rnixartillery

Ivor, When I removed the barrel I had to lift it off inside the jacket because I could not part the two on the gun,when I refitted the new parts I fitted the jacket to the recouperator first and then pushed the Barrel through the jacket and in to place. The jacket locates into some large key ways and is fixed with two wedges and a large stirup/strap,quite a simple job if everything is free and easy to move and undo ! I thought I would repaint the Range posts while I was on . Rob..........................rnixartillery.

Decided to have a bit of a change from the projects I am currently working on as I have been meaning to refurbish the sight cluster on the 25 pdr for some time,only thing putting me off is that they can be a bit fiddly and patients is required ! Anyway I have several sight clusters so I tidied one of the spares so I can just do a swap over. Next one will be for the Pheasant project. Rob...........................rnixartillery.

For those who did not see ! :-) Rob.....................rnixartillery.

Unfortunately Firepower have been getting rid of Artillery as they have vacated Rotunda and have no Storage. A pity really because most of it has been dispersed and left to languish outside to the elements ................ And thats what they call preservation ! Rob....................rnixartillery.

Thats right Julian,that particular gun resides in 'Firepower' Woolwich,my intension is to restore my gun back to its origins being 1915. Rob...........................rnixartillery.

What with the ongoing search for parts to complete the Mountain gun I came across a couple of very nice rare ammo boxes.Both are dated 1944 but one still has its insides intact which great as a pattern to reproduce the missing internals for the other.You will note that one box is longer than the other ,one holding two Smoke rounds and the shorter box holding two HE or Shrapnel rounds. I also located a pair of 36" wooden Artillery wheels for the gun ,down side is that they are in Nepal .................a bit on the large side to stick in an envelope !.................... :banghead: Rob..........................rnixartillery.

As I have quite an interest in these guns I have been searching hi and low for one to add to my collection and after some negotiation I have acquired the carriage and recuperator of a MKI which was built between 1915 and 1918.Like most it was converted in the 1920's for mechanised transport and fitted with comercial truck wheels and tyres and later went on to serve throughout WW2. Although I only have 60% of the gun I have already tracked down a complete WWI sight assembly in the states which a colleague of mine found in Iraq !.I will also be looking to fit the original wood spoked wheels if I can find a reputable wheel wrights who have patterns. Pics attached. Rob.........................rnixartillery

That correct Niels,I welded the strap back into one piece and then cut a plug to fill the large gap and welded it in,a bit more welding here and there and finished it off with the grinder.....................and some fine emery cloth.....:rofl: Made a small repair this morning to a breech part that was a bit beyond it,just need to turn a bearing to finish it. Turd polisher........................rnixartillery. :nut:

Well Andy,they say you can't polish a Turd................................but I say you can ! :whistle: Rob......................rnixartillery.

This strap being the worst ! Rob...................rnixartillery.

A few more repairs made today from range damaged parts.Both barrel straps had been hit and one of the strap bolt stems had been squashed oval,takes a bit of a punch to do that ! :wow: Rob...................rnixartillery.

Latest Home office Regs 2012.pretty straight forward. Rob...................rnixartillery.

Thats correct Gordon,when everything has been completed I will contact Mr Massey at Birmingham proof house and arrange a site visit,he has been a number of times before so as long as the kettle is on its pretty standard practise ! :coffee: Rob.......................rnixartillery.

Although there has been cuts made to the Barrel ,ring and block non of them are home office approved as a suitable form of de-activation so I need to weld them up and make repairs and then carry out the de-ac work in the correct locations. These are the standard Home office requirements. When I bought my 105mm L5 Howitzer several years back it came with the breech block welded solid to the Breech ring,I inquired with the Home office and proof house to find out if it was a sufficiant form of de-activation of the breech. I was made to unpick the welds making the block operational just to cross cut the striker face ! :nut: Pins can only be used in recoiless rifles ,rocket launchers,mortars etc. Rob.....................rnixartillery

And another,After filling the damaged area I have had to file the recess back which is were the barrel strap clamps the barrel to the recouperator. Next job is to sort the recouperator which is in a pretty poor state ! Rob...................rnixartillery.

Just a couple more of todays progress on the Barrel,one hole was were the Barrel had been burnt which is a typical MOD de-mil and the other marks are from range damage and splatter but at least metal has been replaced with metal ! Before and afters. Rob......................rnixartillery.

And finaly !.................... Rob.....................rnixartillery.

The Ring............................ Rob......................rnixartillery.

Had a good day in the workshop today and repaired the Block and ring so they are now ready for sand blasting. The cuts in the Ring were 3" deep in places so they took some building up but things turned out pretty good. Pics of the Block. Rob.......................rnixartillery.

I use the Black bonding mastik used to fix JCB windsreens in place,it works very well on Rubber componants.it sticks like **** to a blanket ! Rob......................rnixartillery.

Excellent job ! you guys should be proud of yourselves...............well done .:thumbsup: Rob..............rnixartillery.

After a failed first attempt to remove the Breech block from the ring I had a re-think and went to plan B ! Any which way........................but worked. All parts are now dis-assembled and ready for repair and sandblasting. Rob........................rnixartillery.

Thats the gun I am building Runflat...............17/25 pdr Pheasant.........................:thumbsup: Rob......................rnixartillery.

Richard, Is that Johny B in the Wardle ? Did he catch up with you at W&P Rob.....................rnixartillery

Rob, I bought one of these bore brushes on e-bay and it came from Germany so it could well be Leopard but did they use the same stave system ? Rob...................rnixartillery.