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Chris Preston

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Personal Information

  • Location
    Victoria, BC, Canada
  • Interests
    Naval and Military history, model building - ships, armour, aircraft. Cycling, sport scuba diving
  • Occupation
    Retired RCN as CPO2 - 44 years (Reservist), Constable - Victoria Police Dept -25 years, retired '06

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  1. Stunning! Just.......Stunning! 👍
  2. Incredible work, Jon. Looking forward to seeing her all done. Cheers, Chris, in Victoria, BC
  3. WOW! Just "WOW!" Don't know what else to say. Your workmanship is simply stunning Jon. I can't wait to see this project finished...........and running! Cheers, Chris, in Victoria, BC, Canada
  4. Hi Jon - Excellent and understood about taking a break. I've been following this project since you started and am amazed at your skills. I'm looking forward to videos of the finished project moving under it's own power. Cheers, Chris, in Victoria, BC.
  5. Excellent news. I'm following this project with great interest, and much respect for the skills displayed by Johann. Cheers, Chris, in Victoria, BC.
  6. Evening All,A question for you more knowledgeable types on Sherman Fireflies, this time regarding vehicle tool stowage on the rear hull. For British and Commonwealth Fireflies, particularly Mk Ic's (Hybrid) did they carry the gun cleaning rods, and if so, where were they stowed? Also, what was the most typical location for the Idler Adjusting tool, and the Hand Crank Starting Handle?The new Model Centrum pub on Sherman Fireflies, has two scale diagrams for Mk Ic's - early and late, with subtle differences in tool stowage on the upper rear hull.Thanks in advance.Chris PrestonVictoria, BC
  7. Many Thanks Adrian, This helps a lot, as most of the photos I've seen of British/Commonwealth Shermans in NWE seem to show the siren as missing or removed, particularly if the hull front is covered in spare track "armour". Cheers, Chris
  8. 'Evening All, I'm building a 1/ 16th scale Sherman Firefly Mk Ic (Hybrid) and have a couple of "detail" questions for the more knowledgeable Sherman types here.Q.1. Did British/Commonwealth Sherman Fireflies retain the siren mounted beside the left front headlight and guard when converted into Fireflies?Q.2. Were the Pioneer Tools mounted on the rear hull held down with leather straps and buckles, or web straps, and if leather, was the leather left in a natural colour or tinted a green?Cheers,Chris Preston,Victoria, BCCanada
  9. 'Evening Malcolm, I'm a firm believer in using the right tool/part, etc for the job. We're lucky in that we have a welder/metal fabricator that seems to really know what he's doing. That being said, all of us were surprised at how smoothly that part of the job went. Cheers, Chris
  10. 'Evening All, Thanks again everyone for you replies to my original query on welding armour plate. In the end we ended up drilling and tapping to replace the missing studs. To answer Malcolm's question on what drills and taps we used, I'll quote our welder/metal fabricator directly: "I just used auto parts store cobalt bits, Butterfield taps, cutting oil and elbow grease". Hope this helps. Cheers, Chris
  11. Will do, Malcolm. As soon as I get a reply from him, I'll post it here. Cheers, Chris
  12. Hi Malcolm, Glad it worked for you. Our welder did the work - he's also a metal fabricator with mill experience. I think he was using something better than what Canadian Tire sells for the tapping. That being said, only one hole gave him trouble tapping it, but in the end we got everything in that we needed to. Here's a link to our Museum's Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Friends-of-Ashton-Armoury-Museum-Victoria-BC-Canada-219752694888399/ . I'm the one hovering around the Ferret in blue coveralls, trying to look like I actually know what I'm doing. Cheers, Chris
  13. Hi Malcolm, Apologies for the delay in replying - had to wait until I was back at the Museum today, and was able to speak with our welder. We had no problem with drilling the plating, except for one hole where the armour had a backing pieces welded to it, and the hole was right over a weld. We used cobalt drill bits, and had no trouble tapping them after drilling. So far, everything's holding up nicely, but time will tell. In a couple of cases, we just drilled and tapped the hole, and then screwed a bolt in from behind, leaving a nice "stud" protruding where needed. We used Loctite to ensure nothing loosens. Cheers, Chris
  14. Hi Shrapnel, Many Thanks for the info. We've dealt with our missing studs by drilling and tapping, and using Loctite to secure the studs. We'll see how this works, and re-visit the welding if we have to. Cheers, Chris Preston, Victoria, BC, Canada
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