Thieves steal antique petrol pump from Doncaster East front yard

A MAN who had a retro petrol pump stolen from his front yard is so desperate to have it back he’s offered a unique reward for information leading to its return.

Dean Phillips is offering a neon sign from his collection as a reward for information leading to the return of his 1950s petrol bowser. Picture: David Smith

DONCASTER police are searching for thieves who appear to have a taste for retro collectibles.

The distinctive bowser came from an old petrol station in Buxton and had been outside Mr Phillips’ home since 1991.

An antique petrol pump took the robbers’ fancy on Wednesday, July 13, but the owner is so keen to get it back, he’s offering a neon bar sign from his collection as a reward for information leading to its return.

The Golden Fleece pump had been in place outside the front of Dean Phillips’ Doncaster East home since 1991.

He told Leader the theft had left him feeling gutted.

“I restored it, I painted it identical to a similar one I had and replicated how it originally was. Then I put it outside my house and literally just left it there,” he said.

“Now I feel like that part of my house has been stripped bare.”

Mr Phillips, who runs a neon sign repair business, said a similar antique bowser recently sold for more than $5000. But he’s not worried about the money, he just wants to see the sentimental pump returned.

“It came from an old roadhouse or petrol station in Buxton, which is the closest town to Marysville on the way to Lake Eildon,” Mr Phillips said. “I got it from Buxton in about 1991 when the old servo closed down — it later burnt down in the Black Saturday bushfires.”

Mr Phillips spent a couple of months restoring it, sourcing working parts from a company that maintained similar bowsers around Victoria from about the 1950s onwards.

He said it would have taken quite an effort to steal.

“You’d need a truck or a trailer and a couple of strong blokes to take it,” he said.

Mr Phillips posted on Facebook offering this unique reward for information that led to the bowser’s return.

If you have any information, contact Mr Phillips on 0411 556 555.