GoranWC51

Mixed bunch of vehicles, Dodge WC54 (ambulance), Jeep, Chevrolet 1½ ton, GMC, Harley Davidson MC, etc. Goran N

A couple of halftrack names:

The best way is to do as Tony suggested, getting the build card for your Dodge. The card clearly states the date of manufacture and I'm sure the DMV will accept that as proof of year of manufacture. Most, if not all, Dodge WC's that are left have been rebuilt at least once during the course of its life. My own WC51, built on February 12 1945, and purchased from the Norwegian army in 1994, had a rebuild tag from the Rootes Corporation in Birmingham England from August 1955. It is a mix of early and late features, i.e. it has the early (1942) high sided seats, etc. Checking out the Dodge Forum at http://forum.ww2dodge.com/ is a good start. Choosing the markings for your vehicle is an important part of the restoration. Check for markings that not everyone has, like 101/506 or 82nd AB, there's plenty of those at every rally, dare to be different. I choose to mark mine as an ambulance of the Brazilian Expeditionary Force in Italy in late 1944: Good luck, and make sure to post plenty of photos here =) Goran N

Welcome from the cold north of Europe-Sweden Goran N

Hej Björn, välkommen hit! I think your best bet for a good TGB 30 would be MILMAC in Strängnäs. They have at least one for sale at the moment, 70.000 SEK with 35000 kms on the clock: http://www.milmac.se/index.php?page=scania-30-car&hl=usa I guess you could just hop in and drive it to England. There shouldn't be any problems importing it as both countries are EU and the truck is a 1976 model and thus also older then 30 years. I think Milmac may have several to choose from I will actually be going to Strängnäs this weekend to have a look at Arsenalen, the armour museum. I hope to be able to drive by Milmac before returning home on Sunday. Lycka till, Göran Norén Lidingö

Looking REALLY good! You've come a long way in a short period of time. Many people would have given up or "postponed" (indefinitely) the restoration... Cannot wait to see it finished. Goran N

Very nice job! What year model is it? I used to own a late model GMC CCKW 353 H1 (phew!) with open cab, ex Ducth army, in the mid 90's. It was a good base for restoration, with a bit of rust in the lower parts of the body, but that was about it. Sold it a few years later as I had nowhere to put it. Didn't want to leave it outside to rust. Goran N

Here you go: If you wish to send a request, please include your full name and return address (a letter will do). Also, please include the make, model and year of your automobile. If you are requesting a Build Record you must include your VIN Number . Please send your inquiry to: Attn: Historical Information DAIMLER CHRYSLER Corporate Historical Collection CIMS 410-11-21 12501 Chrysler Freeway Detroit MI, 48288 USA Note: This only applies to U.S. built 1930 - 1954 Dodge and Plymouth trucks! Cost for trucks is $25.00 USD and requires your truck's factory serial number (on frame). Also needed is a copy of your title or Bill of Sale. (VIN number on the door or chasis frame, not the engine block serial number.) You should have the photostat copy of your build card in a couple of weeks. Note that the cards are kept on micro fische, i.e. micro photo, form, so the quality of the copy is not brilliant. Many put their copy into a photo program, like Photoshop, and invert the image, which sometimes makes it easier to read. Good luck, Chris, Goran N

I remember the Moke when vacationing in Spain, Portugal and Italy in the late 1960's when there were Mini Moke's all over the place. I even rented one on Costa del Sol in 1968 or 69. They were made in several places,Setúbal, Portugal, Longbridge plant, Birmingham, England, Zetland, New South Wales, Australia, Umtali, Rhodesia, by BMC, Leyland Australia, British Leyland Portugal, Cagiva, from 1964-1993. I am presently on vacation in Fuengirola and took my son to a go kart place at the horse race track here and three Moke's (of sorts) together with three regular Mini's (convertibles) showed up and drove around the go kart track for fifteen minutes or so. I took some photo's of them and I'm sure the experts here can pin point exactly what they are: Goran N

That's a thought, Tony. Haven't even considered one, but they are plentiful and easy to find used. Cheers, Goran

The Discovery Channel broadcast the "Black Ops Brothers", the Howe twin brothers, who manufacture tracked recon vehicles for the US army. I've been using an electric wheelchair for the last ten years and have been looking for any type of off roading vehicle that I could use. I came in contact with one of the Howe brothers, Mike, and he confided in me that they were developing an off-road tracked wheelchair vehicle, the Ripchair, loosely based on their "Ripsaw" U.G.V. (un-manned ground vehicle), for one of their friends a disabled ex. serviceman . The Goliath is just about right in size for a vehicle of this type. Would be fun if someone would use the blueprints of the Goliath and build a handicap off-road vehicle... Goran N

Kuno, tires are surprisingly easy to find for most classical vehicles that are popular to restore. There's some British soft skin vehicles that used tires of a dimension not used anymore, and these can be hard, sometimes impossible, to source. This Lucas brand model T tire costs 99$ and that's a decent price considering that the manufacturer cannot expect to sell tens of thousands of these: The web page here: http://www.snydersantiqueauto.com/modeltparts/tirestubesmisc Goran N

The Germans made quite a few of these Goliath's and had great faith in their effectiveness. They turned out to be a lot less than that when it came to the practical use of them. The Allies got hold of loads and loads of these machines, and it seems that every single small WW2 museum in Europe has at least one on show... Goran N

Hello Sjoerd, welcome to the friendly forum. So you're into British MV's? Yes, they do have their very special charm, if you can live with quirky mechanical solutions and electrical Lucas systems that work, at times... =) Goran N Lidingo/Sweden

One problem with modern digital images is that they lack the sharp contrast of the old black-and-white film of the 1940's. Digital images need to get a good boost both in contrast, as well as sharpening. Another problem is when you desaturate, or remove the color, from a digital color image, that the black/white just doesn't look normal. Many modern digital images are taken with zoom lenses, these were non existent in the 1940's. Photographs were taken with regular 50mm lenses. The only zoom lens available for a photographer then was to use a "NIKE zoom", i.e. to step back to get whatever he was shooting to fit within the frame =) There are several really handy plug-ins to use together with Photoshop. The Plugin Site's "BW Styler" is one, DXO Film Pack, is another. You apply different filters and settings, and it's all very intuitive. You get excellent results. I use brushes to sparingly apply scratches, it's easy to overdo it. It's almost more work to "ruin" a photograph and make it look older than it is to restore and old b/w one and colorize it. Goran N

Tip: Clean the lens on your phone/camera before taking pictures. The lens is subjected to a lot of fatty fingerprints being placed on the lens over and over. The pictures all get that veiled look and you loose tons of detail. Just a friendly tip.. Goran N

German armor is, obviously, not my forte.... I saw doing a quick Google check that the Pzkw IV Sturmgeschütz obviously had the extension above the drivers position, with access hatch on top. You learn something every day =) Goran N

The drivers position on the restored one in Poland looks very strange. Compare that to the period shot of another Sturmgeschütz. I know from personal experience that getting in- and out of the original drivers position in a Sturmgeschütz is difficult. I am 179 cm tall and really had to struggle. I tried out the different positions in the Sturmgeschütz exhibited at the Parola armored museum in Finland. Perhaps the extension was meant to provide more room for the drivers? This Sturmegschütz was driven into this position in 1967, according to my sources. It was then cut open cut reveal the inside. Visitors could climb on board until the "Sturmy" (The Finnish crews name for it) was moved a number of years ago. Goran N

I'm fairly sure that this is a vehicle built in Brazil for the Brazilian army. Brazil has for many years produced the Beetle and also the Transporter up until recently. I remember seeing one of these VW's at the Museo Conde de Linhares, army museum, in Rio de Janeiro, a few years back. I cannot find the photos from my visit, but I'll try to dig up some info. Goran N

Very nice job, indeed. I know how difficult it is to find parts for these vehicles. They were made from 1942/43 up until 1953 and I think that this 67B is a post war one, going after the type of grille it has. I had the opportunity to drive one of those Gaz's and it was a hoot to drive. Pretty much like driving a Willys MB/Ford GPW. Too bad they chose a shiny paint for it. I'm allergic to full fledged restorations where they top it off by putting a really shiny paint job on it. Many claim it's because "it is soooo much easier to clean after driving in the rain".............. Goran N

I bought a kerosene heater and I've used that for several years. Burns about a gallon (4 liters) of kerosene during a full night. On the plus side is the possibility to use the top of the heater as a cooker. The heater automatically shuts off if you knock it over by accident. I payed about 70€ for mine: You CAN paint it Olive Drab if you want to add a bit of WW2 feel to it... Goran N

I thought that only German WW2 vehicles had tire/tyre pressure markings applied above each wheel. Did WW2 British trailers really have them? Many a Willys MB/Ford GPW/Hotchkiss M201 otherwise correctly marked for a WW2 era Jeep seem to have the "T.P. 35" painted above each wheel. Often it seems that if one owner applies the "famous T.P. marking" to his MV, his mates do too...... Goran N

It surely needs to be saved. Good luck! Goran N

Here are pictures of the Ben Hur lunette and hook/chains as attached to my July 1943 Willys MBT 1/4t trailer. I want to exchange those for a setup for the WW2 1/4t trailer, if anyone has them for trade. Goran N

A set with three cups and a holder for them. Made of plastic, however. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Davis-Instruments-Anemometer-Wind-Cups-Large-for-Vantage-Pro2-7905L-/390493617476?pt=US_Weather_Meters&hash=item5aeb3bbd44 It seems both 3- and 4 cups were used in the construction of Anemometers. You're getting there =) Goran N