Sean N

It was in Ireland, and I have the circumstances of the accident from a colleague of the guy involved. The Ford did go in, but the Volvo going in after it is a photoshop. If you look at the full sequence closely it's obvious what caused the Ford to go in. As I was told it, the Cargo operator's mind wasn't wholly on the job that day for understandable reasons - a warning that any equipment can bite and you do need to be on the ball even when doing what seems a quite simple job.

Sounds as though it'll be a long one...

Lots of things have Phasers, fairly common engines, including some late AWD built Bedfords, Dennis, Alvis, Renault, Reynolds Boughton etc etc. I think the 6 cylinder, or one of them, is the retrofit power unit for the FV600 and CVR(T). Nice engines.

Very sorry to hear that. Only found this topic now, or I'd have attended. Fond memories of Mario from Avon Dassett and amphib meets in the Lakes and elsewhere. He'll be much missed, a larger than life character in many ways. Those clips of Avon Dassett from the '90s take me back - and make me feel very old! I'm in that Top Gear vid somewhere, though unfortunately the RL didn't make the final cut. Everything changes, but it's a shame those events don't happen these days.

East Dorset, that's why I asked. You're not too far away.

That may mean there were at least two, then. The one I was thinking of was at the fuel depot at West Moors, and was in very good condition. Not sure what happened to it. Somewhere I have a photo, I'll try to find it and get the registration.

O.A.F. Nothing personal...

Inner wings I don't have. If you'd asked me 14 years ago I had some spare cabs! Where in Somerset are you, John?

Assault river crossing. I'd like to see the bloke who'd volunteer to sit astride that and control it under heavy fire. Very intriguing, Clive

I understand. I thought you might mean that panel, it was the reference to grille that threw me. That could probably be made fairly easily. How bad are the grilles you have?

John, it's possible we might have a spare grille panel, I'll have a look. I don't understand what you mean by lower front grille panel, they aren't split vertically. Got a photo?

Just goes to show beauty is in the eye of the beholder. The body of that bus is not bad, though I don't like the colour, but to me the front end treatment is dreadful, more a poor pastiche of an O type rather than a sympathetic modernisation.

At least one of these was still in service in 1992!

Oh, it's a massive problem. If counterfeit parts can be fed into the very heavily regulated aircraft supply chain, and to reputable suppliers - and they are - you can bet the automotive supply chain's awash with them.

Fatboy, it's certainly worth having a very good poke around the rusty areas and being very realistic, not to say pessimistic, about the condition of the vehicle and your ability to repair it before committing - not that I want to put you off and not that I know anything about your abilities.

Clive, am I right in remembering that parts of the cab are double skinned, or at least quite complex? I recall looking at a few in years gone by for other people and noticing that they had rotted in the edges of panel skins, around the roof gutter and such places, and thinking that they were going to be difficult and time consuming to make a good job of repairing.

I like them and they're supposed to be a good comfortable truck to drive (by '50s standards), but every unrestored FV1601 I've seen has been full of rot and they are mechanically very complex compared with most '50s commercial vehicles. I think the main problems are driveline issues but I would also think that if you get a good one and look after it you should be OK. Clive (FV1609) or another Pig / 1 ton owner are probably the best placed to comment. I don't want to put you off, but the ad does mention rot in areas that can be quite complex to repair. Go and give it a thorough going over before you buy and if you can, make sure it drives - it may have been parked up because it's already got problems. There are people here who may be able to transport it, or you could try getting quotes from a website like Shiply or Uship. My guess would be around £400, but it's just a guess really.

I think I'd agree with Mr Farrant. I've always sworn by (not at) NGK plugs, whereas I've always found issues with Champions, whether on modern or older ignition systems. I think one issue can be counterfeit parts being fed into the supply chain, another issue can be incorrect plug grades due to slight mismatches in manufacturers' ranges or (more typically) catalogue or supplier errors.

The idea of using a 9" grinder for that job frightens the life out of me! I'd have used a grinder as well, but a 4.5" - much more controllable and less scary if something unexpected happens, it'd still cut the steel adequately and be a lot easier to make a neat precision job. I'd probably drill each corner to give something to cut to and still clean up with the mill. Having said that, it's horses for courses as Tony says. There's a lot to be said for doing what you're confident with.

Thanks Wally, Andy. In all the vehicles I've worked on I've never had anything to do with them!

Looking here: http://www.austin-champ.co.uk/mech/fuelgage.htm, I think Wally and Richard have it. Thanks chaps. I think the clear plastic cover must just be a transport cover to protect it before it's fitted, similar to those the FV gauges come with.

Ok, let's try another one. Not sure where I acquired this, so no clues, I'm afraid, except that it looks to me like a potentiometer and possibly not MV related at all. Unfortunately the box didn't have a label.

I have a box full of old WD / MoD Form 600 wallets, the green ones with the bit of silver board in that hold vehicle documents. Chances are the vehicles are long gone, but just in case by some miracle any have survived and are owned by people on here, here's the registrations in age order: 35 YZ 47 35 BP 43 35 BP 95 36 BP 40 03 BE 24 21 BE 94 24 BE 24 24 BE 64 38 BE 29 - This one was also 36 BP 32 and 83 BP 24! 39 BE 27 42 BE 68 65 BE 01 67 BE 00 79 BE 83 61 BF 09 12 BG 33 26 BH 70 28 BH 88 32 BH 57 64 BH 89 53 BL 12 85 BL 43 81 BP 07 86 BP 63 54 DM 12 54 DM 29 54 DM 86 56 DM 61 58 DM 32 58 DM 38 11 EK 41 31 EK 43 21 EL 69 90 EL 13 10 EM 92 60 EM 28 83 EP 24

Company founded 1910 in Willesden making aeroplane components, ended up making axles and transmissions for commercial vehicles with factories also in Manchester and County Durham. I've never seen it referred to as anything but E.N.V. so no idea if it stands for anything - perhaps the founders' initials?

I take your point Chris, and yes, the broad arrow is government property generally, but I'm still inclined to think there's an MV connection to this - so the next thing I post will probably turn out to be a telephone!