Richard Farrant

Looking at the photos it looks very similar to the convoy lamps as fitted to Land Rovers and trailers

Ian,

Similar size, but on those you could twist the body to restrict the light output and they did not have the red lens.

Richard

Yes, I have a wartime VAOS & it appears there as Lamp, Stop & Tail, Butlers. I have a 1954 RAF 16E Vocab & quotes it for a Bedford OB.

thanks Clive,

The Dingo had one without window as were the m/cycle versions. Thinking about it, the RAF put their census numbers, front and back and the rear ones were often like number plates so presumably that is why there are different versions. Although they are listed as stop and tail, they would have to be separate as the bulb holder will not accept twin filament bulbs.

Richard

A worms eye view.

 

PS there were a few of these on e-bay a couple of months ago.

Ashley,

Those rear lamps are like the wartime rear lamps used on all British vehicles (the bracket is different on m/cycle ones). The no. plate window was not on the wartime ones, I do not think, just the red lens. They are not legal as rear lights now because the area of lens is not big enough but are OK for using additionally for no. plate illumination. I have used these in the past on restorations.

Richard

Look forwards to seeing that one!!!!

 

Dredging back the memory I seem to rcall that the vehicles in 215 Sqdn had a black square on the left with a tower in the middle whilst the right was either a blue over yellow or yellow over blue triangle surmounted by a white bar. Vehicles in 21 Regt - for obvious reasons - carried no markings at all other than the reg plate and maintenance stencils

Yes, the black square sign was London District, it was a yellow castle type tower with a sword standing vertically through it. The RASC or RCT sign was blue and yellow diagonally with blue to the upper left.

Richard

Just hope they don't turn up with this......

Dougy,

That pic of the Foden EKA brings back memories of when I was rebuilding them. We had one back from Bosnia after an accident, not quite as bad as that one, and had another scrap one to use for parts, which had rolled in Norway. Used parts from the recovery gear on it and then cut it up, all major components were salvaged for reuse. The Leyland DROPS used to come in from Bosnia with the cabs flat to the bottom of the windscreen, where they had rolled over. They were rebuilt and sent straight back out there.

Richard

Another is 'Oh right, what have you got on yours?' which usually reduces Mr Know-it-all to mumbling 'well I don't actually have one myself but I saw a photograph/read a book/saw a TV programme'

 

John,

Yes, we all get those people at some point. We were at Beltring a few years ago and a friend of mine had his International Halftrack there. A young chap was walking all around it and looking, eventually he came over to where we were all sitting (watching him!) and made several comments and remarks about "that is not right" and "they were never like that",etc. My friend asked if he had a Halftrack, as he knew so much about them, he replied, "oh yes, its at home in the cabinet". He was told to go forth and multiply :lol:

Richard

Martin,

Just found a website that will be of interest to you regarding your Reynolds Boughton RB44. Take a look at http://www.dodge50.co.uk

The RB44 was based on the Dodge 50 series, basically, RB fitted a transfer box and driven front axle. The website has downloads of workshop manuals, Perkins engine info and there is a page with pics of a customised ex-army one.

Richard

I’m new to this group but not to MVs. I live and work in a small town in Indiana, USA. I have a growing restoration and repair business for MVs

 

I’m restoring a 1942 Morris LRC Mark II. Now, lets find out just who knows what this vehicle is! And, I’m looking for parts.

 

Looking forward to conversing with other MVers in far away places.

Hi Ratchet,

We are in the same business, don,t worry, I am in England

The Morris LRC does have the same engine as the C8 or C4, the 4 cyl around 3.5 litres. Used in civilian Morris Commercial trucks of the period and also the first Nuffield Universal tractors in late '40's, although that will not be much help. I have to say, that Morris parts are not prolific. It is a case of searching out classic vehicle parts specialists in UK. When I did one of these engines in a C4 truck some 25 years ago, parts were found, but not easily.

Try this one, not dealt with them for a few years, but he does stock old commercial parts;

Classic & Collectors Car Spares,

2 Cocker Lane,

Leyland,

Lancs.

PR5 3SU

Tel 01772 424032

Fax 01772 457542

Richard

Regarding judging, you have to be very experienced and knowledgable to do it fairly. The MVPA shows are nearly 90% if not more, of US vehicles, nothing like the cosmopolitan arrays we get at places like Beltring.

I judged British Post War Armour at Beltring for several years.....and took it very seriously, taking up several days of going around making sure no vehicle was missed. What really miffed me was the following year when someone else judged, the vehicle that won that class was a Hellcat !!!! The only thing British about it, was the owner.

Many years ago I attended a rally at SEME Bordon, the REME Training School. The judges were Instructors there and they did virtually an MoT test trying the lights, feeling the brakes, etc. Mind you I did win a 1st prize for my M20, so was quite chuffed.

Richard

i've got a Reynolds Boughton 4x4 and yes i believe they were supposed to replace the 101 and yes the MOD did end up with egg on their faces over it. THey have a tendancy to veer a little to the left when breaking heavily at speed, although the longer wheelbase utility company models do not. This can be rectified by adjusting the breaks. What i'm really after is a workshop manual.

Martin,

I think it was Reynolds Boughton who should have had egg on there face. It was a classic mistake that was similar to the jeep problem of WW2. On braking the front springs deflect, moving the axle back slightly and pulling on the steering linkage, hence "the diving across the road" problem. I was witness to all this at that time, the vehicles were off the road for over a year, if not more, before a mod kit came out. Now, I cannot remember what the kit consisted of, as I did not fit them myself, but seem to think it was a spring shackle change. Nothing to do with the actual brakes. It may of course be that like the jeep, the problem was not fully solved even then, after modifying.

You could of course, contact Reynolds Boughton to see if they can supply a book, because the AESP is often only a commercial publication, unlike the old EMER's.

Richard

Is there a MOT for Track/amour Vehicles we have one for trucks and cars :?

Al,

Tracked vehicles of any kind are exempt from MoT testing. As with all vehicles that are exempt, it is of course, no excuse not to have them in safe and fully roadworthy condition. If you feel you need a second opinion on any aspects of this, there are experienced people around who could do that for you.

Richard

How much work is there in replacing the multi-plate clutch???

Any answers/feedback on these points at all ?

You have to remove the engine, no other way. Also required is a special clutch plate aligning tool with two splines, or an old gearbox input shaft. If the two clutch plates are not lined up spot on, it is easy to damage a plate, then it gets distorted and your new clutch will drag. You will need some form of crane or lifting gear to remove the engine.

Richard

Has anyone changed one of these if so any pointers as i have got to do mine

Paul,

I would like a fiver for every one I've changed.

What do you want to know? The gearbox has to come out, at least pulled forward enough for access. Assume you have the relevant EMER's? The correct seal is difficult to get hold of now, due to shape to accomodate the special washer that stops the lip from deforming. May be able to find one for you. You are certain it is the seal leaking and not one of the plugs or around the flange joint? Seal should be pressed in and not hammered in as this is sure to mishap the seal and then leak. Oil is a very thin hydraulic fluid, Army designation is OM13, this means nothing in civvy street, so you need to ask for ISO10 grade. Morris Lubricants at Shrewsbury make it. I always pressure test after overhaul and filling to check for leaks. On rare occasions, cracks have been found in the outer cover.

Just noticed yours is a Mk1/2, if you wanted the gearbox right out for any reason, like cleaning, repainting, etc.. The "turret" would have to be unbolted from the hull.

Richard

My favourite out of all of them was the BSA B40, actually had two of my own, one ex-army and the other was a blue one, ex Royal Navy. The Armstrong was a bugger of a bike to my mind, with a awful positioned kickstart.

Richard

Does anyone know the makes of bikes used by post war dispatch riders, especially in the desert I have a Honda KL250 that I would like to turn into one if feasible

Mark,

I take it by post-war you mean after 1945. The BSA M20 and Matchless G3L continued in use well into the 1960's. Triumph TRW was made in 50's and 60's, then in 1967 the BSA B40WD was introduced as the main motorcycle and the old M20 was demobbed. TRW continued on for a while. CanAm Bombadier 250 replaced the B40 around late 70's I think. This was in turn replaced by Armstrong MT500 about '86, superceded by the Harley Davidson (who bought out Armstrong and took their design) MT350. There were a number of motocros type of machine used in the first Gulf war, seem to think KTM, Honda, etc.

Richard

Some of you might be aware that the 1/2 lightweight Land Rover was used in Military , national and international rallying. I would like to get further info on this, so if anyone has the odd snippet, it will be gratefully received.

I do remember one coming in to REME workshops once, a good few years ago now though. Probably late 70's. The guy from the Army Rally Team, brought it over from Germany, we were nearby to Piper Cams and they did some work on the engine, from vague memory they fuel injected it. The engine was then run up in our test house on a brake. My memory seems to say, that the guy was not satisfied with the performance and they reverted back to a normal set up with carb. Do not think it had a turbo at that time. This was in the days of the 3 bearing crank too.

Richard

removed the drum and all my new oil run out from the transmission :shock: , is this normal and if it is what a silly design :? ,

Mark,

The drum has the splined hub attached, this has the seal path for the seal. As the transfer box oil level is above the seal, it will run out. Best read the manual, it will no doubt say, "drain oil before removing brake drum"

Richard

In my own case, it is the mechanical engineering aspect: how a problem was solved ......

John,

I am along the same lines as you. My trade has always been in vehicle engineering, with 32 out 39 years working on military vehicles. The hobby came along around 1978 when a friend was looking for a jeep to restore and asked me to look one over. He eventually bought a Morris Commercial and I helped him restore it. I am interested to see how some of these vehicles were designed, sometimes in only a matter of months and how advanced the thinking was. You mentioned the Dingo, a particular favourite of mine and a vehicle which I have restored a good few of. Now the design of that was superb and the forerunner in basic transmission design to practically all British wheeled armour up to the Fox in the 1970's.

I could go on, but its getting late, will have to continue this another day!

Richard

Hello Richard,

Thanks for that, would this have been used in service or a later civilian addition?

Richard,

Judging by the fitting on top, it could be a Hella or Britax lamp, both were issued parts for military. There was no hard and fast fitting for the beacon, they were not fitted on every one, so it would have been what was called a "local mod".

As Chris pointed out, re. Ferret Heaven forum, the allies over the pond predominate and all I can say, can be amusing at times. Best way is to visit the site and go through the messages. If you get them into your mailbox, you will be fed up in a few days. By going through the Message list you can pick out the thrads of interest.

Richard

Richard,

That is a beacon socket, recognise it from the rubber cover. The beacon is quick detachable.

Richard

there has allways been a shortage of tracks , A company in N.J. i think is trying to make new tracks but this is up and down maybe by summer 06 . So hang on to your spare parts the demand may go up.

I am sure there were some new type tracks for sale at Beltring, on Staman's stall, thought it was someone in Europe making them. Anyone else see them?

Richard

Are they not genuinr buyers then :shock: :?:

Mark,

You not heard of this scam? It is usually done with vehicles, etc. on web site adverts. Milweb is a big attraction for them, every time you put an ad on there, Nigel puts a warning regarding them. They used to be nicknamed "the boys from Nigeria" or similar, but they seem to come from all over now, going by the web address and time difference on the messages. I know quite a few people who nearly got caught, just luck they mention it to someone and were warned. Definitely not genuine buyers, just want to pass a bouncy draft to you, for more than is asked then for you to send the excess on to another bank. In the mean time, your bank has told you it was a fraud.....too late.

Be warned, if you advertise and get an email with odd spelling and grammer, and are very keen to pay by bankers draft, delete it.

Kewelde

And they always want to know "what is your last very best price of vehicle"

Matt,

I did answer them for a little while, suggesting that if they wanted to buy, they would have to inspect and pay in cash only. No answer on that. Just delete now in case you get deluged in spam.

Richard

Probably a scam anyway, he would send a bankers draft for an amount over the price to include shipping then get you to send the surplus to his friend in the USA. Time you have done that, the bank will tell you it was a dud, and you have already sent the money. They are not intereted in the vehicle. The amount of replies I have had like that, selling vehicles on Milweb. They used to originate from Nigeria, but now the emails come from all over. You can always tell by the fact they are so keen to buy but do not ask for photos or more info.

Kewelde

XPM. It means cross-pattern material

XPM actually means Expanded Metal. It is semi sheared and stretched to produce its form. Used on machine guards, etc.

Richard