kw573

John,

Yes, that all makes sense.

I certainly wish that the knowledge of the truck that I have learned during rebuild was known to me before I started. The rebuild would have been a lot quicker.

Interestingly, the placement of the siren foot switch is similar as for the WLF siren switch.

Sam.

Hi John,

That looks soooo nice. If mine looks anywhere near as good as yours, I'll be very pleased.

I also have places where the paint is mis-behaving, coming up in little lumps which I take to be rust that I missed, starting to come to life again. Strangely, this occurs mainly adjacent welds. More care required on my part in the future.

I may have missed something, but your dash appears to not have a hole for the drivers wiper control valve. Is that correct?

Also, what is the foot switch mounted above the dipper switch?

Either way, beautiful work!

Sam.

Hi John,

Yes, the tow bar is very heavy. The later bar I have fits on the boom, but is a real chore to get in off/on. I park the KW beside a retaining wall in my yard and slew the boom around and put the end on the ground. Much easier but still an effort.

I hope that I can also continue to get help finding 969/M1A1 gear through these forums. There is VERY little stuff down-under.

Sam.

Hi John,

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and yours.

I have sort of made a re-start on the 969. Attacked the front diff re-assembly yesterday, and hope to continue for the next week or so, energy permitting. Pic of driving pinion cup home.

2012 is looking like a much quieter year and so hope to get a lot more done on the 969.

Wow!, some of the parts you mention are quite unobtainable here. You may have noticed that I use a 1960's Aussie tow bar on my M1A1. A generous member on another site sent me some detailed pics of his original towbar with a view to my building a repro. But that will have to wait until the 969 is finished.

If you come across M1A1 stuff, please keep me in mind.

Have a nice day.

Sam.

Hello,

We read the manual which said the chassis number is stamped on the side rail between the fuel tank and the front spring rear bracket. So, out came the flapper disc and torch, but to no avail. We couldn't find it there at all. Mind you, it has heavy surface rust on the chassis. Can anyone confirm that we are looking in the right place?

Have a nice day,

Sam.

Lifting the engine out of the chassis a few years ago.

The wheels are the same as Diamond T 6x6 4ton.

Sam.

Hey Desertman,

Yes, I've now found your thread. How about you pull a couple of pics off the DVD to post here so folks can see what the whole truck looked like. See, there are a few of them around. And those fuel tyres must be super-rare here down-under.

For those who haven't worked it out, Desertman, and myself (Sam aka kw573) live in eastern Australia. There was an RAAF roundel on the cab sides when we pick up the truck, it can be seen in the DVD.

Bye,

Sam.

Hello John,

I was feeling a bit neglectful at not having posted for a long while. But looks like I'm not the only one who has been otherwise occupied.

First it was work, then no money, so I started on the tray rust, now it is long work hours until December. But I haven't even got to post the pics I have on progress.

Hows the M1 and 969 going?

Sam, down-under.

Hello,

Here is my tired, but still working Kenworth M1A1. It was a real sorry state when I got it. This old girl is brought out of the shed regularly to assist with a Diamond T 969 re-build. The picture was taken at an MV gathering near Bundaberg, eastern Australia, in 2009. That is my Jeep seeing a bit of air.

Someone went to a lot of trouble to convert the boom to a telescoping boom. Not original, but handy. I'm seeking a base and motor for a siren rebuild?

Honestly, the vehicles I see pics of in Europe look outstanding compared to what is available down-under. We don't have many, and they are mostly worked to death. Hmmm...

Have a nice day,

Sam.

Hello John,

Thanks for the many posts and pictures. Your attention to detail is truly impressive! I continue to be impressed with the condition of the truck you started with. There just are not the trucks in that condition, unrestored, here in Oz. It's lack of rust, dents etc, and it's completeness is rare here.

Also, the variety of NOS parts you seem to be able to acquire continues to surprise me. Once again, that stuff is so very very thin on the ground where I live. Hence the need for me to repair/make/adapt so much more on my 969. I'd love to get hold of your 'left-overs' when you are finished! Yes, I could easily fill a pallet to ship to Australia.

Your front bumper must have been a mess, as I cold-pressed several dents out of mine with well under 30 tons. I'd hate to have to get a serious twist out of one!

Anyway, good work, you are helping me keep on track with my restoration.

Have a warm day. Sam.

Hello from KW573,

My name is Sam and I live on the mid-east coast of Australia. I'm a long term MV'er having owned and driven my GPW jeep for 33 years. I later got interested in wreckers and now own a very tired M1A1 heavy wrecker (they are very scarce here, parts almost non-existent) which I use as a yard crane truck and two Diamond T 969's, one of which I'm rebuilding. I hope to regularly rally the 969 when it's done.

Also, I'm hoping to make contacts who can help me find parts and equipment from overseas, and to share my skills/experience with others, though I'm no expert.

Hopefully I'll get the idea of how this works quickly. Have a nice day.

Sam.