Uday Bhan Singh - Restoration Driver 4x4.

asejwal · 13th April 2009, 09:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by brutus

It was a searchlight, but not an ordinary one. A 28V 600watts Aircraft landing light, lol. If you put your hand in front of it, it would take half a second to burn it. But yes, its powerful, with the light range in excess of 3kms.

And what have you been doing with it...Any snaps!?!
Care to share!?!

Brutus · 13th April 2009, 14:27

Look here
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/4x4-of...ml#post1257971

docfreak · 16th April 2009, 11:04

ubs sir, is in the process of building my jeep(see my thread : my jeep dream comes true with a cj 3a, it has some pics of him as well. )

i have spoken to him at all hours and anytime, and the second u say the word jeep there is a excitement in his voice, any detail and thing u want , its like having wikipedia on the phone on jeeps,

i stayed with him for a couple of days, an amazing time i had in every way . including a crash course on jeeps for my wife which has got her addicted as well.

hats off to u sir. for ur knowledge and attitude .

ps. if u see this post sir, i am desperately to get my cj3a..................

Note from Mods : Hi Docfreak, please do take a look at this thread (Expected Posting Etiquette) and incorporate some of the points into your posting style, as it will improve the readability. Thank you.

Parm · 16th April 2009, 14:25

i feel honoured to read and find out such a talented personality among jeep community in india who is recognised on international stage.

will UBS sir currently restores only classic jeeps like CJs or he can restore ex army disposal scarp jeeps like MMs as per the customor's wishes?

Brutus · 16th April 2009, 14:39

Quote:

Originally Posted by Parm

will UBS sir currently restores only classic jeeps like CJs or he can restore ex army disposal scarp jeeps like MMs as per the customor's wishes?

Parm, ummm, i don't think customer would be the right choice of words here. He more so kind of lets out his helping hand, and that too for ppl he hadrly knows.

DesertKing · 16th April 2009, 15:48

Yes, he does have a garage but it is not open for general public, it is personal.

Kandisa · 16th April 2009, 17:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brutus

Parm, ummm, i don't think customer would be the right choice of words here. He more so kind of lets out his helping hand, and that too for ppl he hadrly knows.

Yeah, it will be improper to evoke any commercial connection. AFAIK, he extends widest possible help to anyone who has passion for jeep or owns a jeep or wants to own one. And he has also let couple of people use his workshop for restoration of their jeeps. And whatever help he extends are only for "jeep's sake".
-regards,

4x4 loaded · 16th April 2009, 19:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brutus

Parm, ummm, i don't think customer would be the right choice of words here. He more so kind of lets out his helping hand, and that too for ppl he hadrly knows.

Yes I certainly agree with that. He is always ready to help anybody who is a jeep lover and would surely let his workshop for the same purpose. In fact I am doing the mechanical restoration/overhauling of my jeep in his workshop.

4x4 loaded · 9th May 2009, 10:15

Some of the pics that I have with Uday Sir's own comments:

"The legendary 8181 is back home at His Master's Service, after conquering many areas in South and North India, all overland. Always ready to serve at a seconds call. What a Jeep !!!!!!!!!!
Willys MB 1942 modified/designed/repowered for The Great Arc recce 2006"

4x4 loaded · 9th May 2009, 10:19

"Automobile was never simpler before this example of simplicity on wheels, and that too with dual axles.( Known to the civilians as 4X4)
Note the deactivated front axle by the WO free wheel hubs, to enable the user derive a better fuel efficiency in city use......... Raja CJ3B 1966"

4x4 loaded · 9th May 2009, 10:21

"Is this a JEEP playground or a junk(grave)yard???????/
Alas 7 out of the 8 in this frame, are running if a battery is plonked in.
The Jeeps are waiting for the bosses call.
Can this be believed????????"

predatorwheelz · 10th May 2009, 09:35

Some time back, Anish9000 posted pics of some rusting cars saying these were for sale at "A Gentleman's garage in Howrah". One of those pics included a 1970 Toyota Landcruiser FJ55.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/vintag...ml#post1268025

I have always been a fan of Landcruisers, and the FJ55 is a particularly rare model to find anywhere in the world now. I asked Anish for the location, and yesterday me and NOS Power drove down to have a look. Never did Anish state who the "Gentleman" in question was!

After a lot of asking around, we managed to find the house. Seeing so many Jeeps in one campus made us curious to no end. We told a mechanic standing nearby that we were here for the FJ55, and he ran inside the house to get the owner. Imagine our surprise when we found out we had managed to walk into the house of the legendary Uday Bhan Singh!

It was a surprise to meet Sir UBS himself. A pleasant, aged gentleman who got friendly with us in no time. After the initial misunderstandings about the FJ55 were over (it was NOT for sale), he asked us if we were interested in offroading. Both NOS Power and I had no prior experience of OTR. He immediately offered to take us on an OTR he was planning in the next weekend, where we would drive one of his jeeps to get a feel of the whole OTR thing.

This was the start of a great afternoon. There was another gentleman present (about our age) who had bought a scrap jeep to be restored by UBS. The 4 of us sat on chairs in his house porch, with his pair of Dalmatians giving us company.

Ever heard of the Great Arc? Its an imaginary line which the British drew in the 19th century connecting the northern and southernmost tips of India. Sir UBS told us about he (on his trusted Willys MB), and a British friend on a KTM off-road bike had done a recce of the great arc in 2006. Imagine! The recce took them through agricultural fields, mountains, inhospitable terrain, and the 2 machines tackled everything. 4-5 days into the journey, sir UBS could feel there was an imaginary line above his head, guiding him on.

Jeeps, jeeps and jeeps. Sir UBS core competency is 3 models - the Willys MB, the Ford GPW and the Mahindra CJ/MMs. There are various examples of all these cars strewn around his huge campus, as also a few Bantam trailers. He meticulously explained to us the history of the jeeps during WW2, and of their connection to India. Several technical details were shared - the chassis designs, the simplicity of the engines, the vital engineering details that made these cars so robust! UBS was all praise for "dadu", the legendary mechanic working for him. As per UBS, a Willys MB restored by Dadu is likely to be of better quality than a Willys that has freshly come out of the factory.

After a delicious lunch, he took us around to see his collection. There were a total of 40 vehicles strewn around the whole campus. I recognized many original WW2 vehicles and Bantam trailers. Sir UBS has also started to collect 4X4 vehicles of different vintages now (which I will illustrate separately in the next post).

At my insistence, we opened up the FJ55. Seeing the engine and transmission, I immediately identified it to be the second gen FJ55 (with a larger engine and 4 speed tranny). Sir UBS admitted he did not know much about the car to start a full-on restoration. We have decided to restore the vehicle together now, and I shall provide him whatever knowledge and tech I have on the FJ55.

Hmm, wonder how many Sundays I will spend in Howrah now!

The afternoon finally ended by NOS power and me taking a test drive of one of his restored Willys jeeps. UBS was insistent that we take the vehicle out on the road. But it was a totally unknown machine to us, and we played it safe by restricting driving inside the campus.

Enough talk. Let the pictures do the talking now.

The first car is the Willys MB that did the Great Arc recce. Its fully kitted out for off-road use, including a power winch, shovel, pickaxe, and even spare nuts and bolts mounted under the chassis.

The next pic shows 2 authentic WW2 Jeeps being worked upon in his workshop.

The rest are various machines lying around in the workshop.

predatorwheelz · 10th May 2009, 09:59

As stated already, sir UBS has started collecting 4X4 of all vintages, with a view of having the world's largest (and varied) collection of 4X4s. The following are the cars he has already collected:

1. 1970 Toyota Land Cruiser FJ55 (First pic). Belonged to Bengal Animal Husbandries Dept, sold as scrap.

2. A short-chassis Unimog (Second pic). Bought by Tata Motors to copy chassis designs for the Tata 407 4X4 (wow

!), the car was completely taken apart and subsequently sold as scrap. Sir UBS admits that the car needs exhaustive work to bring together again.

3. A Land Rover Ambulance (Third pic). Belonged to a now defunct WB Govt company.

Other cars, not pictured:

4.1982 Range Rover
5.Steyr Pinzgauer

NOS Power · 10th May 2009, 17:49

I suppose the entire narration and pics put up by pradatorwheelz has given you an idea of what we both went through the whole day.

It was like going back to the times way before we cried for the first time and that too through the lives of the machines that were at Sir UBS' house. Imagine what those simple machines went through, the grenades, mortars, shells, etc. etc. and still survive to enthrall us. The effect was so profound that on the way back, myself and predator were silent for a while trying to figure out how our day had turned out.

To be honest neither myself or predator were too much interested in jeeps, but as Sir UBS say's you will be smitten by them. And it ended with the drive of a Willyx.

TheARUN · 11th May 2009, 09:19

I have no words to describe this awesome person.

Have never seen him or spoken to him, but have heard so much about him.

A few months ago I stumbled upon a CJ3B in a very bad condition, up for sale. I was really keen to pick it up. While searching on the web, got to know of UBS Sir, sent him a mail with pictures asking for advice, and he acutally replied to my mail. He went one step further and invited a complete stranger to stay with him at his place and check his JEEPs out. I'll do the pilgrimage one day.

He is known for gifting people with free spare parts, and much more than that, pearls of wisdom.

Infact, there are a lot of people on Team-BHP like that, but he is definitely the first among equals.

May his tribe increase.

13th April 2009, 14:27	#17
Brutus BHPian Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Chandigarh Posts: 376 Thanked: 69 Times	Look here http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/4x4-of...ml#post1257971
	() Thanks

16th April 2009, 11:04	#18
docfreak BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: NOIDA Posts: 252 Thanked: 8 Times	ubs sir, is in the process of building my jeep(see my thread : my jeep dream comes true with a cj 3a, it has some pics of him as well. ) i have spoken to him at all hours and anytime, and the second u say the word jeep there is a excitement in his voice, any detail and thing u want , its like having wikipedia on the phone on jeeps, i stayed with him for a couple of days, an amazing time i had in every way . including a crash course on jeeps for my wife which has got her addicted as well. hats off to u sir. for ur knowledge and attitude . ps. if u see this post sir, i am desperately to get my cj3a.................. Note from Mods : Hi Docfreak, please do take a look at this thread (Expected Posting Etiquette) and incorporate some of the points into your posting style, as it will improve the readability. Thank you. Last edited by Rehaan : 16th April 2009 at 17:58. Reason: Please see the note that has been put at the end of your post by the Support Team.
	() Thanks

16th April 2009, 14:25	#19
Parm Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: in a Toyota! Posts: 2,753 Thanked: 890 Times	i feel honoured to read and find out such a talented personality among jeep community in india who is recognised on international stage. will UBS sir currently restores only classic jeeps like CJs or he can restore ex army disposal scarp jeeps like MMs as per the customor's wishes?
	() Thanks

16th April 2009, 15:48	#21
DesertKing BHPian Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Jodhpur, Rajasthan Posts: 463 Thanked: 24 Times View My Garage	Yes, he does have a garage but it is not open for general public, it is personal.
	() Thanks

9th May 2009, 10:15	#24
4x4 loaded BHPian Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Kolkata Posts: 138 Thanked: 13 Times	Pics Some of the pics that I have with Uday Sir's own comments: "The legendary 8181 is back home at His Master's Service, after conquering many areas in South and North India, all overland. Always ready to serve at a seconds call. What a Jeep !!!!!!!!!! Willys MB 1942 modified/designed/repowered for The Great Arc recce 2006" Attached Thumbnails
	(1) Thanks

9th May 2009, 10:19	#25
4x4 loaded BHPian Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Kolkata Posts: 138 Thanked: 13 Times	"Automobile was never simpler before this example of simplicity on wheels, and that too with dual axles.( Known to the civilians as 4X4) Note the deactivated front axle by the WO free wheel hubs, to enable the user derive a better fuel efficiency in city use......... Raja CJ3B 1966" Attached Thumbnails
	(1) Thanks

9th May 2009, 10:21	#26
4x4 loaded BHPian Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Kolkata Posts: 138 Thanked: 13 Times	"Is this a JEEP playground or a junk(grave)yard???????/ Alas 7 out of the 8 in this frame, are running if a battery is plonked in. The Jeeps are waiting for the bosses call. Can this be believed????????" Attached Thumbnails Last edited by 4x4 loaded : 9th May 2009 at 10:31. Reason: Some more pics
	(2) Thanks

10th May 2009, 09:35	#27
predatorwheelz Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Delhi/Kolkata Posts: 1,720 Thanked: 1,974 Times View My Garage	An afternoon spent with Uday Bhan Singh - 1 God, 2 Greenhorns Some time back, Anish9000 posted pics of some rusting cars saying these were for sale at "A Gentleman's garage in Howrah". One of those pics included a 1970 Toyota Landcruiser FJ55. http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/vintag...ml#post1268025 I have always been a fan of Landcruisers, and the FJ55 is a particularly rare model to find anywhere in the world now. I asked Anish for the location, and yesterday me and NOS Power drove down to have a look. Never did Anish state who the "Gentleman" in question was! After a lot of asking around, we managed to find the house. Seeing so many Jeeps in one campus made us curious to no end. We told a mechanic standing nearby that we were here for the FJ55, and he ran inside the house to get the owner. Imagine our surprise when we found out we had managed to walk into the house of the legendary Uday Bhan Singh! It was a surprise to meet Sir UBS himself. A pleasant, aged gentleman who got friendly with us in no time. After the initial misunderstandings about the FJ55 were over (it was NOT for sale), he asked us if we were interested in offroading. Both NOS Power and I had no prior experience of OTR. He immediately offered to take us on an OTR he was planning in the next weekend, where we would drive one of his jeeps to get a feel of the whole OTR thing. This was the start of a great afternoon. There was another gentleman present (about our age) who had bought a scrap jeep to be restored by UBS. The 4 of us sat on chairs in his house porch, with his pair of Dalmatians giving us company. Ever heard of the Great Arc? Its an imaginary line which the British drew in the 19th century connecting the northern and southernmost tips of India. Sir UBS told us about he (on his trusted Willys MB), and a British friend on a KTM off-road bike had done a recce of the great arc in 2006. Imagine! The recce took them through agricultural fields, mountains, inhospitable terrain, and the 2 machines tackled everything. 4-5 days into the journey, sir UBS could feel there was an imaginary line above his head, guiding him on. Jeeps, jeeps and jeeps. Sir UBS core competency is 3 models - the Willys MB, the Ford GPW and the Mahindra CJ/MMs. There are various examples of all these cars strewn around his huge campus, as also a few Bantam trailers. He meticulously explained to us the history of the jeeps during WW2, and of their connection to India. Several technical details were shared - the chassis designs, the simplicity of the engines, the vital engineering details that made these cars so robust! UBS was all praise for "dadu", the legendary mechanic working for him. As per UBS, a Willys MB restored by Dadu is likely to be of better quality than a Willys that has freshly come out of the factory. After a delicious lunch, he took us around to see his collection. There were a total of 40 vehicles strewn around the whole campus. I recognized many original WW2 vehicles and Bantam trailers. Sir UBS has also started to collect 4X4 vehicles of different vintages now (which I will illustrate separately in the next post). At my insistence, we opened up the FJ55. Seeing the engine and transmission, I immediately identified it to be the second gen FJ55 (with a larger engine and 4 speed tranny). Sir UBS admitted he did not know much about the car to start a full-on restoration. We have decided to restore the vehicle together now, and I shall provide him whatever knowledge and tech I have on the FJ55.Hmm, wonder how many Sundays I will spend in Howrah now! The afternoon finally ended by NOS power and me taking a test drive of one of his restored Willys jeeps. UBS was insistent that we take the vehicle out on the road. But it was a totally unknown machine to us, and we played it safe by restricting driving inside the campus. Enough talk. Let the pictures do the talking now. The first car is the Willys MB that did the Great Arc recce. Its fully kitted out for off-road use, including a power winch, shovel, pickaxe, and even spare nuts and bolts mounted under the chassis. The next pic shows 2 authentic WW2 Jeeps being worked upon in his workshop. The rest are various machines lying around in the workshop. Attached Thumbnails Attached Images
	(2) Thanks

10th May 2009, 09:59	#28
predatorwheelz Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Delhi/Kolkata Posts: 1,720 Thanked: 1,974 Times View My Garage	International 4X4 collection As stated already, sir UBS has started collecting 4X4 of all vintages, with a view of having the world's largest (and varied) collection of 4X4s. The following are the cars he has already collected: 1. 1970 Toyota Land Cruiser FJ55 (First pic). Belonged to Bengal Animal Husbandries Dept, sold as scrap. 2. A short-chassis Unimog (Second pic). Bought by Tata Motors to copy chassis designs for the Tata 407 4X4 (wow!), the car was completely taken apart and subsequently sold as scrap. Sir UBS admits that the car needs exhaustive work to bring together again. 3. A Land Rover Ambulance (Third pic). Belonged to a now defunct WB Govt company. Other cars, not pictured: 4.1982 Range Rover 5.Steyr Pinzgauer Attached Thumbnails
	(2) Thanks

10th May 2009, 17:49	#29
NOS Power BHPian Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Kolkata Posts: 404 Thanked: 79 Times View My Garage	I suppose the entire narration and pics put up by pradatorwheelz has given you an idea of what we both went through the whole day. It was like going back to the times way before we cried for the first time and that too through the lives of the machines that were at Sir UBS' house. Imagine what those simple machines went through, the grenades, mortars, shells, etc. etc. and still survive to enthrall us. The effect was so profound that on the way back, myself and predator were silent for a while trying to figure out how our day had turned out. To be honest neither myself or predator were too much interested in jeeps, but as Sir UBS say's you will be smitten by them. And it ended with the drive of a Willyx.
	(1) Thanks

11th May 2009, 09:19	#30
TheARUN Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Bangalore Posts: 1,374 Thanked: 958 Times View My Garage	I have no words to describe this awesome person. Have never seen him or spoken to him, but have heard so much about him. A few months ago I stumbled upon a CJ3B in a very bad condition, up for sale. I was really keen to pick it up. While searching on the web, got to know of UBS Sir, sent him a mail with pictures asking for advice, and he acutally replied to my mail. He went one step further and invited a complete stranger to stay with him at his place and check his JEEPs out. I'll do the pilgrimage one day. He is known for gifting people with free spare parts, and much more than that, pearls of wisdom. Infact, there are a lot of people on Team-BHP like that, but he is definitely the first among equals. May his tribe increase.
	(1) Thanks