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Ex breakdown truck. Advertised by Joe Kennell in LRO 8/95, bought by Lindy Duncan as 50th present for her husband Gordon (as featured LRO 12/95). This was a lovely romatic story, but sadly the December 2008 issue of LRO included the following ad:
Then, in April 2011 the following appeared on eBay (from Dursley in Gloucestershire):
Very reluctant sale of my 1957 ex Civil Defence SXF registration Series 1 Land Rover. I have owned this lovely landie “Hamish” for about 3 years and I am only selling to invest in another vehicle. I bought the vehicle from a gent in Aberdeen who had owned him for 13 years and it was given to him as a 50th birthday present by his wife. Hamish started out life being drafted into the Civil Defence. There is a lovely brass plate on the top panel and markings under the bonnet.
The landie is in excellent condition with a good strong chassis and a lovely sweet 2.25 petrol engine. The rear cross member has had some plating in the past but I can’t see much evidence of any more on the chassis. The bulkhead is in fantastic condition with no rust. The canvas although a few years old is in good condition and does not leak in the rare times I have actually driven him in the rain. The engine always starts first turn and does not smoke or rattle and is sweet as they come.
The paintwork is very good and a gorgeous shiny Deep Bronze Green and looks much better in the flesh than in the photos. The three seats are all in good condition with no tears. He has a round Smiths-type heater in good working order. All 5 tyres have plenty of tread. This landie has led a pampered life in my hands and is always garaged. This truck really drives very well and is one of the best old Land Rovers I have ever driven. Even my critical Land Rover mates and my MOT tester say how well he drives.
In my ownership I have replaced or fitted the following: New black and silver pressed aluminium number plates; new pressed aluminium GB plate; re-cored original radiator; new parabolic springs; new temperature gauge; new proper rope set for the canvas; new canvas bonnet seal; new correct Della back lights; recent plugs, leads, dizzy cap, points, condenser; dual tax disk holder with a reproduction 1957 tax disk; new front and rear prop shafts
Hamish will come with: A workshop manual, parts manual and User Manual; 2 ignition keys; a copy of card drawing I found at a Land Rover show of this very vehicle taken some years ago when it had a truck cab on.
Unfortunately I didn't record the result of the auction, or capture any of the pics, but I've now been contacted by Alan Gray to say that 104 is now back home in Aberdeenshire.
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In 06/11 Alan wrote:
After leaving Turriff in 2008, SXF104 stayed in Gloucestershire for 3 years before coming back north to Aberdeenshire in May 2011. The first civilian registration was in Oxford during 1977. It stayed in the Oxford area, with two more keepers, until it came north in 1995, so it appears to have had about 20 years in Government service. What that service was I am not sure, but as I think you noted somewhere, 100 to 114 may possibly have been with the Home Office Fire Service Training Centre, at Morton-in-Marsh. This might be confirmed by the signs of red paint found around SXF104.
At some point 104 was fitted with a 2.25 litre petrol engine, number 151027710. As a new odometer has been fitted it’s a bit of a guess as to the mileage, but based on old MOT certificates, possibly 60,000 miles! The engine has probably done less, but that depends when it was fitted.
Louise Limb has produced one of her magnificent Series 1 drawings of 'Hamish' on a Lake District green lane, based on a photo — it appears on page 15 of Legend 160. The original photo itself was in Legend 159.
[To add (or alter) information on this page, please contact me on sxf@teeafit.co.uk.]