The re-creation of a 1915 stanley mountain wagon

                                      Roel Rasker recreates a 1915 Stanley Mountain Wagon.
                                                                PART ONE

After the restoration of my Stanley EX in 2017​, I was looking for a new project.
The choice soon fell on a mountain wagon. These cars have always had my interest, since my first meeting with Peter Williams's mountain car at the Dorset Steam fair a few years ago.
 
First I started looking for an original mountain car. Because these were not available, or too expensive, I decided to build one myself. My preference was initially for a 1909 model with a wooden chassis with 3 benches.
To be able to drive the car in the Netherlands, however, I had to work with an existing old Stanley chassis. Otherwise it was not possible to get it road legal in the Netherlands
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That's why I decided to go for a 1915 model on a 735 chassis. It was important that I could find an old chassis whose restoration to the original model was not possible.
In England on steamcarnetwork website I found a 735d chassis with chassis number. This was a great start to a big new project.

I could also buy a 20 HP engine in England. With this I already had a solid foundation. In the future I might replace this engine for a 30 hp engine but first I want to see if the engine is strong enough.
 
I had set aside 2 years for this project. But by working full time on it, I succeeded in half a year.
I did a size study on the basis of photos of a 1915 MW, which in my opinion was quite original, after which I made a dummy body with a bench in plywood.

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These sizes were pretty good and with some minor adjustments I started producing the MW. Because this is a reproduction I naturally had some freedom to build the car the way I want. Among other things, more space between headboard and first seat, exchangeable seats, and a fixed propane gas tank for the pilot light. I also preferred copper gas lamps instead of electric lamps. The floor is completely flat so that the car can also be used as a pickup

 The convertible top is made of curved ash arches. The rest of the frame is made from various existing  parts. An upholsterer has covered the convertible top and also provided the leather upholstery of the four seats.

I had the bonnet and the fenders made at Vintage Wings in England. The fenders were perfect.

I still had a lot of work on the hood. The company could not make the louvres. That is why I made a steel mold and punch with which I could apply the louvres manually.

Roel