It feels like its taken an age, but I'm glad I can finally say that the rickshaw restoration is finally underway!
We bought the 1970's rickshaw back in 2013 with the intention of restoring it and turning it into quirky and alternative wedding transport for Cornwall weddings. With one thing or another, the poor rickshaw got overlooked! For almost a year it sat in the corner of the garage in pieces waiting to be reassembled and done up.
Over the last few weeks, the rickshaw frame has been rubbed down and resprayed white. Whilst Rich gets on with re-upholstering the seats, I have been painting underneath the frame in black (to give it a little protection from the elements). One thing we have noticed and chuckled at, is just how original it is! Back in the 1970's this little rickshaw was hand made in Indonesia. All the mud guards and parts of the frame have been fabricated and beaten by hand! Its hard to imagine where this little rickshaw has been and all the passengers it has ferried.
Rich has now put the frame and bike back together, so next stop is to get the somewhat rusty wheels re-spoked! The wheels are the original 1970's wheels and are not easily replaced, so you can imagine our panic when we thought we had lost one during the re-build! Don't worry, we've found it now!
One thing we did notice as we began to put the frame back together, was just how long it actually is! Having been in pieces over the year, we had forgotten its size. Rich and I looked at each other and in the in the famous words immortalised by Jaws we agreed "we're gonna need a bigger boat", or in our case a bigger van to deliver the rickshaw. With all the best will in the world, I cant see Rich wearing a crash helmet and goggles and cycling up and down the A30 to delivery i!t
Over the next two weeks the plan is to finish off the painting, rebuilding the side panels and getting the new upholstery completed. Watch this space for for rickshaw updates.
Here are a couple of pictures of the rickshaw, before it was bolted back together.
We bought the 1970's rickshaw back in 2013 with the intention of restoring it and turning it into quirky and alternative wedding transport for Cornwall weddings. With one thing or another, the poor rickshaw got overlooked! For almost a year it sat in the corner of the garage in pieces waiting to be reassembled and done up.
Over the last few weeks, the rickshaw frame has been rubbed down and resprayed white. Whilst Rich gets on with re-upholstering the seats, I have been painting underneath the frame in black (to give it a little protection from the elements). One thing we have noticed and chuckled at, is just how original it is! Back in the 1970's this little rickshaw was hand made in Indonesia. All the mud guards and parts of the frame have been fabricated and beaten by hand! Its hard to imagine where this little rickshaw has been and all the passengers it has ferried.
Rich has now put the frame and bike back together, so next stop is to get the somewhat rusty wheels re-spoked! The wheels are the original 1970's wheels and are not easily replaced, so you can imagine our panic when we thought we had lost one during the re-build! Don't worry, we've found it now!
One thing we did notice as we began to put the frame back together, was just how long it actually is! Having been in pieces over the year, we had forgotten its size. Rich and I looked at each other and in the in the famous words immortalised by Jaws we agreed "we're gonna need a bigger boat", or in our case a bigger van to deliver the rickshaw. With all the best will in the world, I cant see Rich wearing a crash helmet and goggles and cycling up and down the A30 to delivery i!t
Over the next two weeks the plan is to finish off the painting, rebuilding the side panels and getting the new upholstery completed. Watch this space for for rickshaw updates.
Here are a couple of pictures of the rickshaw, before it was bolted back together.
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