fv1609

If you liked that, you'll probably like this :-D

This has just arrived. There is always a lot of interest in WW1 & WW2 documentation, nice to get definite information from outside these periods. A good insight into Medical Forms and what you should do with them! Simples

Very possibly Chris. Check of course that you have double filament bulbs as a single filament bulb will straddle the contacts & give strange results. As the red tail & brake bulbs are combined with two separate filaments, I would unscrew the lenses & observe directly that with the brake on that it is just the high wattage filaments that are illuminated. With all the lights on but not braking, check that it is only the lower wattage filaments that are illuminating. If the brightness levels are reversed then the bulb holder leads need reconnecting, if there is feint glowing of the other filament then there is an earthing problem on the bulb holder. With everything off I would do a continuity test on the brake switch & make sure it is switching on & off cleanly & not hovering on. Other than that there must be something wongly connected around the switch board.

I would make sure the High/Low charge switch is set to High & that the wiring associated with it is sound. Make sure the points on the vibrating contact regulator are clean, use fine emery cloth then clean with meths. I would follow the fault finding flow chart, most faults I have investigated do not come from the major units themselves but from the cables & connectors linking them.

Nic I think yes fairly minimal, fancy markings would not be a great priority in the circumstances & some vehicles might be frequently repainted to obliterate coloured paint thrown at the vehicles. Then there is the question of what green paint to use for a particular era :-D

To my mind it depends what era you want to depict. Some like to display all the markings that would have ever been on the vehicle during its entire service life including the depot markings that were to be obliterated before issue to a unit. Worth bearing in mind that under CRAOC orders 1977 that heraldic crests & fancy emblems that identify units & formations were to be done away with by March 1978. None the less, particularly these days, unit pride often seems to override these restrictions that were embodied in JSP 341 Chapter 12. If you are depicting NI it is likely that markings would be minimal & later be restricted to the white wing lettering encoding the District & Unit.

I'm still here, but many thanks to work put in by organisers a most enjoyable show again. I found the toiletries were kept well maintained, I think you would agree Rambo as you have a keen eye on these matters

Yes I bet you are, at one stage lighting was very close. Woken up after first strike I realised yagi mast was still up, got that down quickly but the 4 section whips would not easily come out of the base, was a bit scary whilst wrestling with it there was another strike nearby so perhaps not such a clever thing to do!

Impressive set up you have there Andy, thanks for guided tour would have been longer had I not had to exit because of hay fever, managed to bypass total eye closure with 2 hours wearing S6, always a good indicator of how warm it has been

The antenna doesn't have to touch the cable for there to be at risk. A few years ago I was at show with a Pig with a single whip antenna & was parked with other vehicles under some high voltage cables. I was woken in the morning by the sound of hissing, which I thought was from a punctured can of beer. Tracing the source of the noise I found it to be coming from the antenna feed with a one inch spark jumping to the chassis. I most certainly didn't want to step out of the Pig, but drove it away from the power lines. I then alerted all the owners of vehicles under those power lines, giving priority to those with a whip antenna. The reaction was disappointing, nobody took the slightest notice & stated they were not moving for anyone & they were there first. I assume they thought I wanted to pinch their parking spot. :banghead:

FCTB (Firing Circuit Test Box) was used as Mystery Object No. 7

Yes a comprehensive book would be a nice project. Col Val Cockle was undertaking this task as he was the Malkara Project Liaison Officer, a couple of his researchers (one ex-Fairey & the other ex-BAC) came to see the Hornet I had. One was involved in Orange William & the transition to Malkara, the other designed the elements of the separation kit & was on user trials). Sadly, Val died & the project was not completed but his papers I believe are at Shrivenham. Although I have done articles in Pegasus & The Tank with an expansion of them in CC HMVF a whole book is a bit of a challenge in terms of time. But I did write the Hornet/Malkara chapter here, see post # 116 http://hmvf.co.uk/forumvb/showthread.php?14901-What-book-are-you-reading-at-the-moment/page12 I know Cyclops people feel their coverage in the book wasn’t as extensive as it might have been. Back to your photo that I’ve not seen before. This is 21BK83 Prototype P2 converted to Hornet in July 1961, FVRDE Wing No. 6092 & struck off 12/2/71. There are a large number of characteristics to show it was a prototype. A – Early tow hitch B - Rear exhaust C – No large step & storage locker (Tea, brewing, equipment – I am told!) D – Mount for range finder E – Difficult to see but seems to have no jerrycan holder which at this stage is other side F – No rubber shroud for controller’s sight G – No mount for GPMG (Later provided at a cost of £22,000 per vehicle!!) H – No holder for range finder I – No fan cowl as still using the non-transistorised power unit for GCU, so no room for fan J – No latching clamps to steady launcher arm laterally when down. Puts strain on yaw ram. K – Smoke dischargers not yet fitted, you should be able to the the top of them. It looks as if the Hornet was undergoing its daily tests. Item L is the FCTB (Firing Circuit Test Box) that mounts on the launcher arm & the two multi-way plugs to engage the firing circuits. Item M is hard to make out but it most likely is the LAAT (Launcher Arm Alignment Telescope FV 483015) although that has to be fitted to the side of a missile & may have just been left there hanging on its bungee?

Did you mean dimensionally John? As the drawing in the IPC is a bit wonky.

All ok now Terry thanks for posting. The black looks gloss & patterns much like the Hornets of Para Sqn RAC in 1965.

"Men Against Tanks" it is good authoritative read on anti-tank warfare. It explains the origin of WOMBAT, which contrary to on line enclyclopedia & some books is nothing whatever to do with Weapon of Magnesium....which is utter nonsense :nut:

Nope.

Thank you for the blow up of the locker but it is the hasp I need to see to determine the ratio of central hasp hinge piece to the side supports. Originally 1/3 1/3 1/3 but replaced by 1/4 1/2 1/4 thereby increasing the strength of the hasp. As for the antenna mounts all Pigs have 3 antenna mounts, two near-side, one off-side front irrespective of whether it was FV1611 ie APC or FV1613 Ambulance with 12A generator or FV1612 FFW with 25A generator. FV1612 FFW converted to FFR had an extra antenna mount on off-side rear, this was locally made & sometimes differed slightly from the other three. Incidentally to contradict books & many online sources Hornets were NOT modified Pigs, in fact they were built on the chassis of FV1601 trucks that were not even FFW. Yes Hansard takes a lot wading through, my favourite quote is when they get to discuss "salad in armoured cars" Regarding Triplex West the Robin McNish book "Iron Division, History of the 3rd Division" he records that Carver wanted the conspicuous Hornet/Malkara to be replaced by Vigilant. Although final Vigilant evaluation was, according to two sources, to take place in June 1964, but two different sources say it went into service in 1963. The point of Malkara being fully operational is hard to say perhaps June/July 1964 in "Game Bird" or 24 August when FVRDE declared in Report FT/B60 that Hornets had high performance, reliability & systems compatibility ie vehicle control system & missile was proved. But by November only 70% of Cyclops were parachute qualified. So I suppose 1965 1st Feb when the system was handed over to Para Sqn RAC or 3rd Feb when Sqn became part of 16 Para Brigade? Although I'm a bit of an Orange William fan myself, as per my avatar.

Enzus I would forget about RAL for British vehicles of that period. I think you will find "light sand" is BSC 381C No. 361 Light Stone. PS Green of that period would be BSC 381C No.224 Deep Bronze Green, High Gloss.

Not necessarily I bought a large roll of this Trakmark from Withams 25 years ago that was maroon, although the yachting industry made use of several different colours. But I know the beige shade you mean, I have roll of that. It will withstand 200 deg C without fuming or melting just goes hard & crusty & black, so the designation on it of "flameproof" is valid. Not on a Mk 1 but some was provided on Mk 2. Unfortunately foam underneath melts & burns with toxic fumes at relatively low temperatures. There was an article HMVF but it has gawn but the original is on my site here: http://www.shorlandsite.com/images/Shorlands,%20Humbers,%20Fire%20&%20Trakmark%20Article%202016-v2.pdf I hope your airborne attack eases up & you can return to normal service soon.

But on a hot day they are not likely to be closed. The only time they might be closed would be after dark then they might not be visible anyway?

ERM = Equipment Registration Mark so could be vehicle, trailer, concrete mixer, generator Ah I thought you were going to ask how I knew the other one that has an antenna mount is not FFR nor FFW. Where the profile of the Pig changes from parallel to tapered towards the doors will indicate the maker that is determined by the type of vertical bar used. Early Sankey ones have rather strange catches on the side flaps. Might be difficult to see but the one furthest on the right might be best. If I can have a close up of the front locker hasp I can tell you whether it was OEM or a replacement that had an improvement.

Available in any colour provided you want green. Given that the purpose of the tilt was provide some thermal insulation it might seem curious not to have a stone coloured version but I think the mindset was still Malaya for which the FV1609 was originally conceived & all Pigs had a machete holder. This lack of thought about stone continued. I have 18 Cmd Wksps minutes for the design of FV1624 (Malkara system repair). It was queried that the truck had no heater, but it was pointed out that the expected theatre of use it would be hot enough. Large fold out tent workshops were provided for this truck complete with sand/dust proof flooring. No they were not sand coloured but small pattern green/black disruptive, I believe it was decided later trucks (2) were to have more appropriate tentage.

19 BK 05 well we can see why it was struck off on 10/12/65 in BAOR Despite that antenna base it is not FFR nor FFW. Curiously has an armoured extractor fan, these become more plentiful with more equipment, not a standard fitment on an APC. Its chum in front is marked BER, as if there could be any doubt. No great loss to the Army I suppose, as from mid 60s onwards Pigs were being discarded. My first Pig was auctioned off in 1967 & realised £40. No idea about the other picture, wish someone would present me with a Pig on a plaque.

I've only watched one episode then gave up.

Something very interesting I have just noticed on the rear side hatches of the Pigs. Along with other armoured vehicles of the time the interior was bare metal covered with non-burning aluminium 'paint'. The exception was that side hatches would be painted the colour of the basic vehicle & I note this has been done on the side door hatches. However someone has given thought to this & realised light stone insides of the rear side flaps would contrast badly with the green canvas, so very sensibly they have been painted in a dark colour. In fact it is quite unusual to see a desert painted Pig actually with a roof canvas, which was after all what it was intended for. Some Pigs in BAOR seemed to use the canvas as a handy storage pouch.