mcspool

That would be great! I have been to that beach before, never knowing a Sherman was lurking beneath the sand....

Re. WD census no. T-21253x: I searched through Kevin T's British and Canadian Vehicles Names Lists, but could only find M4A4's in the T-2122... , T-2123... , T-2124... , T-2126... , T-2127.. ranges, but none in the T-2125... range :confused:.

See the attached for another period picture of a M4A4 Dozer named "Defiance", most likely on the same beach. I recall seeing this photo in the pre-internet days and wondering how it came in US use and where it was taken?!? Leife Hubert noted: "Besides "Defiance", there is a photo on p51 of Steve's Concord US Funnies book which shows yet more Sherman V "mine clearer" dozers and a Churchill SBG in use by a US unit practicing for the Op Dragoon landings, so it's not the realms of fantasy that US units would be using ex-BritComm vehicles during these landings." Leife also notes La Nartelle beach is one of the "Delta" beaches that the 45th ID landed on during Dragoon. Both Defiance and Night-Hawk have the same shipping code 82019-Y on them. HTH, Hanno

Picture from http://www.varmatin.com/article/saint-tropez/jean-daniel-de-germond-a-sainte-maxime-a-17-ans-jai-pose-sur-ce-tank.698103.html in the hand of the gentleman shows the same grab rail along the turret as "Night Hawk" has in P-O's photo.

Hello Gary, Thanks for the link, I'll look into it! Regards, Hanno

I'm after information about the Hercules Cycle and Motor Company, more specifically whether they supplied bicycles to the British forces before the end of WW2? All I found about their involvement in wartime production is that they made bipod legs, gas cylinders and magazines for Bren guns (source). But since they were one of Britain's largest bicycle manufacturers, I guess they did supply them, but I need more detailed information. Who knows more, or can point me towards vitage bicycle sources / forums / etc. which could tell me more? Thanks in advance! Hanno

Yes, wet down areas where you suspect markings, I've clearly seen remnants of markings on wrecks which were soaked after a good bit of rain, which were nigh impossible to see when they were dried up! Take your time on this bit of armourcheology, once Bob let's loose his sandblaster it will all be gone forever.

Don't know about the availability of model kits but the C15TA and Otter used the same chassis and armoured front end. For modeling purposes one could use a C15A 15-cwt truck chassis, as that's practically the same.

It does have split axles , doesn't it? Does it have a winch in the chassis?

Nice pic from the IWM site: "ROYAL AIR FORCE OPERATIONS IN MALTA, GIBRALTAR AND THE MEDITERRANEAN, 1940-1945. Operation DRAGOON: the Allied invasion of Southern France. The crash tender of No. 111 Squadron RAF lined up with the flying control 'tower' and vehicles at Sisteron in the south of France, as aircraft of the squadron fly in from Ramatuelle."

Rightly so, the Kangaroo operators were a special bunch! :salute: But I guess Stanley Brand was a member of the British 49 Royal Tank Regiment, rather than the 1st Canadian Armoured Carrier Regiment, right?

A bit late on my reply, but.... indeed Ram (and Priest) Kangaroos were not fitted with bench seats, contrary to popular belief (or endless re-quoting of incorrect sources). Ref. http://web.inter.nl.net/users/spoelstra/g104/1cacr/ramkang.html: "after removal of the Ram's turret, the interior was rearranged. Work entailed the removal of 6-pdr. ammunition stowage boxes and associated equipment. The No.19 wireless set was relocated from the rear of the turret into the left-hand sponson. Eight to eleven infantry were to be carried in the open topped compartment." Besides there simply is no room for benches, the purpose of the Kangaroo was to carry the infantry from the start line of an operation to their objectives. It was not used like an APC is used today, where the infantry "live" in their vehicles and the APC is also uses for tactical movements. We have not (yet) found an exact description of the work carried out by the workshops on M7 Priests and Ram tanks to convert them to Kangaroos, but Peter Brown dug up a technical report which throws some light on the conversion of Kangaroos in Italy - see my web page here: http://web.inter.nl.net/users/spoelstra/g104/apckang2.htm HTH, Hanno

Pierre-Olivier, I would be great if you could find a local contact so I could have access to it. I think it is crucial to search for clues if indeed it was once fitted with a dozer blade or not. The US did borrow some specialised armour from the British, an M4A4 Dozer would fit the bill but a regular gun tank would not. By stating this chances are that someone will now prove the US did use M4A4 gun tanks, of course... Hanno

Old thread on this subject: http://hmvf.co.uk/forumvb/showthread.php?28226-Storms-uncovers-a-Sherman-buried-on-the-beach&highlight=Sainte+Maxime Maybe I'll go there and visit next month. P-O, do you have any local contacts?

I have cross posted to the G104 mailing list, will let you know if something comes up there.

Cross posting to old thread: http://hmvf.co.uk/forumvb/showthread.php?31653-Ex-military-army-lorry-canadian-ford-4wd-truck-chevy&p=317126 Sounds like a great trade (although I don't know what the tractor is worth...). Get it running, keep it in its civilian guise and take it to some shows while you collect the parts to do a proper restoration. Meanwhile hop over to MLU to learn more about CMPs: http://www.mapleleafup.net/forums/showthread.php?t=18626 It does have split axles , doesn't it? Does it have a winch in the chassis?

This one you mean? https://picasaweb.google.com/m/viewer#photo/111533396268987295310/5753048382902835377,authkey:Gv1sRgCJ6n456d-KD8vgE/5753052113231421538 That's the hydraulic ram for a dozer blade indeed.

On the subject of wood types, I recall seeing a publication on this forum about types of wood. As I understand it, various types of hard and soft wood would be acceptable to the MoD. In other words, the MoD as client would not specify "oak", but "hard wood", so the supplier could use birch, maple, ash, oak, etc., whatever was available and suited the job. Other than that, IIRC cargo bodies on WW2 trucks and trailers were made of soft wood? Can ayone elaborate on this? Regards, Hanno

Joris, Congratulations! Boys & a girl, great fun. Take care of the missus and her daughter. Hanno

Yes, that's one:

Interesting, never knew the Irish had them too. The Dutch Armed Forces used them, as did the Swiss, and then some. Post WW2 Universal Jeeps are a bit overlooked in my humble opinion..... Good luck on the restoration and keep us posted!

Malta - Valletta National War Museum Bedford MW 1.5 Ton http://www.flickr.com/photos/31068574@N05/4712405676

EMR 246

Here's one at the Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre, possibly you know it already:

They take their time as well don't they? Halfway through loading, let's stop, gather round, wait till the photographer has set up his equipment etc etc Great picture BTW!