THE LITTLE SKEOCH MOTOR CAR … LIVED FOR ONE GLORIOUS YEAR…1920

The Skeoch is  about to be  reborn.  All was  not lost.  By good fortune the motor and  gearbox of one of the Little Skeoch’s

has  been found.  A group of men, largely retired mechanics and carpenters, have decided to  rebuild the car and to do so

in the same Scottish town where the originals  were built.  Dalbeattie.

This is  Fiona  Sinclair, granddaughter of James Skeoch. Her family records  and  artifacts  gave a  big boost the idea of

rebuilding the car.   When  Ron Skeoch, James Skeoch’s son died, treasures were found  in his  home…  The plans, radiator and  other 

parts  of the Little Skeoch 

And this is Geoff Allison of  Dalbeattie, Scotland, who is one  of the prime movers of the restoration project..  He has founded

the Dalbeattie Men’s  Shed which  is hardly a glorious name for the little factory where All the bits  and pieces

of the Little Skeoch have been assembled along with quite a gathering of men…engineers, mechanics, widowers,…some

men  who are just lonely and want something to do  in their retired years  that seems meaningful.   

The brainchild  behind the project is Martin  Shelley, a  car enthusiast, who suggested that the Dalbeattie Men’s Shed might

consider doing something remarkable and then  dropped the bits and pieces on to their work  benches.   

Their job makes  me think of

the Nursery Rhyme about Humpty Dumpty. Only this  time Humpty Dumpty,  i.e. The Little Skeoch, could be put back together again.

 

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 “This is a truly local car, it was the only cycle car ever made in Scotland and it was manufactured right here in Dalbeattie.

“This was a Dalbeattie man building a car the likes of which has never been built since.

“We have already had a lot of interest from visitors staying here.

“It’s already attracting a lot of attention and when it is finally road-worthy will really put Dalbeattie on the map.”

Project manager, Men’s Shed member Robin Gilchrist, 73, reckons sufficient local skills exist to do the job “in-house”.

He said: “We will draw in a lot of expertise because some of the work is quite technical in nature.

“There’s enough specialists in Dalbeattie who can help us do the precision engineering work.”