DRESSED IN DUCT TAPE
There it was in his workshop . A plywood Don Cadet caravan that Andrew dates from 1958 or 59 . He purchased it for $ 1000 from Andrew Brewer , the service manager at the nearby Jayco dealership .
Andrew Brewer ’ s family had bought this van in 1970 for family holidays and weekend trips . In 1983 , it was parked under some trees on Phillip Island , where it was used as a spare room and for storage of personal items . We even found an old rego label from that time inside one of the drawers !
And there the old Don sat until mid 2021 , when Andrew bought it while his Coronet Princess resto was underway .
The Don ’ s walls are 12mm ply with the roof being 3mm ply . They appear to be mostly in good repair , though they ’ ll need sanding and filling here and there . The offside wall , however , will need to be replaced – one section is held together by duct tape ! The original ply wheel spats have rotted through and broken apart , so Andrew will make new ones identical to what was fitted when the Don Cadet first rolled out of the factory .
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