fv1609

As far as availability goes "BS 381 Colours for ready mixed paints" of 1931 (pre-dating the 3-digit system of BSC 381 of 1948) gives the codes as: 1 Sky blue 16 Eau de Nil Quite when these were used in Service applications I don't know. There is no mention of them at all in a FVDD Specification dated 1948. But as far as the original engine colour goes it says "The manufacturer's standard finish can be accepted for Power Units and Exhaust Systems for all classes of vehicles." So there is some scope for variation in colour for power units from different manufacturers but of the same era.

Perhaps the owner should claim that he carried out a Disability Access Assessment. As there was no proper wheelchair access he would be acting in a discriminatory way if he allowed it to be open to the public & therefore must deny access to all. I know of two commercial premises that have closed their public lavatories as the nature of the site doesn't allow the construction of a lavatory for the use of disabled people. So now nobody can go to the lavatory. In addition perhaps he could do a Biodiversity Impact Policy Assessment & hope to discover some endangered slug or tic that lives in the area that would threaten its habitat if public access was allowed.

Yes I was surprised that it was RN. I can't read much from the picture of the label, it would be a nice clincher if there was a Domestic Management Code in there. Assuming I read it correctly as 8405-99-571-7089 it has a change of NSC giving 8415-99-571-7089. This must be the same item as the NIIN is unique. The database I have access to will show individual Service vocabulary codes & often the design spec eg FV, DEFSTAN, NES etc With this item there are only two other references. UK1SC4110-2 which I assume this is a design spec as it refers to the Defence Clothing & Textile Agency, Bicester. 73772 which must be a naval vocabulary reference as it is attributed to MOD(NAVY), Ensleigh, Bath There are no RAF or Army cross references.

Navy NSC for this item 8405 (Outwear, Mens) changed to 8415 (Clothing, Special Purpose)

If you look at Terry Gander's The Modern British Army Third edition, inside the front cover is a double page B&W picture of at least 4 FV432s with Rarden turrets in Berlin camo in an Allied Forces Day Parade.

It looks like a Queen's Crown, could this not be VR?

Do you want to try making some Blanco? http://1914-1918.invisionzone.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=50457&st=0&p=430667&hl=+make%20+blanco&fromsearch=1entry430667

Well I know what it is, but I don't want it!

Room for a little one in your box Richard? I don't use any of that stuff either. As it is I struggle to keep up with emails that generally have a high technical/research content that take up a lot of time. It might be different if I was stuck in a hospital bed or something with time on my hands. Although retired I find I just don't have enough time to do real things. I'll shortly be out in the sheds working on the Shorland again. I have just come in for food & a warm up, then back in at midnight I expect.

Looks like he taking no chances trying to steal the lady's chocolates :-D

Both the Shorlands in these trials were 2A Land Rovers & there are some early sales brochures. http://www.shorlandsite.com/WhatsNew.htm

Iain some of that is the original paintwork & some I have touched in. It is the same colour but a matt finish as it was zinc chromate primer. You used to see lots of it around for £10 for 5 litres, nobody seemed that bothered about having an authentic primer as it got covered up, so it was nice & cheap. But I found use for it in my ambulance & the cipher office

Quite a time since the Nile looked this colour. This inside my Cipher Office.

Eau de Nil was widely used an interior paint especially in certain offices, signal vehicles & ambulances.

Tony I don't pretend to understand the various ways in which soldiers were identified by Regimental & Service Numbers, I am more at home identifying books by their reference numbers! But with a short 5-digit Service Number it would not be unique, so a prefix was used. L then later G was used for Home Counties Regiments, which would seem to fit in here. Other examples T for ASC, S for Territorial Force, but I have never seen a complete listing or a comprehensive explanation of the various system in use. Nor an explanation of how, when a new system was introduced, was soldier already serving accommodated into the system. There must be an article somewhere I would have thought?

I think that would be a good move. There are some nice looking Avo 8 meters on e bay. I would go for a Mk 4, 5 or 6. I find the scale on Avo 7 very difficult to read & the ranges are not so good. It is worth paying more for one in a leather case (that could cost you £20 separately) & complete with leads & clips (again that could cost you another £20 separately) also try to get one with a new 15v battery fitted Get an undertaking from the seller that it is fully working on all ranges. If it is untested then you don't know if it is untested or tested but not working. Perhaps try to buy from a dealer who has several eg selling a batch withdrawn from a college where they have gone digital. There are the usual crop of multimeters sold as Avometers, when they most certainly are not Avometers. I bought a nice Avo 8 last year but both batteries were corroding and it was inaccurate on some voltage ranges. So check it out as soon as you get it, I'm glad I checked mine. The dealer doesn't accept returns, but he accepted this one. It was replaced by a nice one & he paid my return postage. Many EMERs will give readings measured on Avo 7, 8 or 12, so it is nice to measure the resistance with the same meter quoted when it comes diode testing as it will vary with the meter. The Avo 12 is rare but nice, designed for automotive use with a current range of 36A without a shunt. Low ohms per volt so some weedy micro current stray voltage won't budge the needle. Not like a digital meter which will detect it, in fact even an expensive military Fluke I have displays reading of voltage or resistance when you are not even measuring anything. I can't be done with nonsense like that! In fact last year was a good avo year, I bought an Avo 8 and two Avos 12. There are no Avos 12 on e bay at the moment. But if you search for "Avo 12" you'll get lots of hits like this http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/AVO12-New-Sexy-Chic-Women-Sleeveless-Backless-Party-Cocktail-Dress-Ribbon-Belt-/150701625254?pt=UK_Women_s_Dresses&hash=item2316844fa6

Ian ok so the Mk 4 panel is NBG, but at least it shows generator output to SK1 Pin A is ok & the lead from PL2 Pin E is ok for the charge light to be working normal. Worth investigating further as you must be getting some output to drive the bulb out. As Pin A is connected to X you are getting output from the main winding & diodes. Worth putting a meter on X & seeing if that goes up with revs, it must be to some degree to drive the light off. Anyway going back to the Mk 3 panel, I would measure the resistance between A & E. One way should read 250 ohms the other way 38 ohms or so. But use an analogue meter not a digital. Digital will not forward bias the diode into conduction adequately like an analogue meter. I know some digitals have a diode test facility that does bias the diode, but here you have a resistor in parallel & it may give a misleading result when you are in effect measuring the voltage drop across the diode when it is conducting. Before you dismantle it to get to the diode again. You could disconnect A or E then jump leads to A & E with a replacement diode & resistor, then see what the charge light does.

Yup, nice dry day. Quite a few bargains sold:D Funny thing is some of them I have been lugging up there for years.

Might be worth taking off the driving flange (1) & checking the locking nut (3) is still held tight by the bent over edge of the lock washer (4)

Wayne meant to say, the terminal looks to be like that used inside the type of shunt box fitted with the single ammeter. The mounting on a bracket though is unfamiliar to me.

Wayne the DMC of 9ACR is for tracked carriers & armoured ambulances, spare parts. So predominantly FV432, it may well do the job though. Ideally Rover parts for yours would carry the DMC of 7RU or earlier it was LV7/RU. (DMC= Domestic Management Code) PS Welcome to 2012

Good man that's the spirit!

Iain well done, D4 is an awkward one to get at & well done diagnosing it. Neglecting the dimness of the light, is it actually charging ok?

In a POWER EMER it indicates that it is acceptable to use use a Mk 4 Panel in what was originally a set up for a Mk 3 Panel ie having the Mk 2 Generator. But the other way round the the charge light won't work, but it will still charge. As it had the authority of an EMER, I accepted it at face value when I wrote the first ACU article. When I wrote ACU4 I delved further into the history of the auxiliary diodes in the Mk 3 Generator. You can see in ACU4 that three different types of diode were used, each time increasing in their power handling so much so that modern alternators handling these loads have auxiliary diodes of similar properties to the main diodes. The problem is that the auxiliary supply in the Mk 4 Panel has much higher demands as it feeds into the field regulation, in the earlier panels it just had to power the BCK relay. So we have these various diode failures in the generator designed to give adequate auxiliary output yet the earlier types were prone to fail. I feel that if you use a Mk 2 generator with even weedier diodes they are likely to fail sooner or later. Although it surprises me this has never been alluded to in an EMER. But for a short substitution test I'm sure you would get away with it. There may well be people who will come on & say they use the "wrong" combination for years & it would be interesting to hear such reports. But it's not a set up I would want to run on my vehicle. You said you "changed an internal diode" where was that?