gritineye

Now look you lot, time to think outside the box

Cant decide on an engine, couplings wrecked, gearbox knackered, fuel too dear for you? :???

If you've got the tinker time, this modification cures all the above, AND you will get PAID to attend rallies, with a pallet of coal thrown in! :-D

May have to cure the water leak though.

Would that have been the SOEC, if so I still have a few contacts?

Yes Mike, but that mold was a prototype and it was thought that someone in the club would be able to improve on it. that is machine one rather than hand cut and file, and set out PCDs accurately. However Colin resigned, and stuff got forgotten about, it's probably laying in a shed somewhere, when not assembled it just looked like scrap metal!

As to the steering gaiter, Amos Bodsworth did a fine mod to his, by machining the nose of the end cover paralell he was able to fit a gaiter from a motorcycle front forks, perfectly reliable, modern and cheap.

And clever :clap:

Sneaky people around! Clearly a relatively recent photo of Gritineyes Explorer, with the non standard air horns fitted!

Check the number Jules, and them air horns are PUNEY!

It is not impossible to re-manufacture the drive couplings, send me your old metal bits and I'll do it. Don't know the current cost of materials but mine that I made have lasted around 13 years. No problems, apart from the alloy bits degrading!

Tugs Of War shows Forceful on a trailer ramp, page 88, this was because the couplings broke up, I made new ones the next week and they're still going; ToW was published 1995.

Unfortunately I trustingly donated my molds to a now seemingly defunct club so will have to re-make them but Hey Ho thats life.

Costs will be reasonable to genuine enthusiasts, I will only deal with those I know.

PM me if you are interested.

Fantastic,now i have to look at all the others,all those skills gone into restoring it,all lost here.Thanks,I will have to put mine on u tube only some members have expressed an interest in seeing it,oh by the way loved the black smoke i guess that would clear up at max speed which would probably be about 45 knts thats big for a speed boat.thanks again,

Well I'd like to see it CW, your efforts haven't gone unnoticed, if you could take the time, looking forward to it

What a good tale and hopefully a happy ending, I have wonderful childhood memories of being in the engine room of a paddle steamer moored to the end of Eastbourne pier, and paddle powered steamers have fascinated me ever since.

All the more interesting as I named My Explorer 'Forceful' after seeing a paddle tug by that name pass by in the background of a scene in an old BW movie, (don't know the name of the film, I was just channel hopping) I had never found a picture of her before now.

Thanks for posting it here.

On the website detailing the ship's log, www.pbs.org/odyssey/odyssey/20001117_log_transcript.html there is a real video link under the title but I cannot play it for some reason. You never know, it might just show them!

 

Note there should be a _ in the gaps between 17 and log, and between log and trans

There are a couple of what I think are Bedfford QL tippers but no Constructors that I can see, I may of course be wrong

Really impressed with those, the enthusiastic amateur will often find a way when professionals can't. Any idea what the book was called?

On my way north I went to see Ted Riley in Staffordshire. He has a very tidy Explorer with a nice running Meadows petrol engine.

 

 

On the top of each wing there is a flat top for some reason, they are very neatly done but what are they?

That looks a treat, so straight and shiney!

Maybe some one wanted to be more comfortable tweaking the carbs and cleaning the plugs, checker plate marks on the bum though? :-D

and yes shes medows powerd

but shock:shocking: horror its a DESIEL

Is it known if the diesel is original? there were a few, that would make it very rare!

Video for Militant fans here

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Mo5BQ91B_j4

I did read on this forum recently that the use of A-bars is to be outlawed. If that's true, I wonder why.

Perhaps because some of them aren't too well engineered :nono:

And Europe don't like them :confused:

It's always better to be the one doing the towing than the one being towed. I've had some very scary moments behind tow trucks who seem to have forgotten I was there. There's a lot to be said for A Bars.

Agree the A-bar, being towed on a straight bar by someone who has forgotten you're there and so doesn't use indicators ain't good, as behind an Explorer all you see is "the fat backside", even worse when he has forgotten to turn on the air valves, hence VERY heavy steering!:argh: :argh:I Know, I should have checked!

Can't see the number on Explorer in your pix Jules but I think it was the previous owner of that one doing the towing!

Funny how small an Explorer looks when being towed behind another Explorer! :-D

Should I post them under Scammell, or under the towed vehicle category? ie Stolly, Diamond T, Humber, Matador, and a few others....

In my opinion Towing vehicle takes precedence in all cases, post it this thread!

I'm sure devotees of the vehicles in trouble will love to post broken down Explorers in their own threads. :cool2:

Well get posting Jules, we all love a tow job, specially when it's not us being towed! :-D

hello all

this will be my first visit to war and peace so be gental

aiming to arive on or around the eveaning of the 17 and shall be camping where on the site i dont know ? shall be atending with just me myself and i so am hopeing to meet the few people iknow from the scammell department and meet many more people i dont know

thanks

 

nick o

Forceful is always gentle with admirers and responds well to flattery Nick, don't know where we'll be for sure yet, but no doubt you'll find us.

Nice work, I like those, a friend has one. :thumbsup:

The chassis nos 9111-2 were supplied under contract no 6/VEH/17778/CB27B, civil (not MEXE), PGK 887-8, no date is shown in list.

 

 

So the word 'civil' listed probably means 'civilian cab', makes sense.

Thanks Jules, I have knifed a flat surface to the seal with RTV and used only grease for the run to Beltring, so the seal will hold up OK as it only leaked when I topped up the swivel housing oil.

May have a look later as that type of seal was supposed to be used up to Chassis no 8062. Strangely mine is Chassis no 8642, but nothing is to the book on the six in my contract.

That takes me back Mike, I see the roof sheeting is all rolled very nicely, if you don't mind my asking, what method was used?

I guess so, but she's supplied parts to a number of other Explorers to keep them going, or supply missing parts, and there's still a lot there. The only really important part I wish was still there is the steering box as it's a bit difficult to move about the field, and would be hard to find for the re-build!

Hi Jules, I think you'll find the left rear hub will be heavily scored inside the taper as it came loose and fell off another Explorer, it was put on that one to replace the just to keep it mobile.

I may have a display like this one day mate !My Pigs done but Scammell is "some way off finished" :rofl::rofl::rofl:

Could have got it there with a Daisy chain

Says something about the price of scrap if good ones like that are being scrapped!

Or is that how it will appear on ebay? Like a veiled threat.

As to the doors, I was just about to edit that post to say they also look a lot like the ones on some civilian crewcab constructors, no need now. :coffee:

The chassis nos 9111-2 were supplied under contract no 6/VEH/17778/CB27B, civil (not MEXE), PGK 887-8, no date is shown in list.

There is one Constructor under contract no KL/H/0402/CB27B, listed as supplied to MEXE, but no date or chassis no.

Maybe the reason for wanting an other Heavy recovery Tractor may have been to get a vehicle with more lifting ability, (the Explorer's rear axle pivots too far forward to lift more) the Constructors were only considered to be medium mobility as far as I understand it, I cant recall where I got that last bit from, it may be incorrect.

Leyland Martian doors then anyway, gedd outa that!

was my first reaction me and him shall be heading out for a therapy session soon :cool2:

Just stick with the grinning :-D:-D:-D mate and take full advantage of the time spent in an Explorer!