TooTallMike

For further info on M51 please have a look at our Green Barn Services Facebook page where there are loads of photos of the one we restored two years ago. I have over 700 photos of the dismantling and rebuild, but we just posted up the more interesting ones.

 - MG 

Hi,

Does it turn at all? If so I'd be interested please but not sure how/when I could pick it up as we're very busy right now in the run-up to Normandy. If you wouldn't mind strapping it to a pallet I could have it collected?

For info. it could be Ward laFrance or Diamond T 969.

 - MG

Scania SBAT has a very good reputation and I believe diff locks all round. Loads of vids on Youtube of them offroading.

One for sale on Milweb but there are others around.

 http://www.milweb.net/webvert/a3318/94177

ps. I have no connection to the seller.

 - MG

37 minutes ago, Mk3iain said:

Mike

It was only for the application using VTG1 for first test.  DVSA insist on an upfront payment, give a reference number and send you to your nominated ATF to book. The ATF then take a lane fee in addition but many don't use the reference from DVSA and also take the test fee again. After that its all direct to the ATF, no need to include DVSA.

Very frustrating.

Iain

Frustrating indeed and I didn't know that was how it works for a 1st test. We have all that to look forward to in a few months with my mate's Berliet wrecker...

 - MG

18 hours ago, Mk3iain said:

 

The one problem I have found so far is that the system of applying makes you pay a test fee direct to DVSA and then you are left with the lane fee charge at the ATF. Unfortunately the ATF will also want to charge the test fee as this is how it is done on a day to day basis. Something they need to look at. I've had a very frustrating time with this but we are passed that now. I hope...

Hi, I use a bus company ATF locally to me and I book tests directly with them and only pay once. Are you booking through DVSA?

 - MG

3 minutes ago, Mk3iain said:

Maybe I'm missing something......

Me too 🙄

Out of interest does anyone know what existing or potential problem the German lawmakers think they are addressing? Is it anti-terrorist? anti- far-right? fear of public uprising? ...?

 - MG

This has nothing to do with your license or insurance, and we may not know your particular truck but we do know the law as it relates to what you are doing.

An untested truck cannot be used laden. A vehicle taxed as historic cannot be used laden. Is it tested? Is it taxed PHG?

Remember the small print says your insurance is only valid if the vehicle is being used legally.

MG

976 UXH is on the system as being MoT exempt. It also has no recorded revenue weight or wheelplan.

 - MG

9 hours ago, 2ndArmourMad said:

The truck is registered as a flat bed so there is no issue with carrying stuff, the truck is also plated upto 9500kilos but weighs less then a standard 353. 

When you say 'plated', do you mean it has a current DVSA MoT? If so I'm very impressed...

 - MG

On 10/14/2018 at 8:09 PM, Jordi said:

Addition to the above post, i found this guide to the HGV MOT. 

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/hgv-inspection-manual

Going off the guide it doesn’t seem too much additional work for a normal classic truck to meet the requirements. 

There are still exemptions to some rules and requirements depending on a vehicles age. 

I shall read and digest. 

Hi,

Firstly I'm sorry to say but it is extremely unlikely your truck is test exempt. The recent changes to the law seem unfair but they are quite clear as far as dates are concerned. The claim for test exemption when taxing the vehicle is a self-declaration and as such you can declare a vehicle to be test exempt even if it not, just as you could with the old V112G. The reason it is a self-declaration is so that the responsibility is placed solely on the person who declares it. If you choose to falsely declare it is at your risk.

The latest update to the HGV tester's manual indicates that your truck will be tested against the regs which were in place when it was built and the spec to which it was built. Therefore it should be perfectly capable of passing a test just as it could when new. There are a few items which have changed such as under-run protection and improved lighting/reflectors which are mandatory and must be retro-fitted, but all of these are detailed in the manual you have linked to and are not hard to comply with.

Regards - MG

OGEL really isn't a problem. I had one of these for a while and did the returns as required. Once my circumstances changed and I ceased to need it I cancelled it.

If you are taking a modern MV to Normandy next year just register for it, do the return at the end of the year and then cancel it. It costs nothing and you can call for advice on how to complete the paperwork. It is certainly not a reason to change plans or cancel trips. If you are capable of booking a ferry ticket online, you can do this!

 - MG

26 minutes ago, Scammell4199 said:

Prestige Clutches provide much better value for money.

https://www.facebook.com/prestigeclutches/

 

Do you mean they return better quality work, have greater expertise, or do you just mean cheaper?

There are plenty of re-lining companies out there but Clutchfix are the only place to go as far for specialist jobs as far as we are concerned.

 - MG

It has got to be possible to get the tacho calibrated before the vehicle is registered. You may need to be forceful and insist it has to happen. If you leave it to DVSA to decide, they will get stuck in a loop and you'll never get a decision out of them.

The reason they want a registration is simply so they can cross-reference the calibration against a particular vehicle. There is no logical reason why this shouldn't be the chassis number in the case of a previously unregistered vehicle.

What do your tacho calibration people say?

 - MG

I feel your pain dealing with seemingly intractible bureacracy.

The first MoT/Plate&Test is against the chassis no., so what about proposing they do the tacho calibration the same way?

 - MG

3 minutes ago, Great War truck said:

The Liberty B? Where was that? Did I miss something special? Or did you mean the FWD B which I did see?

My mistake, it was the FWD.

 - MG

I've just returned from 6 days at the show due to having to attend a wedding on Saturday and I would say it was one of the best yet for us. I have no interest in the contents of the stalls since I rarely venture into them. I also have no interest in public attendance figures since we go to have a social, not to display as such. I suspect most day visitors don't realise that the show comes alive from 5pm til late, with informal and organised site convoys and general driving about, parties, silliness and socialising. That's why we continue to attend.

We thought vehicle numbers were considerably up on the last few years - certainly not up to those of the 'good old days' but moving in the right direction. There were a few nuggets such as the Liberty B and the Guy Ant, limber and gun as well as four Pioneers.

I think the new organiser has learned from some of his past mistakes and hopefully will continue to do so.

Long live War and Peace!

 - MG

Bump - sample panels will be on display at W&P from this Saturday.

We will be in Outer Monktons beyond the exit road. Look for the yellow Ward laFrance.

 - Mike

On 7/11/2018 at 9:49 AM, Thorkell said:

Yes this Dodge you see is in rebulding process.

 

That's good news.

 - MG

Good find!

I was in Iceland 6 weeks ago and saw a Dodge WC chassis/cab in an industrial estate car park alongside the road between Keflavik and Reykjavik. I hope it's going to be rescued!

Regards - MG

Green Barn Services is pleased to offer repair sections for the lower half of GMC CCKW 1619 (open) cab side panels. These repair sections are also suitable for Ward laFrance M1A1 and other US WW2 trucks using similar side panels.

These laser-cut components are designed to replace the common areas of corrosion on these cabs and are supplied with both inner and outer sections. Both sections are folded from 2mm steel. The inner section is supplied as a 1m folded length to be cut and drilled to suit. All joints with the existing inner and outer sheet metal are joggled to minimise distortion when welding.

These repair sections have been specifically designed to facilitate repair without removing or dismantling the cab.

Price: £150 per side (price includes 1x outer panel and 1x inner folded section). Price does not include shipping.

We will have these on display at Capel Military Vehicle Show as well as at War & Peace Revival. You can find us at the bright yellow Ward laFrance!

For more photos and information please see Facebook page @GreenBarnServices or call Mike on 07747 772838.

On 6/9/2018 at 9:02 PM, johnwardle said:

This seems to me to be legislation thought up by someone that has no concept of the classic heavy vehicle world. This legislation was probably thought up by the same people who decided that MoT testers now have to check that brake discs and pads are not missing!!

The legislation that has led to Iain's Militant requiring testing has nothing to do with classic vehicles. Had his truck been a cargo version it would already have been tested annually up to now. The recent changes to test regs have brought a large number of previously-exempt categories into the testing regime, one of which is recovery vehicles.

If it's any comfort at all Iain, I can assure you that you are not alone. We have a 1963 Berliet wrecker parked up in my yard pending clarification on testing regs and I know of many other people with weird and wonderful things such as ballast tractors and modified heavy haulage tractors that are trying to get their heads around all this.

 - MG

Hi Iain,

The DfT have stated that anyone having difficulty finding a test station prepared to test their vehicle should contact them directly for assistance. There is little point talking to MVT - this a regulatory matter and has already come into force. FBHVC will only be able to offer their interpretation of the regs., but that won't help you as you already know your truck requires a test.

I read somewhere (I think HCVS magazine) that vehicles which have never been plated will not require this, and that they can still be presented for testing, presumably against some form of minimum standards. Again this is a DfT question.

 - MG

Hi,

I have four Ford F350 wheels which use the same stud pattern but the centre hole is slightly larger so it relies on the countersunk wheel nuts to centre the wheel. I also have several Ford rims with tyres already fitted.

pm or call 07747 772838 (Gatwick area)

 - Mike

On 3/24/2018 at 6:57 PM, 10FM68 said:

If I were insuring a vehicle exempt from an MOT I would demand proof of roadworthiness in any case, whether it be a formal MoT or a qualified engineer's report.

As an aside to the general topic I don't believe insurance companies care one way or the other whether a vehicle they are covering is roadworthy. They will happily take your money. If the vehicle is found to be unroadworthy following an incident they will simply invalidate the insurance.

 - MG