timbo

It's all about timing - today's scrap is tomorrow's artefact...that's waht I'm hoping anyway..!

Bug*er why do I always seem to miss these things ! Will be at Ponderosa on Sat or Sun with some sort of vehicle (!) will keep an eye out for Toolman and Berna !

I like this thread - no problem with any of my vehicles looking over restored - the rust is all original !!!

Only just spotted these - very nice indeed.. After years of CVRT's I think I am developing a hankering for a Chieftain or a CET...oh dear..!

Try Green Machine/ Vintage MV manuals for the listing.. As for the parts if you manage to get hold of a CVRT A frame before me when I've been looking for years I will be very annoyed...! The vice off the rear mudguard seems to be the other part which is quite rare.. Does your winch work?

Not had a chance to get this organised yet due to work commitments. Any leads appreciated..? Vehicle is based near Rugby. Can be flexible with timing. Cheers Timbo

Im not a big fan of 432's so not bothered about them one way or another, but I did recently pass my H test on the road, in a CVRT. I didnt pay £500 for the privilege, just £62, but I did take a lot of advice from people, do a lot of off road practice, and spend a lot of time on the brakes and running gear of the vehicle prior to taking it out on the road for the first time. The test was very thorough, and I am pretty sure I would not have passed if I did not have a modicum of control. CVRT is generally regarded as harder to drive than 432 due to the gearbox setup (too high a gear and you cant turn the corner !), but as Chris pointed out earlier vis is much, much better than 432. To be honest whilst I have really enjoyed my few trips out onto the road, I always find it a pretty nerve wracking experience, but then that is probably no bad thing as it doesnt do to be complacent. I am always acutely aware of the responsibility in terms of potential damage to other road users and also to our hobby if something goes wrong. I cannot really see myself being a big road user other than petrol trips and the odd trip out for a summer evening (non alcoholic !) drink - it is just too much like hard work, albeit good fun in short doses. So I intend to save most of my driving for fields and shows. If you want a 432 then go for it maybe you will get it registered maybe you wont, but if you do just make sure it is well maintained and that you drive with the respect that a vehicle like that deserves.

Presuming that these are classics they would get free tax anyway so there is no excuse other than laziness, and if they are lazy about that what does that say about their maintenance standards? Wouldn't report myself but also don't have a particular problem if police want to have a wander round, at least will keep the tealeaves at bay as well...

More CVRT's of course.... Robin - you are right the Stormer is nicer to drive by all accounts but they have no soooooul... Oh, and a couple of DROPS for moving them - Scammell would do the job just as well but the Foden just looks so mean.

Double bugger...! Me too...would happily have turned up at this...just got the lightweight all legal again too. Hope y'all had a good time.!

Erm, you missed a very obvious one - a tiger called..... I'll get me coat.

All I know is the thing is bl**dy lethal - cracked my head on it for the second time today getting out !!!!

Many thanks for comments.. To be honest not sure where I got this perception from...maybe just picked up from odd comments over the years. That is mainly why I asked the qn - to get peoples opinions. Didn't realise these were also used on Warrior and Chally 2. Also thanks Chris for pics - very interesting to see the real thing as you cant get much of a sense of it from the dummy barrel shroud on my Sabre !!

These seem to have a poor reputation, so: How was it supposed to work ? What was the point ? What were the problems ? Was it ever fitted to any other vehicles ? Ta

It's a long story involving motorbikes, a failed college education and inevitably a woman ! I am pretty settled up here in Gods Own County now, although I like to think that my involvement with the preservation of Alvis vehicles maintains a tenuous link to my (and their) birthplace in Coventry.! Yes it is a shame these fascinating stories get lost and all the more reason for us to treasure and record them. There is nothing which adds interest to a museum like reading or listening to the stories that go with the exhibits. One thing my old man was always very adamant about was the maxim 'never bl**dy volunteer for anything, ever !' - but then he was in EOD I suppose..!

Were the German tanks really as unreliable as was made out though or was some of this a factor of sabotage during the manufacturing process. There are lots of stories of blocked oilways etc coming to light during restos. Surely this must account for some of the poor reputation ?

Sorry for being a couple of days late.. At lunchtime on Sunday the 23rd May 1943 (a beautiful spring day) a group of FW190's of SG10 flying from their base in Northern France launched a 'tip and run' raid on the seaside town of Hastings. Each aircraft carried one bomb which was dropped on the town centre and then carried out strafing attacks as well. In total 25 people were killed with a further 30 seriously injured. Most of the deaths were in the Swan Inn just behind the seafront, which took a direct hit and was packed with people enjoying a pint (or several !). Today this is still the site of a memorial garden. A number of bombs also failed to explode, possibly as a result of being dropped at very low altitudes, and one of these ended up in the beer cellar of the Tower Hotel a mile or so back from the seafront. My old man was a sapper with 20 bomb disposal company at the time. They were given a choice of attending the Swan to clear up what was by all accounts an unholy mess, or sorting out the bomb at the Tower. With an eye on the possibility of free beer, a small group was dispatched to the Tower. The recovery and subsequent making safe went according to plan but any beer opportunities were thwarted by an eager landlord who refused to leave the cellar in spite of the obvious and considerable danger of explosion. As the now safe bomb was being hoisted from the cellar, a photographer from the local paper was on hand and snapped the occasion, including a pic of my old man looking on. The disappointed sappers could at least console themselves with knowing they would get their pics in the paper. Sadly but probably sensibly the censors decided that any subject involving the defusing of enemy bombs was not for publication so they never made it into the paper. Shortly after my old man moved on from Hastings and after the war returned to live in Coventry without giving the above incident much of a thought. Fast forward 50 years to the early 90's and my sister and her family have decided to relocate from Coventry, which although once the birthplace of CVR(T)'s doesn't have much going for it any more, and move down to Hastings. On a weekend visit we decide to nip down to the local pub for a pint, and the old man starts retelling the above story, minus the name of the pub, which is long forgotten, to the barman. Barman listens intently unlike the rest of the family I'm ashamed to say, and then points to the wall behind the old man's shoulder. There on the wall in a tiny frame is a grainy black and white shot of my old man looking on while the bomb is pulled out of the beer cellar of this very pub, the Tower Hotel..! This was the picture taken by the local snapper but which never made the paper. Suffice to say he got a free pint. Just goes to show it is a small world full of coincidences. My dad died some years ago now and this is one of the few stories of his wartime experiences he shared. I will always regret not getting more out of him but such is life. Notwithstanding the fact that they were trying to kill my old man the pilots who undertook these raids were nothing if not committed, flying at full throttle and less than 10 feet above the channel there was little room for error and the casualty rate was very high. There are reports even amongst those who were bombed and strafed of amazement at how low and fast they flew.

I've always thought the 'official' record of 58mph seemed pretty slow, esp when you think of all the stories about delimited cvrts doing 70.. Having said that I think a lot of these stories are BS or at least based on an inaccurate perception of speed as opposed to real speed. My Sabre is admittedly a little tired but it really struggles on anything steeper than a very small hill...and if I were doing 70 there is no way I would want to duck down to look at the speedo !!!

Couple of further observations: Weight - guessing this now weighs quite a bit more and even with the 235bhp engine and associated upgrades to final drives, suspension and gearbox this must now be getting to the point where it is starting to struggle esp with all the added armour and gubbins. It does also look like it must be more top heavy...perhaps not as bad as Fox, but must still be a consideration..? (yes yes I know Fox fans it is all about how you drive it etc etc).. 'Spoiler' still looks chavvy..! Finally I think that is Mick in the blue T shirt and baseball cap... Cheers

There have been rumours of this vehicle for a while now... Shame they couldnt come up with a more original name...! As I understood it one of the reasons for using the Spartan hull was to make the driver less vulnerable than in the turreted CVRTs...something to do with them not being as low down to the floor. Now I do have knocking about somewhere a Scimitar awaiting resto, as well as a Spartan and a Samson so if somebody could get me a dozer blade we could be in business..! Would the swingfire bins fit on the back I wonder..?!

Robin Can you remember if they were turreted or variants...? I'm tempted to agree with Schliesser92, may not have been Brit ones...?

oooh close - my sabre is 04 FD 34

Amazing how yesterdays scrap becomes todays treasure... Everything becomes an investment eventually...at least that's what I keep telling myself every time I clamber over another piece of junk in the garage.!

Just googled it. Discovered 1976, raised 1985 and restored by Brooklands. Ditched on New Years Eve 1940 with one fatality due to chute failure...

Good work guys.. Working hard to make sure you have some half decent CVRT's to put on the displays. You can follow progress on Nigel's Scorpion on the AFVS forum. Cheers Timbo