paulbrook

There is no "here we go": I am just drawing on my considerable experience with DROPS in both its design and development as well as its subsequent military service and answering the question posed with facts rather than opinion.

It is not safe in that carrying a 432 is beyond the design criteria of the truck and that's all there is to it. Furthermore depending on what a civilian registered DROPS vehicle is plated at it may well be (technically) overloaded (on steel springs it is likely to be plated at 30000kg, 2000 kg less than it was in service).

There are no official records of DROPS in service being used overloaded; in any event the LHS would trip long before it tried to load 24 tonne. If individual DROPS were used for anything out of the ordinary I can virtually guarantee that it was somewhere where even VOSA are not interested, on some vital operational task or other, and under strict supervision.

As for the load restraint I draw readers attention to:

http://www.fta.co.uk/_galleries/downloads/loading_of_vehicles/safetyloadsonvehicles-1.pdf

There is quite a lot in there - and it is well worth reading in full, especially as load restraint seems to be the VOSA item of the moment on roadside checks.

I seem to recall that amber flashing lights should only be used to warn of a static hazard, although they do get used for very slow or very wide loads too.

The thought did occur to me though that it might be worth informing your local police force - on a "just letting you know" basis. They may offer some advice too.

Military convoy distances used to be 50m between vehicles on A roads and 100 m on dual carriageway. That said other road users were made aware that it was a convoy by the front and rear vehicles carrying blue/green flags respectively (or was that the other way around?). Headlights on.

Now life in civvy street is a little different, and I might even go so far as to say that you might usefully increase those distances by half as much again. At other times, for instance in town, pretty much nose to tail is the best, right up to the first set of lights or junction!!!

Hey ho

Each to their own. But 43 series were NOT sanctioned to be carried by DROPS in service and that was based on hard won experience without considering civilian axle and GVW constraints.

If that were not enough the latest DVSA purge is in the area of load restraint - and meeting the HSE guidelines with a 432 on a GP flatrack would be interesting as the side rails are only rated at 1.2 tons per section.

But my opinion remains, and I know that it diverges with that of others but I make no apologies. 430 series on a MMLC DROPS is an unsafe load (and depending on the plated weights of your axles and the restraint system may well be illegal too)

In my opinion - No

Previous posts explain why........

Quite

I am not sure how that fulfils the NAM remit of looking after the collection for good and benefit of the nation...

In that the data input to MERLIN was done by humans I fear that there might be scope for clerical error.

I wonder if they would have noticed if you had the retarder flicked in......................

Thats easy, on ex in covies covered in cr#p having had no sleep for weeks and eating bacon and egg banjos washed down with an alcoholic non alcoholic drink.

 

Or is that just me that remembers those days ??

That's more or less the vision I had......................

Oh and I forgot to ask - why are you doing away with the original pump? They are easily refurbished and kits are available (and a kit only has about 5 parts in it!)

Most engine driven fuel pumps of the day were rated at 2psi if that's any help...

I had to stop and give myself a bit of a talking to then as I had quite a few scurrilous thoughts about what sort of things a REME re-enactor group would choose to portray.....

The accident report will be there somewhere - and so will the coroner's report if there was a fatality. The trail might be a little tricky though as HQ BAOR transmogrified into HQ UK Support Command Germany - and I am unsure what functions were around in 1991. Similarly the records used to be held in HQ QMG in Andover - which became the Logistic Executive (Army) then probably something else - there have been so many reviews and reorganisations it is hard to keep track.

My best advice is that you might try getting in touch with the Command Master Driver in HQ Land Forces in Wilton.

http://www.palacebarracksmemorialgarden.co.uk/road-traffic-accidents-germany/ is a start...

Then have a look here: http://www.arrse.co.uk/community/threads/royal-engineers-roll-of-honour.87513/

You should be aiming to have at least 65% of the axle weights as a load - 7.5 tonne might be a bit light, being nearer the 50% mark (mind you - it depends what they have given you for the rear axle weights, but it would not surprise me if they were plated at 19 tonne for the full bogie which makes it an even smaller percentage - but like I say, it depends on your plated axle weights).

As for the results being less for the locked than the unlocked that is a combination of sliding friction being less than rolling friction plus the effect of localised heating at the surface of the roller tyre interface.

If you have not done so already, have a look at this:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/206364/preparing-your-vehicle-for-brake-test.pdf

Good luck!!

I am taking a large beavertail truck from Cumbria to Herts soon - empty on the way down, some space on the way back. Not hire/reward, so nothing complicated please. PM in the first instance please.

There will be a few bigger MV fleets owned by members of this Forum LoL

Having worked with the Irish I can say that they have lots of vehicles and damm fine ones too!

Join the Irish army then!

An interesting topic, and worth a bit of thought.

The straight answer to the question is yes, there is demand for folk who can do stuff with and to old vehicles. The classic vehicle business is worth over £4bn per annum to the UK economy, and there are well over 2000 specialist companies providing everything from fastenings to steam engine boilers. Classic vehicle ownership has never been more popular, and regardless of what old beggars like me say there is a very strong following from younger generations (if in doubt have a look at VW camper prices). Given the right attitude approach and a bit of research/training there will be a niche in that very wide industry that will suit you and your abilities.

Whilst there are some apprenticeships and courses out there for the newbie, they are fewer than they should be and may well involve considerable expense. This is a shame because without expertise coming in at the bottom things will get tough in the future.

My advice for what it is worth (not much) is to keep your sights set as broad as possible and try not to restrict yourself to any particular vehicle genre - when last I looked they all involved some configuration of nuts bolts wood rubber and steel (and maybe even some plastic). If, over time, you feel that you want to specialise in any particular area, then by all means do so. And good luck!

Now that is going to be brilliant when its done. Talking of Mk3 re-builds here's one that I think went into Fazakerley. Do you recognise this one FEC.

I recognise it as being from 617 Tk Tptr Sqn RCT...

I can recommend Smith and Allen (http://www.smithandallan.com/) for both; delivered to your door.

Depends on the truck......................

My impression from back then (and it is only an impression mind you) was that at the time it would more likely have been DBG than matt and hand painted. But as I say, that is just an impression.

Ahhh heat or chemical - not both.

And clearing up properly is really important.

In a nutshell - the Rustytrucks approach to paint removal.

1. It is nasty. Take appropriate steps and wear the right gear.

2. Unless it is really old cellulose or similar "hard" finish paint tends to come off better if it has been "killed" first, ie the natural adhesive qualities have been disrupted. This can be done with heat or chemicals. We almost exclusively use as much heat as we can get away with without distorting anything. SOP in the Big Shed is to reach for a rosebud on the oxy-acetylene set (even on flat aluminium...) but there is a fine line here between success and disaster so I do not advise it! A heat gun is good - you don't need to take all the paint off with it you just need to harden the paint up so it comes off "dry" and does not clog whatever you are using. We even kill paint before sandblasting as it saves a lot of time and effort.

3. Small steps. Aim to do a section at a time.

4. Aim to use a variety of approaches, including old screwdrivers, bits of stick, passing small animals etc. There is no "one" way. We routinely use flap discs and wire brushes in our grinders, but only where they are the tools to use.

5. Did I mention it was nasty? Take appropriate steps, including sweeping/hovering all residue on completion of the task.

There is a whole chapter to be written on guards on grinders - my grinder is guardless as it happens, but my grinder is pretty much an extension of my right arm. That said we use the fantastic paddle-switched Makitas which have very slim bodies and can be switched on and off without getting anywhere near the spinny bit.

OX8 is brake fluid by the way and it is the sworn enemy of IRR paint. Used old-styleee brake fluid (probably not the silicone based modern stuff) is effective and cheap (free even from your local garage - ask for their used stuff). Paint it on and keep painting it on for a week. With luck the majority of the IRR paint will wash off with a pressure washer. I know this because it is how we used to do tank transporter trailer beds!