On the road again – new life for old caravans
The allure of a classic caravan can be strong, and many of these gems are being lovingly restored – in fact, Beach Hop even has a prize for the best retro caravan.
In this issue, we showcase three very different caravan restorations—one by a man who owns a company that has been building caravans commercially since the 1950s and is now a household name in caravans and Motorhomes.
The second is a lovingly restored 10-footer that started off a real basket case, and the third, well, friends christened it a turd emoji when they saw the project bought by Marty and Zoe.
Their caravan was destined for their annual pilgrimage to Beach Hop, where thousands gather to show off their super-primped or lovingly restored classic vehicles and caravans.
To purchase a copy of this magazine, head here to our online shop.



The shed season
It’s spring – and Christchurch sheddies emerge from their winter caves.
“Some things are annual events in the Christchurch sheddie scene. At the beginning of November, there was, in its second year, the Rotary Ōtautahi Passport Christchurch Shed Tour, “Behind the Shed door”, with 15 sheds available to be viewed. Then, towards the end of that month, came Syd’s Moped Run, which has been held every year since 1995.”

Forging ahead
Make a forge from an LPG gas bottle.
“I first considered building one of these when I saw the examples that Shane Minnear (Cutting Edge) and Kieran Gleeson (Yambuk Blacksmith) had in their sheds in a past issue of the magazine. I happen to have a few old 9kg LPG bottles lying about that I considered would be fine for the job.
When I came to select one, however, the most likely candidate proved to be full of gas – far too much gas to vent so, having committed to making the forge, I opted for the second-best option and bought a new bottle. At only $65, it wasn’t a huge outlay, although I know that many of you will be shaking your heads at my frivolous wastefulness.”

From Rust to Rrroarrr – AJS motorbike restoration part 2
Metal plating – the secrets of successful nickel plating.
“In part one of this series, I described how I started rebuilding, as cheaply as possible, an old bitser AJS 500 motorbike and talked about the start of my nickel-plating tasks. I have decided on a nickel-plating finish instead of chromium for my AJS.
Before I could finish assembling the motor, I somehow had to fix the appearance of the two rusty pushrod cover tubes that ran up the side of the barrel between the head and crankcase. One had some minor dings. The article showed what I managed.
To paint or plate? I would prefer that they were chromium plated, but that’s expensive and DIY was out of the question since the chemicals are not available to sheddies.”

Arduino basics 102
Outputs – what goes in must come out.
“In the previous issue, we covered inputs – and, as the saying goes, ‘What goes in must come out,’ so, regardless of what you use the Arduino to detect, you’ll eventually need to do something with the information.
‘Input’ and ‘output’ refer to the direction of data with regard to the microcontroller. If you’re outputting, it means the micro is sending information to something else, be it an LED, relay, display, SD card or another microcontroller.”

The MOTAT chronicles 3
The MOTAT military transport group – a group of people dedicated to preserving parts of New Zealand’s military history.
“On 25 April every year, veterans and uniformed services parade through the Auckland Domain to the memorial in front of the museum, followed by a procession of beautifully kept military vehicles, mainly WWII vintage.
The meticulously maintained vehicles are the work, indeed the raison d’être, of the Auckland Military Vehicle Club and the military sub-group of MOTAT’s road transport section. Fisher & Paykel engineer Mike Beck is deeply involved in both outfits and is well into his second decade of volunteering at MOTAT.
“I had an interest in vintage trucks and it has morphed into various things. I also run the military vehicle club.”

Event profile – The Ayrburn Classic
A festival of motoring 21–23 March 2025
“New Zealand’s newest motoring event, the Ayrburn Classic, continues the story of RM Paterson and his penchant for motoring and love of a good time shared with good friends.
This festival of motoring is set to become a destination event for motoring enthusiasts across New Zealand and beyond, showcasing stunning classic and modern luxury vehicles amid breathtaking scenery and a lively atmosphere.
The Ayrburn Classic is an annual event offering an experience unique on New Zealand’s event calendar, with restaurants, bars, food trucks, wine tastings, live entertainment, activations, exhibits, and more to complement the motoring spectacle. Celebrating the heritage, innovation, and prestige of the global automotive industry, it draws inspiration from iconic international gatherings across the USA, UK, and Europe.”

Setting up a workshop
Tools: wants versus needs
Do you tend to sweep through a hardware store as if it’s your own personal treasure chest? Nigel Young brings the voice of common sense to decisions about tool purchases.
“One of the first questions we’ll always ask ourselves is, “What tools do I need?” The answer is usually, “As many as possible, as I’m a tool junkie.”
However, in these days of tight discretionary dollars and cost of living increases, that isn’t the correct answer for most of us.
So, how do we answer our question? This article is about wants versus needs and some form of structure for balancing them. For myself, I’ve been buying tools for a number of years now, and some are up for replacement.
I bought what I could afford at the time, and that hasn’t really changed, but my understanding of both my requirements and the capabilities of the tools certainly has.”

The Shed Shrink – human instinct
In a world in which we are constantly inundated with information, The Shed Shrink urges us to practise listening to our gut feeling when deciding what is true and what is not
“I’d like to talk about intuition – or, in layman’s terms, gut feeling.
I recently asked myself whether intuition is still relevant for me and whether it is as reliable in our daily lives today as it may have been in the past.
I came to the conclusion that, yes, it most definitely is relevant – especially when we need to decide whether what’s in front of us is real or fake. Considering that people in the Western world have become consumers of mass information and gluttons for instant knowledge, how helpful it would be if we had an innate ability to understand the rights and wrongs of something instinctively, without the need for conscious reasoning. So, ideally, having the skills and abilities to decide whether information is credible is our responsibility.
This is a unique opportunity to tune into our human intuition.”

Restoring antique bicycles – a wheeled history
More than just the tale of a bike collection, this is the history of a form of transport that was once very common, then became less popular, and is now undergoing a renaissance.
“The house in which Doug Watkinson grew up was across the road from Christchurch’s Avon River. Doug and his brother had a canoe and were on the water most days.
Neighbouring kids also had canoes, so the river was the centre of the social scene. At that time, Christchurch – flat, with generally fine weather – was a city of bicycles, like present-day Copenhagen or 1990s Hanoi (on a particularly quiet day), with virtually every kid riding to school on a bike and most blue-collar workers biking to work.
The Watkinson brothers would frequently come across a bicycle that had been dumped in the Avon and would usually retrieve it and take it home. Getting these near-terminal machines into running order was, for a while, a major pastime, later superseded by an intense interest in motorcycles. Over two or three years, dozens of the bikes were bought and sold – almost always at a profit.”

Industry insider – a resurgence in popularity for a timeless pastime
Play your heart out on a multitude of pinball machines at Ye Olde Pinball Shoppe – or take a machine home with you; the choice is yours.
“Nestled in the heart of Wellington, New Zealand, Ye Olde Pinball Shoppe is more than just a pinball arcade and bar – it’s a community hub for pinball enthusiasts and casual players alike.
Founded by Hamish Guthrey, a passionate pinball aficionado and former home entertainment systems expert, YOPS seamlessly blends the charm of retro pinball with modern technology, creating a unique and immersive experience.
Since opening its doors over three years ago, YOPS has grown into a vibrant gathering place, hosting regular tournaments and events that transform pinball into a competitive and spectator-friendly sport.”

Off the grid – teach your children well
This might be the most important skill of all.
“Recently, I’ve spent some time passing skills on to young folk. On reflection, I’ve been doing that for years, but the need has never seemed more pressing, more urgent, and perhaps that makes me more aware of the process.
It is an interesting tightrope walk; not running a guilt trip (nothing is their fault) but gifting knowledge and abilities we think they might need in a troubled future.”

Know your stuff – The Shed quiz No. 1
You’ve got a shed, and you know how to use it – but do you really understand how everything works? Test your sheddie knowledge here with our new workshop mental skills challenge.

Metal fabricating – the iron man
“If you know what your passion is, then it’s simple”, declares Neville Gadd – and that passion has fuelled his life.
“In the late 1980s, a young drag racer by the name of Neville (Nev) Gadd was blitzing the country’s drag strips in world-beating times.
Nev was piloting an Altered dragster called ‘Plum Crazy’ and, in a 1990 New Zealand Hot Rod article about the car, he was described variously as an “iron man” with “nerves of steel” and as being “a modern-day Superman”.
Three decades on, in his self-built workshop, Nev, in a flannel shirt and wool jumper, looks more like a mild-mannered, rural Clark Kent than a drag-racing superhero. Here, he spends most of his days imparting his fabrication and problem-solving skills to the builds and restorations of other people’s rods and customs. While the ’shop is undoubtedly Nev’s happy place, one senses that his need for speed is quietly percolating just below the skin. After all, he lives only two streets from Masterton’s Motorplex drag strip.”

Back o’ The Shed – New Beginnings
The lunatics may appear to have taken over the asylum, but Jude has an exciting new place to escape to and shut the world out.
“Another new year – they do seem to come around more quickly these days.
I am looking forward to it because, in spite of everything, I am a perpetual optimist, and I have recently finished building my shed. At least, I will have by the time this magazine is printed. Now comes the fun bit: fitting it out.
There are benches to build, cupboards and storage to be made or found. That’s always the most vexing part: the decisions on what to make and where to put it. But at least I am building something in the shed rather than building the shed.”
