Stone

There's a pic of the other type at Withams.

Compared to ours the bed is pushed back by the width of that double-jerry can locker behind the rear wheel (plus a couple of inches). I suspect that's a normal-length bed off a standard one, but the headboard is shorter to accommodate the crane swivel. To phrase it differently, on ours the third hook fitting from the back (for the dropsides) is almost directly over the rear wheels.

Stone

I'll drop you a PM before we get told off :nono:

Yeah, we just got our 'proper' genny. 20kW and 900kg :cool2:

Stone

Here's a simple question that I suspect has hidden depths...:

The company I work for own a Bedford MJ with box body and specialist kit mounted on the bed. The box body is fitted as an experimental lab and filled with computers and so on. We don't have to have an MOT under V112G exemption 14 ('Vehicles constructed or adapted for, and used primarily for the purpose of carrying equipment permanently fixed to the vehicle, which equipment is used for[...]experimental laboratory purposes'). We don't have to have a tachograph (VOSA Tachograph declaration of exemption, 'Vehicle used by radio or television services or for the detection of radio or television transmitters or receivers') and our drivers don't need a CPC as they're not hauling goods and driving isn't the main purpose of their occupation.

Do we need an O Licence? My hunch is not, as per the C&U Regs it's technically not a goods vehicle due to the equipment fixed 'permanently or semipermanently' to it. VOSA are no help as usual Does that sound reasonable?

Stone

Yeah, same happened to me. Nightmare!!:-(

Ours had an extra digit in the middle, same amount of grief :-(

Top tip is to make a written enquiry to DE&S (Defence Equipment & Support, a branch of the MOD). We got back a single side of A4 on official letterhead, simply stating

"To whom it may concern: I am writing to inform you that the date into service of your TRUCK F/PLAT 4T 4X4 W/TURBO ENG BEDFORD MJP2BMP PTARMIGAN registration number (##XX##) is (date) and the chassis number is SKFMJP2BMGTxxxxxx.

If you present this letter to your local licensing office, it will enable that office to issue a registration mark appropriate to the above-mentioned date. Yours sincerely"

It's way, way easier than getting a new MOD Form 654 issued and the DVLA local office were very happy with it! Saves you getting a Q plate, anyway.

The address is:

DSAOPSDF1A

Defence Equipment and Support

DSA

Ministry of Defence

2 Floor Zone C

St Georges Court

2-12 Bloomsbury Way

London WC1A 2SH

(tel 0207 305 3130, email desdsa1a@deso.mod.uk)

Obviously the last seven digits of the chassis number are enough to uniquely identify it but DVLA can be sticklers for detail! Hope that helps, anyway.

Good luck

Stone

No idea why they aren't used - but was not MIMIC short for "MIcrowave / MIllimetre wave Integrated Circuit"???

That's an MMIC (some clever bods make them at work)

Stone

Could they have changed bulb supplier and discovered the pressed hole wasn't quite big enough? If they made a big pile of plates that weren't quite right it may have been cheaper / faster to modify them to fit rather than scrap them.

Stone

Had another look today - probably a Trojan. Mystery solved

I was fooled as the Terrier and Trojan both have the smaller digger arm on the right-hand side of the hull and a front dozer blade. Most of the rest is a matter of how far away it is!

Stone

On a slight tangent were there ever any Terriers with Challenger 2-style tracks (two square rubber grips per track link)? I'm convinced I saw one today - definitely didn't look like a CET! :???

Stone

Also bear in mind the radio batteries will be intended for low-current deep discharge over many hours, as opposed to starter batteries which are intended for brief periods of high-current cranking. You'll probably get away with it if you don't do it too often (or if they used the same grade of batteries in both locations!) but it's not ideal for battery longevity.

Stone

Ours (no HIAB) is approx 5100kg unladen and plated MAM as 9650kg so I think you're correct, with the crane it'll be plated the same and just allow less payload.

Stone

Robin's correct (as usual!), it mounts on the rolled edge of the dash. There's two types, a really old-looking one and a new one. The old-style ones read in the opposite direction so 0 is on the right and the needle moves anticlockwise with increasing revs, it seems not to be well standardised so you can use whichever's easier to find

(the sender's not very accurate anyway so there's not much point fitting a good one!)

Stone

There's a little bit in here - seems to have been a UK thing?

Stone

Is there nothing re off road vehicles (or with capability for off road ops) as surely some with side bars would be impeded or become stuck if side and rear under run bars got in way of ground in deep ruts, high angle slopes especially rear fouling and becoming grounded. Unless they were removable of course.

If you do the measurements you find the bars only wind up about 10cm lower than the spare wheel, there's plenty of space if it's just a ploughed field. If it's worse just pull the pins out and take them off, like Clive said it only takes 30 seconds

No pics of mine, I'm afraid (there's some secret squirrel stuff mounted on it) but they do look dead good in green!

Stone

You can get the braided cable sleeving from Farnell. Useful starting points are part numbers 4742953 (polyester) and 1302731 (tinned copper), alternatively you can use the category search "Cable, Wire & Assemblies > Cable Accessories > Sleeving & Heatshrink > Sleeving", then tick the 'Braided' box and 'Show Results' button to show you all 548 braided products.

Usually much cheaper than the specialist dealers, and you can buy it by the 30m drum if you have a big job on

Stone

Some did have a tachograph fitted - but I can't for the life of me remember how. There was a pic on here once, maybe the search shows something?

(might have been over the inspection lamp socket on the dash - have definitely seen fittings on this area at Withams)

Stone

Wow, those stickers are pretty old!

My (very ) informed guess: it was used in Harrier flight trials. RCS is radar cross-section or your standard gauge of 'stealthiness' - the chaff measurements would be for evaluating the effect of dispensing chaff against standard enemy radars of the time, maybe for measuring speed of breaking missile lock with different tactics etc. The Zeus Integrated Defensive Aids System is the radar warner + accessories in the Harrier; the idea in that sort of thing is to reduce the reaction time for the pilot, so the system can automatically chuck the appropriate type of countermeasure out depending on the type of radar you've been spotted by and what mode it's in. They mostly do this sort of stuff at Spadeadam now, not that we really build many fighters these days...

Don't think Zeus was installed until the GR5 and GR7 (source); if so that'd date it fairly accurately to 1976-ish. I should probably get a spotter badge about now :cool2:

Stone

I find they're easy when you 'just do it' and the second you think about what you're doing it gets ten times harder! :banghead:

If they're the same as mine, the basic idea is just that you pull the majority of the strap through the slot, then crank the handle down to pull it taut. It's a simpler variant of normal ratchet straps - with those you wind the slack around the central roller and it'll keep rotating as you ratchet (and it gets tighter and tighter). These ones have a fixed amount of 'extra' tension you can apply so it's harder to bend your fittings by accident.

Stone

I do alright:

Me: 'Now we're moving, can we have one of those coffee tables made out of an engine block?'

Her: 'Only if you can find a pretty V6'

Stone

That's a nice-looking Saracen, was it one of the Hong Kong Police ones?

Stone

Slightly different issue with the ones I got (silver/black and yellow/black, pressed aluminium) - they have a reflective backing so mostly conform to the regs but don't have the manufacturer's name on them or the BS-whatever, so don't conform in every detail.

I only got them as I was issued a 7-digit registration and the plates won't fit on the army numberplate bracket (6-digit!). The plastic ones bend where they aren't supported and will eventually snap off.

Stone

dvla man has been all went well fingers crossed , gatwick area best place for 60,s style number plates metal?

Technically not legal to drive on the roads if registered / fitted after 2001(? I think it was...) but Framptons did me a lovely set for the MJ. They just need a scan or fax of the V5C or entitlement certificate, dead quick and not too pricey. HTH

Stone

I have one of the ones on the right, do take care buying NOS ones as the rubber was starting to perish on ours.

The Bedford came with a bodged up one that had the inflation 'handle' end cut off and a fitting attached to pump Clark masts up with, lazy squaddies! :-D

Stone

In 2S1s and other MTLB/MTLBu derivatives they have a two-stage system - first stage is switching from high to low ratio in the final drives (gentle turn) and second stage is with a track brake (harder turn). As the gentle turns are effectively digital it can be a bumpy ride!

Stone

I think it is a bit like the controlled stop in the HGV test, where you drive and accelerate to 30 mph before reaching the marker then brake in a controlled manner. In the HGV test the examiner is outside the vehicle at the time but he has done that many he instinctively know what 30 MPH looks like!

LGV test controlled braking exercise is done with the examiner inside the vehicle - at least it was for me, twice, mid-2009.

Stone