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I've never worried about what other have got & that goes for everything, they've got to pay for it not me. I well remember being on a site in Cornwall when I'd just bought my first van. It was a Sprite 400 & I paid £300 for it. This was about 1978 & the van was old then.  We only used it the once & found it was rotten with damp. I got a coach builder I knew to do a proper job & rebuild the back end of it, then sold it for the same as we paid for it.

That little van caused a good laugh the first and only time we used it. I was standing at the tap with my plastic gallon container, I got talking to this chap by me with his nice Aquarol. He made sure I knew the Wedge shape Princess with the matching new caravan was his & pointed out to me he wasn't going to pitch because they were waiting for their friends to arrive, they'd had a puncture and didn't have a spare wheel. This little merchant told me he had a spare & when I asked him why he hadn't let his friend borrow it, he said he wouldn't do that because he may need it himself. Then, he turned round and said "My word, I suppose that thing over there is habitable inside" cheeky devil was pointing at my caravan. I said, "hang on a minute mate, I'll tell you a few things about that van. It's mine, it's paid for, it is habitable & it has a spare wheel which my friend would have on his van now had he had a puncture"

Sorry to waffle on but we often talk about it & we've always called him Gunner Sugden because he looked just like the little man off It aint half hot mum when we were stood at the tap that day.

BB

I have a brand new van because that is what we wanted, but I think an older van has a lot more personality. Our first van was 15 years old when we bought it and we kept it for 15 years. It had no mod cons, no hot water, no electricity until DH fitted it, tiny beds....but it had character. So many happy memories.

Now we are older we like our creature comforts. I've done what I can to personalise the van with accessories but actually felt more proud of the old Thomson T-Line that we nurtured and upgraded as we could afford. We did without things so that we could have new cushions and upholstery, We used an off cut of carpet and left over material for the curtains. It was our palace.