N.O.S.

Vulture - has your fuel pump got a priming lever? I hate engines chewing over until the fuel lifts up and fills the carb (as might typically happen after standing a long time between runs).

As John Wilson would say - "We're in - it's a big one!"

Some might be appalled by that, but if used sensibly it is just fine. I think the correct use of starting fluid is more of an attitude issue

In my post above I meant to put 33 x 4, 4.5, 5. This was from Longstone Tyres, where they showed 33" tyres as being suitable for 24" rims. They do however list various 32 x XX tyres for 23" rims, see here: http://www.longstonetyres.co.uk/search?searchMethod=searchTerm&searchScope=site&searchUrl=&sortBy=&category=&searchTerm=1061&x=18&y=5 I'm sure they will confirm if your rims are ok at 3/8 below nominal size. Straight sided tyres may well need this tolerance for fitting. I have a M5 bomb trailer which came with 18" rims, but with one 18" and one 19" tyre - the previous owner had been using it on the road for years with heavy loads! :cool2: Good luck!

It certainly seems to be a minefield. I've just found some 34 x 4, 34 x 4.5 and 34 x 5 tyres for sale online which are shown as being for 25" rim fitment!! Also found out that the use of rim size in tyre spec (e,.g. 7.50 x 20) started in 1925. Interesting then that the earlier sizing was still being made in ww2 - unless they had pressed old moulds back into use due to the critical tyre shortage maybe?

They do state rim diameter as being 'nominal', but with that difference it does seem a bit too nominal for peace of mind

The subject of old tyre sizing has come up before. They used to be specified by overall diameter and section height. So in the case of the 33 x 4.5 Vulcan tyres the rim diameter would be 33" less 2 x 4.5" giving 24". Another example is the old 34 x 7 tyre used on GMC 6x6 trucks. This was 34 - 14 giving 20" rim. This way of sizing changed (I guess around the war period?) to rim diameter and section width. In the GMC case the size became known as 7.50 x 20. A modern truck tyre sized at 385/65 R22.5 means 22.5" rim (R is radial) and width is 385mm but section height is 65% of the width i.e. much shallower tyre than the older profiles which were almost as high as they were wide.

Excuse the horrific looking modern rim - only drawing I could find online in a hurry!

33 x 4.5 gives a 24" rim, and surely your rim measures about 24" diameter on the inner face where the tyre bead sits

I like the 'ground-up restoration' description

Sadly I can't, pity as I've heard there will be a 'modified' CCKW worth inspecting - apparently the guy made up a neat manifold out of a piece of what he thought was scaffold tube, but then realised he'd just cut up one of his machine gun mount tubes :whistle::-D

Either Elizabeth is very small or Bernadette is a much bigger truck than I imagined from your avatar Worthy of the prize I reckon! I like the grey pillboxes - I guess they are polystyrene?

I thought you had one of those Hiab thingies?

You're not wrong there:wow: You should have seen the postman trying to reverse the hired-in step frame low loader up my drive :rotfl: :thumbsup: Just got to wait for the long winter evenings now :-D

The truck nearest the camera has that 'uncared for' look which we strive so hard to avoid in our restorations, doesn't it? :cheesy:

John - have you found the 'hot starting' vapour lock issues less noticeable with the Solex units? Tony

If you look at the Autocar U-7144T the early versions had a closed cab and yes the cab looks to be the same unit as that fitted to a conventional civilian truck. The same went for Ward laFrance and Diamond T trucks and others - only later in the war did material shortages and the requirement for low profile cause them to give way to a bit of canvas! I love the art-deco civilian gauges fitted to early wartime trucks, again these later mainly gave way to standardised utility components.

That is about as logical as the Cambridge Guided Bus Scheme. There really isn't much hope for us is there? At least there's the clubhouse to retreat to :nut:

Not many people know that there was a move a couple of years back by Europe to require even inert soil tips to be engineered for leachate collection to same standard as that required for domestic waste tips. That would have put the cost of lanfilling inert soils screenings etc up to same as domestic :nut: I hope it has been abandoned but don't hold your breath!

Here you go, thought I'd seen this model before! This is a wartime advert.

Welcome to the madhouse, Herb. Tuesday evening is U.S. Night in the Omaha section of the clubhouse WW2 Bar (not many newcomers realise the bar is shaped just like the Normandy coastline, they just think the carpenter was on a bender when he built it :cool2:), but your Autocar won't be out of place - if Jack asks awkward questions about the date of it bluff it out, tell him it was a military prototype or something. I do like the look of the immediate post war Autocars - low riding and purposeful, unlike some designs. In fact I think this same design appeared in sales adverts towards the end of the war? I guess the D stands for diesel? What make of engine were they fitting at this time?

If you want sympathy become a farmer

Hacksaw or cutting disc. Crimp on clamps like this are very effective but it's a one way trip :whistle:

I was hoping you were going to show us!!!! I don't know anything about the curve to angle you mentioned above - show us please:D All I know is the later chain blocks, never seen any steelwork which was any different :undecided:

Care to share by means of an illustration please?