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Strathclyde Fire Brigade Preservation Group |
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1960 Austin Gipsy
L4P THS 825
This appliance was ordered by the Western Area Fire Brigade and delivered in 1960. It was stationed at Lochranza on the Isle of Arran in the garage of the Lochranza Hotel.
The vehicle was then given to SDO. Douglas Leitch, who intended it for display in a proposed Fire Brigade Museum which sadly never materialised.
THS 825 lay for a while in B8 Calton and was then moved to StrathclydeFire Brigade Headquarters at Hamilton and then on to Orchard House.
The Preservation Group were gifted the appliance in 1999. Preservation Group members David McAusland, Jimmy Miller and Martin Savage have done most of the restoration work on the vehicle.
The appliance was re-sprayed by Kerr & Smith at their Cumnock workshop in early 2006 and is now undergoing the final stages of restoration at Barrhead Fire Station.
The Gipsy is due to make its re-appearance in the summer of 2006.
The Austin Gipsy was intended as a replacement for the Austin Champ and as a rival to the Land Rover. It was powered by a 2199cc. four cylinder petrol engine developing 62bhp. This engine was also fitted in the Austin A70.
The most revolutionary feature of the Gipsy was the use of Flexitor rubber trailing arm independent suspension units.
These were produced by a subsidiary of the Avon Group. The system comprised of a precompressed rubber cylinder bonded to a tubular steel housing to which linked an axial shaft and trailing arm to the wheel.
A four speed gearbox with synchromesh on 2nd, 3rd and 4th was fitted and a power take off facility drove the front mounted Godiva Fire Pump.
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