THE AMOUNT OF VINTAGE BENTLEY STUFF HAS BEEN STEADILY DECREASING EVERY YEAR AND THIS SPRING JUMBLE WAS EXCEPTIONAL AS I DIDN`T FIND ANY VINTAGE BENTLEY PARTS AT ALL.
MY NORMAL PROGRAM, AS I GET A STALLHOLDER TICKET, IS TO DRIVE DOWN ON THE FRIDAY MORNING AND GET ON THE FIELD AROUND 13.00. THEN WEAR OUT MY POOR LEG JOINTS BY WANDERING AROUND THE FIELD LOOKING FOR TREASURE, SPEND THE NIGHT AT A HOTEL AND CONTINUE THE SEARCH ON THE SATURDAY AND LEAVE AT AROUND 17.00. I DON`T STAY FOR THE SUNDAY AS IT`S TOO TIRING FOR ME NOWADAYS.
THIS YEAR I TRAVELED FROM THE FRENCH HOUSE AND ARRIVED AT THE NEW FOREST ON THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND CHECKED IN AT THE POSH HOTEL THAT I`D BOOKED VIA THE INTERNET FOR A SMALL FRACTION OF THE PUBLISHED RATE.
AFTER A MEDIOCRE MEAL AT A CHINESE RESTAURANT IN LYMINGTON I HAD A RESTFUL SLEEP AND AFTER BREAKFAST ARRIVED ON THE FIELD AT AROUND 11.00. IT WAS A BALMY DAY AND MY NOSE SUFFERED THE USUAL CONSEQUENCE AND TURNED A BRIGHT RED. THERE WERE THE USUAL STALL HOLDERS AND WE EXCHANGED THE USUAL UPBEAT BANTER THAT IS THE NORM FOR FRIDAY MORNING.
THERE ARE ALWAYS INTERESTING THINGS TO LOOK AT AND BUY IF THE PRICE IS RIGHT. I WAS LUCKY TO HAVE ANY MONEY AT ALL, AS I HAD LOST MY BANK DEBIT CARD ON THE DAY BEFORE AND HAD TO GO TO THE BRANCH IN LYMINGTON TO DRAW CASH, THEY WERE VERY HELPFUL AND I WAS ABLE TO COME AWAY WITH ABOUT HALF OF MY NORMAL SPENDING BUDGET JINGLING IN MY POCKET.
THERE`S A TOOL STALL THAT SELLS TOP QUALITY BRITISH SECOND HAND TOOLS AT A REASONABLE PRICE, I SPENT A FEW BOB THERE AND AROUND LUNCHTIME, AFTER A FRUITLESS BENTLEY PART SEARCH, I STOPPED AT A STALL THAT WAS DISPLAYING MANY NICE HEADLAMPS.
I LOVE ZEISS LAMPS AND BUY IF I CAN AFFORD THEM. I`VE OWNED SEVERAL PAIRS OVER THE YEARS BUT THE FINANCIAL PRESSURE OF THE BITSA BUILD HAS FORCED ME TO SELL THEM IN ORDER TO CONTINUE THE WORK. THERE ARE A COUPLE OF DILAPIDATED PAIRS LEFT WHICH NEED WORK THAT I WILL RE FURBISH WHEN THE TIME COMES.
SO AT THIS STALL I ASKED THE STALL HOLDER IF HE HAD ANY ZEISS LAMPS OR PARTS AND HE REPLIED IN THE AFFIRMATIVE, THERE WERE A PAIR OF THE LARGER SIZE HEADLAMPS BUT THESE WERE PROMISED TO ANOTHER.
LATER IN THE AFTERNOON AT THE SAME STALL I SAW WHAT SEEMED TO BE A PAIR OF ZEISS LAMPS LYING ON THE GRASS. ON CLOSER INSPECTION THEY WERE BUT NOT THE EARLIER VERSION WITH THE HINGED RIM BUT THE LATER TYPE WITH THE CONTRACTING BAND THAT GRIPS THE GLASS AND REFLECTOR ASSEMBLY ONTO THE LAMP BODY. THEIR CONDITION WASN`T WONDERFUL AND THE GLASS LENSES WERE MISSING BUT WITH A LITTLE WORK AND NEW GLASS LENSES THEY COULD BE MADE PRESENTABLE.
THIS LATER TYPE OF ZEISS LAMP HAD A MOULDED GLASS LENS NOT THE ENGRAVED TYPE OF THE EARLIER LAMPS WHICH CAN BE EASILY OBTAINED.
THE STALL HOLDER TOLD ME THAT THE INTENDED BUYER HAD COME ALONG AND DID NOT HAVE THE MONEY TO BUY THEM. WE DID A DEAL AND NOW THEY ARE MINE, SEE THE ABOVE PHOTOS.
THE NEXT MORNING I WAS IN THE FIELD AGAIN AT AROUND 10.00. IT`S AMAZING THAT THERE IS SO MUCH MORE TO SEE ON SATURDAY THAN ON FRIDAY THE STALL HOLDERS MUST ARRIVE VERY EARLY IN THE MORNING. AFTER A GOOD WANDER AROUND AND PURCHASING MINOR ITEMS SUCH AS MORE TOOLS AND INSTRUMENTS AND RELAXING WITH A CUP OF TEA, IT WAS EARLY AFTERNOON AND AS I PASSED THE STALL WHERE I HAD BOUGHT THE ZEISS LAMPS I ASKED THE STALL HOLDER WHERE THE OTHER PAIR OF ZEISS LAMPS WERE. BEAULIEU IS SO LARGE THAT IT IS IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER THE NUMBER OF ANY STALL THAT ONE WISHES TO RETURN TO eg TO COLLECT A HEAVY ITEM THAT HAS BEEN LEFT. I WISH I WAS CLEVER AND DID THIS BUT USUALLY END UP WANDERING AROUND SEARCHING AIMLESSLY FOR THAT STALL.
THE STALL HOLDER COULD NOT REMEMBER EXACTLY WHERE IN "B" FIELD THE STALL WITH THE ZEISS LAMPS WAS BUT KINDLY TOOK ME THERE AND AFTER A BIT OF SEARCHING WE ARRIVED AT THE STALL.
THE LAMPS IN QUESTION WERE THE EARLY TYPE WITH THE GLASS SHROUDS AS DIMMERS AND THE HINGED RIMS BUT WERE THE SMALLER DIAMETER ONES. THE PRICE WAS A HEADY £2500. THIS IS NOT SO UNREASONABLE BUT THE CONDITION DID NOT WARRANT THIS PRICE AND SO I DECLINED, NOT EVEN MAKING AN OFFER. AS I WAS WALKING AWAY THE STALL OWNER SAID THAT HE HAD ANOTHER ZEISS LAMP FOR SALE.
THIS TURNED OUT TO BE THE HAND OPERATED SPOT LAMP SHOWN IN THE PHOTOS ABOVE. THIS IS AN INCREDIBLY RARE LAMP AND I HAVE ONLY SEEN ONE OTHER WHICH WAS IN MUCH WORSE CONDITION. THIS SPOT LAMP HAD THE ORIGINAL GLASS LENS AND A WONDERFUL ARTICULATING ARM THAT IS ATTACHED TO THE WINDSCREEN FRAME OR THE BODY WORK.
I ASKED THE PRICE BUT IT WAS MORE MONEY THAN I HAD LEFT, SO I SEARCHED ALL MY POCKETS AND COUNTED OUT WHAT I HAD AND AFTER SOME NEGOTIATION THE DEAL WAS DONE, THE LAMP WAS MINE.
IT WILL LOOK GREAT HANGING FROM THE PILLAR OF MY NEW BITSA`S WINDSCREEN.
MY CASH WAS GONE! IT WAS 14.00 SO I DEPARTED BEAULIEU AND WENT TO TAUNTON TO DELIVER THE BITSA`S BONNET TO THE PANEL BEATER TO HAVE IT COPIED TO THE CORRECT LENGTH FOR THE 4 LITRE ENGINE INSTALLATION.