the kitchen cupboard

Yesterday's shopping trip to Aberdeen went well and I now have some memory foam and heavy-duty pvc to make waterproof cushions to go on the bench seat. I'll make loose fabric covers to cover the pvc, thus combining dog-proof and comfy to sit on. I also have 60m of bubblewrap ready to insulate the roofspace as soon as my perspex sheeting arrives - tomorrow I'll phone the company and sort out what went wrong with delivery!

Today, once Charlie had been to the vet for his second set of jabs, his microchip and a general check-over, we plunged into the question of the stove. I emailed Windy Smithy to ask advice on size of stove and length of flue yesterday and got a wonderfully detailed email back with all the details. The stove I'd chosen will do fine but I need to fit in more flue length for the best draw on the stove - vital with a woodburner if I'm to have a nice clean burn, no smoke drifting back into the van and for the stove to keep 'in' over a long winter's night. Some hard work with protractors and even Gareth and I scribbling measurements and marks on the walls of the van (in pencil) was required before we figured out that a couple of 45 degree bends will allow us to shoehorn another 50cm of flue into the space available, so all is now in hand to get the stove ordered and paid for. I'll pick it up on the way back from Exmoor after midsummer!

Having cleared that problem up, the way was clear to get the final dimensions of the 'kitchen cupboard' sorted and the frame built ready for cladding. The end nearest the rear doors will take a sheet of ply on top of a small locker to make a bed across the rear end of the van, then the remainder of the free space along the nearside wall of the van, some 5 feet in length, will be the work-surface with the twin-burner gas stove let into the top surface. Snatching my chance while the weather was nice and the dog fairly settled to nap the rest of the morning away, I set to work and got the timber frame measured, cut and assembled. Two coats of varnish later, it just needs to finish drying overnight and tomorrow the tricky job of getting the top surface cut to fit the gas stove begins!

Some thought was also given to the placement of the gas cylinder. It has to be secure for travel (obviously) yet able to be removed when it needs replacing, as it regrettably does from time to time. Some brainstorming between Mum and I came up with the idea of putting low wooden 'fiddles' around the base of the cylinder to keep it stable on its shelf, with the top end of the cylinder then secured with a bungee to a sturdy eyebolt in the frame behind the cylinder. Once the worktop is done, putting in the shelves and sorting out the gas cylinder will be the rest of the day's project. If I get as far as measuring for doors before the end of the day, all the better! I still have to source some child-proof (or more accurately, dog-proof) locks for the doors, too.

I've also now figured out how to do the top-level lockers above the bench-seat, which will take light-weight items like spare clothing. I'm still mulling over how to sort out the cupboard for laptop etc that I plan to put behind the driver's side bulkhead, on top of the 'table' over the whippet's crate.

Finishing touches on the bench

Again, more delays due to poor weather, together with a desire to make the next trip to B&Q on a Saturday so I could take advantage of a money-off offer, have delayed work on the van. Today, however, the timber is in hand for the kitchen-side of the van, the stove dimensions are written down and while there wasn't time to launch into anything major, there was definitely time to get the final bits done on the bench seat.

With Charlie's help (or at least company!) the interior divisions have gone in - only hardboard but enough to stop everything sliding merrily over long distances every time I brake or corner - and the ply seat is hinged on and secure. There's enough room at the rear to put a jerrycan tidily out of the way - either the 10L green water can or one of the 10L red diesel cans - and tomorrow's plans involve a trip into Aberdeen in search of memory foam to make the cushions, a big roll of bubblewrap to start insulating the roof and Charlie's first mid-distance car ride. The poor pup so far has done Lincolnshire to Aberdeen (breeder to home) and the 15 minute run to the vet for his jabs - he had one trip in the van to Aberdeen so now it's time to get the car seat harness out and take him on a day-trip to the shops.

An adrenaline workout

The weather's not been kind so not much has happened for a few days. Today, though, the windows have arrived ready to fit to the van, so Gareth and I pulled ourselves together and snatched a space of dry - if windy and cold! - weather to do this job.

I'd chosen my window size on the basis of (a) being big enough to see through but (b) not big enough for a whippet or fox terrier to escape through. The result was 700mm by 300mm, which also happened to be a nice size on the Seitz window size chart from O'Briens. They had a good clear website and when I phoned yesterday they were very helpful and quick - and I can't say anything bad about the delivery time, either! Overnight delivery from Salisbury to Aberdeen is pretty impressive.

The idea of taking a jigsaw and hacking holes in perfectly good walls had me biting my nails somewhat but having worked our way through the instructions there was only one way to find out how thick the walls of the van actually were - I had my fingers crossed for 26mm so the windows would fit exactly, but having drilled a hole in the wall big enough to fit the tape measure through, our luck was out. 20mm exactly - so we trotted off to B&Q (yet again) to try and find some suitable wood to fit the space.

We returned with 6mm pine stripwood, which was perfect, and having measured and cut it to fit the interior frames of the windows, we marked out the spaces on the walls for the two windows to fit.

Having marked out the spaces, however, we had to bite the bullet and start cutting the van up. Holes drilled in the corners was a start, then the jigsaw blade was inserted and Gareth vanished as the noise began. By the time I'd cut half the first hole, my head was ringing and I went in search of more ear protection - the reverberation chamber effect of the van's interior having kicked in nicely again.

With cotton wool stuffed in both ears, ear muffs and a woollen hat pulled well down, the job was completed without further trouble and we offered up the first window to its hole. Amazingly it fitted straight in and we had it screwed into place, weathertight and looking smart within minutes!

Hole number 2 was duly hacked into the van, window number two inserted and.... it didn't fit. Somehow the hole was smaller at one end than the other. Quite how, given every line had been measured by me several times, all angles drawn with a set square and then double-checked by Gareth, is a mystery but some more work with the jigsaw fixed the problem and we got the second window in and secure at length.

bench seat

Another fine day for working outside - not having anywhere undercover with room to work makes for a weather-dependent schedule. All the same, the sun was shining today so the tools came out, the new assistant was distracted into digging in the garden instead of howling at the gate and I pushed on with the woodwork.

Charlie the Fox Terrier - not an ideal workmate....

Today's plan was to get the framework in place for the bench that'll run the rest of the way along the driver's side of the van. A lot of metal brackets on the corners substituted for my inability to do fancy joinery but the result is solid and square. With a sheet of plywood on top, it's strong enough to be slept on or indeed stood on without a creak or a wobble, and that's what I was looking for! The next stage will be to fix hinges to the plywood and put in some simple interior dividers to help keep the contents of the locker in place while I'm driving - I envisage this as being the main storage for heavy and bulky items that don't need to be hauled in and out too often, like a selection of tinned food/soup for emergency use, the tents, spare bedding, camping gear, etc. Charlie's crate fits under the front end next to the framework, next to the whippet crate, although he prefers by far to sleep in my sleeping bag with me.



Back in the groove!

After a long pause for a holiday down south with family, I'm back! And the work of converting the Kite Wagon has really got underway, not without some tension. After furious work with the tape measure and graph paper, the plan for the interior has been completed and the first section of the woodwork has been done. It's a shaky start since I can't use a spirit level to check my verticals - the van's parked on a slope!! Not all the interior angles are right angles, to add to the fun, so the initial piece - the corner-table over the whippet's crate - had to be put together somewhat by eye, which would probably be a lot easier for a more experienced carpenter but it's there, it's solid and it's done! From here on I'm hoping the speed and quality of my work will improve....

Train Trekking

Having left the Kite Wagon parked in the old station yard in Maud, safely out of the way of everyone (I hope) for a few days, this morning was a dash into Aberdeen to catch the train south. We changed at York and again in Manchester Piccadilly – the old station hasn’t changed a bit since I last saw it quarter of a century ago! – and then on down to Hereford. It’s interesting watching the scenery change, the seasons shooting forward as we go south, and it’s also encouraging to see how many wild bunnies are around the countryside – everywhere. When I get my whippet pup later this year and hopefully a smooth-haired terrier as well, we will at least have lots of furry food to aim for!

At Rest and Tidying Up

Having parked up in Maud and got a good night’s sleep under our belt, today was about emptying the Kite Wagon out completely, storing everything away as tidily as possible and getting ready for the long train trek tomorrow, back south to collect the car. All washing was done and sheepskins/cowhide aired in the sun before being folded up in the dry for a while – after I get back with the car I have to see about fixing the few holes we’ve discovered in the back of the wagon, then arranging to get her insulated, windows fitted and lining installed. After that, I’ll set to work building the furniture and getting her properly set up as a home-on-wheels. All in all, a quiet day for recuperating and planning.