draganm

So I ran across this truck local to me and I'm toying with the idea of getting it and seeing if I can get it running. Assuming it needs everything, distributor cap, wires, carb. re-built, obviously tires, and possibly even an engine overhaul with new bearings and piston rings. Not to mention all the other stuff like tires, axle and transfer case bearings, seals, etc. What kind of cash outlay am I looking at and how hard are the parts to find? Are we talking a few Thousand dollars or $10K. Just talking mechanical here, not bodywork or cosmetics. http://cosprings.craigslist.org/cto/5441737902.html Last but not least, I don't have a ranch style property. Is this truck small enough to fit in a typical 2 car garage? (too tall?)

here it is, does anyone know if this ever went past the salvage rights (paperwork) stage?

I sure hope you guys are just " Avin a Laff" as salvage diving at "only 20M down" is still dangerous as hell. There's a reason why the guys that do this professionally charge an arm and a leg just to re-float someones fiberglass boat in 60 feet of water. At 80 feet a 5 minute decompression before surfacing is still required, never mind the hazards of getting tangled or caught up in the wreck. the only way this makes any sense is paying professionals and then salvaging all the vehicles to spread the cost across across as many re-sellable units as possible. Didn't Mr. Kevin salvage some E-boat Engines not too long ago from the coast of Denmark or some such? He could porbably throw out a good estimate if someone can ask him?

rough condition but all there with engine and tranny, no drive shafts $750. http://cosprings.craigslist.org/cto/5441737902.html

you gotta admit, that's would be a really cool thing to own. Is that a Potato masher storage box in front?

I don't know cruiser tank design very well , were there no shells stored in the turret? It first I wondered if the tank was loaded with ordinance at all, but if in fact it was headed for a D-day beach then a full combat load is all but guaranteed. The cost here would be pretty tremendous though, first of all you have to ascertain if there were any casualties at the site, if so then it's a war grave and no touch. Even if it isn't ,I would expect just salvage permitting and paperwork would be substantial, then hiring a diver with ordinance handling background, an ocean going dredge or crane to haul those things out. I would expect the cost anywhere from 200K euros to 2 or 3 times that amount. where's some crazy Russians when you really need them.

aww c'mon guys, haven't you seen those videos of Russians pulling T34's and KV1's out of rivers and swamps? They just pull the shells out and toss em on the ground. Don't tell me the Russians have grown bigger bollocks than the Brits since WW2?

only 20 meters of water! time to pull that puppy out and restore it :-)

IS2 heavy ? says it's Iturup, one of the Kuril's. Also says the scrap metal there has no value, probably pick it up for a song

doesn't look like it, the UK MOD plans to keep the C2 going and is just starting life extension studies this year. http://www.defensenews.com/story/defense/land/vehicles/2015/10/11/uk-army-extend-life-challenger-2-new-tank-too-costly/73410010/ The T14 might change that, with the all "Russians are coming" hysteria being whipped up. Whether it's enough to change public opinion and bloat the defense budget is another matter. Seems it's harder to spread propaganda these days. Like surrounding Russia proper with NATO bases and then claiming "were under attack" LOL at any rate, an armored Russian charge thru the Chunnel seems about as unlikely as an alien invasion, so Chally 2 should be fine for decades to come.

looks like the G13 in Poland? http://www.milweb.net/classifieds/view_large.php?ad=79962&cat=1

this is just too cool to miss. Ruskies take us inside their new combat platform and demonstrate target tracking, gun laying, and firing. Shows just 2 crew positions, commander and driver, suggestions are that there is or will be a gunners position but the commander can fully operate the gun from his position , which used to be the old bow gunner/radio operator position. One interesting observations that maybe some of you former armor guys can comment on. The older T series, due to their low profile, the gun would need to fully elevated in order for the auto-loader to engage the breech. On the T14 at around the 12 minute mark, just after the 1st round and prior to the second, they show the gun fully depressing. Is this a carry-over with the new mechanism reversed or? with the auto loader still presumably in the chassis of the vehicle it's an interesting question but they do not take us inside the turret. At any rate it looks like an impressive platform

while we're at it and playing " virtual Panther restoration" looks like that puppy needs some headlights too . wonder what a pair of these would fetch? http://www.milweb.net/webvert/a1714

I was wondering where that Diff, came from I'm impressed you know it's a Bedford, as it appears the seller does not Panther box http://www.milweb.net/classifieds/view_large.php?ad=79914&cat=

if anyone has a contact for the Axis track team or the AAAM folks maybe point them to this Panther stowage box, right side. Considering just sheetmetal construction, This has to be extremely rare being shown with original war time paint on it (presumably) http://www.milweb.net/classifieds/view_large.php?ad=79860&cat=8 looks like it's in Italy

surviving panzers website shows 16 vehicles left, including yours, the H35 on the beach in France, and the 3 chassis in the Becker collection. A very rare vehicle indeed. what engine was in the H39 ? IT shows the H35 had a six-cylinder 3,480 cc , 78 hp. The H39 had a 120 horsepower 6 cylinder , displacement of ?cc. Best chance of finding an engine/gearbox might ASPHM association or Becker collection. Assuming he's willing to part with any of his treasure https://www.flickr.com/photos/bestarns/8531612645/in/album-72157632907384026/ otherwise, and FV432 set-up is another option

well I can believe that, I do mostly stainless and AL, and most of it has to be gas/water tight, so ultra clean welds are the rule. For Structural welding on steel however I don't think is very important short of really greasy or extremely scaly stuff. if it's war time damage, versus target range hits, isn't the conventional wisdom to leave it be? just curious makes sense, the life expectancy for a WW2 tank was what, 2 weeks? It wasn't headed to a car show

do you recall what you used or what was readily available, cold rolled 1018 or hot rolled A36? Or did you custom order foundry plate? the scaling on the hot roll would make for much increased prep time no?

she's a beauty alright what's the red stuff over the bolts, anti-sieze, thread locker, or just lube/grease? I've never actually worked with BSF bolts other than to marvel at the odd specs in the machinists handbook, 28 degree root angle or some such.

Being a machinist, welder, and metal worker One thing I've been curious about is WW2 tank armor. Some quick research shows that the general rolled homogeneous Armor (RHA) is roughly equivalent to today's 4XXX series of molybdenum steels, approx. 4340 or thereabouts. I can see they vary the percentages of silicon or nickel or whatever by a few tenths of a percentage point depending on thickness, application, etc. So my question is when these guys are restoring lets say a Panther or some other tank with really thick plate where there's a huge hole blown thru it, what's the general approach here? Do they 1) replace the entire piece with the same thickness and alloy plate? this would appear really unlikely as simply finding a chunk of specialty steel that's 6 feet square and 3 inches thick would seem unlikely 2) patch the hole with a thinner piece of metal , using a common grade of low carbon steel and a filler rod designed for fusing dissimilar metals 3) find a donor vehicle and cut parts off it, but with something super rare where every chassis is worth a mint, doesn't seem viable 4) replace the entire piece with a large chunk of thinner low carbon steel. Seems like this would make fitting the drivers visor and bow gun difficult as they're designed for a much thicker plate? However I do believe the Littlefield/Collins Panther turret, which was a full re-pop and maybe used mild steel that was water jet or plasma cut and then welded together based on a CAD model one of their tech guys created. So how exactly would you restore this ?

I'm sure the details on this are on a "need to know" but looks like an HL120 that was on Milweb while back and it appears ground-dug to me. Any chance we'll find out what the other engines are? besides the HL120 and the NL83 https://www.warhistoryonline.com/war-articles/121862.html from War History online

came across this archive on a Photographers web-site showing the Yugoslav National army in the post-war period. Very interesting mix of vehicles and equipment ranging from Soviet T34's and 55's, To Shermans, Jacksons, Hellcats, to what looks like German sub-machine guns and Mg42's. Any guesses on this one? Soviet YA-12? http://dimitrijeostojic.com/blog/izgubljeni-negativi/ Dimiti Ostojic Photography

thanks. you can really see it in the pics of the pics, T35 is really almost a direct copy of the Vickers. Amazing that this "rolling pillbox" design from 1925 made it all the way to and thru WW2.

they're not wasting any time on this are they? turret off, gun pulled out . I Remembered in S-2 when they visited Alex in the Czech republic, back when he had the huge 50 tons of Tiger bits. Bruce bought the Panther Gyro-compass and now we know where it might be heading. Suggests this deal with Cadman collection was a long time in the making.

the saddles that hold the recoil pistons and base of the gun, are they Brass or just painted that color? I'm amazed at how complicated thing is. You always hear about the German armor being so complex, difficult to manufacture and maintain, etc. Do you feel the British vehicles are on par in that regard? I remember reading a US army evaluation of a British cruiser vs. a Sherman, went something like the Sherman need major maintenance every 250 hours of field duty, the cruiser every 100 to 125? beautiful looking workwere you able to Lathe turn these with a live center and steady rest follower or did you centerless grind ?