john1950

A few photos of Saturday on the range. A contingent from Kent brought up a Panzer 68 powered by a 37 ltr supercharged MTU engine, a brace of CVRT''s, a brace of Foden recovery truck's, a 434 and possibly some other items. They made quite a spectacle on the course. There were several other vehicles being driven with gusto around the site. It was my first time at the event being a guest in a support role but with luck I will be back next year.  

Quality work

I was trying to count the Bedford MW's before putting my hand up.

No springs on the cab mountings!

Not many of those about for sale. could it be out of a fire engine?

Ongoing maintenance to keep aged vehicles on the road comes with ownership. When you post items like this it gives other people an idea of just what is involved. No moths in your wallet.

That looks like a 4 cylinder distributor. 

A top notch restoration.

One problem with these trucks is they were made for young fit people to get in and out of.

It's been a long haul but the end result is the cat's whiskers.

Have you checked to see when it was last taxed?

Mat Foster at Matador HQ may be able to help. If you have Facebook he is on there.

I have these Meritor brake callipers with numbers 599F. 9F10. 9F25. and 6000 stamped on them.  

I went down to Elvington's Thunder day yesterday. Various aircraft doing run up's, including the Nimrod and Victor. I see the Chieftain has had a coat of paint since my last visit. It seemed to be a well attended event.

Health problems don't help. Great to see you are keeping going. There was a load of RL and S type cab panels and bits on Facebook's Bedford site recently.

I have seen a few sleepers for sale recently, they were mostly sporting long splits. When you look at good ones the price doubled so making it very expensive. Another to go may be used telegraph poles and cut them to length. 

Threads do not vanish they remain as a reference for years to come. One thing there appears to be very little input from female forum members.

You have to go with whatever is affordable. Whichever way you go stay safe. Sometimes a trip to a local scrapyard or demolition yard will pay dividends or even a Sawmill. 

Tyre management is about slowing down deterioration, It is about taking mitigating measures. Several Museums closed for short periods last year because of worries about vehicle tyres. Some bits below from my tool box when I used to look after tyres.

Unfortunately time is taking it's toll on this forum. We have lost some big contributors in the last few years. With the likes of Degsy and ThomoT crossing the bar they are big shoes to fill. I do not think there are the numbers of youngsters coming through, they also use social media to inter act. But the ones who are still here keep a friendship going even though they probably have never met. Big restorations are so expensive now there are fewer of them being undertaken. 

There have been instances of tyres exploding in sunlight or vehicles kept inside. Tyre pressures have been known to nearly double on sunny days on vehicles kept behind glass. Tyre management does not stop even if the vehicle rarely moves. A good coat of tyre black does help, or other propriety products. For safety blocking the vehicle up either with axle stands or wood blocks is prudent. Keep a tyre foot print on the ground for vehicle stability but reduce the air pressure in the tyre. Turning the tyres periodically will help to stop sidewall cracking. On a flat bottom vehicle look inside of the hull for any ribs or strength braces and work with the hull, spread the load. 

Anyone going to 16.03.24 Elvington Museum Thunder Day?

I have a pair of Meritor brake callipers NATO number 02530-01-577-8034. I wondered if anyone knew what they fitted.

Internal square is for the inner tubular wheel nut on a twin wheel axle some GMC 343's had twin fronts to be able to use a front mounted crane. I have not been able to look this week as the weather has been against me and other things, as soon as I can I will start looking again.

40mm is the critical bit. those ones are only 33mm roughly.