N.O.S.

It's a bit like some of the legislation applying to old military vehicles - I've never been able to work it out :rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl: Best ask a structural engineer or a lawyer.

I hope you are not suggesting that was what I was arguing - anyway you failed the Nissen hut test :nono: Confusius, he say - 'if you don't wish to to be misquoted, best to make no comment in the first place'.

All of which, Iain (if you're still here....), will probably have led you to wonder what on earth you were doing even contemplating acquiring an old vehicle and van trailer in the first place :shocked::-D You might also be asking yourself some or all of the following - why are there so many overwidth old vehicles in recreational use if it is illegal? why are there so many old trucks with dummy loads if they should only be unladen? why does the definition of the vehicle matter if it is taxed Historic? what parts of the C&U regs - particularly width - actually apply to an old pre 1960 vehicle? can I legally pull a living van behind an old vehicle taxed Historic? what is the definition of a living van? what is the width limit for a pre-1960 trailer? what is the phone number for DVLA/VOSA? You may already have concluded that the pre-1960 vintage truck folk are a little more relaxed and comfortable with their hobby than some others, not having had to rely on the strict interpretation of wording in Statutory Instruments and the like to get around restrictions on use of their vehicles. That's not to say that they are necessarily 100% in compliance with all the laws of the land, but hopefully work 'within the spirit of the law' in a responsible manner. I'd also recommend you talk to a few users, and see how responsible people who enjoy the hobby get on. And if you are thinking of delving deep into Statutory Instruments yourself to find answers to some of the (possibly even unanswerable) questions, first try answering the question posed by a WW2 USAAF bomber crewman - As I lie on my bunk in my nissen hut, I get this wonderous feeling - How much of this is walls? Or is the whole thing ceiling? If you can answer that, then you are certainly in with at least half a chance of understanding all the road vehicle legislation you'll come across :cool2:

I think I'd pay the extra and not have to worry about putting a floor on the skeletal ones - they'll send you some photos if you ask you can see what sort of job it will be, will cost the same I reckon in the end.

Ballast is a load :-)

As Alien says, 'pull up an ammo box'. A veteran driver who had a drive in mine one day told of how they had a D4 in the back of theirs coming out of Singapore on the way up to Malaysia. At traffic lights they decided to have a race with a truck which pulled up alongside. With much revving of engines the lights changed, clutches were let go and the Scammell shot off in a fast-ish gear - and the D4 promptly shot through the rear doors onto the tarmac

Difficult choice, Ian. Also very frustrating when you consider that many vans of similar width are probably currently in use on the roads. If it was me I would first have a telephone conversation with a vehicle inspector through the great DVLA/VOSA phone system and see if there is any area our own experts have missed. In fact run this scenario by them - what if you were to pull it with an overwidth vehicle (wider than the van), something like the 9ft 5" wide RAF Scammell Constructor on Milweb? Sometimes IGNORANCE can be BLISS! Several folk have commented on here how they used to do things without a care and with no problems, but as they get older they become more aware of what could go wrong and that might lead to a greater awareness of the legal position and possible resultant modifying of what they do and how they do it. Sounds like you've worked out what to do - but if you do plan to have a senior moment and forget what has been said, can I suggest you ask to have this thread pulled? :cool2:

Ecotrax are offering what look like unused MOD racks at £900 + vat - look like they have skeletal floors, may be the right size ones for you? Just found advert - 20' x 8' Boughton HD Hooklift beds c/w rollers and iso locks on corners. Looks like floor can be added easily. Ecotrax are at Romsey, 01794 324420

Not that I'm aware - though being sealed you could easily build a 'case' around them. Much as I love these batteries, if I was after looks I would go for the tradditional construction and style, but buy a quality one. These folk have been recommended on here before www.lincon.co.uk I always think the Optima 6v ones look a bit sad and lonely pathetic in that gigantor battery tray - even worse on a GMC

We should have set up RENTANAXLE.... I'm sure Armycars in Holland will have some

You don't need to explain - there's a bit of that in all of us! :-)

Mark - Cummins B series don't do "bimble" - get with the program please

OK I know it is not your ideal period truck, but I suppose you could go more modern - with all that 'post 1960' entails (MOT, etc). What about a Bedford TM? Nice heavy truck, your 4x4 would fit in dropside body, and just dandy for towing the van. Spares not too too bad, trucks are getting very cheap now as all will be disposed of over next year or two. Try Crouch Recovery for a good deal.

No the cast spacers on the ground laying against the rack I picked up one day from Joey Hunt's old scrapyard - looked like they would be very useful. I have no idea what they were - may even have been for this very purpose! All the original spacers were cast iron (maybe standard press practice?), the ones we haven't broken over the years are in the racking. We made vertical legs from box section steel which fit into slots under top plate.

If it is of any interest, Tim, here is the press used for steam wagon and motor truck solid tyre changes. Yes they are Scammell front weight - sized billets on the table. We reckon it was 'well secondhand' in 1919! The pump is a 4 speed - two different sized bore pumps, each with a "splitter" (well ok, each fulcrum pin has two sets of holes ). There is an electric pump at the back for quick positioning or the whole job if you feel lazy, but the hand pump gives delicate control towards the end of the push :cool2: My dad was his dad's 'child slave' on the pumps, just as I was his :sweat:

:rofl:

"The serious shortage of nails drove men to desperate measures"

"The army's first attempts to poduce twinwall drainage pipe by gluing old truck tyres together ended up with a product far too heavy to lift"

If you ever thought that Jeeps came over with all the right accessories, think again! From a 1944 USAAF Journal: Two tin cans, four discarded bolts, a pair of tin shears and a few daubs of black paint recently were combined to produce a new headlight shade now providing maximum road light for jeeps in Britain's blackouts. Designed by Maj. Robert H. Savage of Rivera, Calif., ordnance officer at an 8th Air Force Service Command depot, the new gadget takes advantage of the coincidence that a number ten can is the same size as a jeep's headlight opening. Designed to provide an absolute minimum of road light, when the shade is installed no part of the headlights can be seen head-on, although the driver has good vision for approximately 50 feet. Full use of dimmers is permitted. An experienced maintenance worker can complete a set of shades in thirty minutes, although Major Savage, working with jigs and fixtures has cut the time to ten minutes. After cutting the can (which is six inches in diameter) to a height of four and a half inches, ordnance workers use a templet to measure off a face opening three inches deep, then cut away the marked-off area. This leaves a full circular strip one and a half inches wide around the bottom of the can. The second can is reduced to an inch and a half strip which runs its full circumference, and half of the circular bottom is cut out. Holes are then drilled in both sections at points marked by the templet. The smaller section is fitted inside the larger section, hole to hole, and fastened to the headlight opening and to each other with four bolts. Extreme care is taken in installing the shades so that the top and bottom sections form a horizontal plane, thereby preventing a direct view of the headlights. The shade fronts are then blackened and the jeep is ready for the blackest blackout.

Gentlemen (and ladies), Please assemble in the Clubhouse Lecture Room for 9.00pm, at which time I will present a short lecture on Jeep Blackout Shades. You may bring drinks in but please Bodge, no popcorn. Thank you.

How anyone could sleep with the constant sctratching of wire brush, whining of disc grinder and slopping of paint - not to mention that irritating hum of satisfaction - beats me!!

40,000 trucks? I had no idea of the scale of mechanisation. Water press - no evidence of it being W.D., but must be pretty old. Was installed in the garage immediately after WW1, and would certainly not have been new! When I said 'these tyres' I meant tyres just like that on steam wagons and no doubt ex-WD trucks then in civvy use. Will get a pic anyway.

Robin - why on earth would you want to import paint rather than having it mixed by a local supplier?

Not a caption, but just to say I'm amazed there would have been such demand for replacement tyres (assuming this is a WW1 supply dump scene) - surely being solid rubber they would last a long time in the relatively soft ground conditions? My 200T water press was obtained after the Great War, no doubt secondhand by my great grandfather specifically for pressing these tyres off and on. I wouldn't have thought that in civvy street they'd wear very quickly either. Can you enlighten us any further on this?