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ajmac

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Everything posted by ajmac

  1. Great work Marco, I see you have now got that front upper armour that you were working on fully installed. I still have a long way to go, but that's the fun part, I've no idea what I am going to do with it once I've finished it:undecided:
  2. Yup, I just watched the YouTube video linked from the news letter. Sad to see Rex step down, but another event will take its place. The king is dead, long live the king.....as they say. I too must say that a show in the South is required due to the European owners. Perhaps the northern shows will just get larger.
  3. That's why the later machines had big gussets added to the tillers.....drivers must have been bending them trying to turn! Remember that Loyd like every early war British designed and built tracked vehicle left a lot to be desired in almost every aspect :-)
  4. You have hit on an interesting part of Loyd Carrier development there! Originally the very early vehicles (MKI) used 7V drums / Bendix brakes with a plate and sprocket bolted on the front, all part of the short development schedule and business case to the government, i.e. it's all proven technology.... However research in the archive has shown that in extended trails / first real world use the brakes were a real weak spot, getting so over heated that the Loyds were having to stop every few miles to let them cool down enough to regain some form of steering! Loyd did a redesign with Girling which was tested in December 1940 and the resulting larger diameter drum / sprocket carrier casting is a unique Loyd part. There was a retrofit kit to bring all MKIs to MKII standard as the original setup was basically useless! It was available at £62. 6. 4. :-) According to a letter by Vivian himself, the MKII was in production no later than 23rd April 1941, presumably some time before.
  5. Hi All, I have some wartime parts to ship from NZ this year, nothing large, a gearbox top, oil cooler and 8 suspension rods, does anyone have a larger shipment coming to the UK that I could hitch a ride on? Thanks,
  6. First off I am going to make the photos smaller and not update as often, sadly its much easier to update Facebook....shame on me. All the Loyd parts are back in one place again and it makes work so much easier. Rear axle install is complete along with braces (known as track adjuster arms), gussets and clamps. The clamps are interesting as they tell a story of Loyd development. As you will know there is little hard data and no books dealing with Loyds, other than photo books and a chapter in the first 'Carriers' book by NW. The first Loyds used a 3" dia rear axle and two track adjuster arms, sometime in 1942/43 gussets were added to the arms presumably due to problems in the field. In a more complete design change the Tracked Towing Loyds in 1943 received a new rear axle of 3.5" dia with additional pads welded on the top side to bolt to the track adjuster arms. As the axle dia had increased new clamps were required but in a typical Loyd move to save money and time the original clamp castings were retained and the machining altered. To maintain the required material thickness in the clamps a spacer was added between the two halves before the bore was machined. You can see the spacers in the final photo of the assembly. Front axle strip down has started and the drum took some time to remove as I didn't want to damage anything, Loyd drums are like hens teeth. Over the next few weeks the axle will be stripped and rebuilt before going on the front of the chassis along with the torque tube, drivers floor and front lower hull plate.
  7. Very sad that they have to be cut up. Having said that it means that you will be able to get all the parts you need for your MK4 one would hope, being cut in half will make transport easier :-) You can't save them all.
  8. Just located the photos from my engine rebuild. Forgot to to say that the rebuild kits come with a new impeller too.
  9. Rebuilding is not too difficult, I brought a pair of rebuild kits while in the U.S. and did the job in the garage just using a large vice, a punch and a hammer. The bearing kits come with new seals. There are a number of different variations of flathead water pump so make sure to order the correct kit.
  10. Just popped up on the projects Facebook page. http://www.thechurchilltrust.co.uk
  11. Seal retainer has been cut, Chassis is in its new home being painted before rebuild finally begins and work has been started on the track adjusters, in fact, the stub axle was pressed out by a 15 ton press just half an hour Remember I asked about felt seal material so I could cut a new one....this is the original, seen better days! Rear axle track adjuster strip down and rebuild starts. Adjuster starts to come loose Gentle tapping and lots of PlusGas helped it off - I should have shares in the PlusGas company! Even the smallest part like this front brake cable anchor has a Loyd part number. Note the two different types of anchor, one from each of the range wrecks.
  12. Its a pity there are not any Churchill Ark or Bridge layer projects around as as they offer a lot of interesting things to display and at the end of the display, if its an Ark, a Sherman can drive over you :cool2:
  13. Getting on with the rear axle. Last year is was cut in two to allow the jammed track adjuster arms to be pressed out, that done it was welded back together on a jig. Thanks to Pete, who posts on here with his Bedford OY project. one side of the axle is complete but the other had the retainer / spacer for the felt seal blown off on the range, I have ordered a water jet cut replacement which only needs three tack welds to attach, you can see the good side on one of the photos. As you can see the axle has strengthening plates and a flat plate on top, this was added in circa 1943 when the Loyd design was improved to make it more robust, the rear axle diameter went up to 3.5" during this time. Cleaning up before painting. Looking its best in 50 years! The axle is upside down on the bench, note seal retainer attached with four short welds. Its all a pit poor in my opinion, all it really does is pay lip service to keeping water and dirt out of the track adjuster so that it will continue to rotate in the axle tube in use. On this side the outer seal retainer is missing, a replacement is to be welded on. Felt is on order to make the new seals. This shows the earlier version of Loyd rear axle, note the diameter and different mounting arrangment. Next job is to build up the back of the chassis and fit the rear x-tube....hey it will soon be coming together :cheesy:
  14. Thanks Richard, I've just ordered some and also a laser cut seal retainer / spacer as one side of the axle is in need of some rework, what isn't on this Loyd!
  15. I have to cut out a couple of felt seals for the Loyd rear axle, they are 3.5" ID with 4" OD, will compress down to 1/4" so felt about 7-8mm thick should be fine I presume. I've looked online and prices and density vary, I'm not sure what to go for... If would be nice is some old standard oil filter seal would fit! Any suggestion on a good supplier who would supply just enough to make two 4" seals?
  16. These guys have come a long way with the range target. Good music too. Something went wrong...
  17. A big step forward - I imagine you were very pleased to find such a complete unit
  18. White Scout Car, travelling north on A46 just south of Newark. On a lorry.
  19. Very little discussion about W&P this year, any particular reason for that? I wasn't planning to attend, but a Loyd parts swap just cropped up so its a convenient place to do the exchange. Any idea what wartime Armour will be in attendance, or carriers?
  20. As good as all your projects Rob, lovely job. It would be educational to see it alongside a regular 17pdr for comparison....and your place is the only place on the planet where that's possible!
  21. Perhaps there will be a change at the museum now that the restoration centre has opened having consumed millions to design and build. At the moment the work is mostly undertaken by volunteers, either directly or via the Friends.
  22. Most of that kind of work was done way back in conjunction with Bob Grundy as well as other organisations....I had a good look around the Ram Kangaroo, it even has the radial in the back and it was restored from a range target. Its not not for me to name names but the museum has had run ins in the past when farming out restoration work to companies that's why mutually beneficial swaps are perhaps less fraught. Perhaps Bob could comment, what was the working relationship back in the day of TAG?
  23. After seeing the old early war Cruiser tanks (A9, A10) tucked up the corner of the Tank Museum the other day this question came to mind. The ubiquitous Sherman stands alone in its popularity, quantity of survivors and restored running machines but what about other British used tracked vehicles? Are there any possible restoration projects to bring any BEF era machines back to running condition?
  24. This may have been a good parts source for many years, but I'll be honest that it hasn't come to my attention before. On Milweb this past year there has been a lot of good wartime parts popping up, sadly when ever I call they have already been sold...missed out on a rare Loyd speedo :-(. What's going on? Has the government had a final purge of warehouses or has an older surplus dealer sold his stock? Some new supply must have come on line....or is it just a number of dealers sourcing wide and routing through Italy?
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