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A Tale of Two Vespa Sidecars: An Allstate Cruisaire sidecar and an Aluminum Replica May 1, 1958 - April 15, 2020
May 30, 2019: 61 years after first driving the Vespa and sidecar in Chicago, it passed a test drive on our local Burbank streets. We later toasted with Proseco!
A few weeks later, Shannon became the first sidecar passenger since 1960!
The above photos were taken in Chicago, about 1959. Bob is on the Vespa, with a wooden delivery box on the sidecar chassis. The location is our all concrete "backyard" behind the family apartment at 4606 N. Kedzie Avenue. No early photos of the metal "Allstate Cruisaire" sidecar body with the Vespa! I bought the Vespa from the Manor News Agency on May 1, 1958 specifically to deliver newspapers. I had started delivering 50 copies of the Chicago Daily News about four years earlier on my bike with a single afternoon route on Wilson and Eastwood avenues, but planned to shift to morning deliveries before starting high school. Illinois had recently changed a law to allow scooters under 5 hp to be driven at age 14, so a few weeks after purchase, I add two routes of the Chicago Tribune and Sun-Times in the (very) early morning. The Vespa allowed me to deliver "tons" of newspapers before I moved on to another job. The sidecar was made from steel and had an Allstate identity plate I later learned it's an "Allstate Cruisaire Companion". The Vespa stayed in Chicago until 1996, first in the garage adjoining our backyard on Kedzie Ave. and later at my brother Dan's house on Kilpatrick Ave. Sometimes inside, sometimes outside.
The sidecar body and frame at Dan's house on Kilpatrick Ave, Chicago, in 1991 The Vespa and both sidecars were originally light green, as bought May 1, 1958. After a few years, I painted the Allstate sidecar and the Vespa red, but the seat cushions in the sidecar remained dark green. The Illinois Vespa title shows serial number "VLIM 60834, but this doesn't match any of the factory listed numbers, so a correction was expected. Dan brought the Vespa to Arizona, then to California from Chicago in August, 1996. I met Dan in Lake Havasu AZ at Bruce and Colin Kimmins' shop. Because the Allstate sidecar had been left outside in Chicago for many years, it was very rusty. Bruce decided to build an aluminum replica body rather than work on the rusty steel. Within a few days, Bruce had fabricated half of the sidecar shell. The original sidecar body and frame were left with Bruce.
An aluminum "replica" over the original rusty steel sidecar, August 1996. So what happened to the Allstate sidecar, left with Bruce Kimmins in Lake Havasu in August 1996? Not much! In October 2017 we rented a van, drove to Bruce's shop in Lake Havasu and picked up both sidecars. The aluminum replica was about 80-90% complete.The aluminum replica sidecar, retrieved from Lake Havasu City, AZ
Packard restorer and builder Jerry Miscevich introduced me to Tim Todd, the metal worker who fabricated a steel body for Jerry's 1929 Packard Speedster. Jerry's great car was featured on Jay's Leno's Garage. Tim looked at both sidecars and agreed the Allstate sidecar could be saved. Much later, Tim also completed the aluminum replica.After welding and finish work by Tim Todd, November 2019:
The replica sidecar, after sanding and polishing, April 2020:
The rusty Allstate Cruisaire sidecar, October 2017:
Tim took the original rusty steel sidecar to his shop on December 4, 2017 and within a few days had built patterns to shape the very rusty rear part of the sidecar.
More progress, December 15, 2017!
January 18 update:
January 26 update from Tim: "I did not put a lot of time on the sidecar this week, but it is coming together nicely. I trimmed the new pieces that I made and skip welded them on. Still have to do a solid weld and then hammer them out smooth, then the tail end will be finished, Then on to other smaller parts of the body."
February 1, 2018 - approximately 90% complete!
Great work by Tim! After many years of waiting for the sidecar, the end is in sight! Next stop - rust removal by L&M Stripping! As delivered on February 22 to L & M Stripping with its fender:
After chemical de-rusting by L & M Stripping on February 27; then picked up by Tim Todd:
The fender - after more work by Tim. Ready to be primed on March 29!
The fender after one coat of Rust-Oleum auto primer, April 7
April 28, 2018, from Tim: "Have been working hard on the sidecar. I finished up the welding on the tail end and the floor. The floor is giving me a lot of problems. Can't get it very smooth. Trying to blend the new metal with the old is giving me a huge headache. I leaded over the rust holes on the left side and have it mostly filed out. I still have to add the extra support metal for the body bolt holes and a piece on the floor for the seat. Having a lot of trouble smoothing the body out. The old metal must have hardened with age and acid washing. Next week when I get all the parts attached, I will bring it over to you to look at and you can tell me how far you want me to go to try and smooth it out."
The sidecar was delivered by Tim Todd on May 8, 2018; ready for priming and painting:
In Burbank, May 8, 2018 May 10-12, 2018 - The sidecar interior was treated with "Fast-Etch" to prepare for prime coats. The first light prime coat went on the interior on May 12. Also, the sidecar axle threads were repaired by expert restorer and friend Jerry Miscevich. The new Timken bearings that came with the sidecar wheel (from Dan or Lake Havasu?) are not compatible with the partially threaded 3/4"axle. Bearing cups/races Timken #09195 have been pressed into the wheel, but replacements are needed for cones/bearings #09076 to fit the axle - to be purchased soon! Matching automotive color coat paint will also be acquired - red, of course! May 13, 2018 - Rust-Oleum automotive primer was used for the first prime coat; all of the interior and exterior is done except the bottom:
May 14, 2018 - The bottom of the sidecar was primered; the sidecar was set loosely on the frame. The last photo shows the sidecar frame temporarily offset left, which puts the sidecar about 6" too close to Vespa body. The wheel is not yet on the axle. Not shown: Two Timken #09067 tapered roller bearings were purchased from Applied Industrial Technologies. Old red paint was removed from the axle and a "trial fit" confirmed these bearings fit the wheel and the axle.
May 19, 2018 - The sidecar wheel was left at Master Auto Parts (Sun Valley) to match the Vespa red paint. Rick said the new paint would be put in spray cans and ready for pick up on May 21. May 21, 2018 - The color-matched red paint and the sidecar wheel were picked up from Master Auto Parts. Bearings were greased, set in the wheel and the wheel was installed on the axle. Photos below show another trial fit, with the sidecar located correctly on the frame. Sanding, filling, painting next!
September 17, 2018: Under cover for 3 months when another project needed attention! Only visible progress is on the fender - the sidecar body had much sanding and filling, but progress is not obvious!
November 12, 2018: Work on the sidecar resumed on November 8, after the 1980 Maserati Quattroporte was taken to a car show and I think it is now "sufficiently done". Good friend Jerry Miscevich took the fender home for expert attention. Photos below show it's ready for final red painting.
Jerry advised me that further sidecar sanding and priming should be with with increasingly finer paper grits - 220, 320, 360 and 400. I wet-sanded it with 400 this date and it seems only a few small areas require further body putty filling and priming. Red paint next week? November 22, 2018: The photos below on Thanksgiving Day, show the sidecar and fender after more "prime, sand, prime, etc." stages. Next - the grey primer will be wet-sanded with 400 grit paper, then a dark grey prime coat will follow. Another wet-sanding should have it ready for color!
December 1, 2018 - The sidecar interior and bottom have been painted with Rusto-Oleum "Sunset Red" and the body got two dark primer coats so that sanding would show up high and low spots. Just one more inspection and sanding before spraying the custom-mix red paint! Also, two long-missing original bearing/axle caps were found in the corner of our garage. These will improved the sidecar wheel appearance when de-rusted, painted and installed.
December 8, 2018 - Just after the December 1 report, the sidecar was sprayed with a first coat of the custom-mixed red paint; further work was slightly delayed by two days of heavy rain. A second paint coat this day gave good results, as shown in the photos below. Inspection and any needed touch-ups next!
December 25, 2018 - Work continued after the December 8 status. The custom-mixed paint was used up after the second coat. Two more spray cans and an extra pint were mixed by Master Auto Parts. On December 24, I did light sanding with 500 grit paper to get a smooth surface; coat #3 was applied to both the sidecar and the body. The frame was touched up with Rust-Oleum Sunset Red. The Vespa, the frame and sidecar were "staged" together for the Christmas photos below.
January 1, 2019 - The Vespa got fresh gas (and a 5% Motul oil mix), was started following a "routine", ran well, then went around the neighborhood on two-wheels. The sidecar frame was attached and the rig went down the street on three-wheels then back to the garage. It seems to drive straight and a U-turn was fine. The sidecar was probably last attached to the Vespa in 1960! March 23, 2019 - After drying for several weeks, the last coat of paint showed many flaws, so it was sanded (again!) with 600 grit paper and repainted. Then lightly color-sanded (2000 grit) and partly polished with rubbing compound on March 29. Results are very good - polishing will continue on the rest of the sidecar body.
May 15, 2019 - Painting, polishing, waxing is (finally) complete! The photos below show the trim strips attached - a trial fit with protective plastic film still attached. The sidecar and fender are bolted to the frame, but nuts & bolts not yet fully tightened. The seat is "simulated". The Vespa started easily and a test run is planned on the weekend.
The '50s advertisement below is for the Allstate sidecar, as sold by Sears -
For many details about the Cruisaire sidecar, see this great webpage! Updated: March 30, 2020 |
