 14th October 2017. All is painted, the rear end is all attached and the engine is half-in. Future jobs are to reattach the front forks & steering. Fabricate rear engine mounts from scratch & install Albion 3-speed gearbox (again currently sat on the bench). Then it's woodwork time as the footbox and seat are again fabricated from scratch.
Watch this space as the Hammond Harding slowly comes back to life...
Rob Dobie:
Well done Stuart. Keep up the good work. Looking forward to seeing and trying it when I get my disability scooter next month. It's going to be a long ride from Sussex to Oxfordshire though.
Rusty Chrome (Malcolm Parker):
Great work Stuart. I'm guessing you may have cornered the market in ex-council traffic lights!
Bob Purton:
Nice Inter photo Stuart. I remember us setting up that shot. Keep it up mate.
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