514 Guy Van Weetabix (1952-53)

Do all Guy Weetabixvan (514) have their rear axles held by a pillar rather than clips as on earlier versions of the van and lorries? I have the two versions with domed wheels and grooved wheels but both have their back axles on pillars. Ron F

Hi Ron. Sorry but I can't help ! I don't own any weetabix Guy van cheers

Hi Ron, The drawing 12181 shows as modification n 5 that the clips were deleted on 5 - 4 - 1949. As all the Guy vans were issued after this date, only the Lyons Guy van had it's rear axle attached by means of two steel clips. As I do not own one, I would welcome a picture of the under side of the Lyons van by email so that it is not cropped. This post should be under 514 Guy van Slumberland. It would be interesting if Dave Kaun would explain how to post pictures on this site, so far I did not find how to do this, all I got is a page with 'Access denied' All the best. Jacques

Hi Ron, I have no Weetabix Van either but the pictures I have seen thus far do show the pillars, no clips over the rear axles, apparently independent of the type of hubs. The axles for domed/ridged Dinky Toys hubs are thinner than the later ones for the grooved Dinky Supertoys hubs. But this was apparently no obstacle for the clips, because Meccano simply made them slightly wider in order to allow for these thicker axles. Apart from that the rear axle clips may not have been sturdy enough in practice, or maintenance of the die, keeping the holes open, was too delicate, which may have been the reason for the change to cast pillars. Not just the Lyons Van had all clips, but also the Slumberland Van. Perhaps slightly later versions of the Slumberland Vans (than mine, as shown) got the rear pillars too already, because their periods of availability overlap. I only have the Slumberland and the Ever Ready. As its happened I was cataloguing them more thoroughly recently, when it struck me that the tin base plates in front have been fixed by the lugs in a slightly different way. This, in its turn, may have to do with the change over to the triangle 'numberplate supports'? Kind regards, Jan

I have all of the Guy Vans, and the only one using clips is the Slumberland. My Lyons van has the later type rear axle retainer, so perhaps the Slumberland is the only one with clips, unless the Lyons was produced in the transition period. Below is a photo of the base of my Lyons Van. Terry