Pete Ashby

I don't know one way or the other whether there are tanks buried or not, it is really more like the Gold Train here in Poland - sometimes it is more interesting to ponder and investigate than to be sure of a certain outcome.

 

Hence my earlier suggestion, rather than digging perhaps the answer would be to start with ground radar or some kind.

 

trevor

I would think Trevor the problem in this case with Geo phys would be the re-bar in the concrete, it would produce an awful lot of interference to the point where you would not see anything else

Pete

hi pete

 

It wasn’t intended that German armour be bought to the UK just moved back out of harms way into Belgium and France ..none of this is relevant to the issue of the uk burials it was only to show that there was a concerted effort to amass sufficient armour to match the Russian build up both in Germany and the UK ..the UKs stock also included the tanks that were eventually buried ...there never would have been a problem had Winston won the 45 election ..

 

Thank you for the clarification Andy and apologizes for misinterpreting your previous post.

 

I am aware of certain elements of 'Operation Unthinkable' which the US was also very much aware of. Under the Truman administration the US refused point blank to become involved in another European conflict. The British Chiefs of Staff made it very plain to Churchill even if the US was involved and with up to 100,000 German troops rearmed the odds in terms of material and men were still very much against the Allies. The Russians obtained some knowledge of ‘Unthinkable’ in late 1945 and as a result some commentators are of the opinion that from that point the ‘stand off’ became very much the Cold War.

Given the above it would seem an odd decision on the part of the Atlee government to bury tanks that may have been needed to defend against the real and powerful threat of the Soviets particularly when they could have been put into long or short term storage. It would be a mistake to see the Atlee period as one of appeasement , rather it saw huge sums of money being alocated to the development of Britain’s nuclear capability and the research and development of the next generation of FV’s and AFV’s.

I wish you well with your search but I think the chances of there being anything under the concrete is slim

Pete

Andy this makes interesting reading but I'm not sure how it all fits together.

It is no secrete that there was a strong feeling among some senior members of the British armed forces and some members of the war cabinet that from the end of 1944 the Russians represented a considerable threat to Allied plans for post war Germany and potentially the rest of Europe. From the American perspective Patton reputably was of a mind that there was a wasted resource in the form of German elite units locked up in PoW cages.

However if I have understood your narrative correctly I don't understand the rational of bringing captured armoured vehicles back across the channel. To make this worth while in terms of numbers it would require a major logistical operation which would not have been possible to keep from the Americans. As others have already said there were a few type examples brought back for evaluation possibly the the most well known being the Tiger at the tank museum and and another example at Shrivenham military collage along with at least one Panther and several half tracks that were passed onto Vauxhall for evaluation.

Is it possible your Father was involved in the recovery and transport of vehicles for evaluation perhaps ?

One point I must correct you on regarding the atom bomb project, Britain was involved in the Tube Alloys project at both Los Alimos and Chalk River. My first Division Head was recruited from Cambridge in 1944 and shipped out to join the US team along with a number of other leading British chemists and physicists.

As I said at the start this is an interesting story and perhaps a little more detail would make things clearer, I look forward to hearing more about this

regards

Pete

The latest addition of Windscreen arrived on this mornings post and very good it is too, so you should get that in a day or so I would think.

Pete

On Milweb http://www.milweb.net/webvert/a1815 no connection with the seller whatsoever.

Just seen this and think it would make an exceptional project for someone, almost tempted but I have enough to do :angel:

Pete

Some how missed this thread until now, impressive work. Many years ago (somewhere around 30 :shocked:) the late Bernard Venners had a LRC and also the late Mike Hoffman come to think of it Bernard may have sold it to Mike I can't remember now David B may recall?

Pete

I agree with Nick, it's the real deal, but it really is only good for a few parts sadly not worth the cost.

£4.5K to £6.5K will get you a much better bet in the UK in terms a vehicle that will form the basis of a restoration project with a title and documentation for registration after restoration.

It's a sad fact that they can't all be saved :cry:

Pete

The British Army reg number is interesting if I am reading it correctly it is M4810227?.

The Chilwell list for the Standard Motor Car Co has one contract for 'Car 4x2 Light Armoured mkIV contract number V5198 M number 4815604 to 4816409.

However 4810227? does turn up as part of a block of numbers allocated to the 10th Indian Army for 'various types' 4786500 to 4811499

Pete

It was common practice while pass plates were mandatory ( there use seems to be phased out some time during 1942) to paint the arm of service and unit number on the opposite side to 'Pass'. The prescribed procedure was for the unit sign to be the normal side displayed. It was the drivers responsibility to turn the plate round to show 'Pass' in the event of a breakdown or other form of authorised halt.

I read somewhere..... I'm sorry I can't remember the source..... that it was not permitted for a following vehicle to pass a halted vehicle unless the 'Pass' plate was visible and displayed. The rational behind this was to prevent following vehicles running into potential ambush situations.

Pete

Congratulations to the Albion and and to you for saving her :yay:

Pete

Can I also ask; I changed the original battery as it was dead from storing in the shed for two years to the same code from Halfords

HSB019

 

Start up power - 900 amps

 

AH Value - 100ah

 

Bench charge 6 amps

 

I need to replace the battery leads as these were in terribly damaged condition.

Could anyone advise what I need for this battery please?

 

Thank you I will check the grounding connections and remove paint where needed

Put a voltmeter across the battery terminals without load this is the reading you need to start with.....what is the reading ?

Pete

The best thing to do is work your way through the power feeds with a voltmeter in sequence starting with the battery to ground should be around 12.5 to 13 volts on a good 12 volt battery then work your way through the starter solenoid activation circuit and then the low tension ignition circuit remember to test both sides of the ignition switch ie input and then turn the switch on and test for battery voltage on the coil side of the switch.

Pete

Here's a very nice D15 GS in Dutch? or Belgium? ownership, CMP Dodges are very handsome trucks I think

Pete

Ah HAAA! That picture came from a group the Tank Musuem libary have.

I think sometimes people are not aware that that the Tank Museum library hold a large collection of soft skin factory and type acceptance photos in the archive always worth a look before trolling of to the ILWM.

Pete

Yes that's the tanker Tony, hopefully I should have room in the workshop next year to start on the one I've got in storage unfortunately the Canadian tank is long gone but I have a British tank to fit instead

Pete

I have a CDLV 505 contract Willys and am trying to figure out hood and WD numbers.

I have heard about the Chilwells List. If anybody has a copy and can check out if they can find my MB by serial number ( or one relatively close) it would be greatly appreciated. I am at a loss.

 

I am trying to figure out mine. Details as follows:

 

Serial 155562

engine 160432

tub 59041

DOD 7/7/42

Contract CDLV 505

WLU 440 M PERS 1

 

I BELIEVE MINE DID NOT GO OVERSEAS. However a CM****** or 43-*** near my serial number on the 505 contract would suffice.

 

Thank you in advance.

 

Jason

Jason, the Chilwell lists do not give frame numbers linked to contract data for Canadian contracts, only number blocks are listed, however using John Farley's 'The Standard War Time jeep vol 2' it would appear that the contract you quote above would be for 1000 units in July 42 going to an ongoing Canadian contract.

The production for July was MB frame numbers MB155101 to MB156497 =1396 units. The other 394 units going to an ongoing British contract SM2428 serials M4923602 to M4923996 =394 units (notice there is a discrepancy of 2 units here).

Farley lists two known Canadian serial numbers from this July batch namely CM4231488 and CM4231785. The Chilwell list only gives the full allocation of 42##### number 4200000 to 4299999 this will cover all types of trucks so not much help to you I'm afraid.

However if August 42 is looked at then contract 505 was still ongoing and two serials from that group of 700 units supplied are CM4232453 and CM4242123.

Therefore it would be reasonable that your MB would be around the CM423#### range

Pete

He has showen me round the rear sheds on several occasions and there are still hundreds of military tyres in many sizes especially larger types like 12.00x20 but he is very expensive

Over 20 years ago 900x16 run flats were on offer at £200+Vat each, to be fair they were new with the molding nibs but in those days it was nearly double the going rate. I couldn't begin to think how many were in the shed but they were on racks floor to ceiling round all four walls and three isles in the middle, there was little interest in selling to the MV world as apparently JCB 4x4 operators were the main source of revenue.

Pete

I found this picture recently when I was faced with the same question as you Robert and I left the I terminal blank and it worked fine.

Pete

Is this any help Robert ?

Regards

Pete

From this point on everything is a positive step forward in any restoration project. For me this is the most enjoyable part the grunt work is done and it's time to start adding the detail, every days work now has a visible positive return.

Looking good :thumbsup:

Pete

Good to see the Old Chap hasn't lost his touch

Regards to you both

Pete

Happy New Year to you to Chris, yes offer still stands, I'll have a look through my transmission spares in the next couple of days and PM you.

regards

Pete

Well good luck to the seller, but I am always left wondering who bids up to these inflated prices when a quick flick through the internet would set the bench mark for the vehicle.....sense money than more..... re-arrange as appropriate :-)

Pete

If you can't locate one in Canada let me know I can probably supply you with a good used example.

Pete

Nice work on the door frame keep the photos coming :thumbsup:

Pete