RMS

it was for a customer so would have to ask permission first, will ask this week.

Fantastic project you got there, best of luck with it all, plenty of work to be done. We have recently rebuilt an original praga engine for a 38t it was in very good condition with all parts date stamped and all original sizes! the crank case was dated 1940, it will be going into a 38t that it currently running a postwar Scania version of the same engine. they seem to always be missing the water pump elbow to the water jacket, i have seen a line up of these engines and all of them had the same part missing! very strange. Anyway keep us posted please as its a fascinating project.

no my truck did not have a fuel tank and it would appear to be one of the hardest parts to find for them. the only vehicles that had this tank were the GTB cargo and the G8T 2wd truck that shared the same type cargo body (never seen one!). a lot of GTB's that turn up have the wrong fuel tank and it sticks out like a sore thumb! So i took a lot of pictures of T Corbins original fuel tank (thank you Tony) and have studied lot of pictures that i have gathered plus parts manuals etc. it will be very close to the original when finished, certainly the same size and appearance. although a lot heavier with weld and solder! even found a filler neck now, although its a half ton dodge one that will also get modified. here is a picture of T Corbins real one i'm sure he wont mind me posting it, mine is starting to look like this, the biggest challenge was finding a tank made in the same manner with the joint around the middle and the ZIL tank is very close to start with just a couple of inches to big!

i am determined to get it there this year, only a year later than i hoped.

Slow progress is being made on the fuel tank, taking a bit more work than anticipated! never mind it will look just like an original when finished. 3 new tyres fitted :-) Work will commence on the passenger seat next week.

made a start on the fuel tank today......lots of welding to come!! needed shrinking by 2.5 inches in height so an 1 1/4 was taken out of the top and bottom section to keep it symmetrical and the bottom needs the rear section cutting out to clear the transfer box mount, weld weld weld weld!!!!

progress continues, the rear body is back from blasting and was in top condition, just needed a little bit of rust cutting out and repairing then some more primer and a base coat of OD. Also got the winch back on and the started fitting new tyres:thumbsup: next up work will commence on the fuel tank, its a ZIL 131 tank that is very nearly the perfect size,shape and look but needs some work to make it perfect. NEED SOME PARTS - need a small filler type filler neck as fitted to early american stuff like chev, GMC and dodge etc anything will do as i will make it fit if anybody has one taking up space in the shed? also need some very long bolts 5/8unf x 18 inches! (might have to make them)

Thruxton about 10 years ago i think..... two guys checking out the gear in the back of my dads 2A lightweight for a good 15 minutes, quietly muttering to each other, walking around and around the vehicle ensuring they are not mistaken as to what the item in the back is. The brave one happily told me that it must some sort of mobile radar system with the exciting grin on the face.................................. unfortunately i shattered that look when i informed them it was our gas BBQ!!!!:rotfl::rotfl: (a large one at that!) still makes me laugh.

100% nutcase:D seems a bit extreme for hunting in the woods though!

cargo body went on for blasting at long last! made most of the exhaust system, just need to finish the tail pipe once the body is back on, its sounds much better now with a better muffler on it, got a nice bark:cool2::cool2: also made the heat shield for the muffler as Ford decided to put the fuel tank directly above it:nut: got the wood cut to size for the cargo body. next, more tyres off and sort gearbox selectors, fit wood for cargo body, maybe bleed the brakes!

Haha So true!

More progress has been made, slowly! fixed up the drivers runners and fitted it made the new seat base for the drivers seat, strangely complicated for a small flat piece of ply! no less than 11 bolts holding it in place!!! some from underneath, some from on top! all the brake pipes finished Cargo body flipped over, thats a heavy bit of steel fro such a small truck! must weigh over 500 kilos! all the metal work done on the cargo body, going for blasting on Monday winch removed, stripped and rebuilt, all just to get the drive shaft yoke off as it was seized solid on a sheered sheer pin. one tyre removed and ready for fresh paint, old tyres were rusted solid to the rim, tool a hell of a beating to get it off. hopefully have the cargo body fitted for last time soon, then i can make the new fuel tank from a ZIL 131 tank! :cool2: Cheers

not sure if this has been posted before but makes great reading, go to page 81 http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=Z9sDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA81&lpg=PA81&dq=Popular+mechanics+Sherman+tanks&source=bl&ots=_6sQ3Xvv-d&sig=pXDfyxqHWteC61cGPbXkfea3pWE&hl=en&ei=g9tBTYDtPMqWhQe0sszZAQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CB0Q6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q&f=false

i get them from here http://www.aquafax.co.uk/html/subcategories.asp?ID=24

ouch! seems to be a small bit missing!!:shocked: i love the engineering in old engines its truly a work of art.

taking a jeep this year, will be there on Friday, we can usually be found in the bar!

Over the weekend of the 4th to the 6th of Feb 2011. its is a great weekend of military vehicles and partying, fingers crossed for snow again. http://www.bmvt.be/v1/ Anyone else heading over? Last years report http://hmvf.co.uk/forumvb/showthread.php?16988-Belgium-Winter-Rally-2010&highlight=BMVT+winter+rally

have heard rumours!

you can always find a way around these small problems, and yes Richard does need one, its quite essential:cool2:

I dont Know Rich, but one thing is for sure, they are truly awesome:D ,the look, the sound of that engine and the size are all fantastic. i want one but i dont think it will fit down my road let alone my garden!

Found out some details on G503 about this odd ball :- " I know about this odd vehicle. It belongs to a family in the high desert of Southern California, U.S.A. It is located in a town named Boron, after the primary aggregate that is mined there. The family owns an antique store at a famous crossroads known as 5 points. I was there last summer to check out the vehicles and antiques in the store. While there I saw it and inquired about the G.T.B./ track, and was told that the original owner lived in a home in a part of the nearby mountains there that receive significant snowfall during the winter. He lived so far in, he needed a vehicle that would not get stuck when he needed to go to town. I looked at it for a little while and thought that it would not take much to get her running again. The owner did not want to sell it or attempt to make it road worthy either. He said, "No, she has pulled more than her weight in the past and now we just let her rest !" Luckily the high desert of So. California is a rather arid climate with very clean air and rain, so the truck won't rust away for a long, long time. In fact, the rust you can see is mostly surface rust"

pulling the dust sheets of a Ford GTB Wrecker with a 1914 Rolls Royce armoured car attached, should do the trick i suppose

Plucked this pictures from the German vehicle section of the Forum, intresting modification, anybody know anything about it?

he told me the Jeep was for you:D (saves the embarrassment of having to drive a land rover!) just dont hold your breath on driving the jeep:D