Chris Warne

Just received my Dodge WC51 build card yesterday, having followed the process provided on this forum. It took around 3 weeks for the copy of the card to come back, and my WC51 Serial 81730560 was built 8th Sept 1944 - a month earlier than I'd calculated. Thanks to the forum for providing the necessary info to get this. For DVLA registration, I'm not sure a copy of the build card would be enough. I've registered several vehicles over the years, and the DVLA want the originals of most documents and won't accept copies. The easiest way I've found is to get the MVT or IMPS to verify your vehicles age - the DVLA will accept their dating as authorative.

Thanks guys, that's great. I take it a photocopy of the V5 UK registration document will suffice as proof of ownership. I'll get on it today, thanks again for your help. Chris

Thought about doing this but never got round to it. What's the procedure/address to get the build card? Thanks in advance....

Err, well, yes, kind of....... Never to be repeated!

I'm very pleased you said that. You're right and I agree 100%, there was a plant stall and some kind of tombola, which left several of us speechless as they were not condusive to the weekend we had expected. We know why they had turned up, but rest assured it will be a completely military theme this year, and i know we'll have more military vehicles and displays attending this year. the weather is looking promising for the weekend too, so hopefully it will be much busier than last year. We need to remember that this started out as a local MV group 'annual weekend camp', but it's such a great venue, with ww2 history all around it, we've tried to expand the facilities and attraction, so there's another event for enthusiasts to come along to, should thry wish. We're not trying to turn this into a Damyns Hall or Bunker Bash, it's a small event where like-minded enthusiasts can get together for a weekend, and be as involved or as relaxed as they want. Hopefully we'll see some of you there.

What happened - i hope you will let us all know after a statement like that? Last year it was just a local IMPS area rally, but based on feedback we got from most (seems not all?) who attended, and particulary John at Classic Military Vehicle mag, we decided to try and expand the event.

Thought I'd check in to let you know all is on target for North Thames IMPS 'Little Easton on the Home Front' on the 26th & 27th May. John Blackman from CMV rated it highly when he joined us for the day at the inaugural event last year, and with more participants booked in, this year looks like it will be even busier. After all the rain of the past weeks, the ECEWF is indicating that Summer might finally arrive on the 25th May! :nut: It's free entry all weekend, and if you want to come along with your MV or Display, you'll be warmly welcomed. Get in touch very soon to get some space allocated, else turn up on the day for 'first come, first served' pitch allocation.

I'll see if I can locate a picture of my jeep plate (now sold), but I won't be over to get a pic of the Dodge one for a week or so. I agree on the blue paint - it has been very well done, and thoroughly too - almost as if the Dodge was stipped down and then painted. Saying that, I was lucky with my Dodge (been lucky with my jeep, half-track and now the dodge) that when I went looking for the original hood number, using the paint stripper approach, I found it. After working through the Norwegian paint, there was a thin layer of blue before I reached the original hood number, then immediately underneath was OD, Red oxide and then metal. From that, I concluded the blue was applied at a later date. My Dodge WC51 is approx August 1944, but who knows when it was painted blue. I would say sometime between the end of ww2 and when it went to Norway in the 1950's, presumably after it had been through a Rootes rebuild. That could be quite a 'window' for it to have seen postwar use in Europe, and I'd guess with alot of manpower around, it wouldn't be unreasonable to think quite a bit of work effort went into any repainting that was done = thorough.

When I got my 1945 Willys MB from Norway, it had a Rootes 1953 rebuild plate. My current 1944 Dodge WC51 has one too, also ex-Norway. I recall when I enquired about the Rootes rebuilds on the G503 some years back, the answer was that Rootes were contracted to refurbish surplus vehicles that were to be supplied under MAP (Marshall Assistance program). I know Norway was a large recipient of vehicles, and possibly some/all of the following: Denmark, Greece, France. On the blue paint found on ex-Norway jeeps and/or Dodges, I was assured by the guys at Jeepfabrikken (Frank Berg & Co) that the Norwegian Air Force didn't paint their vehicles blue, but I have found evidence of jeeps & Dodges being used in Europe post-war by the USAAF/USAF. I have a picture, somewhere, of a Dodge WC51 in blue with yellow hood number that had been restored to match a late 1940's picture of a similar Dodge in USAF service in Germany. I have no evidence to support, but this could be one explanation.

Certainly for a P-51, and I believe this holds true for a P-38 aswell, as long as you have the airframe 'dataplate' (identity of an original aircraft), then that's all that's required to 'restore' the aircraft. In essence it will be a new manufacture. If you think about the P-38 Glacier Girl, whilst the restoration used as many serviceable parts from the recovered original as possible, it is a virtually new aircraft. I remember reading that the CAF B-26 Carolyn suffer undercarriage failure a few years after they got her back into the air. The accident damaged the main spar, and as the original plans were lost in a fire at Martin Aircraft years ago, the CAF had to get a new spar made using the damaged one as a pattern - with reference to other surviving examples too I'd guess. Ultimately, if there's enough money anything is possible.

Saturday 26th & Sunday 27th May, 2012 Little Easton, Nr Great Dunmow, Essex. The plan, which is coming together very nicely, is to 'time warp' Little Easton back to Spring 1944, with the events centred around The Stag pub, where participants will be able to exhibit vehicles, camp & setup displays in the 8 acre field. We have already secured the village hall for a Saturday night dance, with 'Texas Tommy' supplying the music. Sunday will see a dedication at the village War Memorial, and we're hoping to secure the cricket pitch for a baseball match in the afternoon. Once again, we will be running tours of the remains of RAF Gt Dunmow throughout the weekend. The displays area will be accessible for camping from the Friday, and whilst the theme is Home Front in 1944, there will be designated areas for post-war and non-Military vehicles, although there will certainly be an AAF 'flavour' to the weekend, for obvious reasons. Entry to the event will be completely free of charge, although donations for nominated veteran/military charities would be appreciated. The Saturday night dance will be by ticket only, for which there will be a charge, and the funds raised from this event will go towards helping us establish an airfield museum at RAF Gt Dunmow. In addition to the above, we also hope to setup sentry points on the road through Little Easton, with passing vehicles requested to make a donation, the Austin 7 owners club attending, a history display about RAF Gt Dunmow, WI cake/teas stall - all being discussed but not confirmed yet. In effect, we're planning to get the entire village involved and completely turn the clocks back 68 years. Little Easton was the nearest village to RAF Great Dunmow, where the 386th BG (M), 9th AAF, aka 'The Crusaders' were based from late 1943. The Stag pub was the local watering hole for the 386th, so a fitting central point for the weekend.

I've got an original M16/M16A1 rear bucket holder bracket if you need one? It came with my M3A1, which had previously been an M16A1 (elevated maxon, no fold-down side armour). It needs a good blast/strip & paint and a couple of the folded corners tidying up a little, but nothing major. Looking for £20 for it + P&P. If you have your frame number, then hit the Tracked section of g503.com and Joe De Marco will probably be able to give you all manner of build information, maybe even the ORD number assigned to it (for the dataplate). Good to see you found the orignal hood number (40xxxxxx) - was it stamped into the front bumper? I'd imagine most of your time is spent keeping the fuel tanks topped up!! Half-tracks need deep pockets, that's for sure.

All this HT talk made me dig out a picture of mine - now living in Belgium.....

Half-tracks are a superb vehicle, and I always wanted an M3A1, having had a 'matchbox' one as a boy. I managed to buy one back in 2007, but after 2 years driving it to shows, I realised that you really need a beavertail or other transport to get the best out of owning one. I remember taking it to Damyns in 2008 - 2 1/4 hours to drive 36 miles and I had to lay down for an hour afterwards, to recover. Come across any kind of incline in a HT and you'll get overtaken by pedestrians!! One thing with Half-tracks - you get alot of people coming up to look, and alot of questions. I sold mine to a guy in Belgium in 2009 (doubled my money easily!) and he takes it everywhere - it's nice and flat where he is. Lovely looking vehicles, but not for the feint hearted, and if something goes wrong, you need deep pockets.

A few more pics of non-Landrover stuff.... :laugh: Actually, these are from our AAF mechanics display, but working through the checklist before the show, I forgot my camera but a number of people have shared their pics, and this is what we did...... I just had to include a picture of the AAF Mechanics 'holy grail', which a fellow HMVF member alerted me to, having stumbled across it on ebay.... an unissued/NOS WW2 C-47 Service Squadron Kit. This is a complete kit of all the non-standard aircraft tools, still wrapped in waxed paper/OD cloth tape. Amazing that something like this could have survived all those years. Now we need to find the equivalents for the B-26 and A-26!!! And some pics of Maurice's Janie & Marinell, aswell as Sally B. The Three ship flypast was special...but then when Maurice came in on his first pass..... then there was when..... I could go on all day. You needed to be there I think! Special thanks to Phil Whalley for allowing me use of his pictures.