Bucklers!

[ERC]

[CENTER]1983 - first pic only. Probably a practice day at Pukekohe.

With the signage on the side!

And without. Guest driver at the wheel...

[/CENTER]

[Davidr51]

a fascinating thread - I have enjoyed the discussion immensely. I owned a "Buckler" in the late sixties-it was sold to me as a Buckler with the description that it had been raced by Jim Boyd previously but this could have been just good sales talk. It was powered by a 100E engine (3/4 race tuned) and I did buy an O/head valve conversion kit which I intended to fit but being a hardup student at Otago university it remained in the box . A pretty little car with a well made aluminum body - its only Achilles' heel was the Ford 10 gearbox - I went through quite a few but you could buy them in those days for $5-$10 dollars from the wreckers and my student flat soon got surrounded with broken gearboxes but I could eventually fit one in about 20 minutes. So the question remains- was this a genuine buckler (registered as a Buckler) or just a ford ten special? I attach a photo- apologies for the graininess. The car was eventually sold in Tauranga when I became a family man Does anyone know of its whereabouts now?

[woody]

A chap in Christchurch has a Buckler that was raced by Jim Boyd. We are tracking its racing history.

[Oldfart]

A chap in Christchurch has a Buckler that was raced by Jim Boyd. We are tracking its racing history.

If you are talking about the one currently advertised on Trade Me, I went and had a look last week. In my opinion of many years around Bucklers this is close to false claim. It differs in almost every critical area.
If you are talking about the one with Kelvin Brown, it is pictured above KX known as the Blue Brick, and not the (most well known 3 wheeling) Boyd car, that is here in Kerikeri. Jim may well have had more than one pass through his car dealer hands.
David, hard to know whether your car was a "genuine" one, there is not enough in the photo to make a call either way. Can you remember anything about the front suspension? That might give us a clue. Another clue will be if there was any chassis tube across the door opening. In other words did you wonder why there was a door at all as if it had the proper chassis it would have been nearly to the top of the door! It is not a car I know, but an interesting special to find.

[Davidr51]

No tube along the top of the doors - I had a photo front on but can locate it at the moment- will post it when (if) it comes to hand.

[Oldfart]

I have been asked by Buckler Guru Kelvin Brown to post this. If anyone can give any information it will be gratefully accepted. The photo was labelled Read Buckler Mt Eden, if that means anything. Distinctive are the wheels.

[markson]

Hi Oldfart

Going by the wheels ,that looks very much like my old Buckler that I sold to Bruce many many years ago
DA5574
Its a pity the rego plate is not a little more readable, although it was probably changed at some point
The photo could be of when it was not very old ,before someone played with it and put the Austin A30 roof on it, and turned it into a coupe.All through its history and rebuilds, it retained the same wheels .Markson

[ATTACH]34875[/ATTACH][ATTACH]34876[/ATTACH][ATTACH]34877[/ATTACH]

[Oldfart]

Only one thing Markson, the picture I posted has 5 stud wheels, so if as you say the wheels remained unchanged, it's not your one.

[markson]

That crosses that one off the list then .Markson

[Roger Dowding]

posted on my AHCC thread a couple of Bucklers at Otaua.
Taken from the same spot but looking at the background different years, this was from a Marshall point near the the top of the hill, there was a farmers drive way that I would park my Healey, and then stand back from the sweeping curve to watch and advise the start and finish guys as the cars went past, or when they didn't a Jag actually finished up against that power pole one year, there was a haybale there to soften the effect !!

[Roger Dowding]

Posted Ross's pictures on another thread, but the three Buckler photo's from Taupo in 1990 belong here, as does Ross Hollings Humber 80 Special, which looks like a Buckler, Ross sold the car and it went overseas, and now believed to be in Queensland.

The group at Taupo, some well known cars !!. have details of whose cars they were, must look it up and add to the post..
Kelvin Brown, who wrote the book on Bucklers in NZ advises as follows " Group picture at Taupo Nov 91 ? Brayshaw DD2 red, Sutcliffe DD1 white, Stephens ? DD2 blue, Munns Mk.90 red, Main Mk.5/6 blue " hope that is of help..

from the rear

from the front ..

the front again the other end of the lineup.

The Humber 80 Special

another couple of Buckler photo's in New Zealand ..
Jim Boyd at Levin in 1956 - Bruce Davis photo - provided to the Buckler forum by Richard Armstrong

Bruce Sutcliffe at Pukekohe - year unknown - Stuart Short photo, Bruce has another photo taken at the same place, just has moved forward in the queue..

[RGM]

Taupo Bucklers Grant Bowring drove the DD1 and Wayne Rodgers drove the 90 this was before Roger Munns obtained the car.

[Roger Dowding]

Taupo Bucklers Grant Bowring drove the DD1 and Wayne Rodgers drove the 90 this was before Roger Munns obtained the car.

thanks for the info..

a few more pics, have been gathering them from various places, all NZ shots, owners and photographers where known are acknowledged on the photos..

Dunedin Motor Show around 1980 - Allan Dick

Dallas Crampton Ngawhini Hillclimb

Buckler and others Pukekohe around 1979 -80, TACCOC sprint meeting, my TR4A in the background, may have posted before ..

[Roger Dowding]

another picture at Pukekohe, Bruce Sutcliffe..again, Stuart Short photo, Stuart is Jim Short's son, of Paton Ford fame

Elva OHV conversion Bruce Sutcliffe's car Bruce's photo

Fred McLean, at Saltwater Creek Timaru

[Ross Hollings]

Great photo,the car behind the Buckler is the NAT Special,which i bought in Christchurch from Fazzazz and competed in various events in NI, Chelsea Sugar Works,Bay Park,Puke,Pebblebrook.Now in a museum in South Island.NAT stood for Norman Arthur Tetheridge who built the car.Was red when i had it
This refers to photo of Fred McLean.Down a couple of spots.

[Roger Dowding]

Great photo,the car behind the Buckler is the NAT Special,which i bought in Christchurch from Fazzazz and competed in various events in NI, Chelsea Sugar Works,Bay Park,Puke,Pebblebrook.Now in a museum in South Island.NAT stood for Norman Arthur Tetheridge who built the car.Was red when i had it
This refers to photo of Fred McLean.Down a couple of spots.

Ross you are so right / correct .. the photo mentioned the NAT Special as the second car.. have just found .. another photo of FM Fred McLean in his Buckler at Waimate.. he is the FM in Begg FM cars .. the engineer !!..

Here is the photo, above, and to celebrate Bruce Sutcliffe's 80th birthday, which is tomorrow, a couple of pics.. Happy Birthday Bruce .. known as New Zealand's " Mister Buckler ".

and another Buckler ..
thanks to Classic Autonews [ Allan Dick ] and Buckler Cars and Karts Facebook pages..

Ross Holling you have a owned a lot of cars the NAT, the Minimax, Mini Cooper[s] and others.. pleasure to know you and to have competed at the same events.. I would have been the more sedate driver, Gymkhana's and Hillclimb ..

[Oldfart]

Great photo,the car behind the Buckler is the NAT Special,which i bought in Christchurch from Fazzazz and competed in various events in NI, Chelsea Sugar Works,Bay Park,Puke,Pebblebrook.Now in a museum in South Island.NAT stood for Norman Arthur Tetheridge who built the car.Was red when i had it
This refers to photo of Fred McLean.Down a couple of spots.

The Titheridge family got it back from Yaldhurst Museum and gave it a bit of a birthday and ran it at Ruapuna last year. It's still red.

[Roger Dowding]

Bruce has sent me 24 photos taken in and around Manfield for a Classic Race meeting, and also at the time that Garry Price purchased the Dewar Thomas Buckler 90 .. here are the Buckler photos, will post the others on a different thread, Mallock U2's, The RA 4, [ Vanguard ], Ralph Watson BSA Special LX 5504, and a Keift, as well as the Fiat Targa sports car, a U2, / Lotus 7, style car - now for sale according to Bruce's information.
First some Bucklers a chassis at the McLaren Trust display at Manfield;
Buckler MK VI - garry Price car

The Roger Munns MK 90, views of the ELVA ohv conversion of the Ford 10 motor chassis No 1954 / 4A

Not a Buckler but the similar bodied Humber 80 Special, owned by Ross Hollings at one time ;

to follow are the Red 90, and the blue 90 chassis 90 / 8, owned by Dewar Thomas, bought by Garry Price and later owned and raced by Dallas Crompton, Dallas competed at the Ngawhini Hill Climb in 2002, the 50th Anniversary event.

and for variety the Fiat Targa

Manfield is now " Manfield Circuit Chris Amon " - RIP Chris

Bruce advised that some of the photos are from Taupo, not Manfield, but the McLaren Trust shots are Manfield ..

[Roger Dowding]

Well, there was a suggestion of a Buckler thread, so here goes.
It is necessary that readers remember that while I owned one “in the day” I did not actively compete, and all of what I submit is second hand.
I am very much indebted to Kelvin Brown and Bruce Sutcliffe who have been instrumental in perpetuating the appeal of the marque. Without their efforts Bucklers would have faded into oblivion in New Zealand as just “funny old cars which the old guys played with”. In the UK there is an equally prolific researcher Brian Malin and I will be pinching plenty of his stuff (with approval)

Buckler is actually very specific. It has nothing whatever to do with body styles, although the archetypal NZ Buckler 90 is clad most times with a de Joux fibreglass body. These bodies also appear on a number of other cars which are not Bucklers. In the day it was very desirable to call your Ford 10 special a Buckler, possibly like calling your Falcon GT an HO.

Buckler was a chassis and front suspension system. It’s pretty much as simple as that. They were one of the first, if not the first, manufacturers of production multi-tube frames for the masses. They were a sort of kit car manufacturer in the 50s, although of course their first chassis were produced in reasonable numbers prior to 1950.

The name comes from Derek Buckler. His base was in the area around Reading in the UK, indeed many publications refer to "Bucklers of Reading". His vision of producing a sports car began in 1945. He had well established criteria that never changed. It must be universal (be able to be used in all events from mud plug trials through to circuit racing”) cheap, reliable, have excellent road holding, good acceleration and be fuel efficient. Later on he realised as did almost everyone else, that designs needed to be more specialised.

He was not happy with conventional, for the time, ladder chassis. His background in the aircraft industry led him to what he called “Multi tube frames”. Whilst not a true space frame, they are close. The English produced frames were manufactured from Chrome Moly tube of 1” and 1 5/8”tube, these sizes stayed from the first until the last cars! The use of this tube has contributed to the high survival rate, and professional restorers almost inevitably comment on the high quality of construction

Oldfart - have added some Spgeti / Bruce Dyer photos to this thread and have a few more to come ;.. and agree with this comment, as i always thought that Buckler did bodies, but they only did chassis ..as i was informed by David

" Buckler is actually very specific. It has nothing whatever to do with body styles, although the archetypal NZ Buckler 90 is clad most times with a de Joux fibreglass body. These bodies also appear on a number of other cars which are not Bucklers. In the day it was very desirable to call your Ford 10 special a Buckler, " ..

have some more to follow

[Roger Dowding]

Great photo,the car behind the Buckler is the NAT Special,which i bought in Christchurch from Fazzazz and competed in various events in NI, Chelsea Sugar Works,Bay Park,Puke,Pebblebrook.Now in a museum in South Island.NAT stood for Norman Arthur Tetheridge who built the car.Was red when i had it
This refers to photo of Fred McLean.Down a couple of spots.

The Fred McLean car had a Jarvie body, there is an article in a recent NZ Classic Driver magazine of a restored Jarvie bodied special, a Hawke not a Buckler .. worth a read.