P Marriott

Good to see it in the light of day finally!! Best you pull your finger out and get it restored and source a windscreen ready to mount the cannopy frames I am picking up next week!! Yours will be up and running long long before mine, so lets hope your tracks are good and I can come and give it a test drive! We all just need someone to bit the bullet and get new tracks manufactured. Keep up the good work.

Mark this is a great book with loads of HST pictures and guess what it also covers the M2 Cletrac!!! It shows some early production photo's of the Cletrac with the aircraft energiser fitted! I knew I had seen pictures of it fitted to an M2 somewhere. Regards Paul

The story about buried vehicles in the Bristol area is interesting. When I went down to Southampton to collect the Clarkair one of the dockers was interestted in it and said "When the americans pulled out of the Bristol area they drove alot of vehicles full of kit into a disused quarry and buried them" He did tell me exactly where but I have forgotten. I do however have his hone number somewhere. This would have been around the end of '44 Another story I personally heard from an old boy fifteen years ago was that at the end of the war all the takes form Sutton Hoo tank training range were driven to some crag pits and buried with tons of other kit. This can never be proven as just after the war the area was made into an RSPB reserve. A good way to cover up!!!

I don't think you can say the same about Clives hair though!!!!!

Well the bulldozer arrived in the UK last week and cleared customs on Friday. Clive and myself set of for Southampton on Wednesday with the trailer to collect the dozer. A part from the weather being poor we made good time and arrived at dock gate 4. We headed for the W&W offices to have the paperwork checked, headed to another office to be told it was on the quayside and we could go and load it!! We thought we would be clever and start it ready to drive it on to the trailer, you guessed it flat battery, so out comes the spare and after a bit of fiddling with the choke it did fire up and run and even moved. Just as we were getting ready to load a friendly forklift driver said he would lift it on for us, job done. Loaded and within forty minutes heading back to Suffolk. I have to say that having been worried about imporrting a vehicle my agent ensured everything was inplace and that there where no problems, and the cost was as quoted at the beginning!! On Thursday Clive and myslef met up at Howards farm ready for unloading. We fired it up and drove it off the trailer, apart form the crunching of gears and excessive amounts of force on the tillers to steer it did exactly what the guy selling it said it did. Not many honest people out there! After playing with the new toy, Howard and I decided to investigate the crunching of gears and the forward/ reverse clutch which did not totally disengage. We first drained the forward/reverse clutch housing of oil, sludge and water, rinsed it throughly and adjustted the clutch's as per the manual. Refilled with oil and guess what problem solved!! We were on a high now so continued to drain/rinse and refill all oil's. It should have a Waukesha FC engine, but as I suspectted it has been re-engined with a Continental FS145 which as it runs well will left in, unless I find a Waukesha engine. It does however need a new ring gear due to a flat spot, so if anyone has a lead on one please PM me. Also it would be good to replace the exhaust/inlet manifold and carb with an updraft version rather than the currently installed down draft one. I will try and post pictures and video in the next couple of days. Thanks to Clive and Howard for all there help so far

Hi Matt Have you got it home yet??? I am currently having cannopy pole frame sets made if you need a set. I am also currently making a set of front headlight brushguards, I could also make an extra set if required. As Mark says Zimmermans are great I ordered a few hundred pounds of bits at the begining of the year and they were here in five days. Portrayal Press and also Paperprint in Belgium have copies of all manuals. Paperprint are 25 euros for the maintenance manual!!! I have a spare set of headlight bowls and rims, no lenses, that I may consider selling for the right price. Lenses appear on eBay every now and then.

So it would seem I am not the only one buying a CA-1 on eBay!!! Apparently a collector in the UK has just purchased this CA-1 and box scrapper. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=180592708931&viewitem=&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWAX%3AIT Does anyone on here know who that might be, as it would be good to measure up for a few bits

Hi all Does anyone have Fred Smiths conatct details, as I believe he has one and a bit Clark CA-1's. Mine is due in the country in early January and was wondering whether he may have any spare parts available. PM if you do Cheers

Hi all Anyone know how easy it is to import a halftrack from the USA?? Is there any issues with it being armoured?? Just toying with the idea at the moment and wondered what the pitfalls maybe. Anyone know wether an M2A1 will fit ina 20ft container if the front winch is gas axed off and the pulpit removed? Cheers All

Hi there I have just purchased a CA-1 for restoration and it needs new side mounted ballast boxes/toolboxs do you have any drawings for these items??? Regards Paul

Hi Mark I did find a picture of the said aircraft energiser after our conversation at W&P 2009. PC has died since then so will need to try and find another picture for you. I never did check which aircraft had the facility to use an external starter. I can check this at the weekend as I will be seeing the guy on a large aircraft dump dig, who knows maybe we will dig ten up!!! Where did you get your battery box made and what sort of cost are we talking as I still need one as does a friend. Just PM the details. Regards Paul

I'm hoping for a winter like last year. I'll make money back charging the council to keep there roads clear. Can't do a worse job than they did!!!!

Just thought I would post a couple of pictures of CA-1. The guy has already removed the after market upgraded seat! In the process of sorting out shipping so hopefully in four weeks or so I should be able to play in the mud!

Top photograph Tony I have heard of training a dog to rollover,but what would you need to feed an M6/M5 combination to rollover????? I guess a 4000lb 'er for breakfast would work!! Will hopefully finally start on the M6 in four weeks

Hi all Having seen a fairly complete and runing CA-1 on, yes you have guessed it, eBay I bought it!!! Only problem is it is in New York area at the moment, so am looking into shipping it over. Any recomendations on shipping agents gratefully receieved. The bulldozer is supposedly complete and runing, it is however missing the seat, side ballast boxes and the rear mounted winch. I know someone in the UK recently completed a restoration of one with one for spares as there was a write up in MMI. The only problem is I seemed to have mislaid that copy! Could anyone tell me which month I need to order as I would like to have a copy and also contact the owner to see whether any of the parts that I need are available. Hopefully I can get it buy Christmas and get it restored in 101st AB markings as per Neil Stevens picture of one being loaded at Ramsbury, home of 437th, for D-day. Anyway any other info gratefully receieved. Oh yes also bought a post war Clark for the engine! Regards Paul

Awesome truck!!! Would love to own one, but there are very few left in England or Europe even though they were once a very common sight on the 8th airfields. Looks like you have alot of work ahead of you. Good luck and keep us all posted on progress

As you say too many shades to count, as long as it's green!!! Just taken M6 fuel filter off and cleaner newer paint off with thinners to find the original 'AC Disc Filter Type T2' decal which is on top of dark OD as ambulance in the famous picture. HELP! HELP! Slight issue now do I use the lighter/browner shade as i was planing or use original dark OD N01????? What colour are you using Tony??

Don't you worry I will be in a position to move under power it is just the stopping that may be a problem!! However a Sherman would be a nice emergency stop barrier!! See you in under two weeks!!!

If anyone out there has an email addres for Laars Henry at the Wheatcroft collection please PM me as I have a couple of lights he may require. Cheers

Well a little progress on the Chevy, managed to fit all new coolant pipes, water pump and thermostat and filled up the radiator. Only to see water seeping out of the block!!! So much for a good engine, I won't be buying anymore vehicles off Dodgy Dave's Auto's!!! Seriously it would seem there has been a frost crack that has been stainless steel welded at sometime in it's past and the weld just hasn't taken around the core plug boss. So what have they done put a load of filler over it and painted it! I shall grind back the weld and try applying some metal weld epoxy or something like that as a short term fix. Well next came the trial run, well you've guessed it, it would only run for thirty seconds!! After a bit of fault finding the fuel pump was found to require a rebuild. Quick call to Rex Ward and nextday a fuel pump rebuild kit! New battery and starter cables installed ready for the big switch on. Well with the pump rebuilt and fitted the Chevy roared into life and after a little tweak runs well, if a little smokey. The next problem is that the charging doesn't work as after fifteen minutes running the regulator relay cut in and fried the genny stator wiring!! So generator and reg removed for rebuild. Will post a few pictures next time of progress and hopefully it will be at the airfield!!

Well guys just spent another day on the Chevy to sort out a few more issues before it's move. I have now fitted a water pump, not the one previously purchased as it turned out to be the wrong one!! Richard Taylor has kindly lent me a Jimmy water pump which as it turns out is the exactly the same!! At least it means Rex Ward can recondition mine in the long term. Thermostat housing fitted, generator and bracket fitted, gearbox oil changed and new battery cables made up and fitted. So the next stage is to sort out the water pump to radiator pipe, new fan belt, fill with coolant, install new battery and test run the engine!! Will keep you all posted.

Well guys spent all day Thursday on the Chevy again!! More bits and pieces have been found lurking in Daves garage in various boxes and bags. I now have most of the truck bolted back together ready to be moved to it's new home, which should hopefully happen next week. We thought we would try the engine as it has not been started for seven years, well checked for a spark primed up the carb using the hand primer and hit the starter. After around ten seconds of cranking the beast fired up and ran on seven year old petrol!!! Only ran it for a very short while as there is no cooling currently, but it did idle ok and seems to run without much smoke. Took the top of the gearbox to free up all the selector forks, which took a while replaced the lid and fired it up again to check the clutch. Well after seven years it moved, if only a meter. Next stage is to try and get the waterpump sorted and get the brakes installed in time for Debach. Five weeks and counting!!

Hi Stephen, Yes the aim is to have it mobile if possible for Debach even if the only brake is the handbrake. Thats good enough!!! Do you have a baby boy, or girl as I never heard anymore or was it all a phantom pregnancy???

No worries Clive we guessed you would be taking a long slow drive down the promanade! Yes Howard there is a lot of work to do, the pictures make it look better than it is as usual. THere are currently no brakes, needing all new cylinders, shoes, lines, master cylinder and possibly hydrovac. Thats just to get in drivable. Will probably get the old clylinders relined with stainless sleeves by Past Parts. Still need new front brake shoes or at the least new linings fitted. Does anybody know whether you can just bypass the hydrovac and still have good brakes or do I need to keep the hydrovac in circuit???

Have spent the whole of thursday and friday fitting bits back on the M6 to enable it to be moved. It has sat on axle stands for five years with the wheels and brake drums off as well as numerous other items. Dave and I have managed to get all brake drums and shafts refitted, although no brakes have been fitted as these will all need to be replaced. The gearbox selector forks are seized from sitting and will need to be released, but the engine turns over by hand!!! Will spend next thursday friday trying to free off gearbox and fit new water pump and see whether she will fire up. Here are a couple of pictures for now. Once I have it moved i won't be doing any further work until i have finished my Clark tractor which i have promised my son will be done for his third birthday in November.