Saturday, 29 July 2017

Just Kampers Open day 2017 (part 1 of 3)

My favourite parts supplier for my microbus is 'Just Kampers' based in Odiham in Hampshire over here in the U.K. They are my favourite supplier because the prices are very competitive, the customer service is extremely good with very knowledgeable staff and and any parts ordered are normally in stock and always sent out for next day delivery (and normally with a free small packet of sweets!). The website is also a bonus as it's so easy to navigate and find what you want. Every year Just Kampers hold an open day at the distribution centre with weekend camping available. The open day, which this year was held over the weekend of 17th - 18th June, and attracts hundreds of customers / visitors and most arrive in their prized Volkswagen, of all descriptions, there also traders and caterers on site which all help to make this open day, a great day.! I have been to this event several times in the past, although I have never camped over, so once again I decided to have a drive down into deepest Hampshire to the village of Odiham, which is about 60 miles from my hometown of Aylesbury. On the Saturday morning the sun was shining, and the forecast was good so I put some cool tunes on the stereo and Fiona (my 1969 microbus) and I set off for the 60 mile drive down to Odiham. Just Kampers do not only sell parts and accessories for campers and buses but also Beetle parts, and no end of water cooled parts and accessories, camping gear and even motor insurance. You can check out the the very easy to use Just Kampers website here: http://www.justkampers.com/
To see all my other blog entries, go to ‘My Blog Archive’ to the left of this page. Simply click on an arrow for a particular year, then click on an arrow for a particular month, this will then give you a drop down menu for all the blog entries for that month.


My 1969 VW Microbus parked up in the day
visitor car ark at Just Kampers. I arrived a little
later than expected due to the slip road on the
M25 being closed and having to take a detour.
I arrived around 10.00am and the sun was shining
and it was already hot. The forecast was for the
temperature to be in the high 20's / low 30's and
it felt close to that already!

It's not often I post photo's of my bus on my blog
so in a moment of self indulgence here is a better
close up picture of my bus.

I parked up next to this lovely 1970 all white bug.
This car was so nice and looked really straight
and solid. I did like the chrome smoothie wheels
with tyres that filled the arches.

You can see just how clean this car is from this
photo. The rear screen blind was a neat accessory
that suited the overall look of this lovely old bug.

I was trying to be artistic by taking a photo of my
bus in the chrome hubcap of the white beetle, I
think it sort of worked...

Another beetle is the day visitor car park was this
cool looking 1971 blue stock looking bug. I do
like to see stock looking VW's and this one was
no exception. 

OK those aftermarket wheels aren't stock but it
still looked good. The roof rack and the Empi
branded rear mud flaps were both neat
aftermarket accessories.

Another stock looking vehicle was this gorgeous
1971 white over blue late bay. This was another
very clean example that looked to be riding at
the stock height.

The owner (who's name I have forgotten) was
telling me all about the plans she has for her bus,
but as we all know, it takes time but hopefully her
plans will become reality.

This white over green 1972 bus looks to have
been slightly lowered. This was another very
clean and straight vehicle that looked good with
the chequered spare wheel cover and the clear
indicator lenses.

This really was a lovely straight bus that was
almost like new. I did like the VW branded mud
flaps that must stop all the muck and dirt from
rusting away the battery trays.

This 1971 crossover bay caught my eye with it's
grey primer paint job. I think the liking of primered

vehicles goes back to my hot rod days when a lot
of hot rods were just primered and not painted.

Okay, it wasn't the prettiest bus at the open day,
but it was a nice honest bus that looked cool. I
did like the Fuchs style wheels that suited the bus.

Oh go on then, one last look at my 1969 VW
microbus before I head into the grounds of Just
Kampers.

Heading towards the show I got distracted by this
lovely 1970 all white bug. This stock looking bug
really was clean and tidy. 

Another clean and tidy vehicle was this 1974
white over baby blue late bay, named Jasper.
This bus was immaculate and that reflection in
 the perfectly straight body panels was amazing.

You can see just how clean and straight this bus
was from this photo. The day visitor car park was
more like an unofficial show and shine display!

This stock height 1970 white over blue bus was
a good honest bus. I'm not sure what type of
conversion this was but it looked good with its
pop top. 

Riding at stock height you will need a step, and
this bus had a very cool step. I'm not sure if this
is original to the bus but it certainly looked the
part.

This really was a nice honest looking bus. The
original steel wheels suited the bus and suit the
overall look of this old stocker.

This gorgeous 1971 Karmann beetle looked
amazing. This original Karmann had been restored
to a very high standard. The gloss black body
panels were all like new and the attention to
detail was amazing.

It's only an original Karmann if it has the Karmann
badge. the Karmann beetles were produced by
Karmann from 1949 - 1980.

These lovely Porsche rims looked so nice on the
old karmann and added just enough (extra) bling.

The Karmann cabriolet is such a pretty car, and
when they are this clean they are simply gorgeous.

I am getting very fond of the T25 and this all white
converted T25 panel van looked great. T25's
look best (in my humble opinion) left at stock
height as this one appears to be. I did like the
small roof rack over the cab which must come
in very handy.

This 1984 converted camper ticked all the right
boxes for me. I could easily have one of these,
especially if it was this clean and tidy. 

Okay, this is the last photo of my bus parked up
at the Just Kampers open day in the glorious hot
sunshine.

I finally made it out the the show and shine, sorry
I mean day visitor car park and as I walked into
the JK headquarters, this is the sight in front of
me. The massive field was crammed full of both
classic air cooled and water cooled VW's who
had camped out the night before. There were
numerous traders and food vendors also on site.

As I entered the show I walked past the 'For sale'
area, so I just had to have a look. This lovely
1963 RHD beetle was an Australian import,
that had never been welded and still had the
original paint!

It is a small window body shell that still has the
original interior and headlining. This old bug has
been converted to 12V and runs a 1776cc Remtec
type one engine that has just been run in.

This stunning 1970 Westfalia campmobile was
gorgeous. The bright Sierra Yellow paint had
been recently applied and looked amazing. This
bus is quite rare as it has early front arches and
'uber' rare rear arches. 

This old Westy has a strong 1600cc single port
motor with late servo assisted brakes. It has the
complete Westfalia interior and it has never been
welded. All this plus so much more all the price of
£18,950 ($24,806 approx)

This lovely 1972 Dormobile was another vehicle
for sale. The side elevating roof and canvas have
been refurbished and replaced respectively. The
paintwork has recently been applied and looked
great.

This bus has many new parts including: window
seals, brake hoses,shoes, lights and the head-
lining to name a few. The bus has a 1600cc
engine and was for sale for £11,950 ($15,600
approx)

This super low all black Volksrod caught my eye
as it was so different. This fenderless bug really
looked good without it's roof and with that chopped
down windscreen.

I did like the clean sleek look of this Volksrod,
the headlights mounted down low added to the
sleek look.

The smoothed out rear end continued the sleek
look. You can see just how smooth and straight
the body is from this photo. 

Just a random photo looking into a small part
of the camping area. The amount of people that
camped out was immense and something I will
have to think about doing next year.

The majority (if not all of them) of JK staff do not
just work at the VW parts supplier, but they are
also owners of some lovely Volkswagens. Here
is one of the 'staff cars'. 

Just to prove this gorgeous split oval bug does
belong to a JK staff member.

This really is a lovely stock looking car. The owner
won't have any trouble getting parts for their ride.
all they have to do is walk into the JK warehouse!

A lovely period accessory was this glass wind
deflector ( I assume?) I haven't seen many of
these on my travels so I also assume these
are quite rare?


So that was the first of three reviews about the
Just Kampers Open Day for 2017. Next week
will be part two where you will be able to see
plenty more classic air cooled Volkswagens
including a 1956 oval window beetle that has
just competed in the famous Millie Miglia, a
race in Italy covering 1000+ miles in 4 days.
So be sure to come back next Saturday to read
all about how the old oval got on.


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