Just Kampers Open day 2017 (part 3 of 3)

Welcome to the (slightly shorter than normal) third and final instalment all about the Just Kampers Open Day. 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. 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/  The review continues as I wander around the show.
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.

Another random photo looking across the back
of an early bug towards the campsite. The amount
of people, and vehicles that camped over for the
weekend was incredible and something I shall
definitely look at doing next year.

A better look at the early bug that I was looking
across in the above photo. This original looking
beetle, although it had a few knocks really did
look solid. 

The baby blue body looked as though it was the
original paint and holding up well. The luggage
rack was cool as were all the period accessories.

Again looking into another part of the camping
area, this time looking across the front of a very
clean lilac and white late bay.

The 1974 lilac and white bay did look so clean
and tidy with it's unusual colour combination.

This 1978 bay was cool with all it's accessories.
The steel mesh sun visor, clear front indicator
lenses, two bow roof rack and roof ladder all
helped to make this bus stand out.

This really was a lovely clean bus. The tube rear
bumper helped this bus to be different from all
the other bays at the show.

This 1969 light blue bug was gorgeous. The pastel
blue colour suited this old bug and made the 
whole car look so crisp and clean. The BRM (I
think) wheels also suited the overall look.

You can see just how clean this old '69 was from
this photo. The car looks to be pretty much stock
and that helped to make it stand out.

This creamy coloured '72 bay looked good with
it's (possibly home made) bull bar / wheel carrier.
Again this bus looked pretty much stock, I did like
the opening 1/4 light windows on the rear side
glass, which would give good ventilation when
sleeping inside. 

This old '72 really did look a good honest bus,
with plenty of character. 

I bet the first thing you noticed about this 1971
white over sky blue bay was those amazing
electric blue tinted windows, as that's the first
thing I noticed whilst walking around the show.

Without the reflection of the clouds you can see
the true colour of the windows. This really was a
lovely clean bay that may have been a Devon
conversion..(?) that had been slightly lowered.

The two bow roof rack over the cab looked cool
as did the chrome air vent grille.

This gorgeous 1966 21 window samba deluxe
was simply stunning. The perfectly straight body
panels gave off an almost perfect reflection as
you can see. 

This old '66 really was immaculate. The chrome
Porsche wheels looked great and matched the
chrome bumpers perfectly. I'm not sure what size
engine this bus had, but judging by that huge
exhaust sticking out under the bumper I'd have
a guess that it isn't a stock 1600cc motor.

The matching interior was finished to the same
high standard as the outside. This bus is so
clean I'd be afraid to use it!

That lovely old green Coca Cola cool box was
a neat accessory that suited the bus perfectly,
as did the green vinyl covered seats.

There were numerous caterers there that catered
for most tastes, including mine! The white and
peppermint green split screen was selling ice
creams and the Airstream trailer in the background
sold burgers and hot dogs etc.

As I sat in the shade to escape the burning sun-
shine I kept looking at the Airstream trailer, I wasn't
sure why until I noticed the 'Ice Cold Beer' sign
then I knew why!!

This lovely old split screen crew cab had had
the rear bed converted into a pizza oven. I didn't
try one of their pizza's but they did look and smell
very nice.

This ratty looking 1970 baja is not what it seems,it
may look like a 'work in progress' or an unfinished
project but this is in fact  'Betty the Baja Bug'. On
16th July this old baja set off on the 'Mongol Rally
2017'. A 20,000 mile trip (10,000 miles each way)
from the U.K. to Mongolia and back again to help 
raise money for 'Claire House Children's Hospice'
and the 'Cool Earth' Charity.

Colin and Heather Maddox are the couple taking
on this crazy adventure. I had a good chat to
Colin and he was saying that there will be no back
up vehicles, no GPS systems, no breakdown cover
and only a limited number of spares, donated by
Just Kampers. 

By now they should be about 3 weeks into their
epic trip and as I write this review, they have
just left Kazakhstan. They have had their fair share
of breakdowns already, but all have been fixed
with the help and assistance of the locals they
met along the way. You can follow their progress
throughout the trip on Facebook, just search for
'Betty Maddox' (their profile pic is of Betty the Baja)


So that was the 4 part review on the Just Kampers
Open Day 2017. Next year I will be camping over
on the Saturday night as I've heard nothing but
good reviews. Next weeks blog review is all about
the Stonor Park VW Expo Show, or as I think it
should be called from now on, The Wolfsburg Bus
Crew's club meet. (all be become apparent next
week) So be sure to come back next Saturday 
to read all about this show.

Just Kampers Open day 2017 (part 2 of 3)

Welcome to the second of three installments about The Just Kampers Open Day. 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. 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/  The blog continues as I wander around this great weekend show.
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.

Continuing on from last weeks blog review we
have more of the Just Kampers staff cars. This
lovely looking imported 1970 bay looked great
with it's original paint, even if it was starting to
show it's age.

This stock looking bus really did look solid, as
most imported buses are. I just hope the owner
doesn't paint this lovely looking bus because as
the saying goes, its only original once!

This fantastic 1956 oval window is owned by
Just Kampers and has completed the 'Mille
Miglia' a fantastic race over 1000 miles. The bug,
named 'Jack the giant slayer' competed against
classic cars such as Mercedes, Aston Martin,
Ferrari and Bugatti to name but a few.

The 1000+ mile race was over some of the most
fantastic driving roads in Italy. There were 460
classic cars that entered the 4 day race, and this
lovely old bug finished 223rd overall and probably
more impressive, completed the whole race with-
out a single breakdown. The average speed for
the bug throughout the race was 38.5 MPH, they
drove for 46 hours (day and night) and the drivers
 only had 15.5 hours sleep. They refuelled 7 times
 and had an average MPG 31.5. Impressive!

This lovely looking Mango and white 1960 split
screen was another of the 'JK' staff vehicles. This
old bus had been lowered and looked like it had
a narrowed front beam. The paint seems to be
original with signs of patina just starting to appear.

It wasn't just the paint that looked to be original,
the complete interior was also original. 

This cool looking 1970 early bay is yet another
bus belonging to a JK staff member.

This slammed Kleinlieferwagen, or Fridolin as
they are more commonly known is owned by
a staff member at JK and was up for sale. The
Fridolin was produced from 1964 - 1974 and
only around 6000 were made.

This 1968 model was ordered blue from the
factory and has undergone a restoration 2 years
ago, using many NOS panels. It has an 1835cc
engine and has been lowered. This lovely example
was up for grabs for £43,500 ($45,600 approx)

This lovely 1971 variant looked good with its
lowered stance and that dark blue paint. This car
I believe a Mexican car due to the body style (but
I could be wrong!)

You can see just how low the type 3 was and just
how narrow that front beam was! This really was
a lovely car in such a fantastic condition.

The last of the JK staff ride vehicles (that I spotted
anyway) was this gorgeous stock looking beetle
cabriolet. I'm not sure if this was a Karmann or
not but looking this nice it didn't really matter.

This car was immaculate, it's not surprising this
car looks this good when the owner works for a
VW parts and accessories supplier. 

Looking from the back into the classic stock
interior of this early cabriolet.

As well as the many traders at the show, JK had
also arranged a cooking display where the chefs
showed what delights could be cooked with just
a few ingredients on a simple cooking stove as
you have in a campervan.

Just a random photo looking towards a small
part of the camping area. There were hundreds
of vehicles that camped out the previous night.

This lovely looking baby blue Dormobile looked
nice and clean, but what really caught my eye
was the cool classic Rocket caravan that looks
very similar to the U.S. version, the Airstream.

Rocket caravans are based in the U.K and they
are made from highly polished aluminium, although
you can have them painted to match your towing
vehicle... or any other colour!

The mini Rocket, which is what I think this one is,
features all the luxuries you'll need whilst camping
including a shower room, toilet, kitchen area with
fridge, and a diner that converts to a double bed.

Regular readers will know I have a passion for
panel vans and this white over pastel yellow
van pushed all the right buttons for me. This 1969
South African van has been converted to a camper
inside which includes a full width r&r bed.

This lowered van was up for sale with 12 months
M.O.T. and requiring no welding at all. It has an
overhauled engine, new tyres and even the roof
rack is included in the £14,900 asking price.
($20,000 approx)

This stock looking 1972 late bay looked like a
really solid bus. I did like the small touches the
owner has made to out their stamp on the bus,
such as the chrome headlight peaks, clear
indicator lenses and the rain deflectors on the
doors.

I also liked the turret pop top, which is quite
unusual on a late bay, or maybe I just haven't seen
many!?

Looking across the camping field with a lot of
zoom on the camera I spotted this tough looking
1964 turquoise and white split screen.

This gorgeous white over cherry red early split
screen panel van looked lovely in the bright sun-
shine. The highly polished Radar wheels looked
great against the deep red paint and matched
the bumpers perfectly.

I don't really know what it is about panels vans
I like, but looking at the side profile, you have to
agree there is something about an old panel van.

This lowered two tone 1965 split screen looked
like a nice clean bus. It's unusual to have a mix
of wheels but they actually look good.

You can see just how clean and straight this old
'65 really is from this photo. 

This cool RAT looking 1968 bug looked cool
with it's patina paint job, sun visor and roof rack
crammed full of period accessories.

I did like the hot rod style red painted steel wheels
with white wall tyres. Although the paint looked
RAT, the body actually looked quite solid. The
rear screen blind looked neat.

It's the small details that help to make a vehicle
stand out and this old bug had these fun 'Roth
Fink' headed bolts holding the number plate on.

Just another random shot looking into another
part of the camping field. This is one show I will
have to try to camp over at next year as I've heard
so many good reviews about the experience.

This stunning super bright all white Westfalia
looked amazing in the bright early morning sun-
shine. The matching colour coded stock wheels
with white wall tyres complimented the overall
clean look of this lovely bus.

This imported bus really was clean and straight
and looked to be pretty much stock, although it
looks as though it has been slightly lowered.

Another stock looking bus was this lovely two
tone 1971 Danbury (I think) late bay. This really
was a nice looking bus and the shine on the paint
was amazing..although you can't really see it in
my photos.!

You can see just how clean and straight this old
'71 really was from this photo. 

This white over super bright yellow 1971 bay
caught my eye as the bright yellow paint gave
off a glow in the bright sunshine. The highly
polished chromed wheels added to the overall
brightness of this bus.

This really was a lovely clean bus. The white of
the upper half of the body and the white canvas
of the pop top both added to the cool crisp look.

This all white Jurgens Autovilla ( I think) looked
great. These are South African and very similar
to the Karmann Gipsy. I may not be sure what
model it is, but I am sure I want one so bad.

These really are the ultimate in VW camping.
The pleasure of driving a bay window and yet
the comforts of a small caravan. 

To finish off this weeks blog review we have this
cool looking camouflaged T5. I was some
distance away when I spotted this cool looking bus
so with all the zoom available I got this photo. The
bus does blend into the woodland behind it.

So that was the second installment on the JK open
day. Next week will be the third installment where
you can see plenty more cool air cooled bugs and
buses so be sure to come back next Saturday.