Great War truck

Sorry. I couldn't get the Craiglsist link to work and thought it was another one. Well done anyway. Pleased that it has gone to a good home.

Yes, they are indeed very good. I was considering the complexities and expense of recovering a DD from India. The solution, very complex and very expensive. I hope someone does it though.

A drop of paint and part completed. The Brake Shoes line up nicely with the drum – next job to paint the Shoes before the linings are fitted.

With the silver soldering completed and the temporary nuts and bolts removed, the holes in the Keeper Plate were opened up by drilling and boring to their final diameter of 1”. Before completing the shaping of the Plate, it was slipped over the Fulcrum Pins, just to make sure that it fitted. Then it was a case of rounding off the ends – a nice filing and hacksawing job!

With the Transmission Brake Shoes now completed and adjusted to hang in their final positions, the Keeper and Stiffening Plate can also be trial-fitted. This item is not listed or described in the Parts Book but our earlier research from other Thornys showed us what was required. The first picture here shows just half of the equivalent Plate on the Carlton Colville Lorry. This plate drops over the Fulcrum Pins, outside the Brake Shoes and serves two purposes – it retains the shoes in their correct position and also helps support the Pins when pressure is applied to the brake. It is made from a length of 3/8” x 2” Steel bar but with four discs of 1/16” thick, 2” diameter steel, silver soldered on the bar – one on each side of each end. The discs were held in position with temporary nuts and bolts for the silver soldering after which they were removed. The original part is similarly thicker at the ends and was presumably made by forging – our silver soldered discs at the end of our new part is designed to replicate the original.

That looks great. Where did you find that?

The machined Brake Shoes in position. Painting next and then fit the linings.

A couple more pictures of the machining set-up and the machined item at this stage.

The first Brake Show bored out for its Fulcrum Pin and trial-fitted. It rather looks as if the Fulcrum Pin will have to have its shoulder machined back a little as the Brake Shoe is over lapping the Brake Drum on the outside – nearest to the camera. Easily remedied – but not yet –wait until the other one has been done!

The Brake Shoe clamped up to the Brake Drum and rotated against the point of the “dummy” Fulcrum Pin.

The completed machining at this stage – and also a trial fit of the Tension Rod.

The clevis’ were also cleaned out and machined to final size to take the Tension Rod and activating lever. The holes for the Pins to be drilled later.

The curved surfaces of the shoes to accommodate the linings were cleaned up with files and flap wheels and no further machining of those surfaces is deemed necessary. The castings were then cleaned up in the Mill and also machined to establish datum points. All of the machining could be accomplished without moving the castings so that all of the machine surfaces will be true with one another.

To obtain the correct position for the Fulcrum Pin hole in the bottom of the new casting, a piece of mild steel bar, 1” in diameter (same as the Fulcrum Pin) was machined with a point on the end and inserted into the main Gearbox casting where the Fulcrum Pin will be located. Later on, the machined Brake shoe will be clamped to the Brake Drum and rotated against the point to leave an arc on the casting, locating the point where the Brake Shoe must be bored out to take the Fulcrum Pin. Although the Brake Linings are on order, they have not yet been received – they are 3/8” thick and pieces of 3/8” Dowel have been temporarily super-glued to the Brake Shoe so that we can obtain the correct distance of the shoe from the Brake Drum when it is rotated for the marking out.

Another of the original assemblies that we never had was the Foot Brake which is a Transmission Brake assembly and we have to make this from scratch. A pattern was made for the Brake Shoes using measurements and pictures gleaned from complete Thornys and from the picture in the Parts Book. The new shoes were cast at our local Foundry and are in SG Cast Iron. The picture of the complete one shown here is of the Thorny at the Carlton Colville Transport Museum.

Chaps. I would add my pennysworth that it is a coal bucket too. If it was a "Sip pot" (which I think is the correct technical term), the galvanisation would have probably suffered from urea corrosion. Happy to be proved wrong. Tim

Sounds interesting Bob. What did you do with them? Tim

The Germans made a great deal of replica wooden tanks for training purposes (as how to engage them not operate them). Tankograd publications did a book on the subject: http://www.tankograd.com/cms/website.php?id=/en/Wehrmacht-Special-4013.htm and they feature in the Beute Tanks book vol1 here: http://www.tankograd.com/cms/website.php?id=/en/beute-tanks-vol1.htm

That is really nice. You should restore it as a Brixmis vehicle http://military-missions.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=52:brixmis-vehicles&catid=34:brixmis&Itemid=58 BRIXMIS VEHICLES The first touring vehicles used by BRIXMIS when the Mission was set up in 1946 were Humber “Box” staff cars which were painted dark red overall with the Union Jack painted on the roof, sides and rear. They bore numbers allocated from the Soviet vehicle registration numbering system. The numbers were all in the same series which was part of the block allocated to HQ GSFG. The vehicles themselves were slow and uncomfortable and had a poor cross-country performance. One or two were soon replaced by Jeeps and the remainder by Humber Super Snipe staff cars. But I suspect that wont appeal to many. Would raise a few eyebrows though.

Was it filmed by the same crew who did Quantum of Solace?

it could be. Just £15 though? hardly worth scamming anybody for that amount.

You are probably right. No sales for a long time and mostly second hand clothes so probably a high jacked account. How much is an engine casing worth?

Finished item and primed – a little filler around the weld to tidy it up.

Very simple construction and components – a length of 1/2” diameter steel bar for the shaft – a piece of steel Bar turned down to 1 1/8” diameter for the 1” length “boss” and a standard old fashion 1/2” Whit wing nut with “Mickey Mouse” ears. The 1/2” Whit thread was screw cut in the lathe – a short threaded section of 2 BA was left on the end of the 1/2” shaft to screw into the “boss” for location purposes for welding.

Just a little time to spare amidst other obligations – but enough time to make up the Brake Pull Rod for the Transmission Brake. We never had one of these so the drawing of it is made up from information gleaned from other “Thornys” and from photographs and measurements taken previously. These two pictures are of the Carlton Colville “Thorny”.