David Herbert

That is the 'standard' setup but the strength and length of the spring is tailored to the dimensions, weight and power of the vehicle so they are not at all universal though they look similar. They have no relationship to suspension springs other than both being leaf springs.

David

I agree with John. The small pipes are for injecting a spray of petrol into each port for very cold weather starting. Just blank them off.

David

I bought a brand new red one, unmarked except for "Petroleum Spirit Highly Inflammable" in 1970 from Halfords. I have no idea what was stamped into the bottom if anything. They were still in common use then as plastic ones had only just started to be available.

David

All these cans have interchangeable caps. This one simply has the wrong cap on it !

David

I think that the blocks keep the tilt spaced away from the tailgate itself. The point being that any water on the inside of the canvas drains outside and that the canvas doesn't rub on the steel angles and bolts.

David

What a great set of photos of very expensive parts being made ! It is great to see 'proper' engineering being done.

David

In common with most WW2 British trucks, the governor on the carburettor does not set a continuous speed for the engine but instead limits the maximum RPM that the engine can reach, although of course it can't stop an overspeed caused by being in the wrong gear going down a steep hill. Now that we are all used to driving motor vehicles this is much less of an issue so I wouldn't worry about having a working governor.

David

And I thought that Valentines were bad for driver vision !

David

I would strongly suggest that you drive in 3-6 on the road or on reasonably easy cross country work. There is no need to select N or any other position if just stopped at a junction as this is a fully auto transmission with a torque converter and no wear or over heating will occur doing this.

3-5 and 3-4 are there to give you more engine braking downhill (don't use the brakes for this as they can grab viciously if used gently for more than about twenty seconds without releasing to let the oil get between the drums and the brake bands. This results in a sudden and unexpected turn that you will not be able to control.)

1-2 is there to give you very low speed control and pulling power for climbing difficult obstacles and loading onto trucks. It will not help with roadwork as starting in 3 gives plenty of acceleration and the ability to turn on a hard surface.

David

If they are going onto split rims then fitting them is really a job that you can do yourself. The hard part is removing the old tires which have generally welded themselves in place. Just don't pinch the tube when bolting the two halves of the rim together and make sure that the valve is poking out of its hole comfortably before inflation.

David

The British army still have updated FV432 and 434 so are not releasing running gear parts. Pads and wheels have almost disappeared from the collector market, hence the current prices if you can find any. However it is only a matter of time until the 430 fleet is disposed of and then the market will temporarily be flooded. Until then there are a couple of people seriously looking at making replica pads or re rubbering used backing plates.

David

I spotted the Comet on the BBC news. In the mid '70s they were still buying spares for multiple Comets as I had a small part to play in sourcing new speedometer cables for them.

David

I think that you must have a fairly big vacuum leak into the inlet manifold or possibly an inlet valve stuck open giving the same effect.

David

13.50 - 20 originally but that size was renamed 14.00 - 20. some tyres are marked with both sizes as they are actually the same.

David

I have FV434 02FA23 for which Merlin gives the date in service as 01 August 69. Presumably they were taken into service in blocks but I have no idea how big the blocks were.

I have a photo of 02FA22 in service but no photo of mine so if anyone has a photo of 02FA23 I would be very pleased to see it !

David

Ball jars were almost universal for jam makers on American farms so were a very good choice for air pre-cleaners on American farm machinery pre war. They continued in use by all the major US tractor manufacturers for many years. In the UK the equivalent are Kilner jars and I believe that there is a Kilner jar that will substitute for the Ball jar on US tractors.

David

Can I have a banana too please ?

There is no way that you could have done that without distortion but you now have good metal to beat into submission. This is one of those jobs that will suddenly come right and you will wonder what you were scared of (100 man hours later). Just keep going !

David

Army Tank ?

If the long one bolts to the flanges and is in good condition, it might be cheaper to get it shortened than to replace it. There are plenty of companies that can do prop shaft rebuilds out there. I have done a couple myself but had to take great care to get the alignment right as I couldn't balance them. They were fine though.

David

I have one of these lamps. It looks identical to yours but is in its original olive green. There is no sign of primer under the green. It came, about 20 years ago, from a stall (possibly at Beltring) that had quite a few of them in varying condition but none mint. They all had been used a little but suffered from bad storage and handling. Mine has the same maker's mark and part number but unfortunately the third digit of the date is obscured by rust though the last 5 is still clear. Mine still has its burner in good condition.

It is a nice thing to have on my mantelpiece in the office.

David

It may be that the mudguards were made by an outside contractor and delivered in that colour as that was the paint available to them. They could even have been diverted from a civilian order. They could have been replacements many years ago. Anything is possible.

David

I don't think that that is a crane but a tower that erects itself. It does not seem to have any pulleys at the top (which is the free end nearest the ground) so I guess there was a cage or platform that climbed the tower under its own power. All the mechanism visible seems to be purely for raising and unfolding the two sections of the tower.

David

The regulation and the practice  during and well beyond WW2 was that British vehicles had the nuts that hold split rims together painted red as undoing them with any amount of pressure in the tire could be fatal. The nuts that hold the wheel onto the hub were painted white to distinguish them from the red ones. This was not an affectation but a safety measure and was in place long before  D day. It was specificly mentioned in some camouflage regulations that the painting of wheel nuts did not compromise camouflage and was to be continued.

Red towing hooks and lifting points are an affectation but very common post war.

It also became normal practice to paint fuel caps red for petrol or yellow for diesel post war but I don't know of this was required by regulation or just popular tarting up.

David

His other post is just as meaningless.

David