David Herbert

I am not certain but are J60 Distributor caps not the same as Lucas B series 6 cylinder ones ? J60s started off with the same double contact breaker system but the combination of higher revs and rotation in the oposite direction to the B series caused problems that were only sorted with the optical/electronic mod. As far as I know the cap is the same part. If it is the FV number may well be the same which would prove it. The NSN will not be the same as the application is different. The centrifugal advance mechanism is definitely different. I know that the rotor arms are interchangeable but the J60 one does not have the speed limiter function. David

Trakmark itself has a diamond pattern embossed into it and is described on the lable as being "plastic sheet,PVC,cotton fabric base" and also "flame proof" the diamonds are about 5mm crs. However, after about year 2000 a substitute material took over that had a slightly less yellow colour and a much much finer pattern. I have not seen even a trade name for this but I need lots for my FV434. I understand that the change was caused by the end of commercial production of Trakmark. The new material discolours, cracks and curls up at least as badly as original Trakmark which is why mine needs replacement after only 14 years! If you do remake your pads, they look much better if you tuck the edges of the covering right under the edges of the foam so they are trapped when the pads are glued in. The originals usually don't do this and the edges lift and then get caught and ripped. Also use an electric heat gun to soften the covering to get it to fold over the edges better. Please let us know what you find as a covering as most post 1950's British armour needs it. David

Do the welding before blasting so that the blasting can blend it in a bit. It is nice to see a CVRT being gone through in this much detail. Have you sourced the replacement for the PVC covered foam panels? The covering was a material called "trakmark" which was also sold for lining the interiors of the engine rooms of large motor boats. It is very difficult to find in the UK so those of us here that need it would be very interested if there is a US equivilent. David

That one is a Canadian built Grizzly, ex Portugal. It is one of the second batch of Grizzlys as it has the later hull casting. The shape around the bow machine gun is different and instead of aplique armour welded on to protect the amunition, it has the actual casting thickened localy. Look along the bottom edge of the hull above the track. These hulls were used in very small numbers on US built Shermans but it seems only for special purpose tanks not for ordinary 75mm gun tanks. Posibly because US production had moved forward to the Ultimate Series Shermans (with big hatches) by then. David

Not sure that is a six cylinder engine ? Could that be a spark plug and a primer cup for each of four cylinders ? Come on Tim, tell us...... David

If you know anyone that does crane hire you might be able to scrounge some take off crane rope. That will be much better at one end than the other and is used in quite long lengths which obviously need to be to lifting standard for their whole length. Once condemed for lifting it has little value but should be fine for you. The only things that I would not use it with are: broken strands (they really hurt when they go through your hand), serious rust, kinks, in that order. David

Very distinctive front spring hangers. No idea what it is though ! David

It is amazing that Dennis didn't find this problem and fix it early on. Can I suggest threading the shaft and fitting two nuts with a tab washer in between and some form of thrust bearing between them and the end of the casting. David

I suggested the pressure plate assembly, not the driven plate of the clutch. It is not that uncommon for the centre to rip out of the driven plate but that would not alter the resistance to moving the actuating lever - just no drive and a bit of clicking sound. Whatever it is you will have to take the clutch apart and then you will know. David

I can't find anywhere to look it up but I think AEC R6T (the pre war gun tractor and breakdown 6 x 6) was on 9.00 x 22s. David

Sorry about the abreviations, Yes ANR stands for active noise reduction. There is a microphone inside each ear cup and if it hears anything that has not come down the intercom, that noise is reversed and fed into the speaker, canceling out the external sound. If you have never experienced it, it is amazingly good. The Clansman ANR boxes have yellow fronts and different headsets are needed (like Racal 195 which are luckily quite common). Fortunately the Clansman intercom function is independent of the radio so as a minimum you need a CB2 (crew box, 2 outlet) and an IB3 (intercom box, 3 possible inputs - this is the 'basic' intercom box and has the amplifier in it for the intercom), one 12pin to 12pin cable to connect them, a power supply 2pin cable to the IB3, and two headsets with pressels (the press to talk switch). The 352 is one of many Clansman radio sets but that is a different subject. David

Neil, Why wouldn't you use ANR kit? The whole point of it was to suppress background noise which is what you are complaining about. The boxes and headsets are easy to find in servicable condition if not in new condition and they are no more expensive than the non ANR ones. Ebay is your friend ! David

Well done Mr Balmae ! :tup::. When we found the Kirkcudbright one none of us could figure out why it was so heavily built for what seemed to be a mock up. You have more than explained this little mystery but any more photos of them in use would be great. David

Could you elaborate please ? David

Like GWT above I have kept out of this till now but I have to say that I agree with him. If Andy's reasion for starting this thread was to find out if anyone here knew anything about the buried tanks, I think it is clear that either they don't know or that they choose not to join in. We are then left with Andy's account of his childhood and politics. This started in a style of "I know lots of secret stuff that I won't tell you silly enthusiasts" which I find insulting, and has now developed into a debate about Churchill's activities which is not going to provide evidence about wether any tanks are actually buried anywhere. Since it seems that the government will not let Andy (or presumably anyone else) dig up this six acres of concrete can I suggest that Andy tells us precisely where it is so that we can all look it up on Google Earth. I assume that Andy knows about the thousands of WW2 tanks that were cut up for scrap in the '40s and '50s. I am at a loss to understand why the ones in question would not have been added to the scrap pile where they would have drawn no comment at all rather than been the subject of this secret burial - or were they to be dug up later and recommisioned? David

As I understand it from the first post there is no drive to the gearbox (clutch permanently disengaged) as well as no real resistance to the actuating lever. This would suggest that the pressure plate assembly has come away from the flywheel or that the release mechanism has got wedged in the disengaged position. Both very unusual failures. Please let us know how this develops. Good luck David

I think that converting to a two piece prop shaft is a much too complicated solution. A new shaft with a size bigger tube AND properly balanced will certainly solve the problem and be far cheaper. Remember that the balancing can be done much more precisely now than 60 years ago and the youtube video three posts ago shows that a relatively long thin shaft can survive 9000 RPM if it is balanced right. The forces go up with the square of the speed so the Martian shaft is a simple problem in comparison. If you go to a dedicated drive shaft company you will probably be suprised how cheap a new shaft is. David

Is there any reasion to think it is a tank tyre? It looks like a standard solid tyre to me, intended for use on a truck, trailer, mobile crane, etc. My only doubt about possible truck use is that British ones were usually specified in milimeters in WW1 I believe. I have no idea why! Tank tyres were usually bonded directly to the wheel (except Valentine as Rick said) because pressing them onto a seperate wheel was not a strong enough fixing to withstand the side thrusts that a tracked vehicle causes when it turns. David I should add in the light of the next post that I was talking about British tank practice as they are Dunlop tyres but that is a fair point Andrew.

Yes, that is certainly unusual, easier to hide it if you are about to be caught reading it while camping. Nice to get the edition that goes with your truck too. David

The woman on the extreme left is wondering who shot the hole through the hat of the guy next to her. David

A caption competition is called for.... David

It must be possible to find out when that contract no. was issued and how many vehicles it was for. The operators handbooks have a list of order numbers that they refer to but not how many vehicles each order is. That info would help to give you an idea though. The AEC society may be able to help too - might even have something on their website. The cab changes will probably start with the start of a new order but which one ? I believe that some Militant Is were LHD for BAOR but don't know if they were from a separate order or were lumped in with RHD ones. I expect that Wally will be able to find something. David

Neil, I believe that the Militants with Atlas cranes were all conversions of existing vehicles and were not selected based on chassis number or build date but availability and condition. As a result they tended to be later ones but not exclusively. I am sure that you are aware that early vehicles had slightly more ornate cabs - check out the gutter over the doors and the window frames. Also the early ones didn't have the box on the mudguard for the indicator and sidelight but had traficators instead which were subsequently removed and indicators fitted to the side of the cab low down at the front. I am satisfied that these early ones are pre 1960 but am not sure how many of the later style ones are, if any. Sorry to hear about the OT90 but at least you have had some fun with it. David

Presumably he won't sell it because he is going to fix it one day. David

Nostalga isn't what it used to be in the old days :-( David