Richard Farrant

Fred, Sorry I thought in your first post that the wooden boards were on top of the frame. They could have been fitted along the sides just above top of body sides, if bench seats had been fitted............but if you meant they were on the top, then I think they have been added to stop water pooling. Mine has Bosch wiper motors too, but more because it was used by Danish Army post war. We will have to meet up at Beltring, or Headcorn.

I think the TS3 ( and prototype TS4 ) were actually based on Sulzer Bros. designs. Tilling-Stevens were part of Rootes Group and the engines were built at their works in Maidstone.

Hi Fred, That sounds right :thumbsup:

Fred, They bolt on the inside of the end hoops, but go over the outside on the centre hoop. Not usually any wood on it, might have been added by someone. How many straight bars to you have?

Is that a Coventry Climax KF4 ? I know the Admiralty used them, but never seen one myself

Steve, The Census number is actually the Army serial number that is painted on the door and rear of the lorry, beginning with letter "H". In 1947 the numbers were changed to the two numbers two letters two numbers type of registration plate. The different engine number is nothing unusual for military vehicles, although it seems to puzzle the collectors. Having worked in the Army workshops for years, I can tell you that not many vehicles went though their service without an engine change. If your Mat had a major rebuild during its life, that would explain, but in other cases, engines were changed rather than repair, for practical reasons, ie time out of service, breakdown in the field, etc. There were massive resources for overhauling engines on production lines, so old units were returned through the system.

or the jump lead has fell off and he has forgotten where to attach it :-D sorry Jack :-(

Hi Simon, Look forward to meeting you.......and welcome to the forum.

:rofl:..........I had a Dinky Antar but it was the Dinky Bedford QL that made its mark on me as it was my "first" military vehicle, back in the mid Fifties I guess. :-D

:-D........Mike, if our parents had known what it would lead to in years to come, they would not have bought us those Dinky and Matchbox lorries.

The body looks very much like it might be adapted from a military trailer :confused:

Neil, Yes it is the same oil as used in the Stalwart, but what I meant was that the type of hyd. system is very different from the Saracen or Saladin, hence why they should have the correct grade.

Neil, Tellus is just the name Shell gives to its range of hydraulic oils, the suffix number denotes the grade. To be fair the Stalwart hydraulic system is worlds apart from the Saracen, and in my experience it is best kept to the correct grade of oil. I once was called out to a Saracen with brake problems, on opening the back up was a pile of empty litre cans of OX-8..........the problem was obvious.......

Simon, Sending you a PM

Hi Simon, You cannot compare ISO grades against SAE. ISO is used for hydraulic type fluids, SAE is used for engine and gear oils. OM13 is equivalent to ISO10. Comma LIC10 is an ISO grade of 32 which is the common hydraulic grade for plant equipment, etc. The higher the number the thicker the viscosity. The difference in grades is done for a reason, otherwise the military would have standardised with the 32 grade, which was also widely used in their plant. Best to keep with the specified grade, then if any problems occur, you know they are not related to the incorrect fluid.

Some of those dealers were legendary......... Harold Daniell at Forest Hill (Norton) was another one

Those were the days...........when men were men ............and a JAP was a British engine :-( Was that Gus Kuhn who was a Norton dealer? ( I remember the Gus Kuhn Commando that used to race).

Showing your age now Catweazle :-D....................have to admit, I remember them, although never used one. Talking about all these magic potions for knackered engines.......do you remember Holts Piston Seal? All it was was a gunge that got around the piston rings to take up a bit of clearance. Tried it on a Tiger Cub, very quickly realised a rebore was best option.

OK Chris...........

Chris, Just a point, OMD-110 was not a "straight" engine oil. The term "straight" is used for oils that do not have detergency qualities and used in engines without full flow filtration. OMD-110 was a heavy duty detergent oil and was obselete by the early Seventies.

Mark, The spec for Army antifreeze, AL-39 is as follows; "Made to Def Stan 68-127/1 Composed of Ethanediol and water and inhibited with sodium sebacate and benzotriazole use in cooling system of marine and land service internal combustion engines containing both ferrous and non-ferrous metals. For use the product is diluted to 50% by volume with water to ensure adequate fill for life performance" To be honest, most good quality ethylene glycol antifreezes are OK with engines of alloy and iron. Just check on the label it usually says. Hope this what you wanted, if you need any help with oil specs just PM me.

and another problem is longer pedal travel, which Lockheed also commented on when they issued a statement about the use of silicone. Anyway, Ivor, I have enjoyed reading your posts, having been involved in one of these C9/B Morris's before. Well done.

Thanks Les The EARAT Pioneer is not the one that operated around here that I recall, it was a gun tractor, with unaltered bodywork, just a large fuel tank in the back. Only wish I took photos in those days, have to rely on memories! There was one of Glossops ex-tank transporter tractors in preservation with their livery, a few years ago, might be on of those in your photos.

Just packing up work tonight and heard the sound of a Merlin on take off..........had to stop and wait for the Mustang to fly over.......wonderful stuff.

.........and here is the Retriever at the museum auction at Newcastle, NSW in 1997. The body was an Australian workshop type, probably added in later life.