Cheers to Bill for restoring gin delivery lorry
Jackton’s Bill Struthers gave the Rotary Club of East Kilbride Kittoch a talk on the restoration of a 1946 Gordon’s Gin delivery lorry.
Bill described, with the aid of photographs, the four-anda-half years it took to bring the vehicle back to life.
It had been in a barn in Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire, inactive for 30 years when Bill, a member of the Albion Club for enthusiasts of Albion vehicles, took delivery of what remained of the lorry.
Bill began to strip the cab doors and, to his surprise, this revealed the original sign writing.
He contacted Diageo – the present day owners of the gin company – to ask permission to put the lorry back in Gordon’s livery.
After getting the go-ahead, the serious restoration work started.
The lorry was stripped back to two bare chassis legs, reinstated to its original length and axles were refitted with new brakes.
Bill renewed the electrics and repaired a rusty fuel tank.
Derek Ferguson, a good friend of Bill’s, gave him great assistance in the repair work.
Using a photograph of the original lorry as reference, Bill moved on to the repair of the cab and body.
The original cab had rotted and a replacement was made to a similar pattern.
Bill was able to trace the registration number of the vehicle from its chassis number and it had been issued in May 1946.
With the help of Albion Club member John Sullivan and George Stewart, who completed the sign writing, Bill brought the lorry back to its former glory.