fv1609

Ok so it looks like 23 BK 80. This was originally struck off on 22/8/69 for £55 & recovered to NI on 17/11/72 for up-armouring in Op Bracelet. Finally struck off as a range target in 24/8/94. A rather ignominious end. Again early Mk 2 still with sheet metal visors over Mk 1 visors. But now wing mirrors moved to midway down the engine bay. Might seem unusual to see a Mk 2 with no barricade ram but the EMER for this upgrade was only issued in 1975. High vis red patches on both vehicles typical of early 1970s. The Wheel Barrow I believe is a Mk 5.

Yes you can touch it & sniff it to get the full experience.:cool2: I used to have spare in some cases quadruplicates, they are long since gone. But I do have just one duplicate left but I can't find it so don't start getting excited yet. :-D

Looking at the off-side wing locker it seems to have been crushed quite badly. I would thought that lid would have been written off because the current lid looks pretty straight. This lid must have come from another Pig as the ratio of the central hasp to the side bits on the lid are all equal. The replacement lids had a different ratio to give improved width for the hasp which could break off easily. The hasp on new lid was half the total length (not a third) & the lid side supporting tubes for the hinge were a quarter each (not a third). When I say replacement lids these were NOS for Mk 1, they were not re-manufactured for NI. When front wings were replaced in NI they were a little thicker, had no lockers & were strengthened underneath by two parallel U sections rather than the original diagonal cruciform arrangement.

You would have thought the repair could have withstood the ERM being painted on again! But I suspect as the sign writer made such a good job on the bonnet there was no point changing it back.

It is satisfying for us teasing out these details which on a casual glance may not mean too much to non enthusiasts (of Humbers). I'm glad you can rightly gain satisfaction for airing these personal archives for us to share. Thank you it is so nice to see fresh material. I thought I had a picture of 15 BK 54 as a Mk 1, but can't find it. This is an early Mk 2 still has the early sheet metal visors over the Mk 1 visors ie no vision blocks yet. Extended wing mirrors near doors (unlike Mk 1 mirrors on door hinges) not yet reached midway on the engine bay & moved to front wings in 1977. Unusual RSJ type barricade removers, these pre-date Mk 2 & were left over from their earlier NI Mk 1 role. In fact there were at least two of these RSJ type Mk1 Pigs in Bloody Sunday which of course pre-dates Op Bracelet up armouring. Very unusual to see the ERM on the 'bonnet' with these RSJ rams it was usually on the top bar on nearside. But something has happened or been done to this ram as there are pieces welded on the nearside. This type of flat ram is based on the RUC designed ram fitted to 3077 EZ, although that was more sophisticated being adjustable & slightlty snow-plough in shape. I surprised the offside locker is not locked or secured with a nut & bolt thus preventing 'stuff' being planted. The marking below the ERM looks like A/F 3/73 when the anti-freeze was changed or due to be changed. I see the Truncheon, wood, hickory not an Army item the Domestic Management Code for these shows it is RN Shore Patrol equipment!

Excitement surely? :-D

That was a nice surprise. If I had just got the 2nd digit of the first 2-digit block I could probably have worked out the registration. Of course the first digit would be limited to 0, 1, 2 or 3. So it was either a FV1611 or FV1612 FFW but seems not modified to FFR.

That's no problem. A thank you says it all & is perfectly adequate, we all try & help each other on here when we can. I have been watching your thread on S2C forum, have a IIA myself

If it is in white may well be one of these markings. "The previous regulations issued in March 1975 were soon to be outmoded by the Defence Review later that year. The implications of it took a little while to filter through into new regulations. The thrust of the review was a “one Army concept” ie TAVR and Regular Units are to be treated alike including the elimination of markings that make such distinctions, together with markings that are not strictly necessary. These changes were to be completed by certain dates within the year starting 1st April 1977. Disbandments defined dates by which some signs would become obsolete anyway, notably the disbandment of the 3rd Division in the UK on 31st July 1977 and HQ 19 Airportable Brigade on 31st March 1978. The new vehicle signs comprise two elements separated by an oblique stroke. The first element. This consists of numbers or letters, which indicate the formation or district to which the vehicle belongs. The second element. This consists only of numbers and will be specific to the unit that the vehicle belongs. Example: SW/10 is HQ Sowdist. SE/21 is a unit in South East District not allotted to any operational formation. 2/40 is the Army Air Corps Squadron of 6th Brigade These signs in WHITE, based on a self-adhesive clear film, are to be 27mm/96 Point in height. They are to be displayed on vehicles on the front (offside) and at the rear. The sign should be at the lowest vertical surface immediately above the bumper, where no vertical surface is available then the angled forward edge of the bonnet above the headlamps is to be used."

Here you are Mr Box

Thank you very interesting on several grounds. It is an early Mk 2 ie uparmoured in Op Bracelet, but it doesn't yet have the large vision block for driver & passenger. At this stage it still has the original visors but fitted with additional sheet visors with a hole for the No.17 Periscope. The original lockered front wings are still there, not been smashed up to warrant the repro wings. Also very early 1970s is the red glow patch at the top of the radiater, I expect there were similar ones & the sides & rear. Early flyer with the mesh screens. 03 BK 20 was originally a FV1613 ie Mk 1 Ambulance then it was converted to FV1611 APC role in NI & uparmoured. But it was later converted back to a FV1613 but of course now a Mk 2 Ambulance. It was struck off to Skyddsvant Sweden on 2/4/94 It was later owned by Adam who was active on this forum until a couple of years ago until he sold it. If you go back probably in the Humber Pig Pictures thread you will find pictures of it. In fact you will find another picture of it still as a flyer that I posted up.

69 AA 05 was Lot No.496 sold at OSDD Ruddington Vehicle Park No.3 on the first day of a 4-day sale on Tuesday 1st October 1968 I'll scan you a page when I've got more time just spent 20 minutes looking for that. :-D

Mick welcome, you are leaning on an open door here. Do you have any Pig pictures to share or can recall the registrations of any of your favourites? I have a lot of Humber pictures here catalogued by registrations & have histories of many.

Richard that's interesting then. I wonder when the Canadians twigged the advantages of a shunt? This 1941 Berlin document seems to be instructions for a retro-conversion. Hmm now where can I take a picture of such an example?

Thank you Gordon, in that link it was nice to see some original screened fittings. So often even in relatively modern vehicles the screened system is ripped out & dumped. I suppose I can see the temptation to rip it out, but few people consider keeping it so a future owner could make use of it. Adrian thank you, the few WW2 British vehicles I have looked at with a screened system don't seem to have had a ballast resistor either. I suspect at that time (1941) that it was only the Germans who realised how to overcome the capacitive effect of the screened HT cables by reducing the time constant by loading the LT with resistance to reduce the effect of the inductance of the coil.

Were any WW2 US vehicles fitted with a screened ignition system? If so were they 12v or 24v? If there were any, did they use a ballast resistor? I did find one GMC that once had a screened ignition system, but the owner thinks it was a later modification by the Dutch Army & it has long since been removed.

For 2 years now I have been trying to look inside a WW2 German vehicle that has a screened ignition system. Apart the disappointment of finding many "German" vehicles are actually based on FV432s or Land Rovers, I have found only one genuine vehicle but the screened ignition has long since gone. Does anyone know a vehicle type that used a screened ignition system and incorporated a ballast resistor?

Yes the Pig is booked in.

Toby the Met had two Mk 2 Pigs painted dark blue. Only action as far as I know was practising demolishing barricades consisting of piled up chairs in the waste ground where they built that dome thing. They have long since got rid of them. One went to a collector in Scotland. There was a Mk 1 commandeered from a private owner for use in the Balcombe Street siege. I have posted a picture of that previously.

That Pig was struck off on 26/8/84 to the Range Officer Swynnerton (if I have read the handwriting correctly)

Ok I'm with you I expect I can find a spare one of those. I could have done it today. But off to a show first thing tomorrow so will have to be Monday.

I meant just draw a squiggle or an arrow on a photo of the carb itself. I have several not so wonderful carbs here. If it is a small item I can just shove it in an envelope in a post box. But wrapping a larger item & making a special trip to a PO requires much more effort

Might be able to help. Can you just identify the bit you are after by marking it on a picture?

It is true to say that Sky Blue appeared in 1948 as BSC381C 101. However Sky Blue was already in use 1931 as BS381 1. At that time the BS381 was one or two digits. In 1948 the three digit system was incorporated into what then became BS381C. 100-199 being allocated to blue & turquoise. Thus Sky Blue was redefined as 101