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The Scammell Scarab mechanical horse formed the backbone of the British Rail town parcels delivery service during the heyday of steam. The railway offered a nationwide goods delivery for everything from a packet of needles to an industrial transformer.
The mechanical horse was first introduced in the 1930s to replace the outdated horse and dray. It was a simple and sturdy three-wheeled vehicle, with an automatic coupling, which allowed trailers to be picked up and dropped off quickly and easily without the driver even needing to get out of the cab. Tens of thousands of Scammell Scarabs were built between 1934 and 1967 but only about 40 survive.
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Chris Waye's father drove a Scammell Scarab for British Rail for many years and Chris even learned to drive in one. He had started to restore a completely wrecked Scammell rescued from a farm in Wales but it turned out to be a much bigger task than one person could manage.
Claire and Suggs find the Scammell rusting on the drive of Chris's house in Walthamstow in east London. They take it to John Downes, a meticulous restorer and chairman of the Mechanical Horse Club. John has restored several Scammell Scarabs and has very high standards, which he will not compromise.
The Scammell is in terrible condition and John is shocked at the size of the job that he faces. The cab is completely corroded, the steering worn, the chassis bent – in fact the whole vehicle has been worn out by years of heavy use. As they take the Scammell apart, more and more problems become apparent.
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The cab needs to be completely rebuilt, so Claire ropes in Jim and John Dyke, two highly skilled coachbuilders based in Haworth in Yorkshire. Originally, the cab would have been pressed from a single sheet of steel, but the Dykes have to rebuild it piece by piece. A cardboard template must be made for each corroded or missing piece. The shape is then traced on to sheet metal, cut out with tin snips and welded into place. It's like a jigsaw puzzle, but they remake the cab and produce a great end result.
As the restoration progresses, John and Claire start to disagree. Claire is keen to preserve as much of the original vehicle as possible because the wear and tear are part of its history. John wants to throw out any substandard parts and remake them from scratch.
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While Claire and John argue, Suggs is on the trail of the vehicle's history. He discovers that this Scarab was not used on the railway but fetched and carried at the Cadbury factory in Bourneville. He goes there to meet John 'Bootsie' Delaney, a retired Cadbury employee who worked on the Scammell in the late 1960s. Suggs learns that the little lorry worked 24 hours a day, seven days a week in the chocolate factory. No wonder it's worn out!
Claire also has a trip around the country in search of replacements for all the worn parts that John has rejected. With all the parts assembled, the engine rebuilt and the new tyres on, it's time to decide on a paint scheme.
The Camel is reunited with a delighted Chris Waye in the goods yard at Ingrow West station, on the preserved Keighley and Worth Valley Railway.
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