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Duncan76

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Everything posted by Duncan76

  1. Hello All, Looking for any leads or contacts for medium-term storage for my series 3 lightweight Land Rover. It's currently in West Lancashire but anywhere in the North West would work as I won't need regular access to it! Needs to be dry and secure, that's all. It's in my mum's garage but as she's moving and downsizing it needs to find a new home until I have the time and space to get it sorted, which will probably involve getting rid of my green goddess! (Too many vehicles!!) It's been in the family since de-mob in the early 1990s so it's very much part of the family and has far too much sentiment attached to it to sell. Thanks, Duncan
  2. Very rare ex-Auxiliary Fire Service RL petrol carrier - there were something like 15 made (a mixture of Bedford RL and Commer Q4 vehicles) and I'm aware of 3 still remaining (2 Bedfords). New in 1965 (C reg) this one had a working life after the AFS and was one of a number of AFS vehicles that were used by Clywd Fire Brigade, in this case as a foam carrier with tail lift fitted, so it's been lucky in that it has spent most of its life under cover and has escaped lots of the rot that RLs often suffer from. It has been stored under cover in the East Midlands for the last 10 years and has been on the fire show circuit. Lots of work carried out in past few years including body off respray, 5 new Goodyear G388 tyres and replacement tilt. Good practical classic truck with many of the original AFS petrol carrier modifications such as fire wall and front mounted exhaust still fitted and some restored such as the indicators which were unique to these petrol carriers and the front bumper mounted fire extinguishers. Ready to show, myself and my co-owner simply have too many vehicles so a loving new home is needed! Big hint - if you fancy converting it to an 'Army RL' or chopping it about I'll save you the time, it will be a short conversation.....! 😁
  3. Seen on eBay yesterday (not mine!) - auction has 5 days to run. One of a very small number of riot control water cannon built for the Army and RUC in the early 70s, based on a Foden 10 tonner. There is a military brass plate fixed to the inside cab which has details of contract numbers etc see below: Truck Cargo CL 10 Ton 6x4 Foden, Cont No: WV5099 Code No: 2434 0374 Chassis No: 61136 Vehicle No: 00ET20 CES No: P/34113/1 https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Foden-Military-Army-Water-Cannon-Lorry-Truck-Classic-Vintage-Rare-Barn-Find/203271782199?_trkparms=aid%3D111001%26algo%3DREC.SEED%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20160908105057%26meid%3Dc8cbbe47399146d39eceedd6399716d3%26pid%3D100675%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D15%26mehot%3Dpp%26sd%3D203271782199%26itm%3D203271782199%26pmt%3D0%26noa%3D1%26pg%3D2380057&_trksid=p2380057.c100675.m4236&_trkparms=pageci%3A0aad55ef-6aec-11eb-b966-3214b911b9a1|parentrq%3A876c513c1770ab8cd7e5f4b6ffff8eb6|iid%3A1
  4. Funny - many years ago I took my Peugeot 406 (what a cracking car!!) to a mainstream chain for some work though not an MOT. I was told that the rear shock absorbers were leaking and would need changing. I declined the offer and I chuckled on my way home knowing that at that stage Peugeot still made their own shock absorbers - and they were gas filled.... Duncan.
  5. Through one of the Facebook pages I've passed a private message with your email address on to a chap in East Yorkshire that might be able to help. By chance he's just repainted his goddess and reapplied all the Op FRESCO markings! Hope you get something sorted! Duncan.
  6. A quick Google tells me you're in Catterick if that helps anyone! 😁 There are a couple of active FB sites for GG owners so I will put a shout out! 💪
  7. Interesting what you learn - somebody on the Q4 owners page on Facebook has just replied and suggested that just like the smaller bore but similarly designed engines that were in the Humber Super Snipes, they were "notorious for blowing between the cylinders". As he says, even though my Q4 only has 1,700 miles on the clock, you can see on the photo below that it clearly hasn't been sealing around the whole cylinder and that it potentially has been blowing into the water galleries too! I wonder whether the cylinder heads were ever retorqued after manufacture given they were hardly used and mine sat around for the best part of 10 years between manufacture and formal registration? That's what I love about this stuff - 'every day is a school day' as they say! Anyway, it's running again as this video shows - at last! Q4 running.mp4
  8. So having scoured the darkest depths of Speedy Spares for gaskets, the head was removed and cleaned up - very neat it looks too! As expected, the head and valves were coked up - many, many years of being run for short periods, very little mileage and lots of running cold on the choke. The valves and seats have been cleaned and lapped again so they seal properly and the head looks much neater and cleaner now! It's getting closer to the road all the time....
  9. Still on eBay: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Taskers-Trailer-Scammel-coupling-1930-40-s/274460707279?hash=item3fe72209cf:g:OQoAAOSwUIlevDrn
  10. Looks super! 💪 Like the tyres too, looks like they also do 1100 x 20s which would fit a green goddess - quite a hard size to find! Duncan.
  11. After another seemingly long hiatus there has actually been progress in terms of getting the Q4 back on the road! For a while and despite having the carburetor professionally refurbished, adding quality electronic ignition, refurbishing the electrics etc, it still wouldn't run without either it popping and banging or without it needing petrol pouring straight into the carb. Clearly something wasn't right! The hunt for the guilty parts or parts began... First we discovered that the coke disc in the carb had been put on the wrong way round. Just shows that even pros can make mistakes sometimes! Apparently they had only ever seen these carbs with the choke cable coming in from the top (rather then horizontally) so assumed..... That done it still didn't work and just to add insult to injury it backfired so much that it blew the silencer apart. Okay, it was thin and knackered but..... So another job to do, luckily with some fiddling a Bedford RL silencer fits! Still no luck and after some beard / head scratching the possible reason emerged... A pressure test of the cylinders showed that they were all around 75 psi. Now with an engine that's only done 1,700 miles it's unlikely to be wear. So it suggests that the valves aren't sealing. So with the manifolds off it opened up the horror of masses of black coke on the insides. So, the culprit but that will now involve whizzing the head off too to clean it all out. Why? We suspect that over the years it's been started regularly but not for long, so primarily on the choke, so the carbon has built up but without a good run to burn it all off. Finding new gaskets could have been an issue but thanks to a steer or two on here, Speedy Spares turned up most of the gaskets needed. So, a sweet-running Commer isn't far off.......
  12. Yes, a good result! 😎 Still looking for a sender unit for the Q4.... It's the only part that has really broken, the board inside with resistance wire has broken apart over time... I get the feeling lots of Rootes stuff is proper 'parts bin specials' stuff! 😆 Duncan.
  13. Well, good news! After a bit of to-ing and fro-ing Speedy Spares found most of what I needed. The trick was referencing not only the part numbers but also the Commer / Rootes publication they came from! When I quoted the engine size (4,752 cc) they were confused - no wonder as the Parts List doesn't actually mention the engine size anywhere! (I've still no idea what other Rootes vehicles the 4,752 cc engine was fitted in....). So, they have a head gasket plus water pump gaskets plus manifold hot spot gaskets. Sadly, not the exact manifold gaskets but some very similar so we'll see if they fit! 😎 Duncan.
  14. Super, thanks. Fingers crossed!! 🙏 Duncan.
  15. Thanks Richard - does John Walker have a website, or do you have his contact details? I've dropped Speedy Spares a line, I have tried them in the past for things but no success. You never know.... Cheers, Duncan
  16. Hello all - I'm after some gaskets for the engine in my AFS Commer Q4 truck if anybody has any or knows where I can track some down!! Sadly unlike other vehicles of the same era, such as the Bedford RL, there are no real specialists as far as I'm aware who can help. Yes, I guess there are companies that will manufacture some but I thought I'd try here to first so see if anyone has some hanging around on a shelf in a shed... They're for the 4,752 cc 6 cylinder petrol, which was also fitted to other Routes Group vehicles of the time such as Humbers. I need: - head gasket - 3 part copper gasket for inlet and exhaust manifold (49, 50 & 51 on attached parts list) - gasket which fits between the inlet and exhaust manifold (46 on parts list) - water pump gaskets (photo attached) Funny why we need them - ever since buying it a few years ago (there's a thread in the resto section on here of the early years) it has never really run properly. Refurbished carb, new electrics, positive earth, electronic ignition... The list goes on - pops, bangs etc. So my friend bit the bullet and did a compression test - all around 75 psi, far too low. Manifolds off - lots of heavy, solid carbon build up which is almost certainly why the compression isn't good - the valves aren't sealing. Stands to reason as even though it's only done 1,700 miles it's always been run for short periods with the choke out with no proper running to get rid of the coke. Problem solved but the strip down will need new gaskets! Any help appreciated...! Thanks, Duncan.
  17. I've just messaged the RLC Museum to let them know, along with the BBC link - Fort Paull also has one of the few remaining RCT Berlin Military Train carriages which might be of interest and is certainly worth saving.... Duncan.
  18. Hello All, After a slight hiatus I have declared 2020 to be the 'Year of the Commer' as I seek to get my AFS Q4 (519 ELM) back on the road. One final-ish part to find is a replacement sender unit to sit in the tank. The AC part number is 'Gauge Assembly AC Delco 1519738', the MOD MT part number was LV6/MT1/AC/1519738. The MOD parts manual also gives a number of P.60325. The MOD used Q4s until the 1980s as did the EFS / Home Office so there must be some lurking somewhere! Any clues welcome, I have tried the 'usual' suspect such as Chris Morter etc. Thanks, Duncan.
  19. Green Goddesses excellent value, great fun, simple to keep on the road etc (no air brakes, simple electrics, bombproof mechanicals, lots of spares). Just ensure that a) it's been kept undercover - lots of rotten ones around now which will need mega bodywork repairs sooner or later - ash frame under those panels! (the faded orange stripes are a good indication of it being kept outside) and b) it has as much kit on it as you can as the costs of replacing this can be expensive! Lots on them appear on eBay, some for silly money - £4k should get you a good one. Somebody I know sold one last year which was then immediately put back up for sale by a dealer for around the £10k mark. Er, no. Cheers, Duncan.
  20. Found it after a bit of searching..... The Titan T Hawk 373 Mil, three sizes one of which is 11.00-20 12. It has the Goodyear logo on the website and 'made by Titan' so I can only assume this is the Goodyear bar grip! The blurb says: Originally designed for use on 2 1/2- and 5-ton military trucks, this non-directional cross country tread has proven its durability under tough conditions and has become a standard for various military applications https://www.titan-intl.com/Tires/TITAN-T-HAWK-373-MIL?search=1100?product=373269F?product=373269F Hope that helps, Duncan.
  21. It's going increasingly be a problem for us green goddess owners! The 1100 Avon tyres are the best bet and better road holding than the bar grips. But even decent condition second hand tyres are now ancient and they suffer from the obligatory side wall cracking way before the tread is even fractionally used up! It would be nice to get Avon to manufacture some again - I'm sure they'd have the moulds still - but you'd need a large quantity to order some (to make it worthwhile) and the cost would be substantial no doubt. I'm left wondering what my GG will run on when the last of the Avons I have wear out. I think you can get 1100 bar grips brand new, made by an American firm called Titan? Someone I know with a GG has a set which apparently were sourced via ATS.... Cheers, Duncan.
  22. Sadly the time has come to part with 01GN39. Built in 1977 and entering MOD service in 1978 it was released from service in 1999 after an uneventful life, mostly at Sennybridge. I bought it from Blanchards in 2007, registered it and put it back on the road, making me the first civilian owner. However, it just doesn't get the use it should these days so needs a caring new home; it's on 52,500 miles. Being one of the much rarer S3 109 ambulances (less than 200 made) all the camper stuff is removable and I have all the ambulance gear to go back in. It is very original. What else has been done? Roof vents replaced with Dutch galvanised versions, Turner Stage 1 head fitted, gearbox rebuilt, Fairey Overdrive fitted, Avon Rangemaster 7.50 tyres, chassis waxoyled when I bought it, new NOS Smiths heater motor fitted last year. It is currently SORNd, MOT until Mar 2017 so can be driven away. Selection of spares available by separate negotiation. £4,000 ono.
  23. Even though my Bedford RL green goddess will sit happily at 40-45 mph, I agree with the idea of 'the more visible you are, the better'! Most drivers these days - cucooned in their shells, insulated from the world around them - just don't expect vehicles to be plodding along lane one of duel carriageways at 40..... Mine had rear chevron marker plates fitted in service - for Op Fresco in 02/03- and I replaced these as the old ones were faded. I also bought a magnetic LED yellow beacon - no wiring needed. Not great during the day but much better at night or dawn / dusk. I also have LED bulbs in the front and rear side lights which I use as 'running lights' night and day. Duncan.
  24. Well, after a hiatus of a few months.... Okay, nearly a year.... More progress!! In the interim, the carb has been refitted after refurbishment and the engine timing has now been sorted as per the workshop manual which is fiddly but accurate! But, it still won't really run properly but conversion to electronic ignition in due course might help this! The fuel tank has also been removed for sand blasting. Much electrical work done so now it has working indicators, headlights, fog and reverse lights. Most pleasing - yet probably least important - was getting the interior light and roof-mounted flashing ambers going again. With the headlining reoved the 'new' interior light was fitted and that also enabled us to find the ends of the wires for the ambers that had been cut. With it all back together and new wires and a new switch, it all worked! More details with pictures here: http://commerq4.blogspot.co.uk/ Duncan.
  25. If you follow the RLC Museum's Facebook feed, their DUKW has already arrived and has been displayed! https://www.facebook.com/RoyalLogisticCorpsMuseum/photos/pb.164993333400.-2207520000.1442695604./10152996254618401/?type=3&theater
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