1960's Portafold Folding Caravan
ALTERNATIVE CARAVAN?

This is our 1960's Portafold fibreglass folding caravan - sold now.
This page is left only for interest

Here are pictures of the van ready for Paul to collect after several hours cleaning following two years standing out on a company car park


We bought ours about 12/13 years ago after someone set fire to our canvas folding camper and we used it very comfortably with gas cooker, 12v lighting and 12v TV - and all waterproof.

                

If you want to see more lots more Portafold pictures, not ours but similar, click on this line

and a very brave guy who did a complete rebuild click here

Its all fibreglass construction, roof and walls, single skinned, so there is no wet canvas to worry about. Mounted on a simple but sturdy steel A frame chassis with rubber suspension (similar to Indispension units) and shock absorbers.
The wall are hinged to open out and the roof clips onto them (see pictures below)

They were made by PLASTICS (Fareham) who proudly commented 'Britain's Oldest Folding Caravan' (!) I can't claim to be an expert on them but I think they started production in the late 50's. I have another brochure which appears to be from the late 60's or early 70's when they were sold as the Ansfold. I believe there is a number stamped on the chassis somewhere which indicates the date of manufacture.

There have been slight changes to the design during production. The early models had only a small circular reflector on the fins and slightly different moulding around the leg braces and the rear step. The later Ansfold had a simplified appearance, lost the distinctive fins on the roof and, I think, had slightly larger windows - starting to lose its quaint appearance. I'm sure there were more changes during production. 

They all run on 10" wheels but note that the hub caps, although they look similar,  are not those from a Mini - they don't fit unless you cut holes in them for the long stub axles - I've seen it done! We were very lucky to find some perfect hub caps at a Steam Rally and the stallholder hadn't a clue what they fitted. We've run ours on both radial and cross-ply tyres. Seemed slightly better on the cross-plies but it always towed very comfortably.

Some claims from the original brochure>
'Erected by one person in one minute' - only if you want a hernia!
'4-5 Berth Caravan' - pardon me?
'Tested at over 80mph' - will vouch for
'Standard colour is Cream, but Pastel Blue and White are available at a small extra charge.' - never seen a Blue one
'When high north winds blow Tents and Caravans over, they simply curl their way around and over the Ansfold.' - seems to be true
'The Portafold can be towed erected, if required.' - I don't think so............ The only time I tried it across a field I managed to snap most of the hinge pins!

The following pictures are taken from the Manufacturer's leaflet -

Don't confuse this with a modern caravan, its much more primitive but offers much better shelter than a tent. We have used it at all times of the year. One real gale force, stormy November night, on the Welsh coast,  I was convinced it would blow over and lay awake planning how to get out of it if it did. Although the side walls bowed with the force of the wind it remained perfectly stable.

Right, what we have really is a four sided fibreglass box with clever spring loaded clips which latch between the roof and end walls. In fact, its three sided since the stable door almost takes up one wall. All around the three walls are moulded storage lockers which also act as the seating area, this leaves a central footwell which we carpeted. Loads of foam type mattresses, covered with the original very good quality material, form the seating and backrests and then at night, they double as the bed mattresses. There is a narrow lip/shelf all around the van at waist height, it acts as a narrow shelf but also strengthens the walls. At the bay window end this widens to form a more usable shelf and at roof height there are ledges which can be used as shelves.

We had a combined cooker/grill which sits on a small wooden cupboard for use, or stows away in the underbed lockers for transport. This is one of the few items we rescued when our canvas camper was set ablaze. The original tiny table is included with about 6 different screw on legs so that you can fit it into different positions.................  if you can work out which legs to use.

All windows are glass and can be swung open in normal caravan fashion. The caravan has four threaded steady legs and a handbrake and jockey wheel.

We have enjoyed many holidays in it and it always attracts interest. Tows like a dream, I've done 80mph with it in tow, on private property, of course ;>) 

 There is some crazing to the fibreglass, especially the roof which flexes as you travel. However, it has always been waterproof. The brakes are drum, cable/rod operated so a very simple mechanism to work on. Frankly,  I never found the brakes very effective, they are of the over-run sort, ie they come on when the caravan starts to run into the back of the car.  We always towed with a Citroen BX so stopping wasn't a problem. 

Some poor inside photos from the original brochure shown below. Its very quaint is probably the best way to describe it and quite cosy once all the fittings are in place, bit stark when its first opened up. Some Portafolds have quite garish, brightly coloured vinyl quilting to the interior walls, this one was finished in a pleasant oatmeal shade. 

One warning, you wouldn't want to site amongst a lot of posh caravans, it would be quite out of place but pitch in a field of tents and you'll have lots of envious admirers! 

I should also point out that there is no running water or heating system, just in case you thought there was such luxury - told you it was primitive. We carried a 2 gallon water can with tap and there is a small stainless sink unit mounted on a wooden cupboard, again rescued from our old camper. Although it fits nicely in the van its a bit too big to stow away and has to be carried in the car. If it gets chilly we just light the stove and it warms very quickly. 

For summer use we had one of those strange Easicool fridge/cooler boxes which runs on a cup of water and uses the evaporative cooling method, but generally the underbed lockers remain cool for food storage. Original equipment was an ugly fibreglass sink/drainer which fitted across the van and later models came with a cooker unit which fitted neatly into the underbed locker.

I've been asked if it is possible for one person to erect it. Although the brochure shows one person I would say it is quite difficult. In fact, the brochure states, 'one person in one minute' - I would make that 2 persons 3-4 minutes and another 10-15 minutes to pull out the cushions and fit the curtains............and put the kettle on. There are no assistors  or struts to help you. Usually I lift the roof, I'm 5'10", while my wife lifts the ends, then I can latch them together. The two side walls are then easy to lift and secure with turn buckles.
Gets real awkward trying to erect it in a strong wind, before its latched down, when the roof tries to blow away.............................

So there you are, great fun, go get one and enjoy!

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