Hi all first off i know this is a long long long shot but im in need of some help.
im trying to find an old lorry that needs to be restored so i can take it along to truck shows and use it for carnivals/rally’s and so on
to raise money for charity’s for CANCER RESHERCH and for MUSCULAR DYSTROPHY the lorry needs to be free or very cheap anything considered age size and condition not important.
if any of you know of any cheap lorries or if anyone might know of someone that might have one they would be willing to donate please let me know.
thanks all
Darren
P.S SORRY FOR POSTING THIS HERE BUT WASENT SHORE WHERE TO POST IT 
You would be better off just posting a cheque to your favourite charity.
You will spend many times the value of the vehicle in its restoration. True, people will admire it if it’s done properly and some will donate, but it will be peanuts in comparison to your own financial investment. Yes, you will enjoy doing the restoration and in seeing other people’s appreciation of your handiwork, but from a money making perspective it’s a no go.
I maintain several old buses for enthusiasts, which they take a delight in being able to use and raise money for their favourite charity, but what they manage to raise is a fraction of what it costs to keep the vehicle on the road, let alone the cost of restoration. Bear in mind that not only do people see it on a rally field, but 60 odd punters at a time get a free ride and drop a few coins in the tin. They work hard at it too, the buses are out practically every weekend during the spring and summer.
Those others that use their vehicles for wedding hire etc only do it as a sideline to their other business activity, because it can never stand on its own feet.
If however you really want to restore an old lorry, enjoy doing it, are prepared for the financial sacrifice and headaches that will come like the short notice loss of storage facilities, the sudden expenditure to get it repaired so that you can make a date in the calendar, meanwhile always hoping to be able to raise a few quid for charity when it’s finished , then I really seriously wish you the very best of luck.
If you do decide to go ahead with the idea of a money raising project, then do your research and make sure that you choose a model for which you can source spare parts; which will mean a relatively recent model and the smaller the better.
cav551:
You would be better off just posting a cheque to your favourite charity.You will spend many times the value of the vehicle in its restoration. True, people will admire it if it’s done properly and some will donate, but it will be peanuts in comparison to your own financial investment. Yes, you will enjoy doing the restoration and in seeing other people’s appreciation of your handiwork, but from a money making perspective it’s a no go.
I maintain several old buses for enthusiasts, which they take a delight in being able to use and raise money for their favourite charity, but what they manage to raise is a fraction of what it costs to keep the vehicle on the road, let alone the cost of restoration. Bear in mind that not only do people see it on a rally field, but 60 odd punters at a time get a free ride and drop a few coins in the tin. They work hard at it too, the buses are out practically every weekend during the spring and summer.
Those others that use their vehicles for wedding hire etc only do it as a sideline to their other business activity, because it can never stand on its own feet.
If however you really want to restore an old lorry, enjoy doing it, are prepared for the financial sacrifice and headaches that will come like the short notice loss of storage facilities, the sudden expenditure to get it repaired so that you can make a date in the calendar, meanwhile always hoping to be able to raise a few quid for charity when it’s finished , then I really seriously wish you the very best of luck.
If you do decide to go ahead with the idea of a money raising project, then do your research and make sure that you choose a model for which you can source spare parts; which will mean a relatively recent model and the smaller the better.
Thanks for the advice cav551 i will admit that its somthing i have given alot of thought to.
to tell the truth my father passed away only a few weeks ago from cancer and it was his dream to do the same when he retierd from driving but the cancer put a stop to that before he could retier as he had to give up work. and a few days before he passed away the last thing we talked about was the idea of getting an old lorry restoring it and using it for making money for charity and i made a promiss to him that i would do it both for him and myself as a dedication to him. and as he passed away from cancer i thought doing it for CANCER RESHERCH would be good as i can make any donations in my fathers name and memory and a friend of my wife has a yopung son how suffers from MUSCULAR DYSTROPHY and is now stuck using a wheel chaire and he is only 13 but the charity helped his mum kit the hole house out to help her son get around the house 
and after seeing the affect that MUSCULAR DYSTROPHY has on a person and also the grate work the charity dus for familys that need there help i thought that is the one i can donate money to as well but as i say thanks for the good advice but i think i really need to go for it just for the sake of it being the last thing i ever spoke to my father about before he went and pluse im always up for a challange haha 
I am very sorry to hear that you lost your father recently and I know how raw you must feel. My own dad died 40 years ago this year and I still miss him and the chances missed, and still missing, for his advice and company.
I fully understand and support your motives for this project and I am truly sorry that you will not now be able to carry out the original plans that you and your dad had made.
I think the very first step you should make is to talk this over very thoroughly indeed with your family and partner. Their support is absolutely vital for this to succeed. Your dad would not have wished for a family break up to result from this idea. For this reason I think you should also wait some time before you make a concrete decision to proceed.
Over 30 years ago I rushed into a decision to ‘save’ an old lorry simply because, like so many others before me, I couldn’t bear the thought of it going for scrap. I never really had any proper ‘permission’ from my wife, which resulted in any time and money spent on it becoming a source of tension. Before the children were born I was able to undertake quite a lot of work, but subsequently I was never able to justify affording undercover storage. In the end I sold the lorry earlier this year to someone I knew would be able to do the vehicle justice. Over the years I had to relocate the vehicle, at sometimes very short notice, about a dozen times. Fortunately this never happened when the vehicle was so dismantled that moving it unaided was impossible, but it so easily could have been.
So what do you do if you do proceed? First you have to make a realistic appraisal of your own skills, abilities and knowledge, of what work you will be able to do yourself and what you will need to have others do for you. Secondly you need to consider what tools and equipment you are going to need, that you don’t already own, and find out how much they are going to cost to acquire.
Next comes the difficult bit. The most important thing to organize is an agreement for secure undercover storage away from prying eyes, with a concrete floor, lighting, sufficient headroom and a power supply, away from any potential source of fire or flooding, all at a price you can afford and on as long a term basis as you can secure. This really needs to be within no more than a half hour journey of home if you are to maintain enthusiasm. Utopia I hear many cry! Many have completed brilliant restorations without most of the above, but not only has it not been easy, but I am sure all would agree that storage is the number one concern.
Next, if you are totally cold to what is likely to be involved, buy some copies of the various magazines that feature old lorry restorations so that you can see what problems other have faced and how they have overcome them.
Finally you are in a position to acquire a vehicle. If you don’t have the ability yourself, you are going to need skilled help to assess each vehicle’s condition to avoid a complete lemon. Even then, no-one can notice every defect. Just like buying a second hand car, you will need to look at many before choosing the right one. This may well not be what you originally wanted, but it is the most realistic proposition. I notice that from past posts you have expressed interest in a DAF 2800. Another one of these would certainly be an interesting addition to the preservation scene, but is it the right vehicle for you? Having got a tractor unit, to make it look right the next thing you are going to want is a trailer, which will immediately increase your costs and raise storage issues again. So as I said previously choose your project very carefully paying particular attention to what parts you are going to need in the short and medium term, what you might need later and how easy they may be to obtain.
I am sure that you have come to the right place to get advice from members of the forum who have done successfully exactly what you wish to do. I am certain too that you will also hear much to contradict what I have written; only you can decide what is right for you.
Wishing you the best of luck and don’t hesitate to keep us all informed of what you decide.