Meet first-time restorer Don Brunsdon who decided to restore his friend and former employer Kevin Blair’s 1971 International ACCO D 1820 to her former glory
 |
|
An ambitious project indeed, before the restoration
|
More than $100,000 and countless hours were put into the restoration job, which was completed in late 2009 and the result was and still is pretty spectacular.
 |
|
The fire engine red interior paint is immaculate
|
The immaculate deep blue exterior and ‘fire engine’ bright red interior paintwork (and extensive cabin repairs) was done by the team at Wilcock Truck Painters, but well prior to that, there was a huge list of jobs that needed doing — a far cry from worn truck with an old generator on the rear (pictured) that had seen much better days.
 |
|
The dash took some time to shine
|
The Perkins engine and driveline were overhauled by Peter Small and the team at Southern International (former International agents). In her early days, the International ‘Butterbox/Piano Cab’ — as they have come to be known — was used for carting rock from Rakaia Gorge down to Highbank Power Station.
 |
|
An ambitious project indeed, before the restoration
|
It was used for general contracting around Christchurch at the time before Kevin purchased a quarry at Miners Road, which is still operational, supplying aggregate for its roading gangs — the product also being sold ‘out the gate’.
 |
|
The deck was built to spec by Guy Norris Engineering
|
Guy Norris Engineering manufactured the brand-new deck to the exact same specifications as the original T.M.C deck, which had seen much better days.
“It was also sent down and used during the early works while the hydro station was being built near the township of Cromwell in Otago. We also did a lot of subdivisions down there,” Kevin explains. It’s only a five-yarder, but it’s seen a lot of work across a lot of different jobs.
 |
|
The restored truck came a long way in six months from the worn-out vehicle it was
|
Don says as his first and what he now says will be his last restoration, he underestimated the task by a wide margin and the more time-consuming jobs for him included pulling “virtually everything” apart, removing the deck and the cab.
 |
|
New grey leather seating looks the part
|
Don reckons he easily spent several months working on it out at the old Southern International premises in Sockburn before the shine really started to emerge and it started to become “close to presentable”.
“Kevin was overseas at that time, but his sons Michael and David Blair suggested restoring this for Kevin’s 70th — on the quiet, of course,” Don explains.
Kevin says the truck holds a special place in his heart as one of the first trucks he owned in the very early days, so it was fitting that it be lovingly restored and shown at truck shows as a great example of what the International brand was producing in the early 1970s.
 |
|
No functionality lost here
|
“I didn’t know until the day of the function at David’s place when Don drove it round the road and there it was, sparkling like new. It’s not often that things bring water to my eyes but that did,” Kevin reveals. “Don is a great mate, been with us for 40-odd years.”
It’s clear that a huge amount of time and attention to detail has gone into this restoration job, but it’s more the impact it had on the man it was gifted to and the appreciation shown by employees past and present for the stability his business gave to the families of his staff through the decades that matters most.
“There were a lot of fiddly bits and minor detail, things you don’t think about when you take on something like this; it all adds up to become a bigger job than it seems at first,” Don explains.
 |
|
A few blue words have been uttered into the old two way radio
|
“All the decking and cable work was done by professionals, but little things such as sourcing the old original two-way radios that we used to have, that was a nice little touch and just adds to it really.”
Show-wise, Don has been to Wheels at Wanaka and the last major truck show prior to COVID and had great feedback on the restoration and heard endless stories from people with fond memories of the brand and this model in particular.
Don is also a member of the Binders Down Under NZ club for IH enthusiasts who have a few get-togethers and keeps the truck ticking over nicely by cruising the streets of Christchurch from time to time.
 |
|
Kevin Blair (left) with his friend and former employee Don Brunsdon who did the restoration
|
Don still vividly recalls the day he first joined the company back in 1979 when Kevin Blair Contractors had about 12 employees; they have a team of 100 today. With two quarries in the fold, Kevin, now semi-retired, and his sons taking care of the day-to-day operations, the work extends far beyond Canterbury up into Nelson, where new subdivisions and retirement villages are currently keeping the team busy.
The other quarries are at Macleans Island where a lot of metal (pit-run, base metal, and top-course) is carted out of there to be used on the new Southern and Northern motorways.
While this restoration was done more than 10 years ago, Don and the workshop team have kept her in good nick, and the truck still attracts attention more or less wherever it goes.
Find new and used heavy machinery for sale in NZ
Photography: Randall Johnston