berna2vm

Sounds like an idyllic way to spend bank holiday Monday to me, the other half would not allow me such luxuries as working on my beloved projects! Best of British,my friend although I honestly believe that your capabilities far outweigh any advantage that luck may bestow upon you... I wish I was nearer because I would gladly give you a hand. Best wishes, Richard.

Yes and the way that the American government humiliated us and the French over the Suez campaign is further proof of this policy. I often wonder if this was part of the reason we refused to parcipitate in the Vietnam campaign. It is ironic how our friends, who we had fought valiantly with shoulder to shoulder just a few years before in Korea could stab us in the back in such a callous manner. The trade off for assistance in the second world war was the loss of empire. I am pleased that this hostility has since dissipated,but these were dark times for Britain. Maybe stronger leadership would have defied them but this could possibly have been described as brinkmanship.

Are you the chap who had a garage in Grassington? He had a WC 52 recovery truck. Best regards, Richard.

She looks beautiful,the colour looks good to me! I would be proud to own her just as she is. I am a little biased because I love Dodge WC's.

I have a Polish lad who works for me and his father has a garage in northern Poland. I could ask him about this. He was in the army and was the driver of a T62 tank so he knows his stuff.

Yes indeed,war is a crime in itself and I echo the sentiments,god bless all the heroes. I shed a tear almost every night when I realise that another mother has lost a son, to a sister the loss of a brother,wife grieving over a husband,And a child never to be reunited with its father. I find it hard to watch the rememberance day coverage because I well up and cannot believe that I went to the Army recruitment office to sign up for the Falklands conflict... I don't feel so brave these days. In Afghanistan they are predominately boys and it seems horrific that we are losing them in such numbers.Guy Gibson was only 26 when he died and you realise that this is nothing new. I love the machinery of war but sometimes I shudder when I realise exactly what it can do. I am rambling now but the realisation is a little painful sometimes. God bless them all. Richard.

I do agree with you Adam. However, by mid February 1945 they were very much a spent force and no longer one to be reckoned with.Most of the Allied chiefs had come to realise that "area bombing" of civilian so called targets was no longer beneficial to the war effort,and a waste of resources. Winston Churchill distanced himself from this particular action between February 13-15th because of the barbarity of it. This particular act was another example of cow-towing to a man who was probably the most evil tyrant of the 20th century... Josef Stalin. Dieppe and Ancona, Italy are just a couple of examples of the western allies attempts to appease him,however the jewel is the shameful way that we succomed to pressure and allowed the red army to take Berlin, atrocities Personally ordered by Stalin himself including mass rape and murder. To the victor the spoils,and the power to have the history books written how you choose. Hindsight is a wonderful thing,but in this case most knew it was wrong at the time. If Nazi Germany had won the war,Arthur Harris would probably have been tried for war crimes!

I personally believe Harris's policies were unsound and tended to boost morale when manipulated by Goebbel's propaganda machine. The only losers were predominantly women and children. The Dambusters acts was gallant and justified with a good degree of success to boot. Bomber Harris's statue in London should be replaced with one of Keith Park, Who with Hugh Dowding were the architects of the defeat of the Luftwaffe in 1940. The bravery of the bomber crews was beyond question but I believe they would have been utilised more effectively deployed against military and manufacturing facilities. The bombing of Dresden in the final days of the war in 1945 is one thing that I almost consider as a war crime. I hope this does not cause any controversy,but it is my opinion.

Wow this must be the most complicated cargo transport vehicle ever employed by the MOD...Love the blog though...I take my hat off to you guys,you are the PROS.

Yes Joris ,the Southerners probably do!!! We had a great time at Saddleworth a couple of weeks ago,though.

Hi there,Mark it was plus Vodka And Tonic... It is a minter,I will find out more.

She is a real beauty.The marker poles with flashers are the same as my Berna!

Yes,and it certainly was one of the best engines of it's day. The design remit was that it had to be capable of 500,000 miles between overhauls... I cannot imagine why anyone would have chosen the Cummins or Rolls Royce engines in preference to the standard powerplant.Maybe it was because of shortages in the supply of the TL12 or that hauliers had these power units in other makes of truck?? The Scammell is one piece of heavy metal,very cool!

Wow,FAB! I wish that I could join you someday. Amphibious operations are cool. Is the M4 derived from the Sweet 16 or is it a completely new design? Does the USMC operate M1 tanks or was it a U.S. Army vehicle? I was under the impression that the United States armed forces had gourmet field kitchens and mobile Burger King restaurants,I never knew they possessed MREs.... Love the pictures and keep up the good work

Good Lord,I had no idea that something like 7 11 had happened before!

Fab... Keep the pictures coming,and keep up the good work. Best of luck, Richard.

I like it,can I have one??? A useful mid sized tank with a potent,accurate main gun.Being made in Switzerland,it is bound to be well engineered. Where can I find a MG 51 deact machine gun,I would like one for the Berna!

My friend has just bought one and it has to go to a ministry test station,so be careful... I think they look cool but the army boys hated them,problems with front brakes,I believe. Access to service the engine is not the best,either. He paid £4000 from Withams,and likes it but had to perform an emergency stop in it and hopes it never has to do it again....

Hi Neil,Welcome to the forum,I am new to it myself but it is a great place to be! I was at Saddleworth and I have never seen as many Austin Champs in one place as there were yesterday!!! Whether you end up buying a Jeep,Dodge or Champ,you will have great fun,and be part of a great family. All the best, Richard.

This is a beautiful example,the most desirable version with that crew cab...Looks very capable off road despite her size.A local heavy recovery company had one with a Leyland 680. I loved that truck. I like this one more,though!

Well it certainly isn't to my taste either,but it has had time,effort,money and even,I suspect love lavished upon it. I would imagine that everything is reversable and if at some time in the future he wants to revert back to bronze green and authenticity then this will be possible.Personally I think it looks far better than an awful Hummer2 and much better this than the scrapman's cutting torch.... I hope he can source new drivetrain components successfully,he may well need them.