robin craig

Pursuant to the last post I did take the trailer tailgate apart but the welding did not go too well, so we will not show that until I get that sorted out and respectable.

So, the frost has gone and we are suffering with daily rain showers, so as a farmer on clay ground we can't do any spring tillage or planting, we are a good month behind.

So, with longer days I have been tinkering with the Land Rover again. A quick trip down the island on the end of the straight bar to the shop the other night with my mate Gerry driving the Dodge 5500.

We have had issues getting her running, the truck is full of bodges which we are slowly hunting down, they range from mickey mouse 24 to 12 volt trickery and a bodged fuel system. We have proven the fuel system with the aid of a nice shop tool Gerry has which has a resevoir and a regulator so you can play with fuel pressure to ensure the rough running is not related to that.

The smoking gun is the twin SU carbs Gerry says, so they have to come off and be gone through. The exhaust also has to be rebuilt, so that means a trip to his shop off island and being outside for about a week or so.

The old storage place was very musty so as it wont be going back there that was the trigger to take off the old canvas and put the new one on. As always we are always under the gun for time. I think for the next Olympics we need a demonstration sport of fast new canvas installation on a vehicle.

Thank goodness I have done one before. I skipped doing the fiddly bits over the doors as the sky was ominous and more rain was on the way. Troubling was the missing draw string at the rear, thankfully I have saved the old canvas and can reclaim the string from that one.

If it clears up today maybe I will go finish that. In the meantime I have inside plasterboard / drywall to work at in our house.

R

I have 3 of them that will eventually make one functional one. There are a number of different ends for them, with a tap and with and without a bend in them. I must dig them out and take some pictures to illustrate them

R

Boy Chris you know how to tempt fate don't you, "if nothing else goes wrong".

I will stand back and hold my breath for a few days now.

Have you found any pictures of her at BATUS?

R

A few questions:-

do you think you will ever paint it?

will you be taking some footage of it running and posting it?

on the open market, ie fleabay, what do you think it would fetch?

Love it

R

You are very lucky to have a vehicle with such documented provenance.

That is very cool.

Can you start your own thread on it? And pictures, well, gotta have those

R

Just by way of an update.

The magazine arrived two weeks ago. Short article but interesting.

I have come to a stalemate with the owner, he wanted our 101 and I wasnt prepared to swap it for his.

He has been made aware what he has and not to bodge it up and cut holes in it, I have also been given first refusal on it.

Cash was not a motivator and what he wanted, a running Land Rover already restored was worth to much cash to go out and buy and give him to get this one.

A bit of a stalemate.

I will keep tabs on it and him and smother him with kindness for a while

R

I went to see this a week or so ago.

PM me for more info.

Safe to say it likely wont move for a while yet.

Some may recognise it . . .

R

Paul,

Thanks for that bi of info, there is a gent on here from the UK who will likely follow that lead as he has some of that kit and is looking for more.

At the moment I have all 12 boxes home and in the dry storage in our house but I have other pressing tasks a hand like building a garage to achieve. It may well be another winter before i get to go through it all and "play" with it.

R

Dear John,

Welcome along, love watching your kit working.

Please say hello to LandyAndy for me

Robin

Welcome along,

I see you are not far from me, looks like you live in Ottawa.

Robin

Thanks for posting that, the evidence is growing that there was at least one turreted Canadian owned and operated Ferret.

Robin

Canada had their own Ferrets, Mk 1 versions.

Canada allegedly did not buy any Mk 2 turreted versions.

I am painstakingly try to sort the myth and b/s from factual reality.

You might have noticed I have a thread running on Ferret recovery points, that vehicle is marked in Canadian use and is a turret vehicle, interestingly in the photo the vehicle following it is a Mk 1.

I love the factual history that is proven on this site and that is what makes the hobby so interesting is delving into the anomalies that prove the rule.

I well know Colin and his books and I well knew those images existed but thank you for showing them.

Here is the only picture I know of that has a vehicle marked in Canadian markings that has a turret.

R

It is the only picture I have ever seen showing this arrangement. It appears to be an effort to make a Ferret more easily towed by an A bar system.

We believe that is in Canadian service, so that may account for it.

Can anyone make any comments?

R

I think it is great for all the same reasons others have said.

I am sorry that I could not convince my mates to buy your undercarriage and re use it and put some coin back in your pocket.

You have a great toy and hope to continue seeing it around and hear about for a long time to come.

If you ever make it this far south and east you have a standing invite to visit.

Best Regards

Robin

I would first like to say I am not an expert, on anything.

I will however say that in the early 1980's I did see some things that were unusual and bear noting.

There was a habit of junior officers (who had money) to have items of clothing copied to their own design or specs.

I personally saw a subaltern in a guards unit with his own DPM jacket that initially looked exactly like any other but upon closer inspection had bespoke pockets and cuffs and the like. I had a friend who was also a subaltern in the same unit ask him about it and it was personally made for him. If I had not been there and seen it I would not have believed it. Apparently it cost him a bomb but he had the coin to do it.

I am offering this up as a possible explanation and to draw your attention to what went on at the time.

Very nice find, enjoy reading about your interest

Regards

Robin

Gents,

Thank you for posting your vehicle's service records, but what does it prove other than your Ferret was in Cyprus?

The aim of my post is to unearth something that proves Canadian usage, what proves it?

Im obviously missing something

I am assisting with a project.

It is stated that Canada used British Ferrets when first deployed to Cyprus.

Can anyone recall this happening? Does anyone have paperwork or photos to substantiate this?

If you know of a web resource please direct me there.

This is to assist in the authentic recreation of such usage with a Ferret currently in Canada, they really want to get it right.

Thanks in advance

Robin

Dear Mark,

Actually no I dont have much experience with the Rolls 8 cylinder units except to use one in a Stalwart.

I respect your project aims and understand we are all on our own agenda here. I once was knee deep in the prep work for a replica project of the centre steering Land Rover, until someone in the UK pipped me to the post so I binned the idea.

The Rolls felt like it had masses of torque and made such a lovely sound.

While you are not making or restoring an MV i'm sure in the final analysis we would all love to see how you make out.

The 8 cylinder engines are around but not plentiful over here. I am about to go look at one in a week or so that is in a vehicle still. Maybe if the vehicle is beyond saving he will sell you the engine.

Robin

Hmmm, thats a bit east of me.

Let me do some digging, frankly I don't hold out much hope as you are miles from anywhere.

What airport are you flying in through and do you have buffer time at either end?

If you look at Google Im 3 hours drive to Montreal and just distance you are 3 times that from Montreal and on poorer roads, so you are easy 12 hours drive from my location by crude guestimation.

R

Welcome, self proclaimed, not so young Mark, from a not so young Robin above the 49th over top of you.

Pray tell what will you do with the B80 engine when you get it? How many do you need? Do they need to run or be basket cases?

People don't usually ask questions without having a purpose . . .. .

Robin

Have you thought of Bannisters, Richard is very swift with email replies

R

Dear Mill Comms,

I am thinking that you don't know so I will say, if you do know apologies.

Diesel fuel is capable of growing algae and will do at an alarming rate. It is a common problem for big sailing boats with diesel engines and others like that.

There is an algaecide you can put in to prevent it happening long term.

Robin

Welcome to the friendly forum.

Love seeing in service pictures and markings

Robin

I was fortunate enough a while back to be loaned a book that was published by Alcan Booth Sheet Limited, one of the many parts of a company long since broken up and sold.

The book is titled "The military uses of aluminium" and is actually a collection of presentations made at REME Borden and RMCS Shrivenham in the years 1965 and 1968.

The book details a wealth of non classified but highly interesting facts about how the amour was developed and the problems involved and the manufacturing process and the jigs and fixtures.

If you have any of the CVRT or CVRW vehicles it is a must read coffee table book. It was only ever intended as a hand out and was not for retail sales. Thankfully through sites like www.abebooks.com and others you can still find copies around today.

Robin

We had exactly the same problem, would crank all day long but would not fire.

Remove solenoid unit and clean and refit and all was fine.

R