Stormin

I think it's the same problem with the Cummins pump. Bearings, plungers and likages seized with rust. Forunately this pump is quite simple and I've got the Cummins manual. This engine is not as highly tuned as some either. :undecided:

Those left hand side pedals look to be in an awkward postion behind the footrest! Presumably clutch and brake so not just occasionally awkward.

Also been busy stripping down the Cummins fuel pump. Removed it from the vehicle and took it home to work on in the garage during the week. Quite a few needle roller bearings were seized or sticky and needed fettling. A bit of improvisation with a 12 bore cartridge for reinstallation. Last picture shows a bearing face that's badly pitted and may be partly responsible for poor throttle and governor action.

Can't say the same for the rear body however. Just a few shots to show how bad it is.

A quick inspection of the rear chassis shows it's not too bad. Sorry to John Gott on the Diamond T 969A restoration but I wasn't able to get photo's with just the rear deck removed. May try again on re-assembly.

Next to come off was the main rear body. It had been the intention to remove the rear deck seperately from the crane and winch. But someone had welded the two parts together at some point. We could have removed the welds and still separated the sections but further inspection showed the rear deck section was so badly corroded it would probably fall apart or at least lose some of it's shape whilst lifting. This would make it a lot harder to repair. Again several attempts at rigging were required to find a balance point. We actually settled for lifting the body up onto packers, rear end first then front, before lifting the whole thing clear. The body fit's quite tightly to the chassis and at one point the overhead crane was lifting the rear wheels. Thanks to Dave at DJM engineering for the use of the overhead crane.

Had a go at removing the rear body last weekend. First to come off was the crane boom. It's a long unwieldy piece and took a few attempts to rig correctly for lifting.

Can't agree with you there Neil. Conqueror tracks look wider although more open being without pads. It's also got more road wheels to spread the load along the track. Conqueror definately looks better! As Mike said lower profile. Also meaner looking tracks.

Doesn't look too bad in the photo. Take it they're just showing the good side in typical Witham's fashion.

Quite like the look of those. Look a lot better than the plastic type of kit car conversions usually seen. Don't see a Schwimmwagen variant though!

Will there be any need for a few WWII tank recovery vehicles to attend? Just in case!

Make sure you've got plenty of petrol ration tokens. Hope the weather holds and the gremlins stay away. Enjoy!

I'd suspect a bad earth somewhere. Especially seeing as it's been stood for some time I believe.

And I thought you were attracted by the stablilisers on the rear. :rofl:

Thanks NOS No need to measure up I was only kidding. Got my Cummins fuel pump stripped down trying to improve it at the moment so still persevering with the old engine.

I had my eye on that Cummins diesel on the floor in front of it! How far north is it?

Is there any other truck that uses the same intermediate plate or is it a visit to a machine shop to get one made? Doesn't look to complex to make so shouldn't cost the earth if you find the right man. Is the pressure plate O.K.? Take it you're dealing with nasty old asbestos dust from that failure given the age of the vehicle. :shake: At least it shouldn't be asbestos on the new linings.

Have you got a source for the motor and all the other missing bits? Looks like there's a lot to find. Good luck with the restoration.

The wrecker frame along with the rear winch is on a subframe bolted to the chassis. The actual bed sits on another frame on top of this surrounding the crane and winch. I'm hoping to remove this seperately to rebuild it. I'm not sure I'm going to try to remove the differentials from the bogies yet.

John, I should be lifting the bed off my Ward La France in the near future. I'll take photo's so we can compare accessibilty.

The good old Scammell Pioneer must be worth a mention. Lasting from the mid Thirties right up to the 70's. The Diamond T tank transporter was in service from 1941 til the 1980's I believe, albeit re-engined. The AEC matadors did a good stretch as well. These are all just marques of vehicle though. No evidence that one particular vehicle served 40 years plus. Diffilcult to pin down as we know so many vehicles are held in reserve and have an easy life. Be good to try and find the single vehicle (wheeled and engined) that has done the longest stint of real service, (not just ceremonial or sat in reserve).

I've just registered on G503 with the intention of posting a few pictures myself. :evil: The irony is I got it from there own back yard.

Still having problems with the engine not responding to the throttle. Checked the injector pump timing again at weekend and found I was out by quite a margin from when I last refitted the pump top. I'm mystified as to how this came about as I checked it and was sure it was correct before replacing. Anyhow a second pair of eyes helped this time, and gave me some stick for messing up previously. My thoughts are now turning to the governor mechanism sticking. There has been plenty of corrosion in some parts of the injector pump so could be the same there. I may yet have to completely remove and strip the injector pump to eliminate all problems. The job doesn't look too complicated I am just worried I may find I need a part that is unobtainable.

Finally managed to get the elusive radiator cap! Actually I have to admit I've had it for a few weeks but haven't fitted it believing it was still too small. Well if only I'd tried sooner. Went up to top up anti-freeze today and was amazed to find the cap fitted. Looks the best bit on the truck now :rofl:

I was surprised to find the tank had been made with internal baffles. Not the original tank but a good copy and quite sound. The tank I have for the other side is badly corroded and will be merely for display. I changed the fuel filter for a combined filter and sedimenter. The existing one (shown left) was a sedimenter only. I also fitted a modern priming bulb in line which includes a non return valve. Hopefully this should sort out any fuel feed problems.