JeffHall

An ex-crusader underlift, or one off a prototype Foden? interesting combination & should prove quite useful, are you going to change the under-lift foot to something a little longer?

The small hydraulic ram that operates the winch brake on my EKA has developed an excessive leak.. Does anyone have, or know of, a seal kit, or have a spare unit? I've not stripped it yet to see if the seals are specials, I was hoping someone might have some old stock laying on a shelf.. If all else fails I can see me buying an equivalent size & stroke ram & making a suitable bracket. Any help much appreciated. Thanks Jeff

Hydraulic Oil Filter BT8914 7 63 01 2off, located near where the main boom pivots. For all the world they look like large spin-on oil filters.

I found the post with filter PN's.. " Originally Posted by kevin royan Can anybody give me the civvy part numbers for oil and fuel filters for my crusader thanks Kevin Hi Kevin Coopers filters part numbers are as follows, should be able to cross ref to most good makers part Oil AZL041 Fuel - canister type AZF015 Fuel - Spin on type AZF051 Air - OD 235mm HGT 343mm AZA309 Air - OD 282mm HGT 419mm AZA314 Hope that helps Nigel http://www.scammell-crusader.co.uk You can never have enough Scammells!!!"

There is a thread on here that lists, Air, Oil & Fuel filters for it, one of my posts has a PN for the Hyd oil filters which are quite important because they restrict the hydraulic oil from getting back to the tank in the boom, can make it very slow for the boom to drop that final stage. As for an extension, I got one for my truck from Dave Crouch, wasn't cheap but a lot less than a MK2 interstater foot conversion will cost! I wanted to do the same for mine, but ended up with the extension & an Interstater cross head with pedestals, now got std, med & highs for it over a period of time. The EKA forks are perfect fit for the pedestals, so no need for more expense there.. Only downside even with the extension at full boom out, is the reach still isn't that good compared with more modern kit, more so for us because we'll be lifting coaches with it & their axles are set way back! Good luck though, I'm very impressed with mine, it's one solid truck! Jeff

Whilst it looks in a bit of a state, a period of stripping down, shot blasting & painting would I presume improve things no end, if only I could persuade the other half to let me have it as a project.. The eBay description says Meadows Diesel, so at least it's not a thirsty petrol! Hmmm I am tempted.

Ah, that would imply the 65T t/u having more brake friction area thus needing a larger actuator to create the same or equal braking force.. So in calculating the GTW, there is a combination of axle loading, gradient restart and overall brake force available? I'd certainly be interested is seeing how & what makes up the calculation. Am still curious why the MOD or Scammell fealt the need to de-rate the chassis!

I checked my Scammell EKA tonight & the filters fitted have the following PN/number on them.. BT8914 7 63 01 they are plain white spin on filters much the same as engine oil filters. They are definitely in the return line to the tank so are completely different to the HP filter housing pictured in the post above. It'll be interesting if EKA did the Foden differently to the Scammell. Anyhow, I hope the info helps someone!

Has the Foden got the same dual hydraulic pump setup with one pump doing everything except the 2 high power motors on the main winch? The hydraulic schematic for the Scammell EKA doesn't show any HP side filtration, only the two you mention between where the boom pivots. They're spin-on std oil filter style, or at least mine are.. As has been talked about in the past though, my boom takes an age to close that final stage under gravity, a helping hand using your winch cable method works so maybe my filters could do with swapping, either that or the liberal application of grease is needed?

I'll have a look what hydraulic filters are on my Scammell tomorrow, I just tried looking up the NSN PN from the IPL & I think it relates to the housing only, not the screw on element. If the system is similar to the Scammell EKA then the filters sit in the return lines to the tank, I doubt very much they'd survive long if blocked as they're LP only. The parts dwgs show filters inside the hyd pumps also, presumably to protect the internals from sucking debris out the hyd oil tank? If intermittent & now failed totally it sounds more like a relief valve stuck open, although if its low flow into the pump(s)? it might be worth looking at the pump inlet side, I don't imagine they'd like being starved of oil long before doing damage.. Fingers X'd it's simple.. Regards Jeff

Impressive piece of kit that doesn't even have a conventional underlift or rotating recovery boom. I can't help thinking that perhaps it's a little too specialised to have a civilian use - that is without some serious mods.

Howard Any scope to do a large scale Scammell Crusader EKA model as part of your classic British series? I could let you crawl around one for as long as you'd need, except I'm in Coventry. Jeff Hall Scammell Crusader EKA - NPW987V

Hi Steve I figured if I could get the remote to work as is it'd save me cutting out the reel mechanism, it must not recoil anyway as its simply looped around the hook to the side of it.. The front winch switches in the cab work ok, as do the pull switches in the same locker as the levers, so there can't be much wrong wiring wise. I just wish I could get a proper wiring diagram. As for the GTW I understand what you're saying. Presumably though does any operation over 44t need STGO plating anyway? when we get it looking a little better I'll post photos. Jeff

Given the EKA was supposed to be based upon the 65t 6x4 Chassis, is there any reason (That anyone knows) why the design GTW is only 46740kg? Its not likely to be a concern for us when we get ours refurbished and painted because no 3 axle coach is more than 24-26t empty but just an observation while I was digging about I happened accross the Weights Plate and it got me thinking. I'm guessing the clue may be somewhere in the chassis code of : FMB4612180R I've read that the 180 is the wheelbase in inches but am not sure how to decode the rest - somewhere I read that there is a production month & I'm guessing engine type and probably gearbox /axles also? While trying to sort out the various items needing repair, we've noticed that the remote control doesn't work - does anyone have a wiring diagram showing where and how it joins the loom? I'm not too worried about the remote long term because I'd like to go Radio Control, but it'd be nice for the wired remote to work for now! Any ideas as where to start looking? Any thoughs of info will be much appreciated Jeff Hall Scammell Crusader EKA : NPW987V

Rob That's pretty much the configuration I'd got in my head as being almost ideal, a Scammell with most of the good EKA bits, a modified 2 stage extending boom to give the reach and most probably wheel grids for ease of recovery - besides it saves bending the bus when it hasn't got a proper chassis or solid beam axle. I've seen a fair few pics of Scammells in the guise you describe so it must be possible and relatively viable - it might just be that overall cost of creating that setup is beyond that of a comparable civilian setup that wouldn't need the mods? Now, if someone had one already done and was looking to sell at the right price, life would be much simpler! Jeff Hall Terrys Coach Hire - Coventry

Thanks Guys :-) Cosrec you've nailed what I presumed would be the Scammell / Foden weakness with the EKA system as fitted, I had pretty much figured the extending boom would have to be re-created / extended / modified to suit the reach requirements of lifting a coach from the axle. I always assumed I'd junk the std EKA drop in cross heads in favour of a conventional Interstater style bar & forks anyway, even moreso if rebuilding the extending boom. I was curious more about the EKA's actual lift ability, looking at the pics, it seems the ex-military units had only one telescopic lift ram whereas the civilian models all seemed to have two? My point being, if the boom was modified to give the reach - would the vehicle had the ability to safely lift 4-5tonne at 3M? Its quite obvious they are superb bits of kit for what they were intended, my proper day job is aerospace systems so I know a little about how the Military err over-spec things! The bonus for me with the Scammell / Foden solution is also the winches, quite a bit more capable than what most civilian wreckers seem to make do with, it has been known for us to have to get a coach winched out of a soggy field after sinking axle deep, the driver having been told by the party organiser or even the venue owner that coaches always park on there.... It might be that a 'normal' civilian wrecker would suit our needs better, but from what I've seen not all of them have sufficient reach and I've known recovery companies have to jack vehicles onto blocks/stands before they can get the lift under the axle so thats not a problem unique to the EKA (more like anything with a thick boom). The horizontal at 3' off the floor was something I'd not picked up on and wouldn't be much good for us - again though I'm assuming that can be changed like most things. I really do appreciate your thoughts and views on this, I can visualise the engineering and mechanics, but its no substitute for real 'done it before' knowledge. Don't worry though, we're not about to launch into a recovery business - this is all about us potentially bringing home our own vehicles in a slightly better way without having to always bring in outside help - some however will always be recovered by the big boys - I don't think we'd dare try to bring home our 14M Double Decker even if we had a vehicle capable! I'll do some more research in the meantime.. Jeff Hall Terrys Coach Hire - Coventry

Hi I recently joined the forum not because I have a massive military vehicle bent, but because it seemed to hold lots of information on ex-military recovery vehicles. I'm currently looking into whether an ex-mil Scammel EKA or Foden would make a suitable vehicle for us to use for recovering our coaches. Nothing particularly long distance or that big n heavy, just a bit more advanced than a converted tractor unit and a bar! The only weakness I've noticed so far is the lack of 'reach' on the underlift, something that can obviously be overcome with a little engineering. These are some of the numbers I'm looking to work with, if anyone has experience or advice I'd love to hear it! I need these sort of loads/reach. (Metres to the centre of the front axle) 6tonne @ ~2.6M 4.5 tonne @ ~2.8-3.0M Max casualty weight of between 12 & 18tonnes. Many thanks Jeff Hall Terrys Coach Hire - Coventry